Daily News Notes: 7th to 10th August, 2012

· Janmashtami, the birth day of Lord Krishna, is being celebrated today with enthusiasm and gaiety all over the country. >>>>Happy Janmashtami<<<<
· The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a directive to all TV channels asking them to guard against revealing the identity of children who are victims of certain crime or that of juveniles in conflict with the law. These rules ask the media to refrain from publishing the names, pictures, the home address, school address and other parameters of the identity of such children. The Ministry said, the disclosure of identity of children only tends to affect the social and mental health of the kids during their crucial stage of development.
· A Parliamentary panel (headed by Mr. Vijayan) on procedures and provision of Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme, MPLADS funds for natural calamities took serious note that 9.42 crores rupees contributed by MPs from their MPLADS fund for Gujarat Earth quake and 5.21 crores rupees contributed for Tsunami Relief Works are still lying with the concerned State Governments. Gujarat Earth quake occured in 2001 and the Tsunami in 2004. The panel said that this situation has arisen due to non stipulation of any time-limit in MPLADS guidelines for identification, execution and completion of rehabilitation works in the affected areas. The panel recommended that provisions should be made in the MPLADS guidelines to the effect that the rehabilitation works should be identified in the areas affected by natural calamities by the nodal department within a month of pooling MPLADS funds and the works should be completed by the concerned District Authority within eight months. The annual allocation of MPLADS funds has been increased to five crore rupees.
· Hamid Ansari, who was nominated by the UPA for the Vice Presidential election, has emerged a winner again. He defeated BJP candidate Jaswant Singh.
· The President has appointed Dr. Syed Nasim Ahmad Zaidi as the Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India.
· Raghuram Rajan will take the place of Kaushik basu as the Chief Economic Adviser. The selection was made by Prime Minister’s Economic advisory council headed by C.Rangarajan. Mr. Rajan has been former Chief Economist of International Monetary Fund.
· Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office has assured that the Government will introduce a constitution amendment Bill for reservation in promotion of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs.
· Rural Development minister Jairam Ramesh has informed that the National Institute of Land Management will be set up very soon to train state government officials to better manage land records in the country. The minister said with a view to assisting the states in computerising land records and strengthening their revenue administration his ministry was administering two centrally sponsored schemes- computerisation of land records and strengthening of revenue administration and updating of land records up to 2007-08.
· The Minister of Panchayati has said that the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Yojana (RGSY), implemented in districts not covered by the Scheme of Backward Regions Grants Fund (BRGF), focuses primarily on providing financial assistance to the States / UTs for Training & Capacity Building of elected representatives (ERs) and functionaries of Panchayats so that they can perform the functions devolved upon them and the schemes entrusted to them effectively. He further said that assistance is also provided for Satellite based training infrastructure for Distance Learning for the ERs and Functionaries of the Panchayats and, in respect of the Hill States and States in the North Eastern Region, for capital expenditure on establishment of Panchayat Resource Centers / Training Institutes at Divisional / District level. There is a small component of Infrastructure Development under which assistance is provided to States / UTs for construction of Panchayat Ghars at Gram Panchayat level.
· The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL) undertakes programmes for the promotion of all Indian languages including 20 of the 22 scheduled languages and other non –scheduled languages (which as per 2001 Census are 100 in number with 141 mother tongues, each spoken by at least 10,000 people). The programmes for protection and development of languages of minorities which include Jenu Kuruba, Soliga, Kodava, Tulu, Urdu, Saurastri, Pali, Prakrit & Sanskrit will continue in the current Five Year Plan.
· The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has taken initiative to set up a dedicated fund in the name of “India Inclusive Innovation Fund” for promoting grass root innovations. It is expected that promoting innovation would also improve the competitiveness and efficiency of SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises). The scheme is at the stage of approval. In addition, Government operates a number of schemes for the MSME sector which inter alia improve competitiveness. These schemes include Credit Guarantee Scheme, Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme, Performance and Credit Rating Scheme, Cluster Development Programme, Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme.
