Weekly current affairs bulletin 4-10 Feb 2013

WEEKLY CURRENT AFFAIRS BULLETIN
4TH FEBRUARY, 2013 TO 10TH FEBRUARY , 2013
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2nd December: Infrastructure & Resources 1. Transportation infrastructure: Road and Highway Networks, Mass Transit Systems, Railways, Waterways, Ports.... 2. Energy infrastructure:- Thermal Power Generation, Natural Gas Pipelines & Petroleum Pipelines, Nuclear Energy, Renewable Energy...... 3. Water management infrastructure:- Drinking water supply, Sewage Collection and Disposal of Waste water, Flood Control, Water Harwesting..... 4. Communications infrastructure:- Television and Radio Transmission, Internet, Social Network, Search Engines, Communications Satellites...... 5. Solid Waste Management 6. Economic Infrastructure: Manufacturing Infrastructure, including Industrial Parks and Special Economic zones, Agricultural, Forestry and Fisheries Infrastructure.... 7. Resources: Water Resources, Forest Resources, Land Resources, Energy Resources, Minerals, Resource Management..... 9th December: Demography : Population Composition, Density, Literacy, Sex Ratio... 16th December: Environmental Problems & Global Environmental Governance : Deforestation, Pollution: Air, Water, Land, Noise, Desertification, Biodiversity Depletion, Global Warming, SD.......
Production and productivity, Microirrigation, Urbanization, Government Initiatives...... 6th January: Indian Economy Basics, Planning & Trade 1. Industry Services, Agriculture, Energy..... 2. Balance of Payments. Foreign Direct Investment....... 3. Growth, Development and Other Issues......... 4. Poverty Estimates, Impact of Poverty........ 5. Exchange rate. Role of RBI..... 6. Nature of Planning - Five Year Plan, Planning after 1991 (LPG), Inflation..... 13th January: Governance and Contemporary Political Developments : Development Politics, Political and Administrative Institutions, Good Governance, Internal Security....
23rd December: Human Development, Social Sector Initiatives and Programmes & Policies 1. Concept of Human Development, Development vs. Growth, Human Development Index, MPI, Innovation..... 2. Social Inclusion, Child Welfare, Women Welfare.... 30th December: Agriculture, Urbanisation, Health : Agriculture and GDP, Agricultural Regionalization,
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20th January ... 27th January ... 3rd February .. 10th February . 31st March ...... 7th April ......... 14th April ....... 21st April ........
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Weekly Current Affairs 4th February to 10th February, 2013 [3]
NATIONAL
Government initiates time-bound action plan to reduce crimes against women The Government has initiated a number of steps to improve and strengthen the police and administrative system to ensure that crimes against the women are prevented through quick action, a gender sensitive response mechanism and greater accountability of the enforcement agencies. The Ordinance promulgated by the President on February 3, 2013 deals with the amendments in the criminal law. These measures are in addition to the Ordinance and cut across various ministries. The measures outlined deal with changes in the police system, a review of the Motor Vehicles Act, measures to make responses to crimes against women efficient and sensitive and other administrative measures. The steps outlined include the following: a) NCRB will compile a database of persons convicted of criminal offences. The details of criminals convicted of crimes against women will be displayed on their website. MoRT&H, in consultation with technical experts and police representatives, will examine what should be the maximum permissible level of tinting in the glasses in public transport buses. The use of curtains will be reviewed taking into account the need for passenger comfort and visibility required for security purposes. MoRT&H proposes to appropriately revise the standards and ensure compliance by the manufacturers of these buses.
b) Action will be taken to provide the facility of registering an FIR in any police station irrespective of the jurisdiction or area of the time. The FIR may thereafter be transferred to the concerned police station for investigation. This will pertain to serious crimes including issues against women. c) It is important that citizens should not face any harassment when they come forward to assist women in distress. For this, such citizens should be protected to enable them to freely report a crime and assist the victim/police without being subjected to any interrogation or being forced to become witnesses.
d) 'Women Only' buses should be pressed into service. A programme is proposed to be undertaken for encouraging more women driven buses/taxis all over the country. e) The existing Motor Vehicle Regulations will be reviewed. f) It has been reported that in some instances vehicles have factory-fitted glasses wherein the tint is more than the permissible limit. Secretary,
[ 4 ] Weekly Current Affairs 4th February to 10th February, 2013
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g) There is need for 100% verification for drivers/ conductors/helpers (the entire crew) of the public transport vehicles, plying in Delhi in a time bound programme which will include collecting bio-metrics of all such persons as well. For this, action will be taken to review the relevant Rules for mandating the same. Ministry of Home Affairs would develop a protocol over a defined time frame, for verification of the crew of public transport vehicles and suitable advise the State Governments also to undertake the same. After the stipulated time frame, no public transport vehicle will be allowed to be driven/ manned by any driver/conductor/helper or other crew member unless such a person has been verified and carries the verification certificate/identity permit. h) Owners of buses will be held responsible for compliance of the steps outlined. It is also necessary to debar owners of vehicles involved in repeat offences from retaining existing permits/obtaining any fresh permits for plying public transport vehicles and for impounding of vehicles involved in repeat offences. MoRT&H/State Governments will initiate action in this regard. The particulars of the bus owner/drivers and details of permit and license shall be prominently displayed in the buses both inside and outside, at places where it is prominently visible in easily readable fonts. Use of GPS devices in all public transport vehicles is necessary along with setting up of a control room to monitor movement of buses. Ministry of Road Transport & Highways would issue an appropriate advisory to all the States in this regard.
i)
There is need to increase the quantum of fines leviable on violation of permit conditions and to disallow compounding of offences beyond a certain number. At the time of inspection of police stations, it should be mandatory for the inspecting officer to specifically record his findings regarding the gender sensitivity of the personnel posted in the police station as well as the record of the police station/SHO in registering/investigating complaints of crimes against women, and for checking whether women are being discouraged from lodging complaints in the police stations.
j)
n) It would be proposed to have lady police personnel in at least some PCR vans, such as those deployed in the vicinity of educational institutions, cinema halls, malls and markets, as also the routes frequented by women employees of BPOs returning from work at night. Over time, it is planned to have some more 'all women' police stations. o) It is also planned to further develop and promote community policing. This would not only augment the effectiveness of the police force but would also motivate the responsible persons in each locality to perform their duty as citizens. p) There is a need for increased focus on street lighting in public places. Civic bodies must undertake a review of the existing facilities and strengthen these wherever required. q) Department of Women and Child Development will implement a scheme to provide compensation to victims of sexual assault and also a scheme for setting up Crisis Response Centres in select hospitals to provide psychological and other assistance to the victims of sexual assault. The proposed scheme will be implemented in a pilot phase in 100 districts from 2013-14. r) The Government proposes to put in place a countrywide three-digit number (such as 100) to respond to all emergency situations. This would be similar like 911 or 990 Emergency Management Systems in vogue in many developed countries. Such a service would be available to subscribers of all telecom service providers as at present there are different telephone numbers being used for responding to different situations or target groups. It is, therefore, proposed to have a system where there is a one point of contact available to a person in distress of any kind. Also, once a call is made to this number, the caller should not be asked to contact some other special/emergency number. Instead, the call should seamlessly be transferred from the single point of contact to the appropriate distress line. Ministry of Home Affairs in coordination with the D/o Telecom will, by the end of February 2013, come up with a basic concept note on how the system will be established and will operate. In addition to the general emergency response helpline, there would be a helpline dedicated to responding to women in distress. This helpline should have a unique three digit number across
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l)
There is a continual need for gender sensitization among the police force, particularly at the level of the constabulary on beat duty or at the police stations. There is need for impressing that there has to be a complete cessation of gender insensitive comments. For this, training courses need to be organized on a regular basis by the police. Strict disciplinary action will be taken against any official indulging in gender bias. Action taken in this regard has to be reported at every level. If action is not found to be taken against an erring official, the supervisory officer will be held accountable. Instructions in this regard will be issued and compliance ensured. At all levels, it will be made mandatory for a reporting officer to comment upon on the gender sensitivity of the police personnel reported upon in the Annual Performance Appraisal Report. It will be emphasized and ensured that remarks in this regard are based on specific instances of behavior and are not reduced to a ritualistic yes/ no. When considering postings or promotions of police personnel, the attitude towards women should specifically be taken into account.
m) There is an imperative need to recruit more women in the police force. Women will need to be recruited in large numbers in the Delhi Police. MHA will take necessary action to obtain necessary approvals within this financial year. Action would, similarly, need to be taken in the States as well, to recruit more women in the police force. In order to incentivize the States in this regard, MHA will formulate a suitable proposal/scheme within four weeks and obtain necessary approvals.
Weekly Current Affairs 4th February to 10th February, 2013
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k) Strict action will be taken against police personnel and officers found to be either displaying bias against women or neglecting their supervisory responsibilities in this regard.
the country. For this purpose, the number 181 may be operationalized all over the country. t) The negative, stereotyped and/or indecent portrayal of women in movies, television shows and advertisements has been a matter of concern for long. It would be helpful if all stakeholders were to be continuously engaged with in this regard. There is also a need to have a sustained media campaign of public interest advertisements.
In view of the tremendous increase in the medical diagnostic installations using medical X-ray units in the country, AERB has taken proactive steps to exercise regulatory control over all such installations by decentralizing the regulation of these units by having and MoU with State Government and Union Territories to set up Directorate of Radiation Safety in various States/Union Territories. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board was constituted on November 15, 1983 by the President of India by exercising the powers conferred by the Atomic Energy Act to carry out certain regulatory and safety functions under the Act. The mission of the Board is to ensure that the use of ionizing radiation and nuclear energy in India does not cause undue risk to health and the environment. The Headquarter is situated in Mumbai. Dedicated Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanisation proposed during 12th Five Year Plan
AERB Signs MoU with the Governments of Maharashtra and Odisha for Setting up Directorate of Radiation Safety (DRS)
The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has entered into an agreement with two State authorities of Maharashtra and Odisha for formation of State level Directorate of Radiation Safety for strengthening the regulator control on medical diagnostic X-ray facilities.
With these, AERB has signed MoUs with a total of 10 States (Kerala, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Odisha) of which DRS in Kerala and Mizoram are already functioning. Government of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh are in the process of signing MoUs shortly.
It may be noted that diagnostic radiology facilities utilizing X-ray units are widely available in the country (approx. 50000) and a large number of persons undergo diagnostic X-ray procedures every year. These X-ray units if not designed or operated properly may lead to unwanted radiation exposure to the patients as well as the operators. The safety review and assessment of these machines is carried out by AERB of India which is the national regulatory body for enforcement of radiological safety regulations in the country. AERB has stipulated various regulatory requirements for such X-ray facilities such as Design Certification, Type Approval / No Objection Certificate, Approval of Layout, Registration of X-ray Equipment, Commissioning of X-ray Installations, Certification of Radiological Safety Officers (RSOs) and Certification of Service Engineers.
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u) Role of value education in schools is recognized as being very important. However, merely prescribing it in the curricula/syllabus is not adequate. Teachers should be given training in value education. Sustained awareness campaigns on gender equality need to be undertaken in all schools and colleges and gender modules need to be integrated in the curriculum at every level.
Ministry of Agriculture is promoting a new strategy for farm mechanization through its various schemes and programmes. A dedicated Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization has been proposed for the XIIth Plan which includes custom-hiring facilities for agricultural machinery as one of its major components. The Sub-Mission aims at catalyzing an accelerated but inclusive growth of agricultural mechanization in India. Its focus is on increasing the reach of farm mechanization to small and marginal farmers and to the regions where availability of farm power is low. Custom hiring of farm machinery envisages promoting establishment of farm machinery banks for custom hiring by way of providing financial assistance to individual self-help groups or farmers' co-operatives since the prohibitive cost of hi-tech and high productive equipments renders it difficult for individual ownership.. The other major components included in the SubMission, apart from custom hiring facilities for agricultural machinery are promotion and strengthening of agricultural mechanisation through training, testing and demonstration; post-harvest technology and management (PHTM); financial assistance or procurement subsidy for agriculture machinery and equipments; establishment of farm machinery banks for custom hiring; enhancing hitech, high productive equipment hub for custom hiring; enhancing farm productivity at village level by introducing appropriate farm mechanisation in
selected villages; and creating ownership of appropriate farm equipments among small/marginal farmers in eastern/north eastern region. Ministry of I&B Constitutes A Panel to Examine issues of Certification under Cinematograph Act 1952
topped. Union Minister for Rural Development Shri Jairam Ramesh ordered States to prepare Detailed Project Reports in two stages. States can take up construction of formation, construction of gravel-base as well as slope stabilization, protection works and drainage works under Stage A, while Stage B would include bituminous or concrete surfing. States would be allowed to complete Stage A and furnish DPRs for Stage B later before March 2015, keeping in view the law and order situation. The States would be allowed to use the schedule of rates of that particular year of DPR submission for Stage B. Moreover, States can move proposals for engagement of State or Central PSUs having experience of road and bridge construction for which the Central Government will pay a fee of 10 percent. The Centre will also consider including insurance premium for personnel of contractors on a 75:25 cost sharing basis with State governments. Out of the 52,000 habitations in the 82 naxal affected districts, 30,000 have been sanctioned, but only 19,000 habitations have been connected so far. SAI takes steps for strengthening its schemes after a considered and detailed review of all verticals leading to sports promotion pan India
The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has constituted a panel under the Chairmanship of Shri Mukul Mudgal, Retired Chief Justice, High Court of Punjab and Haryana to examine issues of certification under the Cinematograph Act 1952. The Terms of Reference of the Committee are as under:A. Review the mandate and functioning of CBFC and recommend measures including statutory changes to enable CBFC to deal with contemporary requirements of certification and increased transparency / efficiency. Such issues, inter alia, may include : a) The process of certification under the Act and Rules, including the mechanism followed by Examining and Revising Committees;
b) Categories of certification, existing and proposed, under the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2013; c) Requirement of special categories of certification for the purposes of broadcasting on television channels and radio stations. B. To review the mandate and functioning of Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) in order to make it a more efficacious appellate body;
C. Examine the role of Central Government regarding sanctioning of cinematograph films for exhibition under Entry 60, List I of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India vis--vis Entry 33, List II of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India;
D. To suggest more effective legal remedies and penal provisions in the Act, particularly with reference to making unlawful copies, camcording in cinema halls, interpolation/ insertion of clips after certification and such similar issues; and The Committee may submit its report in two months from the date of its constitution. Centre approves multi-connectivity under PMGSY in naxal affected districts
Government has approved multi-connectivity in naxal affected districts under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, PMGSY, but only one will be black
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Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports (I/C) and Chairman, Governing Body of Sports Authority of India (SAI), Shri Jitendra Singh has decided to strengthen all verticals such as Nutrition, infrastructure, scientific support and Personnel. Thus Sports Authority of India (SAI) has taken the initiative of increasing the dietary allowance of Trainees of SAI Sports Promotional Schemes. SAI currently operates three in-house schemes to promote excellence in sports, namely SAI Training Centres (STCs), Special Area Games (SAGs) and Centre of Excellence (COEs). While the former two schemes focus on junior -level sportspersons, the COE acts as a constant pool of highly skilled sportspersons from where players for national teams can be sourced. In addition, SAI also operates the National Sports Talent Contest (NSTC) Scheme in adopted schools for Sub-juniors and the Army Boys Sports Companies (ABSC) Scheme in collaboration with the Indian Army. This amend will come into effect from March 1, 2013. Each trainee of ABSC, STC and SAG scheme in Special Category States (North East, Sikkim, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal) will be provided diet @Rs 200/- per day which has been increased from Rs 140. For the
remaining states / UT's, the dietary provision would be @ Rs. 175/ per trainee per day which sees an increase of Rs 50. However for trainees of COEs, dietary provision has been increased from Rs 175 to Rs. 225/- per day pan India and for the NSTC schemes the present sanction is Rs.125/- per day which saw an increase of Rs 50 per day per person. This frontward step will benefit 7479 residential SAI trainees across the country. SAI has currently 52 trainees in 17 adopted schools under the NSTC Scheme; 1005 trainees in 15 ABSCs; 4393 trainees in 58 STCs; 1693 trainees in 20 SAG Centres and 336 trainees in 10 COEs. Merger of National Lake Conservation Plan and National Wetlands Conservation Programme into a new scheme
Rashtriya Bal Swasthya karyakram launched
Under the National Rural Health Mission, several new initiatives have been taken, particularly to improve maternal and child health. Over Rs. 90,000 crores has been released to the states for strengthening health systems. Despite tremendous improvements in health indicators, about 15 lakh children die before their fifth birthday every year. Many more suffer from debilitating diseases affecting their growth and quality of life. Thus GOI has launched a new health initiative "Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram" at Palghar, a Tribal Block in Thane district, Maharashtra. The initiative is to provide comprehensive healthcare and improve the quality of life of children through early detection of birth defects, diseases, deficiencies, development delays including disability. With the launch of the Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram, regular health screening of children in public health facilities, Aanganwadis and Government and Government aided schools for defects at birth, diseases, deficiencies and development disorders will be done now. A set of thirty common conditions have been identified for screening and further management. These services are built on the existing school health services and these services will be provided through dedicated mobile health teams placed in every block. The block level dedicated mobile medical health teams would comprise of four health personnel viz. two AYUSH doctors (One Male, One Female), ANM/ SN and a Pharmacist. The teams will carry out screening of all the children in the age group 0 - 6 years enrolled at Anganwadi centres at least twice a year besides screening of all children enrolled in Government and Government aided schools. The newborns will also be screened for birth defects in health facilities where deliveries take place and during the home visit by ASHA. An estimated 27 crore children in the age group of zero to eighteen years are expected to be covered in a phased manner. The District Early Intervention Centre is envisaged to be made operational in all districts of the country for providing management of these referred cases from the blocks and will also link these cases with tertiary level health services in case of surgical management. The existing services from Ministry of Women and Child, Social Justice and empowerment and Education will also be optimally utilized. Necessary treatment costs would be provided under National Rural Health Mission to tertiary level institutions whether in Government or
For conservation of lakes and wetlands, the Ministry of Environment and Forests is presently, implementing two separate Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), namely the NWCP and the NLCP. To avoid overlap, promote better synergies and to ensure conservation and management works, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the proposal for the merger of National Lake Conservation Plan (NLCP) and National Wetlands Conservation Programme (NWCP) into a new scheme called the `National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Eco-systems` (NPCA). The principal objectives of the new scheme will be holistic conservation and restoration of lakes and wetlands for achieving desired water quality enhancement, besides improvement in biodiversity and the ecosystem, through an integrated and multidisciplinary approach with a common regulatory framework, The scheme would contribute to reduction of pollution loads and improvement in goods and services provided by these water bodies to stakeholders.
The new scheme will have conservation and management of lakes and wetlands in the country within its scope, to include inventory and information system on lakes and wetlands national level directive on criteria for lakes and wetlands, regulatory framework, capacity building at state government and local body levels, evaluation etc. The merged scheme shall be operational during the XII Plan Period at an estimated cost of Rs.900 crore on 70:30 cost sharing between the Central Government and respective State Governments (90:10 for North-East States).
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Private sector. The implementation of these services will also generate country wide epidemiological data on selected health conditions for improved future planning of health services. Early identification of select health conditions and their linkage to care, support and treatment, under Child Health Screening and Early Intervention Services will help to achieve equitable child health care. In the long run, the programme would prove economical for the poor and marginalized through reducing out of pocket expenditure, burden of diseases, improving health awareness among community, improving the professionalism in service delivery and finally strengthening the public sector hospitals. This would lead to promotion of health among children which is of fundamental value to the entire nation. Clearance for linear projects will not need Gram Sabha consent
backward districts as identified under Integrated Action Plan in rural areas of the country. The Union Cabinet has given its approval to for the upgradation of the scheme. The new norms include: A. Revision of the Core Network by including: I. 2,687 left-out unconnected habitations (as per the 2001 census) in Tribal (Schedule-V) areas (other than 82 Integrated Action Plan (lAP) districts already included) and blocks adjoining the international border under the Border Area Development Programme (BADP). It was also approved to provide new connectivity to these habitations and allowing upgradation of certain roads measuring about 2,000 km in these areas at an estimated cost of Rs.1,000 crore (at 2012-13 prices), based on a road condition survey which will determine an upgradation priority list;
Gram sabhas in forest areas of the country have been stripped of their power to approve or reject proposals for diversion of their forest land for building roads, transmission lines, canals or other linear projects under the Forest Rights Act. This amendment follows the agreement reached at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Tribal Affairs Minister Kishore Chandra Deo and Environment and Forests Minister Jayanthi Natarajan.
The linear projects, which do not require vast parcels of land yet go through several gram sabha clearance process, getting consent from every single such body was difficult. One of the major infrastructure projects affected by clearance lag is the 1,185-km Kochi-Koottanad-Mangalore-Bangalore gas pipeline. The recent orders allow parallel processing for different clearances, a speedier procedure for expansion of existing projects and a decision to allow linear projects to begin work with an environment clearance provided they had a Plan B in case forest clearance was not granted. New norms for Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana approved by the Cabinet
PMGSY was launched in the year 2000 and has the objective of providing all-weather connectivity to all unconnected habitations with population of 500 persons and above 250 persons and above in hilly states, desert areas (as identified under DDP), Tribal Schedule-V areas and 82 selected tribal and
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II. 1,410 left out unconnected habitations with population of 250 persons and above (as per the 2001 census) in the 10 Hill States and desert areas (as identified under the Desert Development Programme (DDP)) to provide new connectivity to these habitations;
III. 9,112 left out unconnected habitations with population of 500 persons and above (as per the 2001 census) in plain areas to provide new connectivity to these habitations, at an estimated cost of Rs.13,850 crore (at 2012-13 prices).
B. Extension of the cluster approach from international border blocks to international border districts of the State of Arunachal Pradesh, by clubbing the population within a path distance of 10 km, and treating as a cluster for eligibility and to provide new connectivity to 126 habitations at an estimated cost of Rs.1,200 crore (at 2012-13 prices). C. `In principle` approval for covering unconnected habitations with population of 100 persons and above (as per the 2001 census) in the Left Wing Extremists affected blocks (identified in consultations with the Ministry of Home Affairs) with a limited provision to complete missing links, to form closed loops from through routes of the core network at an estimated cost of Rs. 8,000 crore (at 2012-13 prices). The net number of total eligible unconnected habitations are 1,64,849. This is likely to increase to 1,78,184 habitations on account of this relaxation.
Grameen Sadak Yojana enhances movement between villages and towns. Thus increases the pace of rural development as follows: New business opportunities will emerge due to better transport. Transportation cost of agricultural goods will get reduce. This will increase connectivity to schools and hospitals. This will provide employment to poor and unemployed people. This will increase penetration of government assistance in inaccessible areas too. This will enhance the better implementation of government schemes.
cases only on a case-to-case basis, ensuring that the checks prescribed under the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) are followed scrupulously and remission not granted in an arbitrary manner. The advisory comes when the Centre has promulgated that life sentence awarded for aggravated sexual assault will cover a convict's natural life and is supposed to be a deterrent against the growing trend where states governments have freely remitted life sentence; virtually reducing it to 14 years imprisonment in disregard of the requirement laid down under law. Those convicted of heinous crimes have been among the beneficiaries of a practice which many feel amounts to blatant abuse of power. Section 432 of the CrPC does give the executive the power of remission or commutation, but Section 433A makes it clear that the power does not apply to all cases. Section 433A states that "Notwithstanding anything contained in Section 432, where a sentence of imprisonment for life is imposed on conviction of a person for an offence for which death is one of the punishments provided by law, or where a sentence of death imposed on a person has been commuted under Section 433 into one of imprisonment for life, such person shall not be released from prison unless he had served at least fourteen years of imprisonment,". The grant of remission is statutory. However, to prevent its arbitrary exercise, the legislature has built in some procedural and substantive checks in the statute. These need to be faithfully enforced.
Farmers now find it easier to take their produce to market in time, school enrollment is on the rise, and families' access to health care has improved. The Rural Roads Project has also brought about a paradigm shift in the way rural roads are mapped, designed, monitored, and built.
Life term means entire life: Centre
The Centre has cautioned state governments against granting remission of life sentence in a "wholesale manner", where either a death sentence has been commuted to life or where life term is given for an offence carrying death penalty.
The home ministry has asked the states/Union Territories to consider grant of remission in these
[10] Weekly Current Affairs 4th February to 10th February, 2013
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INTERNATIONAL
U.K., Afghan, Pakistan talks set out peace plan The leaders of Britain, Afghanistan and Pakistan has pushed for the Taliban to come to the table for peace talks to end Afghanistan's protracted conflict and gave themselves a sixmonth deadline to get a deal. The trilateral talk on Afghanistan's floundering peace and reconciliation process has been hosted by British Prime Minister David Cameron. of local commodities such as fuelwood, timber, fruit and fodder for livestock as well as global ones such as coconut, coffee, tea, rubber and gum. In a new guide aimed at decision-makers, nongovernmental organizations and governmental institutions, FAO shows how agroforestry can be integrated into national strategies and how policies can be adjusted to specific conditions. The guide provides 10 tracks for policy action, including raising awareness of agroforestry systems among farmers and the global community; reforming unfavourable regulations in forestry, agricultural and rural codes; and clarifying land-use policy regulations. The guide also provides examples of best practices and success stories, such as Costa Rica where more than 10,000 contracts have been signed for agroforestry over the past eight years, resulting in the planting of more than 3.5 million trees on farms. In addition, the guide argues policymakers should create incentives to implement agroforestry. For example, farmers introducing trees on farms should be rewarded in the form of grants, tax exemptions, cost-sharing programmes, microcredits or through assistance to develop their infrastructure. Long-term credit is also key as benefits to farmers planting trees reach them only after some years. The value of carbon sequestered and other environmental services provided by the trees could also be applied to paying the interest. The guide was developed by FAO in cooperation with the World Agroforestry Centre, the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre and the Agricultural Research Centre for International Development. Women finally allowed to wear trousers in Paris
The Afghan president is attempting to draw the Taliban back to negotiations toward a deal between the government and the insurgency. As part of the effort, the three leaders agreed to open an office in Qatar's capital for negotiations, believing that the Taliban are softening their hardline stance against discussions.
The leaders set out a six-month timeline for peace and committed themselves to "take all necessary measures to achieve the goal. The meeting was the third in a series of trilateral meetings convened by the British prime minister.
Britain still has around 9,000 troops in Afghanistan ahead of a scheduled withdrawal in 2014. Agroforestry crucial to ensure food security of millions, says UN agency
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) called on countries to boost efforts to promote agroforestry, a practice involving the combination of trees with crop or livestock production, stressing it can help millions of people escape poverty and prevent environmental degradation, making it crucial to ensure food security in the future.
FAO stated that despite the numerous benefits of agroforestry, the sector is largely hampered by adverse policies, legal constraints and lack of coordination between the sectors to which it contributes, namely, agriculture, forestry, rural development, environment and trade. Agroforestry combines agricultural and forestry technologies to create more productive and sustainable systems for land use. According to FAO, the agroforestry sector is a significant source both
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Women in Paris can finally wear trousers without fear of criminal prosecution after the government has lifted more than 200-year-old ban. The municipal order required Parisian women to seek permission from local police if they wanted to "dress like a man" by wearing trousers. It was modified in 1892 and 1909 to allow women to wear
trousers if they were "holding a bicycle handlebar or the reins of a horse" but had officially remained on the books. Parisian women had demanded the right to wear trousers during the French Revolution, when working-class revolutionaries were known as sansculottes for wearing trousers instead of the silk-knee breeches (culottes) favoured by the bourgeoisie Rajapaksa rules out autonomy for Tamils
100,000 people were killed during the war, which ended in 2009, but other reports suggest it could be much higher. Syria: UN begins delivery of safe water supplies for 10 million people
During his address at the 65th Independence Day celebrations Rajapaksa stated that: "When the people live together in unity there are no racial or religious differences. Therefore, it is not practical for this country to be divided based on ethnicity". "The solution is to live together in this country with equal rights for all communities". President Mahinda Rajapaksa made this statement despite growing international pressure to compromise with the minority and to investigate allegations of war crimes.
Sri Lanka is expected to face questions from the U.N. Human Rights Council in March on its progress in implementing its own war commission report, which also recommends investigating alleged human rights violations and giving autonomy to Tamils. The United States will also sponsor a resolution at the council for a second straight year on the implementation of the war commission report. The pressure comes nearly four years after the government, dominated by the ethnic Sinhalese majority, defeated the separatist Tamil Tiger rebels, who had been demanding an independent Tamil nation after decades of perceived discrimination. According to a United Nations' estimate, 80,000 to
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Sri Lanka's president ruled out giving Tamils greater political autonomy, appearing to back away from his long-stalled promise to empower the ethnic minority as part of the country's reconciliation process following a bloody quarter-century civil war.
A large-scale operation is under way in Syria to secure safe water supplies for more than 10 million people - close to half the population by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), amid reports that the quality and quantity of water is continuing to deteriorate with negative impacts for children's health. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) has co-signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia to provide $2.1 million worth of essential medicines, vaccines and medical equipment. As many as three million Syrians will benefit from the donation, which will cover a one-year period starting this month. A shortage of medicines in Syria is becoming more critical, as is waste management and the availability of safe drinking water. Poor hygiene is increasing the risk of infectious diseases such as lice, hepatitis A and leishmaniasis, a sore-causing disease transmitted by sandflies. More than 60,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in early 2011. Recent months have witnessed an escalation in the conflict, which has also left more than four million people in need of humanitarian assistance. The international community has committed more than $1.5 billion for humanitarian aid to Syrians. Supporting reconstruction of critical infrastructure, such as water pumping stations, and providing essential relief supplies like medicines are among the top four priorities inside the country, along with helping people who have fled their homes and the communities hosting them and helping the poorest avoid total destitution.
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ECONOMY
Cabinet gave approval for formation of SPV (TAPI Limited) for the TAPI Pipeline Project The Cabinet has approved the setting up of a special purpose vehicle to build the $9 billion Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, as multinational firms have been unwilling to build the project. The Dubai-based SPV, TAPI Ltd, will scout for consortium leader who will build and operate the project, arrange for finances and would be responsible for safe delivery of gas through the pipeline that will traverse militancy-infested areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan. TAPI Ltd is required to have an initial contribution of $20 million; that is $5 million from an identified entity from each of the four participating countries. From India GAIL has agreed to make an investment upto USD 5 million in the proposed SPV that is TAPI Ltd. An active interest in the project by all the partner countries at this stage would sustain the credibility of the project, and generate interest in the international market and could eventually pave the way for selection of an appropriate consortium leader in the future. While Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan were of the view that the four promoters could build and operate the pipeline on their own, India has insisted that the project be taken up only if a multinational company leads it. New Delhi does not want to be at the mercy of Afghanistan and Pakistan for its gas needs and also feels that none of the nominee companies of the four countries have the financial and managerial capability to execute the project. As a way forward, Turkmenistan suggested the formation of a SPV by the TAPI members. The SPV would take up the feasibility study and design work of the TAPI pipeline to meet the agreed timelines for the project, as well as search for a consortium lead. Pakistan and Afghanistan too have agreed to the formation of TAPI Ltd, it said. Based on an 'in-principle' approval of the Cabinet on May 18, 2006, India joined the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) Project in April, 2008 and thereafter, the name of the project stood amended to 'Turkmenistan-AfghanistanPakistan-India (TAPl) Gas Pipeline Project'.
The 1,680 km pipeline will carry 90 million cubic metres a day (mmcmd) of gas and is scheduled to become operational in 2018. India and Pakistan will get 38 mmcmd each, while the remaining 14 mcmd will be supplied to Afghanistan. TAPI will carry gas from Turkmenistan's Galkynysh field, better known by its previous name South Yoiotan Osman that holds gas reserves of 16 trillion cubic feet. From the field, the pipeline will run to Herat and Kandahar province of Afghanistan, before entering Pakistan. In Pakistan, it will reach Multan via Quetta before ending at Fazilka (Punjab) in India. In all, the pipeline would travel 735-km in Afghanistan and another 800-km in Pakistan. RBI panel proposes curbs on import of gold
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The working group of the central bank on issues related to gold imports and gold loan NBFCs has proposed to limit import of gold into India, which is putting pressure on India's current account and threatening the country's sovereign credit ratings. It has also stated that a combination of demandreduction and supply-management steps and measures to increase monetization of idle stocks of gold need to be put in place. The recommendations, if implemented by the government, will make gold costly and enhance the level of disclosure in gold loans business. This could lead to a tougher business environment for gold loan NBFCs. The group also suggested that under extreme conditions, the government may also think of putting limits on the volume and value of gold to be imported by banks, and imposing export obligation on bulk gold importers. It's not only import of the yellow metal, the RBI panel in its report also suggested to the government to take steps that would make it easier for the authorities to track gold buyers, like payment by cheques for purchases above a threshold limit, use of income tax PAN by NBFCs giving loans over Rs 5 lakh and also use of know-your-customer processes for the buyers.
Although the working group stated that gold loan NBFCs are serving social causes, but it suggested that there was no case for granting these NBFCs a status at par with banks, these entities need to be monitored cautiously and their overdependence on banks for funds should be reduced. The RBI group also recommended that India's idle gold reserves, which is about 20,000 tonnes at present, should be use to set up a gold bank and this reserve could be put into productive use through exchange-traded funds (ETFs). On the issue of setting up the gold bank, RBI suggested that it may be given "powers to import, export, trade, lend and borrow gold and deal in gold derivatives." The panel also suggested new ways to channelize investors' savings into financial assets backed by gold, rather than they directly buying the metal in physical form. Amendments to the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Act, 1981
class of financial institutions which are approved by the Central Government. This is likely to benefit a larger segment of the financially excluded farmers in the country. c) The amendments allow combination of credit, creation of short term operations fund and swapping of debt of farmers.
d) The decision of the Government to transfer the balance one percent shares to the Govt. of India from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in NABARD shall be carried out, which will provide for increased public accountability, as the Government will acquire the equity held by RBI. e) NABARD will combine the post of Chairman and the post of Managing Director, into one, therefore Chairman and Managing Director, under the provisions of the NABARD Act relating to these two posts. This shall ensure a distinct line of command. NABARD was established on 12 July, 1982 to provide sharp focus to agriculture credit and rural development. NABARD adopted, as its mission, the promotion of sustainable and equitable development of agriculture and rural prosperity through effective credit support, related services, institution development and other innovative initiatives. GDP growth will slide to 5 %: CSO
The Union Cabinet gave its approval to the amendments to the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Act 1981. The following amendments to the NABARD Act 1981 are proposed:a) Raising the authorized capital of NABARD to Rs. 20,000 crore from Rs. 5,000 crore.
b) The meaning of cooperative society is proposed to be enlarged to include multistate cooperative societies registered under any Central law or any other Central or State law relating to cooperative societies. c) Change of ownership to facilitate the transfer of the remaining share capital of NABARD from the Reserve Bank to the Central Government.
d) Increasing the scope of operations of NABARD under short term funding purposes and other changes. The following benefits are projected by the amendment:a) By increasing the authorized capital of NABARD to Rs 20,000 crore from Rs 5,000 crore, the ability of NABARD to mobilize resources from the market will be enhanced thereby new credit products, new credit linkages and new clients will be developed. b) The amendments allow NABARD to lend to new institutions, mainly Societies covered under multistate cooperative societies act and other central laws, producer organizations or such
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Central Statistics Office (CSO), in its provisional estimates, has pegged India's GDP growth to be at 5%. This is a lower estimate compared to RBI's GDP growth estimates of 5.5%. Earlier, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) pegged India's growth for CY12 at 4.9%. HSBC and Morgan Stanley also cut the growth forecast to 5.2% and 5.4% respectively for FY13, while S&P has given a 5.5% estimate for the current fiscal. The CSO's estimates however are lowest, indicating that the country's growth has taken a big hit due to the continued worldwide slowdown, higher inflation, sustained higher interest rates and declined investments. CSO stated that Agriculture is expected to grow at 1.8% in FY13 as against 3.6% a year earlier. Manufacturing is expected to report a growth of 1.9% against 2.7% in FY12. The Service sector (hotel, transport, trade and communication) is also expected to grow at 5.2% as against 7% in FY12. The growth of over 5% would be registered in a few sectors like Financing, Real estate, etc. On the flip side, the lower growth is expected in Mining, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing, Electricity, Gas and Water supply etc.
In the Agriculture sector, the production of food grain, cotton, sugarcane, is expected to decline, which may hit the sugar and textile industry. In the Construction sector, the cement production and steel consumption have registered growth rates of 6.1% and 3.9% in the period from April to December 2012. CSO further stated that the growth of the Service industry may slide to 5.2%. This is mainly due to lower passenger and cargo activity in civil aviation and a decline of 3.1% in cargo, handled at major sea ports. Financing, Insurance, Real estate and Business services is expected to register a growth of 8.6% due to the rise in deposits and credits. One would see some negative impact on the logistics sector while a positive impact would be seen in BFSI and Real estate segments. The GDP growth for FY13 at 5% against 6.2% in FY12 is nearly lowest in the last ten years. The Indian economy has always grown at a rate over 5% since 2004. The lower economic growth has already seen a decline in rupee which has remained weak against the USD over the last one year. Rajiv Gandhi Equity Saving Scheme launched
'equity culture' in India. The Scheme aims at widening the retail investor base in the Indian securities markets and also furthers the goal of financial stability and financial inclusion. Government to allow sale of coal gas at market prices
In an effort to promote underground coal gasification (UCG), the government has decided to allow global explorers to sell the gas from their operations at market prices. In its revised blueprint on promoting UCG, the coal ministry has recently proposed to the finance ministry that coal and lignite blocks would be bid out after enlisting the participation of top exploration companies with proven track record through tenders. To lure such explorers the revenue produced from the Syngas (gas mixture) produced form UCG operations would be shared between the government and the block allottee apart from taxes and other financial obligations. The contractor will have the freedom to market the Syngas at market price. Foreign firms will be allowed repatriation in accordance with the Foreign Exchange Management Act. Further to ensure uninterrupted flow of investments in various stages of exploration, the ministry has proposed a seven-year tax holiday and granting exemption from customs duty for import of goods and materials needed for exploration. UCG is an industrial process, which converts coal into product gas. The gas is used as fuel for power generation. UCG is applied to resources that are difficult to extract by traditional mining. In view of the limited success of UCG so far, the government will throw open about 33,000 sq km of coal and lignite bearing areas in the country to international exploration companies to be short-listed through global tenders. So far, 33 UCG blocks have been jointly allocated by coal and petroleum ministries in the four rounds of competitive bidding. For quick resolution of impediments in UCG blocks, the government has proposed to set up a committee of secretaries (CoS) who would select the allottees against offers to be received against the global tenders.
Finance Minister Mr. P Chidambaram has launched an equity scheme called Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme, or RGESS, in an attempt to lure new investors to the stock market.
The highlight of RGESS is that it exempts 50 per cent of the investment from any kind of tax obligation. For instance, if someone invests Rs 50,000, the amount eligible for tax deduction from their income will be Rs 25,000. Whereas the maximum amount that investors can avail benefits under RGESS is Rs 50,000. The scheme will also have a lock-in period of three years - fixed lock-in during the first year, followed by a flexible lock-in for subsequent two years. The RGESS is exclusively meant for first-time retail investors so the new didn't come as a welcome surprise to the existing investors. Further, only those people whose annual income is below Rs 10 lakh are eligible are eligible to invest in the scheme. The objective of the Scheme is to encourage the flow of savings and to improve the depth of domestic capital markets. This would help in promoting an
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INDIA AND THE WORLD

Union Steel Minister of India Meets President of Uruguay to discuss Bilateral Co-Operation in Mining The protocol will replace the article concerning exchange of information in the existing DTAC between India and Sweden and will allow exchange of banking information as well as information without domestic interest. It will, now, allow use of information for non-tax purpose if allowed under the domestic laws of both the countries, after the approval of the supplying state. The article added in the protocol to the DTAC will enable both the countries to assist in conducting tax examination abroad by allowing officials of one country to enter the territory of other country for this purpose. India rejects OIC suggestion to send factfinding mission to J-K
During the meet both the nations expressed their strong desire to increase trade turnover in the coming years. The Steel Minister has invited the Uruguayan Trade and Industry to participate in the Indian Trade Exhibitions and conduct roadshows for more joint ventures, transfer of technology and inviting Indian investment for setting up production facilities in Uruguay for exports to other Latin American countries.. During the visit a Letter of Intent (LoI) was signed between Mr D.R.S. Chaudhary, Secretary Steel, Government of India and Mr Roberto Kreimerman, Minister, Industry, Energy & Mining, Government of Uruguay to explore and encourage investment opportunity in iron and steel sector and to facilitate exchange of technical knowhow in iron ore and steel related raw materials. Protocol for Amending DTAA signed between India and Sweden
India and Sweden have signed protocol amending the avoidance of double taxation pact. The convention and protocol between India and Sweden for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital (DTAC) was first signed on June 24, 1997. In April 2011, both India and Sweden concluded a protocol to amend the Article 27 of the DTAC concerning exchange of Information to bring it in line with the international standards and to add an article in the protocol to the DTAC to include tax examination abroad.
The protocol was signed by Indian Ambassador to Sweden Banashri Bose Harrison and Anders Borg, Ministry of Finance, Sweden.
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A delegation led by the Union Minister of Steel, Shri Beni Prasad Verma, met with the President of Uruguay, Mr. Jos Mujica in Montevideo. The Union Minister of Steel and the President of Uruguay discussed points to improve co-operation in the mining sector between the two countries.
India has strongly rejected the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's suggestion that an OIC factfinding mission to be sent to Jammu and Kashmir to assess the rights situation there. On this issue Ministry of External Affairs stated that the OIC has no locus standi on matters concerning the internal affairs of India or the recent incidents on the LoC. A joint communique, adopted at an OIC summit that concluded in Cairo, "called upon India to allow the OIC fact-finding mission, the international human rights groups and humanitarian organisations to visit Jammu and Kashmir". It had also welcomed Pakistan's proposal for an investigation by the UN Military Observers Group for India and Pakistan into recent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC). It expressed deep concern over the ceasefire violations. The communique had called on India to undertake an independent investigation into the discovery of mass graves and ensure free and fair trial of those responsible" for heinous crimes. The Pakistani delegation to the summit was led by Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, who had called for an probe into the ceasefire violations on the LoC by the OIC. The move came in the wake of India's rejection of Pakistan's call for a probe by the UNMOGIP.
Clashes between Indian and Pakistani troops last month were among the worst violations of the ceasefire that was put in place along the 742-km LoC in late 2003. One Indian soldier was allegedly beheaded by Pakistani troops while the mutilated body of another trooper was found in the Poonch sector along the LoC. Pakistan claims three of its soldiers were killed in Indian firing. U.N. forum may review demand for rollback of norms on 'piracy risk'
resolution with States and international bodies as members to work together to rid the seas of piracy - decided to move the longitude marking off the high-risk area in the Arabian Sea from 65 degrees to 78 east. The new classification extended the highrisk area much closer to the Indian coast barring the nation's territorial waters of 12 nautical miles. The guidelines for ships advise them on evasive action against piracy. Shipping experts say that the changed classification resulted in ships hugging the Indian coast and often cruising in Indian territorial waters - from Mangalore to Kanyakumari - while transiting the Arabian Sea. Many of these merchant vessels have armed guards as allowed by IMO. Initially, India wanted the longitude to be moved back to 65 degree but members of CGPCS balked. Thus India have make a fresh plea for exemption of its fishing zones from the 'danger zone' listing in 'Best Management Practices for Protection against Somalia-based Piracy', an industry document endorsed by IMO and CGPCS.
Following increasing cases of piracy near Somalia that occasionally extended as far as Lakshadweep, industry bodies working in tandem with International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and the Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS) - constituted in 2009 following a U.N.
