{DNN} Daily News Notes: 4th to 9th Nov, 2012

· The Home Ministry has roped in the National Skill Development Corporation, NSDC to impart training to youth from the Naxal-affected states in vocational courses like computer and mobile phone repairing, motor mechanic, catering, hospitality, carpentry, nursing assistant and driving. 1,500 youths will be enrolled in the three-month training course beginning next month; while 2,000 more will be trained in the next fiscal. The Ministry will bear the expenses up to 30,000 rupees for each youth. The NSDC will ensure their placement in corporate sectors after the training. The Nehru Yuva Kendra will select youths from Naxal-hit areas in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Bihar, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh for the course.
· In Tamil Nadu, the delta farmers of Thanjavur, Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur districts, who were yearning for more Cauvery water for their samba crops, are now trying to tackle the problem caused by the north-east monsoon rain water flooding their crops. The district administrations of the delta district is busy draining out the water seeped into the paddy fields. If the excess water is not removed immediately, the farmers who lost Kuruvai cultivation due to lack of enough water will lose Samba cultivation because of too much water. The scheme of Integrated Textile Parks has been successful in terms of leveraging private sector investment, employment generation and creation of need-based and product based world class state of the art infrastructure for the industry. With the increasing costs of production in the established clusters and highlighted emphasis on environmental compliances, there is a growing need for establishment of such green field textile parks.
· The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved to start implementation and issuing financial sanction to the 21 Integrated Textile Parks sanctioned in the 11th Plan. In October 2010, the CCEA approved a proposal for sanction of additional Parks under Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP) to utilize the balance Rs.200 crore in the 11th Plan. The scheme of Integrated Textile Parks has been successful in terms of leveraging private sector investment, employment generation and creation of need-based and product based world class state of the art infrastructure for the industry. With the increasing costs of production in the established clusters and highlighted emphasis on environmental compliances, there is a growing need for establishment of such green field textile parks.
· Sikkim will soon be the first state in the country to provide 'pucca' houses to all its residents as it has launched a mega social housing mission of quality housing (Chief Minister's Rural Housing Mission) to families living in hutments. Under the 211 crore rupee ambitious project, 6,000 poor household dwellers living in 'kutcha' houses will be given a single storey earthquake-resistant new 'pucca' house free of cost by the end of 2013. Each spacious house will have two bedrooms, a kitchen-cum-dining room, a toilet and a verandah in the front portion measuring a plinth area of 605 sq ft each.
· President confers Dr Durgabai Deshmukh awards for the years 2005, 2006 and 2007: [1.] The eighth Award for 2005 was jointly given to Mizoram Hmeithai (Widows) Association and People’s Forum, Bhubaneswar. The Mizoram Hmeithai (Widows) Association has been working to bring succour and relief to thousands of widows and destitute women and hundreds of abandoned orphan children. The People’s Forum, Bhubaneswar was awarded for its landmark services in the rescue and rehabilitation of hundreds of mentally ill women and for its exemplary work with women in distress; [2.] The ninth Award for the year 2006 was awarded to Sumangali Seva Ashram of Bangalore. The main activities of the Sumangali Seva Ashram are care, education and development of deserted, orphan and needy children and socio-economic opportunities for development of women; [3.] Snehalaya of Ahmednagar was awarded the tenth Award for the year 2007 for its landmark work in the rehabilitation of women of red light areas and other destitute women.
· Finance Minister P Chidambaram has said, the government will borrow more to fund a fiscal deficit that is now estimated at 5.3 per cent of GDP this fiscal year. The additional borrowing above the previous target of 5.1 per cent will amount to at least 3.72 billion US dollars. Previously the government had pegged gross market borrowing for the current fiscal year at 106.04 billion US dollars to finance a fiscal deficit that was originally projected at 5.1 per cent. Last month, sluggish tax revenues and high spending on subsidies such as food, fuel and fertilizer forced the government to revise the deficit target to 5.3 per cent. [Click here for Infographic]
· Chief Electoral Officer of Gujarat has said that officers and employees involved in the election process would be considered as ‘voters on election duty’ and would be given the facility of postal voting. However, such personnel would have to be registered as voters in their respective areas. Election Commission is also considering videographers as well as officials of expense monitoring teams, control room, help line staff deputed for maintenance of EVMs and other works on the day of polling for postal voting. Further, in a bid to increase the participation of disabled voters in the Gujarat Assembly polls next month, the Election Commission has introduced Braille numbers and ballot papers besides setting up ramps at polling booths for their convenience. The visually challenged voters will be able to read the names of candidates with the help of Braille ballot paper at the polling booths. Thereafter, they can seal their votes by pressing the Braille numbers corresponding to the name of the candidates they wish to vote for. Though Braille voting was possible even during the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission is making an extra effort this time to spread awareness among people with special challenges to exercise their franchise. Also, the Election Commission has decided to appoint police observers and Awareness observers, apart from regular poll observers in Gujarat. This is the first time that Police Observers and Awareness Observers would be in place in the Gujarat Assembly Elections. Police observers will be appointed to ensure free and fair polls, while, the awareness observers will take a stock of Election Commission’s “Systematic Voters’ Education and Electoral Participation” or SVEEP- programme and present a progress report.
· Union Telecom Minister has launched the South Asian Archive, a new online research and teaching resource developed by Routledge and the South Asia Research Foundation. The Archive would facilitate digital access to an extensive collection of original research material, which includes journals, rare books, film ephemera, census reports and other documentation.
· The Union Cabinet has approved the proposal for change in funding arrangement for the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) schemes, including the funding of the scheme for creation of National Optical Fiber Network (NOFN) from Non-Plan to Plan allocation in Budget. Earlier the Department of Telecommunications proposed to restore the budgetary allocations towards USOF expenditure under Non-Plan Budget to avoid procedural delays and ensure timely allocation of funds, while submitting the proposal regarding scheme for creation of the National Optical Fiber Network (NOFN) for Broadband connectivity to Panchayats, which was approved by Cabinet in October 2011.