· Minister of State for Finance has informed that there are nearly 75 lakhs Self Help Groups (SHGs) in the country. NABARD has mentioned that about 80% of the SHGs are Women SHGs. In order to encourage backward linkage of the matured SHGs, NABARD conducts a Micro Enterprise Development Program (MEDP) which focuses on skill up gradation, development of livelihoods and venturing into micro enterprises by members of matured SHGs. For forward linkage NABARD extends grant assistance for setting up of marketing outlets, known as ‘Rural Mart’ at district and sub-district level by Producers Groups, SHGs and their federations, activity groups, farmers’ club etc. for marketing farm and non-farm products including products of rural SHGS/rural artisans/handicrafts sector.
· Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has informed that the amount of unclaimed amount for insurance industry and Fixed deposits by all Scheduled Commercial Banks are 3,037 crore and 425 crore respectively. The Ministry of Labour and Employment has informed that there is no unclaimed fund lying with Employees’ Provident Fund Organization. However, there are certain accounts which are classified as Inoperative Accounts and all such accounts have a definite claimant. For the year 2011-12 an amount of ` 22,636 crore (provisional) is lying in Inoperative Accounts. The Government has not chalked out any policy to utilize this money. In respect of unclaimed funds in Fixed Deposits, the Government has introduced the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011 wherein provision has been made for the establishment of a “Depositor Education and Awareness Fund” to take over inoperative deposit accounts which have not been claimed or operated for a period of 10 years or more.
· The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) has announced a broadly-defined uniform framework for reporting Asset Liability Management (ALM) policy adopted by life and non-life insurance companies. According to the framework, each insurer will have an ALM policy approved by the Board of the Insurer which would consider asset liability relationships, the insurer’s overall risk tolerance, risk and return requirement, solvency position & liquidity requirements.
· The Environment Ministry has sought regulation on installation of cell towers. The Ministry has issued an advisory asking the Department of Telecommunications not to permit new mobile towers within a one-km radius of existing ones to prevent the negative impact of electro-magnetic radiation, on birds and bees. The Ministry asked the DoT that the location and frequencies of cellphone towers and other towers emitting EMR, be made available in the public domain.
· Minister of State for Water Resources has informed that his Ministry had formulated a National Perspective Plan (NPP) for Water Resources Development as early as 1980 envisaging inter-basin transfer of water from surplus basins to deficit basins/areas which comprises two components, namely, Himalayan Rivers Development Component and Peninsular Rivers Development Component. The National Water Development Agency (NWDA) has already identified 14 links under Himalayan Component and 16 links under Peninsular Rivers Component. Out of these, Feasibility Reports of 14 links under Peninsular Component and 2 links under Himalayan Component (Indian portion) has been prepared. The Minister has also clarified that the Implementation of Inter Linking of Rivers (ILR) has been delayed because it involves various steps such as preparation of FRs of links, negotiation and consensus among concerned States, agreement with neighbouring countries if link involve area lying in other countries, preparation of DPRs of the projects and structures identified for the link, clearance from appraisal agencies which include clearance by Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF), clearance by Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA), techno-economic clearance by Technical Advisory Committee of MoWR, investment clearance by Planning Commission and funding of the project. Further, the initial cost of the Inter Linking projects was 5.60 Lakh crore at 2002 Price Level. Costs of individual project have not yet been finalized. Some major ILR project are as: [1.] Mahanad - Godavari link; [2.] Godavari - Krishna link; [3.] Krishna - Pennar link; [4.] Pennar - Cauvery link; [5.] Cauvery– Vaigai – Gundar link; [6.] Parbati – Kalisindh – Chambal link; [7.] Par – Tapi – Narmada link; [8.] Ken – Betwa link; [9.] Bedti - Varda link; [10.] Kosi-Mechi link; [11.] Kosi-Ghaghra link; [12.] Gandak-Ganga link; [13.] Ghaghra-Yamuna link; [14.] Chunar - Sone Barrage link; [15.] Ganga-Damodar-Subernarekha link; [16.] Subernarekha-Mahanadi link; [17.] Manas-Sankosh-Tista-Ganga (M-S-T-G) link.
