Daily News Notes: 27th to 29th July, 2012

· India has test fired Brahmos supersonic cruise missile (surface-to-surface Army version) as part of a user trial by the Army from a test range at Chandipur off Odisha coast. It has developed under an Indo-Russian joint venture project, has a flight range of up to 290 km and is capable of carrying a conventional warhead of 300 kg. The two-stage missile, the first one being solid and the second one ramjet liquid propellant, has already been inducted into the Army and the Navy, and the Air-Force version is in final stage of trial. The name of the missile is derived from the Brahmaputra river and the Russian capital Moscow. The missile can fly at zero level. While induction of the first version of Brahmos missile system in the Indian Navy commenced from 2005 with INS Rajput, it is now fully operational with two regiments of the Army.
· Social activist Anna Hazare today joined his team mates in their indefinite fast for a strong Jan Lokpal Bill. They have also been demanding setting up of a fast track court to try graft cases against some corrupt Ministers.
· The Supreme court has said, mines and minerals are part of the nation's wealth. It also upheld the Jharkhand government's decision to cancel its recommendation to the Centre to grant mining lease in the state to six private firms.
· The government is all set to connect all the country's 250,000 panchayats with broadband within 16 months (by Nov 2013). The broadband connectivity for gram panchayats will help improve delivery of public services and getting real time feedback. Besides, this will help in training of panchayat and other grassroots functionaries and empowering the community through e-library.
· The Ministry of Finance is considering implementation of e-governance in the Debt Recovery Tribunals, and Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunals. An official release says, services of the National Institute of Smart Governance, are being utilised for this purpose. The system would involve registration of the applicant and online submission of applications, all documents by the registered applicants, online issue of notices, orders and e-auctions. The system would also provide for hearing of cases through video conferencing, where ever required.
· As part of nationwide campaign against HIV/AIDS, a State Level function was organized in West Bengal. Red Ribbon Express (RRE) is one of the flagship initiatives under the National AIDS Control Programme that was successfully implemented twice in the past. Based on the overwhelming response received during the last two phases, the third phase of RRE was flagged off from Delhi on 11th January 2012, the birthday of Swami Vivekananda which is celebrated as National Youth Day. On a year long journey the special train will pass through 23 states covering 162 railway stations. HIV epidemic in India has been remarkable, which has seen a steady progress since 1992, when the comprehensive National AIDS Control Programme was launched in all States in the country. It is estimated that India had approximately 1.2 lakh new HIV infections in 2009, as against 2.7 lakh in 2000.
· Under the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), a Labour Welfare Scheme launched by the Union Ministry of Labour & Employment so far more than 3.04 crore smart cards have been issued. Launched in October 2007, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana” (RSBY) is operational since 01.04.2008. The objective of RSBY is to provide protection to BPL households from financial liabilities arising out of health shocks that involve hospitalization. Beneficiaries under RSBY are entitled to hospitalization coverage up to Rs. 30,000/- for most of the diseases that require hospitalization. Pre-existing conditions are covered from day one and there is no age limit. Coverage extends to five members of the family which includes the head of household, spouse and up to three dependents. RSBY is presently being implemented in 25 States / Union Territories.
· Showing concern about the increasing number of oral cancer cases, the state cabinet of Jharkhand has approved a complete ban on the manufacture, storage and distribution of all types of gutkha and paan masala which contain tobacco and nicotine. The ban has been imposed under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Since 2006, the state has witnessed around 30 % surge in the number of oral cancer cases, a major chunk of which were pertaining to tobacco and related products. Madhya Pradesh was the first to ban gutkha and paan masala. Till date six states namely Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Goa, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan have banned these products.
· Famous Painter Sumahendra passed away. He was the director of Visual Art in Jawahar Kala Kendra, Rajasthan. His renowned works include World Famous frescos in Bundi fort in the National Museum at Delhi. His book Varnamala is very famous.
· To provide quality education, the government has sanctioned one model school for every block across the country. Under this programme, centre will bear 75 % expenditure of these schools.
· Income Tax authorities say, undisclosed income of Indians totaling 565 crore rupees in 219 cases has been detected in France. The figure was disclosed in the information that India received from France on Indians having bank accounts, under the exchange of information clause of the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) with the European country.
· According to the WTO Report 2012, India has overtaken China in exports growth rate recording an increase of 16.1 per cent in 2011, topping the list of all major trading countries in the world. According to the Director of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, mainly the diversification of markets to West Asian countries, South East Asia and China, have yielded good results for Indian exports. China had the second-fastest export growth of any major economy at 9.3 per cent.
· India and Indonesia today signed an agreement for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. During signing ceremony, Indian External Affairs Minister said, both countries are also hopeful of achieving the trade target of 25 billion US Dollars by 2015. Also, Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister said, the two countries have agreed to further strenthening of the bilateral relationship in to a strategic partnership.
· World Hepatitis Day is being observed on July 28th round the globe. The focus is to spread awareness about viral hepatitis, which kills around 1 million people every year. Hepatitis is a medical condition in which there occurs inflammation of liver cells. There are 5 types of hepatitis - A, B, C, D, and E - each caused by a different hepatitis virus. It’s caused due to several reasons such as contact with blood, semen or any other body fluid of infected person, unprotected sex, sharing needles and syringes, from pregnant mother to her baby or through breast feeding the baby, through bite from infected person.