Daily News Notes

· Dr. Singh gave the details of the measures taken by the government to deal with the issue of corruption, includes the public procurement act to make allocation of government contracts transparent. The Prime Minister said that the menace of corruption can be eradicated only after active cooperation from the state governments who spend 50 percent of the Budget. The health of social activist Anna Hazare is stable. Anna's fast has entered the 10th day today.
· The Centre has told the Supreme Court that the Special Investigation Team, SIT, appointed by it to probe and unearth the black money stashed abroad needs to be scrapped. The Attorney General argued that the wide powers conferred on the SIT had dislodged every authority under the various Acts like FEMA, Income Tax, Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
· Former Tamil Nadu Transport Minister and Trichy District DMK Secretary K N Nehru was arrested early this morning from Tiruchirapalli on land grabbing charges.
· The Centre has said that the share of the service sector in the Gross Domestic Product, GDP at current prices has increased from 43.8 percent in 1990-91 to 55.3 percent in 2009-10. Theshare of agriculture has declined from 29.3 percent to 17.8 percent while the share of the manufacturing sector has remained more or less stable within the range of 15 percent to 17 percent during the same period. The factors driving the expansion of service sector has been the increased opportunities of services abroad due to globalization.
· In Goa, Police said a 21-year-old vendor and a 15-year-old student died in the blaze at a pipeline carrying naphtha to a fertilizer manufacturing unit in Vasco.
· In Madhya Pradesh, the state cabinet has sanctioned 95 thousand 599 posts of teachers. Our correspondent reports that this decision was taken to give a fresh impetus to the efforts for improvement in quality of education and its universalisation.
· In Manipur, a delegation of Sadar Hills District Demand Committee held talks with Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh last evening at Imphal to settle amicably the demand for a full- fledged revenue district status to Sadar Hills. the Committee has decided not to call off the economic blockade along the National Highway 39 and 53 and the indefinite general strike in Sadar Hills.
· Centre has said that the development of existing roads totalling to 5477 kilometre length has been taken up in Left Wing Extremism affected 34 districts of eight States. the development is generally planned within existing right of way involving bare minimum cutting of trees with the permission of State Forest Departments.
· The government has instructed all states to appointment Ombudsman at district level to redress grievances related to implementation of MGNREGA, government is also making extensive use of Information and Communication Technology, ICT to enhance transparency.
· Both the Houses of Parliament are discussing the situation arising out of the problems being faced by Sri Lankan Tamils. They demanded that New Delhi should demand for an international impartial investigation into the killing of Tamil people in the island nation in 2009. Mr E M S Natchiappan of the Congress demanded release of Tamil political prisoners in Sri Lanka. He said over two lakh Tamil refugees now living in India, should be repatriated.
· The government has taken several measures to reduce working expenses of Railways. The measures include introduction of single engine system, tourist packages and cancellation of trains and Sundays and other Holidays.
· The Indian rupee depreciated 21 paise to 46 rupees and 20 paise per US dollar. Dealers said month-end dollar demand from importers and weakness of the euro and other Asian currencies overseas mainly caused the weakening of the rupee.
· Scientists in Australia say they have discovered a cheap and effective way to prevent transmission of dengue fever, which kills more than 12,000 people a year. Writing in the journal Nature the researchers said they infected mosquitoes, which spread the disease, with bacterium that blocks development of the dengue virus.