· Government has informed that the target as projected in Integrated Energy Policy of the country is to reach a nuclear power capacity of 63,000 MW by the year 2032. The current installed capacity of 4780 MW is planned to reach 10,080 MW by 2017 on progressive completion of 7 reactors under construction with an aggregate capacity of 5300 MW. The XII Five Year Plan envisages start of work on nuclear power reactors adding to total an additional capacity of 17400 MW. This additional planned capacity makes it total to 27480 MW by the year 2023-24. It further clarified that an Inter-governmental Agreement (IGA) has been signed between India and Russian Federation in 2008 for assistance to build more nuclear reactors in Kudankulam (TN) and Haripur (WB). Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project Units 1&2 (KKNPP 1&2) are at advanced stage of completion and scheduled to commence commercial operation by October 2012 & June 2013 respectively. Commencement of work on KKNPP Units 3&4 is planned in the XII Five Year Plan period, with scheduled completion in the early XIII Five Year Plan. Further the Govt. said, even though there were announcements in Germany, Japan, Switzerland and Taiwan regarding gradual phase out of nuclear power after the Fukushima incident, these countries have not shut down all their nuclear reactors. Japan has recently started two nuclear power reactors, Ohi-3&4. Germany continues to operate nine of their seventeen nuclear power reactors while it has shutdown remaining eight nuclear power reactors which have completed their economic life. Switzerland continues to operate all the five nuclear power reactors and Taiwan, six nuclear power reactors.
· Minister of State in the Ministry Of Textiles has said that with the implementation of Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Catalytic Development Programme and due to transfer of latest innovative research technologies developed by the Govt. of India through Central Silk Board, the area under sericulture (raising silkworm) at the end of XI Plan period (2007-12) was 1.83 lakh hectares. Karnataka has toped the list of Mulberry area followed by Andra Pradesh, TN, WB, J&K etc.
· Communication and Information Technology Minister has informed that the Government has approved the scheme for creation of National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) on 25th October 2011, for providing Broadband connectivity to 2.5 lakh village Panchayats. The objective of this scheme is to extend the existing optical fiber network to Panchayats by utilizing the Universal Services Obligation Fund (USOF). NOFN project is being executed by a Special Purpose Vehicle named BBNL and the network is proposed to be completed in 2 years time. He further said that in addition to above, USOF has also launched following schemes to increase broadband penetration in rural and remote areas: [1.] Rural Wireline Broadband Scheme to increase broadband penetration in rural and remote areas. Under this scheme BSNL will provide more than 8 lakhs wire-line Broadband connections to individual users and Government Institutions over a period of 5-years i.e. by 2014; [2.] Optical Fibre Network Augmentation, Creation and Management of Intra-District Network in ASSAM.
· Ministry of Power and North Indian States Agree to 12 Point Resolution to Avoid Power Grid Crisis in Future. These are proper grid defense planning, load management, enforcement of grid discipline, appropriate strengthening of State Load Dispatch Centres, etc. [1.] Grid Defense Planning: Inspite of all precautions taken, there can be tripping of generators, loads & the transmission elements and suitable defense mechanisms must be in place to prevent any kind of cascading effect and to restrict & localize the impact of such tripping incidents. Implementation of Effective Islanding Schemes, Operation of the Under Frequency Relays, Demand disconnection and System Protection Schemes are critical for maintaining Grid Security in case of contingency scenario; [2.] Load Planning is essential to be able to meet the consumer demand in a secure and reliable manner. Procurement of power could be done either through long term, medium term or short term contracts; [3.] Grid Code provides the rules for operating the Grid. The Electricity Act envisages State Load Dispatch Centers (SLDCs) as apex bodies to ensure integrated operation of the power system in the respective areas of jurisdiction. All users are required to abide by the principles and procedures defined in the Indian Electricity Grid Code (IEGC) in order to maintain the integrated, secure and reliable operation of the Grid; [4.] The phenomenon of persistent over drawl from the grid despite full knowledge of SLDC is a breach of confidence in the grid management structure. Thus it should be done; [5.] Empowerment of the Load Dispatch Centers which are at the nerve center of Power System Operation in India is extremely essential. States shall take all necessary steps for strengthening and upgrading the State Load Despatch Centres and training of system operators. There should be manpower capacity building by way of training and certification; [6.] Restoration System is required to quickly restore the power system in case of any contingency. It is therefore necessary to have a well laid down restoration procedure under various conditions of partial black out and /or total black out of the system. Essential loads such as traction, mines, nuclear units etc need to be restored on priority. Communication with generating units / SLDCs/ Substations is essential for speedy restoration. All the operating personnel of State Load Dispatch Centres and the officials involved in grid operation should be thoroughly conversant with the restoration procedure; [7.] POSOCO would evolve a contingency load shedding protocol, especially when non frequency related load shedding is required.