· The Andhra Pradesh High Court termed the life-ban imposed on Indian Cricketer Azaruddin illegal on the petition filed by him. In connection with the match fixing allegations, the BCCI has imposed the life ban against the cricketer after an inquiry in 2008. The BCCI had acted against Azaruddin after former South African Captain Cronie went public agreeing his involvement in the match fixing and made revelations that Azaruddin had introduced him. After ordering enquiry into the matter, the BCCI had imposed ban on Ajay Jadeja for five years while life ban against Azaruddin.
· National level NSCI Safety Awards, 2011 for organisations in manufacturing, construction and MSME sectors were presented by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment. In manufacturing sector, the 1st level award is won by the Kakrapar Atomic Power Station of Nuclear Power Corporation Ltd. located at Tapi, Gujarat. The construction division of Lanco Infratech Ltd, Korba, Chhatisgarh has bagged the Sarva Shreshtha Suraksha Puraskar in the construction sector. In MSME sector Nobel Synthetics Pvt. Ltd, Navi Mumbai is the winner of the Sarva Shreshtha Suraksha Puraskar. These Awards are given to recognize factories, construction sites and MSMEs for establishing and implementing effective occupational safety & health management systems and achieving outstanding performance during the assessment period. The assessment period for the Award year 2011 for the organisations in manufacturing & MSME sectors was three years, from 2008 to 2010 and for construction establishments one year – 2010.
· Top leaders of three Naga underground groups, which had signed the Covenant of Reconciliation (CoR), have expressed commitment towards the peace process initiated by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR). As part of its ongoing "Journey of Common Hope," the Forum had facilitated a meeting between senior functionaries of Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland, NSCN. NSCN(I-M) had signed the ceasefire with the Centre in 1997 and since then political talks are going on for a permanent solution to the problem.
· The Supreme Court has expressed concern over smog conditions in the Capital caused by high pollution and decided to examine the problem and suggest remedial measures. At this juncture counsel, appearing for the Central Pollution Control Board, told the Court that it was because of bad fumes caused by vehicular pollution. He said all public transport vehicles had now been fitted with CNG but the number of cars like sedans and SUVs with diesel engines had gone up.
· Banker and New York based- author Ruchir Sharma was awarded the Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for his “Breakout Nations: In Pursuit of the Next Economic Miracles”. The authors shortlisted included Nilanjana Roy (The Wildings), Sudha Shah (The King in Exile), Sudheendra Kulkarni (Music of the Spinning Wheel), Naresh Fernandes (Mahal Foxtrot), Ruchir Sharma (Breakout Nations) and Aman Sethi (A Free Man) whose books were all introduced by journalist and jury member Dileep Padgaonkar. The other jury members included Anil Dharker, Santosh Desai, Ashutosh Pandey and Siddharth Shanghvi.
· The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has launched its ‘Public Data Portal’ (data.uidai.gov.in) for the Aadhaar project in line with the National Data Sharing & Accessibility Policy (NSDAP) 2012. The portal will enable the public to access several anonymised datasets generated in the UIDAI ecosystem. Apart from adhering to the requirements of the Right to Information Act of providing information suo-moto to the public at regular intervals through the Internet, the UIDAI proactively puts out quarterly statements of its expenditure, various technical documents related to biometrics, proof of concept studies and working papers in the public domain.
· India Tourism has launched two new campaigns: an International Campaign called ‘Find What You Seek’ and a Domestic Campaign called ‘Go Beyond’. These campaigns where launched at the recently concluded “World Travel Market-2012”, which was held at London. The Union Tourism Minister Shri Chiranjeevi who attended WTM- 2012 told that the launch of these campaigns reflects a very important paradigm shift in our strategy to promote India within the country and abroad. The ‘Go Beyond’ campaign focuses on promoting lesser known destinations to domestic as well as international tourists. The Tourism Minister said the second phase of Incredible India campaign (launched in 2002) is “Find What You Seek”. He said “Tourists from the world over can find the destination or product of their desire in India, be it heritage sites, forts, beaches, backwaters, lakes, mountains, adventure, wildlife, culture, festivals, medical, wellness, MICE, religion or shopping. India offers something for everyone and that is why we proudly say that India is an incredible destination with a range of products as found nowhere else. It is truly in India, you will find what you are seeking”. Shri Chiranjeevi also announced that during WTM 2012, India was conferred with three awards by the World Travel Awards organization. These awards were, Asia’s leading destination, Asia’s leading tourist attraction – Taj Mahal and Asia’s leading tourist Board. The Union Tourism Minister said that India would be hosting the next meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for South Asia and Far East & Pacific in April – May next year in Hyderabad. India is currently the chairperson of the UNWTO Regional Commission for South Asia. Shri Chiranjeevi expressed his happiness over the fact that UK has withdrawn its advisory against travel to Jammu and Kashmir.
· In its efforts to make women in the state self- reliant, the Maharashtra Government has proposed to set up separate trade zones for women in the state. Women will now be able to run their own businesses in these specially demarcated zones after availing special licenses and movable stalls. The state government is also planning to organise special marketing and packaging training camps for women. Special licences will also be given to women's Self Help Groups to set up businesses below bridges and flyovers in Mumbai and Maharashtra.
· In a bid to prevent crime, especially against women, the Assam government has raised a special women commando force for Guwahati, which is regarded as the first of its kind in the country. The specially trained women force was necessitated after the GS Road molestation incident in July this year. The 100 member force raised from various women battalions will showcase their skills as new commandos. They have been trained in martial arts, wushu and motor driving along with handling of modern weapons. The commandos will be divided into small groups and deploy in Guwahati city. They will patrol the streets on motor cycles and also conduct decoy operations.