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To ensure the safety of its fishermen after incidents such as Enrica Lexie, India is demanding the rollback of an international guideline that was changed over two years back to designate seas close to its western coast as at a high risk of piracy.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ICMR evolving standards for cancer care The Indian Council of Medical Research is evolving standards of care and treatment protocols for 34 common types of cancer. There are about 1,200 qualified oncologists for a population of 1.2 billion people. As a result, 60 per cent of patients with cancer are actually being treated by non-oncologists - general practitioners, or other specialists. This is where protocols vary and so do treatment options. Evolving guidelines by an apex body such as the ICMR would facilitate the much-needed standardisation of care in these sectors. of the patient. With bone cancer, the old treatment methodology was amputation of the limb, now, conservation of the bone, and limb is a key element of treatment. While different networks of oncologists have taken the initiative to standardise treatment over a period of time, the ultimate goal is to take it to medical schools. To that effect, the Indian Cooperative Oncology Network recently inked a memorandum with the Union Health Ministry to impart oncology training to 336 medical colleges in India. It will orient all medical practitioners of the existence of guidelines, familiarise them with the procedures, and also underline the need to constantly update oneself of the advancements in medical and surgical management of cancer. Agni-VI all set to take shape
Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) in Oncology was evidence-based, consensus-driven management guidelines for the clinician/practitioner. These guidelines aimed at ensuring that all patients received treatment, services that were most likely to lead to optimal outcomes.
Each CPG usually included information on the incidence of the malignancy, diagnostic criteria, and stage of disease, risk assessment, treatment plans and follow-up and also preventive and supportive services. The pressing need to evolve a set of guidelines appropriate to the context was behind the recent initiative to bring together oncologists from different parts of the country together to arrive at consensus on standards for various cancers. Most of the CPGs are based on guidelines from the U.S. or Europe. Experts believe it is high time we evolved recent guidelines in oncology and analyse their applicability to the Indian patient scenario.
By selecting certain patients for certain types of treatment, not only would the outcome for that patient be better, but useless treatment could be avoided. Earlier, if the primary cancer was in the colon and it had spread to the liver, the trend was to write the patient off, start palliative care maybe. But now, with better, targeted chemotherapy, patients have gone on to live for three to five years. One group of patients has also been cured. The whole approach in cancer is now organ conservation without compromising the survival
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Agni-VI with multiple nuclear warheads, which can reach targets 6,000 km away, is all set to be developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). In April last, it carried out the maiden launch of Agni-V, which has a range of more than 5,000 km. So far, all the strategic missiles developed by the DRDO - Agni-I, II, III, IV and V, and the submarine-launched K-15 and its land-based version Shourya - can carry only single nuclear warhead. The DRDO's tactical missiles and supersonic cruise missile BrahMos can carry one conventional warhead each. DRDO has started working on the multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles [MIRV] version [Agni-VI]. It will carry four or six warheads depending upon their weight, the constraint is the vehicle's mass. Although the Union government is yet to sanction Agni-VI project, the DRDO has done all the enabling studies, finalised the missile's design and started working on the engineering part. It had also figured out how to anchor four or six warheads in the vehicle, how to disperse them and the pattern of their dispersal. The warheads could be released in an order, one after another. If
one warhead were to hit a place, another could fall 100 km away from it. Both Agni-V and Agni-VI have three stages, all powered by solid propellants, and their diameter is two metres. And the comparison ends there. While Agni-V weighs 50 tonnes and is 17.5 metres long, Agni-VI belongs to the 65-70-tonne class and will be 20 metres long. According to the technologists, Agni-VI will be a massive vehicle. It was too early to say when its first launch would take place. It would be road-mobile and blast off from trucks with launching platforms. DNA as an information storage device
chunks are then read in an appropriate manner or protocol, providing for 100 per cent accuracy. The researchers have been able to store 2.2 petabytes (a peta is a million billion or 10 raised to power 15) in one gram of DNA. Fast-dissolving water squeezed life out of Mars
Water dissolved into the surface of Mars too fast to sustain a life-supporting biosphere. First evidence revealed by the scientists from the University of Glasgow has shown that water once dissolved the surface of Mars. The findings are based following tests on a 1.7gm fragment of a Martian meteorite known as Nakhla. Nakhla, named after the town in Egypt where it landed in 1911 after being blasted from the surface of Mars by a massive impact around 10 million years ago, has been studied for decades by scientists around the world. Previous research on Nakhla has provided evidence of the existence of water on Mars through the presence in the meteorite of 'secondary minerals' - types of carbonates, hydrous silicates and sulfates most likely formed when Martian minerals reacted with liquid water. From the amount of dissolution scientists have observed, that this particular piece of Mars was affected by water for only a few months and probably less than a year in total. That's not long enough to sustain a life-supporting biosphere. To support life water needs to exist for millions of years. Since water didn't exist long enough, thus life form does not exist in the crust. Vaccination without using injection
DNA is a long chain, consisting of 4 alphabets (chemical units called bases and referred to as A, G, C and T) put together in a string of sequence similar to what the English language does with its 26 alphabets and punctuation marks, or digital computers with the combination of zeros and ones in chosen sequences. DNA has been used since life was born over 2 billion years ago to store and transfer information right through evolution. It is small in size - the entire information content of a human is stored in a 3 billion long sequence of A, G, C and T, and packed into the nucleus of a cell smaller than a micron (thousandth of a millimetre). It is stable and has an admirable shelf life. People have isolated DNA from the bones of dinosaurs dead about 65 millions ago, read the sequence of bases in it and understood much information about the animal. The animal is long since dead but the information lives on. DNA is thus a long-lived, stable and easily synthesized storage hard drive. While the current electronic storage devices require active and continued maintenance and regular transferring between storage media, DNA based storage needs no active maintenance. It can be stored in a cool, dark and dry place. This particular method has moved away from the conventional binary (0 and 1) code and used a ternary code system (three numerals 0, 1 and 2 using combinations of the bases A, G, C and T) and encode the information into DNA. This novelty avoids any reading errors, particularly when encountering repetitive base sequences. These
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Researchers from European Bioinformatics Institute at Hinxton (UK), and Agilent Technologies, California, UK decided to use DNA as the information storage device, rather than electronics.
In what would be a real boon for India, scientists have found a way to vaccinate without using an injection. Scientists at King's College London for the first time have demonstrated the ability to deliver a dried live vaccine to the skin without a traditional needle, and shown that this technique is powerful enough to enable specialized immune cells in the skin to kickstart the immunizing properties of the vaccine. It has been shown that it is possible to maintain the effectiveness of a live vaccine by drying it in sugar and applying it to the skin using microneedles - a potentially painless alternative to hypodermic needles. Specific cells in the skin which act as a surveillance system will pick up the vaccine
by this delivery system and kick-starting body's immune processes. The new discovery involves a silicone mould to create a microneedle array - a tiny disc with several micro-needles made of sugar which dissolves when inserted into the skin. The team formulated a dried version of a live modified adenovirus-based candidate HIV vaccine in sugar (sucrose) and used the mould to create the microneedle array. They found that the dried live
vaccine remained stable and effective at room temperature. This technical advance offers a potential solution to the challenges of delivering live vaccines in resource-limited countries globally, including India, without the need for refrigeration. A cheaper alternative to hypodermic needles, it would also remove safety risks from needle contamination and the pain-free administration could lead to more people taking up a vaccination.
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2 - MARKERS
National Awards for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities-2012 The Social Justice Department of Madhya Pradesh has been awarded by President with National Award for empowerment of persons with disability for the year 2012. The award was given in the category of best employer. Madhya Pradesh Social Justice Department has displayed an impressive performance in employing people with disabilities. Facebook and are willing to use their personal social presence to spread word on government policies and programmes. A digital volunteer will be expected to talk about the government's programs by sharing them on twitter and Facebook. It was a programme rooted in the principles of participative governance leading to real time engagement through the Social Media tools. ALH Mk-IV "Rudra"
Out of 1,565 employees on its role, 58 are persons with disabilities. The persons with disabilities comprising orthopedically, visually, hearing and physically challenged hold responsible positions in class I, II, III & IV categories. Madhya Pradesh government has also made a provision of 6 per cent reservation for the people with disabilities in the direct recruitment jobs. These employees are not only given assistive devices to improve their productivity but their skills are also upgraded periodically. Ravi Shankar wins best world music album at Grammys Awards
At the Grammy Awards, Ravi Shankar, the sitar virtuoso, ambassador of Indian music and friend of The Beatles, who died in December at 92, won best world music album for "The Living Room Sessions Part 1.'' I&B Minister launches 'MyIndia Initiative-A Digital Volunteer Programme'
In a major initiative to reach out to the people in the Social Media Space, I&B Minister has launched the 'MyIndia Initiative-A Digital Volunteer Programme' . The initiative aims at disseminating the development messages across the Social Media platforms by registering citizens as volunteers in an effort to contribute positively towards nation building. The initiative will work as word-of-mouth in a structured technological platform. People interested in becoming digital volunteers will be expected to fill up a form and give identity proof for registration that will take about five days. People are expected to be proficient if not already active on twitter and
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An Advanced Light Helicopter Mk-IV army version `Rudra` was handed over by Dr RK Tyagi, Chairman, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to Lt Gen Narendra Singh, Deputy Chief of Army Staff (P & S), Indian Army during AERO India 2013 at Yelahanka Air Base, Bangalore. Rudra, first armoured helicopter - is the Mk IV variant of the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) designed and manufactured by HAL. This helicopter is fitted with Day and Night Targeting systems and can carry a mix of weapons (70 rockets, anti-tank missiles, air to air missiles and 20 mm turret gun), providing the required capability to search and destroy any targets". 'Rudra' is designed indigenously at the Rotary Wing Research and Design Center (RWR & DC) to meet the mission specifications and tested extensively over varied terrains and firing ranges in India. Regional Center for Military Airworthiness has provided Initial Operational Clearance for the project facilitating delivery of helicopters to Indian Armed Forces. 'Rudra' is all set to redefine battle tactics in modern day conflicts. Pilatus PC-7 Mark-II
With induction of Pilatus PC-7 Mark-II trainer aircraft, the Indian Air Force trainee pilots will now get a new set of wings to learn their basic flying skills. Swiss made Pilatus also knows as 'Astra' would fill the void in basic flying training after indigenous HPT-32 Deepak was grounded around two years back. Pilatus named after a mountain in central Switzerland is an improved version of the PC-9`s
airframe and avionics, fitted with the PC-7`s smaller turbine ensures lower operating and maintenance costs. "It would provide Stage-I flying training and also help streamline flying training of Stages II and III which had to be modified earlier in absence of the basic trainer." Pilatus would thus lay the foundation for future generations of Indian Air Force pilots. Mohan Parasaran
with attorney general GE Vahanvati. Cambridge educated 51 year-old Mohan, is the son of veteran lawyer and nominated Rajya Sabha MP, K Parasaran, who was attorney general between 1985 and 1989 during the tenure of former PM, Rajiv Gandhi. Mohan began his legal career in 1984 and was designated as a senior advocate in 2002. Afzal Guru
Senior advocate Mohan Parasaran will be the new solicitor general of India. He will replace Rohinton Nariman as the second highest ranking law officer of the government. Parasaran has been working as an additio nal solicitor general since the UPA government came to power in May 2004, and is among the seniormost law officers of the government, along
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He was convicted in the December 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament, and was sentenced to death by a special Prevention of Terrorism Act Court in 2002. The sentence was scheduled to be carried out on 20 October 2006, but Afzal was given a stay of execution and remained on death row. On 3 February 2013, his mercy petition was rejected by the President of India Pranab Mukherjee. He was hanged at Delhi's Tihar Jail around 08:00 A.M. on February 9, 2013.
EDITORIALS
Can't 'disappear' this body New Delhi's claim that the role of U.N. military observers group in India and Pakistan has been overtaken by the Simla pact is belied by records The senior official who reportedly asked whether the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan, UNMOGIP existed, was not serious, just a bit facetious. For, not very far from his office lie those of the UNMOGIP. The Protocol Division of the Ministry of External Affairs annually publishes the Diplomatic List. It lists "U.N. Offices; International organisations and other Foreign Agencies." UNMOGIP's address is helpfully mentioned - 1AB, Purana Qila Road; its phone numbers, and names of three personnel besides the "Head of Mission/Chief Military Observer" are provided. All enjoy diplomatic status. It has offices in Srinagar and Muzaffarabad also. India knows that if the UNMOGIP is expelled, the U.N. Security Council would be activated with predictable consequences. It chose, instead, in 1972, to prevent it physically from undertaking probes into complaints on the Indian side. Pakistan's aggression in 1965 New Year's Day, 1949. On January 15, representatives of the two armies signed an agreement on consolidating the ceasefire. The Notes made that day by Lt. Gen. Maurice Delvoie, Military Adviser to the U.N. Commission for India and Pakistan and later head of UNMOGIP, make sad reading: "On my request, both Commanders-in-Chief agreed to restore the communications by road between Srinagar and Rawalpindi, and to rebuild the necessary bridges. In addition, telephonic liaisons between these two localities will be restored." On July 27, 1949, the parties signed at Karachi an Agreement defining the ceasefire line in Kashmir. "A cease-fire line is established". The U.N. Military Observers' say on disputes was "final". By November 1, the line was demarcated on the ground. Definition of breaches was settled. The UNMOGIP derived its authority from the Security Council Resolution of April 21, 1948 that empowered the United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan to establish "such observers as it may require." India-Pakistan accords merely fortified it. Professor Rosalyn Higgins, later a Judge of the International Court of Justice, opined in 1970 that "this resolution would seem clearly to fall within the terms of Article 40 of the U.N.'s Charter even though that Article was not specifically mentioned. The authority for establishing UNMOGIP thus stemmed from Chapter VII rather than Chapter VI." Article 40 authorises the Council to "call upon the parties to comply with such provincial measures as it deems necessary." Chapter VI pertains to disputes on which the Council can make "recommendations." Chapter VII deals with acts of aggression on which it "decides." All doubt was removed when the UNCIP was replaced by a Special Representative, Sir Owen Dixon, on March 30, 1951 when the Council "decides that the Military Observer Group shall continue to supervise the cease-fire in the State". As a result "the authority for UNMOGIP was thus confirmed." It functions under the control and supervision of the Secretary-General. After the 1965 war, India wanted its mandate to extend to the international border. Since Pakistan opposed this, the U.N.
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The Group could have played a useful role last month, when charges of violations of the Line of Control were traded. In 1965, it played a crucial role in establishing Pakistan's aggression, a fact few care to recall. The U.N. Secretary General's Report to the Security Council was based on the Report of Lt. Gen. R.H. Nimmo, head of UNMOGIP. "Gen. Nimmo has indicated to me that the series of violations that began on 5 August were to a considerable extent in subsequent days in the form of armed men, generally not in uniform, crossing the CFL [Ceasefire Line] from the Pakistan side for the purpose of armed action on the Indian side." He reported artillery fire and shelling "from the Pakistan side". On September 1, "one and a half Pakistan tank squadrons crossed" the CFL supported by artillery. The Council's Resolutions fixed August 5 as the date of casus belli. We won a big moral and political victory. India has no use for such verdicts now. It will be judged in its own cause despite the clear legal position. A ceasefire in Kashmir went into effect on
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Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan was set up. The United Nations India-Pakistan Observation Mission soon vanished; UNMOGIP survived. The Tashkent Declaration of January 10, 1966 bound the parties to withdraw "to the positions they held prior to August 5, 1965, and both sides shall observe the ceasefire terms on the ceasefire line." What followed is very relevant. On January 29, 1966, Lt Gen. Harbaksh Singh and Lt. Gen. Bakhtiar Rana signed an agreement at Lahore on their troops' withdrawals. It said: "Both forces will withdraw 1,000 yards from the line of actual control" in specified sectors. The LoC did not coincide with the CFL. But it was always open to the parties to vary the line. If they did so, the line changed, but the agreement did not. 'Adjustments in the ceasefire line'
respected by both sides without prejudice to the recognised position of either side." An accord on August 29, 1972 amplified that the LoC "will be delineated along its entire length." That was done at Suchetgarh on December 11, 1972. It did not rescind the terms of the Agreement of 1949 on the ceasefire line, concluded under the U.N. auspices. Starke's International Law, an authoritative work, cites various "modes of terminating hostilities" - by Armistice Agreements, truce accords or ceasefire, etc. No matter what the language, each case yields an "LoC resulting from cessation of hostilities." The Secretary-General's spokesman, Martin Nesirky, said on January 23 that "the Secretary-General's position has always been that the UNMOGIP can only be terminated by a decision of the Security Council." India's Permanent Representative to the U.N. Hardeep Singh Puri's assertion in the Security Council on January 22, that the UNMOGIP's role has been overtaken by the Simla Agreement is belied by the records. So, is his colleague Manish Gupta's plea that the CFL is replaced by the LoC - ergo the UNMOGIP's role "has been overtaken by these developments." Obstruction of the UNMOGIP began well before the Simla Pact and the LoC. India would do well to reflect on a sad fact of life - protesting Kashmiris do not go to Ministers' offices; they invariably head for the office in Srinagar of the UNMOGIP. We have travelled a long way on the bilateral route, with some achievements en route. Kicking the U.N.'s agency like the UNMOGIP in the teeth is not the best way to secure a permanent seat on its Security Council, nor for that matter is doggedly avoiding a settlement of the Kashmir problem. Source: The Hindu
New Delhi decided to use the 1971 war to settle Kashmir. The Security Council adopted a resolution on December 21, 1971 calling for return of troops to their former positions. On the same day, Foreign Minister Swaran Singh spoke meaningfully of "some adjustments in the ceasefire line in order to make it more stable, rational and viable. This we propose to discuss with Pakistan."
The U.N. Secretary General reported on May 12, 1972 that India has stopped complaining to the UNMOGIP; flag meetings of both sides sufficed to resolve disputes. Pakistan disagreed. On May 17, 1972, even before the Simla pact, Swaran Singh told the Lok Sabha that the CFL "was violated by Pakistan in December 1971 and no longer exists. A new ceasefire line came into existence on 17 December 1971". The UNMOGIP worked under the 1949 agreement but now "there is no subsisting agreement for this". The absurdity is palpable. Violations do not destroy a CFL or an LoC. The UNMOGIP received a mandate from the Security Council. The 1949 Agreement merely abided by it.
On October 13, 1972, C.V. Narasimhan, the Under-Secretary General of the U.N., said in New Delhi: "there has been no written request from New Delhi to withdraw U.N. Observers from the Indian side of the old ceasefire line in Jammu and Kashmir." He added that they were there under a Security Council resolution followed by an India-Pakistan agreement. They could not be withdrawn as long as the resolution remained. This was said after the Simla pact of July 3, 1972 which simply stated that "in Jammu and Kashmir, the line of control resulting from the ceasefire of December 17, 1971 shall be
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An economy run by rent-seekers
Our policies endorse rent-based growth, where land is prized for its speculative, rather than productive, potential. What could Rahul Gandhi and P. Chidambaram have in common, apart from belonging to the same party? The young prince goes to North Indian villages to convince potato growers that their crop would turn more rewarding if global retailers were allowed in; the Finance Minister hits the global highway hoping to convince increasingly sceptical investors about the readiness of India's policy environment and stakeholders for their capital.
Both represent the two shades of a common perspective; one wants to persuade the farmer of the gains of global capital, the other hopes to convince global capital of the nation's readiness for its largesse. Increasingly we are now seeing a fundamental change in the policy world never witnessed before, a change whose outlines define not just the way the economy is shaping up but the future trajectory of its evolution. Services paramount Perhaps the coming Economic Survey will enlighten us further, but last year's may suffice to show how the organised economy has panned out. From the extensive data it presented on a sixty-year time span, the Survey shows the gradual decline of the rural sector and the ascendance of Services as the main driver of GDP growth. The Survey termed it a "major and vital force" since the "entire decline in the share of agriculture has been balanced by the increase in the share of the Services sector." Which segments in Services played the lead parts in creating its dominance is most revealing: Trade, Hotels, restaurants followed by Finance, Insurance and real estate. Services have become the major breadwinner for India, both in terms of GDP and employment. Most policymakers, commentators and, particularly, the affluent urban middle-class will, of course, view this with approval for it connotes to them the sign of the Indian economy's maturity. The data on GDP growth components breed their own verities, first as policies, then as myths for mass consumption, which in India's case means consumption by, and for, a large and increasingly self-conscious middle-class. Mysterious valuation
asset more productive than gold, land remains the most hidden from the regulatory eye in its rentseeking possibilities. In the case of land, winner takes all and the winners are usually those with political power and capital. Unlike in a mature economy, these two elements determine and shape land markets with all their attendant distortions. Those distortions are reflected in Real-Estate or housing. The Residex of the National Housing Bank remains a theoretical construct for values that are prefigured and manipulated by builders on criteria that have nothing to do with sustainable urban planning or quality of life, but with the illusions they create of the good life. It is an irony that policymakers want to relax land use norms in urban areas to help builders develop "low cost housing" that in reality exist as a cover for the dispossession of land for exclusive private and high-cost real-estate activity. What more evidence would one need than the complete disregard for public open spaces and maidans now evident in most cities? SEZ effect
Almost every major policy of the Centre and States has both abetted and perpetuated GDP trend growth primarily by turning land into the most prized asset. Its value does not emanate from any market determined price based on the availability of information and transparency of ownership and transactions.
In India, land is prized precisely because of its opaque titles that allow its value for exchange or alienation to be determined by non-market forces by the power of extra-economic coercion and persuasion and by the exclusive access to policymaking. As valuable for growth as finance capital, it is as hidden and non-transparent as black money with which it enjoys a unique symbiosis; an
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Perhaps, policy makers did not intend it that way. But one single policy changed the terms of engagement over land, the Special Economic Zone Act of 2005. Land disputes always existed so long as the state had to acquire farmlands for public sector projects, the Sardar Sarovar project being the most contentious case in point. But it was the SEZ Act that uncorked land's hidden values and the discourse around them when the government of the day accepted the suggestion of one of its ministers to step aside from the exchange of land between SEZ developers and peasantlandowners. The ancient and creaky Land Acquisition Act and Rehabilitation legislations, both dysfunctional, created their own dialectic of power as industry began sizing up real-estate possibilities in the SEZ Act, and their muscle power and money to extract the best price for land. It was only a matter of time before the richer rural landowners, usually on the outskirts of smaller urban centres, saw immense possibilities for rent; equally, land dispossessions for 'industrial' or core projects such as the fishing ports in western India for mineral exports and the consequent extinction of traditional livelihoods were legitimised by the urges of growth and employment.
The good life For these reasons it also becomes a safe and the most profitable "agent of inversion" for unaccounted money and the crucible for political power; the same applies to real-estate and housing, equally cloudy with "housing values" based on entirely speculative norms or at best on dubious ones, such as perceived demands for second homes in swishy neighbourhoods (Residex? What Residex?). Policymaking pieties about 'housing' as priority, lower home loan rates as effective monetary policy, hide the truth of that sector's murky environment; abetted by media discovering modernity and ways to devour it, those homilies are turned into myths to live by, myths based on a fractured vision of the good life; on the dichotomy between housing as a physical priority-need (luxury or affordable) and the other constituents of healthy urban living: public parks, playing grounds, public transport, natural waterways, clean air. Inevitably these are discounted in the social calculus. Backward village The attenuation of urban life does not reduce its paramountcy in the middle-class imagination but is accompanied by a condemnation of the rural. Opposition to land acquisition, the struggle to retain sacred groves or forest rights or a hill in the back of the beyond generates anxiety and rage over rural obstinacy to embrace the urban agenda. The "law and order problem" finds a deep resonance in middle-class consciousness.
And, it is notable that the Centre and states last week were able to come to an agreement on a compensation formula for the latter for muchneeded further reform that would lead to an integrated goods and services tax (GST), both at the Centre and the states. It would further modernise the indirect tax structure, provide more comprehensive tax set-off along the value chain and almost certainly lead to tax buoyancy and heightened economic activity made possible in a nationally-integrated market for goods and services. In designing the path-breaking tax reform that is on the cards, including bringing about Constitutional amendment so that the states can tax services, we do need to provide federal flexibility and shun rigidities right along the way. The fact of the matter is that the introduction of the value-added tax (VAT) regime at the central and state level has been hugely significant. For instance, the rate of growth of indirect tax revenue in the states has effectively doubled from the average annual rate of growth in the pre-VAT period, following the introduction of the VAT regime from April 2005. Note that prior to the introduction of VAT at the Centre and the states, there was the massive regressive burden of multiple taxation, as per the pre-existing central excise duty and state sales tax system. So, for example, before any commodity or good was produced, inputs were first taxed, and after the production was complete with input tax load, the output was taxed again. And multiple taxation, or tax on tax, with a cascading effect discourages efficiency and leads to a high-cost economy. Moreover, in the sales tax structure, given the practice of multiple taxation at subsequent levels of the distributive trade in the pre-reform days, there was the burden of sales tax paid (or evaded) on purchase at each level of the value chain. So, there was the cascading effect both in production and sales prior to the VAT regime. It was in 1986 that VAT was introduced in place of central excise on select commodities, and set-off provided (read: deduction made from the overall tax burden for input tax already paid). But it was as late as 2002-03 that the central VAT (Cenvat) was extended to all commodities. And, following the Constitutional amendment empowering the Centre to levy tax on services, service tax was added to the Cenvat regime in 2004-05. The aim is to provide input tax credit and tax only the value added. But much remains to be done by way of indirect tax reform. The need for a GST regime arises because of the non-inclusion of several central taxes in the
An equally egregious myth is at work, paradoxically even after the collapse of 2008. The faith in the financial sector's constant refinement free of regulation, in the "too-big-to-fail" intermediation theory and on size as the paragon of national economic and social status underlie the approval of recent financial reforms. India is on the fast track, sure. But where to? Source: Business Line GST: Federal flexibility is key
Taxation reform, as summed up by a long-time legislator abroad, can be taken to imply, "Don't tax you, don't tax me, but tax that fellow behind the tree." The policy purpose, essentially, across regimes is to rationalise taxes, boost transparency and broaden the tax base in the bargain. In the realm of taxation of goods and services or indirect taxes, there have indeed been significant reforms here in the last decade, and we need more reforms to comprehensively overhaul the indirect tax regime.
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existing Cenvat framework, such as additional customs duty, surcharges, etc, thus keeping the benefits of comprehensive input tax and service tax set-off quite out of reach from producers and dealers. Further, in the present Cenvat structure, no step has yet been taken to capture the value added in distribution that follows the manufacturing stage. So, GST would provide revenue gains for the Centre through tax on value addition in the distributive trade and also via improved tax compliance along the production chain. In tandem, the existing state-level VAT structure needs reform. For instance, such indirect taxes on goods and services, such as luxury tax and entertainment tax, are not yet subsumed in the VAT framework. Besides, any commodity in general is produced as a combination of physical inputs and services, and there clearly needs to be an integrative approach to VAT on goods with tax on services at the state level as well, and at the same time, there would be the requirement to remove the cascading effect of the service tax. The bottom line is that with GST, the tax-on-tax effects of Cenvat and service tax are removed with set-off, and a continuous chain of setoffs is proactively established down to the retail level to remove cascading effects. For the states to levy service tax, we now require a Constitutional amendment. The Bill to do so needs to have clear provision for dispute resolution as a common GST base for both the Centre and states can well mean scope for dissension and disagreement. More important, while some federal tax regimes like Canada have a single GST rate, we, like EU, need to opt for multiple rates and allow the states tax discretion. Hence the need, say, for an 8% standard GST rate, at both the Centre and the states, with the leeway for +/-4% rate for select commodities. This way, the standard indirect tax rate would amount to 16%. Direct tax reform, of course, is another matter altogether. Source: Economic Times For a firmer handshake with Latin America
On January 27-28, Chilean President Sebastin Piera, pro tempore President of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States - CELAC hosted leaders from the region in Chile. This was preceded by the First CELAC Summit - planned biennially - with the 27 nations of the European Union. Mr. Piera welcomed Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy of Spain, struggling with 25 per cent unemployment, and a mountain of debt, "to a better world." The irony, accentuated by the self-confidence of the Latin American and Caribbean leaders, was not lost on the former colonial power. The CELAC Summit, aiming to "unite our continent as never before," revealed the distance the region has come from its troubled past. Towards regional consensus Communist Cuba was simultaneously hosting peace talks between the conservative government of Colombia and the ultra-left guerrilla force, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC. Its President, Ral Castro took over the Presidency of CELAC for 2013 in Santiago. Cuba remains outside the Organisation of American States, which includes all CELAC members, plus the United States and Canada, since its expulsion in 1962. Bolivia, which does not have diplomatic relations with host Chile on account of an ongoing territorial claim by the former, was represented by its President. The commitment to democracy was emphasised. Paraguay did not attend the summit, under pressure from the five-nation MERCOSUR, and the 12-nation UNASUR (The Union for South American Nations) - the sub-regional South American organisations from which it was suspended after a "legislative coup" deposing former Paraguayan President Lugo in June 2012. The deliberations and ancillary events revealed fundamental differences in political and economic orientation, principally between the left-leaning regimes and the hosts and their supporters. The CELAC-EU Declaration maintains a balance between the EU's insistence on protection of investment and the assertion of overriding sovereign policy by the left in Latin America. Mr. Piera admitted that "within CELAC we have learnt to live with our differences." The Santiago Declaration, adopted by the CELAC Summit, orchestrates regional consensus on incandescent issues such as security, narco-trafficking, multilateral negotiations on disarmament, sustainable development, etc. and reveals the region's collective determination to make up for lost time.
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India should encourage its business community to build on economic relations with the countries of the region External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid began an official visit to Chile and Argentina on Tuesday night. This is the first ever visit of an Indian Foreign Minister to Santiago. The fact that Mr. Khurshid will be there less than four months since taking charge is hopefully a sign of evolving priorities towards the region.
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The stakes for India are high in this region five times its territory, with a population of 600 million producing over $10,000 on average annually per capita. Political relations are cordial, while bilateral trade crossed $32 billion in 2011-12 (30 per cent compound growth over the past decade). The Commerce Ministry has negotiated an amplification of a preferential tariff agreement with Chile and is preparing to negotiate similar agreements with other LAC countries. Indian enterprise is increasingly aware of, and present across, the region. Focus on India August 2012 saw the most significant development in India's relations with LAC countries. The Chilean presidency, clearly with the tacit approval of the entire region, identified India as its first port of call, followed by China. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reciprocated the initiative with alacrity. The Joint Declaration issued after the meeting of the External Affairs Minister with his counterparts from Chile, Venezuela and Cuba (the Troika of CELAC) signalled the start - or at least the definition - of a new era. Mr. Khurshid's visit should largely fulfil the commitment to annual meetings, even though Chile has handed over the presidency. The identification of specific areas for collaboration - business, science and technology, agriculture, energy, culture and education - on separate platforms, provides a road map. Steps to implement these have been initiated by the MEA and should find resonance among stakeholders on both sides. A worthwhile return on diplomatic investment is guaranteed.
Mr. Khurshid's visit comes at a crucial juncture. It must be utilised to emphasise our determination to engage Latin America in all aspects of the relationship. An important catalyst will be the business community, which will require official patronage to elevate the economic relationship to the next level. India needs to accelerate and upgrade its political and diplomatic exchanges with the region. More frequent visits at all levels, including by the Prime Minister, and a conscious effort to invite more leaders from Latin America, will help convince our friends across the South Atlantic of our sincerity. Source: The Hindu Rural job scheme sows misery
In the 1990s, the MEA convinced the Government of India of the need to "Look East," after having virtually ignored Asean and our relations with that vital part of the world. A similar exercise was carried out the following decade with Africa. Both were focused programmes, funded and executed with determination by the ministry in concert with other stakeholders. The results and benefits are evident. The time has now come to carry out a similar exercise with the 33 nations of Latin America and the Caribbean. The complexity of the diplomatic challenge cannot be underestimated. To the geographic distance and magnitude, we must add the difficulties of communication, a lack of cultural appreciation, historic proclivities to Europe and the U.S., and the deep inroads already made by others, notably China. A CELAC-China Cooperation Forum finds mention in the Santiago Declaration.
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As much as Rs 1.3 lakh crore has been spent, eight crore rural people have benefited and, for the first time, women are getting wages equal to their male counterparts under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). This is what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said at the MGNREGS Divas Celebrations in New Delhi, last week. But the impact of this flagship rural jobs scheme on agriculture is another story. Farmers argue that this scheme is actually driving agriculture into an epic crisis by tightening the rural labour market. Besides pushing up labour costs substantially, this scheme has increased labour scarcity, spoilt the work culture of labour and reduced farmers' incentives to invest in farms. How far are these issues true? MGNREGS, the massive state-sponsored rural jobs scheme, was initially introduced with the avowed objective of providing 100 days of employment to the unskilled work force during the lean season of agricultural activity. It was never envisaged that the farming sector should be deprived of labour when it needed it, especially during sowing and harvesting periods. However, in recent years, unintended situations have developed wherein labour shortage is felt in the agriculturally advanced States of Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, etc. Farmers in these States concede that the labour market was tight even before the launch of MGNREGS, but lament that the scheme has exacerbated the shortage, thereby forcing them to shift to non-labour-intensive horticulture crops or leave the field fallow. Won't this move of farmers have a devastating impact on foodgrains production? What is the
underlying reason behind drying up of the agricultural labour market? Why is the labour tap, which was overflowing earlier in these premier bread basket States, now down to a trickle? Taking away labour The scheme holds the promise to transform the rural economy by essentially increasing the labour market access for marginalised groups. But the farmers have been making a hue and cry over skyrocketing wages. Some economists recently commented that such an increase in wages has come after a long period of stagnation and is bound to make the poorest of the poor better off. There is no denying the fact that the wages should be increased to improve the living condition of the labourers. But the increase in wage rate should not hurt farmers who are already facing a severe crisis due to poor remuneration from crop cultivation. The Consortium of Indian Farmers' Association (CIFA) states that the scheme, instead of generating productive wage employment for unskilled rural workforce, is, in a true sense, taking away labour from the already troubled farming sector.
cost paid for casual labour has increased at a faster rate after the introduction of the rural jobs scheme as compared with the earlier period (see Table). This has escalated the cost of production of crops and reduced the profit margin substantially. In fact, farmers from the fertile region of Andhra Pradesh even declared a 'paddy crop holiday' during 2011 kharif season, citing wage cost escalation as one of the reasons. 'Lazy workforce' effect The MGNREGS Sameeksha Report seems to indicate that this rural jobs scheme has provided employment for the impoverished and the most marginalised community at an increased wage rate. The irony to this assertion of the report is that the scheme, instead of creating additional primary occupations for the rural poor, has created far greater than expected absenteeism from regular employment. In fact, the rising demand for labour is in no way helping the landless to improve their livelihood; instead, it is forcing farmers to abandon their venture. Instead of toiling for additional hours, enhancing their incomes and climbing the aspirational ladder, the rural recipients seem to have given up their regular occupation, choosing to be satisfied with their current levels of income and consumption. The work schematics are inflated in order to employ more number of people for more number of days for lesser amount of work, to satisfy all. The scheme, in fact, seems to be a travesty of sorts those who did not have jobs still do not have jobs. But they have got money to buy food while not needing to work! It appears that the rural workforce is falling into the deadly trap of laziness. Can the state incentivise laziness? Make scheme constructive The farming sector has begun to feel the pinch. Various farm organisations have apprehended that farming as a profession will slowly vanish, if labour wage and scarcity of labour issues are not addressed at the earliest. It is reported that farmers across different regions of the country have already switched to less labourintensive options such as horticulture and tree crops. If these farmers resort to such a cropping pattern, then the central pool of wheat and paddy will definitely witness a historic deficit, which will, in fact, harm the labour community. Since more than 40 per cent of farmers already want to quit
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MGNREGS works in the richly irrigated areas often come in the way of 'crop work' and upset the agricultural wage market. Male labour is already scarce in rural areas owing to the boom in construction sector, mainly in urban areas. Most labourers available now in rural areas are women, who are also inclined towards the rural employment scheme where wage is assured for carrying out no tangible work, which is not possible in farm work.
This creates artificial scarcity of labour which, in turn, increases the wage rate. Getting accustomed to such wage for no work, will a labourer prefer to toil in farms? Although the MGNREGS Sameeksha Report (2012) of the Ministry of Rural Development failed to reveal its impact on agriculture, officials of the Ministry of Agriculture hint that this scheme caused a substantial increase in the cost of agricultural labour. Ashok Gulati, Chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) pointed out that between 2008 and 2011, labour cost increased by about 74 per cent at the all-India level, 88 per cent in Andhra Pradesh and 94 per cent in Tamil Nadu. Similarly, the cost of cultivation data on different crops published by CACP clearly show that the wage
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agriculture because of poor profitability, agriculture cannot be allowed to suffer any more. As suggested by CIFA and other farmers' organisations, the state should come forward to link MGNREGS with agricultural activities to bring down the investment required for crop cultivation, as has been done by Maharashtra in its employment guarantee scheme. CIFA has also come out with a sensible suggestion that the scheme must be confined strictly to the lean season agriculture, which will be a 'winwin' situation for both the farmers and labourers. Farmers will get their labourers when they need them the most, and labourers can remain employed for a longer period in a year. As rightly suggested by the Agriculture Minister, declaring an 'MGNREGS holiday' during the agriculture season would be the right way to tide over the crisis.
that could organise, the Muslim Brotherhood, in the one free space, the mosque. But there is one thing all three have in common: gigantic youth bulges under the age of 30, increasingly connected by technology but very unevenly educated. My view: of these three, the one that will thrive the most in the 21st century will be the one that is most successful at converting its youth bulge into a "demographic dividend" that keeps paying off every decade, as opposed to a "demographic bomb" that keeps going off every decade. That will be the society that provides more of its youth with the education, jobs and voice they seek to realise their full potential. This race is about "who can enable and inspire more of its youth to help build broad societal prosperity," argues Dov Seidman, the author of How and CEO of LRN, which has an operating centre in India. "And that's all about leaders, parents and teachers creating environments where young people can be on a quest, not just for a job, but for a career - for a better life that doesn't just surpass but far surpasses their parents." Countries that fail to do that will have a youth bulge that is not only unemployed, but unemployable, he argued. "They will be disconnected in a connected world, despairing as they watch others build and realise their potential and curiosity." If your country has either a strong government or a strong civil society, it has the ability to rise to this challenge. If it has neither, it will have real problems, which is why Egypt is struggling. China leads in providing its youth bulge with education, infrastructure and jobs, but lags in unleashing freedom and curiosity. India is the most intriguing case - if it can get its governance and corruption under control. The quest for upward mobility here, especially among women and girls, is palpable. I took part in the graduation ceremony for The Energy and Resources Institute last week. Of 12 awards for the top students, 11 went to women. "India today has 560 million young people under the age of 25 and 225 million between the ages of 10 and 19," explained Shashi Tharoor, India's minister of state for human resource development. "So for the next 40 years we should have a youthful working-age population" at a time when China and the broad industrialised world is ageing. According to Tharoor, the average age in China today is around 38, whereas in India it's around 28. In 20 years, that gap will be much larger. So this could be a huge demographic dividend - "provided that we can
Source: Business Line
Comparing India, China and Egypt
The country that will thrive most is the one that most successfully converts its youth bulge into a demographic dividend It's hard to escape a visit to India without someone asking you to compare it to China. This visit was no exception, but I think it's more revealing to widen the aperture and compare India, China and Egypt. India has a weak Central government but a really strong civil society, bubbling with elections and associations at every level. China has a muscular central government but a weak civil society, yet one that is clearly straining to express itself more. Egypt, alas, has a weak government and a very weak civil society, one that was suppressed for 50 years, denied real elections and, therefore, is easy prey to have its revolution diverted by the one group
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educate our youth - offering vocational training to some and university to others to equip them to take advantage of what the 21st-century global economy offers," said Tharoor. "If we get it right, India becomes the workhorse of the world. If we get it wrong, there is nothing worse than unemployable, frustrated" youth. Indeed, some of India's disaffected youth are turning to Maoism in rural areas. "We have Maoists among our tribal populations, who have not benefited from the opportunities of modern India," Tharoor said. There have been violent Maoist incidents in 165 of India's 625 districts in recent years, as Maoists tap into all those left out of the "Indian dream." So there is now a huge push here to lure poor kids into school. India runs the world's biggest midday lunch programme, serving 250 million free school lunches each day. It's also doubled its number of Indian Institutes of Technology, from eight to 16, and is planning 14 new universities for innovation and research.
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But this will all be for naught without better governance, argues Gurcharan Das, the former CEO of Procter & Gamble India, whose latest book is India Grows at Night: A Liberal Case for a Strong State. "The aspirational India has no one to vote for, because no one is talking the language of public goods. Why should it take us 15 years to get justice in the courts or 12 years to build a road? The gap between [youth] aspirations and government performance is huge. My thesis is that India has risen despite the state. It is a story of public failure and private success." That is what Das means by India grows at night, when government sleeps. "But India must learn to grow during the day," he said. "If India fixes its governance before China fixes its politics that is who will win... You need a strong state and a strong society, so the society can hold the state accountable. India will only get a strong state when the best of society join the government, and China will only get a strong society when the best Mandarins go into the private sector." Source: Indian Express

11TH FEBRUARY, 2013 TO 17TH FEBRUARY, 2013
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23rd December: Human Development, Social Sector Initiatives and Programmes & Policies 1. Concept of Human Development, Development vs. Growth, Human Development Index, MPI, Innovation..... 2. Social Inclusion, Child Welfare, Women Welfare....