· The Minister of Panchayati has said that the his ministry is implementing the e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP) that addresses all core aspects of Panchayats’ functioning viz. Planning, Monitoring, Implementation, Budgeting, Accounting, Social Audit, etc. Under e-Panchayat MMP, 11 Core Common Software applications were planned which collectively constitute the Panchayat Enterprise Suite (PES). Four of these applications namely PRIASoft, PlanPlus, National Panchayat Portal and Local Governance Directory have been rolled out and are in public domain. He further noted that 6 more applications namely Area Profiler, ServicePlus, Asset Directory, ActionSoft, Social Audit and Trainings Management were launched on 24th April, 2012 on the occasion of National Panchayat Day and are in the process of adoption by the States. Since PES adoption is not complete in all Gram Panchayats, the computerization of the functioning of the Gram Panchayats is yet to be achieved. Lack of internet connectivity, power, hardware and insufficient number of trained manpower at Gram Panchayat level are contributing factors in the slow progress of computerization of Panchayats. Further he said, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj is also providing trained faculty to provide trainings on all applications.
· Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers has informed that the Pharmaceutical Policy as amended from time to time also envisages making available quality medicines at affordable price to the masses. For fulfilment of this goal, a Campaign in the name of ‘Jan Aushadhi’ has been launched in 2008. The aim of this campaign is to make available quality medicines at affordable prices for all. Under this campaign, less priced quality unbranded generic medicines will be made available through Jan Aushadhi stores which inherently are less priced but are of same and equivalent quality, efficacy and safety as compared to branded generic medicines. Some of the salient features of this scheme is as under: [1.] Government proposes to start an Initiative for Free Supply of Essential Medicines in Public Health Facilities in the country aiming to provide affordable health care to the people by reducing out of pocket expenses of medicines; [2.] The initiative aims to increase share of public health in health care from a current level of 25-30% to around 50%; [3.] The initiative is based on the Tamil Nadu model where free medicines procured in bulk by the Tamil Nadu Medical Services Corporation (TNMSC), in generic name, directly from the manufacturers is supplied through an IT enabled supply chain management system to the public.
· C-DOT Commemorate 25 Years of Induction of C-DOT RAX in Indian Telecom Network. RAX was the first product developed by C-DOT to go into India’s telecom network at the historic city of Kittur, Karnataka, on 21st July 1986. It required no air- conditioning. It was based on contemporary digital switching technology with microprocessor based controllers and had no moving parts, which gave it immunity against dust, the bane of electromechanical Strowger and Crossbar exchanges in India. It could cater to a total of 80 subscribers and had 24 analog trunks to connect to the city exchange. The C-DOT exchange at Kittur was upgraded to MAX-NC to offer NGN (Next Generation Networks) services. NGN refers to an all Internet Protocol (IP) network which gives great operational advantages to the operators and subscribers alike.
· Ministry of Communication and Information Technology has informed that the Panchayat Sanchar Sewa Kendras (PSSKs) under the ‘Panchayat Sanchar Sewa Yojana’ scheme are opened at the Gram Panchayat Headquarters which are without Post Offices to provide basic postal facilities at Gram Panchayat Headquarters. This scheme is being implemented by the Gram Panchayats through agents appointed by them.
