It's been long since I posted anything..I am sorry about that. Would like to make up for it by posting the current affairs for the months of August and September in multiple parts. Here goes the 1st part.
1. Gita Gopinath’s ground-breaking research is helping economists get a better understanding of the financial crisis in Greece and Iceland. Professor Gopinath has recently been named tenured professor at Harvard University’s high-brow economics department and she thus becomes the third woman ever and the first Indian after Nobel laureate Amartya Sen to receive such as outstanding honour.
2.India, the world’s second biggest wheat producer, has developed 22 wheat varieties, which are resistant to the deadly Ug99 fungal disease
Ug99, a fungal disease originated in Uganda in 1999, belongs to a race of black stem rust, which brings 100 per cent crop loss unlike other rusts that partially affect the yield.
3.K M Mathew, doyen of Malayalam journalism and chief editor of Malayala Manorama daily, K M Mathew, passed away
4.Babli dam row:
Maharashtra constructed the small barrage to pump about 2.7 tmc (80 million cu.m) to supply drinking water to farmers of Babli villages and residents of Dharmabad taluk of the backward Nanded district.
According to the state, such small structures do not require Central Water Commission (CWC) permission and on top of it, the barrage is supposed be well within their allocated quantum of water from Godavari. They claim that the water will be used only for drinking purpose.
Andhra Pradesh’s contention is that Babli dam is being constructed within the water impounded area of Sri Ramsagar dam. It is actually within the reservoir of Sri Ramsagar and therefore the construction is illegal and unethical.
Political parties of Andhra Pradesh are also promoting the much larger fear that Babli can effectively suck 60 tmc of water, half of Sri Ramsagar, and during critical times there may not be water for irrigation. So the entire Northern Telangana might become a desert and this might even spread to the Godavari delta.
5. Somdev Devvarman was ranked No. 96 in the latest rankings released by the ATP
Devvarman became the sixth Indian men's tennis player after ATP computer rankings started in August 1973, to figure in the top-100 behind Vijay Amritraj (16), Ramesh Krishnan (23), Leander Paes (73), Anand Amritraj (74) and Sashi Menon (87).
6. The Jantar Mantar in Jaipur is now a World Heritage Monument. The 34th session of the World Heritage Committee, presently underway in Brasilia, has inscribed Jantar Mantar in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation's World Heritage List
The Jantar Mantar in Jaipur was chosen since ‘it is the most significant and the best preserved of India's historic observatories.'
Located outside the city palace, this large stone observatory with its many instruments was built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II in the 18th century. It is one of the one of the four existing astronomical observatories in India. The others are located in Varanasi, Delhi and Ujjain
The Samrat Yantra in Jaipur is one of the largest sundials in the world, with its gnomon raising about 73 feet above its base.
India had also submitted the Matheran Light Railway line for consideration as an extension of the Mountain Railways of India, which includes the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, Nilgiri Railway and Kalka-Shimla Railway that are already inscribed as heritage sites.
The other international sites added to the list this year include, 11 Australian convict sites, the palace ensemble at ad-Dir'iyah in Saudi Arabia, Tabriz historic bazaar complex in Iran and the natural site of the Central Highlands in Sri Lanka
7.Securities and Insurance Laws (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2010:
The bill provides for setting up of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC), a joint mechanism headed by the finance minister, to resolve differences among the sectoral regulators such as SEBI, IRDA and PFRDA.
The bill seeks to amend the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the Insurance Act, 1938 as also the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992.
This bill has already been passed by the Lok Sabha
8.The mealy bug: is a polyphagous sucking pest that infests crops such as cotton, papaya, tapioca, mulberry, jatropha and other cultivable crops. The pest sucks the sap of the plant and weakens it. The honey dew secreted by the bug results in the formation of a black sooty mould that causes further damage to the crops.
9.Renowned Indian sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik has won the first prize at the 8th International Sand Sculpture Championship in Berlin for his sculpture that showcased the effects of global warming. With this, Mr Pattnaik wins Sand Sculpture Championship for 5th time
10. A landmark international treaty to ban cluster munitions took effect on 1st August, requiring signatories to stop the use, production and transfer of the deadly weapons
The Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM) is an international treaty that prohibits the use of cluster bombs, a type of explosive weapon which scatters submunitions ("bomblets") over an area. The convention was adopted on 30 May 2008 in Dublin,and was opened for signature on 3 December 2008 in Oslo. It entered into force on 1 August 2010, six months after it was ratified by 30 states.As of 1 August 2010, 38 states have ratified it and another 70 have signed but not yet ratified it.Most major producers of cluster munitions and their components, including Brazil, India, Israel, Pakistan, the People's Republic of China, Russia, and the United States have not signed the Convention.
Cluster Munition:
The munitions split open before impact and scatter multiple -- often hundreds -- of smaller submunitions, or plastic bomblets, the size and shape of a tennis ball or a table lighter over a wide area.
Many of them fail to explode immediately and can lie hidden for years, killing and maiming civilians, including children, even decades after the original conflict is over in countries such as Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam
In Laos, which will host the first meeting of the convention in November, some 300 people are still hit every year by cluster bombs dating to the Vietnam war
11. Jairam Ramesh, Minister of State for Environment and Forests, will be one of the 21 members of the United Nations' (UN) newly formed High-level Panel on Global Sustainability.
12. The Federation of Indo-Israeli Chambers of Commerce (FIICC) honoured Ratan Tata, bestowing the 'Businessman of the Decade' honour on the Tata Group chairman
13.Setting up of a new farm research institute named after Borlaug prooposed:
Borlaug Institute of South Asia The institute is likely to be set up on a 500-acre plot at Pusa in Bihar. It is being established in collaboration with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and will work in close coordination with Borlaug Institute of International Agriculture based in Texas and other research centres in South Asian countries.
14.SKS Microfinance becomes the first microfinance firm in India and the second in the world to get listed on a bourse
15. The East India Company, the world's first multinational company, is reborn after 400 years. Sanjiv Mehta, an India-born Briton relaunched it on Independence Day-eve. Mehta is opening a luxury food store in Mayfair, London, which he says would eventually take the company to India once again
The British East India Company was dissolved in 1854 and a small part of the joint stock company survived to trade in tea and coffee under the East India Company brand name
16.Country's oldest private sector bank, Bank of Rajasthan Ltd, has become part of ICICI bank Ltd.