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Ecology and environment Comprehension Polity and Governance English Language Comprehension + Logical Reasoning 17th February . Geography 24th February . Decision Making and Problem Solving 3rd March ....... Mental Ability, Basic Numeracy, Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency 10th March ..... General Science and Science and Technology 17th March ..... History 24th March ..... Indian Economy
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NATIONAL
DD India eyes Africa in makeover bid The Prasar Bharati is planning to re-brand DD India (its international channel, with news in English, entertainment programmes) and widen its reach across the world. Launched 17 years ago, DD India is not currently available in most countries due to lack of satellite footprint and distribution problems. The Prasar Bharati now plans to enter into agreements with foreign DTH players and explore platforms like IPTV and webcasting to address these issues. The aim is to go beyond its target audience of Indian diaspora and tap all who are interested in India. Africa is the first destination where it plans to enter in big way. Prasar Bharati's overseas presence declined drastically since the agreement with INTELSAT, through which DD India was uplinked, expired. Although it is technically available in 37 countries through INSAT 4-B, its actual reach is questionable as there is no tie-up with local operators for distribution. The content too lack quality. Serials and soaps aired on DD National are often repeated. Revamping and customizing the content keeping in view the geographical diversities, infusing an element of professionalism in its packaging and marketing, and improving news and current affairs presentation has been mooted by the Prasar Bharti. It will also seek help from Indian embassies and High Commissions abroad to forge partnerships between DD India and top distributors in various countries. There is also a strategic angle for its foray in Africa. India has high stakes in the continent where China's CCTV has a separate channel. CCTV has daily news programmes from Africa. On content side, Bollywood will get more prominence as it can appeal to the youth. Wrestling knocked out of 2020 Olympics IOC leaders dropped wrestling from the Olympic program. While wrestling will be included at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro; it has been cut from the games in 2020, which have yet to be awarded to a host city. The executive board of the International Olympic Committee reviewed the 26 sports on its summer program in order to remove one of them so it could add one later this year. It decided to cut wrestling and keep modern pentathlon -- a sport that combines fencing, horse riding, swimming, running and shooting -- and was considered to be the most likely to be dropped. The board voted after reviewing a report by the IOC program commission that analyzed 39 criteria, including TV ratings, ticket sales, anti-doping policy and global participation and popularity. According to IOC wrestling ranked "low" in several of the technical criteria, including popularity with the public at the London Games -- just below 5 on a scale of 10. Wrestling sold 113,851 tickets in London out of 116,854 available. Wrestling also ranked "low" in global TV audience with a maximum of 58.5 million viewers and an average of 23 million. Internet hits and press coverage were also ranked as low. The IOC also noted that FILA -- the international wrestling federation -- has no athletes on its decision-making bodies, no women's commission, no ethics rules for technical officials and no medical official on its executive board. FILA have 177 member nations. The IOC executive board will meet in May in St. Petersburg, Russia, to decide which sport or sports to propose for 2020 inclusion. The final vote will be made at the IOC session, or general assembly, in September in Buenos Aires, Argentina where wrestling will join seven other sports in applying for 2020, but it is extremely unlikely that it would be voted back in so soon after being removed by the executive board. The other sports vying for a single opening in 2020 are a combined bid from baseball and softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu, a martial art. The last sports removed from the Olympics were baseball and softball, voted out by the IOC in 2005 and off the program since the 2008 Beijing Games. Golf and rugby will be joining the program at the 2016 Games in Rio. The move came as a shock. Wrestling has not only given India its first individual Olympic medal in 1952, it has also made the country a force to reckon with in the global arena. Success at Olympics has made wrestling popular. It has earned India four of
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its 24 Olympic medals - two were won in London last year when silver medallist Sushil Kumar became the first Indian to win back-to-back individual medals. Yogeshwar Dutt also brought home a bronze. In male-dominated Haryana, Rajasthan, crossregional brides are deprived of rights
According to a study 'Tied in a Knot - crossregion marriages in Haryana and Rajasthan, Implications for Gender Rights and Gender Relations,' funded by the Royal Norwegian Embassy studied the Oppression and discrimination suffered by the low caste groups and Dalits at the hands of the dominant caste groups in Haryana and Rajasthan is reproduced within the families bringing in wives from other parts of India. The brides are "needed" solely for their ability to perform free reproductive and productive labour. They are also preferred over local women as the loosening of natal family connections renders them vulnerable to domination and abuse. In the last decade and a half, the male marriage squeeze in the prosperous north Indian provinces such as Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and western Uttar Pradesh has led to men from these States paying money to marry women, usually from underdeveloped or economically marginalised regions of eastern India. They are segregated, isolated and shunned primarily because of their 'unknown' caste status, though the families overtly insist otherwise. Furthermore, the caste-based exclusion and humiliation is experienced both in the public arena and the private space of the family. The research was conducted in three phases in Rohtak, Rewari and Mewat districts of Haryana and Alwar and Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, across 226 villages with 1,216 cross-region brides participating. In the source region of Odisha, the research was conducted on a cluster of 10 villages in Balasore district. The most disturbing finding has been the conjugal communities' widespread intolerance of the cross-region brides in Haryana and Rajasthan. Caste councils or Khap panchayats, though taking a tough stance on inter-caste marriages in Haryana, maintain a studied silence on the nature of oppression and discrimination. Caste discrimination is further amplified by deep racism against women and their natal communities. They are all pejoratively called 'Biharan,' a term that implies poverty, desperation, filth and savagery. Their parents and natal communities are branded as 'thieves,' 'sellers of daughters' and 'primitive savages.' The repeated denigration is internalised by the brides, and this leads to lowering of their
self-esteem and self-worth. As a survival strategy, they minimise their social contact with others, with a negative impact on their mental health. Most cross-region brides are victims of colourism (darker pigmentation of their skin). Dark skin leads to their rejection in the local marriage market, making them more likely to be offered for longdistance alliance, resulting in dislocation from their culture, community and family. Apart from casteist and racist slurs, these brides are considered, and often taunted as ugly and dull in intelligence, because of their dark skin, the study suggests. Shortage of women is not common across all caste groups, but is endemic among the dominant caste groups of Jats, Ahirs and Yadavs. While the well-off from these groups are able to marry locally, men who are underemployed, poor, those who have little land, suffer from some deformity, are less educated or are old are the ones who most often seek cross-region brides. This practice, however, is slowly spreading to some lower caste groups and Muslim communities Such marriages are non-customary as the women come from different ethnicity, region and, sometimes, even religion. Families of these brides are extremely poor, often in the Below Poverty Line category, with little or no land assets and seasonal low-paying agricultural work. Inability to meet the exorbitant dowry demands made by local grooms forces them into long-distance alliances. This is the main reason why they opt for 'dowry-free, no wedding expenses' offers made by Haryanvi or Rajasthani men. These marriages are arranged in four ways with grave consequences for the brides, depending on which marriage route they take. These are trafficking; alliances through marriage brokers or Dalals; husbands of brides; and brides as marriage mediators. Though there is trafficking of women for forced marriages, it is not as extensive and rampant. Children of such unions face similar racial taunts from their peers and are not accepted as one of their own. The insults range from sidelining in games or bullying with name-calling. Such incidents are high in Rohtak district of Haryana and the Alwar region of Rajasthan. Some older male children have faced difficulty in finding local girls because of their mother's 'questionable' caste identity. The brides are subject to heightened surveillance, which varies from total confinement to restriction of their movement within the village. The degree to which this is enforced depends on the mode through which the bride has been sourced, the duration of the marriage; and the amount invested by the family in the marriage; and whether she has children or not.
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The study suggested that registration of all marriages, notwithstanding community or religion, be made compulsory with a bill passed immediately, this will help to protect the gender rights of crossregion brides in case of trafficking; abuse; desertion by husband; or their claiming maintenance or inheritance rights. The study suggests that the benefits of the government scheme to encourage inter-caste marriages with a monetary incentive be extended to cross-region marriages, with a clause that the wife shall be a non-resident and of low-caste status. It will ensure that such marriages are registered by a marriage registration officer, will lead to reduction in incidences of trafficking and will offer legal protection of human rights of the brides and their children. MoU signed between NACO and Ministry of Shipping
As a part of its efforts to mainstream issues relating to HIV/AIDS, the Department of AIDS Control, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare signed the first MoU with the Ministry of Shipping.
According to the MoU, NACO will provide HIV/ AIDS/STI preventive, care support and treatment services to port workers as well as community around major ports including fishermen, seafarers, truckers, single male migrants and other vulnerable population, etc. It also aims to provide stigma free environment and promote greater involvement of people living with HIV in all major port areas. Under the MoU, Ministry of Shipping commits itself to the following things:a) Make available health infrastructure and human resources for prevention and management of HIV/AIDS/STI. b) Designate responsibility to personnel at suitable level to plan, implement and monitor HIV/ AIDS/STI services. c) Ensure identified health personnel from the facilities are provided capacity building by State AIDS Control Societies. d) Promote safe sexual practices among vulnerable population in port setting with necessary support from State AIDS Control Societies.
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e) Ensure dissemination/display of IEC material pertaining to HIV/AIDS/STI at ports/health facilities and outreach activities. f) Ensure ICTC/PPTCT/ and STI services and ensure availability of rapid HIV diagnostic kits (3 different antigens/principles) as per NACO guidelines and specifications. g) Set up designated STI/ICTC Clinics at major ports for vulnerable population including truckers and transport workers and ensure availability of STI drug kits as per NACO guidelines and specifications. h) Coordinate and strengthen referral linkages with State AIDS Control societies and implementing partners like targeted interventions TI NGOs/ drop in centre/community care centres and network of HIV Positive persons. i) Ensure record keeping and reporting to SACS as per prescribed format. j) Commit resource (Manpower, material and money) for HIV/AIDS/STI in budgets/or CSR component for sustainability to his endeavor. And the NACO commits itself to: a) Share Nationally approved treatment protocols, guidelines and standards pertaining to STI/ HIV/AIDS b) Providing technical support and build capacity of ports health personnel to facilitate integration of HIVIAIDS in the Health Services. c) Providing training to major port health personnel (Doctors, nurses, laboratory technicians on syndromic case management of ST1 , which could be direct training or training of trainers as per the number of personnel. d) Providing training to major port health personnel ( Doctors, nurses, laboratory technicians on integrated counseling and testing services for HIV, which could be direct training or training of trainers as per the number of personnel. Provide technical support for implementation of IEC and awareness activities around major ports with support of ports authorities e) Sharing reporting formats and monitoring mechanisms
INTERNATIONAL
Iran nuclear talks fail again: IAEA The chief UN atomic inspector stated that talks with Iran had failed again to reach a deal on enhanced inspections of Tehran's nuclear programme. The meeting was the latest in a string of attempts by the IAEA to press Iran to grant access to sites, scientists and documents that the agency believes may have been part of a covert nuclear weapons drive. Iran in it's defend stated that the IAEA's allegations are based on flawed Western and Israeli intelligence - which it has not been allowed to see. In November, Washington warned that if there was no progress with the IAEA, it would push for the 35-nation IAEA board at its next meeting from 4-8 March to take the rare step of referring Iran to the UN Security Council. Afghan Army trains women for Special Forces The Afghan army is training women special force units to take part in night raids against insurgents, breaking new ground in an ultraconservative society and filling a vacuum left by departing international forces. Night raids have long been a divisive issue between Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who doesn't want foreign troops entering Afghan homes, and the U.S.-led coalition that says the raids are essential to capturing Taliban commanders. Many Afghans, however, have complained that the house raids are culturally offensive. Having men search Afghan women is taboo. So is touching a family's Koran or entering a home without being invited. Another focus of anger has been the disregard for privacy and Afghan culture because women and children are usually home during the raids. The raids now are conducted jointly by U.S. and Afghan forces, but the women Afghan Special Forces soldiers play an important role. Their job: round up women and children and get them to safety while guarding against the potential dangers of women suicide bombers or militants disguised in women's clothes. The missions have taken on increasing importance and the Afghan government and the U.S.-led coalition have stepped up training of the Afghan Special Forces as international troops prepare to end their combat mission in 23 months. Japan space telescope to study atmosphere, solar system
This latest failure comes less than two weeks before talks between Iran and six world powers the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany - in Kazakhstan on February 26. These talks follow three rounds in 2012, the last in Moscow in June, at which the six, known as the P5+1, pressed Iran to scale back key areas of its nuclear programme. Iran however walked away because the P5+1 stopped short of offering Tehran relief from UN Security Council and unilateral Western sanctions that last year began to cause major economic problems for the Persian Gulf country. In particular the six want Iran to suspend the enrichment of uranium to purity of 20%, which for the international community is the most worrisome part of Iran's activities. Iran's mastery of the technology to enrich to these levels takes it significantly closer to being able to purify the material further to 90%, the level for a nuclear weapon-should Iran decide to do so. Iran says that it is enriching to 20% in order to make fuel for a reactor producing nuclear medicines. It is also enriching to five per cent for power generation, even though it has only one operating plant for this. The six powers also want Tehran to shut the Fordo enrichment facility-dug into a mountain near the holy city of Qom, making it difficult to destroy-and to ship abroad its existing stockpile of 20-per cent uranium.
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Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch a satellite later this year equipped with an ultraviolet telescope that will probe the gases surrounding three of our nearest neighbours in the solar system Venus, Mars, and Jupiter.
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Scientists hope this will help them understand the conditions that created the dense, life-supporting atmosphere of Earth, JAXA. Scientists hope this will help them understand the conditions that created the dense, lifesupporting atmosphere of Earth. Japan will also study whether solar winds have any effect on Jupiter's magnetosphere, the area of space around the planet where the particles fall under the sway of its magnetic field. The satellite, weighing 320 kilogrammes (700 pounds), will go around the Earth in an elliptical orbit between 950 and 1,150 kilometres (between 600 and 700 miles) high. The satellite will also carry out experiments on next-generation solar batteries in the form of a thin sheet, and on lithium-ion batteries designed to tolerate greater ranges of temperatures.
North Korea's two previous tests in 2006 and 2009 which triggered waves of UN sanctions. Former president Mohamed Nasheed seeks refuge in Indian embassy
North Korea carries out nuclear test North Korea has sparked alarm around the world by testing a nuclear bomb. It has staged its most powerful nuclear test yet, claiming a breakthrough with a "miniaturised" device in a striking act of defiance to global powers including its sole patron China. Its claim of miniaturisation suggests that it is a step closer to fitting a nuclear warhead onto a ballistic missile. North Korea stated that the nuclear test was conducted as part of measures to protect national security and sovereignty against the reckless hostility of the United States that violated republic's right for a peaceful satellite launch. The first priority for the international community will be determining the precise nature and yield of any test and what it reveals about the technical level of the North's nuclear weapons programme. For nuclear experts, the key question will be whether North Korea used up more of its scarce reserves of plutonium for the suspected third test, or used uranium in a new and selfsustaining path to atomic detonations A uranium test would confirm suspicions that the North has been secretly enriching weaponsgrade uranium for years and open a path for Pyongyang to significantly expand its small nuclear arsenal. Some experts had suggested a simultaneous test of both plutonium and a uranium device. Even with sophisticated seismic monitoring and "sniffer" planes capable of detecting radioactive fallout, external analysis will provide only limited information on the test, especially if it was well-contained.
Former president of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, has sought refuge at the Indian High Commission in Male and India has agreed to allow him "spend the night" in the Indian high commission in Male. Outside the building, the police are waiting to give effect to an arrest warrant issued by a court against him. The stand-off is likely to continue for some more time as the high court has rejected Mr Nasheed's request that the arrest warrant issued by the lower court be stayed. As long as the former president is inside the High Commission, the Maldivian police cannot arrest him as it is Indian Territory. The court issued the arrest warrant as he did not turn up for his previously scheduled trial hearing at Hulhumale Magistrate Court on February 10 in the case regarding detention of chief judge Abdulla Mohamed in 2012. The former President was on a visit to India after being granted permission to depart the country by the court. Despite the travel period he was allowed expiring on February 9, Mr Nasheed arrived back in Male only on February 11. Mr Nasheed is charged with abusing his power as president after winning the first free elections in the country in 2008. Mr Nasheed was forced out of power in February last year in what he has described as a coup orchestrated by former ruler Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. As a close and friendly neighbour, India has expressed concern over the ongoing political instability in Maldives and called upon the Government and all political parties to adhere strictly to democratic principles and the rule of law, thereby paving the way for free, fair, credible and inclusive elections. Meteor blast over Central Russia A meteor or meteors streaked across the sky over Chelyabinsk, Russia, creating a sonic blast on par with an atomic explosion. Buildings were damaged and glass and doors were blown in. About 1,100 people sought medical treatment, according to the interior ministry, and nearly 50 were hospitalized. The meteor weighed an estimated 10 tons, and fell through the Earth's atmosphere at approximately 33,000 miles per hour.
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Russian fireball was the largest reported since 1908, when a meteor hit Tunguska, Siberia, and flattened an estimated 80 million trees. Chelyabinsk is about 5000km west of Tunguska. The Tunguska blast, attributed to a comet or asteroid fragment, is generally estimated to have been about 10 megatons. Scientists in Europe, Russia and the United States are working on ways to predict meteorite strikes in the futures. Small pieces of space debris such as parts of asteroids or parts of comets on a collision course with earth are called meteoroids. When meteoroids enter the atmosphere they are called meteors. earth's
Pakistan tests Hatf-II ballistic missile Pakistan successfully tested the nuclearcapable Hatf-II ballistic missile with a range of 180 km, marking the second test of a missile system in four days as part of measures to evaluate the capabilities of its Strategic Forces. The test of the Hatf-II or Abdali short range surface to-surface ballistic missile was part of the process of validation of land-based ballistic missile systems. The missile can carry nuclear or conventional warheads with "high accuracy". The weapon system with its varied manoeuvrability options provides an operational level capability to Pakistan's Strategic Forces. According to the latest Congressional report Pakistan's atomic arsenal probably consists of between 90 to 110 nuclear war heads.
Most meteors burn up in the atmosphere, but if they survive and strike the surface of the earth - as the object or objects in Russia may have - they are called meteorites.
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ECONOMY
Nasscom Pegs FY14 IT Export Growth At 12-14% Exports from India's IT outsourcing sector are expected to grow between 12-14% in the fiscal year starting April to as much as $87 billion, according to the National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom), the industry lobby. Exports from the industry, which counts the United States and Europe as its biggest markets, were estimated to have grown 10.2 percent to $75.8 billion in the current fiscal year, It had begun the year with a forecast of 11-14%, but revised that downwards in the middle of the year, saying it would be closer to the lower end of the forecast. The latest estimate falls below even that. The global economic uncertainty caused corporations in the United States and Europe to cut back on IT spending, leading Nasscom to bring down its forecast for the current fiscal year. Strong December-quarter results from secondranked Infosys and its peers, including top-ranked Tata Consultancy Services, prompted investors to speculate that the coming year will see an increase in IT spending, while overall budgets are expected to remain largely unchanged. the business of software development, software services, software products, IT-enabled/BPO services and e-commerce. NASSCOM has been a proponent of global free trade in India. NASSCOM was set up in 1988 to facilitate business and trade in software and services and to encourage advancement of research in software technology. It is a not-for-profit organization, registered under the Indian Societies Act, 1860. Trade deficit soars to $20 b
The domestic IT industry is expected to grow 13-15% to touch Rs 1.20 lakh crore in the 2014 fiscal. The IT industry's share of GDP is almost 8% and the sector's contribution to GDP as a percentage has grown threefold in the last 10 years. The sector did net hiring of 1.88 lakh people this fiscal and now provides direct employment to 3 million people. The sector is one of the largest organized private sector employers in the country. It also adds 9.5 million jobs indirectly. About 30% of our workforce is women. The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) is a trade association of Indian Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry. NASSCOM is a global trade body with over 1200 members, of which over 250 are global companies from the US, UK, EU, Japan and China. NASSCOM's member companies are in
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India's exports barely inched into the positive zone, after a gap of eight months, recording a meagre 0.82 per cent growth at $25.58 billion in January. The growth, however, is unlikely to help in reaching the $350 billion export target for 2012-13. The positivity in exports has come mainly on account of better performance by sectors such as engineering goods, textiles and gems and jewellery. Exports have been contracting since May 2012. The trade deficit also continues to be a cause of concern, soaring to a three-month high of $20 billion. The country's exports stood at $25.37 billion in January, 2012. Imports, too, rose by 6.12 per cent to $45.5 billion in the month under review. However, during the April-January period of 2012-13, the country's overseas shipments shrunk by 4.86 per cent to $239.6 billion. The government hopes that the incentive package, which came into force in January, would help the country's exports improve significantly in the coming months. In the last couple of months, there has been an arrest in the fall of exports in October 2012, India's exports declined to 1.63 per cent from 11 per cent in September. In December, shipments declined by 1.9 per cent from 4.17 per cent in November 2012. Imports during the 10-month period rose by 0.01 per cent to $406.8 billion. Trade deficit during the period stood at $167.16 billion. The most worrying aspect as usual is the widening trade deficit. Figures show that there is a substantial increase in the imports of petroleum and crude oil which is widening the trade deficit. Since
April 2012, petroleum and crude oil imports too have shown an increase. While in August the imports grew by 3 per cent, in September it jumped by 30 per cent and in October by 31 per cent. In November, December and January, petroleum and crude oil imports went up by 16.8 per cent, 23.6 per cent and 7 per cent respectively The export sectors, which registered positive growth, cumulatively include rice, tobacco, oil meals, carpet, pharmaceuticals and drugs. Fall in the exports of engineering, textiles and gems and jewellery, the main contributors, have also been arrested. Engineering exports declined by 4 per cent, while gems and jewellery and textiles exports shrunk by 0.6 per cent and 8 per cent during April-January. Oil imports in January grew by 6.91 per cent to $15.89 billion from $14.87 billion in the corresponding period last year. Non-oil imports, too, increased by 5.71 per cent during the month under review to $29.68 billion.
Social security for international workers Companies with globally mobile employees should ensure compliance with the Provident Fund law, just as they do for tax provisions. Social security laws in India are not as robust or established as those in the US or other countries. In India it does not include coverage in cases of unemployment, illness and injury, old age and retirement, loss of the family breadwinner and so on. It is limited to provident fund and pension, as contributed by employees and their employer. With effect from May 2009, the Government introduced the New Pension Scheme (NPS), which aims to provide retirement benefits to those who are selfemployed. In 2008, the Government made social security scheme mandatory for cross-border workers by introducing the concept of 'international workers'. Prior to this amendment, such workers qualified for exclusion from the Provident Fund Act. The amendment was made on a reciprocity basis, as the Government realized that Indian employees contributed huge sums towards social security in the overseas jurisdiction in which they were employed, and these benefits may not be available to them on return to India. The definition of 'international workers' covers a foreign employee, holding a non-Indian passport, working for a covered establishment in India, and an Indian employee deputed to a country with which India has a Social Security Agreement (SSA). An SSA provides continuous benefits under the social security scheme of the home country and exemption from contribution in the host country. Exemption is available in the form of 'detachment', under which a person covered by social security legislation in the home country will be governed only by that, provided he/ she obtains a Certificate of Coverage (COC). The COC serves as proof of social security deposit in the home country, and exempts contributions in the host country of work. In India, international workers should contribute 12 per cent of their salary each month towards the Employees' Provident Fund. The employer makes a matching contribution, of which 3.67 per cent is allocated towards EPF and 8.33 per cent towards Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS). Salary includes basic wages, dearness allowance, cash value of food concession and retaining allowance. There have been clarifications from time to time on EPF contribution by international workers. In the case of individuals with multiple country
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During April-January 2012-13, oil imports grew by 11.56 per cent to $140.42 billion from $125.87 billion in the corresponding period of previous fiscal year. However, non-oil imports during the period declined by 5.17 per cent to $266.43 billion. Gold ETFs allowed to invest in Gold Deposit Schemes
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has allowed Gold Exchange Traded Fund schemes (Gold ETFs) to invest in Gold Deposit Schemes (GDS) of banks, as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) changed the maturity period of gold deposits, from six months to seven years instead of three to seven years making the product more attractive for investors. Before investing in GDS of banks, mutual funds shall put in place a written policy with regard to investment in GDS with due approval from the Board of the AMCs and the Trustees. Further, SEBI said that this policy would be reviewed by mutual funds, at least once a year.
While changing the maturity period of GDS the central bank said that banks would not be required to obtain prior approval of RBI for introducing the scheme. Banks, however, asked to inform the details of the scheme including names of branches operating the scheme to the Reserve Bank of India Banks would be required to report the gold mobilised under the scheme by all branches in a consolidated manner on a monthly basis.
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responsibilities, PF will be payable on total salary including salary payable for responsibility outside India. Furthermore, employees on a split payroll have to contribute PF on the total salary earned by them in an establishment covered in India. On ceasing to be an employee of an Indian establishment, the international worker can withdraw the amount in the EPF account if he/ she is from an SSA country. International workers from non-SSA countries cannot withdraw until they are 58 years of age. Furthermore, withdrawal from EPS is allowed only if an international worker has 10 years of eligible service. The RBI issued a circular in June 2012 enabling foreign workers to retain Indian bank accounts to receive their bona fide dues under EPF and EPS after leaving India. The PF law with respect to international workers is continually evolving. Companies with globally mobile employees should be aware of the provisions related to international workers and ensure compliance with the PF law.
investing a maximum 10 per cent of its Rs 3.5 lakh crore plus corpus in top-rated corporate bonds. If allowed, the investment can help EPFO offer higher returns to its subscribers as it has been the case for New Pension System under Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority. At present, EPFO can invest in only bonds issued by PSUs and seven private companies and banks HDFC, IDFC, IL&FS, LIC Housing Finance, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. RBI may tighten credit card norms
EPFO to include 'AAA' rated corporate bonds in portfolio
The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation is set to widen its investment horizon by including 'AAA' rated corporate bonds of any private company in its portfolio following a clean chit from Crisil, a move that can open up a window for blue-chip corporates to raise about Rs 35,000 crore through long-term debt papers annually.
Crisil, which was appointed by EPFO to advice on investment portfolio, has said that none of the 'AAA' rated corporate bonds issued by private companies have defaulted so far and hence can be considered for investment by the provident fund to improve its returns, sources said. The proposal is listed in the agenda of Central Board of Trustees' (CBT) next meeting on February 25 and the panel may approve the proposal of
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RBI and Bankers held a meeting to discuss recent frauds in electronic payments. Bankers told RBI that two forensic investigators have been appointed to identify the source of fraud. The investigation is being done by banks that install card acceptance machines in merchant establishments. There are three different angles to the problems: card frauds, RTGS fraud and case of hacking. Thus Bankers suggested for prescribing tighter standards for banks while installing acceptance devices in stores. The earlier measures suggested by RBI includes: RBI told banks to have an additional PIN-based authentication for credit card numbers by June this year. It has also told acquiring banks (those banks that install point of sales machines) to ensure that all acceptance devices can read EMV (chip) cards by June. With these additional levels of authentication, RBI has ensured that chances of a fraudulent transaction in India are minimal. There has been a sharp drop in fraudulent usage of cards in India by these measures. However, the problem is more in international transactions where it is possible to conduct online transactions with the help of even the basic information available on a card. Thus RBI may now instruct banks to increase security at the merchant end of operations also.
INDIA AND THE WORLD

Second meeting of the Joint Consultative Commission between Bangladesh and India The crucial land boundary issue involves exchange of land in 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh and 51 Bangladeshi enclaves to India. The issue has been hanging fire for several years as additional protocols for the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement had to be formalised. The protocols were signed during the 2011 visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Dhaka. The Union Cabinet has cleared the constitutional amendments required for ratification of these protocols, a move that would facilitate the implementation of the LBA. The joint commission was established under the Framework Agreement on Cooperation for Development signed by the two Prime Ministers on Sep 6, 2011.The first meeting of the JCC was held in New Delhi on May 7, 2012. Kishenganga dispute order coming on 18 feb
An MoU for the establishment of IndiaBangladesh Foundation with the objective of enhancing linkages between the two countries, particularly through economic, scientific, educational, technical and cultural co-operation and the promotion of greater understanding between the peoples of the two countries was also signed. The activities of the Foundation would be financed through revenues from a Trust Fund to be set up through grants made available by the two sides and administered by a Board of Directors with the High Commissioners of India and Bangladesh coChairpersons of the Board. MoU on establishment of Akhaura Agartala Rail link and Protocol amending the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income has also been signed. Further in a major step forward to resolve the land boundary issue, India and Bangladesh today exchanged maps of demarcated stretches. The symbolic exchange of strip maps, carried out in accordance with the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) of 1974, pertain to adverse possessions and undemarcated stretches.
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India and Bangladesh has reviewed the whole range of bilateral issues at the second Joint Consultative Commission (JCC) meeting aimed at consolidating the relations. The Ministers reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations and expressed satisfaction at the significant forward movement in implementation of the decisions taken by the two sides, including during the first JCC meeting. This has widened the scope of bilateral cooperation and relations have become truly multifaceted, encompassing a wide range of areas including trade and investment, security, connectivity, border management, water, power, shipping, renewable energy, development cooperation, art and culture, people to people exchanges, human resource development, among others.
India and Pakistan are bracing themselves up for the final order of the Court of Arbitration at The Hague in their dispute over the construction of the Rs. 3,600 crore Kishenganga hydro-electric project in North Kashmir. The 330 MW run-of-the-river power project is under construction by the National Hydro Power Corporation in the Kashmir valley. Pakistan had sought a stay on the project while the dispute was being heard. However, the Court had restrained India from certain activities of a permanent nature but did not impose any stay. The project is under construction on Kishenganga (called Neelam in Pakistan), a tributary of the Jhelum river, by diverting waters from a dam site to Bonar Madmati Nallah, another tributary of Jhelum. The judgment will be given on February 18, 2013. Delhi Declaration on Traditional Medicine for the South-East Asian Countries
The two-day International Conference on Traditional Medicine for South-East Asian Countries concluded with the Adoption of Delhi Declaration in New Delhi. The Health Ministers of India,
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Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Minister of Indigenous Medicine of Sri Lanka, Regional Director General of WHO SEARO, representatives from SEAR countries, experts from different parts of the world including officers of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare attended the conference. In the declaration the nations agreed for cooperation, collaboration and mutual support amongst the South-East Asian Countries in all spheres of Traditional Medicine in accordance with national priorities, legislations and circumstances, and specifically agree to make collaborative efforts aiming at the following: a) to promote National policies, strategies and interventions for equitable development and appropriate use of traditional medicine in the health care delivery system;
nations in steel & mining. During the visit, a Letter of Intent (LoI) was signed by the Secretary, Ministry of Steel on behalf of Government of India and by the Executive Secretary (Mines & Energy) on behalf of the Government of Brazil. The LoI inter-alia aims to promote and expand bilateral relations between the two countries in the mineral sector with focus on strengthening the supply chain for the growth of the steel industry in both the countries. The Letter of Intent aims to encourage investment opportunities in iron & steel related businesses by the Indian and the Brazilian companies in India and Brazil, facilitate exchange of technical know-how in developing the iron and steel production and other steel related raw materials, including pelletisation plants and other associated industries. Both the Governments would jointly work for developing the steel industry and to exchange technically qualified manpower for sustainable growth of the iron & steel industry. The possibility of signing a Memorandum of Understanding during the forthcoming visit of the President of Brazil to India is also being explored. Both India and Brazil have been showing robust growth in the consumption of steel and are globally viewed as the two large emerging markets after China in terms of their growth potential. MoU on Health signed between India and Bangladesh
b) to develop institutionalized mechanism for exchange of information, expertise and knowledge with active cooperation with WHO on traditional medicine through workshops, symposia, visit of experts, exchange of literature, etc.; c)
to pursue harmonized approach for the education, practice, research, documentation and regulation of traditional medicine and involvement of traditional medicine practitioners in health services;
d) to explore the possibility of promoting mutual recognition of educational qualifications awarded by recognized Universities, pharmacopoeias, monographs and relevant databases of traditional medicine; e) to encourage development of common reference documents of traditional medicine for South East Asian countries; f) to develop regional cooperation for training and capacity building of traditional medicine experts;
g) to encourage sustainable development and resource augmentation of medicinal plants in the South East Asian regional countries; h) to establish regional centers as required for capacity building and networking in the areas of traditional medicine and medicinal plants and i) to exchange views, experiences and experts for integration of traditional medicine into national health systems in accordance with national policies and regulations. Ministry of Steel Initiative to Strengthen Cooperation in Steel & Mining with Brazil
The Ministry of Steel recently led a delegation to Brazil to strengthen cooperation between the two
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c) f)
India and Bangladesh has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in the fields of health and medical sciences that will include joint research in health and exchange of doctors and health professionals. The MoU was signed between the Health Ministers of the two countries -- Ghulam Nabi Azad and A F M Ruhal Haque -- in New Delhi. The main areas of cooperation between the two Governments will include the following: a) Exchange of medical doctors, other health professionals and experts: b) Development of human resources. Exchange of information on health. d) Medical and health research development. e) Regulations of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and cosmetics. Health promotion and disease prevention. g) Fostering cooperation for the development of culturally sensitive and effective public and
professional awareness campaign including clinical are practices and best practices guidelines for healthcare providers and caretakers to benefit individuals and families touched by Autism Spectrum Disorders and Developmental Disabilities The MoU is aimed at promoting cooperation between the two countries in the fields of health and medical sciences through exchange of scientific materials and information and joint collaboration in research in medical science. Institution-level cooperation in the fields of medical treatment, scientific research and training and exchange of health specialists and professionals will also be conducted. Training for doctors and health workers by both the parties in the areas where they have relevant expertise and excellence will also be initiated as part of cooperation. India may open doors in North-East to imports from Bangladesh
India and France Bilateral Meet The President of the French Republic Mr. Francois Hollande paid a state visit to India on 1415 February 2013. Both the nations held bilateral talks on a number of bilateral, regional and multilateral issues of common interest, like nuclear technology, defence cooperation, counter-terrorism and intelligence cooperation, and cultural exchanges. During the meet the Leaders agreed to give further impetus to the Strategic Partnership; In the field of defence, the Leaders reaffirmed their continued interest to enhance bilateral cooperation which is an important pillar of their strategic partnership and reflects their common determination to work for global peace and security. Both welcomed the ongoing exercises between their Armies (Shakti), Navies (Varuna) and Air Forces (Garuda) and confirmed their willingness to further bilateral defence cooperation, by continuing to conduct such interactions. The Leaders further reiterated their desire to cooperate in high technology programmes and projects in the defence sector which would include joint research and development and transfer of technology. The two sides recognized that terrorism poses the main threat to Afghanistan's security and stability, as well as the need for joint concerted efforts and cooperation by countries of the region to effectively counter it, including dismantling terrorist sanctuaries and safe havens, beyond Afghanistan's border, disrupting financial and tactical support being provided to terrorist groups. Both sides agreed that Pakistan must abide by its commitment to expeditiously bring all the perpetrators of Mumbai terror attacks to justice, the statement added. Both leaders also reiterated their strong support for ongoing efforts aimed at defeating terrorism in Mali, preserving Mali's territorial integrity, reestablishing a fully sovereign democratic government in Mali, and to contributing strongly to Mali's national reconstruction and sustainable economic development. The leaders also agreed to encourage closer people-to-people contact, through inter alia, easing mobility and human exchanges and promoting education, science and cultural cooperation as well as expanding trade and investment. They also decided to promote an ambitious and balanced Free Trade Agreement between India and
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India is examining Dhaka's request for opening up land Custom stations across the North-East border for import of motorcycles electronic items and white goods such as air-conditioners and refrigerators from Bangladesh to cater to demand from the North-East States.
India has recently introduced a zero Customs duty regime for all exports from Bangladesh (except liquor and tobacco) and this has generated demand for a number of products, including cheaper electronics and motorcycles made in the neighbouring country. India allows motorcycle and electronic goods only via the Petrapole land Customs station in West Bengal, but as the demand for these goods is mostly from the North-East, the high transportation cost makes Bangladeshi exports unviable.
To cater the need of North Eastern States Bangladesh Commerce Minister has requested the Indian Government to allow exports across posts in the north-eastern border to make the exercise viable. The Commerce Department has instructed the office of the Directorate-General of Foreign Trade to examine the infrastructure at the various land Customs stations across the north-eastern border to see if any upgradation is required. The two countries enjoy excellent bilateral relations and they now need to work on trade facilitation measures to ensure a win-win situation which would contribute to the economic development of both the nations.
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the EU based on reciprocity and mutual benefit which will boost bilateral economic relationship and to establish an annual bilateral dialogue between the two Finance Ministries on economic and financial issues. Apart from fostering comprehensive sustainable urban development cooperation, including infrastructure, transport, water, waste management as well as urban planning, the two sides decided to facilitate and support investments from French companies into India and Indian companies into France which contribute to growth and employment in both countries. Following documents were signed during the meet: a) Cultural Exchange Programme between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the French Republic for 20132015. Under this both sides have agreed to: I. Intensify cooperation in cultural and intellectual areas
Education Training and consultation mechanism.
institution
of
d) Statement of Intent for long-term cooperation in Space. Under this ISRO and CNES have jointly identified the following means to pursue further cooperation including possibilities through Missions, Payloads and Applications; exchange of young Scientists and Professionals in France and in India; conducting thematic workshops etc. India, Mauritius bilateral meet
II. Foster exchanges between artists, architects, cultural stakeholders, students, teachers, researchers, and sportspersons in order to encourage Indo-French Projects Encourage people-to-people contacts.
b) Joint Statement to follow-up and strengthen cooperation in the railway sector between the Minister of Foreign Trade and the Minister of Transportation, Sea and Fishing of the French Republic and the Minister of Railways of the Republic of India. It aims at strengthening cooperation in the field of upgradation of railway stations, high speed corridors and the modernization of the railway network. c) Letter of Intent on the Intensification of Cooperation in the Fields of Education, Higher Education and Research between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the French Republic. The LoI covers areas of University and Scientific Cooperation and Enhancement of Cooperation in Education including Technical and Vocational
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India and Mauritius have started the process of setting up of Joint Business Council (JBC) and a Joint Working Group (JWG) on trade and investment to enhance economic ties between the countries. The matter came up during the meeting between Mauritius Industry, Commerce and Consumer Protection Minister Sayyad Abd-AlCader Sayed Hossen and Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma. The Joint Business Council will be a robust institutional mechanism for giving a boost to trade and investment ties by identifying the priority sectors and sectors of engagement. The JWG would further work out the modalities for broadening and deepening the economic engagement between the two countries. Both the sides also explored the possibilities of approaching new markets through part value addition under the Mauritius Freeport policy. Under the Freeport policy Mauritius offers zero custom duty and corporate tax free regime for companies with predominant export orientations, especially to Africa. During the Financial Year 2011-12, the bilateral trade between India and Mauritius grew by 68 per cent, increasing from USD 863 million in 2010-11 to USD 1,451 million in 2011-12. In the current FY 201213, the bilateral trade in the nine-month period from April-December 2012 was USD 1007 million, registering a marginal decline of 4.78 % as compared to the corresponding nine-month period of AprilDecember 2011.

Sars-like virus inching towards India A dangerous virus, belonging to the same family as the deadly Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars) is inching towards India. United Kingdom's Health Protection Agency (HPA) has now confirmed a fresh case of the novel coronavirus infection in a British resident who had recently travelled to Pakistan and the Middle East. The patient is now receiving intensive care treatment in a Manchester hospital. This latest case brings the total number of confirmed cases of infection with this new virus that can cause large scale outbreak globally to 10, of which two have been diagnosed in the UK. Five were detected in Saudi Arabia of whom three died, two were detected in Jordan both of whom died, two more in UK - both currently receiving treatment and one in Germany who has recovered and been discharged from hospital. The World Health Organization says the new case does indicate that the virus is persistent. The latest infection shows the virus may have reached Pakistan and hence raises fears for India. The head of the respiratory diseases department at the HPA said the contacts of the case are also being followed up to check on their health. He said that no travel restrictions are in place but people who develop severe respiratory symptoms, such as shortness of breath, within 10 days of returning from these countries should seek medical advice and mention which countries they have visited, and since the first case of novel coronavirus was diagnosed in the UK in September 2012, the HPA has maintained increased vigilance for illness caused by this virus. A battery of laboratory tests has been developed by the HPA to test for coronavirus infection. In mid-November the HPA published the full genome sequence from the first UK patient, enabling scientists around the world to understand more about the diversity of this virus. This will help with efforts to determine the origin of the virus and develop strategies for treatment and prevention pollution, tobacco smoking and poor nutrition, with about 620,000 premature deaths occurring from air pollution-related diseases. Like China, India faces an unprecedented public health crisis due to air pollution, the Centre for Science and Environment's (CSE) analysis of government data and the Global Burden of Disease report's data on India has shown. The green think tank released its own assessment and the global study's India specific data recently warning that the number of premature deaths due to air pollution had increased six fold over the last 10 years. Air pollution is now the seventh leading cause behind the loss of about 18 million healthy years of life in India due to illness. It comes after indoor air pollution, tobacco smoking, high blood pressure, childhood underweight, low nutritional status, and alcohol use. CSE's own assessment of the air pollution data generated by the government painted the grim facts that are leading to the public health crisis. Close to half of cities are reeling under severe particulate pollution while newer pollutants like nitrogen oxides, ozone and- air toxics are worsening the public health challenge. Half of the urban population breathes air laced with particulate pollution that has exceeded the safety standards. As much as one third of urban population is exposed to critical level of particulate pollution. Smaller cities are among the most polluted in the country. The data is a damning indictment of India's supposed growing urban regions. Out of the 180 cities that are monitored for only two towns Malapuram and Pathanamthitta - in Kerala meet the low pollution norms (pollution levels remaining at 50% below the standard) for all pollutants. About 78% cities (141 cities) exceed the standard set for particulate matter of size below 10 microns (PM10). As many as 90 cities have critical levels of PM10 and of this, 26 cities have most critical levels of PM10, exceed the standard by more than 3 times. Gwalior, West Singbhum, Ghaziabad, Raipur, and Delhi are top five critically polluted cities. The data analysis shows the situation is only getting worse with time. According to CSE the PM10 monitoring network has doubled between 2005 and 2010 - it has increased from 96 to 180
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Study: Air pollution 5th biggest killer in India Air pollution is the fifth leading cause of death in India after high blood pressure, indoor air
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cities. During this period the cities with low level of pollution has fallen from 10 to 2 and the number of critically polluted cities have increased from 49 to 89 cities. Indian crocodile, king cobra face extinction threat
believed to contain evidence about ancient wet environment. For the next several days ground controllers will command the robot's arm to carry out a series of steps to process the sample, ultimately delivering portions to the instruments inside. They will be analysed by Curiosity's chemistry and minerology instrument (CheMin). Humans and Chimps Share Genetic Strategy in Battle Against Pathogens
What's even more worrying is that there is no available information on the conservation status of nearly one in three reptiles in India. The largest ever analysis of the state of the world's reptiles by the Zoological Society of London in conjunction with the IUCN species survival commission has found that 19% of the world's lizards, snakes, turtles, crocodiles and other reptiles are threatened with extinction. The study estimated 30% of freshwater reptiles to be close to extinction, which rises to 50% when considering freshwater turtles alone, as they are also affected by national and international trade
Around 15% of the reptiles are threatened in the Indo-Malayan realm. In a sample of 1500 species, 112 species are listed from India, of which 12.2% are threatened with extinction. It was found that a large number of reptiles in India have been listed as data deficient (27%). These species have to be targeted for further research. Curiosity drills into its first Martian rock Nasa's nearly one tonne Curiosity rover has just made history when for the first time it used a drill, located at the end of its robotic arm, to bore into a flat rock on Mars and collect samples from its interior. Curiosity landed on Mars on August 6, 2012 at Gale Crater.
Nasa states that this was the first time any robot has drilled into a rock to collect samples from Mars. The hole drilled into the rock is 1.6cm wide and 6.4cm deep. The rock is named "John Klein", in memory of Mars Science Laboratory's deputy project manager who died in 2011. The process involved extensive testing on earth. The rock is
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One in five of the world's 10,000 species of reptiles, including many from India are facing extinction. The Indian crocodile (mugger), King cobra, the South Andaman krait, four types of turtle - Bengal Roof Turtle, Red-crowned Roofed Turtle, Hawksbill turtle and Jagged shelled turtle - along with the Sikkimese Bent-toed Gecko have been identified to be in great danger of disappearing forever.
A genome-wide analysis searching for evidence of long-lived balancing selection -- where the evolutionary process acts not to select the single best adaptation but to maintain genetic variation in a population -- has uncovered at least six regions of the genome where humans and chimpanzees share the same combination of genetic variants. The finding suggests that in these regions, human genetic variation dates back to a common ancestor with chimpanzees millions of years ago, before the species split. It also highlights the importance of the dynamic co-evolution of human hosts and their pathogens in maintaining genetic variation. Balancing selection allows evolution to keep all hereditary options open. The classic human example is the persistence of two versions of the hemoglobin gene: a normal version and hemoglobin S., a mutation that distorts the shape and function of red blood cells. Those who inherit two normal hemoglobin genes are at high risk for malaria, a parasitic disease that infects more than 200 million people each year. Those who inherit one normal gene and one hemoglobin S. gene are partially protected from malaria -- a potentially lifesaving benefit. Those with two copies of the gene suffer from sickle-cell anemia, a serious and lifelong circulatory disease. The researchers used genetic data from 10 chimpanzees from Western Africa and 59 humans from sub-Saharan Africa who were part of the 1,000 Genomes Project. The scientists looked for cases in which genetic variations that arose in the ancestor of humans and chimpanzees have been maintained through both lines. The fact that variation in these regions of the genome has persisted for so long argues that they must have been functionally important over evolutionary time. The researchers, from the University of Chicago and Oxford University, designed the study to be very conservative. Computers sorted snippets of
the genetic data from humans and chimps into clusters depending on how similar the subjects were to each other. For almost every snippet, they found a cluster of humans and a separate cluster of chimpanzees, as expected. But there were a few segments of the genomes in which each cluster included both chimpanzees and humans; in those regions, some humans were more closely related to some chimpanzees than to other humans. The six new examples of balanced selection described in this study appear to play a role, like the MHC, in fending off infectious disease. This requires a variety of evolutionary tools, including balancing selection. When a population moves to a new environment -- for example the exodus out of Africa to northern Europe -- they face many onetime adjustments, such as adapting to less intense sunlight and decreased ultraviolet radiation. Over many generations, their offspring manage to decrease melanin production -- a static adaptation for a static environment. New panel to conserve marine wealth An international independent panel has been formed to look into the management of the world's oceans, which are facing unprecedented overfishing, pollution and habitat loss. The Global Ocean Commission is spearheaded by former British foreign secretary David Miliband, ex-Costa Rican president Jose Maria Figueres and South African cabinet minister Trevor Manuel.
business magnate Sir Ratan Tata, former Australian environment and Defence Minister Robert Hill and Yoriko Kawaguchi, previously Japanese foreign minister and environment minister. Their aim is to publish recommendations for overhauling ocean governance. The initiative is collaboration between several organisations. They include US green organisation; the Pew Environment Group; Oxford University's Somerville College; Dutch environmental awareness group Adessium Foundation; and Oceans 5, a collaboration of philanthropists concerned about the health of the seas. South Pole turning into waste dump According to a recent report the South Pole is turning into a waste dump, with leftovers from experimental set-ups slowly decomposing. Mounds of rubbish, discarded oil cans, car batteries and some dangerous chemicals litter the South Pole. Scientists are most concerned about the Fildes Peninsula (about 120 km off the Antarctic), where the ecologist has been documenting the changes in the environment since 1983. The Fildes Peninsula is one of the largest ice-free areas of the Antarctic with a relatively high degree of biodiversity. The ecologists noticed that during the last 30 years, not only can global climate change be gravely felt in the Antarctic, natural life is equally threatened by the influence of human beings on the local environment of the South Polar Region. Due to the extreme climatic conditions, the sensitive vegetation only recovers very slowly. The vegetation is not only damaged by vehicles and building work it is equally threatened by 'imported' plants. Some years ago, some non-native plants were found near the Russian research station Bellingshausen. Insects and other animal and plant species inadvertently imported by participants of expedition present dangers for the ecosystem.