· There is an urgent need to construct about 700 bridges in the difficult terrains of Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and the northeastern States to secure the country’s boundaries at these high altitudes. As per estimates, it will require construction of 35 km when the construction cost per metre of bridge ranges from Rs.6 lakh to Rs.10 lakh at those high altitudes. This means the country will have to arrange for a whopping Rs.25,000 crore at current prices to put these bridges in place over a span of five to seven years. The concern to speed up the construction of these bridges was raised at a two-day International Seminar on Pre Engineered and Quick Launch Bridges, organised jointly by the Border Roads Organisation and Indian Institution of Bridge of Engineers. Further, Railway Board Chairman has also pointed out that with 33,000 rail bridges over a hundred years old it had become imperative to evolve technology that would facilitate quick construction of bridges. Similarly to eliminate 13,500 unmanned level crossings, road over bridges were needed.
· Agriculture and Food Processing Industries Minister has inaugurated a world-class institution in food processing sector – called NIFTEM - at kundli, Haryana. NIFTEM or the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management has been conferred Deemed University status. The institute has begun its first academic session this summer. One important aspect of its functioning is that it has ‘theme centres’ on different sectors such as dairying, cereal-based products, animal protein, beverages, confectionery, and fruit and vegetable based foods. There are also themes cutting across these sectors, e.g. management, packaging, food standards and testing. NIFTEM would work actively in setting food standards, businesses incubation and information sharing. It would be an apex institution in the field of food technology and management and would coordinate its various activities with other institutions in this area.
· In an endeavour to create a roadmap for the next five years for innovative technologies and policies for biofuels development in India, the Department of Biotechnology along with The Energy and Resources Institute(TERI) launched a two day International Summit on ‘Bioenergy: Algae Biofuel & Synthetic Biology 2012’. The Minister of Science and Technology & Earth Sciences also released “The Bioenergy Road-Map – Vision 2020” of Department of Biotechnology.
· The first ever National Conference on Ageing was held by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. It is a well-known fact that the 21st century is witnessing a gradual transition to an ageing society all over the world. Ageing poses twin challenges. First, we need to ensure care and protection of the elderly so that they can lead a healthy, dignified and productive life. Second, the older people must be looked upon as partners in progress rather than as a burden on the society, which is the case if their existence is seen from the prism of contribution to the GDP. As per the 2001 census, the total population of the Senior Citizens (60+) was 7.7 crore. This was composed of 3.8 crore males and 3.9 crore females. The population of the senior citizens thus constituted 7.5% of the total population in 2001. The final figures of the 2011 census on this subject are not out yet. However, as per the Report of the Technical Group on Population Projections, constituted by the National Commission on Population in May 2006, and published by the Office of the Registrar General of India, this figure is projected to go up to 12.40% of the population by 2026. Various initiatives taken by the GOI to ensure that the process of ageing for the people is both active and productive are: [1.] The existing National Policy on Older Persons (NPOP) was announced in 1999. This envisages State support for the elderly to ensure financial and food security, health care, shelter, protection against abuse and exploitation, and training of human resources for their care and support etc. The Policy is sensitive to the need for the development of a social support system, informal as well as formal, so that the capacity of families to take care of the older persons is strengthened and they continue to care for the older members in their family; [2.] An institutional mechanism has been put in place to monitor the implementation of the policy and to advise the Government in the formulation and implementation of programmes for the aged through a body called the National Council for Older Persons. This body has now been renamed as the National Council of Senior Citizens; [3.] Giving legislative backing to the Policy, the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act was enacted in 2007. The Act, inter alia, makes maintenance of parents and senior citizens by their children, and where there are no children, by their relatives, obligatory and justiciable through Tribunals. It empowers the senior citizens to revoke any transfer of property, which they may have made in favour of a relative, in case of negligence by such relatives. It contains penal provisions for the abandonment of senior citizens; it provides for the establishment of Old Age Homes for indigent senior citizens; and it also envisages protection of the life and property of senior citizens. This Act has to be brought into force by individual State Governments. The Act is not applicable to the State of Jammu & Kashmir, while Himachal Pradesh has its own Act. As per the information available with me, all the other State Governments and the Union Territory Administrations have brought the Act into force in their respective jurisdictions; [4.] In order to improve the quality of life of the older persons, the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment is implementing a flagship scheme called the Integrated Programme for Older Persons since 1992. This scheme seeks to provide basic amenities like shelter, food, medical care as well as entertainment opportunities to encourage productive and active ageing. Under the Scheme, financial assistance up to 90% is provided to Governments/Non-Governmental Organizations/Panchayati Raj Institutions/local bodies etc. The assistance is provided for running and maintaining Old Age Homes, Day Care Centres, Mobile Medicare Units, Day Care Centres for Alzheimer's disease/dementia patients, Physiotherapy Clinics for older persons, sensitization programmes for children in schools and colleges; Regional Resource and Training Centres, etc. About 350 NGOs are being supported every year for running and maintaining around 550 projects under the Scheme; [5.] The demand for Caregivers for Older Persons has been increasing in the recent past. To cater to this requirement, the National Institute of Social Defence (NISD) is implementing a project called the National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly. The main objective is to create a pool of skilled care givers, and to enhance the capabilities of service providers in the area of old age care; [6.] Various Central Ministries and Departments of the Government of India are also implementing a number of welfare programmes for the senior citizens. A few of these schemes are the Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development; the National Programme for the Health Care for the Elderly, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare; the income tax benefits, which are being extended by the Ministry of Finance; the rail fare concessions which are being extended by the Ministry of Railways; the air fare concessions which are being extended by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Further, the Ministry of Home Affairs has issued an advisory to the State Governments in 2005 to ensure that the life and property of senior citizens is fully protected.
· The Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the information technology (IT) arm of the Indian Railways has launched Rail Radar, which allows the public to track train movement.