This is ICICI Bank's third acquisition after Bank of Madura in 2000-01 and Sangli Bank in 2006-07
17. Computer peripherals maker TVS Electronics has introduced India's first computer keyboard with a key dedicated to the new rupee symbol.
18. Manmohan Singh on Sunday became the third Prime Minister to hoist the national flag from the ramparts of Red Fort for the seventh time in a row, after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.
By hoisting the tricolour this morning, Dr. Singh overtook his predecessor Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who had the honour of unfurling the national flag from the majestic Red Fort six times
The historic Mughal monument has seen Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, unfurling the national flag 17 times. He is closely followed by his daughter Indira Gandhi who had the honour of unfurling the flag 16 times.
19.Arjun Atwal became the first Indian and just the sixth Asian-born player to win on the PGA Tour when he secured a one-stroke victory at the Wyndham Championship
20.Why is all this fuss about nuclear liablity bill?
India-US signing civilian nuclear deal in 2008 -> separate its civil and military nuclear facilities and place all its civil nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards and, in exchange, the United States agreed to work toward full civil nuclear cooperation with India -> this is where the US suppliers come in to the picture
21. United Stock Exchange (USE), India's newest stock exchange for currency derivatives
22. Within a month of approving the 600 MW Loharinag Pala dam on the Bhagirathi River, a major source of the Ganges in Uttarakhand, the government has decided to scrap the project. The volte face came after the intervention of the Congress top brass, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
23. US billionaire George Soros is said to have acquired a 4-per cent stake in Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) for about $35 million, valuing the oldest bourse in Asia at around $875 million.
The 135-year-old BSE, which has the world's largest number of companies - 4900 companies - listed on it.
The market capitalisation of the companies listed on the BSE was $1.28 trillion as of February 2010, making it then the largest stock exchange in South Asia and the 12th largest in the world
Recently, George Kaiser, one of the top 50 richest people in the world and among the top 50 American philanthropists, bought 3.9 per cent in BSE through his private equity firm Oklahoma-based Argonaut Ventures, while Canadian fund manager Urbana Corp hiked its stake to 2.6 per cent.
Other major global shareholders in BSE are Deutsche Boerse and Singapore Stock Exchange, both of which hold 5 per cent each, while Atticus Mauritius, Acacia Banyan and Caldwell Asset Management also hold small stakes.
24.Garima-II:
Another cloned buffalo calf was born at the Karnal-based National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI) on Sunday, where two calves were cloned a year ago
This buffalo calf was born through the new and advanced ‘hand-guided cloning technique'.
This cloned buffalo calf is different from the earlier clone calf because, in this case, the used donor cell was an embryonic cell
25.Theme of World health Day, 2011; antimicrobial resistance(AMR)
26.The UN Conference on Trade and Development study -- World Investment Report 2010 -- ranks India as the 9th most attractive destination for foreign direct investment, up from 13th last year. It received $35 billion in FDI in 2009.
27. Top three spam-sending countries: 1. US 2. India 3. Brazil
28. The ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises has conferred `Miniratna' status on two central government enterprises - Bridge and Roof Company (I) Ltd and Bharat Pumps and Compressor Ltd.
Bridge and Roof Company (I) Ltd was granted Category - I Miniratna status while Bharat Pumps and Compressor Ltd was granted Category II Miniratna status.
For granting Category I Miniratna status, the CPSE should have made profit in the last three years continuously, with a Rs30-crore or above pre-tax profit at least in one of the three years and should have a positive net worth.
For Category II Miniratna status, the CPSE should have made profit for the last three years continuously and should have a positive net worth.
29. Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) launched mobile-based trading, becoming the first stock exchange in the country to extend internet trading to the mobile platform.
30. India raised outsourcing ban and related issues in Trade Policy Forum (TPF):
The sharp rise in US work visa fee for IT professionals as also the state of Ohio imposing a ban on outsourcing are expected to figure among the more prominent issues that will be discussed in a key India-US trade dialogue in New Delhi ahead of president Barack Obama's visit to India.
In 2009-10 the bilateral trade between the two countries touched $36.5 billion with the US accounting for around 60 per cent of India's total $50 billion IT and IT enabled services exports
What are India's chances of contesting Ohio's ban on outsourcing by government departments?
Unfortunately India finds herself on a sticky wicket on this count. The reason being, India is not a member of GPA(Government Procurement) the only legally binding agreement in the WTO setting fair rules for public purchases.
The Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA) is to date the only legally binding agreement in the WTO focusing on the subject of government procurement. Its present version was negotiated in parallel with the Uruguay Round in 1994, and entered into force on 1 January 1996. It is a plurilateral treaty administered by a Committee on Government Procurement, which includes the WTO Members that are Parties to the GPA, and thus have rights and obligations under the Agreement.
India became an 'observer' member of the GPA in February this year. Even if it wants to become a full-fledged member, it would take a long time, since not even the accession negotiations have started.
While the US is a member of the GPA, its coverage in regard to software procurement is limited to the federal government and not states. With this backdrop, experts feel that India would not be able to challenge the Ohio ban on offshore outsourcing.
31. Elephant to get a new status:
Government has decided to declare the jumbo as a national heritage animal
This comes in the wake of last year's move to have the Gangetic dolphin declared as the national aquatic animal, as it symbolises the health of the country's rivers
32. zEnterprise - world's fastest computer chip that can process information at a record breaking speed of 5.2 GHz.
The z196 processor is a four-core chip that contains 1.4 billion transistors on a 512-square millimeter (mm) surface
33. Public Interest Disclosures and the Protection to Persons Making the Disclosures Bill 2010:The Bill to protect whistleblowers, introduced in the Lok Sabha
proposed legislation has two main aims:
a. to protect the identity of those who call attention to corruption and misuse of power in an organisation,
b. to safeguard them against punitive disciplinary action.