The goal is to place the spotlight on the threats facing seas that lie beyond national jurisdictions. These are regulated by the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS), a loose-woven treaty that is now 30 years old. Critics say it has been overtaken by the globalised economy and technological advances. Other members of the panel include former Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin, Indian
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2 - MARKERS
Commissioning of Indian Coast Guard Ship 'Rajratan' Indian Coast Guard Ship `Rajratan, the fifth of a series of eight Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPVs) was commissioned in Kolkata. Indigenously built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata, the 50m long IPV displaces 300 tonnes and can achieve a maximum speed of 34 knots, with an endurance of 1500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 16 knots. Equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry and advanced communication and navigational equipment, it makes an ideal platform for undertaking multifarious close-coast missions such as surveillance, interdiction, Search and Rescue, and medical evacuation. The special features of the ship include an Integrated Bridge Management System (IBMS), Integrated Machinery Control System (IMCS) and an integrated gun mount with indigenous Fire Control system (FCS). "One Billion Rising" campaign Pose," directed by Calin Peter Netzer. The Jury Grand Prize Silver Bear went to Bosnian Danis Tanovic's "An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker," a docudrama re-creating institutional abuse and neglect of a Roma family in need, with the actual family members playing themselves. Zhuang Zedong
One Billion Rising is a global campaign by women, for women. The movement calls for an end to violence, and for justice and gender equality. On September 20, 2012, people from 160 countries had signed up to take part in the campaign.On February 14, 2013, the rally was held in more than 190 countries. The campaign was initiated by playwright and activist Eve Ensler Romanian film bags Golden Bear award
The 63rd Berlin International Film Festival awarded the Golden Bear for best film to the Romanian family drama and corruption tale "Child's
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Zhuang Zedong was a Chinese table tennis player, three-time world men's singles champion and champion at numerous other table tennis events and a well-known political personality during the tumult of the Cultural Revolution. Chinese table tennis champion broke the ice with Americans in 1971 after decades of Cold War tension with an act of friendliness. Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th pope, a position in which he serves dual roles as Sovereign of the Vatican City State and leader of the Catholic Church. Benedict XVI was elected on 19 April 2005. On 11 February 2013, Pope Benedict announced his pending resignation, effective 28 February 2013, because of "lack of strength of mind and body". He will become the first pope to resign since Pope Gregory XII in 1415, and the first to do so voluntarily since Pope Celestine V in 1294. Asoke Kumar Mukerji
Shri Asoke Kumar Mukerji, currently Special Secretary at headquarters, has been appointed as the next Ambassador / Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations at New York.
EDITORIALS
A holy river or mere sewer? A concerted political effort to clean up the Ganga can yield major political dividends. For crores of devotees congregating for the Mahakumbh, the 1985 movie Ram Teri Ganga Maili signifies but an understatement of what really is a sordid state of the hallowed river. Most rivers in the country today are just fetid sewers. The Ganga is shallower and dirtier now than three decades ago, when a concerted clean-Ganga campaign was begun, entailing a public expenditure of over Rs 1,000 crore. Way back in 1979, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi asked, "Can we not clean the Ganga?" She had a comprehensive survey conducted by what is now the Central Pollution Control Board. The project received further impetus when Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi set up Central Ganga Authority in February 1985. Launching the Ganga Action Plan at Varanasi on June 14, 1986, he made an unequivocal commitment, "government will definitely see to it that the dirty water is not thrown in..." Plan After Plan remain mired in ineffectual implementation, and lack of coordination between the Centre and the States, as much as among diverse implementing agencies. Myriad reports abound, of unauthorised use and diversion of funds; several sewage treatment plants (STPs) lying dormant because of poor maintenance and management; sewer networks connected to STPs lying incomplete; less than half of the grossly polluting industrial units having installed effluent treatment plants; and one-fifth of them remaining idle. Staggering Filth For the millions on its banks, the river is a watering hole, a bathroom, a septic tank, a laundromat, a cleansing pool, and a garbage dump. A large number of devotees who throng the river ghats and banks daily as well as on special occasions themselves contribute to the pollution. Rampant use of fertilisers and pesticides, compound the problem. At Varanasi alone, some 40,000 cremations take place annually, in addition to thousands of dead bodies thrown into the river, besides carcasses of dead animals. Some 75 per cent of pollution in the Ganga emanates from municipal sewage from 29 classes I cities, 23 class II cities and 48 towns in addition to thousands of villages located along its banks. The stretch between Kannauj and Varanasi, where hundreds of factories and tanneries discharge toxic wastes into the river without treatment, poses a problem. Towards Solutions Common effluent treatment plants, if commissioned for clusters of small scale industrial units, e.g., tanneries, textile units, chemical units, dyes and dye intermediate manufacturers and hotels, and slums shifted from river banks and major drains, would indeed help. Riverine ecosystems need a minimum flow for their survival. Damming the river or diverting its water through canals retard its flow and add to the pollution crisis. Unrestricted withdrawal of Ganga waters through hydel projects, irrigation projects, and industrial activities needs to be controlled. The Alaknanda basin plans pose a threat to all the five Prayags; the Vishnuprayag, for example, is already a victim of the 400 MW eponymous project.
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During a visit to BHU Varanasi in March 2008, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh promised Government would accelerate the pace of cleaning the Ganga. Five long years have elapsed; typically, the promise remains unfulfilled. As an exercise in tokenism, Ganga has been declared a 'national river'. The National Ganga River Basin Authority was constituted on September 23, 2009, bringing curtains down on earlier two tranches of Ganga Action Plan. Although a sum of Rs 7,000 crore was approved in April 2011 for clean-Ganga project, including a share of Rs 1,900 crore by the State governments of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, the investment requirement for the mission is now pegged at Rs 15,000 crore. No credible attempt has been made to unravel why the earlier river cleaning schemes in 1974, 1985, 1993 or 1996 failed. Bureaucracy's Ways What does this sad commentary signify? The malady is well known; ever-fattening bureaucracy doesn't deliver; no heads roll at time-overruns and cost-overruns; main issues get lost in specious technicalities and ingenious subterfuges. Plans
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Metropolis muddle While public attention has been focused on the shortfalls in city governance at the local level, the implications of mega cities - those with more than 10 million souls - have largely gone unnoticed. Last week, the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research focused on five such larger entities at an international workshop in Mumbai. Delhi was left out because it is a city-state, a peculiar animal in its own right. In Mumbai, as presumably in the four other cities of Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, people tend to conflate the populations of the city proper with the much larger metropolitan region. Thus, Greater Mumbai comprises some 480 sq km and has 12.4 million inhabitants. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), on the other hand, spans 4,355 sq km and has 22 million. The outlying townships of Thane and Kalyan themselves are more
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It is feared that scores of hydropower projects planned on the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi river systems in Uttarakhand would seriously affect the unique Himalayan ecology and the Ganga flow. Strangely, the mainstream national political parties have been purblind to the political dividend to be had from an effective clean-up programme. If any party were to adopt clean-Ganga as a firm commitment with a credible roadmap, its victory at the hustings will be assured. Examples of major rivers like the Potomac, Thames, Seine, Rhine, Danube, and St. Lawrence show how riverfront development can be a catalyst for tourism, sports, cruises, and entertainment. India Inc. can perhaps launch ingenuous schemes around important locations, including the development and management of ghats, and eco-friendly entertainment and tourism. An STP can function as a resource-recycling unit, producing energy, manure, poultry feed and fish. Improved physico-chemical quality of the river can also enable increased yields for farmers and fishermen. A task force can come up under the aegis of a Ratan Tata or a Narayana Murthy, assisted by a CEO like E. Sreedharan. The Prime Minister should provide the requisite direction at least once in a quarter. As late as the 1950s, the Thames flowing through London was an open sewer; called "The Great Stink", it forced the House of Commons to abandon its sittings in 1858 to escape its malodorous presence. Yet, by mid-1970s, the river was restored to its pristine glory, after the clean-up campaign that began in 1964. Source: Business Line
than a million each. Even so-called urban experts parrot the scare that Greater Mumbai is bursting at the seams by imagining that it has over 20 million people. In fact, the population of the city proper is decelerating, considering that it grew by only 5 lakh between 2001 and 2011. Indeed, India's urbanisation itself is not rapid by Latin American and African standards. And, in comparison with our South and South-East Asian neighbours, we do not have 'primate cities' which account for the bulk of a country's population and wealth. However, India's urban population in absolute terms rather than the growth rate somewhat like the US economy - is huge: an estimated 600 million in 2030 and 900 million in 2050. Cities, as Adi Godrej of the Confederation of Indian Industry, which co-hosted the workshop, pointed out, account for two-thirds of the nation's GDP and 90% of the government's revenue. If one takes a corporate view of urban development, some $800 billion of infrastructure is required to be put in place in two decades, 45% of this on roads. The MMR reflects many dilemmas which large city-regions suffer from. There are no fewer than 17 agencies concerned with the region's governance, including the central government, state government and municipalities. Narendra Nayar of the corporate think-tank Bombay First put it well: "These are all able members of an orchestra, but there is no conductor." A classic case in point is the ongoing controversy over the extension of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link northwards to the suburbs. The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is in the clutches of the junior coalition partner, the NCP. It has recently got the green signal from the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) for a sea link. The 10.1 km-long link will cost Rs. 400 crore a km or Rs. 4,000 crore. Not to be outdone, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has, this month, invited proposals from consultants instead to conduct a feasibility study and obtain permissions from the Centre for a 36.5 km-long coastal road, worth R8,000 crore. It will straddle the entire west coast of the Greater Mumbai peninsula, from the central business district in the south to the extreme north. The cost of a coastal road is Rs. 80 crore a km; this higher estimate presumably requires the executing agency to 'buy' the Bandra-Worli Sea Link for its cost of R1,600 crore and will include a tunnel through Malabar Hill. The municipal commissioner has compounded the confusion by leaving the choice of the executing agency open at this stage: it could be the MSRDC or, more likely, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region
The real stunt in India's growth story is the education deficit
The steady deterioration in India's economic growth indicators should not surprise anyone. But what is surprising is the complete lack of understanding of most fundamental growth drivers by the political leadership and those entrusted with planning for India's future, and the magnitude of effort and resources required to provide a growth thrust to the (currently) 1.25 billion inhabitants of the nation. Beyond the fiscal deficits, lending rates and taxation slabs, India's future is and would continue to be determined by how the nation grapples with rising deficits in 12 major areas that consist of education, healthcare, water, energy, food, land,
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Development Authority (MMRDA), if not the BMC itself. This body is in the Congress camp and the former municipal commissioner also championed it, encouraged by chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, who is anxious to complete a major transport project in Mumbai during his tenure. The once cash-rich MMRDA, which develops and sells land, notably in the new business district of Bandra-Kurla, has reserves of $12 billion, though it needs R22,000 crore to complete ongoing and other infrastructure projects in and around Mumbai. The MMR's GDP, measured by purchasing power parity, is today $250 billion, the size of Hungary's GDP, which Dr Partha Mukhopadhyay of the CPR likened to "a large, heavy, economic beast". If it was not impinging on the lives of millions in this most populous of all five metropolitan regions, the two different authorities working at cross-purposes would appear comic. While the coastal road is cheaper, it will involve reclamation to ensure the alignment of the road and it may destroy mangroves on the west coast, not to mention two popular promenades in Bandra, which local citizens have built with an MP's funds. Even if the sea link is built, the MSRDC, which built the BandraWorli section, intends to construct highways over mangroves on stilts, which will snuff out their life. They are protected with the highest priority under the Coastal Regulation Zone. Neither the MMR nor any other mega city authority appears to be aware that in industrial nations, planners are demolishing flyovers, sea links and the like. As these planners know, private motorist projects serve a minority - only 8% of Mumbai's commuters - and actually increase the traffic, and the congestion that ensues. Public transport is the only option left in a world facing coronary thrombosis with climate change. Source: Hindustan Times
housing, sanitation, non-industrial waste handing, mass rapid transport system for its rapidly-growing million plus population cities, intra country transport, and internal security. With the 21st-century world widely claimed to be a 'knowledge' " and, increasingly, 'technology' " driven one, a sharp focus on education " primary, secondary, higher and vocational " would have been one of the top priorities of all governments. Yet, the gap in absolute terms has continued to increase since 1951, and has actually increased the most since 1991. India had about 12.1 million primary education seats in 1951 against the requirement of about 45 million (to achieve 100 per cent school enrollment). In 1991, the number of seats had increased to about 44 million, but the required capacity had shot up to 116 million, i.e., a deficit of almost 72 million. In 2001, the deficit increased to about 74 million. In 2011, the government's own data shows a deficit of about 60 million even though many rural (and urban) schools effectively exist only on paper. The seat gap has hardly budged in absolute numbers " at around 60 million seats " since 1981 at middle and high-school levels. Using CBSE norms, this translates to a requirement of about additional 7.75 million teachers, 900 million sq ft of additional building space, about $250 billion in additional capital expenditure and about $75 billion in annual operating budget by 2021. The situation is bleaker when it comes to higher education. At about 12 per cent (about 17 million enrolment), India currently has amongst the lowest Gross Enrollment Ratios (GER) not only compared to the developed nations but even the major developing ones (though the government has recently tried to change its own definition of GER and claims that it is closer to 18 per cent). In a knowledge- and specific skills-driven world, India should be aspiring to come closer to 40 per cent, but even if it were to first target a GER of 30 per cent by 2021, an additional 36 million seats would have to be created. Put another way, India will have to add more than 200 per cent of its entire current higher education capacity, at about $350 billion in capital expenditure, in the next eight years! The bleakest situation of all relates to skills development and vocational education infrastructure. Against a working-age population of over 550 million in 2011, the total (annual) skills development capacity " not considering any qualitative aspect at all " stood at less than 4.3 million. Worse, India stands at a critical point when seen in the context of the last 4,000 years. Perhaps for the
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Toothless tigers, wounded elephants Indian policymakers are turning more and more to literary devices to highlight the problem they address. Finance Ministers are prone to end their hour-long speeches to somnolent audiences with a pick-out from national poets, as both a wake-up call and endorsement of their noble mission. Metaphors and similes are no less in fashion, and it is noteworthy that central bankers are resorting to such figurative turns of phrase to illuminate their vision of India's economic problems. The most widely used similes are, of course, from the animal kingdom. Ever since the East Asian economic "miracle" invested those nations with the label of "Tigers" the most natural thing was to look upon India as an elephant: slow-footed, herbivore and lugubrious.
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Steps for change
first time since the Vedic period, India would see a rapid dismantling of the caste system and, with that, the caste-determined vocation system. On the positive side of this change, it is absolutely desirable that the children of the leather tanners, cobblers, carpenters, bricklayers, etc, should be going to school and many, if not all, will get this opportunity. The only downside is that this decade and the next may also see a complete breakdown of the 'apprentice' system, leaving the nation with hundreds of millions of semi-literate and unskilled people unable to make a living even as daily-wage workers and self-employed microentrepreneurs. India needs to spend over $100 billion in capital expenditure alone in the next eight years, and create an additional six million trainers if even 65 per cent of the 725 million-plus in the workforce by then have to be provided with some value-creating vocational skills. With the current annual spending, both public and private, on education (all sectors) of less than $100 billion, and of which over 80 per cent is spent on just the operating expenses alone, the current annual deficit between the required capital expenditure for additional capacity creation and the actual available funding may be as much as $80 billion. Since it is impossible to generate this quantum of resources, India has to think beyond the conventional and look aggressively at technology and mass electronic communication-based solutions that can mitigate the need for physical schools, colleges and universities, and the need for teachers and even trainers. The consequences of not doing so are too dire to even think of. Source: Economic Times
The crisis of 2008 and its aftermath ought to have put paid to the unfair use of the similes (unfair to the kings of the jungle, that is). East Asian exporting countries are still dazed by the loss of their dedicated markets as is China, that other "tiger". More than anything else, they resemble that toothless and decrepit beast so well captured by Saki's short story, "Mrs Packletide's Tiger." World-wide recession has humbled every nation and turned "tigers and elephants" more or less human, and rather weak ones at that. Yet the similes abound. Three months after the Wall Street crisis, The Economist of London was calling India "An Elephant, not a Tiger". In 2011, hoping to resurrect India in the eyes of investors, RBI Governor D. Subbarao in 2011 spoke of "Rejigging the elephant dance." Mixing metaphors merrily, the Governor reminded the audience: "But the elephant dance got interrupted by the 'zoo party' of the global financial crisis and to get it back on course, we need to rejig the dance." We now have RBI Deputy Governor K.C. Chakrabarty titling his speech: "Transit Path for Indian Economy: Six Steps for Transforming an Elephant into a Tiger."(RBI Bulletin, January 2013) The similes do not last long even though Chakrabarty enlightens us on the "key aspects" of the elephant and the tiger. This is simply the 'hook' and Chakrabarty abandons the similes for the more prosaic business at hand: pulling up the Indian economy from its slough of despond: How? In six steps.
Says Chakrabarty: "India's demographic dividend presents the country with a great opportunity to enhance its growth and seek convergence of per capita incomes with that in the developed world." "Median age for India's population is about 27 years compared with over 40 for most OECD economies. It will add significantly to its labour pool and, even as the median age bucket rises, it will still be at a relatively young 30-34 age bracket by 2026". But by the end of the century we might not have that dividend anymore if we do not exploit that advantage right now. How? By investing more on education, health "better skilling" and, of course, more jobs. By these yardsticks, Chakrabarty should know that the demographic nightmare is creeping over us. Forget Budget spends. An Assocham study of management and engineering education reveals poor quality of training in institutions barring the IIMs; campus recruitment is drastically falling. As for jobs, the less said about jobless growth, the better. The largest employment takes place in the informal sector and
Towards 'tigerhood'
The most important steps towards "tigerhood" therefore are governance and accountability. To his credit, Chakrabarty does not mince words and casts a wide angle eye on the accountability deficit. He does not single out just the public sector, the favourite whipping boy of the urban middle class, that believes too much government is responsible for the corruption India stains itself with. This is what the Deputy Governor has to say: "On corporate accountability, the principal-agent relationship between the management or those who wrest ownership and control and the shareholders as actual owners is rather weak. We have seen asset stripping and bankruptcies in this weak environment. This has been especially true where a complex web of companies within business groups prevail. There is a strong case for simplifying these structures that are often developed to evade taxes, indulge in regulatory arbitrage and to strip assets of the firm for personal use. In recent period, we have come across instances where corporate debt restructuring is sought but ownership commitment of those who have control is rather left weak." Chakrabarty cannot help returning to his elephant/tiger similes. But now in recognising the weaknesses in the "tiger" economies, the similes lose their force almost all together. No one would miss them if they were dropped, the exegesis would lose none of its force. The world economic downturn has slowed down China and East Asia to a more lugubrious pace, but more importantly, to a recognition of the need for pause and reflection -- a taking stock of our reckless growth and appetites
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that does not need "skilling." The second step for metamorphosis into a "tiger" is to improve productivity and efficiency. To its credit, the organised sector has been increasing productivity and efficiency, that has resulted in competitive exports, at least in some sectors. But a consequence of that has been a decline in employment. Economic theory would have us believe that both move together in the same direction, but only if the overall economy expands. The chase for productivity implies a chase for lower costs, and the best place to start that process is by extracting more out of fewer people. No one can argue against the next step: More infrastructure investments, harnessing natural resources better. Likewise, there can be no argument with more finance for real sector and social inclusion. But these remain policy-driven and administratively sensitive to the warp and weft of governance.
and our relationship with our resources, our 'watering holes' in order to preserve our species from wilful self-destruction. Tigers and elephants never had those choices. Source: Business Line An abomination called AFSPA Mr. Chidambaram has sought to blame the Army for the failure to repeal the draconian Act but the government is equally guilty as it has abdicated responsibility in the matter At an institute that is virtually owned, funded and run by the Ministry of Defence (MoD), Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram did the unthinkable the other day. He virtually attacked the Army for refusing to review and amend the draconian Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), if not repeal it altogether. Like a clever politician, he tossed the issue squarely into the lap of the Army and the MoD, saying they were unambiguously opposed to any change and that "you should ask the question to the armed forces and ask why are they so opposed to even some amendment to AFSPA which will make [it] more humanitarian. We have [the] Jeevan Reddy Committee report but yet if the Army takes a very strong stand against any dilution or any amendment to AFSPA, it is difficult for a civil government to move forward." This raises a startling issue about democracy, the rule of law and of civilian control over the military. Now that the most powerful figure in the Cabinet after the Prime Minister has spoken, perhaps someone will take notice. But the problem is far more complex than it appears to be. After all, the Minister did not say why the Government of India has refused to publish the Reddy Committee's report or even table it in Parliament eight years after it was submitted. It remains accessible on The Hindu's website, the place where the report was first leaked and published verbatim in 2005. It is not that the question is simple, stark and frightening: who runs the north-east or Jammu & Kashmir or any area that is affected by insurgency? AFSPA is put in place after the area has been declared "disturbed" under the Disturbed Areas Act, the enabling provision of law, which facilitates the summoning of the Army to the aid of civil authorities who are unable to control armed insurrection. This is the call of the State government or the Centre. No prosecution in over 50 years Passed in 1958 when the Naga movement for independence had just taken off, AFSPA is a bare law with just six sections. The most damning are
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Impact of Verma report
A year ago, two judges of the Supreme Court, intervening in a case where the Central Bureau of Investigation was seeking to prosecute army officers accused of murdering five villagers in Jammu & Kashmir, in what is known as the Pathribal incident, declared clearly that AFSPA's protection was limited to acts conducted in the line of duty. "You go to a place in exercise of AFSPA, you commit rape, you commit murder, then where is the question of sanction? It is a normal crime which needs to be prosecuted, and that is our stand," declared the bench of Justices Swatanter Kumar and B.S. Chauhan. It's simple: you don't rape or murder "in the line of duty." These are aberrations to the law of military conduct with civilians. And the Army is upset that the Justice J.S. Verma Committee even suggested that military men accused of sexual assault should be tried under normal law and not be protected by the law that guarantees absolute protection: Immunity. A retired general came on a TV programme the other day and fumed that reviewing AFSPA was not the mandate of the Verma Committee. Sorry sir, you've got it completely wrong. The question of life and death in a "disturbed" area where, according to a case now before the Supreme Court 15,000 people (men, women and children) have disappeared from the killing fields of Manipur is everyone's concern. Army circles are worried that soldiers and officers will be dragged to civilian courts and that frivolous cases will be filed against them. This is a real matter of concern but it cannot be the rationale for blocking efforts to repeal or amend AFSPA. Come up with an alternative instead. But the MoD has not or is perhaps unable to do so. A former general even said publicly that 97 per cent of all cases against army men were found to be false. The question I will put is simple:
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those in the fourth and sixth sections: the former enables security forces to "fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death" where laws are being violated. The latter says no criminal prosecution will lie against any person who has taken action under this act. In 54 years, not a single army, or paramilitary officer or soldier has been prosecuted for murder, rape, destruction of property (including the burning of villages in the 1960s in Nagaland and Mizoram). In the discussions over the past days, no one has even mentioned the regrouping of villages in both places: villagers were forced to leave their homes at gunpoint, throw their belongings onto the back of a truck and move to a common site where they were herded together with strangers and formed new villages. It is a shameful and horrific history, which India knows little about and has cared even less for.
how far back are you going? Do you forget those murdered, raped and tortured, their homes and granaries burned and their places of worship desecrated? Should these crimes go unpunished? Remember too that the Indian Air Force, in March 1966, bombed Aizawl and civilian targets in the Lushai Hills (now Mizoram) to repulse an insurgent attack that had almost overrun the district headquarters. Many in Mizoram do not even talk about those days. They are simply spoken of as "the troubles" and no discussion takes place, such is the trauma that has been inflicted on people. And are we merely supposed to forget all this, to sweep it under the carpet and "move on"? Why should the victims continue to pay the price? Why not those who inflicted the devastation, who gave the orders and who carried them out? Nagaland is peaceful now We need to remember two points here about AFSPA and the place where it all began - Nagaland, in 1958. Nagaland today is peaceful. It is not free of intimidation, extortion or factional killings, but not a single Indian solider has fallen in combat here for the past five years. The State government has been asking, since 2005, for the removal of the Disturbed Areas Act. The Government of India refuses to listen. What is the greater abomination then? Is it that the Army, which is easy to blame and always in the line of fire, is stuck in a thankless task? Or is it that the civilian government which first sent them there is unable to take the political decision that will bring the boys home? Fifty-four years is a long time to have a law as revoltingly brutal and obscure as AFSPA. Now, both sides are stuck. The army says it is like its "Bible" and that if the Act is removed it will face the prospect of fighting "with one hand tied." The central government says that it can't persuade the Army to back down. What will it take to close this sad, ignominious and bloody chapter in our nation's history? We will need to go beyond Mr. Chidambaram's remarks for what he was doing is to lay the blame at the door of the Army. That is not right for the civilian government is equally complicit in this. He is seeking to show that the "civilian" government is opposed to a doctrinaire securitised approach and that the MoD and the Army are isolated. But this approach doesn't work. Instead, it shows that the two, even when isolated, are more powerful than the rest of the government put together. They have, after all, successfully stalled any effort to dilute or amend the Act. Why did the "civilian" government not have the courage to act in 2005 when the Reddy Committee gave its report, which not only recommended AFSPA's repeal but also proposed a
legal mechanism by which the Army could be used in extraordinary situations involving national security? Our essential recommendation was that no one could be above the law; everyone must be equal before and under it. Display statesmanship The Centre has lost more than seven years in coming to no decision on the recommendations. Yes, internal wrangling is difficult to resolve but how long should anyone have to wait for a resolution? Today, the situation has become much more complex because the window of opportunity provided by the Reddy Committee has virtually closed. The Army has bolted it because it does not want to be seen as the villain of the piece. It did not ask to go anywhere. It was sent to Nagaland and Manipur. But now it must, in its own interests and that of the country, get out of places where threats to national security simply do not exist, and when the central government thinks it should leave. After all, if required, the security forces can always be summoned again. The situation calls for statesmanship of a very high order. Atal Bihari Vajpayee showed this in 2003 on his maiden visit to Kohima when he reflected, as Prime Minister, on the suffering that both sides had faced and sought to reach out and seek reconciliation: "Let us leave behind all the unfortunate things that happened in the past. For too long this fair land has been scarred and seared by violence. It has been bled by the orgy of the killings of human beings by human beings Each death diminishes us The past cannot be rewritten. But we can write our common future with our collective, cooperative efforts." The present situation demands measures no less significant from the current Prime Minister, who decided that AFSPA must be reviewed. But he did not follow this up because the opposition from the Defence Ministry was just too strong. So, we must ask, as we rest and wrestle with this tortuous story: how many more deaths, how many more naked protests, how many more hunger strikes, how many more committees, how many more editorials and articles and broadcasts before AFSPA goes? Source: The Hindu Accounts and accountability Synergy between the CAG and government can ensure better delivery Can the CAG's audits be used to improve governance? Is there a need to facilitate more effective communication between the CAG's office
and the executive, to bring in mid-course corrections, improve programme execution and service delivery via the authenticated audit critique? The Union minister for rural development, Jairam Ramesh, believes so. According to reports, he has said that expenditure on all rural development flagship programmes will be brought under the CAG's office for greater accountability and transparency in implementation, plugging the alleged leakage of funds meant for the NREGA and rural road works. The Centre has earmarked Rs 1 lakh crore for rural development this fiscal under its flagship programmes. There can be synergy when there is synthesis in the way governance and audit functions are conceptualised. The smooth functioning of any parliamentary democracy depends on balancing the divergent roles and responsibilities of its three pillars, the legislature, the executive and the judiciary, along with credible institutions like the office of the CAG. In the last budget, the total plan expenditure for 10 flagship programmes for 2012-13 was raised to Rs 5,21,025 crore, 18 per cent more than the previous budget estimate. These programmes are intended to make growth inclusive, while showcasing India Inc. The Bharat Nirman initiative has components for rural infrastructure, encompassing electrification, telephony, roads, housing, drinking water and irrigation, while other programmes, like the midday meal scheme, the NREGA, Indira Awaas Yojana, the JNNURM and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, are tailored to provide a better quality of life and livelihood security. Considering the need to measure outcomes in order to assess the impact of such schemes, the focus shifted from outlays to outcome budgeting from 2005-06, with an emphasis on targets, quantifiable deliverables, physical outputs and institutional reforms in the delivery systems of these programmes. A medium-term expenditure framework statement has also been introduced in the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003, to facilitate the optimum allocation of resources for prioritised schemes and weed out those that have outlived their utility. Even if the leakage of development funds is not as high as 85 per cent of the total allocation, as estimated by former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, it does exist. Realising that good governance is essential for sustainable and inclusive development, the Central government has adopted "citizen's charter" initiatives to bring greater transparency, accountability and responsiveness to administration. The concept is based on trust and cooperation
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between the service provider and its users, adapted from the United Kingdom, which introduced it in 1991 and re-launched it in 1998, emphasising "services first" to continuously improve the quality of public services by empowering citizens. Public money should be spent while ensuring the accountability of individuals and organisations, and in compliance with applicable acts and regulations to enhance service delivery. The nine essential components of service delivery are: settled standards of service; the right to full information, consultation and involvement; encouraging access; the promotion of choice; fair treatment; putting things right when they go wrong; the effective use of resources; innovation; collaboration with other providers. One of the more rational approaches before the government for the purpose of reducing the common man's alienation from the state, and restoring his faith in the state's capacity to design citizen-centric development programmes, is to ensure effective implementation with timely monitoring and midcourse corrections and, if needed, policy interventions.
The office of the CAG is constitutionally mandated to ensure that the people's representatives oversee public expenditure, promoting accountability and good governance. High-quality auditing can provide valuable quantitative and qualitative inputs for formulating effective policy interventions. Learning from the root cause analytics of an effective audit may help promote accountability. An outcome-oriented, competent audit appreciates that the commitment of the executive is a prerequisite. Intensified communicdation between the CAG and the government machinery could help the executive find valuable inputs from objective, authenticated audits of the performance of different projects. This could, in turn, enhance the CAG audit and its capability to provide an independent assurance to stakeholders. India's post-liberalisation growth story was relatively unscathed by the global recession because of impressive policy initiatives, the benefits of which must reach all Indians. Source: Indian Express

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Ecology and environment Comprehension Polity and Governance English Language Comprehension + Logical Reasoning 17th February . Geography 24th February . Decision Making and Problem Solving 3rd March ....... General Science and Science and Technology 10th March ..... Mental Ability, Basic Numeracy, Data Interpretation and Data Sufficiency 17th March ..... History 24th March ..... Indian Economy
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NATIONAL
Civil Aviation Authority with Greater Financial and Operational Authority to Replace DGCA The Minister for Civil Aviation will introduce a Bill for creation of the Civil Aviation Authority in the Budget session of Parliament. The Civil Aviation Authority, (CAA) will replace the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). duties and services required to be performed by the Authority. Authority may levy charges for safety oversight functions of the air navigation services, safety fee from the passengers for safety oversight functions and safety fee for surveillance inspection of air transport operators etc. with the prior permission of the Government. It is proposed to create this fund by collecting fee from air navigation service providers and passengers in additional to the budgetary support given by the Government. The reasons for establishment of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) are because of shortage of trained human resource, its inability to recruit and retain adequate manpower due to procedural and structural problems. The manpower has remained the same over the years though passenger traffic, cargo and aircraft movements have increased manifold. Therefore, DGCA is overloaded with increased work and under-staffed. It has limited delegation of financial powers and incapable to make adequate structural changes to meet the demands of a dynamic Civil Aviation sector. This necessitates replacement of DGCA with CAA which will have more administrative and financial power to deal with the fast changing domestic and global aviation scenario. Extension in the tenure of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK) A statutory National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK) was constituted for the first time in August, 1994, according to provisions under Section 3 of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis Act, 1993. This Commission continued till February, 2004, when the relevant Act expired. Thereafter, the tenure of the Commission has been extended from time to time, as a non-statutory body, the last such extension being upto 31.3.2013. The Commission functions among other things for the upliftment of Safai Karamcharis, evaluation of the implementation of measures taken for the welfare of Safai Karamcharis, making of suitable recommendations to the Central Government in this regard, and to investigate grievances relating to implementation of schemes, laws etc. for the purpose. Though the Government has taken steps for upliftment of Safai Karamcharis, the deprivation
According to the Bill the "Civil Aviation Authority" will be headed by a Chairperson who will be supported by Director-General and seven to nine members. Chairperson, DG and Members will be appointed by the Central Government on the recommendation of a Selection Committee. In this backdrop, the CAA would take over the responsibilities of the DGCA in areas like air safety, airspace regulation, setting aviation standards, licensing of airlines, pilots, air traffic controllers and consumer protection. The main functions and powers of the proposed CAA, which would replace the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will be to regulate civil aviation safety and provide for the better management of civil aviation through safety oversight of air transport operators, airport operators, air navigation service operators and providers of civil aviation services. It will also issue licenses, certificates, permits, approvals etc. required to be issued under the Aircraft Act, 1934 and Aircraft Rules. Besides, it will also provide environment regulations for airports, airlines and other civil aviation activities and protect interest of the consumers. It would have financial and operational autonomy to take expeditious decisions on matters relating to a range of activities. It will have power and authority to call for information including financial information and conduct investigations, power to issue directions, power of seizure, power to punish any person, operator, company or a Government Department, if they fail to comply with its orders or directions and the punishment will be in the form of fine as prescribed under the Rules. The Authority will be a self-funding entity duly authorized by the Government and will have power to fix and collect fees and charges for all functions,
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An amount of Rs. 11.50 crore would be required for meeting the expenditure for the extension of the tenure of the Commission. Government may ban political surrogates from owning television channels
In a consultation paper on issues related to media ownership the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has raised the problem of surrogate entities being used to bypass its existing ban on political, religious and governmental bodies entering the broadcast media space. While recommending the disqualification of certain entities for entry into broadcasting and distribution activities, TRAI's basic intention was to ensure that power of the media is not exploited by such entities for swaying public opinion in their favour, or for promoting vested political interests and propagating ideologies. TRAI pointed out that other international regulators - for example, the U.K.'s Ofcom - prohibit such surrogates, as persons "subject to undue influence by an otherwise disqualified person." TRAI observed that such a scenario is more prevalent in regional markets, with channels directly or indirectly named after political leaders or parties, and complaints of cable distributors using political backing to extend their monopolies. In such a
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suffered by them in socio-economic and educational terms is still quite far from being eliminated. Further, eradication of the practice of manual scavenging is an area of the highest priority for the Government. The Scheme of Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS) is being revised to rehabilitate the remaining manual scavengers and their dependents in alternative occupations. An independent agency is needed to monitor (i) rehabilitation work as reported by State Governments, and (ii) whether the beneficiaries provided loan and subsidy for alternative occupations have successfully taken up their new occupation on a sustainable basis. Thus the Union Cabinet has given its approval to extend the tenure of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK) for a further period of three years beyond 1.4.2013 that is up to 31.3.2016, with the existing terms. The continuation of the Commission for three more years will help in fulfilling the desired objectives of the welfare and development of the target group as there is a continued need to monitor the various interventions and initiatives of the Government for the welfare of Safai Karamcharis in general, and to address the problem of manual scavenging, in particular.
situation, the broadcasters are at the mercy of these politically backed entities for distribution of their channels in that region. Such entities may practically throttle content selectively to suit their own agenda as well as fetter competition in the market, depriving consumers of the benefits of effective competition. The paper also deals with the thorny issue of cross-media ownership, and the danger of diversity of views being throttled by corporates who own or control multiple outlets. It lists out the business houses which have stakes across media segments and distribution platforms. For example, the Sun and Essel (that is, Zee) groups have a presence in print, television, FM radio, DTH and cable, while others such as STAR and the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group have stakes in at least four of those five segments. It points out that "the inherent conflict of interest which arises from uncontrolled ownership" can lead to problems such as paid news, corporate and political lobbying by the media and biased analysis and forecasting. The Union Government is considering the possibility of clamping down on surrogates in the media sector. Make adoption laws more stringent: WCD
Aimed at ensuring that adoption remains a protective measure offered to children, the Union Ministry of Women & Child Development (WCD) is working at bringing in the "core ingredients of the adoption guidelines currently being followed by India under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, giving it legal strength and force''. Delays in adoption results in the children staying in the child care home and institutions longer. The three prime areas of concern are --malpractice in the process of adoption, ensure that there is priority for domestic adoption and the need to follow ethical standards and protocols in adoption. To handle the issue central government have requested all the State Governments to ensure that all children who are without family care be brought into the adoption system, irrespective of their age or special needs. Further the minister demanded that international adoption be stopped from India till comprehensive laws are put in place to prevent 'trafficking' of children in the name of adoption, parents of children who were fraudulently or forcefully taken away and put into inter-country adoption held a meeting in the Capital on Tuesday demanding urgent Government intervention in the matter.
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New Housing Bill to check builders making false claims
The Union Ministry of Housing & Poverty Alleviation will send the Real Estate (Regulation & Development) Bill-2011 to the Union Cabinet for approval. The bill has spelt out the specifics that will have to be followed by the construction industry. According to the Bill, Property developers will no longer be able to lure buyers with advertisements making tall claims and with blown-up pictures of fancy living spaces. In fact they will no longer be able to publicise their projects unless they have all the requisite permissions for construction. The Bill will make it mandatory for property developers to first get approvals like building sanctions, environment and civil aviation clearances before they set out to announce their projects and get the buyers to sign up. The move will stem the prevalent practice of "misleading" the consumers and will bind the builders to deliver what is promised.
per a Bill drafted by his own government, the state police could get powers quite similar to the controversial legislation. The 76-page 'Jammu and Kashmir Police Bill, 2013', made public recently, allows the state to declare any area disturbed, proposing setting up "Special Security Zones" where "administrative and development measures" are integrated with police response for "problems of public order and security". Negating the role of civil administration like a district magistrate in affairs of law and order, the Bill proposes that police be able to set up and arm controversial militia of civilians - as "village defence committees" - and recruit special police officers outside the existing police structure. It also plans a stringent confidentiality clause that could override the existing Right to Information Act in the state. Under the draft legislation, a police officer would be considered "always on duty" and the government as well as the complaints authority deputed to hear cases against him/her would have legal immunity regarding decisions taken by them "in good faith or intended to be done in pursuance of the provisions" of the Bill. In fact, the good faith clause - also the main basis of immunity under the AFSPA - in the draft legislation is vague, doesn't spell out whether the police force itself falls under "government" and is thus open to wider interpretation. There is also a six-month deadline on entertaining a complaint made against a police official from the "occurrence of the incident". While the civil administration sees the Bill as a bid to encroach on its powers, activists see it as an attempt to exert control. Government's rural livelihood scheme to focus on vulnerable women
Builders will be required to make voluntary disclosures on the website of the regulatory authority that will be set up in each State, once the Bill is passed. Deviations from the disclosures will not be allowed, for instance the floor area or the time for completion of the project that will be disclosed on the regulator's website will have to be adhered to. The Bill has also defined what comprises open spaces and what makes for a common area space. There are ambiguities in what makes for a carpet area of an apartment, and the Bill has tried to remove those. The builders will be required to give an outer limit of the completion date, if on account of extraneous reasons they need more time, they will have to seek extra time from the regulator
On the lopsided existing penalty clauses, whereby consumers are imposed harsher fines than the builders for defaults the bill will introduce the stringent punishment for defaulters, including a jail term. Elucidating on the people-friendly aspects of the Bill, the Minister said it proposes that 70 per cent of the money collected for a specific project will have to be maintained in a separate account and the builders will not be able to divert funds from an ongoing project to start a new one. More powers in special zones: J&K police Bill While Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah frequently speaks out against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in force in the state, as
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In an effort to provide suitable alternative livelihoods to vulnerable women, the Ministry of Rural Development has decided to tackle gender issues under its flagship National Rural Livelihoods Mission. The NRLM, launched in 2011, aims at enabling the rural poor increase their household income through 'sustainable livelihood enhancements and improved access to financial services' by facilitating capacity building. It operates through Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and focuses on organising women into such groups, while enhancing their access to finance. The scheme has a budgetary allocation of Rs 3,915 crore in the current financial year and covers only below poverty line households.