The Rail Radar system is primarily aimed at disseminating information about all the running trains at any point of time. Railyatri.in, a start-up has partnered with the Railways to provide real-time train information. The Railways also aims to enable GPS tracking on the entire network. CRIS plans to install GPS devices in 10,000 locomotives.
· Army troops deployed along the China border from Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh have reported more than 100 sightings of “Unidentified Flying Objects” (UFOs) in the past three months. Agencies like the army and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) have not yet been able to identify these objects. Reports suggested that these yellowish spheres lift off from the horizon on the Chinese side and traverse the sky for three to five hours before disappearing. Army officials have expressed concern over the inability of agencies to identify the objects, which some believe could be Chinese surveillance equipment. The officials confirmed that these UFOs were not Chinese drones or satellites. They said the army had also moved a mobile ground-based radar unit and a spectrum analyser to verify the object’s identity, but could not detect the object that was being tracked visually, indicating it was non-metallic.
· Residents of Thamna village in Anand have set up a plant that produces natural gas. Thamna Bio-Power and Organic Producers Company Ltd, owned by 700 farmers of Thamna, produces enough gas to run a 15 horse-power three-phase pump to supply irrigation water. But they are dreaming big. By February, they want to produce 1,000 cubic metres of natural gas daily and sell to its farmers and locals at a cheaper rate. The Rs 1.75-crore bio-power plant, which will use 150 tonnes of organic waste daily to produce methane gas, will have a mini-refinery attached to convert methane into compressed natural gas (CNG). In effect they will produce 600 kg CNG daily, enough to meet a major portion of the village’s fuel needs. “The gas will be sold in bottles which can be used in auto-rickshaws, tractors and cars and also for cooking. While the price will be fixed by the board of the company, it will be cheaper than the market rates,” said 64-yearold Chandrakant Patel, Thamna’s NRI sarpanch, who returned to the village from the US.
· Central Water commission is monitoring storage position of 84 important reservoirs spread all over the country, of which as many as 37 reservoirs are having significant hydro-power benefits with installed capacities of more than 60 MW each. The combined live storage in these 84 reservoirs at the beginning of monsoon i.e. 1.6.2012 was 19% of their designed capacity and stood at 73% of designed capacity as on 25.10.2012. The present storage is 90% of last year’s storage and 105% of last 10 years average storage during the same period. Further, the storage position in Ganga, Narmada, Tapi, Mahi, Indus Sabarmati and Mahanadi & Neighbouring EFRs basins is better than average of previous 10 years. Godavari and West Flowing Rivers of South basins are close to normal whereas Rivers of Kutch, Krishna and Cauvery & Neighbouring EFRS basins are deficient.
· The HIV-AIDS laboratory in New Delhi has found that the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type I (HIV-1) has been undergoing a process of evolution in India over the past decade and possibly in other parts of the world. The study — with 165 samples — conducted from 2010 to 2011 by a group of scientists found the emergence and expansion of three to five new strains of HIV-1 rapidly replacing the standard viral strain. The new viral strains appear to contain a stronger viral promoter. In the laboratory experiments, the new HIV strains make more daughter viruses [multiplied] as compared to the standard viral strains. Additionally, people infected with the new HIV strains seem to contain more of the virus in their blood. A similar process of viral evolution has also been observed in other countries such as South Africa, China and southern Brazil. The experimental data was generated only through a cross-sectional analysis (from a single time point) and not a longitudinal analysis. The data, therefore, should be considered only suggestive and not conclusive.
· Ratan N. Tata has stepped down as Chairman of Tata Power and Cyrus P. Mistry has been appointed Chairman. Mr. Tata will, however, continue on the board of Tata Power till his retirement in December 2012, thus making Mr. Mistry as the Tata Group’s chairman. Mr. Mistry was inducted on the board of Tata Power on December 23, 2011. He also served on the board of Tata Power earlier for 10 years (from 1996 to 2006). A Director of Tata Sons since 2006, he was appointed Deputy Chairman of Tata Sons in November 2011.
· In the latest move on its social welfare agenda, the government may expand its pension scheme, widening the net for widows, single and divorced women, disabled people, Dalits and tribal senior citizens, as well as increasing the amount paid to older people. The Rural Development Ministry, which is proposing the expansion, estimates the additional cost at more than Rs. 18,000 crore per year. The Ministry has just accepted the recommendations made by a panel, set up in June, to study the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), which consists of pension schemes for various disadvantaged groups. The biggest financial implication would come from the recommendation to universalise assistance for the disabled. Currently, only those below the poverty line (BPL) are eligible. Only those with more than 80 per cent disability – a definition which leaves out many with severe hearing impairments, or even amputations of the lower parts of legs or arms – are eligible. Children are not covered. The panel recommended that assistance provided to poor families on the death of the “primary breadwinner” – interpreted as male – needs to be expanded to include all earning members, including women. The panel had also suggested that the NSAP be re-converted into a centrally-sponsored scheme, with a mandatory condition that State governments contribute at least an additional 25 per cent. States would be free to implement additional schemes as well.
· Speaking at the World Economic Forum meeting, Comptroller and Auditor-General Vinod Rai sought constitutional status for the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Central Vigilance Commission to make them effective instruments for fighting corruption. Mr. Rai said the CBI and the CVC were not independent, that was why people called them a “handmaid of government.” “If Lokpal is expected to function with autonomy and total independence, you will have to guarantee a constitutional mandate.”