34.Polavaram controversy:
The idea of the dam was first floated in the early 1940s but it remained a dream for the state government, an ambitious venture that stayed on election manifestos
The 150-feet-high dam, called the Polavaram Indira Sagar Dam, will create a reservoir spreading over the three districts of West Godavari, East Godavari and Khammam. The tail-end of this reservoir is more than 150 km away, touching Bastar in Chhattisgarh and Malkangiri in Orissa. The dam will harness 170 thousand million cubic feet water (tmcft), through two canals that spread out as arms on either side: the right canal which will take 80 tmcft to river Krishna and the left canal, which will help irrigate 7.2 lakh acres in the north coastal Andhra districts and take 23 tmcft to Visakhapatnam, which faces a perennial water shortage.
According to government estimates, the dam will submerge villages in the three Andhra districts of West Godavari, East Godavari and Khammam, in Bastar in Chhattisgarh and in Malkangiri, Orissa. Besides, nearly two lakh people will be displaced.
Orissa says 10 villages in Motu tehsil, nine of them dominated by Koya tribes, will be submerged in Malkangiri district
35. National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR) develops new transgenic potato:
- developed through transfer of genes of amaranth seed, a safe-to-eat crop
- Scientists have used the Amaranth Albumin 1 (AmA1) gene, which is responsible for the growth of the Amaranth plant as well as for its high levels of protein and essential amino acids, for developing the new class of potato
36. FII investment limits increased:
a. limit of foreign institutional investors (Flls) in government securities by $5 billion to $10 billion. FIIs, however, has to invest the incremental limit of $5 billion in securities with residual maturity of over five years,
b. Fll investment limit in corporate bonds by $5 billion, raising the cap to $20 billion.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
July 2nd week onwards
1. The Solar Impulse:Solar powered plane, The solar plane project got underway in 2003 under the guidance of Bertrand Piccard, the first person to fly around the world nonstop in a balloon.
This is a very significant step in the sense that flying by night using solely solar power is a stunning manifestation of the potential that clean technologies offer today to reduce the dependency of our society on fossil fuels
2. India, Iran sign six new agreements:
- agreement on air services : The air services agreement includes enhancement in the capacity entitlement for the designated airlines of each nation from 23 services per week to 31 per week.
- transfer of prisoners
- Iran has also agreed to hold technical-level meeting over the issue of Chabahar port, which is strategically important for New Del
- MoUs have also been signed for cooperation in renewable energy, small scale industries and science and technology. Yet another MoU was signed for mutual ties between the Central Pulp and Paper Research Institute of India and Iran's Gorgan University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources.
Chabahar Port:
Chabahar is an Iranian city and a free port (Free Trade Zone) on the coast of the Gulf of Oman.
Chabahar is situated on the Makran Coast of the Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran and is officially designated as a Free Trade and Industrial Zone by Iran's government. Due to its free trade zone status, the city has increased in significance in international trade
India is helping develop the Chabahar port, which will give it access to the oil and gas resources in Iran and the Central Asian states. This is done by India to compete with the Chinese, who are building Gwadar Port, in Pakistani Baluchistan.
3. According to a recent study conducted by Indian researchers, Homoeopathic medicine `Belladonna' has a probable role help in preventing Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus infection
4. NP1 - India's first indigenous naval Light Combat Aircraft,
The LCA is equipped with state-of-the-technology and the GE-F-IN20 engine and is designed for Ski-jump Take Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) operations.
The Naval LCA would operate with a wide variety of operational weapons and equipment on board, including the Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile, anti-ship missiles, conventional bombs, air defence guns, counter-counter measures and drop tanks
5. 8 Indian firms on Fortune 500 list are:
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) - Ranked 125
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)Tata Steel - 175
State Bank of India (SBI) - 282
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) - 307
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) - 354
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) - 413
Tata Motors - 442
6. 1GOAL : is a campaign seizing the power of football to ensure that education for all is a lasting impact of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. 1GOAL is bringing together footballers, fans, charities, corporations and individuals to lobby and achieve the ambitious aim of education for everyone
In 2000, 164 world governments came together to create the Education for All goals, 189 governments also created the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Two of the eight goals involve ending poverty through education:
* to ensure that all boys and girls complete primary schooling by 2015
* to ensure that girls have the opportunity for education at all levels by 2015.
They promised to make sure there was enough money and that the policies were in place to make it a reality. Since then many countries have abolished school fees, spending was increased by $4 billion and an extra 40 million children are now going to school
7. Naadam festival- the biggest sports and entertainment event in Mongolia, has been celebrated in summer for centuries as a test of courage, strength, horsemanship and marksmanship, culminating with “the three men's games” — wrestling, archery and horse racing. In the Mongolian language, Naadam means game.
8.Jabulani bladders are manufactured in Enkay (India) Rubber Co, New Delhi
Enkay bladders have been inside the Azteca, used in the 1986 world cup in Mexico, the Etrusco Unico in Italy in 1990, the Questra in the US in 1994, the Tricolore in France in 1998, the Fevernova in Korea/Japan in 2002 and the Teamgeist in Germany in 2006. These balls have variously been produced in factories in Pakistan, France, Morocco and Thailand, and Enkay has delivered its bladders to all these countries
9. India's defence research agency DRDO has developed an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) specifically for anti-terrorist and counter insurgency
operations, which will be inducted into the armed forces by the year-end.
The 1.5 kg UAV, called 'Netra', is a collaborative development project between ideaForge, a company formed by a group of Indian Institute of Technology, Powai, alumni and one of Defence Research and Development Organisation's Pune-based labs, Research and Development Establishment (Engineers) (R&DE) Pune.
10. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has conferred Tulsi R Tanti, chairman and managing director of Suzlon Energy Limited, with the title of `Wind Visionary of Asia'. The award was presented at an international consultation - `Quantum Leap in Wind Power in Asia' - held at the ADB headquarters in Manila, the Philippines.
The award is in recognition of Suzlon's commitment to building the case for wind across the world and highlights a decade of tremendous work in key markets of Asia
11. The polar satellite launch vehicle PSLV-C-15 carrying remote sensing Cartosat-2B along with four other satellites has been launched successfully
The four other satelites re:
Alsat from Algeria,
two nano satellites from Canada and Switzerland, and
a pico (very small) satellite, Studsat, built by seven engineering students of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
Cartosat-2B is India's 17th remote sensing satellite and is meant to augment ISRO's remote sensing data services
The satellites' imagery can be used for preparing detailed forest maps, tree volume estimation, village / cadastral level crop inventory, town / village settlement mapping and planning for development, rural connectivity, canal alignment, coastal land form, mining monitoring and other fields
12. The union cabinet approved a symbol for the Indian rupee. This symbol will be used by all individuals/entities within and outside India after its incorporation in `Unicode Standard', 'ISO/IEC 10646' and 'IS 13194'.