The ministry will introduce a "gender justice component" in the scheme, which currently covers three crore women who are members of around 25 lakh SHGs. For this, the ministry will begin by identifying areas with rampant women trafficking and initiating intensive livelihood generation programmes, especially for adolescents, in these areas. Four states - West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Jharkhand - have been identified as states with high rates of trafficking and this new component will be introduced in these areas from April. The ministry has also decided to focus on states where there is a high degree of manual scavenging, given a majority of scavengers are women. The NRLM will seek to rehabilitate such women by giving them viable livelihood alternatives. Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have been identified as states that would receive special focus in this area.
their villages by the Maoists because of their 'class position,' and were allegedly being forced by the local administration to stay on in the camps. Following a Supreme Court judgement in 2011 directing the State government to take 'appropriate measures to prevent the operation' of the Salwa Judum, which the court identified as an 'armed civilian vigilante group,' the hapless camp inmates were virtually abandoned. Though official sources continue to characterise the Salwa Judum or 'Peace March' as a 'spontaneous movement,' the movement was described as a severe blow to human and tribal rights by media and activists. Indira Awaas Yojana is a Government of India social welfare programme to provide housing for the rural poor in India. Under the scheme, financial assistance worth Rs. 45000/- in plain areas and Rs. 48500/- in difficult areas (high land area) is provided for construction of houses. The houses are allotted in the name of the woman or jointly between husband and wife. The construction of the houses is the sole responsibility of the beneficiary and engagement of contractors is strictly prohibited. Sanitary latrine and smokeless chullah are required to be constructed along with each IAY house for which additional financial assistance is provided from Total Sanitation Campaign and Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana respectively Amendments in Wakf Bill cleared by cabinet
However, even as the scheme's crucial focus is on connecting SHGs to banks, such linkages remain significantly low. While the credit requirement for SHGs during 2012-13 is estimated to be Rs 29,283 crore, the credit disbursement in 2011-12 was only Rs 16,674 crore. Indira Awas Yojana will be extended to urban poor
GOI is planning to initiate crucial changes in the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) - the flagship housing programme for the rural poor - in the coming budget. The allocation for the IAY has gone up by a substantial Rs. 6,000 crore. Another significant change is the extension of the scheme to the urban poor who got displaced from rural areas. Extending the IAY to urban areas will help the villagers displaced by violence in south Chhattisgarh, including those residing in Salwa Judum camps, to avail themselves of the IAY. After the budget session, each BPL family will be eligible to get Rs. 70,000 instead of the existing 45,000 for house construction on plain land in rural areas, while in hilly areas or LWE-affected districts, the allotted amount will be Rs. 75,000 instead of 48,500. The budget allocation has been increased from Rs. 11,075 crore last year to Rs. 17,000 crore in 2013-14. Almost three million families are availing themselves of the scheme every year and that will remain unchanged. Salwa Judum camps were set up at the peak of the anti-Maoist movement between 2005 and 2009. During that some of the people were forced to leave
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Wakf Act was first enacted in 1954 and it was replaced by the Wakf Act of 1995. But the provisions incorporated in the 1995 Act were found inadequate to fulfill the task of protection and preservation of wakf properties for the good of the Muslim community. Therefore a bill aimed at checking rampant encroachment of Wakf properties and to make them commercially viable by extending their lease period from merely three years to thirty years was cleared by the Union Cabinet. The proposed amendments also make encroachment of wakf properties a cognizable and non-bailable offence and provides for a maximum punishment of two years rigorous imprisonment. It also recommends measures through which the wakf Boards exercise transparency in the whole process of leasing out its property. The amendments seek to make Wakf Tribunals multi-member and give them additional powers of eviction and appeal. Earlier, a Joint Parliamentary Committee had made recommendations for computerisation of Wakf records, development of Wakf properties and proper
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administration. The Sachar Committee also made recommendations for changes in the system of management of Wakf institutions across the country. This Committee had estimated that the wakf boards can generate up ot Rs.12,000 crore annually by developing wakf properties in the country. Centre notifies final Cauvery Tribunal Award
modification/adjustment is needed in the schedule, it may be worked out in consultation with the partyStates with the help of the CWC "without changing the annual allocation among the parties". After the issuance of the notification, the Cauvery River Authority chaired by the Prime Minister and the CMC will cease to exist. New organisations like the Cauvery Management Board and the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee will be constituted which will have representatives from all the co-basin states, experts in hydrology and agriculture. They will be headed by an officer of the central government and will be under the control of the Centre. The Tribunal's award will come into effect within 90 days of its notification by the Centre. As per law, the award comes into being after being notified by the Centre through its publication in a gazette. UGC asked universities to include humanities in curriculum to check radicalization
On the directions of the Supreme Court, the Centre has notified the final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing the waters of the Cauvery system among the basin States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala and Union territory of Puducherry. The Tribunal, comprising Chairman Justice N.P. Singh and members N.S. Rao and Sudhir Narain which was set up in 1990, in a unanimous award in February 2007 had determined the total availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic (TMC) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site. In the final order the Tribunal gave Tamil Nadu 419 TMC of water (as against the demand of 562 TMC); Karnataka 270 TMC (as against its demand of 465 TMC); Kerala 30 TMC and Puducherry 7 TMC. For environmental protection, it had reserved 10 TMC. The final award has also settled the definition of a normal year, water year and irrigation season which has been a bone of contention between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. A "normal year" shall mean a year in which the total yield of the Cauvery basin is 740 tmcft; a "water year" shall mean a year commencing on June 1 and ending on May 31 and the "irrigation season" shall mean the season beginning on June 1 and ending on January 31 of the next year.
In a normal year, Karnataka has to release to Tamil Nadu at Biligundulu 192 tmcft (as against 205 tmcft in the interim award) in monthly deliveries. This comprises 182 tmcft from the allocated share of Tamil Nadu, including 10 tmcft for environmental purposes. In a distress year, the allocated shares shall be proportionately reduced among Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
The Cauvery includes the main river, all its tributaries and all other streams contributing water directly or indirectly to it. The award authorises the Board/Authority to monitor the monthly releases with the help of the States concerned and the Central Water Commission for five years. Thereafter, if any
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Amidst a growing concern about educated youth indulging in anti-national and anti-social activities, the apex higher education regulator UGC has asked universities to take steps to check "radicalisation of youth". Following recommendations made by the National Integration Council, the University Grants Commission has written to all universities and recognised institutes asking them to ensure that students enrolled even in science and technology courses study humanities and social sciences alongside, so as to remain sensitive to human values. The move comes at a time when there is a growing concern about how those involved in terrorist activities come with a reasonably good educational background. Many, in fact, boast of specialisation in technology or engineering courses. Questions have been raised on an emerging vacuum in the education system and the failure to integrate value-based education with regular curriculum. The UGC communication comes a month after educational institutes were asked to focus on gender sensitivity and value education in the aftermath of the Delhi gangrape case. Earlier, the Prime Minister's Office has asked the HRD Ministry to emphasise on teaching moral science at the school level and include chapters on value education in textbooks so that gender sensitivity and respect for women is taught and inculcated right from the beginning.
INTERNATIONAL
Dhaka amends law to enable verdict appeal Bangladesh's parliament amended a law allowing the state to appeal any verdict in war-crime trials it deems inadequate and out of step with public opinion. The protesters have been demanding the death penalty for war crimes after a tribunal this month sentenced a prominent Islamist to life in prison in connection with Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. The life sentence pronounced on Abdul Quader Mollah, assistant Secretary General of the Jamaat-eIslami party, for murder, rape and torture had stunned many Bangladeshis. learn English and "the history and government of the United States." They would also have to pay back taxes. With green card in hand, the immigrants would then be on a path to apply for U.S. citizenship. China takes control of Gwadar Port
The amendment to the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973 also empowers the war crimes tribunals to try and punish any organisation for crimes committed during liberation war in 1971 a move that could put the Jamaat-e-Islami in the dock. The ruling coalition, which has three-fourths majority in Parliament, passed the amendments. The bill will now be placed for presidential assent. Obama plans residency route for illegal immigrants
The White House is drafting an immigration plan that would allow illegal immigrants to become legal permanent U.S. residents within eight years.
The plan would also allocate additional security funds and require business owners to check the immigration status of any new hires within four years. The estimated 11 million illegal immigrants in the United States could also apply for a "Lawful Prospective Immigrant" visa. According to the draft visa applicants would need to pass a criminal background check, file biometric information and pay fees. Once approved, they would be allowed to reside in the United States legally, work, and leave the country for short visits without losing their status.
A new identification card would prove their legal residence in the country. And, within eight years, the immigrants could apply for a green card to obtain legal permanent residence if they
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China took control of Pakistan's Gwadar Port located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf just outside the strategically important Strait of Hormuz. The official transfer of Concession Agreement from the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) to the China Overseas Port Holding Company was carried out in the presence of President Asif Ali Zardari. The project's strategic importance can be judged from the fact that nearly 60 per cent of China's crude oil was imported from the Gulf countries. The proximity of the Gulf countries to Gwadar would facilitate the oil flow to it. Last month, the federal Cabinet had approved the transfer of Gwadar Deep Sea Port to the Chinese. Billed as Pakistan's biggest infrastructure project, the port has failed as a business venture till date because the security situation in Balochistan discouraged PSA from investing in the development of the port and off-shore infrastructure. Add to this the government's failure to transfer 584 acres under Navy's possession to the port. Though China - which had invested in the construction of the port - had been a contender for running the port, PSA bagged the contract for 40 years during the Musharraf era. While PSA won the bid, the widely held perception is that former President Pervez Musharraf awarded the contract to the Singapore entity to keep the U.S. happy as Chinese control over the port on a major shipping route not only facilitates access to oil producing countries but also provides a major gateway for Chinese goods. China paid about 75 percent of the initial $250 million used to build the port but in 2007 PSA International won a 40-year operating lease. Iran announces uranium discovery
Iran has recently revealed that it has found significant new deposits of raw uranium to feed its
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nuclear program and has identified sites for 16 more nuclear power stations, just days before talks with Western powers over its disputed atomic program. It did not specify the exact locations but said they included coastal areas of the Gulf, Sea of Oman, Khuzestan province and in coastal areas of the Caspian Sea. The deposits were found in "southern coastal areas" and had trebled the amount outlined in previous estimates. The enriched uranium required for use in nuclear reactors or weapons is produced in centrifuges that spin uranium hexafluoride gas (UF6) at high speeds. The UF6 is derived in a reaction from yellow cake, a concentrate from uranium ore discovered in mines. Iran's stock of reserves of raw uranium stood at around 4,400 metric tons taking into account discoveries over the past 18 months. The U.S. and its allies -Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany-accuse Iran of trying to develop atomic weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program. Iran says its nuclear efforts are for peaceful purposes only. French President Franois Hollande awarded UNESCO peace prize
The award prize includes: $150,000, a gold medal and a diploma. New UN partnership will help 30 countries transition to green economies
United Nations agencies will support 30 countries under the Partnership for Action on Green Economy (PAGE) over the next seven years to build green economy strategies that will generate jobs, promote clean technologies and reduce environmental risk. This is the first time that four UN agencies - the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour Organization (ILO), the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) - join forces to coordinate their expertise and resources at a national level. The Partnership for Action on Green Economy will work with countries to catalyze change at the national level, assisting them with targeted economic and policy instruments and training that will accelerate their green economy transition across sectors ranging from clean energy to sustainable agriculture. PAGE is a direct response to the outcome document of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), which was held in June in Brazil. The document, entitled "The Future We Want," calls on UN agencies to support countries that want to accelerate their transition to an inclusive green economy to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable development. ILO estimates that at least half of the global workforce - or 1.5 billion people - could be affected in some way by the transition to a green economy. During the first two years of the partnership, PAGE will focus on seven pilot countries, which are yet to be named, and will scale up its support to a total of 30 countries by 2020. Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The President of France, Franois Hollande, will receive the United Nations cultural agency's peace prize for his "valuable contribution to peace and stability in Africa. The award, created in 1989 by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), honours people, institutions and organizations that have contributed significantly to the promotion, research, preservation or maintenance of peace. It is named for the first president of Cte d'Ivoire.
Northern Mali was occupied by radical Islamists after fighting broke out in January 2012 between Government forces and Tuareg rebels. The conflict uprooted hundreds of thousands of people and prompted the Malian Government to request assistance from France to stop the military advance of extremist groups. The Jury therefore decided to award the Flix Houphout-Boigny Peace Prize to Mr. Franois Hollande, President of the French Republic, for his great contribution to peace and stability in Africa." Previous winners of the prize include former Brazilian president Luiz Incio Lula da Silva; Nelson Mandela and Frederik W. De Klerk; Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres and Yasser Arafat; King Juan Carlos of Spain; and former United States President Jimmy Carter.
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Eleven African countries - Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania - signed the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Region. Under the framework, they have agreed to preserve and protect the territorial sovereignty, as well as the peace and stability, of the Democratic
Republic of the Congo. Congo's neighbours promised not to interfere in its internal affairs. They also agreed to not tolerate or support armed groups. The UN, the African Union, the 11-country International Conference on the Great Lakes Region and the 14-member Southern African Development Community (SADC) will act as guarantors. A UN Special Envoy is expected to be appointed to support the Framework's implementation.
Congo suffers from persistent violence by local and foreign armed groups that use rape as a weapon. The conflict has displaced nearly 2 million people. The UN will undertake a review of the its peacekeeping force in Congo, known as Monusco, to better help the country's government address security challenges. Ban said he would issue a special report on Congo and the Great Lakes region in coming days.
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ECONOMY
RBI releases Guidelines for Licensing of New Banks in the Private Sector The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued final guidelines for setting up of new banks in the private sector, including corporate houses and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), through a whollyowned Non-Operative Financial Holding Company (NOFHC). Key features of the guidelines are: I. 'Fit and Proper' criteria: Entities / groups should have a past record of sound credentials and integrity, be financially sound with a successful track record of 10 years. For this purpose, RBI may seek feedback from other regulators and enforcement and investigative agencies. Corporate structure of the NOFHC: The NOFHC shall be wholly owned by the Promoter / Promoter Group. The NOFHC shall hold the bank as well as all the other financial services entities of the group. VI. Corporate governance of NOFHC: At least 50% of the Directors of the NOFHC should be independent directors. The corporate structure should not impede effective supervision of the bank and the NOFHC on a consolidated basis by RBI. VII. Exposure norms: The NOFHC and the bank shall not have any exposure to the Promoter Group. The bank shall not invest in the equity /debt capital instruments of any financial entities held by the NOFHC.\ a) The Board of the bank should have a majority of independent Directors. b) The bank shall open at least 25 per cent of its branches in unbanked rural centres (population upto 9,999 as per the latest census) c) The bank shall comply with the priority sector lending targets and sub-targets as applicable to the existing domestic banks.
II.
III. Minimum voting equity capital requirements for banks and shareholding by NOFHC: The initial minimum paid-up voting equity capital for a bank shall be `5 billion. The NOFHC shall initially hold a minimum of 40 per cent of the paid-up voting equity capital of the bank which shall be locked in for a period of five years and which shall be brought down to 15 per cent within 12 years. The bank shall get its shares listed on the stock exchanges within three years of the commencement of business by the bank. IV. Regulatory framework: The bank will be governed by the provisions of the relevant Acts, relevant Statutes and the Directives, Prudential regulations and other Guidelines/Instructions issued by RBI and other regulators. The NOFHC shall be registered as a non-banking finance company (NBFC) with the RBI and will be governed by a separate set of directions issued by RBI. V. Foreign shareholding in the bank: The aggregate non-resident shareholding in the new bank shall not exceed 49% for the first 5 years after which it will be as per the extant policy.
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VIII.Other conditions for the bank :
d) Banks promoted by groups having 40 per cent or more assets/income from nonfinancial business will require RBI's prior approval for raising paid-up voting equity capital beyond `10 billion for every block of `5 billion. e) Any non-compliance of terms and conditions will attract penal measures including cancellation of licence of the bank.
Dabhol-Bangalore gas pipeline of GAIL goes on stream
State-owned gas distributor Gas Authority of India Limited (India) commenced delivery of gas from Dabhol in Maharashtra to Bangalore through its 1,000-km-long pipeline. GAIL has also signed a gas transmission agreement with Karnataka Power Corporation Ltd. (KPCL) for the supply of 2.1 million metric standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) of natural gas for its 700 MW power plant at Bidadi in 30 months. The pipeline, built at a cost of Rs.4, 500 crore, has a total capacity of 16 mmscmd. The pipeline
traversed through about 700 km across Karnataka. It would facilitate the use of gas as a source of energy or feedstock for industrial uses. Apart from Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa will also benefit from the Dabhol-Bangalore pipeline. 4G broadband license holders allowed to offer voice services
Recently the State Bank of India's has opened its second branch in China - the only Indian bank which has been able to do so. Foreign bank licensing policy is gradual in China, and all these banks are at various stages of establishing their operations, it is hoped that other Indian banks that have fulfilled conditions set for foreign banks in mainland China also graduate to opening branch operations at an early date. SBI, which opened its first branch in Shanghai in 2006 - almost a decade after it set up a representative office - received the green light from Chinese regulators to open a second branch in this thriving port city, through which much of India's trade with northern China is routed. The Shanghai branch was allowed to start operations in the local Renminbi (RMB) currency in 2010. The bank works with around 90 Indian companies which trade with China and around 200 Chinese companies. UK to support creation of new business centres in India
A total of five companies, including Infotel Broadband, Aircel, Qualcomm India and Bharti Airtel, had won 4G airwaves in the 2010 auctions. In July 2012, Bharti said it had reached a deal to buy 49% stake in US chipmaker Qualcomm's fourthgeneration licences in India for $165 million, and would completely own the venture within the next two years. This allows the Sunil-Mittal promoted company to quickly launch 4G services in the key markets of Delhi and Mumbai making it the only serious competitor to RIL in this space. The move to allow 4G winners to offer voice services reveals government plan of introducing a 'unified licence' regime as part of its plans to radically overhaul telecom rules and allow operators to offer all "forms of communication services under a single permit". India pushes for expanded banking links with China
With increasing bilateral trade, which has risen from a couple of billion dollars at the start of the last decade to $74 billion in 2011, when China became India's biggest trading partner, the need for expanded banking relations has risen. Thus India has called on China to expand banking links between the two countries and to enhance licensing procedures, in an effort to create a more conducive environment for companies - on both sides of the border - still grappling with financial barriers despite rapid growth in trade and mutual investments.
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Wireless broadband airwave holders will be allowed to provide voice services if they pay an additional Rs.1,658 crore. Reliance is the only company with nationwide fourth-generation (4G) broadband airwaves. These companies will be allowed to offer all forms of communication services after migrating to a so-called unified licence, which aims to dismantle barriers between various types of communication services. Voice accounts for almost 85 per cent of Indian carriers' revenues, while data is still at a nascent stage. Data services contribute just about 5-6 per cent of the total mobile service revenues as fewer people browse the Internet on phones.
The UK government recently announced that it will support the creation of a new pan-India network of British Business Centres by 2017, the first pilot in a scheme of 20 overseas business networks, backed by 8 million of Government funding. The new business centres will offer business-led, businessbacked, support to UK businesses, particularly SMEs, in India. The Government has also produced a study for business called 'UK India: A Natural Fit' that identifies eight key sectors where UK strengths match India's requirements. This demonstrates that there are valuable opportunities for British businesses, big and small, from all sectors of the economy stand to gain from India's growing prosperity. The trade mission will be used to encourage more innovative technology companies from India to set up in the UK. It will launch a competition, supported by British Airways, to offer three entrepreneurs the opportunity to visit Britain on a tailored programme that will encourage them to set up here within the next 18 months, creating jobs and bringing innovative IT processes and solutions to the UK. Special cover for refineries to tackle Iran ban
The government and the domestic general insurers have found a solution to come out of a logjam created by global reinsurance giants who are
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now refusing to provide cover for refineries processing Iranian crude oil in the wake of US sanctions against Iran. As per the formula being worked out by the domestic insurers and the government, a cover for each refinery will be divided in to two parts: 90 per cent of the insurance cover of refineries will be provided by the insurers with reinsurance support while the balance 10 per cent by local general insurers will be provided for processing Iranian crude, which will be without reinsurance cover. According to the new proposal, it will be decided by the government as to who will reinsure the 10
per cent. But it won't get reinsurance support from the global reinsurance markets. Recently, GIC Re, the country's sole reinsurer had intimated to the general insurers about the situation where any Indian refineries processing Iranian crude cannot recover any claims from the reinsurers. Insurers recently realised that the refinery processing Iranian crude would also be out of the ambit of any cover and losses would not be payable by the reinsurers even if they have participated in the protection programme of the oil companies. Indian insurers alone cannot provide cover for refineries as they fall under high risk category and need substantial reinsurance support.
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INDIA AND THE WORLD

Court of Arbitration upholds India's right to divert water An international court of arbitration on IndoPak dispute on Kishenganga hydroelectric project has upheld India's right to divert water for the power plant. The Rs 3600 crore power project is located in Gurez valley in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan has claimed that the 330 MW project would rob it of 15 percent of its share of river waters. It also accused India of trying to divert the river in order to harm Pakistan's Neelum-Jhelum hydro-electric project. On May 17, 2010, Pakistan had moved for arbitration against India under the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty 1960. In its 'partial award' announced recently, the International Court of Arbitration at The Hague stated that the Kishenganga hydro-electric project (KHEP) constitutes a "run-of-river" plant under the Treaty, and India may accordingly divert water from the Kishenganga/Neelum river for power generation by the project. It, however, pointed that while operating KHEP, India is under an obligation to maintain a minimum flow of water in the Kishenganga/Neelum river. The rate of minimum flow will be determined by the court in a 'final award' to be issued by year end after the two countries provide it with fresh hydrological data. The award does not appear to be heavily tilted to any side with the seven-member court in its unanimous judgement giving favourable verdict on a variety of issues for both the countries As defined in the Treaty, "dead storage" is that portion of storage which is not used for operational purposes. The Court of Arbitration said the partial award is "final" with respect to the matters decided by it. The award is binding on the two countries. It clarified that the ruling does not apply to plants already in operation or under construction, whose designs have been communicated by India and not objected to by Pakistan. The award is regarding the legality of construction and operation of the hydroelectric project by India and the permissibility under the treaty of the depletion of the reservoirs of certain Indian hydro-electric plants below "dead storage level". On Pakistan's demand to direct India to stop diverting water, the court observed that the treaty expressly permits the transfer of water by India from one tributary of the Jhelum to another for the purpose of generating hydro-electric power, subject to certain conditions. It found that KHEP's intertributary transfer is "necessary", as required by the treaty, for the generation of hydroelectric power. According to the Court of Arbitration, power can be generated on the scale contemplated by India in this location only by using the 665 m difference in elevation between the dam site on the Kishenganga/ Neelum and the place where water is released into the Bonar Nallah. However, the court also decided that India's right to divert the Kishenganga/Neelum water is not absolute and Pakistan retains the right to receive a minimum flow of water from India in Kishenganga/ Neelum riverbed at all times. The court noted that this right also stems from customary international environmental law, and that it considered that the Treaty must be applied in light of contemporary international environmental law principles. The court made it clear that the award will not have any bearing on any territorial claims or rights of countries over Jammu and Kashmir. India-United Kingdom Summit 2013
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India-UK Summit talks were held in New Delhi on 19 February 2013 during the official visit to India of the British Prime Minister, the Rt Hon David Cameron, MP. During the meet, the two nations has reviewed the progress made since the previous Summit in 2010 on building a stronger, wider and deeper relationship across the range of India-UK interests, based on shared culture, values and strategic interests. Trade between Britain and India has grown strongly since the last summit. In 2010 and 2011, trade grew an average of 23%. This year the economic climate has been tougher. But the leaders remain committed to working to substantially increase trade and investment between India and the UK.
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The leaders further welcomed the growth in twoway investment between India and the UK since the last Summit, which is creating jobs and growth in both countries. The UK is now the 3rd largest investor in India and India is now the 5th largest investor in the UK. The leaders welcomed major Indian investments into the UK and major UK investments into India since the last summit. During the meet both the leaders have agreed to work together to develop the global post-2015 development agenda, which should be ambitious and practical, with the aim of eradicating poverty wherever it exists - and ensuring adequate means of implementation for developing countries. On the issue of energy the two leaders agreed to cooperate to face common challenges related to energy security. Both sides agreed to explore ways to deepen policy, commercial and research collaboration on energy, biofuels, and environmentally friendly technologies. Further both countries are net importers of energy and have strong demand for imported LNG. The two leaders agreed to work closely to address this issue through joint cooperation by forging partnerships, including commercial partnerships, to diversify LNG supply sources and to develop natural gas infrastructure in each other's countries. The two leaders agreed, respectively to encourage Indian Public Sector Undertakings and UK oil and gas companies to explore the possibility of upstream oil and gas sector investment in India, the UK and in third countries, with a view to sourcing hydrocarbons to meet their energy requirements.
The two leaders also expressed their commitment to working towards a world free of nuclear weapons. They agreed to hold regular consultations on disarmament and non-proliferation issues. In recognition of the threat posed by terrorists gaining access to WMD materials, India and the UK agreed to conclude a Memorandum of Understanding on Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Security. The two leaders also discussed a range of other international security matters of concern including the conflict in Syria and Iran's nuclear programme. The leaders reaffirmed their belief in the peaceful resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue through diplomacy and underlined the need for Iran to comply with the provisions of the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and to extend its full cooperation to the International Atomic Energy Agency. Both Prime Ministers agreed to deepen existing India-UK strategic consultations on developments in West Asia. India and UK linkage in education sector
The UK and India stand together in the fight against terrorism. The two leaders welcomed the strong cooperation they have developed in this field since 2010, and which recently contributed to ensuring a safe and successful London Olympic Games. Condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, the two leaders agreed that all terrorist networks, wherever they exist, must be defeated. They called upon Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of the Mumbai terror attacks. The two leaders committed to work closely together to prevent terror attacks, strengthen the international counter-terrorism architecture, and exchange best practice in areas such as transport security, security of vital civil infrastructure installations, responding to terror attacks, and countering extremism. They also agreed to cooperate on joint training of their counter-terrorism forces.
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India and United Kingdom signed two MOU to promote development of community colleges and implementation of School Leadership Programme. During the meet the two sides also discussed the ways and means to strengthen the education sector. The Indian delegates requested UK for increasing the number of the Indian students getting admission in UK and making the visa process easier. He also suggested that the English proficiency test of the Indian students normally valid for two year should be enhanced to five years or more. Whereas the British side wanted that the Indian government should sort out the issue relating to one year master's course granted by the UK Universities. The leaders deliberated on ways to enhance mobility of students, researchers, faculty and educationists between the two countries. They also appreciated that institutional linkages and leadership development are two areas in which substantial progress has been achieved under the UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) since its inception in 2006 and the fact that more than 1,025 partnerships had been supported in different areas including over 380 in the second phase of UKIERI from 2011. The two leaders appreciated that UKIERI has provided a vibrant platform for various collaborations in the areas of research and
innovation, vocational education and skill development, leadership programmes. It was also noted that two Joint working groups are active for innovations and skill development for devising the future collaborative programmes. Institutional collaborations for thematic partnerships have also been institutionalised under UKIERI. The ministers also recognised the need for capacity building of English language teachers in new methodologies. The two leaders affirmed their support for a strong partnership in delivering skills to their citizens. The leaders noted the increasing opportunities in the delivery of vocational skills in all sectors the increasing engagement of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) with the Sector Councils in India.
Bilateral trade between India and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) rose to above $145 billion in 2011-12 from $67 billion five years ago. The GCC is a political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern countries - Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman. India is targeting a $175 billion bilateral trade figure with the GCC. The UAE is India's top partner among the GCC countries and the second largest trading partner for India in the world after China. Afghan Election Officials Receive Training at Election Commission of India
The leaders welcomed the partnership between the UK Open University and Government of India, supported by British Council and UKAID, to provide training to teachers using web-based and other innovative technology. The leaders welcomed the UK-India partnership to support secondary education through the Government of India's Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) to universalize access to secondary education with emphasis on quality and equity. India-UAE set up joint investment task force
A joint group of India-United Arab Emirates (UAE) experts on investment has held its inaugural meeting, discussing priority sectors and areas of shared interest. The inaugural meeting was held in Abu Dhabi, and was co-chaired by Anand Sharma, India's Minister for Commerce, Industry & Textiles, and Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Court.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has pledged $2 billion for the development of Indian infrastructure whereas the Indian commerce minister invited Gulf businesses to take advantage of investment opportunities in India. During the meet, India and the UAE have also decided to work together in third world countries, including Africa, in energy and infrastructure sectors. The India-UAE High Level Task Force on Investments was set up in April, 2012. It is intended to act as a platform for addressing mutual issues associated with existing bilateral investments, and to promote and facilitate new investment.
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A batch of election officials from Afghanistan has commenced training at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM), the training and resource centre of the Election Commission of India (ECI). The special two-week course titled "Capacity Development for Election Management" has been designed for senior officials of Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan. The course has been organized with support from Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. This is the latest in the series of ECI's initiatives to share experience, skills and expertise with its counterparts in the South Asian Region. ECI is currently the Chair of the Forum of Election Management Bodies of South Asia. ECI/IIIDEM is scheduled to organize another programme, titled "Election Management: Emerging Challenges", the second international course in the series of Capacity Development programmes, for mid-career election officials from partner countries under Indian Technical & Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme from 10th April, 2013. Recently it organized a similar course for mid-level officials of all SAARC countries. 2nd India-Afghanistan-US Trilateral Dialogue
India has hosted Second meeting of IndiaAfghanistan-US trilateral dialogue in New Delhi Y K Sinha, Additional Secretary (Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran) led the Indian delegation, while the Afghan delegation was led by Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. Jawed Ludin, with Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Mr. Robert O. Blake, Jr. led the U.S. delegation. During the meet US, India and Afghanistan discussed political, security and economic transition
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in Afghanistan besides specific cooperation projects in the war-torn country. The three sides agreed to continue this trilateral process as a vehicle for achieving the shared goal of development of Afghanistan. India has strategic partnerships with both Afghanistan and the US, and jointly they share a vision of a secure, peaceful, democratic and prosperous Afghanistan. The second trilateral dialogue provided a platform for in-depth
consultations on issues ranging from political and security spheres to trade, commerce and investment, and other areas of mutual interest. The latest meeting also focussed on the impact of the withdrawl of 34,000 American troops during the next year and future strategy. The first India-US and Afghanistan trilateral was held in the US last September during which the three sides had free flowing and frank discussion on all aspects of the situation in Afghanistan.
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Studies confirm cosmic rays originate in the aftermath of exploding stars Hundred years after Victor Hess discovered cosmic rays in 1912, astronomers have finally found proof that these highly energetic particles, which are constantly bombarding the Earth's atmosphere from all directions, originate in the aftermath of exploding stars, or supernovae as they are called, which are the most energetic events in the galaxy. Importantly, the proof is doubly strengthened as the evidence has come from two different experiments - one space-based and the other groundbased - which have looked at different supernova remnants (SNRs) in different parts of the sky and interpreted their observations from different physical perspectives. when they are able to break free from the shockwave front. But because protons get deflected by any magnetic field they encounter on the way to the Earth, and their paths are totally scrambled, tracing them back to their source becomes impossible. It is for this reason that one could not unambiguously say cosmic rays are produced in the SNRs. Cosmic ray is the term given to high energy radiation which strikes the Earth from space. Some of them have ultrahigh energies in the range 100 - 1000 TeV. Cosmic rays include: Galactic Cosmic Rays -- coming from outside the solar system Anomalous Cosmic Rays -- coming from the interstellar space at the edge of the heliopause Solar Energetic Particles -- associated with solar flares and other energetic solar events
The first is based on years of data from two 10,000-year-old SNRs IC443 (which is 5,000 light years away in the constellation Gemini) and W44 (which is 10,000 light years away in the constellation Aquila) gathered by NASA's Fermi Gamma Ray Telescope (launched in June 2008). The experiment is led by scientists of the Kavli Institute for Particle Physics and Cosmology at the SLAC National Accelerator laboratory.
The second is based on detailed observations of the remnants of a 1,000-year-old supernova SN1006 with the Very Large Telescope (VLT) of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Chile. The research was carried out by astronomers from the Max-Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg.
Cosmic rays mostly comprise protons (about 90%), electrons and other nuclei. The two experiments claim to have found that the protons are being accelerated to nearly the speed of light by the shockwave that precedes the ejecta from the supernovae. This acceleration occurs due to a mechanism proposed in 1949 by Enrico Fermi - after whom the space telescopes has been named - in which protons are trapped in the fast-moving shock region by magnetic fields that travel with the shock front and are boosted to high speeds when they are repeatedly reflected in the magnetic field. With each round trip, protons gain energy by about 1 per cent. After several tens to hundreds of such round trips, the protons are travelling at nearly the speed of light
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Vultures population increasing
The good news is that the fall of vultures in South Asia, particularly India, has stopped and is even reversing in the case of some species such as the white-backed vulture. A research paper in journal Science, titled "Pollution, politics and vultures," states that the 2006 ban on manufacture; import and sale of painkiller diclofenac for veterinary use, a cause for vulture mortality, and the timely response of the governments in India have helped. But the increase in the number of birds has been miniscule, after almost 99 per cent of them in the wild dying. The situation remains precarious, and vulture conservationists say the increase is too little to mean much. As against a population of 40 million vultures of different species in the 1980s, a rough estimate by the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) in 2011 put the count at less than a lakh in India. This is up from the 40,000 or so documented by it in 2007. Oriental white-backed vulture, long-billed vulture and slender-billed vulture, all resident varieties, have been the most affected. Though diclofenac, which is said to be as fatal for vultures as cyanide is for humans - just one meal
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on a contaminated carcass is enough to kill a bird has been banned for veterinary use, the emerging challenge is the misuse by vets of multi-dose vials meant for human use. The lack of vulture safe zones where diclofenac does not linger in the food chain, in the country is also the reason why the BNHS is unable to release its captive bred vultures into the wild as yet. Some 300 birds, including 46 chicks, have been bred in the three BNHS breeding centres, Pinjore in Haryana, Rani in Assam and in West Bengal. Some States like Punjab, Maharashtra and West Bengal also set up vulture restaurants in the last few years, to provide diclofenac free carcasses but the experiment has not been very successful. It will work only if the authorities can ensure that for at least a 100 kilometre radius no carcass is available, so that the vultures eat only at the 'restaurant.' Only 5 per cent of the Indian cattle bear traces of the drug, but even this has proved enough to decimate the vulture population. Antarctica needs MPAs The Commission for Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in its meeting last year, failed to deliver any agreement on marine protected areas (MPAs) for Antarctica's Southern Ocean. CCAMLR, made up of 24 countries and the European Union, had been considering proposals for turning two critical areas in Antarctica's Southern Ocean into MPAs at the meeting, including 1.6 million square kilometres of the Ross Sea, the world's most intact marine ecosystem, and 1.9 million square kilometres of coastal area in the East Antarctic. Initially there were two proposals for the Ross Sea, one submitted by the US and one by New Zealand. This was problematic and an issue for many CCAMLR nations. One of the positive outcomes of the meeting last year was that New Zealand and the US negotiated an agreement on a joint proposal. Hence there is only one Ross Sea proposal, a joint one.
approval by the Commission members who take the policy decisions. Three more new proposals are under development for future agreement. The further proposals are not ready yet for discussion in Bremerhaven, but nations are moving forward in their research and development. The new proposals are: Weddell Sea This proposal would be led by Germany. Research in the Weddell Sea so far suggests that the seafloor harbours extraordinary biodiversity and habitat diversity. The Weddell Sea's waters are also a haven for krill and all the predators that feed on them. Antarctic Peninsula
As such there are now only two proposals - the joint one for the Ross Sea and the one for East Antarctica by Australia and France. These will be discussed at the extraordinary meeting in July in Bremerhaven, Germany. At the 2012 meeting, Russia, China and the Ukraine blocked efforts to put conservation in place. Previously, CCAMLR members committed to beginning to establish a network of MPAs in the Southern Ocean in 2012. The CCAMLR process requires the Science Committee to first review all proposals before bringing them for discussion and
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CCAMLR members and experts met in Valparaiso, Chile between 28 May and 1 June 2012 to discuss the compilation of data that could lead to the establishment of an MPA or MPAs around the Antarctic Peninsula. Countries attending included Chile, Argentina, UK, USA, Norway, Japan and others. They have agreed to share data sets, and work towards a harmonized approach in the next 12 months but no further work has been scheduled. Amundsen/Bellingshausen Sweden offered to lead development of MPAs in the Amundsen and Bellingshausen Seas region off of West Antarctica. The US and South Korea offered to support the Swedish effort with scientific information or scientific expertise or both. Curiosity drills into Mars rock NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drilled 2.5 inches (6.4 centimeters) into a Red Planet outcrop called "John Klein" revealing rock that's decidedly gray rather than the familiar rusty orange of the Martian surface. The powder will be enclosed inside CHIMRA and shaken once or twice over a sieve that screens out particles larger than 0.006 inch (150 microns) across. Small portions of the sieved sample later will be delivered through inlet ports on top of the rover deck into the Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument and Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument. The sample comes from a fine-grained, veiny sedimentary rock called "John Klein," named in memory of a Mars Science Laboratory deputy project manager who died in 2011. The rock was selected
for the first sample drilling because it may hold evidence of wet environmental conditions long ago. The rover's laboratory analysis of the powder may provide information about those conditions. NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Project is using the Curiosity rover with its 10 science instruments to investigate whether an area within Mars' Gale Crater ever has offered an environment favorable for microbial life. Curiosity is a car-sized robotic rover exploring Gale Crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission (MSL). Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on November 26, 2011. The rover's goals include: investigation of the Martian climate and geology; assessment of whether the selected field site inside Gale Crater has ever offered environmental conditions favorable for microbial life, including investigation of the role of water; and planetary habitability studies in preparation for future human exploration
The report has been produced jointly by UNEP and the World Health Organization (WHO), calls for more research to fully understand the associations between EDCs and specific diseases and disorders. The endocrine system regulates the release of certain hormones that are essential for functions such as metabolism, growth and development, sleep and mood. EDCs can alter these functions increasing the risk of adverse health effects. EDCs can enter the environment through industrial and urban discharges, agricultural run-off and the burning and release of waste. Some EDCs occur naturally, while synthetic varieties can be found in pesticides, electronics, personal care products and cosmetics. They can also be found as additives or contaminants in food. WHO will work with partners to establish research priorities to investigate links to EDCs and human health impacts in order to mitigate the risks. The report, "State of the Science of EndocrineDisrupting Chemicals," also raises similar concerns on the impact of EDCs on wildlife. In Alaska in the United States, exposure to such chemicals may contribute to reproductive defects, infertility and antler malformation in some deer populations. The otter and sea lion populations may also be at risk due to the chemical found in certain pesticides. The report recommends further testing to identify EDCs and their routes of exposure to humans and wildlife. It also calls for wider collaboration among scientists so their shared data can fill in the current gaps in knowledge primarily in developing countries.
UN report examines link between hormonedisrupting chemicals and health problems
According to a United Nations recent report many chemicals found in household and industrial products that have not been adequately tested could have disrupting effects on the hormone system and lead to significant health issues, The report highlights some associations between exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and health problems such as breast cancer in women, prostate cancer, attention deficit and hyperactivity in children and thyroid cancer.
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2 - MARKERS
Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2011 Founder of the Self-Employed Women's Association of India (SEWA) Ela R Bhatt has been conferred with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for the year 2011. Bhatt received the award from President Pranab Mukherjee at a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Prize has been awarded to Bhatt for her lifetime achievements in comprehensively empowering women in India and elsewhere through grassroots entrepreneurship. 2012 for his historical novel 'Na Bhooto Na Bhavishyati' based on Swami Vivekananda and the era he belonged to. Mr. Kohli, 73, is credited with re-inventing the ancient form of epic writing in modern prose. He has published 76 books including short story collections, novels and plays. Instituted by the K. K. Birla Foundation in 1991, the award is given annually for an outstanding literary work in Hindi published during the past ten years. The award carries a cash purse of Rs 2.5 lakh. Journalism award for The Tribune
Bhatt, a Padma Bhushan awardee, joins the league of international leaders like Mikhail Gorbachev, Jimmy Carter and Kofi Annan who have been conferred with the award. The award is given to individuals or organisations in recognition of their creative efforts towards promoting peace and a new economic order. It carries a citation and a cash award of Rs 25 lakh. The Hindu Literary Prize Journalist-author Jerry Pinto has bagged The Hindu Literary Prize 2012 for his novel Em and the Big Hoom. The book, published by Aleph Book Co, is Mr. Pinto's first work of fiction and is set in Mahim, Mumbai. It revolves around how a fourmember family copes with the mother's manic depressive condition and her suicidal ideation. The others in the final round of contention for the prestigious prize were the Man-Booker-Prizeshortlisted author Jeet Thayil for Narcopolis, Kiran Nagarkar for The Extras, Anjum Hasan forDifficult Pleasures and Easterine Kire for Bitter Wormwood. Representing the jury, activist-scholar Susie Tharu explained how difficult it was choosing just one (work) from a splendid array of riches. The novel, "written in English as Indian vernacular," was also a rare example of someone who had worked through an experience going on to create a work of fiction to share that experience with the world. Vyas Samman for Narendra Kohli Eminent Hindi litterateur Narendra Kohli has been selected for the prestigious Vyas Samman for
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The International Press Institute (IPI)-India award for excellence in journalism 2012 was awarded to the English daily The Tribune for its "outstanding journalistic work done in 2011". An investigation by the daily's Prabhjot Singh that exposed "the loot of Punjab's public transport by politicians and bureaucrats" was selected for the award. The awardees were selected by a distinguished jury of editors and publishers headed by former Chief Justice of India A. S. Anand. Students with Disabilities to be Trained under 'Hunar Se Rojgar Scheme' NHFDC & ITDC signs an MoU
Students with Disabilities will now be trained in the Hospitality Industry under 'Hunar Se Rojgar Scheme'. This is a pro-poor scheme aimed to bridge the gap of skilled manpower in the hospitality sector. This is a new initiative of the ITDC through its Ashok Institute of Hospitality & Tourism Management (AIH &TM) where a PwD who has a minimum qualification of 8th Class and is between the age group of 18 - 28 years is eligible to get training and other benefits. The National Handicapped Finance & Development Corporation (NHFDC), CMD, Shri Harsh Bhal and India Tourism & Development Corporation (ITDC), Vice Chairman & MD, Dr. Lalit K. Panwar signed an MoU for skill development of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in Hospitality Sector. The scheme consists of six/eight weeks full time training programmes in services like, Food & Beverage, House Keeping Utility and Back office jobs etc. No application fee or course fee is chargeable to
the trainees. All expenditure towards the training fee, lab charges, cost of training material, honorarium to trainers/faculty, Uniform, Tool Kit, Stipend, will be met by the Ministry of Tourism. On completion of the training, Ashok Institute of Hospitality & Tourism Management will also assists the students in finding suitable placements. Improving the skills of Students with Disabilities will not only provide a new dimension to this Hunar Se Rojgar Scheme as it will be a milestone in the direction of social inclusion of PwDs but also equip them with the right attitude and hospitality finesse that improves the quality of service rendered to tourists so as to encourage them to re-visit our county. Saudi women take seats in Shura Council Thirty Saudi women have taken seats in Saudi Arabia's Shura Council, for the first time in the conservative kingdom's history, as they were sworn in before King Abdullah at his palace in the capital, Riyadh.
reward for outstanding scientific achievement, similar to those generated by athletes. In the inaugural year, prizes of $3 million each were awarded to 11 scientists in the field of cancer and genetic research. 'Iron Fist' sets desert sky ablaze The Indian Air Force's first ever day-night full combat and fire demonstration, named "Iron Fist" held in Pokhran. More than 200 fighter and transport aircraft, including Sukhoi 30, Mirage 2000, Jaguar, MiG 27, MIG 21, MIG 29, unmanned aerial vehicles and the Awacs, participated in the demonstration. Indigenous aircraft like Light Combat Aircraft Tejas and Light Combat Helicopter Rudra also proved their calibre at the show. The other aircraft displayed were the C130J, the AN-32, the Embraer and the IL-76. The chopper fleet included Mi-8, Mi17 1V, and the newly inducted Mi-17 V5 and Mi-35. Another new entrant, the Swiss Pilatus PC-7 Mk II basic trainer, also graced the sky. During the demonstration, fighter planes destroyed mock ground targets with bombs and laser guided missiles. The targets included mock radar sites, battle tanks, marshalling yards, terrorist camps, a runway, a communication hub and military convoys. Garud commandos of the IAF and the National Security Guards also stormed a mock terrorist camp. The IAF also showcased its surfaceto-air missile systems for the first time. The show progressed into the night with Russian Pechora SAM3 missiles lighting up the starry sky above and the Thar below. Rafael Correa Ecuador's president Rafael Correa has been elected to a third term in power. The leftwing incumbent, who first took office in 2007 and was reelected in 2009, won 58% of the vote, well ahead of his closest challenger, former banker Guillermo Lasso, with 24%.
On January 11, the king appointed the women, which include university graduates, human rights activists and two princesses, to the body, also known as the Saudi Consultative Council. The monarch took the decisions following consultations with religious leaders in Saudi Arabia, which applies a strict version of Islamic law.
In 2011, he granted women the right to vote and run as candidates in the next local election, set for 2015, saying.