· Now that a group of women activists from Jammu & Kashmir were allowed to cross over the Line of Control into `Azad Jammu & Kashmir’ (AJK) for an intra-Kashmir cross-LoC dialogue in Muzaffarabad, the expectation is that such crossings will be facilitated by both countries to allow more such interactions. At the end of the three-day meeting, the two sides sought a relaxation in the cross-LoC travel regime. In place of the current security clearance procedures involved in getting an entry permit, participants at the conference suggested a smart card to facilitate free movement of State subjects across the LoC. Also, they demanded that the travel facility be extended to post-1990 refugees living in `AJK’ besides hassle-free travel for senior citizens and provision for emergency travel. The women decided to form a cross-LoC coalition for peace in Kashmir and act as an advocacy-cum-pressure group to make their voice heard. Other recommendations included consolidating the ceasefire on the LoC by relocating heavy artillery/mortars and removing landmines that obstruct free movement of people and cause civilian casualties; gradual demilitarisation, including that of Siachen glacier and turning it into a peace park; and providing justice to the victims of the conflict, especially widows, `half widows,’ disappeared persons, displaced/refugees and rehabilitation of youth. They called for setting up an independent Truth & Reconciliation Commission in J&K to address grievances of victims of the conflict, ending human rights violations and scrapping draconian laws. This was the third such interaction between women peace activists on both sides of the divide; the earlier two were held in Srinagar and Gulmarg.
· China's economy is likely to overtake the euro zone's this year, India is leapfrogging Japan and by 2030 the Asian pair will be bigger than the United States, euro area and Japan combined, the Paris-based OECD said. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said the combined gross domestic product of China and India was likely to exceed that of all the current Group of Seven rich economies by around 2025. Their output in 2010 was less than half the G7's GDP. Measured in 2005 PPPs, China and India will account for 28 percent and 11 percent respectively of the output of 42 major economies by 2030, compared with 18 percent for the United States, 12 percent for the euro zone and 4 percent for Japan. Until 2020, China will have the highest growth rate among the countries studied, but it will then be surpassed by India and Indonesia as its working-age population rapidly declines. However, China has a big start over India thanks to strong productivity growth and intensive investment in the past decade.
· The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of External Affairs are jointly hosting the International “EAS-India Workshop 2012: Building a Regional Framework for Earthquake Risk Management” on November 8-9, 2012 in New Delhi, as a follow up of the announcement made by the Prime Minister at the 6th East Asia Summit (EAS) held in Indonesia in November last year regarding India’s intention to host an EAS Workshop on Disaster Management in 2012. The main objectives of the two day Workshop is to bring all EAS member countries together to discuss capacity building using national response mechanisms; exchange views on regional response mechanisms following a major earthquake in the region; discuss issues pertaining to the countries in the region to enable development of regional approach towards coordination of logistics, response, rescue, relief and recovery to minimize the impact on lives and assets. The workshop is also aimed at seeking synergies through increased dialogue and stakeholders participation at the regional level for sharing best practices and evolve a roadmap towards development of a regional emergency response to post earthquake scenarios on establishment of clear channels of communication for international assistance.
· The first ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on cooperation in Renewable Energy was held in New Dlhi. The Global Renewable Energy Status Report 2012 reveals that renewable energy has grown to supply 16.7 per cent of the global energy consumption. India stands among the top five countries of the world in terms of renewable energy installed capacity and at present renewable power, with over 26 GW installed capacity, represents about 12.5 percent of the total installed power generation capacity in India. India aims to achieve about 55 GW of renewable power by 2017. Also, India’s renewable energy programme is primarily private sector driven and offers significant investment and business opportunities. The investment in renewable energy in India has now exceeded US $ 10 billion per year. Thus, this meeting is a beginning to explore new horizons, new pathways to cooperation and new solutions to existing challenges. It aims to foster greater dialogue, greater sharing and increased interactions at institutional as well as industry levels among ASEAN countries and India.
· The Union Cabinet has approved the third phase of the Small Development Projects in Afghanistan. The outlay on the third phase of the Small Development Projects in USD 100 million. The projects will be implemented over a period of four years through local Afghan Government Bodies, Community Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Charitable Trusts and Education and Vocational Institutions. The expenditure on the projects will be met from the Non-Plan head of 'Aid to Afghanistan’ budget of the Ministry of External Affairs. The Small Development Projects directly impact local communities and support social-economic development, provide livelihood, help conserve environmental and cultural heritage, empower women, promote child welfare and facilitate community life through creation of infrastructure in the education, health, agriculture and agro-industry, renewable energy, trade, transport and communication, recreation and community development sectors. The Small Development Projects were earlier implemented in two phases: the first in July 2006 comprising 50 projects worth USD 112 million; and the second in June 2008 comprising 51 projects worth USD 85 million. Most of the projects in the two phases have been completed.
· India, in cooperation with UNESCO, is hosting the 9th E-9 Ministerial Review Meeting in New Delhi from 9- 10 November, 2012.This year’s theme of the meeting, on ‘Inclusive, Relevant and Quality Education for All’, looks at similar challenges that the E-9 countries are facing, country-specific developments in education since the last E-9 meeting in 2010 with ongoing monitoring till 2015. The E-9 Initiative was launched in 1993 in New Delhi at the Education For All (EFA) Summit of the nine high-population countries. The “E” stands for education and the “9” represents the nine highly populated countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan. The member countries are home not only to more than 60 per cent of the world's population, but also to more than 70 percent of the world’s adult illiterates, about two-thirds of whom are women and girls, and more than half of it out-of-school children. Based on the discussions, the E9 countries will chalk out a plan of action to further relevant quality education in the respective countries which will be followed up over the next two years. Their focus will be on the challenges of improving education quality and how those challenges can be addressed collectively and cooperatively by E-9 Countries.
· India is likely to be told this week that Britain plans to cut its £280 million a year aid to it following growing domestic pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron to stop funding emerging economic powers such as India, China and Brazil at a time when Britain itself faces a serious economic crisis. However, India has already made it clear repeatedly that it does not want British aid. President Pranab Mukherjee dismissed it as “peanuts” when he was the Finance Minister.