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems. Developed in conjunction with the Universal Character Set standard and published in book form as The Unicode Standard, the latest version of Unicode consists of a repertoire of more than 107,000 characters covering 90 scripts, a set of code charts for visual reference, an encoding methodology and set of standard character encodings, an enumeration of character properties such as upper and lower case, a set of reference data computer files, and a number of related items, such as character properties, rules for normalization, decomposition, collation, rendering, and bidirectional display order (for the correct display of text containing both right-to-left scripts, such as Arabic or Hebrew, and left-to-right scripts)
13.Archaeologists in Jerusalem have uncovered an ancient clay fragment dating back some 3,400 years, the oldest-ever sample of writing found in Jerusalem
The clay chip is a key find which indicates the importance of the city in the Bronze Age, around 1,400 BC
14. The 22-year-old Patna-born prodigy Tathagat Avtar Tulsi is all set to become the country's youngest faculty at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Powai in Mumbai
In 2003, he was named as one of the world's “seven most gifted youngsters” by Time magazine
15. Vostok-2010 :Russia's largest military exercise since the breakup of the Soviet Union. More than 20,000 troops, 75 combat aircraft, 40 warships from the Pacific, Northern and Black Sea Fleets, and 5,500 pieces of heavy weapons were mobilised for 10-day war games
16. Multidimensional poverty index:
- India ranks 63rd in the new poverty index, after Togo, before Haiti
- Quarter of the world lives on $1.25 a day or less: World Bank estimate
- More than 410 million people live in poverty in the Indian States, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal
17. Leh berries:
- extracted from the Seabuck Thorn Berry, a local shrub
- Seabuckthorn, also called the “Wonder plant” and “Ladakh gold” has multi-purpose medicinal and nutritional properties, and also helps in soil conservation and nitrogen fixation
- Hardy, drought-resistant and tolerant to extreme temperatures from – 43º C to + 40º C, the plant has an extensive root system which can fix atmospheric nitrogen, making it ideal for controlling soil erosion and preventing desertification.
- The Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Defence Research and Development Organisation have launched a major national initiative for seabuckthorn cultivation in the high-altitude, cold desert ecosystems
18. Desmond Symes, a Royal Air Force veteran of World War II, who met Mahatma Gandhi and took Lord Louis Mountbatten across British India, has died at the age of 86.
19.World's biggest solar power station opens in Spain:
The new La Florida solar plant takes Spain's solar output to 432MW, which compares with the US output of 422MW. The plant, at Alvarado, Badajoz, in the west of the country, is a parabolic trough. With this method of collecting solar energy, sunlight is reflected off a parabolic mirror on to a fluid-filled tube. The heated liquid is then used to heat steam to run the turbines. The mirror rotates during the day to follow the sun's movement. The solar farm covers 550,000 square metres (the size of around 77 soccer pitches) and produces 50MW of power
Spain is now the fourth largest manufacturer of solar power technology in the world
20. Defensin-1 :a protein made by bees that they add to honey. This could one day be used to treat burns and skin infections and to develop new drugs that could combat antibiotic-resistant infections.
21. Serum Institute of India (SRI), the largest vaccine manufacturer in India, has launched an indigenously developed intra-nasal vaccine, Nasovac, for prevention of H1N1 (swine flu) infections
22.Three Chancellors - Book on Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who in their capacity as Prime Minister have served as Chancellor of Visva-Bharati – the book has been compiled by Nilanjan Bandopadhyay, curator of the university's museum at Santiniketan.
It is part of 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Tagore
23. Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise same-sex marriage, following a landmark Senate vote carried live on national television.
24. The World Bank Group has sanctioned two loans worth around Rs1,185 crore for environment management projects in India.
Of this, Rs897crore will go for the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) project and the remaining for Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management (CBIPMP) project.
The Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management Project (CBIPMP) project aims to reduce pollution levels in ten highly polluted industrial areas - two in Andhra Pradesh and eight in West Bengal - on a pilot basis.
Goals of ICZM:
- mapping, delineation and demarcation of the hazard lines and delineation of coastal sediment cells all along the mainland coast of India;
- mapping, delineation and demarcation of environmentally sensitive areas;
- capacity building of the MoEF and the state coastal zone management authorities, and
training programme for coastal zone management as also setting up of a National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM). The NCSCM will be set up at Anna University in Chennai with an outlay of Rs116 crore
25. Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), the apex body set up to regulate and develop the pension sector in the country, has introduced two new schemes - `NPS-Lite', which aims at financial inclusion and `Swavalamban Scheme' which is an add-on product for NPS account holders who meet certain criteria.
NPS-Lite specifically targets the economically disadvantages sections of society and promotes small savings during their productive life.
The scheme will help the economically weaker sections to build a corpus sufficient enough to buy an annuity for their old age
The `Swavalamban Scheme,' which grants an incentive of Rs1,000 to all eligible NPS accounts, will be available to all NPS-Lite accountholders as well, provided they meet the prescribed criteria.
Distinguishing features of NPS Lite are:
Voluntary - Open to eligible citizens of India, in the age group of 18-60 years. Subscriber is free to choose the amount he/she wants to invest every year.
Simple - Eligible individuals in the unorganised work force can open an account through their `aggregator' and get an Individual subscriber (NPS - Lite) account.
Safe - Regulated by PFRDA, with transparent investment norms and regular monitoring and performance review of fund managers by NPS Trust.
Economical - Ultra-low cost structure with no minimum amount required per annum or per contribution.
Portable - Subscriber can operate account from anywhere in the country, even with change of location, employment or `aggregator
26. Raku-Raku - meaning "easy-to-use" in Japanese - new one-touch internet-access mobile handset from Fujitsu
The new Raku-Raku Phone 7 is designed to make the internet more accessible to senior citizens by introducing a one-touch access button to the i-mode mobile internet system.
27. Two new bacterial species that produce enzymes which could have application for biotech industry have been discovered in the Arctic region by a senior scientist from the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB).