Tech billionaires announce new Life Sciences prize
Some of the world's best-known technology tycoons, including Google co-founder Sergey Brin and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, launched a $15-million annual prize to reward groundbreaking achievements in life sciences. The idea behind the Breakthrough Prize for Life Sciences is to generate excitement and financial
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EDITORIALS
Justice Verma Committee recommendations are comprehensive and visionary The recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee are comprehensive and visionary. The committee has significantly expanded the list of crimes against women (CAW). Offences such as voyeurism, stalking, disrobing and trafficking of women have been added to this list. Moreover, the committee has proposed drastic increase in the punishment for various crimes. But it will be a mistake to believe the menace of CAW can be eliminated by expanding the scope of the law and increasing the penalty. As empirical research shows, for effective deterrence, the certainty of punishment matters more than its magnitude. To achieve certainty of punishment, it is crucial that most crimes get reported, investigated and adjudicated without delay. anything, public outrage in the aftermath of the tragedy of December 16 and more vigilance by the police must have had a deterring effect on potential criminals. But post-December 17, media reporting has also been more prominent. This, along with huge condemnation of sex crimes, seems to have emboldened victims. Consequently, a larger fraction of recent crimes was reported by victims. Many unreported crimes have also surfaced. Clearly, the problem of under-reporting by victims is serious, especially for rape crimes and those involving minors. To make things worse, even for many victim-reported crimes, a police complaint is not registered. On top of it, the judicial process is protracted and the conviction rate is abysmally low, at 26%. In such a scenario, most criminals go scotfree. Unsurprisingly, the law has lost its deterrence power. To address the problem of non-registration of CAW, the committee has recommended criminal prosecution of callous police officers. The above data shows many more victims can be encouraged to come forward by a proactive reporting by the media. Moreover, it is imperative to change the victimblaming attitude of society and its institutions: police, judiciary and, most importantly, the institution called family. As far as the magnitude of punishment is concerned, the committee is right in rejecting demand for death penalty. We should remember that for rape crimes, the victim's statement is crucial for identifying culprits. Death penalty for rape would mean the same punishment for (one) crime of rape as well as for (two) crimes of rape followed by murder of the victim. So, there is the risk that it may induce some rapists to kill the victim to exterminate the evidence. Besides, wrongful convictions are a known fact. After all, human error cannot be ruled out even when police, forensic experts and judges all work assiduously to identify the culprit. Victims can also make a mistake in identifying the accused. At times, the real offenders escape the noose of the law. Long-term imprisonment for rape, as proposed by the committee, is clearly superior to the death penalty. Unlike death penalty, incarceration does offer a chance to the criminal to reform himself, and
Examination of CAW reported by the media during December 2012 points to several systemic problems, which will require more than reclassification of crimes and penalties. As the accompanying graphic shows, in a number of crimes, the perpetrator is someone known to the victim. But the actual proportion is much larger.
Since, due to pressure from relatives and misplaced social stigmas, many victims prefer to suffer in silence. So, many criminals go unpunished.
Strangely, the number of CAWs seem to have more than doubled post-December 17, in comparison to the first half of the month. But there is no particular reason for crimes to increase suddenly. If
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to the system to rectify adjudication errors. Moreover, it can provide effective deterrence against serious crimes, providing its duration increases with the intensity of crime. Under the extant Criminal Procedure Code, life imprisonment essentially means a maximum jail term of 14 years. This needs to change. The committee has recommended replacement of 'life imprisonment' with 'whole-life' sentence for aggravated sexual assaults like rape followed by murder, and also for gang rape. Source: The Economic Times GM crops will sow food insecurity By arguing that GM crops are essential to food security, the Government seeks to conceal the underlying reality. The recent affidavit filed by the Ministry of Agriculture in the Supreme Court arguing that if India does not walk the path of (genetically modified) GM food, then it will starve, gives a scary picture of how the highest court of the country can be misguided in order to protect global corporate interests. This is a lie, because the situation of hunger, malnutrition and food insecurity of the people in the country is not due to inadequacy of production (we have had record production in the last three years), but due to distribution and purchasing power. The Indian Government is one of the world's biggest hoarders of foodgrains, about 667 lakh tonnes as on January 1, 2013. This makes the current stock 2.5 times more than the Government's own benchmark for buffer stocks. One wonders why our Government continues to insist that lack of food production is the cause for hunger in this country? The question to ask is, why are these mountains of foodgrains not being distributed to the people when a third of the children are born malnourished, half of children are underweight and a third of the adult population has a body mass index (BMI) of below 18.5, one of the worst in the world. Corporate Interests The Planning Commission's estimate of the required subsistence calorie intake for defining the poverty line is set at 2,400 calories per person per day in rural areas and 2,100 calories per person per day in urban areas. Going by that figure, at least 80 per cent of the population in rural areas and 50 per cent in urban areas fall below the required subsistence intake. We stand way down the Global hunger Index at 65th out of 88 nations, worse than many sub-Saharan African countries.
Despite repeated Supreme Court orders regarding distribution of foodgrains to the poor at Antyodaya prices, the Government does not comply and refuses to allow food to be distributed through the public distribution system (PDS), although clandestine ways are used to export the grain abroad. And now we have this attempt of the Agriculture Ministry with its GM promotion to push for global corporate interests by riding on the backs of our starving millions. It is important to ask whether GM crops are a solution much worse than the problem that is being sought to be addressed. The decision of bringing in GM food may not only harm Indian agriculture overwhelmingly but also push a majority of people to the brink of starvation. GM crops are an extension of inputintensive and labour-displacing model of industrial agriculture. Hence, they would harm small and marginal farmers and farm labourers, majority of whom are women. It is important to observe that agriculture, unique among sectors of production, plays the dual role of providing an enormously important source of livelihood and of producing the means of life. Mirage of Increased Output To link GM to increased food production, and hence food security, is a fallacy. Evidence is emerging that food security indicators have not improved but only deteriorated in countries that have adopted GM crops elsewhere in substantial areas. A recent letter from hundreds of Indian scientists, sent to the Minister for Environment and Forests, presents clear and strong evidence on this. From our experience with Bt cotton it is clear that cultivation of GM crops, though it failed to increase yields, definitely increases input costs because of the royalty attached to seeds. It also includes increased irrigation and agrochemical requirements. Food security also means availability of safe food. There is growing scientific evidence questioning the safety of GM food. This shows the irresponsibility of the Ministry of Agriculture towards the people of this country, in advocating the introduction of yet-to-be-proven-safe technologies with several potential hazards as a part of our food systems. Comprehensive Provisions Must Hunger and malnutrition are the greatest threat to India's national security. The National Food Security Bill is a crucial opportunity to address this. We hope that this will not be missed when Parliament deliberates the report of the Standing
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Committee on Food and Consumer Affairs on the National Food Security Bill 2011. The present Bill and the Standing Committee recommendations have undermined the issues of farmers and consumers, by not recommending measures to ensure sustainable food production, guaranteeing MSP at real input costs, or providing safe food which is free of contamination from GMOs or agrochemicals. Instead, the committee has recommended the provisioning of fortified foodgrains and atta (flour) under the PDS which opens the door for commercialisation of both agriculture and the food system; fortification of food grains could also open the doors for GM technologies. The committee's recommendations have also undermined the right to food of children, by provisioning maternal entitlements for only the first two children, thus denying the exclusive breast feeding rights of subsequent children born to the family and also not providing legal cover to the Anganwadis. It has undermined the vulnerable people's right to food by not bringing Community Kitchens under the law, and undermined nutritional security by only talking of distribution of cereals. Further, it falls far short of providing adequate food to all (universal) through the PDS, by only covering 67 per cent of the population with as little as 5 kg of cereals per head per month. It, finally, has not provided for criminal penalties or independent grievance redressal systems, essentially diluting the legal guarantees given by the Supreme Court in the "right to food" case. We hope that Parliament will undo what the Ministry of Agriculture is trying to do through the courts and bring in the wisdom that food security must address issues related to access to resources (land, forests and water), provide for revival of agriculture, protect livelihoods of food producers and preserve local food systems.
made its maiden flight on Friday carrying President Pranab Mukherjee from Jaisalmer to Pokharan to witness Exercise Iron Fist, the IAF's premier air power demonstration held every two years. Instead, he will travel in the ageing though modified Mi8 helicopter. In another modified Mi8 helicopter, Union Minister for Defence AK Antony will give a lift to an Opposition predecessor Jaswant Singh for the same event. AW101 is a unique helicopter. The pilot sits on the left and not on the right as in other machines. The rotors of the three-engine helicopter move in an anti-clockwise direction, not clockwise, as in other helicopters. The feel of the ultra-safe helicopter is completely different from others, say IAF pilots who have trained in them. The Hindon-based VVIP Mi8 squadron will be phased out within the next 12 months and will require another life-cycle extension in case the contract is cancelled. The IAF is hoping that the contract will not be cancelled as it will set the programme back by at least another five years. Westland was bought over by Agusta, and AgustaWestland, the UK subsidiary of Italy's Finmeccanica, has been issued a notice to come clean. In his conversations with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently, British Prime Minister David Cameron tried to insulate the contract and AW from being blacklisted as it would affect jobs in Somerset where the helicopter is made. He also lobbied for Eurofighter Typhoon which lost to the French Dassault Rafale, the contract for which has yet to be signed. Linked to AW, a Britisher, Mr Christian Michel, who was allegedly the agent for Dassault Mirage 2000 contract more than a decade ago, could create a problem for the Rafale. The IAF says a lot of work has to be done in finalising cost and production norms of the Rafale. If the Government does not wish to get embroiled in the Rs1,00,000 crore deal before the elections, it may shelve it until after 2014. The showcause notice to Finmeccanica threatening to cancel the contract will immediately affect its prospects in the Army-led tender for 197 ULH helicopters in which AW is pitted against the French Eurocopter and the US Sikorsky, and other future projects like Naval radars and the design of the aircraft carrier in the $100 billion arms market in India over the next five to seven years. This is perhaps the first time any bribe giver has named the bribe takers and spelt out the services they provided. This is also the first time that payment details have been indicated and names of military officers - a Brigadier Saini who apparently claimed
In order to ensure that we are a society free of malnutrition and hunger, the need of the hour is to immediately legislate a truly comprehensive food security Bill rather than the myopic one that is being proposed. Source: Business Line De-politicise defence acquisition processes
The Government must review and make the procurement system less cumbersome. The 2009 Bernard Grey review in the UK did just that. Contrast it to the Indian method of canceling contracts and blacklisting firms. There's many a slip between the cup and the lip. AgustaWestland101 VVIP helicopter should have
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he would be able to swing another deal and former Air Chief, Air Marshal SP Tyagi, who allegedly tweaked the Air Staff Requirement - are mentioned in the Milan dispatches. These are extraordinary bits of findings emanating from the Italian court's investigations. The normal amount for commission on a contract is two per cent of the deal. In the Rs3,600 crore AW101 case, it is 10 per cent thereby inflating the overall cost of the contract and making each machine worth Rs300 crore. Why has the bribe giver mentioned the names of the recipients, chosen the Tyagi brothers and connected them with the then Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal SP Tyagi? One theory is that this has been done to throw up a smokescreen to conceal the identity of the actual conduits and the ultimate bribe takers. Identifying the money trail will be a challenge. This was the lesson from Bofors as well as from the Su MKI Sukhoi India aircraft purchases.
operational readiness over the years, has led to wholesale blacklisting of foreign firms like Denel, Singapore Technology Kinetic, Israel Aerospace Industry, Germany Rhinemetal and of course, Bofors. Blacklisting leads to a single-vendor situation and re-tendering of the project. That is why the Army has not acquired an artillery gun after Bofors. It is time the Government set up a commission to review the acquisition system and make the defence procurement procedure less cumbersome, so that at least allotted capital funds are utilised and not returned unspent. Balancing probity with timely operational deliverance and defence preparedness is another necessity. The 2009 Bernard Grey review in UK did just that, which is in contrast to the Indian method of canceling contracts and blacklisting firms. You cannot do away with arms agents, facilitators, service providers, consultants, interlocutors - call them what you like. In 2001, the MoD called for local and foreign arms agents to register so that they could be officially recognised. No one came forward. Had defence acquisition unfortunately not become so politicised, the AW101 affair would have blown over and the contagion not affected other projects to the detriment of operational preparedness. It is time to make defence modernisation uninterrupted and uninterruptible. Source: The Pioneer
As someone who investigated the Sukhoi deal, tried to follow the money trail and wrote some 20,000 words over eight months in the mid-1990s for Sunday magazine, I can re-state what I wrote then. The PV Narasimha Rao-led Government paid an advance of Rs200 crore to Sukhoi Irkutsk even before the contract was signed; the United Front Government-led first by HD Deve Gowda and later by IK Gujral, was the beneficiary from subsequent orders. The NDA Government that followed gained from enhancing the Su30 MKI inventory. The Sukhoi order book has never been idle as fresh demands were placed with Irkutsk. Names of relatives and acquaintances of politicians who received kickbacks figured at the time but the money trail could not be established. The AW101 revelations could not have come at a worse time for the Armed Forces and the Government, especially for Mr Antony who is seen to have done little to uncover the alleged graft, after he sat silent over General VK Singh's claim that the former Chief of Army Staff was offered a bribe.
Mending the fiscal deficit, Union Minister for Finance P Chidambaram has indicated a cut of Rs10,000 crore from the capital account of the current defence Budget. Payments for big ticket items like INS Vikramaditya and Rafale have been postponed to the next year. Still, 'ChopperGate' is sufficient for the fear of the three Cs: CBI, CVC and CAG clogging processing channels of projects in the pipeline. What is worse is that Mr Antony's obsession with probity in public life, placed on the altar of
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How Ethiopians are being pushed off their land
"It is not a land-grab, it is a life-grab. It is daylight robbery. But if we protest, if we speak the truth, we could end up in jail or worse." Obang Metho was referring to the leasing of land to foreign companies in Ethiopia, spreading over nearly four million hectares. Nyikaw Ochalla joined in: "This is happening in the lands I grew up in, and it is my relatives and childhood friends who are being jailed, beaten up, and driven out; my childhood memories are being violated." Metho of the Solidarity Movement for a New Ethiopia, and Ochalla of the Anuak Survival Organisation were speaking at the "Indian-Ethiopian Seminar on Land Investments" organised on February 5-6, 2013 in New Delhi. The seminar was put together by Indian civil society groups Indian Social Action Forum (Insaf), Popular Education and Action Centre (Peace), and Kalpavriksh, the research institution Council for Social Development, and the U.S. -based research group Oakland Institute.
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Indian stakes The stories narrated by Obang and Ochalla were harrowing. The lands being leased by the Ethiopian government to companies from India, China, Malaysia, and other countries, were claimed by it to be "empty." In actual fact these are areas occupied or used by pastoral and small farming communities, as also grasslands and forests with significant wildlife. Decisions are being taken in the country's capital to give up these lands ostensibly to help the country produce food and generate revenues; the underlying message is that either there is no one there to do the job, or that local communities are simply not up to the mark. Indian companies are among the biggest players in the land deals, with investments of over $5 billion, and leases over 6,00,000 hectares. Karuturi Global, a Bangalore-based agroproduce company has alone received 3,00,000 hectares. Claims by these companies and by the Ethiopian government that the deals are legal and entail no human rights violations, have been shown as false in a series of on-ground investigations. The Oakland Institute has meticulously documented the nexus of corporations, politicians, investors, and officials that has made the land-grab possible. It notes that there is no public consultation with local communities (much less their consent), many of whom find out that their pastures or fields have been sold off only when bulldozers arrive. Any form of resistance or even questioning is met with imprisonment, beating up, and even killing. Both private security companies and the Ethiopian government's own forces are used to protect the investors. And there is a total lack of environmental and social impact assessments in these deals. It is also stated sometimes that what Indian companies are doing abroad, is not the responsibility of the government. But this ignores the various ways in which the Indian government facilitates and supports such deals, not only through diplomatic channels but also financially (even if indirectly). For instance the Indian Export-Import Bank has pledged $640 million of credit over five years for Ethiopia's sugar industry, and the fact that Indian companies are getting the biggest deals for sugarcane plantations cannot be unconnected. Mass displacement Obang and Ochalla were careful to clarify that they were not against India's people, who they realised could not be supporting such land-grab; however, for the affected communities, "it is Indians
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who are doing this to us." It is therefore important for groups here to question the intentions and actions of Indian companies and the Indian government agencies supporting them. Does their behaviour in Ethiopia meet the laws or guidelines under which Indian companies act within their own country? Does it meet international standards of human rights and environmental sustainability that India is a signatory to? Over the next couple of years, the Ethiopian government plans to forcibly move 1.5 million people off their homelands and concentrate them into a few settlements in a process called "villagisation." It claims that this will enable it to provide efficient and good quality services like drinking water, sanitation, schools, and clinics, which is not possible in the case of today's scattered, small settlements. But Obang and Ochalla point out that all the relocation is taking place from lands targeted by investor companies, and that even where communities are saying they would much rather stay where they are with whatever amenities they have, they are being forcibly moved out. The claim that such investments are a "win-win" deal for the Ethiopian people and Indian companies is also questionable. Much of the production (sugarcane, cotton, jatropha, etc) is meant for export, and local foodgrains which are the staple diet are not being grown. Very little local employment is created; there is no requirement by the Ethiopian government that companies have to hire locally. Nor is there any contractual clause by which the money generated is to remain within the Ethiopian economy. A handful of businessmen and politicians are the prime beneficiaries. Obang and Ochalla were at pains to state that part of the blame for this sell-out is located within the country's own history, in which sometimes adverse relations between different tribes have become entrenched in the political system. The country's ruling elite are from a tiny minority belonging to one ethnic group, who can ignore the sufferings of other groups affected by land-grab. In this sense, it is the Ethiopian people themselves who have to resolve the problem. But there is also an important role for India's people, especially in highlighting the role of their own companies and government, and facilitating greater awareness of what is taking place in the name of Ethiopia's development. Odisha parallel What is happening in Ethiopia (and other African countries) is an outcome of India's own aggressive
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push towards globalised economic growth. The growth fetish has led to situations of both internal and external colonisation, in which farms, waterbodies, forests, grasslands and other natural resources are all up for grabs. It was an ironical coincidence that on the very days the consultations on Indian land-grab in Ethiopia were taking place in New Delhi, police action was under way to forcibly evict villagers in Odisha to make way for the Korean multinational Posco. Representatives of movements from Jharkhand, Karnataka and elsewhere told Obang and Ochalla that they were facing similar repression while resisting forcible takeover by the government or by corporations. The currently dominant model of "development" is pushing such violence across the globe, wherever dominant nation-states and giant corporations are eyeing land and resources.
In such a situation, people in India who care for human rights, ecological sustainability, and basic justice, have to raise fundamental critiques of "development" and centralised governance, and work towards radical alternatives that secure the rights of all people to food, water, shelter, energy, learning, health and livelihoods. Such alternatives are already demonstrated to be feasible at thousands of sites across the world, but it requires a mindset change for both the Ethiopian and Indian governments to facilitate the empowerment of local communities to adopt them, rather than paving the way for corporate takeover. Neither the founders of India nor of Ethiopia would have dreamt of a future in which development takes place at gunpoint. Source: The Hindu
Smoking gun FOR years, intelligence agencies and private security experts have warned that Chinese hackers are trying to steal Western corporate secrets. The cries have grown ever louder as the attacks have become bolder and signs of government involvement have surfaced. In a forthcoming book, Eric Schmidt, the executive chairman of Google, reportedly brands China "the most sophisticated and prolific" hacker of foreign companies. Chinese hacking has outraged many American politicians, leading to noisy hearings in Congress and a backlash against Chinese firms. Earlier this month the Obama administration declared its intention to go on the cyber-security offensive. Europe, China's biggest trade partner, is angry, too. The European Commission is considering forcing hacked companies to reveal their woes to the authorities.
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Blame China first
The Chinese government has always hotly denied the accusations. Its officials say the accusers have never produced hard evidence. Now that has changed as Mandiant, an American cyber-security firm, released a detailed report on February 19th describing the activities of a curious group of hackers. Through its work protecting Western firms, Mandiant observed how these hackers broke into dozens of company networks over many years to steal vast amounts of intellectual property (IP). The bombshell is the claim, denied by the government, that this gang is actually an elite division of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), known as Unit 61398, based in an innocuous white office building near Shanghai's financial district (see picture). The report is worth taking seriously for several reasons. First, Mandiant has a sound pedigree: it shot to prominence by tracing the long-term hacking of the New York Times, revealed last month, back to Chinese officialdom. And, unlike previous accusers, it has meticulously documented the hackers' methods and malware. Though the hackers (known as the "Comment Crew") used nearly 1,000 remote servers in over a dozen countries, Mandiant traced them to networks in Shanghai near the army compound.
Not everyone is satisfied. Jeffrey Carr of Taia Global, a security consultancy, argues that this new report suffers from a "blame China first" bias, and that its methodology is not rigorous enough. Mandiant rejects this, though it accepts that the evidence points to Unit 61398's district, rather than to its actual building. However, it is unlikely that well-organised, well-funded cybercrooks are hacking the Fortune 500 from noodle joints outside the compound. Still, it is surely right to challenge those who blame China for every ill. Apple, Facebook and Twitter have recently been breached, for example, but it appears that hackers from eastern Europe may be to blame. Iranians were probably behind a recent cyber-attack on Saudi Aramco, the world's biggest oil firm. Robert Bigman, formerly chief information security officer for the CIA, says that Russia, Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine deserve to join China on cybercrime's most-wanted list. An American telecoms company recently asked Mr Carr to investigate a Chinese outfit acquired by one of its American vendors. This client wanted to be sure that its new purchase did not have ties to China's state-sponsored cyber-hackers. It did not,
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but Taia discovered in the process that the Chinese company used a software-outsourcing firm that turned out to be a front for Russian intelligence
strengthening of its efforts to prevent the theft of trade secrets, and China was mentioned prominently. In the past many firms have been reluctant to admit they had been hacked, because of the risk of tipping off competitors and alarming investors. Perhaps Mandiant's report will mark the moment when firms began to put collective security first. Christian Murck, head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Beijing, likens the silence to the one that surrounded counterfeiting a dozen years ago. Back then, fake goods were an enormous problem in China but Western companies did not want to speak out for fear of tarnishing their brands. In time, though, firms got together, shared information and lobbied for stronger laws and enforcement. Counterfeiting is still widespread but it is becoming a more manageable problem. Hacking might be too one day, says Mr Murck. Western victims have one further hope. Attitudes toward IP theft may be changing at the best Chinese companies. Huawei and ZTE, Chinese telecoms-equipment vendors, are at each other's throats in a row about stolen IP. Mindray, a Chinese medical-technology pioneer, has taken former employees to court for ripping off its designs. In short, Chinese firms are starting to generate their own valuable IP and will increasingly demand that the legal system protect their assets. As they do so, they are starting to get their employees to respect IP as well. Pressure on China from abroad will remain crucial, especially because decisions in Chinese courts can still be bought or manipulated. This pressure and increased domestic awareness may start to make a difference, but change is still likely to be very slow in coming. Source: The Economist
Mandiant probably got it right, believes Dmitri Alperovitch of CrowdStrike, a security firm that got close to nailing the PLA's hackers two years ago. Mr Bigman, the ex-CIA officer, agrees. It is unclear whether the hacking activity is orchestrated or merely tolerated by central authorities. Another reason to think this report marks a turning-point is its timing, which suggests American official blessing. Richard Bejtlich of Mandiant says the firm decided only a month ago to give away the report. Normally, private clients would pay handsomely for the detailed technical information it contains. But, mindful of the growing momentum among political leaders for action, and after discussing the report with intelligence experts, the firm released it as a way "to wage cyber war and to challenge the 'benign China' thesis".
The report is part of a new American "naming and shaming" effort designed to push China to rein in its hackers, reckons Bill Bishop, a Beijing-based technology expert. It might work, but he worries that if America pushes too hard the new Chinese leadership will feel boxed in. Under pressure from the PLA and public opinion, it might choose to escalate things instead. Adam Segal of the Council on Foreign Relations, an American think-tank, argues that America must be willing to use trade penalties, visa restrictions and financial sanctions to raise the cost of stealing IP. "China must see it is vulnerable," he insists. On February 20th America announced a
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Where have all the subsidies gone?
If one has a good idea of where we went wrong in the last five years, one can begin to project the future and what the finance minister might or might not be able to do on February 28. No matter what the source, the discussion and complaint has centred on the fiscal deficit. And the fiscal situation is dire - an increase of nearly 2 percentage points in the consolidated fiscal deficit in the last five years. But the fiscal deficit is the net difference between revenues and expenditures. So, theoretically, the fiscal deficit can expand because of a shortage of revenues or an excess of expenditures or both. Consequently, depending on one's ideological
preference, the emphasis is either on raising taxes or on cutting expenditure. And given a country like India, whose politicians and many of the glintelectuals (glitterati intellectuals) do not believe in any evidence based policy, the concentration is on raising taxes. The last two months have been dominated by discussions of how to raise tax revenue and, of course, "motherhood" dictates that one cannot go wrong by suggesting that the rich should pay more. If it is pointed out that the top 10 per cent of earners in the country pay for almost all of corporate and individual tax revenue, the refrain of the glintelectuals is: why can't they pay more? Back-of-the-envelope calculations for the Indian economy are now made easier with several important numbers approaching 100 or multiples of 100 levels. Nominal GDP in 2012-13 is estimated to have been Rs 94.6 lakh crore (lc); for 2013-14, with 12 per cent growth, nominal GDP is estimated at Rs 106 lc. For the same year, poverty is forecast to be 220 million or 18 per cent of the population. This based on a Tendulkar poverty line equal to Rs 1,000 per capita per month (pcpm) and the average consumption level of the poor equal to Rs 834 (Rs 12,000 and Rs 10,000 on an annual basis).
of GDP. During UPA 1, this deficit turned into a surplus (India became less poor) but the populist government spent twice the amount "needed" to remove poverty. The situation has worsened considerably in UPA 2, and in 2012-13, the government is spending more than six times than what is "needed". The criminally sad nature of our populist policies is brought out by the following calculations. We spend Rs 1,00,000 crore on diesel subsidies. I don't know about you, but I know precious few, indeed none and none by a few miles, poor people who consume diesel. If the diesel subsidy were to be eliminated and the money given to the poor, their consumption would increase by 50 per cent! If the food subsidy were to be eliminated (and only 23 per cent of the poor's food was accessed from PDS shops in 2009-10), the incomes of the poor would increase by 50 per cent. If all subsidies were to be eliminated and the money given to the poor, their incomes would be two and a half times their present income. Of course, perfect targeting is not possible, and all the money saved from elimination of subsidies should not go to the poor. Indeed, it should not go to anybody, but should go to help make India look more like a modern economy than a poor cousin of Hugo Chavez's Venezuela. And Venezuela has oil to squander. This simple analysis has several implications for Indian policymaking and the budget. For starters, all this talk about raising tax rates, imposing commodity taxes, increasing dividend taxes, etc, is shown plainly to be what it is - utter and glib nonsense. The gains to be made for the Indian economy are by drastically reducing "in the name of the poor (INP)" expenditures. The talk should not be in terms of motherhood reductions of the fiscal deficit, but reductions in the even more politically correct motherhood expenditures on the poor. The big story, the big debacle, the big policy mistake, is the irresponsible increase in the combined (state and Centre) fiscal deficits of about 2 to 4 percentage points of GDP. This had averaged 6.3 per cent of the GDP in the "good" years, 2003-04 to 200708. For the last five years, the fiscal deficit has averaged 8 per cent, or 1.7 percentage points higher than the 2003-04 to 2007-08 average. Is it just a coincidence that this increase is almost identical to the increase in populist subsidies alone - 1.6 percentage points between NDA-Vajpayee and UPA 2? It is time we recognised the debate on INP policies. Several people will lose if a re-orientation is made. Many of these people are politicians, many
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These simple calculations, assuming conservative historical trends, imply that the government needs to annually spend, in 2013-14, Rs 0.44 lc(obtained as the multiple of 220 million poor with an average poverty deficit of Rs 2000 per person per year). This fraction is 0.40 per cent of the GDP and what is needed to be spent on the poor in order to claim that "India is a land with NO poverty according to the official poverty line". This claim assumes perfect targeting. Further, the amount needed to eliminate poverty declines with economic growth. In 1983, the perfect targeting outlay was equal to 7.8 per cent of the GDP and in 2004-05, 1.6 per cent of the GDP. Assume, for a moment, that the government was actually desirous of doubling the real incomes of every poor person in India. This will mean an outgo of nearly Rs 2,20,000 crore each year and will push every poor person in India to a consumption level above the poverty line. The table documents the actual expenditure on various inventive poverty reduction schemes that Indian politicians have offered and spent grandiosely on. The trend in the averages is striking. Under Atal Bihari Vajpayee's tenure, when incomes were low, the government spent close to 1.6 per cent of the GDP on poverty reduction programmes. India was a lot poorer 10 years ago and could not afford the average perfect targeting requirement of 2.2 per cent
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more are in major political parties and I would conjecture that a large amount of the leakage ends up in the coffers of political parties as election financing. These men and women are powerful and stand a lot to lose if money meant for the poor reaches the poor. How much is this leakage or "corruption"? Rajiv Gandhi had conjectured (Congress party leaders please note) way back in 1985 that 85 per cent of the money meant for the poor was lost in transition. And Rajiv Gandhi was a raging optimist. Fifteen per cent of Rs 3,01,000 crore is Rs 45,000 crore, and even if this fraction of money did actually reach the poor, poverty in India today would be less than 5 per cent, if not zero! In
other words, money for the poor leaks away - indeed, floods away. The choice for India, and P. Chidambaram, is crystal clear. We need to abandon the reckless adventurism of UPA 2 (and parts of UPA 1). Budget 2013-14 should be about subsidy control, and about considerably improved targeting. Technology in the form of Aadhaar is now available; cash transfers are an important component of anti-poverty policy in most countries. The budget should remember the insight of Rajiv Gandhi, and it should concentrate on the relationship between outlays and outcomes. Source: Indian Express
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India panel proposes to regulate prices of patented medicines Sexual harassment at Workplace Bill passed by Parliament An Indian government panel has proposed that prices of patented medicines be based on the country's per capita income, a move that would substantially reduce prices of costly drugs made by global pharmaceutical firms. The proposal, which seeks the input of other government agencies as well as industry groups, could provoke the ire of Big Pharma, which has clashed with India over protection of intellectual property, price regulations for generic drugs, and compulsory licenses for costly medicines. A panel formed under the ministry of chemicals and fertilizers has recommended setting up a committee to negotiate with drugmakers to fix prices of costly drugs used to treat deadly diseases such as cancer, HIV and hepatitis. The proposal is the latest in a series of measures taken by India to make medicines more affordable for the country's 1.2 billion population. If the per-capita income with the prices of patented medicines in countries like Australia or France are compared with that of India, prices in India are comparatively high. Generic medicines account for more than 90 percent of India's $13 billion pharmaceuticals market. U.S.-based Abbott Laboratories has the largest share of the overall Indian drug market followed by India's Cipla. For example the lung-cancer drug erlotinib HCL, sold by Roche Holding AG as Tarceva. In India, it costs 35,450 rupees ($660) for one month of 100 mg tablets, equivalent to 121,085 rupees in France and 121,650 rupees in Australia. Based on per-capita gross national incomes, if the drug costs 35,450 rupees in India, its respective cost would be just 11,643 rupees in France and 10,309 rupees in Australia based on per capita income in the respective countries.
A generic drug is identical--or bioequivalent--to a brand name drug in dosage form, safety, strength, route of administration, quality, performance characteristics and intended use. Although generic drugs are chemically identical to their branded counterparts, they are typically sold at substantial discounts from the branded price.
Parliament has passed a bill under which cases of sexual harassment at workplace, including against domestic help, will have to be disposed of by inhouse committees within a period of 90 days failing which penalty of Rs 50,000 would be imposed. The Bill, which has already been passed by Lok Sabha, was unanimously passed by Rajya Sabha, with Women and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath promising to follow up the legislation with strict rules for its implementation. The bill brings in its ambit even domestic workers and agriculture labour, both organised and unorganised sectors. The Act defines domestic worker as a woman employed to do household work in any household for remuneration whether in cash or kind, either directly or through any agency on temporary, permanent, part time or full time basis, but does not include any member of the family of the employer. As per the Act, sexual harassment includes any one or more of unwelcome acts or behaviour like physical contact and advances, a demand or request for sexual favours or making sexually coloured remarks or showing pornography. The acts or behaviour whether directly, or by implication, include any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature. Non-compliance with the provisions of the Act shall be punishable with a fine of up to Rs. 50,000. It has also provisions for safeguard against false or malicious charges. Repeated non-compliance of the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Bill, can lead to higher penalties and even cancellation of licence or registration to conduct business. The Bill makes it mandatory that all offices, hospitals, institutions and other workplaces should have an internal redressal mechanism for complaints related to sexual harassment. A Parliamentary Standing Committee, which had examined the Bill, recommended that the preventive aspects be in line with the Supreme Court's
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guidelines in the 1997 Vishaka case. The judgement not only defines sexual harassment at workplace but also lays down guidelines for its prevention and disciplinary action.
Sexual harassment results in violation of the fundamental rights of a woman to equality under articles 14 and 15 of the Constitution of India and her right to life and to live with dignity under article 21 of the Constitution and right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business which includes a right to a safe environment free from sexual harassment; The protection against sexual harassment and the right to work with dignity are universally recognised human rights by international conventions and instruments such as Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, which has been ratified on the 25th June, 1993 by the Government of India.
public and forest land, under tree plantation. Under Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana 1,44,321 villages have been electrified. During the meet the ministers while emphasizing the importance of Twenty Point Programme stressed the need for a more focussed implementation and monitoring, so that the full expected benefits reach the poor in the remotest areas of the country. Further, nodal Central Ministries should provide necessary support to the states and at the same time the State Governments should also take the corrective actions in the area of concern so that the performance of these can be improved. Green norms likely to be eased for real sector
Centre Reviews Twenty Point Programme 2006 with States and Union Territories
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOS&PI) organized the review meeting of Twenty Point Programme - 2006 (TPP 2006) with Secretaries of States/UTs and the concerned officers of Central nodal Ministries.
The Twenty Point Programme has achieved many mile-stones leading to the socio-economic development especially for the weaker sections of the society. Since inception of the revised TPP programme in 2007, 1246.58 lakhs job cards had been issued and 1202.85 crore of man days of employment had been generated under MGNREGA. Under Swaranjayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana, 23.79 lakhs individuals got assistance and 14.91 lakhs Self Help Groups were provided income generating activities. Under PDS, Government has distributed 1119.63 lakhs tonne of food grains to BPL families. In order to improve health parameters, 7.97 lakhs slipped back habitations/ habitations with water quality problems have been addressed under Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP/NRDWP) and 719.23 lakhs individual household latrines have been constructed in rural areas under Sanitation Programmes. The TPP has also been successful in bringing social and community development through various programme like Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, which resulted in construction of additional 2.83 lakhs Km of rural roads. In order to generate employment, Skill training has been provided to 2.49 lakhs Urban Poor for employment. Similarly 65.05 lakhs Urban Poor Families have been assisted under Seven Point Charter. Being environment conscious, Government has brought 1,13,10,462 hectare of
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The environment ministry is likely to ease green norms for the real estate sector, giving a boost to developers wanting to construct high-rise buildings. The relaxation is expected to allow builders to put up higher buildings on smaller roads and lanes in cities. In February 2012, the environment ministry had laid down rules linking the height of a building with the width of the road it was to be built on as well as the distance from the nearest fire station. The rules had the realty sector up in arms. At the moment, buildings above 60 metres can get an environment clearance if they are on roads at least 30 metres wide. Such buildings have to be within 2 km of a fire station. Buildings between 4560 metres need to have an approach road that is at least 24 metres wide and not more than 5 km from a fire station. Buildings 30-45 metres high have to be located on roads at least 18 metres wide with fire stations not more than 10 km away. Buildings between 15 and 30 metres require a 15 metre-wide approach roads but have no restriction linked to presence of fire stations. The February 2012 regulations also required a no-objection certificate from the state fire department and the national or state disaster management authorities. Faced with environmental hurdles in pushing vertical growth in the state, the Kerala government has amended its municipal building rules to change the very definition of 'high-rise' buildings to get around the stringent new requirements for a green nod. While a building with four floors or 15 m tall was earlier termed a high-rise building in Kerala, after the amendment a high-rise will have to be 16 m tall with as many floors as can be built. Since a 15 m building in Kerala is no longer a high-rise, the
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MoEF's guidelines for 'high-rise' buildings will not be applicable to them. Maharashtra has also objected to the new highrise clearance norms and more than 100 such building projects in the state are awaiting environment approval. The Maharashtra Chambers of Housing Industries had also filed a petition before the state high court on the high-rise guidelines. The developments have forced the MoEF to revisit the guidelines and a committee has been constituted under Planning Commission member Dr K Kasturirangan to review the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2006 for grant of environmental clearance for various building, road and SEZ projects. This committee is not only reviewing the prescribed co-relation of height of buildings with the width of roads and distance from fire station but also highway related issues. It will review the requirement of environmental clearance for highway expansion projects up to right of way of 60 m and length of 200 km.
even with the most stringent measures and precautions. In conclusion, the Pachauri committee has found the project unviable both from the economic as well as the ecological angles. But the Centre has informed the Supreme Court that it intends to go ahead with the Rs 25,000 crore Sethusamudram shipping channel project, The centre has cited the reports of the National Environment Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), project consultant as well as the Committee of Eminent Persons, and concluded that - The project has economic, navigational and strategic advantages and, therefore, the government of India has been pursuing the project. An expenditure of Rs 829.32 crore has already been incurred on the project as on June 30, 2012. Given the advantages of the project, the government of India intends to pursue implementation of the project. The centre also requested the Supreme Court "to resolve the contentious issues raised by the petitioners". Petitioners, including Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalitha, had sought realignment of the shipping channel to save Ram Sethu from any damage. Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy had requested the court to declare Ram Sethu a national monument. Right to Homestead Bill
The panel will also review the requirement of environmental clearance for building and real estate projects to avoid duplication considering that such projects will be covered by local civic authorities and under the provision of the relevant master plan, building control regulations and safety guidelines. The categorization of roads, SEZs and building as A, B, B1 and B2 will also be revisited. Government scraps R K Pachauri panel report on Sethu project
The SC had on August 31, 2007 restrained the government from damaging Ram Sethu while dredging for the Rs 25,000 crore project, which was inaugurated in July 2005 by PM Manmohan Singh. The court later suggested that the government should examine an alternative route through Dhanuskodi to avoid dredging Ram Sethu. After the controversy over the Centre's affidavit in 2007 doubting the existence of Ramayana and Ram, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had appointed an expert group headed by environmentalist R K Pachauri to study the economic and ecological viability of the planned shipping route and the alternative alignment. The expert committee, after a detailed study, said that "neither alignment 4A (the alternative one) nor alignment 6 meet the benchmark Internal Rate Return (IRR) of 12% for the range of scenarios examined".
The committee stated that it would be difficult to rule out the possibility of oil spills completely,
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After legislating the Right to Information and Education - and making a stab at the Right to Work and Food through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Food Security Act respectively - the government's next step seems to be aimed at legally upholding the right to a home of your own. A task force set up by the Rural Development Ministry - including government officials and civil society members are finalizing a draft of the National Right to Homestead Bill 2013. The Bill aims to ensure that "every shelterless poor family has a right to hold homestead of not less than 10 cents, within a period of 10 years commencing from the date of notification. The draft Bill calls for State governments to notify an implementation plan within one year to identify beneficiaries, make an inventory of available lands and acquire more, and develop and allot plots. It mandates that the Central government will bear 75 per cent of the cost - through a National Homestead Guarantee Fund. The draft seems uncertain about the specific eligibility criteria for beneficiaries. The Bill is aimed at poor families in rural areas only. Government employees, landowners, income tax payers are all exempt. Other criteria, including a
maximum income level, have not yet been finalised. The title to the homestead will be given in the name of the adult woman member of the household. CBEC likely to get arrest powers
The proposal to restore the power of arrest in specific offences under the Customs and Central Excise Act has been cleared at a meeting by minister P Chidambaram recently and the amendments are expected to be announced during the ongoing Budget Session. The CBEC wanted amendments in order to make specific offences such as smuggling of prohibited goods, wrong declaration and duty evasion over a particular threshold cognisable and non-bailable offences. The move has reportedly been prompted by requests made by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and Directorate of Central Excise Intelligence, which investigate violations under the Customs Act and the Central Excise Act. Besides these two agencies, officials have been complaining to the CBEC that offenders do not cooperate with the investigation due to lack of legal deterrence. Thus the timely completion of investigation and recovery of revenue get delayed.
Earlier a Supreme Court Bench, then headed by present Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir, had in September 2011 made all offences under the Customs Act bailable. In Budget 2012, the government through an amendment restored the status quo in offences inviting more than three years in jail, making them non-bailable.The Opposition had criticised the move, with Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley comparing it to an antiterror law. The government had subsequently dropped the amendments. The fresh proposal is similar to the earlier proposed amendments in the Finance Bill, except this time the offences will be limited to those the CBEC believes pose threat to national security and economic stability of the country. So, if a person is arrested for a serious Customs offence under the proposed law, he will not be eligible for bail until a public prosecutor is allowed to present his case, which could mean a longer wait. In the new proposal, the board has narrowed down the focus to prohibited items such as banned pesticides and evasion of high magnitude. Further the threshold in case of duty evasion is to be decided by the top echelons of the Finance Ministry.
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INTERNATIONAL
Afghanistan Prez orders US special forces out of province Thailand - rebels sign peace deal Afghan President Hamid Karzai demanded the withdrawal of US special forces from Wardak and Logar within two weeks, accusing them of fuelling "insecurity and instability" in the volatile provinces neighbouring the capital Kabul. Wardak is a deeply troubled flashpoint where a Chinook helicopter was shot down by the Taliban in August 2011, killing eight Afghans and 30 Americans, in the deadliest single incident for American troops in the entire war. Analysts suggested the order underscored Kabul's growing distrust of US-led international troops and their desire to control local militia, trained by the Americans but which operate without their knowledge in the war against the Taliban. Thailand's government has signed its first-ever peace talks deal with Muslim rebels aimed at ending a decades-long conflict in the south. The deal was signed in Malaysia by the National Revolution Front (BRN), one of several groups operating in Thailand. Barisan Revolusi Nasional, which in Malay means "National Revolutionary Front", is one of several groups blamed for the unrest in Thailand. Malaysia has been acting as a facilitator for the negotiations between the Thai government and the Muslim rebels.
Thailand's south was an independent Islamic sultanate until it was annexed by Buddhist-majority Thailand in the early 20th century. Muslims living there have long complained of discrimination by the government in Bangkok. Anger towards the government flared up in October 2004 when the army arrested scores of Muslim men, tied them up and piled them on top of each other in trucks, where 78 of them suffocated. Prospects for peace have been dogged by the complex make-up of the insurgency and doubts persist over the level of control that older, exiled leaders known to Thailand's authorities exert over the younger fighters on the ground. The Muslim rebel group was involved in escalating violence in the southern provinces that has killed more than 5,000 people since 2004. Thailand's southern-most provinces suffer almost daily gun and bomb attacks by shadowy insurgents fighting for greater autonomy, a demand the country's authorities have rejected.
The decision was taken because armed individuals working with US Special Forces "engage in harassing, annoying, torturing and even murdering innocent people". It cited, for example, a student who was taken away at night from his home and two days later was found dead with torture wounds and his throat cut.\ Kabul did not specify which groups were responsible, but the United States is understood to have trained a variety of local militias, a number of which reportedly operate beyond the control of the Afghan government. On February 16, Karzai also restricted Afghan forces from calling in NATO air strikes -- an important weapon in the fight against insurgents - amid concern over civilian casualties.
Relations between Karzai and Washington have long been troubled, and with the bulk of NATO's 100,000 combat soldiers due to leave and the Afghan president to step down next year, there is huge uncertainty about the future. Kabul and Washington are still negotiating an agreement on the legal status that could allow an estimated 8,000 to 12,000 American troops to remain. More than 3,200 NATO troops, mostly Americans, have died in support of Karzai's government in the war since the Taliban were ousted by a US invasion in 2001.