· Expressing concern over terrorists taking the stock market route for raising funds for their operations, Indian Home Minister, while addressing the Interpol General Assembly in Rome, sought international cooperation among Interpol members in dealing with the issue. Raising the issue of the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, in which an Interpol Red Notice has been issued against underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and others, Mr. Shinde said: “I am constrained to point out that in spite of regular dialogue and credible evidence, the masterminds of one of the most heinous [acts] of terror of the last century — i.e., the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts in which 257 people died and 713 were injured — are still sitting in safe havens and are yet to be brought to book. Their presence in a neighbouring country is well known and Red Notices against them, who are Indian nationals, are pending since 1993.” The Minister suggested that Interpol collect and make available for the benefit of its member-states an online compendium of rules to be followed in various nation states for assistance in arrest, search, seizure, extradition, surveillance, collection of material evidence, examination and recording of evidence of witnesses, examination of suspects and the various agencies and departments involved in the process.
· During the meeting between Indian PM and his visiting Canadian counterpart, Stephen Harper, both the countries have succeeded in finalising the mechanism that could lead to Canadian uranium being shipped to India for the first time after New Delhi carried out a nuclear explosion in 1974 using plutonium allegedly diverted from a Canadian test reactor. However, India’s concerns about the revival of Sikh separatist activity in some Canadian provinces did not find adequate resonance with the visiting delegation, which felt it was a fringe movement on which a vigilant eye was adequate. The two sides also signed a social security agreement which had been in the works for some time. India believes Canada-based Sikh extremists had bombed an Air India plane killing 331, besides supporting the bloody movement for Khalistan that was waged in Punjab till the early nineties. But Mr. Harper said the view widely shared in Canada was that such people were marginal and referred to the presence of a large number of Indian-Canadians in his team who shared his goal of more vigorous ties with India. In Canada, some parties want India to prosecute the killers of about 3,000 Sikhs in 1984 and feel organisations based there are well within their rights to peacefully articulate the need for a separate homeland.
· The India Business Forum, IBF, a platform for Indian companies in Egypt, has been launched in Cairo. The forum under the aegis of the Confederation of Indian Industries will provide a platform for the Indian companies in Egypt to expand their outreach in the north African nation. The IBF would also play the role of a catalyst in enhancing trade and investment between the two countries. The forum, which is already active in UK, US, China, Singapore and South Africa will be the voice of the Indian Industry in Egypt by promoting the Brand India in Egypt. Despite the global economic downturn and the developments in Egypt, bilateral trade between India and Egypt has gone up by 33 percent from 3.2 billion US dollars to 4.2 billion US dollars in 2011-12 which is a testimony to the strength of ties. Indian exports during the last one year went up by 29 %, rising to nearly 1.94 billion US dollars. Indian imports during the same period have grown up by 36 percent to 2.3 billion US dollars. India is now Egypt’s 7th largest trading partner and the second largest destination of Egypt’s exports after Italy.
· The UN Security Council, under India's presidency, has imposed global sanctions against the dreaded Pakistan-based Haqqani militant network and the group's chief of suicide operations, Qari Zakir. The Council's Afghanistan Sanctions Committee had added the Haqqani group and Qari Zakir to its list of entities which face an assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo. The move comes the same day that the US State Department designated Zakir as a global terrorist and imposed financial sanctions against him.
· Scores of Hindus participated in a special ceremony held at the historic Katasraj Temple in Pakistan's Punjab province following the restoration of its holy pond (Shri Amar Kund). The pond had begun drying up due to excessive use of groundwater by a nearby cement factory. The Punjab government took steps to revive the pond after it dried up this summer. The Punjab government too facilitated the trip to the temple by the Hindus.
· The opposition Syrian National Council begins a four-day meeting in Qatar capital Doha for an overhaul in the leadership and forge a united front by including more rebel groups fighting in Syria. The move comes in the wake of reports that US has been pushing for a new leadership with fewer Syrian exiles and more military commanders fighting on the ground in Syria. According to reports, under the new plan, called the Syrian National Initiative, a 50 member body will be set up to include representatives of the rebels’ Free Syrian army, political groups and local councils in Syria. The SNC would also be included but its influence would be diluted significantly. Further, the UN Special envoy on Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi has said that a United Nations Security Council resolution to set up a transitional Syrian government on the basis of the Geneva Declaration can provide a solution to the crisis in Syria. The Geneva Declaration agreed upon by major powers in June called for a transitional administration in Syria but did not specify a role for President Bashar al-Assad. The UN Special envoy made it clear that there is no military solution to the crisis and without a political process it can spill over to the neighboring countries and the region.
· Iconic American composer Elliott Carter, whose challenging, rhythmically complex works earned him widespread admiration and two Pulitzer Prizes, was died at the age of 103. In 2002, The New York Times said his string quartets were among the most difficult music ever conceived, and it hailed their volatile emotions, delicacy and even, in places, plucky humor. Carter had remained astonishingly active, taking new commissions even as he celebrated his 100th birthday in December 2008 with a gala at Carnegie Hall. Carter won his first Pulitzer Prize in 1960 for his Second String Quartet; his second award was in 1973 for his Third String Quartet. The Juilliard String Quartet chose to mark its 45th anniversary in 1991 with a concert of all four Carter string quartets. A fifth quartet came out in 1995.
· Mr Barrack Obama has won a second term as President of the United States. He defeated his Republican challenger Mitt Romney with a comfortable margin. Mr Mitt Romney called President Barrack Obama and conceded defeat. He addressed his supporters at his campaign headquarters in Boston and said he has wished the President well, and prayed that Mr Obama would be successful in guiding the nation at this moment of challenge. Mr. Obama is the third consecutive US President to retain the office after his predecessor George Bush and Bill Clinton. In 2009 Obama became the only African American to hold the office of President but his margin was higher. He had support of 349 votes while in the present re-election Obama has got only 303 seats. World leaders have begun congratulating President Obama on his victory. [Click here for Infographic]
· The United States of America has announced that Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have requested the sale of up to $7.6 billion in Lockheed Martin’s Corp missile [Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) weapon systems] defense systems to counter perceived threats and lower their dependence on US forces. The sale is part of Washington's ongoing effort to deepen its cooperation with Gulf nations on missile defense and increase pressure on Iran over its nuclear program. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is a political and economic alliance linking Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. Washington has been working with Gulf states on a bilateral basis, not as a group, to boost the range of radar coverage and related capabilities across the Gulf for the earliest possible defense against any missiles fired by Iran.