The bacteria which can grow at 2 degrees Celsius and produce enzymes such as protease and lipase
28. Milon Kumar Banerjee, the former Attorney-General of India, passed away
Mr. Banerjee, as Attorney-General, had the rare honour of being called upon to address the Parliament regarding the powers of the Election Commission on August 5, 1993, a request that had not been made to the Attorney-General for decades, and the Padma Awards case, where he argued before the Supreme Court that these awards were not titles and as such were not violative of Article 18 of the Constitution
He was awarded the second highest national award, the Padma Vibhushan, in 2005
29. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said India would emerge as the third largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI) for the three-year period ending 2012
India broke into the top 10 destinations for FDI for the first time in 2009, when the world battled to emerge from a brutal financial crisis and FDI flows slowed dramatically. The country rose to the ninth place in 2009 from 13th in the previous year in the list of FDI destinations, according to the UNCTAD report.
30. In a move that will bring about a sweeping change in education across the country, the ministry of human resource development unveiled a low-cost computer with a price tag of Rs1,500 or $35
The single unit system has a touch screen and a built-in keyboard along with a 2 GB RAM memory, wi-fi connectivity, USB port and is powered by a 2-watt system to suit poor power-supply areas.
The device is the product of a collaborative effort involving the ministry, institutes like the IITs, IISc and VIT, Vellore
31. New inflation index from August:
The government will introduce a new system of inflation measurement from August that would cover price changes of about 250 extra items.
The monthly inflation measurement system in use currently, is based on the wholesale price index that reflects the price variations of 435 items.
The new index is likely to include a host of new products, including consumer goods such as mobile phones and LCD televisions, while out of use items such as typewriters and video cassette recorders would likely be dropped from the new inflation measurement mechanism.
The base year of the new index would also be changed from 1993-94 to 2004-05.
32. Now, map details height of the globe's forests:
Using satellite data, scientists have produced a first-of-its kind map that details the height of the world's forests.
The map, based on data collected by NASA's ICESat, Terra, and Aqua satellites, should help scientists build an inventory of how much carbon the world's forests store and how fast that carbon cycles through ecosystems and back into the atmosphere.
Some findings:
This new global depiction shows the world's tallest forests clustered in the Pacific Northwest of North America and portions of Southeast Asia, while shorter forests are found in broad swaths across northern Canada and Eurasia.
Temperate conifer forests – which are extremely moist and contain massive trees such as Douglas fir, western hemlock, redwoods, and sequoias – have the tallest canopies, soaring easily above 40 meters (131 feet). In contrast, boreal forests dominated by spruce, fir, pine, and larch had canopies typically less than 20 meters (65 feet). Relatively undisturbed areas in tropical rain forests were about 25 meters (82 feet), roughly the same height as the oak, beeches, and birches of temperate broadleaf forests common in Europe and much of the United States.
33. Researchers have found that sulforaphane, a chemical found in broccoli, interacts with cells lacking a gene called PTEN to reduce the chances of prostate cancer developing
34. The Boeing Company unveiled the hydrogen-powered Phantom Eye unmanned airborne system, a demonstrator that will stay aloft at 65,000 feet for up to four days.
Phantom Eye is powered by two 2.3-liter, four-cylinder engines that provide 150 horsepower each. It has a 150-foot wingspan, will cruise at approximately 150 knots and can carry up to a 450-pound payload.
Key Phantom Eye suppliers and partners include Ford Motor Company (engines); Aurora Flight Sciences (wing); Mahle Powertrain (propulsion controls); Ball Aerospace (fuel tanks); Turbosolutions Engineering (turbochargers); the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency; and NASA.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $34 billion business with 68,000 employees worldwide.
35. Yet ANother Indian in the Obama administration:
Gururaj ‘Desh' Deshpande, entrepreneur, philanthropist and Chairman of Tejas Networks, A123 and Akshaya Patra, USA, had been appointed Co-Chairman of the U.S. National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE).
36. This year's Lokmanya Tilak Award will be given to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in recognition of her contribution to politics. It consists of a gold medal, a memento, a citation and Rs.1 lakh
37. A big rock art site has been discovered at Kovanur, Perianaickenpalayam taluk, 30 km northwest of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
The site has about 60 paintings, both group compositions and individual images. The paintings portray the hunting of an elephant and a herd of deer, and images of a tiger, herds of bisons, a monitor lizard and hunters with bows and arrows.
38. The eight-legged ‘oracle' Octopus Paul was declared an “honorary friend” of a Spanish town in a ceremony at his German aquarium
39. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act:
It is a federal statute in the United States that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010.The Act is the product of the financial regulatory reform agenda of the Democratically-controlled 111th Congress and the Obama administration.
The Act is categorized into sixteen titles, and by one law firm's count, it requires that regulators create 243 rules, conduct 67 studies, and issue 22 periodic reports.The stated aim of the legislation is:
To promote the financial stability of the United States by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to end "too big to fail", to protect the American taxpayer by ending bailouts, to protect consumers from abusive financial services practices, and for other purposes
40. The Reserve Bank of India will allow take-out financing through external commercial borrowings (ECB) for refinancing of rupee loans availed of from domestic banks
What is exisitng norm?
refinancing of domestic rupee loans with ECB is not permitted
What's the change?
Keeping in view the special funding needs of the infrastructure sector, it has been decided to review the ECB policy and put in place a scheme of take-out finance
41.After years of discussions Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus have launched a customs union as a first step towards forming a broader EU-type economic alliance of former Soviet states.
42. The Spitzer infra-red telescope has uncovered 14 of the coldest stars known in our universe. These failed stars, called brown dwarfs, are so cold and faint that they'd be impossible to see with current visible-light telescopes
43. Evidence of early humans who lived in colder climate found:
early humans had indeed ventured beyond 45 deg. N latitude some 7,00,000 years ago and reached Pakefield, Suffolk in the U.K that lies at 52 {+o} N latitude
44. The government has approved the release of Rs4,868 crore as interest subvention to public sector banks (PSBs), regional rural banks (RRBs) and cooperative banks as also NABARD for refinance to RRBs and cooperative banks for lending at concessional rate to farmers.