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Fukushima disaster has raised cancer risk: WHO
The first-ever analysis of the global health effects due to radiation exposure after the Fukushima accident by WHO has confirmed that people affected by the nuclear accident caused by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, are at the risk of cancer though it remained small. Mainly emergency workers who were exposed to radiation of the nuclear plant after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan are facing an increased risk of developing certain cancers. A comprehensive assessment on the health risks associated with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) disaster has found that females exposed to the radiation as infants will see a 70%
increased risk of thyroid cancer (the normally expected risk of thyroid cancer in females over lifetime is 0.75%). For people in the most contaminated location, the estimated increased risks over what would normally be expected are 4% increased risk for all solid cancers, 6% increased risk for breast cancer among females exposed as infants and a 75% increase in leukaemia cases in males exposed as infants. While iodine released in nuclear accidents is absorbed by the thyroid, the biggest risk was demonstrated in thyroid cancer, which for infant girls could be up to 70% higher than expected over their lifetime. Obama orders $85bn spending cuts
Democrats predicted the cuts could soon cause air-traffic delays, meat shortages as food safety inspections slow down, losses to thousands of federal contractors and damage to local economies across the country, particularly in the hardest-hit regions around military installations. As a percentage of total government spending every year, $3.7 trillion, the actual spending reductions are small. But because safety-net programs such as Social Security and Medicare will be untouched, the brunt falls mostly on federal government employees rather than direct recipients of aid. Russia to re-establish Mediterranean presence
President Barack Obama has formally ordered $85 billion (65.3 billion) in cuts in US government spending after he and congressional Republicans failed to reach a deal to avert automatic reductions that could dampen economic growth and curb military readiness. The U.S. government is the nation's largest employer, with a workforce of roughly 2.7 million civilians spread across the country. If the cuts stay in place, more than 800,000 of those workers could see reduced work days and smaller paychecks between now and September. Half of the cuts will fall on the Pentagon.
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Russia will re-establish its permanent naval presence in the Mediterranean, drawn from the Black Sea Fleet, more than two decades after it withdrew from the region. The force will accomplish scheduled and urgent missions on the Mediterranean theatre of operations, including deterrence of threats to Russian national and military security originating from that region. The Mediterranean task force will be modelled on a Soviet Navy group that used to patrol the region during the Cold War. The Fifth Operation Squadron of the Soviet Navy was set up in the Mediterranean in 1967, shortly after the six-day Arab-Israeli war. The Fifth squadron, numbering up to 80 warships at its peak strength, was disbanded in 1992.
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ECONOMY
SEBI unveils guidelines for IDR conversion Market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came out with a detailed framework for conversion of Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs) into equity shares, as part of efforts to attract more foreign companies to get listed on the domestic bourses. Current regulations allow partial fungibility of such instruments - in a financial year conversion to the extent of 25 per cent of the IDRs originally issued is permitted. The new norms are:
An Indian Depository Receipt is an instrument denominated in Indian Rupees in the form of a depository receipt created by a Domestic Depository (custodian of securities registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India) against the underlying equity of issuing company to enable foreign companies to raise funds from the Indian securities Markets.
a) IDRs cannot be redeemed into underlying equity shares for a period of one year from the date of its listing and the issuer would provide twoway fungibility for IDRs. Thereby, Indian shareholders can convert their depository receipts into equity shares of the issuer company and vice versa. b) The issuer will have to, through advertisements in leading national dailies and through stock exchange notification, invite expression of interest from IDR holders at least one month before implementation. The issuer can either give the option of converting IDRs into underlying shares or IDRs into underlying shares and selling the underlying shares in the foreign market or both of these to the IDR holders. c)
The fungibility option would be available on a continuous basis and at the time of conversion 20 per cent would be reserved for retail investors.
d) Fungibility was seen as a major issue with foreign companies in getting listed on domestic bourses. So far, only UK banking major StanChart has come out with their IDRs. e) IDR fungibility would be available at least once every quarter and the window would be open for at least seven days. f) Existing IDR issuers can follow the new framework and have to provide the option of redemption/conversion within three months from the date of completing a year of listing.
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MOU for setting up of Memu Coaches Manufacturing facility
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Indian Railways and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) for setting up of Greenfield MEMU coaches manufacturing facility by BHEL at Bhilwara in Rajasthan. The signatories to the MOU were Shri Kul Bhushan, Member Electrical Railway Board, and Shri B. P. Rao, CMD, BHEL. Main Line Electric Multiple Unit Trains, popularly known as MEMU trains were first introduced in Indian Railways in the Year 1994-95, as a mode of rapid transit system, to cater to nonsuburban passengers, residing in small towns and villages surrounding urban and industrial centres. MEMU trains have higher passenger carrying capacity and higher average speed as compared to conventional loco hauled passenger trains due to faster acceleration and braking characteristics. These rakes are now being manufactured with toilet facilities to take care of passenger needs. MEMU trains increase the line capacity utilisation, and therefore are more suitable for running on high traffic density routes. Currently, there are about 160 MEMU services running. The demand for these coaches will further increase as Indian Railways have plans to Electrify approximately 15000 route kilometre during the next 10 years, in addition to the existing 22000 route kilometre of electrified track. There was a shortfall in acquisition of 800 MEMU coaches during XIth Plan Period due to capacity constraints at Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, where these MEMU coaches are produced. Thus the proposed facility for production of MEMU coaches will be set up by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) at Bhilwara in the State of Rajasthan to produce MEMU trains. The entire cost will be borne by BHEL. Government of Rajasthan will provide land to Railways, for setting up the project. In order to make the project viable, Ministry of Railways will give Assured Off- Take orders to BHEL.
Wasteful spending should be reduced: Experts
Audit and evaluation reports on government spending often show how departments and ministries are reckless about expenditure despite tentative efforts to rein in wasteful spending. Experts say the government should devise a watertight strategy to curb unproductive spending to free up resources for development and building assets rather than look at sudden short squeeze on expenditure. They say curbing wasteful expenditure has remained a pipedream despite claims of improving the quality of government spending. The CAG report number 33 of 2011-12 on the audit of autonomous institutions showed that Doordarshan procured transmitters costing Rs 63.5 lakh, which could not be utilized for
international usage of debit and credit cards unless customers specifically ask for this feature. Banks have also been asked to enable blocking of cards through an SMS request. At present, almost every credit and debit card issued by a bank can be used overseas or in ecommerce transaction on overseas sites. Also, if a card is misused or stolen, the customer has to go through a lengthy process over the phone to block his card. Most customers complain that helpline numbers on the reverse of cards are too small to be legible. Deactivating cards, through SMS, will enable customers to block their cards the moment they receive an alert of a fraudulent transaction. The new norms, which have been issued under powers acquired by RBI under the Payments & Settlements Act of 2007, require all cards enabling international usage to be essentially EMV Chip and PIN-enabled. Banks have been asked to convert all existing MagStripe (magnetic stripe) cards to EMV Chip card for all customers who have used their cards internationally even once. In case of existing customers having non-chip cards, international spending limits have to be curtailed to a maximum of $500. Henceforth banks can install only those swipe machines (including the double swipe registers at supermarkets) which are certified for PCIDSS (Payment Card Industry-Data Security Standards) and PA-DSS (Payment Applications-Data Security Standards). Merchants and aggregators, whose card acceptance machines are currently operational on Internet Protocol based solutions, have to mandatorily go through PCI-DSS and PA-DSS certification. Other measures include asking banks to move towards real time fraud monitoring system and new technologies such as adaptive authentication at the earliest. Besides card payments, RBI has also prescribed norms for online transactions under which customers should be asked to fix a limit on the value and number of beneficiaries.
more than eight years. In another case, the delay in the installation of tower resulted in sub-optimal utilization of the two transmitters procured at acost of Rs 6.5 crore. There are several such examples of wasteful expenditure in various reports by several agencies. While some of the cited examples show the amount involved may be small, there are other reports which show the colossal losses in mega government run schemes across various departments. There needs to be better planning at the institutional level. At a time when the government is battling to avert a ratings downgrade and to stick to the fiscal deficit target of 5.3% of GDP, experts states that government must focus its attention to draw up a medium-term plan to shut out wasteful spending.
Economists say the stubborn problem of unwieldy subsidies must be tackled on a war footing to curb wasteful or productive spending and take the pressure off from public finances. Now, international credit, debit cards only on request
In a move to curtail rising credit card frauds, the Reserve Bank of India has asked banks to bar
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INDIA AND THE WORLD

India Canada to Strengthen Cooperation in hospitality sector Following the opening of 100 per cent foreign direct investment on the automatic route, Canada is keen to boost cooperation with India in the field of hotel and tourism sector. Mr.Maxime Bernier, Minister of Tourism, Canada called on Union Tourism Minister Shri K Chiranjeevi to strengthen cooperation in tourism sector. It was also decided that both the countries will identify areas for working together and explore new opportunities in tourism sector especially in the field of human resource development, exchange of tour operators, investment in the tourism sector and exchange of information related to tourism sector. The possibility of signing an agreement/MoU between India and Canada was also discussed. It was also agreed that Tour Operators and Travel Agents of both the countries will interact with each other in order to promote two way tourism between India and Canada. The possibilities of promoting more package tours in either of the countries could also be explored by the travel trade of two countries. Both sides also explored the possibilities of promoting joint venture investment in the field of hotel industry and tourism infrastructural sector. Canada is one of India's primary source markets. Foreign tourist arrivals from Canada to India have increased considerably over the past few years. Ministry of Tourism has hosted a total of 16 journalists, photographers, travel agents, travel writers etc. from Canada during the year 2011-12 under its hospitality scheme. 14 guests have visited India from Canada during 2012-13(till date). Both India and Canada can benefit greatly by sharing experience and know-how in destination management & management of heritage sites. India could benefit from the initiatives undertaken by Canada in the field of Adventure Tourism. India increases aid to Sri Lanka
India Tourism Office in Toronto takes care of promotion and marketing of India in Canada. India Tourism Office participates in Tourism Fair, organize workshops and seminars to showcase India's tourism destinations and products to the tour operators and consumers of Canada. Some of the travel fairs in which India Tourism Office participates in Canada are: Travel & Vacation Show, World Culinary Show, Addison Travel Shows, International Travel & Tourism show and Maritime Show.
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The 26 years long civil war in Sri Lanka caused extensive damage to a progressive and promising economy. The war may have put an end to armed hostilities between state military and the nowdefunct Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), but it left most of the northern and eastern portions of the teardrop island in ruins. Moreover, it caused the internal displacement of nearly 300,000 Tamil civilians. India has promised to be a partner in the redevelopment, rehabilitation and reconstruction of war-affected areas in Sri Lanka. Its obligation to regional peace and security, as well its predilection towards ethnic Tamils living in Sri Lanka are two of the main reasons for India's involvement. India has created programmes to facilitate the restoration of normal life for the internally displaced people. It has also provided technical know-how, manpower, medical facilities, billions of rupees worth of aid and has installed rehabilitation mechanisms for the IDPs in the northern and eastern provinces. These lie in the Tamil-dominated region which is poised to become a major centre for Sri Lankan tourism. In the recent budget the Centre has increased its annual grant to the island nation from Rs 299 crore to Rs 500 crore. The Budget has allocated in total Rs 5,550 crore as aid for foreign governments and organizations. The grants for Sri Lanka are meant for rehabilitation of internally displaced Tamils, but parties in Tamil Nadu have accused the government there of diverting Indian aid for other purposes. Centre's smart card insurance scheme becomes global bestseller
The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) is fast becoming an international model for targeted distribution of benefits. The success of smart card
technology for health insurance to the poor has found followers in Egypt and Iraq. The countries have shown interest in using the technology for reforms in their own health insurance and public distribution systems. The Egyptian government has already begun talks with India's labour ministry to emulate the RSBY technology for its own public health insurance scheme. Launched in October 2007, the RSBY provides smart card-based cashless health insurance cover of up to Rs 30,000 per year to over 3.31 crore smart card holders from below poverty line families as well as some worker groups in the unorganised sector such as domestic workers. Apart from personal details, the RSBY card contains photos and fingerprints of the holders, which can be verified offline through hand held or point of service machines.
on Iran's gold and precious metals trade while simultaneously lifting some restrictions on the Islamic republic's banking operations. Tehran maintains that as a signatory of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty, it has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful energy needs. Tehran has also stipulated that it would only consider giving up enrichment to 20 per cent if all forms of sanctions against it were lifted - a condition Washington rejects.
In its latest quarterly report on Iran, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency concluded they were "unable to provide credible assurance about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran, and therefore to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities." Whereas Tehran maintains that as a signatory of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty, it has the right to enrich uranium for peaceful energy needs. In the eight months since diplomats last gathered, the IAEA has reported that Iran had expanded its uranium enrichment activities. Iran also added centrifuges to at least one of its nuclear installations. During the same period, the United States and Europe piled on additional sanctions against Iran, including a measure that restricts the trade of gold and other precious metals. The combined American, European and U.N. embargoes have done considerable damage to the Iranian economy. Oil exports have plummeted, as has the value of the Iranian Rial. Iranians have watched in alarm as their savings dwindled and the acquisition of foreign pharmaceuticals and other medical supplies became increasingly difficult.
Meanwhile, Iraq where much of the foodgrain for the public distribution is imported, is also planning to ride the RSBY's technology platform. The World Bank will be assisting the pilot runs. Using smart cards helps eliminate ghost beneficiaries and also provides data on the quantity of grains being sold by a ration shop. In India, while the Chattisgarh Government has already started using the RSBY biometric card to deliver PDS in a phased manner in the State, the Kerala Government has shown greater initiative and wants to deliver PDS using the RSBY cards across the entire State by July this year. It is not just Iraq and Egypt, but several other developing countries including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Ghana that are looking at the RSBY smart-card model to deliver subsidized goods in their countries. Iran, world powers talks on Tehran's nuclear program failed
World powers and Iran have ended their twoday meeting on the country's nuclear programme in the Kazakh city of Almaty without breakthrough. The greatest concerns for the world powers are about Iran's continued enrichment of uranium to a level of 20%, which is a step closer to the 90% uranium enrichment needed for a nuclear bomb. It is also worried about the Fordo enrichment facility, which is buried deep beneath a mountain near the Iranian holy city of Qom. On the table is an offer for the five Security Council members and Germany to ease sanctions
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UK-Indian collaboration in Earth sciences and environmental research
The Natural Environment Research Council of the UK (NERC) and the Earth System Science Organization, Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Republic of India (ESSO-MoES) have agreed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate cooperation and coordination between the UK and Indian environmental research communities. The MoU will encourage collaboration in meteorology, climate variability and change, oceanography, hydrology, natural hazards and biodiversity by promoting information sharing and identification of new opportunities for collaborative activities such as networking, exchange of scientific and technical capability, and co-funding new research through joint calls where appropriate. The MoU will be put to immediate effect as NERC and ESSO-MoES are discussing the opportunity to develop a collaborative research programme to better understand the variability of
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the South Asian monsoon. Around 1 billion people in South Asia are vulnerable to variability in the monsoon, which provides up to 80% of annual rainfall for the region. Over the last two years NERC and MoES have built a strong partnership to support collaboration between UK and Indian scientists to address environmental change. In 2012 we jointly funded five collaborative research projects as part of the NERC Changing Water Cycle programme. These projects are providing information to improve forecasts and management of changes to rainfall, river flows and groundwater in the dynamic and vulnerable South Asian region. The programme is expected to generate and put into practice new knowledge on the changing water cycle. NERC and MoES are also currently collaborating in a Belmont Forum call to support international research on the challenges of Water Security and Coastal Vulnerability. The MoU will deepen the NERC-MoES partnership, enabling the two countries to build strategically on current collaborations. Tourism Minister Proposes Extension of Visa on Arrival Scheme
has noted that TVOA scheme has a significant and positive impact on the decision to travel to India. This scheme needs to be expanded to cover more countries and more ports of entry. The Ministry of Tourism had proposed extension of TVOA to the following markets: (i) Germany, France, Spain, Poland, Sweden and Norway to cover the European and Scandinavian countries which are key inbound markets. (ii) Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan to cover the emerging markets from the CIS countries. (iii) Brazil and South Africa to cover foster IBSA Cooperation and Trinidad & Tobago to foster our historical links. (iv) Thailand, Malaysia and Brunei to cover all the ASEAN countries which will be consistent with our look east policy. The Ministry of Tourism had also proposed extension of TVOA to more airports namely Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi, Goa, Bodhgaya and Trivandrum. Visa on Arrival is an attraction for potential tourists in key markets and at times also helps in tapping the people who make decisions at the last moment. Keeping in view the recent travel trends, the Ministry of Tourism has also proposed TVOA scheme for South Korea, which is a very important tourist generating market. Presently, the Tourist Visa - on - Arrival with a maximum validity of 30 days with single entry facility is being granted by Immigration Officers at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata airports to the citizens of eleven countries viz. Singapore, New Zealand, Luxembourg, Japan, Finland, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Philippines, Indonesia and Myanmar.
A proposal to extend the visa-on-arrival scheme to 16 countries was submitted by Tourism Minister K. Chiranjeevi to Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde.
The Ministry of Tourism strongly felt that the "Tourist Visa - on - Arrival (TVOA)" facility for those countries, which are potential source markets to India and where there have been no security related issues in the past or likely to be in future can be taken up under this scheme. An independent study conducted by the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM)
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India has launched SARAL satellite Indo-French satellite 'SARAL', aimed at oceanographic studies, along with six foreign mini and micro satellites has been launched onboard ISRO's workhorse rocket PSLV from the spaceport of Sriharikota. This is the 23rd mission of PSLV, which has an impeccable record of 21 consecutive successful flights. This is the ninth time ISRO is using the 'core alone' variant of the rocket. The 668.5 kgs and 44.4 metres tall rocket will have a lift off mass of 229.7 tonnes. Payload developed by CNES composed of the following instruments: a) AltiKa: AltiKa is a Ka-band altimeter (35 GHz) developed by CNES. It is aiming to observe the ocean in as much detail and as accurately as current missions, only at lower cost, by flying the altimeter on a microsatellite that is cheaper to design, build and launch. Experience has shown that an altimetry platform must comprise an altimeter, radiometer and precise orbit determination system, with sufficient redundancy, as well as enough fuel to keep the satellite orbiting on a repeating ground track - at least with a 'conventional' altimetry mission. The AltiKa altimeter will be a single-frequency Ka-band altimeter (operating at 35.75 GHz, weighing less than 20 kg and consuming less than 50 Watts). Alcatel Space developed a Ka-band altimeter between 1998 and 2000 which was based on the same technologies as those used for the Poseidon-1 and Poseidon-2 altimeters. b) DORIS System
Besides SARAL, it would put into orbit two micro-satellites UniBRITE and BRITE from Austria and AAUSAT3 from Denmark and STRaND from United Kingdom as also one micro-satellite (NEOSSat) and one mini-satellite (SAPPHIRE) from Canada. ISRO had initially planned to launch SARAL on December 12 last year but postponed it to carry out additional tests to "address technical issues to ensure reliability".
Saral will embark the AltiKa altimeter (working in Ka-band, 35 GHz), built by CNES, as well as a Doris instrument. Signal frequencies in the Ka-band will enable better observation of ice, rain, coastal zones, land masses (forests, etc.), and wave heights. Its objectives are: a) To carry out precise, repetitive global measurements of sea surface height, significant wave heights and wind speed, for: a. developing operational oceanography; b. improving understanding of the climate and developing forecasting capabilities; c. Operational meteorology. b) To ensure, in association with Jason-2, the continuity of the service currently provided by the altimeters onboard Envisat and Jason-1, c) To meet the requirements expressed by various international ocean and climate study programmes, and contribute to building a global ocean observing system.
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c)
Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS) is a French satellite system used for the determination of satellite orbits and for positioning. It is based on the principle that, a beacon is installed on the ground and emits a radio signal, which is received by the satellite. A frequency shift of the signal occurs that is caused by the movement of the satellite (Doppler Effect). From this observation satellite orbits, ground positions, as well as other parameters can be derived. LRA (Laser Retro-reflector Array) instrument
It is used for precise calibration of other Polar Orbital Data (POD) instruments, through analysis of laser shots from the ground then reflected by the LRA mirrors. d) ARGOS-3 instrument ARGOS-3 is an element of the ARGOS system, dedicated to localization, acquisition and distribution of environmental data.
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Other satellites a) The Near Earth Object Surveillance Satellite (NEOSSat) is a Canadian microsatellite using a 15cm aperture f/5.88 Maksutovtelescope similar to that on the MOST spacecraft, 3-axis stabilized with pointing stability of ~2 arcseconds in a ~100 second exposure. It will search for interior-to-Earth-orbit (IEO) asteroids including those sometimes called Apohele asteroids at between 45 and 55 degree solar elongation and +40 to -40 degrees ecliptic latitude.
the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, if it is not habituated for causing human death". And declaring it a man-eater must also be a well-deliberated exercise that differentiates a chance man-killer from a habituated human stalker that feeds on the body and avoids its natural prey, says the SOP. Even then, elimination must be the last resort; attempts should be made to capture the man-eater and send it to the nearest recognised zoo. If there is no other option, the SOP says, the tiger should be killed after the approval of the Chief Wildlife Warden; a proper fire arm must be used by an expert and no awards or rewards should be announced for "destruction of man-eaters". If a healthy tiger or encumbered tigress has occupied a sugarcane field or similar habitat, a notso- uncommon occurrence, attempts must be made to guide it to a nearby forested area. If that doesn't work, it must be immobilised, captured, radiocollared and released in a low-density area of a nearby tiger reserve or protected area with adequate prey base. In case the captured tiger is injured or incapacitated, the SOP says, it should be sent to a recognised zoo. To avoid panic and law and order problems in the area where a tiger has strayed, the SOP advises that the authorities impose prohibitory orders under section 144 of IPC, police and local administration get involved at an early stage, alert villagers, set up camera traps to establish the animal's identity and ensure unobtrusive guarding of its kill to allow feeding of the carcass. Besides, it must be ensured that the tiger is not poisoned. A 'lost continent' beneath Indian Ocean
c)
STRaND-1 is a 30cm cubesat weighing 3.5kg. At the heart of the satellite is a Google Nexus One smartphone with an Android operating system. Smartphones are highly advanced and incorporate several key features that are integral to a satellite such as cameras, radio links, accelerometers and high performance computer processors - almost everything except solar panels and propulsion. During the first phase of the mission, STRaND-1 will use a number of experimental Apps to collect data, while a new high-speed linux-based cubesat computer developed by SSC will take care of the satellite. During phase two, the STRaND team will switch the satellite's inorbit operations to the smartphone, thereby testing the capabilities of a number of standard smartphone components for a space environment.
d) Canada's SAPPHIRE, a space-based electro-optical sensor, will track man-made space objects in high Earth orbit in order to improve Canada's space situational awareness. Data from the Sapphire satellite will contribute to the U.S. Space Surveillance Network, enhancing the ability of both countries to detect and avoid the collision of critical space platforms with other orbital objects. Canada's contribution also ensures access to orbital data on space objects.
NTCA issues new regulations
A tiger that has strayed into human habitation must be guided back to forest, chemically immobilised, trapped but, unless it is established as a man-eater, not killed, states a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) framed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority to deal with man-tiger conflict. The SOP, circulated among chief wildlife wardens last month, states that "under no circumstances must a tiger be eliminated by invoking
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b) BRITE-AUSTRIA (TUG-SAT-1) and UniBRITE are the two Austrian satellites in the BRITE-Constellation. Both satellites are being developed in collaboration with the Institute of Communication Networks and Satellite Communications (IKS) at the Technical University of Graz (TUG), Institute for Astronomy of the University of Vienna, and the Space Flight Lab (SFL) at the University of Toronto Institute of Aerospace Studies (UTIAS). BRITE-AUSTRIA will be sensitive to a BLUE wavelength range and UniBRITE will be sensitive to a RED wavelength range.
The researchers from Oslo and Liverpool Universities claimed to have discovered remains of a lost ancient continent between India and Madagascar, found buried under huge masses of lava. The continent fragment known as Mauritia detached about 60 million years ago while Madagascar and India drifted apart, and had been hidden under lava. It contains rocks up to 2 billion years old - much older than the Indian Ocean itself, which has formed only in the last 165 million years. The scientists used satellite derived data to map crustal thickness under the Indian Ocean. Using geophysical data processing techniques the team were able to identify areas where the crust beneath the sea-floor was up to 30 km or more thick, the same thickness as continental crust but much greater than that of oceanic crust which is on average only about 7 km thick.
They analyzed sand grains from beaches in Mauritius, a volcanic island about 600 miles east of Madagascar. They found the sand contained tiny crystals of ancient zircon, a mineral normally associated with a continental crust and dated between 660 million and 2 billion years old, a lot older than the sand grains which were formed from the nine million-year-volcanic activity on Mauritius. The crustal thickness mapping techniques using satellite data developed by Liverpool and industry partners are applied to deep-water oil and gas exploration in frontier areas and have also been used for governments making UNCLOS law of sea territorial claims. Virtual labs in CBSE schools coming Students of CBSE schools across the country will soon be able to verify Newton's third law of motion not just in their physics labs, but online too. In a recent circular to schools, CBSE Chairman Vineet Joshi recommended use of Online Labs free of cost for School Experiments (OLabs) to all schools affiliated to the Board. According to the circular, the virtual experiments developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, Mumbai, and Amrita University, Kerala, aims at giving students the experience of doing real lab work by recreating a laboratory and its equipment using visual simulators. The software, which is aligned to the CBSE Class IX and X curriculum, will also help teachers assess a student's observations, procedural skills, and track student usage through interactive activities, videos and animation. However, the online labs will only supplement and not replace practical science laboratories in schools. The CBSE circular added that this facility would help students whose schools have either insufficient time or instruments in laboratories. The facility, available only in English now, will soon be available in other regional languages as well.
They found significant overlapping of the genetic combination between the five disorders. The study claimed all errant variations of the genes responsible for the disorders are associated with alterations in calcium channel activity of brain cells. Calcium channels play an important role in functions of emotions and "executive functions" like planning, thinking, which are impaired in these conditions. The co-relation between presence of variant genes and disease symptoms was found to be the strongest for adult onset disorders like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder. NASA's Van Allen Probes Reveal a New Radiation Belt Around Earth
Five Mental disorders share genetic linkage The largest genetic study of mental illnesses by US researchers have claimed a common genetic link between five mental health disorders - spectrum disorder, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia. During the study, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, researchers analysed the genetic variations associated with the five disorders in 33,332 cases and 27,888 controls of European ancestry.
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NASA's Van Allen Probes mission has discovered a previously unknown third radiation belt around Earth, revealing the existence of unexpected structures and processes within these hazardous regions of space. Previous observations of Earth's Van Allen belts have long documented two distinct regions of trapped radiation surrounding our planet. The new high-resolution observations by the Relativistic Electron Proton Telescope (REPT) instrument, part of the Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma Suite (ECT) aboard the Van Allen Probes, revealed there can be three distinct, long-lasting belt structures with the emergence of a second empty slot region, or space, in between. The belts, named for their discoverer, James Van Allen, are critical regions for modern society, which is dependent on many space-based technologies. The Van Allen belts are affected by solar storms and space weather and can swell dramatically. When this occurs, they can pose dangers to communications and GPS satellites, as well as humans in space. This discovery shows the dynamic and variable nature of the radiation belts and improves our understanding of how they respond to solar activity. The Van Allen Probes are the second mission in NASA's Living With a Star Program to explore aspects of the connected sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. Goddard manages the program. The Applied Physics Laboratory built the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA.
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2 - MARKERS
2013-14 Declared as the Year for Skill Development of the Youth Youth is the new buzzword. The young population, which started coming into focus in 200809 when the debate around the need for skills development picked up pace, has become the centre of attention over the last few days with the Economic Survey and the Budget laying great emphasis on this segment. Now, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is proposing to declare 2013-14 as the Year for Skill Development of the Youth. redress the grievances of the people relating to old age pension, patta transfer, free house site pattas, birth and death certificates and community certificates on the spot. Also, problems relating to family cards and drinking water supply would be looked into and solutions found. Weekly Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS) programme
Government has recently unveiled National Youth Policy-2012. The goal of the Youth Policy is to empower the youth of the nation by bringing a holistic development, whereby every youth should be able to grow to their potential, fulfil their aspirations and remain healthy and active and participative. The target groups for the Policy, which defines youth as ones in the age-group of 16-30 years, will be students, urban and rural youth, tribal youth, youth at risk and conflict, youth out of school, youth with social stigma and youth in institutional care. Further, priority will be given to young women, socially and economically disadvantaged youth and differently-abled youth. The Policy is also looking at introducing monitorable indicators - youth health index, youth education index, youth amenities index and youth participation index - which would together amount to youth development index. AMMA scheme launched in Tamil Nadu
'Assured Maximum Service to Marginal People in All Villages', or AMMA, for short is the name of a new scheme of the State government's Revenue Department. Under the AMMA scheme, officials will go to the people to deliver government services. At present, people often went to the tahsildar's office several times to make representations, but had to return without meeting the officials concerned. While this caused a delay in getting their work done, the situation of the poor and aged was particularly worrisome. As part of this scheme, revenue officials would camp in a panchayat union on a particular day and
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A Weekly Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS) programme formulated by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to tackle the acute problem of anaemia among adolescents will be launched in Kerala. The programme is a major convergence exercise, involving the Health, Social Welfare and Education Departments and the National Rural Health Mission, to improve the nutritional status of adolescents, especially girls, in the State. Anaemia among adolescent girls and pregnant women has been a major issue in the State despite the fact that the State has a fairly good ante-natal care system. Tackling the problem among adolescent girls is important as they are the future mothers Under WIFS, all school-going children - both boys and girls - from Class VI to Class XII will be given weekly supplementation of iron and folic acid (IFA) tablets on a fixed day (Mondays). Adolescent girls who have dropped out of school will be given the nutritional supplements by Anganwadi workers in each locality. The programme will benefit an estimated 31 lakh children and adolescents. Anaemia develops when there are not enough red blood cells in the blood, which carry oxygen to all body cells. This oxygen is vital for the body cells to metabolise fats and sugars into energy for daily use. Iron-deficiency anaemia can make one feel constantly tired and lethargic because there is less oxygen supply in the body. The immune system is also affected and results in frequent infections. Poor nutritional intake during adolescence, reliance on fried and fatty food, and high intake of sugar drinks had led to anaemia reaching alarming proportions among adolescents. Girls especially, need to consume more nutritious and iron-rich food because they lose some iron when they go through their monthly cycles.
Oscar awards
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences handed out the Oscars at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre for the best movies, performances, writing, directing and other achievements on film in 2012. Oscar awards winner: a) Best Picture - Argo b) Best Actor - Daniel Day-Lewis for 'Lincoln' c) Best Actress - Jennifer Lawrence for 'Silver Linings Playbook'
d) Best Direction - Ang Lee for 'Life of Pi' e) Best Original Song - Adele for 'Skyfall' f) Best Original Score - Mychael Danna for 'Life of Pi'
g) Best Visual Effects - `Life of Pi`
h) Best Cinematography - Claudio Miranda for `Life of Pi` i) j) Best Animated Feature Film - `Brave` Best Foreign Language Film - 'Amour' TED prize for education initiative
The TED Prize is awarded to an extraordinary individual with a creative and bold vision to spark global change. By leveraging the TED community's resources and investing $1 million dollars into a powerful idea, the TED Prize supports one wish to inspire the world. The award has been awarded to Dr. Sugata Mitra for his famous "hole in the wall" experiment. Mitra developed the concept of the Cloud from his 1999 "hole in the wall" experiment, in which he carved a hole from his research center into an adjoining Delhi slum. He placed a freely accessible computer in this hole, and found that groups of Indian street children, with no prior experience or knowledge of English, could teach themselves how to use the computer. For the next ten years, Mitra expanded on his findings and created a "granny cloud" - online moderators of retired teachers - who could Skype into learning centers and encourage children with questions and assignments.
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Park Geun-hye Raul Castro
As a leading proponent of self-directed learning, Mitra developed the concept of SOLEs (Self Organized Learning Environments). The SOLE approach embraces a process where educators ask the kids big questions, leading them on intellectual journeys rather than asking them to just memorize facts. With the TED Prize, Mitra will build on his work to create the School in the Cloud: a learning environment that is overseen entirely by a global network of mediators - retired teachers who skype in through the Cloud. The school - a lab to be built in India - will serve as both an education and research center to further explore approaches to selfdirected learning. The school will be self-sustaining and managed by cloud technology, with an adult supervisor always on-site. Once complete, the design will become a blueprint and available for anyone to duplicate.
Park Geun-hye is the eleventh and current President of South Korea. She is the first woman to be elected as President in South Korea, and is serving the 18th presidential term. Prior to her presidency, she was the chairwoman of the conservative Grand National Party (GNP) between 2004 and 2006 and between 2011 and 2012 (the GNP changed its name to "Saenuri Party" in February 2012). Park was also a member of the Korean National Assembly, and had served four consecutive parliamentary terms as a constituency representative between 1998 and 2012; starting her fifth term as a proportional representative from June 2012. Her father was Park Chung-hee, President of South Korea from 1963 to 1979.
Ral Modesto Castro Ruz is a Cuban politician and revolutionary who has been President of the Council of State of Cuba and the President of the Council of Ministers of Cuba since 2008; he previously exercised presidential powers in an acting capacity from 2006 to 2008. Raul Castro was elected to his second term as Cuban president. He has named Miguel Diaz-Canel to be his top lieutenant.
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EDITORIALS
Fiscal deficit: Devil lies in the detail If the fiscal deficit is a problem, it is because of its high revenue deficit component, which crowds out creation of productive capacity as well as private investment. Many in India believe that reduction in subsidies (to bring down fiscal deficit) will further raise the already high prices of day-to-day household consumption items such as food, fuel or electricity, and be detrimental to the interest of the common people. Is it really so? Is the relation between reduction in subsidy and increase in the prices of essentials so straight? Is high fiscal deficit (caused by burgeoning subsidy burden) contributing to the problem of inflation in India? On the eve of the upcoming Union Budget, it would be pertinent to examine the implications of high fiscal deficit for the (growth of) productive capacity of the economy. Subsidy accounts for roughly 2.5 per cent of India's GDP. If one adds bonds issued to oil marketing companies (in lieu of subsidies) to compensate for under-recoveries, it will be another 2 per cent of India's GDP. Thus, subsidy - covert and overt - is blocking roughly $90-100 billion annually and is a major cause of high levels of fiscal deficit. India's fiscal deficit (Centre and States taken together) of 8-9 per cent of the GDP is high by any standard. It far exceeds all other BRIC nations China (1 per cent), Brazil (2.9 per cent) or Russia (1 per cent). The combined fiscal deficit of the States stands at 2.5 per cent of India's GDP, which is well below the limits set by the Thirteenth Finance Commission. Clearly, the Centre seems to be more responsible for India's fiscal mess. REVENUE DEFICIT Fiscal deficit in itself is not a problem, but if one looks at the constituents of India's fiscal deficit, one finds that revenue deficit accounted for 76 per cent of gross fiscal deficit in 2011-12. Only 24 per cent of deficit went for the creation of additional productive capacity i.e. will add to the future supply of goods and services.
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Besides, 24 per cent of the resources must generate enough returns to service 100 per cent of the additional public borrowings (i.e. fiscal deficit), which is not feasible. The result would be more borrowings or imposition of additional taxes in future to service past debts. That will reduce domestic (household) savings, and ultimately investment, as domestic savings is the pre-dominant source of investment in India. High fiscal deficit also crowds out private investment by raising the cost of capital for private sector. On the other hand, the Government, with access to cheap finance (through SLR mechanism that mandates investment of 23 per cent of bank deposits in government securities), uses the funds to fill its revenue gap, which does not lead to any increase in supply of goods and services. This would lead to more inflation in future with negative consequences for the economy. Sustained inflation induces switchover from financial assets to physical assets such as gold and real-estate as a hedge against low or negative returns on savings. Inflation makes the exports of a country expensive, leading to trade deficit and depreciation of its currency. That, in turn, increases the rupee cost of imported items (e.g. crude), adds to subsidy burden and, in turn, fiscal deficit in a controlled price environment. SUBSIDY AND FOOD INFLATION The major causes of rise in food prices are increasing urbanisation, disposable income and change in consumer preference towards protein-rich food items (milk, eggs, pulses) and fruits, while the government policy still focuses on input subsidy or price support to boost production of cereals. Deregulating non-urea fertilisers, while keeping urea regulated (and heavily subsidised) has increased the relative price gap of urea and nonurea fertilisers. The result is unbalanced use of fertilisers, wastage of nutrients, soil degradation and lower return on per unit of fertiliser use. The way subsidies on food and fertilisers are being administered, food inflation will continue to haunt Indian consumers for a long time and for the
simple reason that the supply of non-cereal, proteinrich food items is not keeping pace with their increased demand. Lack of post-harvest infrastructure only adds to the problem. The solution lies in replacing 'predominance of input subsidy' by 'predominance of investment' aimed at improving agri infrastructure as well as intensifying R&D for better yield in non-cereal segment. It also calls for improving post-harvest infrastructure. Hopefully, FDI in retail will fill this gap. ELECTRICITY The major cause of the increase in electricity prices is increasing coal price. Since domestic production of coal is constrained (despite India possessing huge reserves of coal) by regulatory impediments, electricity producers have to rely on expensive imported coal that increases their cost. Alternative sources of electricity, in particular hydro, wind and solar, together, account for less than onethird of the country's electricity generation. FUEL SUBSIDY ISSUES
efficient technologies. That, in turn, will reduce import requirement and pressure on the rupee exchange rate will ease. That will reduce landed cost of crude and requirement for subsidy will automatically go down. However, cutting subsidies alone will not be enough. Revenue augmentation measures, such as recovery of direct tax arrears (which currently stands at two-third of direct tax revenue), will also be needed. Inflation in India is primarily a supply-side problem and needs supply-side solutions. Fiscal deficit (because of rising subsidy), by crowding out private investment, only adds to the supply constraints. Subsidy, at the most, is a temporary solution with many negative side effects, fiscal deficit being just one of them - the less we depend on this, the better. Source: Business Line
India imports more than three-fourth of its crude oil. Its rupee cost is dependent upon international price and exchange rate. If any of these two becomes unfavourable, the landed price of crude in India goes up, thereby increasing the subsidy burden and fiscal deficit. Using subsidy to keep the price of Petro products low promotes their sub-optimal use. Launch of diesel variants of luxury cars and SUVs is the unintended consequence of subsidy on diesel. The Farm sector consumes only 12 per cent of the subsidised diesel. The transport sector takes the largest chunk (67.6 per cent), and there is not much justification for maintaining diesel subsidy for all categories of consumers. Indian rupee remains under pressure because of high current account deficit in the range of 4 per cent of GDP - caused mainly by import of crude and gold. To maintain overall balance on external account, India needs FII and FDI inflows equivalent to 4 per cent of its GDP. Of the two, FII is highly volatile and its net inflow depends on expected riskweighted return in equity markets. FDI inflows, on the other hand, depend upon the overall attractiveness of India as an investment destination of which macroeconomic stability is a key determinant and maintaining fiscal deficit at low levels, a key component of that. Without cutting subsidies, bringing fiscal deficit down to 2.5 per cent or so is not possible. Deregulating fuel prices will induce their efficient and economic use and promote development of fuelWeekly Current Affairs 25th February to 3rd March, 2013
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Cash Transfers: Merits and demerits
The Good News in Cash Transfers... An unintended effect of cash transfers: bringing everyone into the banking fold much sooner than expected. True financial inclusion, however, is another thing. Mohan Mashankar is under pressure. This Bank of India official has to make sure that every beneficiary of certain government welfare schemes in Wardha district has a bank account. Yesterday. As the Congress-led government steps on what it is positioning as its big calling card for the 2014 general elections" wiring welfare money into bank accounts of individuals"bankers like Mashankar are feeling the pressure to do something they have ambled on in the 65 years since independence: give every Indian a bank account. According to an April 2012 World Bank report, only 35% of adults in the lower middle-income levels in India have a bank account. Despite the imploring and the arm-twisting of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the banking regulator, banks never branched out aggressively in rural areas as the poor did not make a good business case. But now, with the Congress looking at cash transfers not just as good economics but also as good politics, that appalling deficit is being chipped away faster then ever. Numbers are unavailable, but Mashankar, the lead district manager for Wardha, says: "There is a lot of pressure on banks in semiurban and rural areas to open accounts within the timeline
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At present, only 5% of no-frill account holders access more than two banking products, the most common being savings accounts and remittances, according to Bartronics India, which works with banks to enable transactions. MV Subramanian, president of rural and inclusive banking at Axis Bank, says there is no remuneration for banks in nofrill accounts. The balance in them is very low, and banks end up spending more on staff and infrastructure than they earn from them. "It is tough to take financial inclusion to the last mile," he adds. Professor MS Sriram, visiting faculty at the Center for Public Policy in Indian Institute of Management- Bangalore, calls for changing the prism through which the financial inclusion picture is viewed. "If this (financial inclusion) is to be achieved, we need to look at clients and not numbers," he says. "If we start looking at Barely half of Indian households have bank accounts. The cash-transfer drive " with banks perforce opening accounts " could achieve what years of imploring and arm-twisting by the banking regulator could not clients as individuals, we need to have a clear business plan." Bank officials say the business case is developing. "The beneficiaries are very poor," explains SD Pisi, deputy branch manager at the Palghar branch of Bank of Maharashtra. "We are opening accounts for subsidy payments only and only offering them a savings product." But, he adds, other services will follow as more and more welfare benefits are delivered via cash transfers to bank accounts"in full flight, estimated at about Rs 3,00,000 crore. But, in order to reach that place, banks face numerous internal challenges. Public sector banks, which are driving the banking leg of the migration to cash transfers, are understaffed following a 10year hiring freeze, which was lifted about four years ago. "They are going through an HR crisis, which will peak around 2016-17," says Sriram. "We do not have experienced bankers, and there is a huge missing middle that is supposed to design these channels and mechanisms." Towards A Business Case At present, government efforts to cover the unbanked are focused on the 43 districts, where the first phase of cash transfers began on January 1. For the earmarked 43 districts, meanwhile, the government has appointed a lead bank. Further, each government department handling a particular payout or subsidy sends a list of beneficiaries to the district collector in each district.
The all-India timeline for cash transfers"and, as a subset, bank accounts"is April 1, 2014, which is likely to be missed. Yet, what is unmissable in all this is that, thanks to cash transfers and despite the enormity of the task at hand, India is likely to bring its unbanked into the banking fold several years ahead of the old schedule.
"It (cash transfer) is a faster way to implement the government and banks' goal to cover unbanked villages," says Rama Murthy, general manager, financial inclusion and priority sector, Corporation Bank. Alongside, the RBI has opened another flank in the assault on banking and financial exclusion. Its guidelines for new banks, announced earlier this month, specify that new entrants will have to open 25% of their branches in unbanked areas. While all this is a step up from the halting approach of banks to rural India, it's still not financial inclusion in the truest sense. Towards Financial Inclusion The RBI's definition of financial inclusion mandates a bank to offer at least four services: savings account with an overdraft facility, business loan, remittance facility and an insurance-cumretirement benefit product. Today, for the purpose of cash transfers, banks are offering merely a bank account. Mostly, it's a no-frill account: this does not burden an account holder with a minimum-balance requirement, but also places restrictions like a monthly cap on number of withdrawals.