· Coal Minister has informed that the Government has taken various steps to promote clean coal technologies like coal washing, development of Underground Coal Gasification (UCG), Surface coal gasification and Coal Liquefaction or coal to Liquids (CTL), Washing of coal as one of the end uses under Coal Mines (Nationalization) Act 1974 and to facilitate allotment of blocks to the potential entrepreneurs. Further, under a separate policy for development of Coal Bed Methane (CBM)/Coal Mine Methane (CMM) has been put in place for extraction and exploitation of Methane gas from coal seams. The minister said that the Government and UNDP/Global Enviornment Facility funded Coalbed Methane Demonstration & Utilization project at Moonidih mine of Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. (BCCL) in Jharkhand has been successfully implemented
· All the mobile towers are being powered by Electricity and diesel generator sets are used as backup power supply when grid power in not available. Communications and Information Technology has said that to examine the technical feasibility and financial viability of solar wind based power system, pilot project of solar & solar-wind hybrid system to power the Mobile Base Terminal Stations have been carried out. The TRAI recommendations on Green Energy applications have been approved by government and Department has issued following directives to the service providers to adopt measures to green the Telecom sector setting broad directions & goals: [1.] At least 50% of all rural towers and 20% of the urban towers are to be powered by hybrid power (Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) + Grid Power) by 2015, while 75% of rural towers and 33% of urban towers are to be powered by hybrid power by 2020; [2.] The Service Providers to ensure that the total power consumption of each BTS will not exceed 500W by the year 2020; [3.] A phased programme should be put in place by the telecom service providers to have their cell sites, particularly in the rural areas, powered by hybrid renewable sources including wind energy, solar energy, fuel cells or a combination thereof; [4.] Based on the details of footprints declared by all service providers, service providers should aim at Carbon Emission reduction targets for the mobile network at 5% by the year 2012-13, 8% by the year 2014-15, 12% by the year 2016-17 and 17% by the year 2018-19.
· Government has informed that the proposed “Mars Mission” (unmanned orbiter) is under final stage of consideration by the Government for its approval. ISRO proposes to undertake a “Mars Orbiter Mission” during October-November 2013. The objective of the Mission is to demonstrate India’s technological capability to reach Martian orbit and would pave the way for future scientific exploratory missions. The Mars Orbiter is planned for launch using India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-XL) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The cost of the proposed “Mars Orbiter Mission” is Rs. 450 crores and the mission is planned to be completed by 2015-16.
· The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) issues two bio-metric Pehchan Cards under the IT Project ‘Panchdeep’ to the Insured Persons covered under the ESI Scheme. One card is for use of the Insured Person and another one for use by his family. The card has a unique ten-digit Insurance Number. The Bio-metric card is used to access the central database containing all the data like family details, medical history of Insured Person and his family.
· Defence Minister has informed that the Task Force on National Security (Naresh Chandra Committee) constituted by Government has submitted its recommendations. The committee was constituted by the Union Govt to contemporarize the Kargil Review Committee’s recommendations. It was also asked to suggest ways to revamp defence management by examining the state of country’s border management and restructure system. The Kargil Review Committee (KRC), headed by the late K. Subrahmanyam. It has been a decade when it submitted its report. It was on the recommendations made of the committee, a Group of Ministers was set up which suggested huge reforms in the country's security management system. The KRC is thought to be the first major step in revamping the country's security after Independence.
· On the issue of to Use of Army to Tackle Naxalism, Defence Minister said that Indian Army is not being used to tackle problem of Naxalism in our country. Government has constituted a Review Group to promote coordinated efforts across a range of development & security activities to tackle naxal problems in the affected areas in a comprehensive manner. He also said that the CPI (Maoist) sourcing funds through large-scale poppy/ganja cultivation in their strongholds in order to collect money from such illegal cultivation. ‘Police’ and ‘public order’ being State subjects, action with respect to maintenance of law and order lies primarily in the domain of the concerned State Governments, who deal with the various issues related to naxalites activities in the States. The Central Government closely monitors the situation and supplements their efforts over a wide range of schemes, both on security and development fronts. Wherever poppy cultivation is noticed, the Narcotics Control Bureau in coordination with other agencies destroy the crop. The Bureau in coordination with Central and State agencies has formulated an Action Plan for identification and destruction of illicit poppy cultivation. The Action Plan includes using satellite imagery to identify areas under illicit poppy cultivation, constitution of composite teams of district level officers for field verification and destruction of illicit poppy cultivation and initiation of penal action against persons found involved in illicit poppy cultivation.