· Cyprus’s government has dismissed a German media report (which cited the conclusions of a classified German intelligence service paper) that claims a financial bailout for the island nation would primarily benefit Russians who have stashed billions in ill-gotten gains in its banks. Germany’s foreign intelligence agency (BND) estimates Russian deposits in Cypriot banks amount to over €20 billion ($25.55 billion), more than Cyprus’s €18 billion in national GDP. The BND also accused Cyprus of facilitating money laundering by making it easy for Russians to obtain citizenship. However, Cyprus Government has claimed that it has enacted effective anti-money laundering laws that adhere to European Union law and which have earned plaudits from, among others, the International Monetary Fund. It said Russians prefer to deposit money in Cyprus mainly because of advantages offered by its banking system. For example, Cyprus has a treaty with Russia that avoids double taxation on investments and its corporate tax rate is 10 per cent, one of the lowest in the EU. Also, Cyprus is still negotiating its potential bailout with the so-called troika, the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF.
· United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has announced that November 10, 2012, will be celebrated as Malala Day the world over, as it marks the 30-day anniversary of the Taliban attack on the 15-year-old education campaigner from Pakistan. Ki-Moon hoped that observing Malala day will build on the momentum of UN’s Education First initiative and show that education is a right of everyone, and not a privilege for a few. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had shot Malala in the head and neck while she was returning home from on October 9. She was attacked for speaking up against the Taliban and advocating girls’ education. She is now recuperating at a hospital in Birmngham, UK, and is said to be making good progress.
· Barack Obama will this month become the first US president to visit Myanmar from the 17th to the 20th of this month. White House says during his visit, he will meet President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Myanmar has begun implementing economic, political and other reforms, a process the Obama administration sought to encourage.
· An international trade dispute over bananas dating back two decades has finally been settled. The European Union and ten Latin American countries signed an agreement to formally end eight separate World Trade Organisation cases. The head of the WTO Pascal Lamy called it a truly historic moment. The formal agreement followed the EU agreeing in December 2009 to gradually reduce the tariffs on Latin American bananas. Latin American banana exporters had long protested against EU tariffs designed to protect small growers in former European colonies in Africa and the Caribbean. Mr. Lamy said after so many twists and turns, these complicated and politically contentious disputes can finally be put at rest.
· Wisconsin Democratic Representative Tammy Baldwin made history with her election to become the first openly gay US Senator. The 50-year-old Baldwin, first elected to Congress in 1998. Tammy Baldwin's victory showed what a majority of Americans already know: that candidates should be judged on their qualifications for the job and not their sexual orientation, said Herndon Graddick, president of the gay rights organization GLAAD, in a statement.
· China appears to be within two years of deploying submarine-launched nuclear weapons, adding a new leg to its nuclear arsenal that should lead to arms-reduction talks, a draft report by a congressionally mandated U.S. commission says. China in the meantime remains the most threatening power in cyberspace and presents the largest challenge to U.S. supply chain integrity. China is alone among the original nuclear weapons states to be expanding its nuclear forces, the report said. The others are the United States, Russia, Britain and France. Beijing is on the cusp of attaining a credible nuclear triad of land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and air-dropped nuclear bombs, the report says. The deployment of such a hard-to-track, submarine-launched leg of China's nuclear arsenal could have significant consequences in East Asia and beyond. It also could add to tensions between the United States and China, the world's two biggest economies. China is party to many major international pacts and regimes regarding nuclear weapons and materials. But it remains outside of key arms limitation and control conventions, such as the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty signed in April 2010 and the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The United States historically has approached these bilaterally with Russia. Further, China is estimated by the Arms Control Association, a private nonpartisan group in Washington, to have a total of 240 nuclear warheads. The United States, by contrast, has some 5,113, including tactical, strategic and non-deployed weapons. Also, Beijing already has deployed two of as many as five of a new class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine. The JIN-class boat is due to carry the JL-2 submarine- launched ballistic missile with an estimated range of about 7,400 km (4,600 miles).
· Angry over inflation, crime and corruption, people of all ages jammed the capital's streets for nearly four hours to protest against President Cristina Fernandez in Argentina's biggest anti-government demonstration in years. Protesters kept it peaceful, and the outpouring had the air of a family affair. Toddlers in strollers and grandparents in wheelchairs joined in the masses that marched through downtown Buenos Aires until nearly midnight. Fernandez's critics are angry over the country's high inflation, violent crime and high-profile corruption, and many worry that the president will try to hold onto power by ending constitutional term limits. Fernandez easily won re-election just a year ago with 54 percent of the vote but saw her approval rating fall to 31 percent in a nationwide survey in September by the firm Management & Fit.
· During a meeting between the Foreign Ministers of Bangladesh and Pakistan, Bangladesh has demanded a formal apology from Pakistan for the genocide committed by its troops during the 1971 liberation war, but Islamabad said it's time to carry forward ties "burying the past". Hina Rabbani Khar, the first Pakistani minister to visit Dhaka since the ruling Awami League assumed office three years ago, arrived here on a five-hour tour to invite Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to attend the Developing-8 Summit to be held in Islamabad on November 22. Bangladesh was the eastern wing of Pakistan until 1971 when it won its independence after a nine-month long liberation war against Pakistani troops.