This is to ensure that farmers get short-term crop loans at a concessional rate of 7 per cent per annum (5 per cent for prompt payers)
What is Interest Subvention?
A subvention is a subsidy, so an interest subvention is a subsidy on interest. If the government is offering 5 % interest subvention on an farm loan which otherwise would have cost 10 % then the farmers can get loans at 5% interest rate.
44.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its short-term lending and borrowing rates by a higher than expected 0.25 per cent and 0.50 per cent respectively in an avowed attempt to bring the double-digit inflation down to six per cent by March 2011, in a move that would put pressure on banks' interest rates.
The increase in short-term lending rate (repo) to 5.75 per cent and short-term borrowing rate (reverse repo) to 4.5 per cent will be effective immediately
45. President Pratibha Patil appointed Election Commissioner (EC) Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) under Clause 2 of the Article 324 of the Constitution.
46.Mahela Jayawardene now has the most Test hundreds at a single venue. He overtook the legendary Don Bradman's nine centuries in Melbourne, when he reached the three-figure mark and notched up his 10th century at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground
47. The international flavour of the week seems to be the WikiLeaks expose of the documents concerning the operations against the Al Qaeda and its allies in Afghanistan.
The New York Times reported on Sunday, July, 18, 2010, that military field documents included in the leak suggest that Pakistan has been allowing "representatives of its spy service to meet directly with the Taliban in secret strategy sessions to organise networks of militant groups that fight against American soldiers in Afghanistan, and even hatch plots to assassinate Afghan leaders".
48. China stakes sovereign claim over entire South China Sea:
Reiterating historical claims the Chinese military declared that China had "indisputable sovereignty" over the South China Sea, but back-pedalled somewhat by saying it would continue to allow others to freely navigate what is one of the busiest waterways in the world. These remarks, in part, are a reaction to a move last week by the United States, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries to challenge China's claims to the whole sea
The South China Sea
Part of the Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea encompasses an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around 3,500,000 km². It is considered as the largest or the second largest body of water after the five oceans depending on measurement.
Located south of China it has Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam as the littoral countries. It has hundreds of small islands scattered on its surface all of which are claimed by the various littoral nations on its rim.
This body of water has great geo-political significance being the second most used sea lane in the world. In terms of world annual merchant fleet tonnage, it is estimated that over 50 per cent passes through the Strait of Malacca, the Sunda Strait, and the Lombok Strait.
49. The Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc) at Chennai unveiled India's seventh-fastest supercomputer, Annapurna, to provide a boost to simulations and numerical calculations in the areas of statistical mechanics and condensed matter physics.
Annapurna is a high-performance computation (HPC) cluster having 1.5 Tera Byte (TB) memory and 30 TB storage space cluster capacity.
Among broad-based scientific institutions in India, the Annapurna cluster is the third fastest, ranking below the IISc Bangalore and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai.
Vindhya, Aravalli and Kabru - the other supercomputers built by the institute
49.Tata Chem's low-cost water purifier Tata Swach in WSJ's best Asian innovations shortlist. The fact that the purifier, branded Tata Swach, doesn't require electricity and running water unlike existing water purifiers is what makes the purifier really innovative.
50. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has selected three biometric solution providers and awarded contract to consortiums led by Accenture, Mahindra Satyam-Morpho and L1 Identity Solutions to implement the core biometric identification system in for the `Aadhaar' programme
51. Apple's glitches and antenna issues with iPhone 4 notwithstanding, the $57.4-billion brand that raced past Microsoft in May as the largest technology company, has topped the 'The World's Most Valuable Brands' list compiled by Forbes
Brand Microsoft comes in second with $56.6 billion, followed by Coca Cola ($55.4 billion), IBM ($43 billion) and Google ($39.7 billion) which bagged the third, fourth and fifth spots on the list.
This is a very significant step in the sense that flying by night using solely solar power is a stunning manifestation of the potential that clean technologies offer today to reduce the dependency of our society on fossil fuels
2. India, Iran sign six new agreements:
- agreement on air services : The air services agreement includes enhancement in the capacity entitlement for the designated airlines of each nation from 23 services per week to 31 per week.
- transfer of prisoners
- Iran has also agreed to hold technical-level meeting over the issue of Chabahar port, which is strategically important for New Del
- MoUs have also been signed for cooperation in renewable energy, small scale industries and science and technology. Yet another MoU was signed for mutual ties between the Central Pulp and Paper Research Institute of India and Iran's Gorgan University of Agricultural Science and Natural Resources.
Chabahar Port:
Chabahar is an Iranian city and a free port (Free Trade Zone) on the coast of the Gulf of Oman.
Chabahar is situated on the Makran Coast of the Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran and is officially designated as a Free Trade and Industrial Zone by Iran's government. Due to its free trade zone status, the city has increased in significance in international trade
India is helping develop the Chabahar port, which will give it access to the oil and gas resources in Iran and the Central Asian states. This is done by India to compete with the Chinese, who are building Gwadar Port, in Pakistani Baluchistan.
3. According to a recent study conducted by Indian researchers, Homoeopathic medicine `Belladonna' has a probable role help in preventing Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus infection
4. NP1 - India's first indigenous naval Light Combat Aircraft,
The LCA is equipped with state-of-the-technology and the GE-F-IN20 engine and is designed for Ski-jump Take Off But Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) operations.
The Naval LCA would operate with a wide variety of operational weapons and equipment on board, including the Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile, anti-ship missiles, conventional bombs, air defence guns, counter-counter measures and drop tanks
5. 8 Indian firms on Fortune 500 list are:
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) - Ranked 125
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)Tata Steel - 175
State Bank of India (SBI) - 282
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) - 307
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) - 354
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) - 413
Tata Motors - 442
6. 1GOAL : is a campaign seizing the power of football to ensure that education for all is a lasting impact of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. 1GOAL is bringing together footballers, fans, charities, corporations and individuals to lobby and achieve the ambitious aim of education for everyone
In 2000, 164 world governments came together to create the Education for All goals, 189 governments also created the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. Two of the eight goals involve ending poverty through education:
* to ensure that all boys and girls complete primary schooling by 2015
* to ensure that girls have the opportunity for education at all levels by 2015.