· Minister of State of Home Affairs has informed that the CPI (Maoist), the main Left Wing Extremist (LWE) group, has been trying to expand its activities in various States of the country. The States of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar and Odisha are considered badly affected by Left Wing Extremism. The States of West Bengal and Maharashtra are considered partially affected. The States of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh are considered slightly affected States. It is further clarified around 26 districts in India account for nearly 80% of the total LWE violence. It is further clarified that the Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme of the Government of India provides ex-gratia payment of Rs.1 lakh to the family of civilians killed and Rs. 3 lakh to family of security personnel killed due to naxal attacks. Also, the Minister said that the Central Government has taken various measures to control Left Wing Extremism which includes augmenting the strength of Central Armed Police Forces; establishment of National Security Guard (NSG) hubs at Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Mumbai; strengthening and re-organizing of Multi-Agency Centre to enable it to function on 24x7 basis; and sanctioning of new Specialized India Reserve Battalions (SIRB). The Central Government also proposes release of funds under the Special Infrastructure Scheme to the States of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha to raise Special Task Force to combat LWE.
· India has successfully test-fired Agni-II Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (indigenously-built; medium range; surface to surface; solid-propelled; nuclear capable; can carry a payload of 1000 kg over a distance of the 2000 km) from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. Agni-II (IRBM) has already been inducted into the services. DRDO first tested the Agni-II in 1999. Since then it has been tested several times.
· Army foiled a major infiltration bid by militants from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) into Gurez sector of J&K during which one soldier was killed. The militants were trying to infiltrate in two groups of five persons each at 500 metres distance from each other.
· A grenade attack by terrorists on a police station in north Kashmir on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road left seven people, including four police personnel wounded last night. The grenade attack came 24 hours after a high-level Core Group meeting was held at the headquarters of 15 Corps to discuss sudden increase in the militant attacks in the Kashmir valley. This was the sixth such attack in the Valley during the past two weeks.
· A CBI team headed by a Special Director visited violence hit Kokrajhar in Assam as part of their investigation. It will investigate the pattern of the violence which displaced 4 lakh people in three districts. The investigative agency is also likely to find out whether the whole incident was the result of any conspiracy. Meanwhile, the situation is improving in the violence marred areas and no untoward incident has been reported from anywhere during the last 72 hours.
· The Minister for Culture has said that the proposal of “Delhi-A heritage City” prepared by INTACH for the purpose of Tentative listing has been included in the tentative List of UNESCO. Thus, Delhi has been included in UNESCO'S World Heritage City list.
· Govt. of NCT of Delhi (GNCTD) has informed that applications have been received from of 1639 unauthorised colonies for regularisation. According to information available, action has been taken against the ineligible societies by way of, interalia, cancellation of Provisional Regularization Certificates issued to them. The salient features of Master Plan Delhi, 2021 with respect to unauthorised colonies are as follows: [1.] It provides for method of regularisation of unauthorised colonies with a focus on improvement of physical and social infrastructure, provision of minimum necessary / feasible level of services and community facilities; [2.] It also provides for reduced space standards to be adopted for the provision of social facilities depending on the availability of land; [3.] It proposes the improvement of unauthorised colonies through redevelopment by ensuring participation of the inhabitants.
· According to the State Urbanisation Report, with a very low fertility rate and stabilising death rate, Kerala is expected to achieve zero population growth rate in 25 to 30 years which will lead to scarcity of labour. The report, prepared by the Department of Town and Country Planning, found that migration from the state and decline in fertility is a cause for low population growth. The very low natural increase in population, low feritlity rate, establish death rate all leads to the third stage of demographic transition in Kerala-- zero population growth rate.
