Daily News Notes

· The Finance Minister that the ongoing Eurozone crisis is adversely impacting the short term growth prospect of the country and some developed countries has resorted to protectionism which grave concern not only to our export but to recovery of the world as a whole. But he expressed the hope that industry will continue to make efforts to achieve the export target of around 300 billion US dollars this financial year. Indian handicrafts and products made by small and medium enterprises are the major attraction at the 31st edition of the India International Trade Fair
· The two-day Commerce Secretary level talks between India and Pakistan are in progress in New Delhi. Enhancing bilateral trade assumes importance in the wake of the Euro Zone Crises which is likely to impact the world economy. India and Pakistan have a decided to have a preferential trade agreement paving the way for tariff reduction in a large number of items to boost economic activity to achieve the trade target of 2.6 billion US dollars in the next three years.
· The Supreme Court today questioned the appointment of Shashank Shekhar Singh (who is not an IAS officer) as Cabinet Secretary in the Uttar Pradesh government and today said there have to be rules and regulations for such crucial postings.
· The Rajasthan High Court today, hearing the habeas corpus petition, directed CBI to search and produce missing Bhanwari Devi before the court within a week.
· Rajasthan today joined the fleet of states to implement the Public Services Guarantee Act which provides for time bound disposal of 108 public services related to 15 departments of the state government. The act aims at bringing transparency in administration, apart from curbing corrupt practices.
· India has reaffirmed its commitment to fight the menace of drug trafficking in the world particularly in its nearby region. The meeting is being held in the backdrop of the release of the 2011 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, report on the Afghan Opium Survey which stated there has been a seven percent increase in the area under illicit opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan. Paris Pact Initiative brings together over 50 nations which are directly affected by opium trafficking from Afghanistan to collectively fight against drug abuse.
· The Government will soon extend child help line service 1098 to 180 cities and by the end of 12th Five year plan the service will be available in 250 cities of the country. Massive Nutrition awareness campaign for children will soon be started in the country. 27 children were given National Child Awards for Exceptional Achievement in various fields including academics, painting music dance and arts and for the first time a 4 year girl was awarded for Blogging.
· Union Minister for Human Resources Development said that the Government will launch a National Vocational Educational Qualification Framework next year to address the skills development challenges in the country with the objective of having 500 million skilled workers and 200 million graduates by 2022.
· The 122nd birth anniversary of the first Prime Minster of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (fondly known as Chacha Nehru) is being celebrated all over the country today. On this occasion in his ancestral home in Anand Bhawan (in Allahabad), floral tributes have been paid to him. This day is also celebrated as Children's Day each year.
· The 17th edition of the International Children's Film Festival of India will be commencing today in Hyderabad (Coinciding with the Children’s day). Elaborate arrangements have been made to showcase 152 films from 37 countries across the world.
· World Diabetes Day is being observed today to raise public awareness about the harmful effects of diabetes. Government and many private institutions are organising diabetes camps, scientific sessions and seminars across the country to mark the day as diabetes is growing in the country at an alarming rate. WHO estimates, about 35 crore people worldwide (and one-fifth of the world's afflicted are in India) are diabetic and the figures are likely to double by 2030. Some points: most critical age is 45-50; even seen in those family in which even no person was diabetic in the past; lifestyle in the bigger cities, lack of exercise, eating unhealthy meals, do not minding out weight and stress are some factor causing diabetes.
· In Himachal Pradesh, sixty students (from Class VI to X) of a public school in Chamba district have been selected to visit the Houston and Kennedy Space Centres of National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The students will be exposed to the world of space sciences, robotics and nuances involved in designing a space shuttle. During the 10-day visit, the students will get a chance to crawl through rocket tunnels, lunch with astronauts, interact with scientists at the beating heart of NASA and visit the “Hall of Fame”.
· President Obama says China has not done enough to allow its currency (Yuan which is undervalued by 20 to 25 per cent) to rise and it is time it operated by the same rule as everyone else. China engaged in economic practices which are disadvantageous to many of its trading partners.
· Addressing the inaugural session of the Climate Vulnerable Forum Meeting in Dhaka today, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon today described Climate Change as the single most important challenge faced by the world and urged all countries to work together to save planet earth and human lives and warned that it is time to act as the latest report of the International Energy Agency has said that the world is close to a point of no return for staying within the globally agreed goal of limiting the temperature rise to 2 degrees.