· The outgoing General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Hu Jintao, opened the Party’s leadership transition Congress by lauding the country’s achievements over the past decade and warning the next generation of leaders of the dangers of corruption and unbalanced growth. The CPC has in the recent months been grappling with the fallout of the Bo Xilai scandal. The purge of the Politburo member highlighted the rampant corruption even in the Party’s highest ranks. Mr. Hu, who will step down as the head of the Party next week but will continue serving as President till March, was accompanied by his predecessor Jiang Zemin. A group of 40 leaders, including Vice-President Xi Jinping, who is expected to succeed Mr. Hu next week. Mr. Hu hailed China’s rapid economic growth over the past decade, which saw the country grow from the sixth-biggest world economy to the second-largest. However, he warned of the challenge of “unbalanced, uncoordinated and unsustainable development” and stressed the need to “speed up the creation of a new growth model and ensure that development is based on improved quality and performance”. He said China should target doubling its 2010 Gross Domestic Product and Per Capita Incomes for urban and rural residents by 2020 — a target which suggested China would look to maintain an annual growth rate of 7.5 per cent in the next decade.
· Brazil provides an excellent example of reducing the prevalence of smoking and, in turn, saving several thousand lives by adopting and strictly enforcing several strategies aimed at making tobacco consumption less attractive. Brazil achieved a 46 per cent reduction in smoking prevalence during the period 1989 to 2010. This in turn saved an estimated 4.2 lakh lives by 2010. In 2010 alone, an estimated 58,000 lives were saved. By 2050, about seven million lives would be saved and smoking prevalence reduced by another 35 per cent. The maximum reduction in both males and females was seen in the 18- to 24-age group. This is significant as the policies have successfully prevented a huge population of youth from getting addicted to cigarette smoking. As early as 1989, Brazil had implemented diverse policies to reduce tobacco consumption. These include increasing cigarette taxes, banning several tobacco marketing policies and making bold health warnings on packages mandatory. Cigarette-specific tax was introduced in 1990. Restrictions on cigarette advertising which started as early as 1988 became more broad-based by 2005. But the outstanding feature is that access to cessation treatments went hand-in-hand with restriction. If getting people to give up smoking is challenging enough, the availability of cessation treatments will go a long way in helping those trying to quit.
· An Anglo-German team of astronomers has discovered a new planet orbiting a nearby sun at just the right distance for an Earth-like climate that could support life. The team actually found three new planets orbiting the star 44 light years away, but only one of them is in the so-called Goldilocks Zone, the band around a sun where temperatures are neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water to exist. More than 800 planets have been discovered outside our solar system since the first was detected in the early 1990s, but only a handful of those have been in the habitable zone. Even more rare are planets in the zone that rotate, as this one does, to create a day-time and night-time, which increases the chance of an Earth-like environment. Those that don't spin are said to be tidally locked, with one half in constant darkness.
· Astronomers have discovered that the rate of formation of new stars in the Universe has drastically reduced to only 1/30th of its peak and that this decline is set to continue. In the largest-of-its-kind study ever, scientists carried out the most complete survey ever made of star-forming galaxies at different distances, with around ten times the data of any previous effort. By looking at the light from clouds of gas and dust in these galaxies where stars are forming, scientists were able to assess the rate at which stars are being born. They found that the production of stars in the universe as a whole has been continuously declining over the last 11 billion years, being 30 times lower today than at its likely peak, 11 billion years ago. The accepted model for the evolution of the Universe suggests that stars began to form about 13.4 billion years ago, or around three hundred million years after the Big Bang. Many of these first stars are thought to have been monsters by today's standards, and were probably hundreds of times more massive than our Sun. Our Sun, for example, is thought to be a third generation star, and has a very typical mass by today's standards. But regardless of their mass and properties, stars are key ingredients of galaxies like our own Milky Way. The research suggests that we live in a universe dominated by old stars. Half of these were born in the 'boom' that took place between 11 and 9 billion years ago and it took more than five times as long to produce the rest.
· Australia says it is ready to join a second phase of the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Australian Climate Minister said Australia was making the move because more action was being taken internationally to tackle climate change and replace the Kyoto deal. The second commitment period for Kyoto could renew pledges to limit emissions until 2020. Australia is one of the world's leading emitters of greenhouse gases. The protocol, initially adopted in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, is aimed at fighting global warming by setting legally binding targets for countries to cut greenhouse gas emissions. The first round of cuts, which only apply to developed nations, expires at the end of this year. The protocol also created market mechanisms for countries to meet their targets by trading in carbon emissions. Discussions over a new legal deal covering all countries are due to begin at a climate conference in Doha in December and end by 2015. The new deal would come into effect by 2020.
· The world’s rarest whale species - the spade-toothed beaked whale has been spotted for the first time by scientists of New Zealand in the Pacific Ocean. The scientists used DNA evidence to prove that a mother and her male calf which stranded in New Zealand in late 2010 were the first animals of their kind ever seen, according to an Auckland statement. Since the two animals are the only intact members of their species sighted, the spade-toothed beaked whale is the world’s rarest whale. Until now the only evidence for the species’ existence came from three skull and jaw fragments found around New Zealand and Robinson Crusoe Island, Chile. The spade-toothed beaked whale was discovered on Pitt Island in the Chatham Islands in 1872, but it wasn’t until 2002 that scientists from The University of Auckland analysed DNA from the three skull fragments, recovered from museum archives, and realised that their genetic profiles were the same and did not correspond to any other known species.
· Pakistan clinched the Asian Kabaddi Championship title (held in Pakistan’s Punjab Province) after arch-rivals India walked out of the field in protest against the referee's decision to penalize their coach. The Indians protested when their coach, Goormel Singh was shown a green card by the referee for constantly disturbing the final by entering into the ground frequently to protest decisions. The Asian Kabaddi Championship drew big crowds throughout its five days of competition in which other countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal also took part.