· Govt of Goa started Ladli Laxmi Scheme initiated by Women and Child Welfare department. The scheme is aimed preventing female feticide in the state. Girls who are 18 years and above would be provided with Rs. 1 Lakh for their marriage. This scheme is for those girls who lie between the age group of 18-40 years. Scheme only for girls whose parents are living in Goa for the last 25 years. Besides, the girl should have been born and brought up in the state.
· Bimal Gurung sworn in as the head of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA). GTA is a 50-member semi-autonomous body for trouble-torn Darjeeling hills in West Bengal. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) had emerged victorious on all 45 seats in the Gorkha Territorial Administration election. GTA is the successor of Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council which came into being in 1988. Its formation is the culmination of three-year long agitation which started in 2007 by Bimal Gurung led Gorkha Janmukti Morcha demanding a separate Gorkhaland state. In 2011, when Mamta Banrjee led Trinmool Congress came to power in West Bengal, a tripartite agreement was signed among Union Government, West Bengal Government and GJM with respect to the formation of GTA. As per the legislation passed by West Bengal Legislative Assembly regarding the formation of Gorkha Land, GTA will have administrative, executive and financial powers but no legislative powers.
· The six-lane, access-controlled Yamuna Expressway was finally thrown open via a video link pressed by the chief minister, Akhilesh Yadav, from Lucknow. Now, the drive to Agra from New Delhi should not take more than two-and-a-half hours. While it is believed that the speed limit should be at least 120 kmph, Akhilesh, speaking in Lucknow, repeatedly cautioned commuters not to drive over the designated speed limit of 100 kmph. He asked the Jaypee group, which has built and will maintain the road, to provide parallel service roads for toll-free access and for facilitating movement by villagers. The project has consumed Rs. 12,839 crore. [Click Here for Graphics]
· The Minister of Steel has said that NMDC Limited and M/s Severstal (a Russian company) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up of a three million tonne per annum steel plant in Karnataka under Joint Venture.
· Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs has informed that the Legal and financial assistance is already being provided to Indian women who have been deserted by their NRI husbands by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, National Commission for Women and Non-Governmental Organizations empanelled with the Indian Missions/Posts abroad. He clarified that the Supreme Court in its judgement dated 14th February, 2006 in the case of Seema Vs. Ashwani Kumar has directed that marriages of all persons who are citizens of India belonging to various religions should be made compulsorily registration in their respective States.
· The Government plans to introduce biometric procedures for visa applications from certain foreign countries. External Affairs Minister said a pilot project for the enrolment of biometric procedures is proposed to be undertaken in the Indian missions and posts in the US, UK and Pakistan.
· Minister of State for External Affairs has informed that the Indian Government has consistently urged the Government of Pakistan, on several occasions, to take a sympathetic and humanitarian view in the case of Shri Sarabjit Singh. Prime Minister was assured by President Musharraf during their meeting in New York in 2005, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly that he would look at the question of clemency to Sarabjit Singh in a humanitarian way. On June 27, 2012, External Affairs Minister (EAM) renewed the request to the President of Pakistan to release Sarabjit Singh. The issue was also taken up with Pakistan during the Foreign Secretary level talks held on July 4-5, 2012 in New Delhi.
· Minister of State for External Affairs has informed that the Indian Government has seen reports on the atrocities on Hindus, Sikhs and Sindhis in Pakistan. While, the Simla Agreement of 1972 between India and Pakistan specifically provides for non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, nevertheless, based on reports of persecution of minority groups in Pakistan, Government had taken up the matter with the Government of Pakistan. The Government of Pakistan stated that it was fully cognizant of the situation and looked after the welfare of all its citizens, particularly the minority community.