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To receive cash transfers, a beneficiary needs a unique identity number called Aadhaar and a bank account that is linked to Aadhaar. The district collector works with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to ensure Aadhaars, and with the lead bank to ensure bank accounts and their linkage to Aadhaars. Although banks don't have a choice on these enrolments, the emerging view is the viability of these accounts will increase with the amount of money that flows through them. A senior government official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, sees a business case for banks in three years. "If I look at direct cash transfers as a social objective, it will be a burden adds C Rajendran, the Punebased executive director of Bank of Maharashtra. "If I see it as a business opportunity, where opening accounts for these customers over time will become viable, then there is an incentive for banks." Banks are hoping that Aadhaarlinked cash transfers, by removing middlemen and bureaucracy, will plug leakages. Over time, the amount of money in these accounts will increase, and make it viable for banks to offer more products. "Banks need to take a longer-term view and not just look at quarterly results," says the government official quoted earlier. Banking correspondents (BCs)" intermediaries between banks and customers that enable doorstep banking" are a critical long-term piece, though they are currently groping for direction (See adjoining story). Meanwhile, according to Ashish Ahuja of FINO, the country's largest BC company, banks need to keep it simple with products as these will first have to be understood by BC agents, who are typically village locals. "The onus of introducing simple products lies with banks," says Ahuja, head of products and sales, FINO.
timely manner, at outlets conveniently accessible to the recipient." According to Sanjay Kuberkar, president, financial inclusion, Bartronics, banks and government entities will be busy institutionalising cash transfers till 2014, or even 2015, and may not prioritise the launch or rollout of new products or financial literacy. Yet, thanks to cash transfers, the banking system might have gained a few years towards that larger goal. ...And the Not So Good News Taking a bits-and-pieces approach to cash transfers, the government is struggling to stitch it together, both in terms of outcomes and deadline. In the semi-urban town of Palghar, 112 km outside Mumbai, the queue in front of the local municipal school is snake-like, numbering about 2,000 at times. A mix of the elderly, the middle-aged, and college and school kids have been lining up under the relentless sun for a week, ever since the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) set up camp in town to dispense Aadhaars"the number that is being positioned as a must to receive government benefits via cash transfers, probably more. One of them is 19-year-old Sonika Patil (name changed to protect identity). This third-year student of biotechnology at the Sonopant Dandekar Shikshan
"They (banks) have been slow because they were in a compliance phase so far. They need to scale up their service offerings and be more creative in their response." The banking habit is increasing, even extending beyond traditional domains. Mobile telephony companies, for example, are tying up with banks to offer remittance and payment services via the phone, which has become more accessible than banks. "There needs to be a separation between payment systems and bank accounts," says Sriram Jaganathan, CEO, Airtel mCommerce Services. "If mobile payments service providers are allowed to make low-value cash payments, government benefit transfer can gain from the use of our technology to deliver cash in a reliable and
Weekly Current Affairs 25th February to 3rd March, 2013 [25]
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Incomplete Information
This is how direct cash transfer works. The government department in charge of a welfare scheme sends beneficiary data (bank account and Aadhaar number) to the lead bank assigned to a district. The lead bank approaches individuals who don't have either of the two things. UIDAI sets up camps, as do banks. "These camps are not very effective. People cannot afford to wait for hours as it results in loss of wages," says Mohan Mashankar of Bank of India, which is in charge of Wardha district. Second, he adds, most individuals do not bring the right documents. Durgesh Sankhe, the supervisor at the Palghar UIDAI camp, has encountered several cases of address and fingerprint mismatch. Palghar saw its first UIDAI camp 11 months ago, but only 20% of those who enrolled then have received their Aadhaar numbers. "They don't know our language. So, they misspell our name and address, and our application is rejected," says Harishwar Meher, 59, who makes fishing nets in nearby Kelwa village, which has a population of 10,000, 30% of whom are unbanked. "We have asked them to keep a local to supervise the enrolment this time." There are "some technical issues", admits a senior government official who did
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Mandali College in Palghar has skipped college to obtain her Aadhaar, and what is rightfully hers, but in vain. "The college says I need an Aadhaar number to avail the scholarship entitlement for our category," says Patil, who belongs to a backward caste. "It's been three years and I have not received any benefit." If she fails to obtain her Aadhaar number by next month, she stands to lose this year's scholarship as well. There are many like Patil who are flailing to be eligible to receive welfare benefits via direct transfers to their bank accounts, a process the government is transiting to and which requires three things of an individual: having an Aadhaar number, having a bank account and connecting the two. So, far, according to UIDAI, it has done 310 million enrolments, 33.1 million since January 1, when the first of three phase of cash transfers began. That still leaves another 900 million to be done before April 1, 2014, the stated timeline for a full transition. Of these 900 million, however, what matters is the 400 million entitled to welfare benefits, though the UIDAI does not know who they are. A large percentage of these 400 million also have to be given a bank account, which is to then be linked to the Aadhaar number. "It's ambitious, with too short a deadline," says Professor MS Sriram, visiting faculty, Center for Public Policy at IIM-Bangalore.
not want to be named. "We are dealing with crores of data and there are bound to be some errors," he says. "Of the 310 million Aadhaar numbers enrolled in the last three years, only a few lakh applications have been rejected." According to AP Hota, CEO of National Payments Corporation of India, an umbrella organisation for retail payment systems, 35,00040,000 banks accounts are being linked to Aadhaar every day. Who is responsible if the money does not go into the correct account is a grey area, with both banks and government departments pointing to the other. Insufficient Time Across the country, the need is for more, both in terms of quantity and quality. "Due to pressure to maintain timelines, beneficiary details are not being verified by banks before seeding them to their Aadhaar numbers," says a senior official of a large PSU bank on the condition of anonymity. "This could prove to be disastrous for a scheme that is good." The senior government official quoted earlier feels banks are being lazy. "Banks are dragging their feet in linking Aadhaar numbers to bank accounts. They don't want to do the extra work," he says. Sanjay Kuberkar, president-financial inclusion of Bartronics India, a BC company, adds banks are not lazy, but are "overworked" by the new cash transfers mandate. Typically, Kuberkar points out, rural branches have at most four employees, including the manager. They have to run the branch, manage loans and, now, also conduct account-opening drives. "It's a laborious job for me," says C Rajendran, executive director of Bank of Maharashtra. "There is a big increase in workload and my core customer segment will get affected by this new crowd." Rajendran says the BCs recruited by the bank are insufficient in number and are plagued by a high dropout rate. "Ultimately how the man in the field is incentivised will determine the effectiveness of his work," says Kuberkar. "If the fee paid to the bank is low, then whatever is being passed on to the BC will be a minuscule amount." Inadequate Fees How much to pay BCs is another issue that can send the timelines awry. The transaction sizes of such accounts are small, the logistics complicated and the per transaction costs high. Whatever the fee the government decides, Sriram asks: "Will it be worthwhile?" To incentivise banks, a task force for Aadhaar-enabled unified payment infrastructure, led by UIDAI chairman Nandan Nilekani, had recommended the government pay banks 3.14% of the amount transferred. Banks would then share a part of this with BCs.
However, the government is yet to take a call on the fees. It has also been dithering on the model to adopt for a nationwide rollout of BCs. MV Subramanian president, rural and inclusive banking, Axis Bank, says of the 2% banks currently receive, they usually pay 1.75% to the BC, and there's not enough left for it. He feels 4% is a reasonable fee. "Direct benefits transfer is an opportunity to make inroads in the electronic transfer of benefits business," he says. Clearly, there's a lot unresolved, in every part of the chain and on every timeline. Meanwhile, the people in Palghar and in neighbouring villages are hoping they get their Aadhaar numbers this time around. Source: Economic Times
The death of a country
As Syria disintegrates, it threatens the entire Middle East. The outside world needs to act before it is too late
AFTER the first world war Syria was hacked from the carcass of the Ottoman empire. After the second, it won its independence. After the fighting that is raging today it could cease to function as a state. As the world looks on (or away), the country jammed between Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Israel is disintegrating. Perhaps the regime of Bashar Assad, Syria's president, will collapse in chaos; for some time it could well fight on from a fortified enclave, the biggest militia in a land of militias. Either way, Syria looks increasingly likely to fall prey to feuding warlords, Islamists and gangs-a new Somalia rotting in the heart of the Levant. If that happens, millions of lives will be ruined. A fragmented Syria would also feed global jihad and stoke the Middle East's violent rivalries. Mr Assad's chemical weapons, still secure for now, would always be at risk of falling into dangerous hands. This catastrophe would make itself felt across the Middle East and beyond. And yet the outside world, including America, is doing almost nothing to help. The road from Damascus
Part of the reason for the West's hesitancy is that, from the start of the uprising in 2011, Mr Assad has embraced a strategy of violence. By attacking the Arab spring with tanks and gunships, he turned peaceful demonstrators into armed militias. By shelling cities he uprooted his people. By getting his Alawite brethren to massacre the Sunni majority, he has drawn in jihadists and convinced Syrians from other sects to stick with him for fear that his own fall will lead to terrible vengeance.
Syrian blood now flows freely and sectarian hatred is smouldering (see article). The fight could last years. Rebel groups have lately been capturing military bases. They control chunks of the north and east and are fighting in the big cities. But the rebels are rivals as well as allies: they are beginning to target each other, as well as the government's troops. Even if Mr Assad cannot control his country, he has every reason to fight on. He still enjoys the cultlike devotion of some of his Alawite sect and the grudging support of other Syrians who fear what might come next. He commands 50,000 or so loyal, well-armed troops-and tens of thousands more, albeit less trained and less loyal. He is backed by Russia, Iran and Iraq, which between them supply money, weapons, advice and manpower. Hizbullah, Lebanon's toughest militia, is sending in its fighters, too. Mr Assad almost certainly cannot win this war; but, barring an unexpected stroke of fate, he is still a long way from losing it. So far the fighting has claimed 70,000 or more lives; tens of thousands are missing. The regime has locked up 150,000-200,000 people. More than 2m are homeless inside Syria, struggling to find food and shelter. Almost 1m more are living in squalor over the border. Suffering on such a scale is unconscionable. That was the lesson from the genocides and civil wars that scarred the last half of the past century. Yet President Barack Obama has suggested that saving lives alone is not a sufficient ground for military action. Having learnt in Afghanistan and Iraq how hard it is to impose peace, America is fearful of being sucked into the chaos that Mr Assad has created. Mr Obama was elected to win economic battles at home. He believes that a weary America should stay clear of yet another foreign disaster. That conclusion, however understandable, is mistaken. As the world's superpower, America is likely to be sucked into Syria eventually. Even if the president can resist humanitarian arguments, he will find it hard to ignore his country's interests. If the fight drags on, Syria will degenerate into a patchwork of warring fiefs. Almost everything America wants to achieve in the Middle East will become harder. Containing terrorism, ensuring the supply of energy and preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction: unlike, say, the 15year civil war in Lebanon, Syria's disintegration threatens them all. About a fifth of the rebels-and some of the best organised-are jihadists. They pose a threat to moderate Syrians, including Sunnis, and they could
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use lawless territory as a base for international terror. If they menace Israel across the Golan Heights, Israel will protect itself fiercely, which is sure to inflame Arab opinion. A divided Syria could tear Lebanon apart, because the Assads will stir up their supporters there. Jordan, poor and fragile, will be destabilised by refugees and Islamists. Oil-rich, Shiamajority Iraq can barely hold itself together; as Iraqi Sunnis are drawn into the fray, divisions there will only deepen. Coping with the fallout from Syria, including Mr Assad's arsenal of chemical weapons, could complicate the aim of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear bomb. Mr Obama wanted to avoid Syria, but Syria will come and get him. Doing nothing is a policy, too
embrace growth as the highest goal without growth there will be neither development nor inclusiveness." He went on to put the numbers to back this contention, with the fiscal deficit being kept closer to target levels than many thought would be possible. This commitment to growth at all costs demanded a price in terms of providing less than what is needed for the social sector. And the way Mr. Chidambaram has paid this price suggests the Congress party will be going into an election year without the resources that the government had in 2009. Frozen on MGNREGS The first step in this strategy has been to gloss over those parts of the social sector where there is no real increase in allocations. The most striking example is that of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which acted as the main vehicle of the Congress's electoral fortunes the last time round. Mr. Chidambaram has kept the allocation for this activity frozen at the level set in the last Budget. He has spoken of this as an increase by comparing it to the Revised Estimates for the current year rather than the Budget Estimates. But the fact that the revised estimates for MGNREGS was 11 per cent less than the budgeted figure only suggests that the decision not to make this scheme the leading light of the next election campaign has already been taken. With poor growth restricting the resources available for an electorally rewarding boost to the social sector, the emphasis would have to be on more sharply focused social sector expenditure. And the broad contours that this approach could take are evident in the budget documents. At the heart of this approach is the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) or the direct cash transfers to beneficiaries identified using the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). In a year when MGNREGS has been frozen at the level of the previous budget, the allocation for UIDAI has been raised by 40 per cent over the current year's Budget Estimates and 65 per cent over the year's Revised Estimates, to reach Rs.1,819 crore. There does seem to be some recognition, though, of the need to hasten slowly on this front. The budget figures do not suggest any move to expand cash transfers rapidly into new areas. The cash transfers are supposed to reduce subsidies by preventing leakages. But the budget documents do not suggest any reduction in the major subsidies. On the contrary, while the fertilizer subsidy is budgeted to be kept at around the Revised Estimate for the current year, the budget estimates the food subsidy to go up to Rs.90,000 crore, up from Rs.85,000 crore in the Revised Estimates for the current year and Rs.75,000 crore in the Budget presented last year.
Syria is more dangerous today than it was in October, when this newspaper called for a no-fly zone in order to ground Mr Assad's air force. Mr Obama's policy of waiting for the conflagration in Syria to burn itself out is failing. Rather than see things deteriorate still further, he should act. His aim should be to preserve what is left of Syria. That means trying to convince the people around Mr Assad that their choice is between ruinous defeat and turfing out the Assad family as a prelude to talks with the rebels. A no-fly zone is still needed to ground Mr Assad's air force and destroy some of his missiles. It would be a big, bold signal of America's resolve to Mr Assad's supporters. America should recognise a transitional government, selected from Syria's opposition. It should arm nonjihadist rebel groups-including with limited numbers of anti-aircraft missiles. France and Britain would back this, even if other Europeans would not. Russia supports Mr Assad in part to frustrate Mr Obama. Europe and America should keep on trying to tempt it to give him up, by promising it a stake in a liberated Syria. There are no guarantees that this policy will work. But it will at least build links with the nonjihadist rebels whom America will need as allies in the chaos if Mr Assad stays. Today those moderate Syrians feel utterly abandoned. Source: the Economist Social sector pays the price
The focus in this pre-election budget has shifted from the flagship MGNREGS to cash transfer-related schemes If there was any expectation that the combination of an economic crisis and an election year would alter the government's priorities, the Finance Minister was quick to dismiss it. Early in his Budget speech, he made it clear that "we must unhesitatingly
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Thus when Mr. Chidambaram assured the House in his speech "that the DBT scheme will be rolled out throughout the country during the term of the UPA Government," he was apparently referring to the spread of only the schemes that are currently covered in the various pilot projects of the DBT or a few other similar ones. Focus on women, children Having decided to focus on a relatively narrow base of schemes that are compatible with cash transfers the budget also reveals a clear focus on women and children. In listing the three faces that he saw as representing the country the Finance Minister began with women and youth before going on to the DBT related poor. It is then no surprise that the budget has substantially increased allocations to schemes that allow for direct cash transfers to women and young Indians. The Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana (IGMSY) that envisages providing cash assistance directly to pregnant and lactating women has seen its Budget allocation for the coming year going up to almost five times the Revised Estimate for the current year. Similarly, the allocation for pre-matric scholarships for Other Backward Classes has been trebled from the Budget and Revised estimates for the current year. The allocation for post-matric scholarships for the same category has also gone up by 44 per cent to reach Rs.810 crore. Food Bill
growth over welfare may have constrained the resources for the social sector. But in the distribution of those limited resources, the Finance Minister has made it clear that the electorally rewarding schemes come first. Source: The Hindu Fatal error
This focus on cash transfer related social sector spending does not rule out expenditure on other more traditional electorally rewarding social sector activities. The offer of food at low prices has been a staple of Indian politics in several States. The proposed Food Security Bill is designed to take this benefit to the national stage. By making an allocation for the incremental costs of the food subsidy after the Food Security Bill becomes a law the Finance Minister has sought to confirm his party's commitment to this cause. But the less-than-adequate allocation of Rs.10,000 crore suggests that Mr. Chidambaram only expects the Food Security mechanism to come into play for a relatively small part of the year; perhaps just long enough for it to have a political benefit. With the size of the allocation for the implementation of the Food Security Bill being small enough to create doubts about when, and even if, the Bill will come into effect, the main social sector take-away from the Budget would remain its clear focus on the cash transfer related schemes. The slow growth rate and the government's prioritisation of
The execution of Afzal Guru on February 9 reopened the question of India's continuing attachment to capital punishment. Like relatively few large industrial democracies, India and the US continue to practise and defend the death penalty. Both recently voted against a UN General Assembly resolution calling for a moratorium on executions with a view to abolition. The two nations are very different in their practices. India has nearly 500 prisoners on death row, but only four have been executed since 1995. In the US, 43 people were executed in 2012 alone. Capital punishment in the US is a state matter, because the federal government chooses not to use it. However, the number of states in which it is still legal is gradually diminishing, with only nine out of 50 still practising it. My own state, Illinois, abolished the death penalty in 2011. Attitudes in the US are changing, but not, on the whole, because of inherent objections to the death penalty. Instead, there is a growing conviction, shared by supporters and opponents, that it cannot be justly implemented. For a long time, it has been evident that the penalty in practice has been biased on grounds of class and race. People able to pay for high-powered lawyers almost never get it, and there is evidence that juries at the sentencing phase are apt to tilt towards people who look more like the majority. Bias is probably present in other criminal penalties as well, especially where juries are used, but the irrevocability of capital punishment makes people attend to it more. When the US Supreme Court briefly invalidated the death penalty in 1972, citing these grounds, states hastened to adopt rulegoverned procedures that applied the death penalty without discretion to certain classes of murders defined in advance - only to be told by the Supreme Court in 1976 that criminal defendants facing death have a constitutional right to present their individualised histories at the penalty phase, pleading for mercy. If only a rule-bound death penalty can avoid the problem of bias, and if rulebound penalties are unacceptable for other reasons, one might conclude that the death penalty cannot be fairly implemented, and this is what I believe. But that conclusion was not drawn by the Supreme Court, so at that level the matter remains open.
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More recently, the Supreme Court has held that execution of juveniles and people with severe mental retardation violates the US constitution's prohibition of "cruel and unusual punishment". The recent reaction against the death penalty, however, has other sources, again focused on implementation, but with new information driving the protest. DNA evidence has shown a high level of wrongful convictions in crimes across the board, including some capital crimes, where error, of course, is irremediable. Eyewitness testimony has been shown to be extremely unreliable. Prosecutorial discretion - about when to try a case rather than arranging a plea bargain, and concerning when to ask for the death penalty - has emerged as a frequent source of bias. And especially pertinent to recent reversals of opinion confessions have been shown to be highly unreliable, particularly when not videotaped. Police exhaust and mislead defendants until they confess falsely. It was this set of concerns that caused Illinois governor George Ryan to order a moratorium on the death penalty; some years later, our current governor, who insists that in theory he supports it, nonetheless signed the law banning it. The death penalty, in short, cannot be fairly implemented in the US. We do not need to reach the knotty issue of theoretical justification to conclude that it should be abolished. Is India different? The sparing use of the penalty does, to some extent, undercut the objection of racial and class bias, and the problems of evidence might possibly be surmounted if it is considered only in a small number of cases where all the evidence has been sifted with unusual care. Police conduct might be intensely scrutinised by videotaping all interrogations, although at present that is not the case. Indeed, the police are more often part of the problem, and we might ask whether "encounter killings" are not a de facto form of capital punishment - possibly very biased in implementation. For India, we probably should at least ponder the standard theoretical pros and cons before drawing firm conclusions. The most common justification for the death penalty is its potential for deterrence. The deterrent effect, however, has not been proved. In the US, it is possible to study the question, since states otherwise demographically similar have adopted different policies - and yet there is no conclusive evidence that the death penalty deters. For India,
we should certainly reject deterrence as a rationale, since the types of killers who have been executed in recent years (serial killers and terrorist/political killers) are especially unlikely to be deterred. The latter may even seek martyrdom, as did Nathuram Godse, when he asked for the death penalty in order to show that Gandhi's non-violence was "being hanged". If the death penalty doesn't deter, should we still retain it because people favour it? We must then turn to the primary rationale for banning the death penalty offered by the UN resolution: it "undermines human dignity". Appeals to human dignity are evocative, yet notoriously slippery. The notion of dignity has little clear content except when used in connection with a family of other concepts and principles. All too often, however, whether in bioethics or in law, people use this resonant term to bring debate to a halt, rather than to pursue the inquiry further. In the case of the death penalty, the need for a fuller argument is all the more urgent when we recollect that Immanuel Kant, a primary defender of the idea that the human being must always be treated as an end and not a mere means - probably the best general articulation of the notion of dignity - wrote that the death penalty is not only permitted but actually required by the respect we owe human dignity. Kant was wrong about many concrete ethical conclusions, but his views should prompt us to search for a fuller account. I see no inherent reason why the death penalty must always violate human dignity, though I am ready to be persuaded. Certainly in both India and the US, prison conditions can often be far more degrading than a painless execution. For me, the telling point against the death penalty (apart from the concerns over implementation that I have raised) is that it encourages vindictive passions and in effect, enacts a type of mob justice. A system of justice should be above revenge; it should express a calm and balanced attitude towards wrongdoing. It is difficult for me to believe that the death penalty can ever express the virtues we rightly associate with the rule of law. This theoretical debate is not over, and should continue. What is crystal clear, however, is that problems of fair implementation render the death penalty utterly unacceptable in today's United States, and, very likely though not surely, in today's India as well. Source: Indian Express
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HIGHLIGHTS OF RAILWAY BUDGET 2013-14

The Railway Budget 2013-14 presented by the Railway Minister Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal in the Parliament lays thrust on safety, consolidation, improving passenger amenities and fiscal discipline. The budget has absorbed the increase in passenger tariff due to increase in diesel prices but has proposed minor increase in supplementary charges for super fast trains and Tatkal charges etc. It has proposed FAC-linked revision in freight tariff only. Dhyan Chand Awardees will be provided Complimentary Passes for traveling by 1st Class/ 2nd AC. Complimentary Passes will be provided to Olympic Medalists and Dronacharya Awardees for travel in Rajdhani/Shatabadi Express. Passes for freedom fighters will now be renewed once in three years instead of every year. c) Staff Welfare measures: Enhanced fund allocation for staff quarters to Rs. 300 crore and setting up of hostels for single women railway employees at all divisional headquarters.
The Budget has proposed working expenses of Rs. 96,500 crore against the Gross Traffic Receipts of Rs. 1,43,742 crore for the year. The Railway Minister has proposed that appropriation to the Pension Fund of Railway Employees to Rs. 22,000 crore while appropriation to Depreciation Reserve Fund to Rs. 7,500 crore. With these proposals Railways expected to close the year 2013-14 with a balance of Rs. 12,506 crore in the Railway Fund. The budget has proposed number of measures to improve passenger amenities including IT enable services for reservations and new trains. The Minister informed that the Indian Railways is set to achieve the milestone of entering the select club of railways with over 1 million ton freight loading. At present, only the Chinese, Russian and the US Railways have this distinction. The Indian Railways have joined another select club of railways which run freight trains of more than 10,000 tones load. Major highlights of the budget
a) New railway projects to be taken up during 201314: introduction of 67 new express trains, 26 new passengers services and extension of 57 trains besides increase in frequency of 24 trains. For the first time an AC EMU rake will be introduced on Mumbai suburban network and rake length will be increased from 9 cars to 12 cars in 80 services in Kolkata and 30 services in Chennai. The Minister proposed a target to complete 500 km of new lines and to convert 450 km lines to broad gauge during 2013-14. b) Contribution for promotion of sports in the country: All the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and
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f) i) j) l)
d) Proposed new lines from Rama Mandi to Maur Mandi via Talwandi Sabo and issuing 'Yatra Parchis' for Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine at the time of Railway ticket booking to facilitate pilgrims. e) A multi-disciplinary training institute will set up at Nagpur for training in rail related electronics technologies. For the first time the State of Arunachal Pradesh has been brought into the rail network and the railways will commission the HarmutiNaharlagun line this year.
g) To strengthen the security of rail passengers, especially women passengers, Railways have already created four companies of women RPF personnel and another eight would be set up. h) Identification of 104 stations, serving a population of more than one mission or those serving places of religious/tourist importance for immediate attention to all aspects related to cleanliness. Progressive extension of bio-toilets on trains. Provision of concrete aprons on platforms with mechanized cleaning facilities. 200 stations have already been covered.
k) Extension of On Board Housekeeping Scheme (OBHS) and Clean Trains Stations (VTSs) to more stations and trains. Extension of unreserved Ticketing System (UTS), Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs), Coin-operated Ticket Vending Machines (COTVMs) and scheme of Jan-Sadharan Ticket Booking Sevaks (JTBSs).
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m) Setting up of six more Rail Neer bottling plants at Vijayawada, Nagpur, Lalitpur, Bilaspur, Jaipur and Ahmedabad. n) Launching of a pilot project on select trains to facilitate passengers to contact on-board staff through SMS/phone call/e-mail for prompt response for coach cleanliness and also to provide real time feedback. o) Setting up of 8-10 more mechanized laundries for quality washing of linen. p) Provision of announcement facility and electronic display boards in trains for disseminating information to on-board passengers about approaching stations, train running, arrival platforms, etc. q) Providing free Wi-Fi facility on several trains to cater to the increasing aspirations and requirement of youth and other valued customers. r) s) t) Upgrading another 60 stations as Adarsh Stations in addition to 980 already selected. Associate voluntary organizations for providing first aid services etc. at railway stations. v)
and services. Such coaches will be named 'Anubhuti' and will have commensurate fare structure. To facilitate the boarding of trains and exit from the stations for the differently-abled and the elderly, the Railways propose to take several measures. These include provision of 179 escalators and 400 lifts at A-1 and other major stations, affixing Braille stickers indicating the layout of coaches including toilets, provision of wheel chairs and battery operated vehicles at more stations and making coaches' wheel-chair friendly.
An educational tourist train called 'Azadi Express' to enable youth of the country to travel to important places connected with the freedom movement will be launched.
u) The Indian Railways will introduce one such coach in select trains which will provide an excellent ambience and latest modern facilities
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w) State-of-the-art base kitchens are proposed to be set up in railway premises for better monitoring of quality of meals. ISO certification will now be insisted upon for all base-kitchens. A Centralized Catering Services Monitoring Cell with a toll free number - 1800 111 321 has started functioning from 18th January, 2013 to facilitate redressal of complaints/suggestions on realtime basis. x) Ministry will put in place a Next Generation eticketing system to bring about a paradigm shift in internet rail ticketing. It will support 1, 20,000 simultaneous users at any point in time against the present capacity of 40,000 users with capability to easily scale up as demand increases in future. The system will make use of advanced fraud control and security management tools thereby further improving fairness and transparency in disbursal of tickets.
ECONOMIC SURVEY 2013 IN BRIEF

Finance Minister Shri P. Chidambaram tabled the Economic Survey of India 2013 in the Lok Sabha. Indian economy is likely to grow between 6.1% to 6.7% in 2013-14 as the downturn is more or less over and the economy is looking up. Following the slowdown induced by the global financial crisis in 2008-09, the Indian economy responded strongly to fiscal and monetary stimulus and achieved a growth rate of 8.6 per cent and 9.3 per cent respectively in 2009-10 and 2010-11, but due to a combination of both external and domestic factors, the economy decelerated growing at 6.2% and an estimated 5% in 2011-12 and 2012-13 respectively. India's balance of payments has come under pressure. Moreover, in the current fiscal, foreign exchange reserves have fluctuated between US$ 286 billion and US$ 295.6 billion, while the rupee remained volatile in the range of Rs 53.02 to Rs 54.78 per US dollar during October 2012 to January 2013. The survey had a special chapter focusing on jobs. India is creating jobs in industry but mainly in low productivity construction and not enough formal jobs in manufacturing, which typically are higher productivity. The high productivity service sector is also not creating enough jobs. As the number of people looking for jobs rises, both because of the population dividend and because share of agriculture shrinks, these vulnerabilities will become important. Because good jobs are both the pathway to growth as well as the best form of inclusion, India has to think of ways of enabling their creation. The survey calls for a widening of the tax base, and prioritization of expenditure as key ingredients of a credible medium term fiscal consolidation plan. This along with demand compression and augmented agricultural production should lead to lower inflation, giving the RBI the requisite flexibility to reduce policy rates. Lower interest rates could provide an additional fillip to investment activity for the industry and services sectors, especially if some of the regulatory, bureaucratic, and financial impediments to investment are eased. On financial sector reform, it takes note of the high level of gross NPAs (non-performing assets) of the banking sector which increased from 2.36 percent of the total credit advanced in March 2011 to 3.57 percent of total credit advanced in September 2012. The survey suggests that revival of growth will help contain NPAs, but more attention will have to be paid to whether projects are adequately capitalized up front given the risks. Expenditure on social services also increased considerably in the 12th Plan, with the education sector accounting for the largest share, followed by health. In the 11th Plan period nearly 7 lakh crore rupees has been spent on the 15 major flagship programmes. A number of legislative steps have also been taken to secure the rights of people, like the RTI, MGNREGA, the Forest Rights Act, AND the Right to Education.
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While India's recent slowdown is partly rooted in external causes, domestic causes are also important. The slowdown in the rate of growth of services in 2011-12 at 8.2%, and particularly in 201213 to 6.6 percent from the double-digit growth of the previous six years, contributed significantly to slowdown in the overall growth of the economy, while some slowdown could also be attributed to the lower growth in agriculture and industrial activities. But despite the slowdown, the services sector has shown more resilience to worsening external conditions than agriculture and industry. For improved agricultural growth, the survey underlines the need for stable and consistent policies where markets play an appropriate role, private investment in infrastructure is stepped up, food price, food stock management and food distribution improves, and a predictable trade policy is adopted for agriculture. FDI in retail allowed by the government can pave the way for investment in new technology and marketing of agricultural produce in India. Fast agricultural growth remains vital for jobs, incomes and food security. The survey points out that the priority for the Government will be to fight high inflation by reducing the fiscal impetus to demand as well as by focusing on incentivizing food production through measures other than price supports. But unlike the previous year, when food inflation was mainly driven by higher protein food prices, this year the pressure has been coming mainly from cereals. On the Balance of Payments and External Position, the survey highlights that with net exports declining,
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However, the survey notes that there are pressing governance issues like programme leakages and funds not reaching the targeted beneficiaries that need to be addressed. Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) with the help of the Unique Identification Number (Aadhaar) can help plug some of these leakages. With the 12th Plan's focus on 'environmental sustainability', India is on the right track. However, the challenge for India is to make the key drivers and enablers of growth-be it infrastructure, the transportation sector, housing, or sustainable agriculture-grow sustainably. The way out, according to the Economic Survey, is to shift national spending from consumption to investment and remove the bottlenecks to
investment, growth and job creation. This could be achieved through structural reforms, tackling inflation through monetary policy measures and improved supply-side steps, reducing the borrowers' cost for raising funds and increasing the opportunities for savers to get real investment returns, hinting at, perhaps, how investors might have preferred gold to other forms of financial investments, which, in turn, had contributed to the widening of the current account deficit. The broad message that the Economic Survey left for the government was to recognise that the Indian economy was in a difficult situation and measures had to be taken to bring the macroeconomy back into balance and growth on track.
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UNION BUDGET 2013-14

Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram presented his 8th Union Budget and India's 82nd. This is the last Union Budget before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The Union Budget for 2013-14 aims at 'higher growth leading to inclusive and sustainable development.' Government believes in inclusive development with emphasis on improving human development indicators especially of women, the scheduled castes, the scheduled tribes, the minorities and some backward classes. The Economy and the Challenges India facing 4.2 percent but food inflation is the main reason for worry, which can be reduced by taking all possible steps to augment the supply side to meet the growing demand for food items. The Plan and Budgetary Allocations Total expenditure had been fixed at Rs 14,90,925 crore. Due to the slowdown and the austerity measures, the revised estimate is Rs 14,30,825 crore or 96 percent of the budget estimate. Plan Expenditure placed at Rs. 5,55,322 crore. It is 33.3 percent of the total expenditure while Non Plan Expenditure is estimated at Rs. 11,09,975 crore. The plan expenditure in 2013-14 will be 29.4 percent more than the RE of the year 2012-13.
Global economic growth has been slowed from 3.9 percent in 2011 to 3.2 percent in 2012 and as India is part of the global economy: Indian exports and imports amount to 43 percent of GDP and two-way external sector transactions have raised to 108 percent of GDP.
Between 2004 and 2008 and again in 2009-10 and 2010-11 the growth rate was over 8 per cent and crossed 9 per cent in four of those six years. In the current year, the CSO has estimated growth at 5 percent while the RBI has estimated growth at 5.5 percent and getting back to that growth rate of 8 percent is the challenge that faces the country.
Fiscal Deficit, Current Account Deficit and Inflation situation
India economy is constrained due to high fiscal deficit; reliance on foreign inflows to finance the current account deficit; lower savings and lower investment; a tight monetary policy to contain inflation; and strong external headwinds.
In September, 2012, Government accepted the main recommendations of the Dr. Vijay Kelkar Committee. A new fiscal consolidation path was announced. Fiscal Deficit for 2013-14 is pegged at 4.8 percent of GDP. The Revenue Deficit will be 3.3 percent for the same period. The CAD continues to be high mainly because of our excessive dependence on oil imports, the high volume of coal imports, our passion for gold, and the slowdown in exports. Headline WPI inflation has been brought down to about 7.0 percent and core inflation to about
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Tax proposals
Clarity in tax laws, a stable tax regime, a nonadversarial tax administration, a fair mechanism for dispute resolution and independent judiciary for greater assurance is underlying theme of tax proposals. Tax Administration Reforms Commission to be set up. However, relief for Tax Payers in the first bracket of `2 lakhs to ` 5 lakhs. A tax credit of ` 2000 to every person with total income upto `5 lakhs. Surcharge of 10 percent on persons (other than companies) whose taxable incomeexceed ` 1 crore to augment revenues. Increase surcharge from 5 to 10 percent on domestic companies whose taxable income exceed ` 10 crore. In case of foreign companies who pay a higher rate of corporate tax, surcharge to increase from 2 to 5 percent, if the taxabale income exceeds ` 10 crore. In all other cases such as dividend distribution tax or tax on distributed income, current surcharge increased from 5 to 10 percent. Additional surcharges to be in force for only one year. Education cess to continue at 3 percent. Permissible premium rate increased from 10 percent to 15 percent of the sum assured by relaxing eligibility conditions of life insurance
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policies for persons suffering from disability and certain ailments. Donations made to National Children Fund eligible for 100 percent deduction. Concessional rate of tax of 15 percent on dividend received by an Indian company from its foreign subsidiary proposed to continue for one more year. Securitisation Trust to be exempted from Income Tax. Tax to be levied at specified rates only at the time of distribution of income for companies, individual or HUF etc. No further tax on income received by investors from the Trust. TDS at the rate of 1 percent on the value of the transfer of immovable properties where consideration exceeds ` 50 lakhs. Agricultural land to be exempted.
in the 9th and 10th Plans. In 2012-13, total foodgrain production will be over 250 million tonnes. Agricultural exports from April to December, 2012 have crossed Rs 138,403 crore. GOI to allocate Rs 27,049 crore to the Ministry of Agriculture, an increase of 22 percent over the RE of the current year. Of this, agricultural research will be provided Rs 3,415 crore. The interest subvention scheme for short-term crop loans will be continued and a farmer who repays the loan on time will be able to get credit at 4 percent per annum. So far, the scheme has been applied to loans extended by public sector banks, RRBs and cooperative banks. Now it has been extended to crop loans borrowed from private sector scheduled commercial banks in respect of loans given within the service area of the branch concerned. Bringing green revolution to eastern India a remarkable success. 1,000 crore allocated in 2013-14. 500 crore allocated to start a programme of crop diversification that would promote technological innovation and encourage farmers to choose crop alternatives. Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and National Food Security Mission provided 9,954 crore and ` 2,250 crore respectively. Allocation for integrated watershed programme increased from 3,050 crore in 2012-13 (BE) to ` 5,387 crore. Allocation made for pilots programme on NutriFarms for introducing new crop varieties that are rich in micro-nutrients. National Institute of Biotic Stress Management for addressing plant protection issues will be established at Raipur, Chhattisgarh. The Indian Institute of Agricultural Biotechnology will be established at Ranchi, Jharkhand. Credit Guarantee Fund to be created in the Small Farmers'Agri Business Corporation with an initial corpus of 100 crore. National Livestock Mission to be set up. A provision of 307 crore made for the Mission. Rs 80,194 crore allocation for Ministry of Rural Development in 2013-14. About Rs 33,000 crore for MGNREGA. Rs. 5,000 crore for NABARD for agri storage facilities.
Proposal to introduce Commodity Transaction Tax (CTT) in a limited way. Agricultural commodities will be exempted. Modified provisions of GAAR will come into effect from 1.4.2016.
No change in the normal rates of 12 percent for excise duty and service tax. No change in the peak rate of basic customs duty of 10 perent for non-agricultural products.
Excise duty on SUVs to be increased to 30 per cent from 27 per cent, SUVs registered as taxis exempted. 18% rise in excise duty on Cigarattes, cigars and cheerots. Service tax on all A/C restaurants. Royalty tax hiked from 10% to 25%.
Duty on Set Top Boxes increased from 5 to10 percent.
Duty on raw silk increased from 5 to 15 percent.
Duties on Steam Coal and Bituminous Coal equalised and 2 percent custom duty and 2 percent CVD levied on both kinds coal. Duty on imported luxury goods such as high end motor vehicles, motor cycles, yachts and similar vessels increased. Duty free gold limit increased to ` 50,000 in case of male passenger and `1,00,000 in case of a female passenger subject to conditions.
Agriculture and Rural Development The average annual growth rate of agriculture and allied sector during the 11th Plan was 3.6 percent as against 2.5 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively,
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Godowns to be constructed with help of panchayats. Food grain productions have been raised drastically and only increase with each year. Allocation of ` 80,194 crore in 2013-14 for Ministry of Rural Development marking an increase of 46% over RE 2012-13. Proposal to carve out PMGSY-II and allocate a portion of the funds to the new programme that will benefit States such as Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab and Rajasthan. New criteria for determining backwardness to be evolved and reflect them in future planning and devolution of funds.
Investment, Infrastructure and Industry A number of steps to mobilize investment have been announced in the Budget keeping in view that as per 12th Plan. The 12th Plan projects an investment of USD 1 trillion or Rs 55,00,000 crore in infrastructure. The Plan envisages that the private sector will share 47 percent of the investment. The private sector will share 47 percent of Rs 55,00,000 crore investment in infrastructure. Infrastructure Debt Funds (IDF) will be encouraged. hese funds will raise resources and, through take-out finance, credit enhancement and other innovative means, provide long-term low-cost debt for infrastructure projects. India Infrastructure Finance Corporation (IIFCL) will offer credit enhancement to infrastructure companies that wish to access the bond market to tap long term funds. Some institutions will be allowed to issue tax free bonds up a total sum of Rs 50,000 crore (as against Rs 25,000 crore in 2012-13). Assistance of the World Bank and Asian Development Bank will be sought to build roads in the North Eastern States and connect them to Myanmar. The corpus of Rural Infrastructure Development Funds (RIDF) is proposed to be raised to Rs. 20,000 crore. A sum of Rs 5,000 crore will be made available to NABARD to finance construction of warehouses, godowns, silos and cold storage units designed to store agricultural produce. The road construction sector faces challenges as financial stress, enhanced construction risk and contract management issues that are best addressed by an independent authority. Hence, Government has decided to constitute a regulatory authority for the road sector. To attract new investment and to quicken the implementation of projects, GOI proposes an investment allowance for new high value investments. Companies investing ` 100 crore or more in plant and machinery during the period 1.4.2013 to 31.3.2015 will be entitled to deduct an investment allowance of 15 per cent of the investment. Incentives to semiconductor wafer fabric manufacturing facilities, including zero customs duty for plant and machinery. The Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme will be liberalised to enable the first time investor to invest in mutual funds as well as listed shares
Health and Education
GOI to allocate Rs 37,330 crore to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Of this, the new National Health Mission that combines the rural mission and the proposed urban mission will get Rs 21,239 crore, an increase of 24.3 percent over the RE.
GOI to provide Rs 4,727 crore for medical education, training and research.
The National Programme for the Health Care of Elderly is being implemented in 100 selected districts of 21 States. Eight regional geriatric centres are being funded for the development of dedicated geriatric departments. I propose to provide Rs 150 crore for this programme. Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy are being mainstreamed through the National Health Mission. I propose to allocate Rs 1,069 crore to the Department of AYUSH.
GOI to allocate Rs 65,867 crore to the Ministry of Human Resource Development, which is an increase of 17 percent over the RE of the previous year. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and the Right to Education Act are firmly in place. An increase of 25.6 per cent over RE of the current year for investments in Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA).
5,284 crore allocated to Ministries/Departments in 2013-14 for scholarships to students belonging to SC, ST, OBC, Minorities and girl children. Mid Day Meal Scheme (MDM) to be provided ` 13,215 crore. Government committed to the creation of Nalanda University as a centre of educational excellence.
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and she can do so, not in one year alone, but in three successive years. The income limit will be raised from Rs 10,00,000 to Rs 12,00,000; A person taking a loan for his first home from a bank or a housing finance corporation upto Rs 25,00,000 during the period 1.4.2013 to 31.3.2014 will be entitled to an additional deduction of interest of upto Rs 100,000. This will promote home ownership and give a fillip to a number of industries like steel, cement, brick, wood, glass etc. besides jobs to thousands of construction workers Two new major ports will be established in Sagar, West Bengal and in Andhra Pradesh to add 100 million tonnes of capacity. In addition, a new outer harbour will be developed in the VOC port at Thoothukkudi, Tamil Nadu through PPP at an estimated cost of Rs 7,500 crore. When completed, this will add 42 million tonnes of capacity.
of at least one public sector general insurance company. KYC of banks will be sufficient to acquire insurance policies. Banks will be permitted to act as insurance brokers so that the entire network of bank branches will be utilised to increase penetration. Banking correspondents will be allowed to sell micro-insurance products. Group insurance products will now be offered to homogenous groups such as SHGs, domestic workers associations, anganwadi workers, teachers in schools, nurses in hospitals etc. The Rashtriya Swasthiya Bima Yojana covers 34 million families below the poverty line. It will now be extended to other categories such as rickshaw, auto-rickshaw and taxi drivers, sanitation workers, rag pickers and mine workers. A comprehensive and integrated social security package for the unorganised sector is a measure that will benefit the poorest and most vulnerable sections of society. The package should include life-cum-disability cover, health cover, maternity assistance and pension benefits. The present schemes such as AABY, JSBY, RSBY, JSY and IGMSY are run by different ministries and departments.
The oil and gas exploration policy will be reviewed to move from profit sharing to revenue sharing contracts. A policy to encourage exploration and production of shale gas will be announced. The natural gas pricing policy will be reviewed and uncertainties regarding pricing will be removed. NELP blocks that were awarded but are stalled will be cleared. The 5 MMTPA LNG terminal in Dabhol, Maharashtra will be fully operational in 2013-14. On coal, the Budget proposes adoption of a policy of pooled pricing.
Benefits or preferences enjoyed by MSME to continue upto three years after they grow out of this category. Refinancing capacity of SIDBI raised to Rs. 10,000 crore.
Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) for textile to continue in 12th Plan with an investment target of Rs. 1,51,000 crore.
Insurance and Banking Rs. 14,000 crore will be provided to public sector banks for capital infusion in 2013-14. A multi-pronged approach will be followed to increase the penetration of insurance, both life and general, in the country. Insurance companies will be empowered to open branches in Tier II cities and below without prior approval of IRDA. All towns of India with a population of 10,000 or more will have an office of LIC and an office
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Some other allocations GOI proposes to set up a fund - Nirbhaya Fund under which Government will contribute Rs 1,000 crore. Ministry of Women and Child Development and other ministries concerned will be requested to work out the details of the structure, scope and application of the fund. Youth to be motivated to voluntarily join skill development programmes. National Skill Development Corporation to set the curriculum and standards for training in different skills. 1000 crore set apart for this scheme. To the poor of India direct benefit transfer scheme will be rolled out throughout the country during the term of the UPA Government with the motive "apka paisa aapke haath". An ambitious IT driven project to modernise the postal network at a cost of Rs. 4,909 crore. Post offices to become part of the core banking solution and offer real time banking services.
Government to fund the conversion of the Ghadar Memorial in San Francisco into a museum and library. All cities having a population of more than 1,00,000 will be covered by private FM radio services. National Institute of Sports Coaching to be set up at Patiala at a cost of 250 crore over a period of three years.
A grant of Rs. 100 crore each has been made to 4 institutions of excellence including Aligarh Muslim University, Banaras Hindu University, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Guwahati and Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). Allocation for Defence increased to 2,03,672 crore including 86,741 crore for capital expenditure.
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Weekly current affairs bulletin 4-10 Feb 2013

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