· The Minister for Culture has said that the Cambodian Government had raised the issue of the construction of a replica of Angkor Wat temple in Bihar, India, with the Indian Mission in Cambodia. She further said, the promoters of the project in Bihar have given an assurance to the local authorities in Bihar that they would not construct the temple as a replica of Angkor Wat. The Embassy of India in Cambodia has replied that the replica of Angkor Wat would not be constructed.
· An Indian-origin US scientist and his colleagues have developed a new technology called “Standing Wave Axial Nanometry (SWAN)” that can precisely measure single biological molecules. It is a mix of Optical and Atomic forces technologies. It can measure height and give complete 3 D structure of a single biological molecule.
· The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) came up as the world's largest bourse in terms of the number of trades it made in equity segment for the first 6 months of 2012. The ranking is done by World Federation of Exchanges (WFE). The factors which helped NSE to top the list was its expanding investor base. NSE is followed by NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX.
· According to the UNCTAD’s World investment Report, 2012, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows of USD 685 Billion were received in developing economies of the World during 2011, of which India received 4.6% i.e. USD 32 Billion, as against USD 24 Billion in 2010. China (124) being the top which is followed by Hong Kong (83), Brazil (67), Singapore (64), British Virgin Islands (54), India (32), Mexico (20), Indonesia (19) and Chile (17).
· According to US-based global management consulting firm, A.T. Keamey, vide its Report on 2012 Global Retail Development Index, India has been ranked the fifth most attractive destination for retail investment among 30 developing countries. The Report further states that India remains a high-potential market with accelerated retail market growth of 15 to 20 per cent expected over the next five years. It further mentions that the growth is supported by strong macro economic conditions including a 6 to 7 percent rise in GDP, higher disposable incomes and rapid urbanization.
· In Libya, the ruling National Transitional council, or the General National Congress, has handed over power to the newly elected National Assembly in a late night ceremony in the capital Tripoli. NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil passed on the reins to the oldest member of the new 200-member assembly, Mohammed Ali Salim. Former opposition leader Mohammed el-Megarif has been elected as the country’s interim President by the National Assembly. The new interim President is an economist and a former Libyan ambassador to India who had lived in exile since the 1980s.
· China's inflation dipped to a 30-month low in July, giving policymakers a bigger cushion to boost stimulus measures to spur economic growth. Annual consumer inflation eased to 1.8pc in July from 2.2pc in June, pulling back further from a three-year high last July of 6.5pc, official data released on Thursday showed. China has been looking to spur domestic consumption amid a slowing global demand for its exports. China's economy grew at its slowest pace in three years in the second quarter.
· Japan has urged the South Korean President, Lee Myung-Bak, not to make a planned visit to the disputed islands that lie half way between the two countries and controlled by the South Koreans, known to them as Dokdo and to the Japanese as Takeshima.
· Peter O'Neill has been elected new PM of Papua New Guinea's Parliament.
· Supreme Court of Pakistan annulled the new Contempt of Court Act 2012 which was brought in to protect the new prime minister from being charged with contempt and removed from his office like his predecessor Yousuf Rza Gilani.
· NASA's experimental low-cost Project Morpheus lander prototype, designed to carry cargo to the moon and other space destinations, crashed and burst into flames seconds after take-off at the Kennedy Space Centre.
· As per warnings of NASA, the Earth might face an intense summer heat wave than what it faced b/w 1951 to 1980. Agency reveals that over the past 30 years the northern hemisphere has seen more "hot", "very hot"and “extremely hot” summers (as classified by the agency).
Earth's northern hemisphere, which has 90 % of the planet's land, has become much more susceptible to experience an extreme summer heat wave compared to a base period from 1951 to 1980.
· President Congratulates Mary Kom for Winning Bronze Medal in Women’s Boxing in the fly-weight 51 kg at the London Olympics. “This is a great achievement and should inspire women as well sports persons throughout the nation”, said President.
· Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt clinched his second straight Olympic gold medal in the men's 100m. [Click here for Graphics]
· Star swimmer Michael Phelps of US created history as he won Gold in the Men's 200-metre Individual Medley. Phelps has now become the first man to win this event at three consecutive Olympic Games.