They promised to make sure there was enough money and that the policies were in place to make it a reality. Since then many countries have abolished school fees, spending was increased by $4 billion and an extra 40 million children are now going to school
7. Naadam festival- the biggest sports and entertainment event in Mongolia, has been celebrated in summer for centuries as a test of courage, strength, horsemanship and marksmanship, culminating with “the three men's games” — wrestling, archery and horse racing. In the Mongolian language, Naadam means game.
8.Jabulani bladders are manufactured in Enkay (India) Rubber Co, New Delhi
Enkay bladders have been inside the Azteca, used in the 1986 world cup in Mexico, the Etrusco Unico in Italy in 1990, the Questra in the US in 1994, the Tricolore in France in 1998, the Fevernova in Korea/Japan in 2002 and the Teamgeist in Germany in 2006. These balls have variously been produced in factories in Pakistan, France, Morocco and Thailand, and Enkay has delivered its bladders to all these countries
9. India's defence research agency DRDO has developed an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) specifically for anti-terrorist and counter insurgency
operations, which will be inducted into the armed forces by the year-end.
The 1.5 kg UAV, called 'Netra', is a collaborative development project between ideaForge, a company formed by a group of Indian Institute of Technology, Powai, alumni and one of Defence Research and Development Organisation's Pune-based labs, Research and Development Establishment (Engineers) (R&DE) Pune.
10. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has conferred Tulsi R Tanti, chairman and managing director of Suzlon Energy Limited, with the title of `Wind Visionary of Asia'. The award was presented at an international consultation - `Quantum Leap in Wind Power in Asia' - held at the ADB headquarters in Manila, the Philippines.
The award is in recognition of Suzlon's commitment to building the case for wind across the world and highlights a decade of tremendous work in key markets of Asia
11. The polar satellite launch vehicle PSLV-C-15 carrying remote sensing Cartosat-2B along with four other satellites has been launched successfully
The four other satelites re:
Alsat from Algeria,
two nano satellites from Canada and Switzerland, and
a pico (very small) satellite, Studsat, built by seven engineering students of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
Cartosat-2B is India's 17th remote sensing satellite and is meant to augment ISRO's remote sensing data services
The satellites' imagery can be used for preparing detailed forest maps, tree volume estimation, village / cadastral level crop inventory, town / village settlement mapping and planning for development, rural connectivity, canal alignment, coastal land form, mining monitoring and other fields
12. The union cabinet approved a symbol for the Indian rupee. This symbol will be used by all individuals/entities within and outside India after its incorporation in `Unicode Standard', 'ISO/IEC 10646' and 'IS 13194'.
Unicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems. Developed in conjunction with the Universal Character Set standard and published in book form as The Unicode Standard, the latest version of Unicode consists of a repertoire of more than 107,000 characters covering 90 scripts, a set of code charts for visual reference, an encoding methodology and set of standard character encodings, an enumeration of character properties such as upper and lower case, a set of reference data computer files, and a number of related items, such as character properties, rules for normalization, decomposition, collation, rendering, and bidirectional display order (for the correct display of text containing both right-to-left scripts, such as Arabic or Hebrew, and left-to-right scripts)
13.Archaeologists in Jerusalem have uncovered an ancient clay fragment dating back some 3,400 years, the oldest-ever sample of writing found in Jerusalem
The clay chip is a key find which indicates the importance of the city in the Bronze Age, around 1,400 BC
14. The 22-year-old Patna-born prodigy Tathagat Avtar Tulsi is all set to become the country's youngest faculty at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Powai in Mumbai
In 2003, he was named as one of the world's “seven most gifted youngsters” by Time magazine
15. Vostok-2010 :Russia's largest military exercise since the breakup of the Soviet Union. More than 20,000 troops, 75 combat aircraft, 40 warships from the Pacific, Northern and Black Sea Fleets, and 5,500 pieces of heavy weapons were mobilised for 10-day war games
16. Multidimensional poverty index:
- India ranks 63rd in the new poverty index, after Togo, before Haiti
- Quarter of the world lives on $1.25 a day or less: World Bank estimate
- More than 410 million people live in poverty in the Indian States, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal
17. Leh berries:
- extracted from the Seabuck Thorn Berry, a local shrub
- Seabuckthorn, also called the “Wonder plant” and “Ladakh gold” has multi-purpose medicinal and nutritional properties, and also helps in soil conservation and nitrogen fixation
- Hardy, drought-resistant and tolerant to extreme temperatures from – 43º C to + 40º C, the plant has an extensive root system which can fix atmospheric nitrogen, making it ideal for controlling soil erosion and preventing desertification.
- The Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Defence Research and Development Organisation have launched a major national initiative for seabuckthorn cultivation in the high-altitude, cold desert ecosystems
18. Desmond Symes, a Royal Air Force veteran of World War II, who met Mahatma Gandhi and took Lord Louis Mountbatten across British India, has died at the age of 86.
19.World's biggest solar power station opens in Spain:
The new La Florida solar plant takes Spain's solar output to 432MW, which compares with the US output of 422MW. The plant, at Alvarado, Badajoz, in the west of the country, is a parabolic trough. With this method of collecting solar energy, sunlight is reflected off a parabolic mirror on to a fluid-filled tube. The heated liquid is then used to heat steam to run the turbines. The mirror rotates during the day to follow the sun's movement. The solar farm covers 550,000 square metres (the size of around 77 soccer pitches) and produces 50MW of power
Spain is now the fourth largest manufacturer of solar power technology in the world
20. Defensin-1 :a protein made by bees that they add to honey. This could one day be used to treat burns and skin infections and to develop new drugs that could combat antibiotic-resistant infections.
21. Serum Institute of India (SRI), the largest vaccine manufacturer in India, has launched an indigenously developed intra-nasal vaccine, Nasovac, for prevention of H1N1 (swine flu) infections
22.Three Chancellors - Book on Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who in their capacity as Prime Minister have served as Chancellor of Visva-Bharati – the book has been compiled by Nilanjan Bandopadhyay, curator of the university's museum at Santiniketan.
It is part of 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Tagore
23. Argentina has become the first country in Latin America to legalise same-sex marriage, following a landmark Senate vote carried live on national television.
24. The World Bank Group has sanctioned two loans worth around Rs1,185 crore for environment management projects in India.
Of this, Rs897crore will go for the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) project and the remaining for Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management (CBIPMP) project.
The Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management Project (CBIPMP) project aims to reduce pollution levels in ten highly polluted industrial areas - two in Andhra Pradesh and eight in West Bengal - on a pilot basis.
Goals of ICZM:
- mapping, delineation and demarcation of the hazard lines and delineation of coastal sediment cells all along the mainland coast of India;
- mapping, delineation and demarcation of environmentally sensitive areas;
- capacity building of the MoEF and the state coastal zone management authorities, and
training programme for coastal zone management as also setting up of a National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM). The NCSCM will be set up at Anna University in Chennai with an outlay of Rs116 crore
25. Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), the apex body set up to regulate and develop the pension sector in the country, has introduced two new schemes - `NPS-Lite', which aims at financial inclusion and `Swavalamban Scheme' which is an add-on product for NPS account holders who meet certain criteria.
NPS-Lite specifically targets the economically disadvantages sections of society and promotes small savings during their productive life.
The scheme will help the economically weaker sections to build a corpus sufficient enough to buy an annuity for their old age
The `Swavalamban Scheme,' which grants an incentive of Rs1,000 to all eligible NPS accounts, will be available to all NPS-Lite accountholders as well, provided they meet the prescribed criteria.
Distinguishing features of NPS Lite are:
Voluntary - Open to eligible citizens of India, in the age group of 18-60 years. Subscriber is free to choose the amount he/she wants to invest every year.
Simple - Eligible individuals in the unorganised work force can open an account through their `aggregator' and get an Individual subscriber (NPS - Lite) account.
Safe - Regulated by PFRDA, with transparent investment norms and regular monitoring and performance review of fund managers by NPS Trust.
Economical - Ultra-low cost structure with no minimum amount required per annum or per contribution.
Portable - Subscriber can operate account from anywhere in the country, even with change of location, employment or `aggregator
26. Raku-Raku - meaning "easy-to-use" in Japanese - new one-touch internet-access mobile handset from Fujitsu
The new Raku-Raku Phone 7 is designed to make the internet more accessible to senior citizens by introducing a one-touch access button to the i-mode mobile internet system.
27. Two new bacterial species that produce enzymes which could have application for biotech industry have been discovered in the Arctic region by a senior scientist from the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB).
The bacteria which can grow at 2 degrees Celsius and produce enzymes such as protease and lipase
28. Milon Kumar Banerjee, the former Attorney-General of India, passed away
Mr. Banerjee, as Attorney-General, had the rare honour of being called upon to address the Parliament regarding the powers of the Election Commission on August 5, 1993, a request that had not been made to the Attorney-General for decades, and the Padma Awards case, where he argued before the Supreme Court that these awards were not titles and as such were not violative of Article 18 of the Constitution
He was awarded the second highest national award, the Padma Vibhushan, in 2005
29. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said India would emerge as the third largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI) for the three-year period ending 2012
India broke into the top 10 destinations for FDI for the first time in 2009, when the world battled to emerge from a brutal financial crisis and FDI flows slowed dramatically. The country rose to the ninth place in 2009 from 13th in the previous year in the list of FDI destinations, according to the UNCTAD report.
30. In a move that will bring about a sweeping change in education across the country, the ministry of human resource development unveiled a low-cost computer with a price tag of Rs1,500 or $35
The single unit system has a touch screen and a built-in keyboard along with a 2 GB RAM memory, wi-fi connectivity, USB port and is powered by a 2-watt system to suit poor power-supply areas.
The device is the product of a collaborative effort involving the ministry, institutes like the IITs, IISc and VIT, Vellore
31. New inflation index from August:
The government will introduce a new system of inflation measurement from August that would cover price changes of about 250 extra items.
The monthly inflation measurement system in use currently, is based on the wholesale price index that reflects the price variations of 435 items.
The new index is likely to include a host of new products, including consumer goods such as mobile phones and LCD televisions, while out of use items such as typewriters and video cassette recorders would likely be dropped from the new inflation measurement mechanism.
The base year of the new index would also be changed from 1993-94 to 2004-05.
32. Now, map details height of the globe's forests:
Using satellite data, scientists have produced a first-of-its kind map that details the height of the world's forests.
The map, based on data collected by NASA's ICESat, Terra, and Aqua satellites, should help scientists build an inventory of how much carbon the world's forests store and how fast that carbon cycles through ecosystems and back into the atmosphere.
Some findings:
This new global depiction shows the world's tallest forests clustered in the Pacific Northwest of North America and portions of Southeast Asia, while shorter forests are found in broad swaths across northern Canada and Eurasia.
Temperate conifer forests – which are extremely moist and contain massive trees such as Douglas fir, western hemlock, redwoods, and sequoias – have the tallest canopies, soaring easily above 40 meters (131 feet). In contrast, boreal forests dominated by spruce, fir, pine, and larch had canopies typically less than 20 meters (65 feet). Relatively undisturbed areas in tropical rain forests were about 25 meters (82 feet), roughly the same height as the oak, beeches, and birches of temperate broadleaf forests common in Europe and much of the United States.
33. Researchers have found that sulforaphane, a chemical found in broccoli, interacts with cells lacking a gene called PTEN to reduce the chances of prostate cancer developing
34. The Boeing Company unveiled the hydrogen-powered Phantom Eye unmanned airborne system, a demonstrator that will stay aloft at 65,000 feet for up to four days.
Phantom Eye is powered by two 2.3-liter, four-cylinder engines that provide 150 horsepower each. It has a 150-foot wingspan, will cruise at approximately 150 knots and can carry up to a 450-pound payload.
Key Phantom Eye suppliers and partners include Ford Motor Company (engines); Aurora Flight Sciences (wing); Mahle Powertrain (propulsion controls); Ball Aerospace (fuel tanks); Turbosolutions Engineering (turbochargers); the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency; and NASA.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $34 billion business with 68,000 employees worldwide.
35. Yet ANother Indian in the Obama administration:
Gururaj ‘Desh' Deshpande, entrepreneur, philanthropist and Chairman of Tejas Networks, A123 and Akshaya Patra, USA, had been appointed Co-Chairman of the U.S. National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship (NACIE).
36. This year's Lokmanya Tilak Award will be given to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit in recognition of her contribution to politics. It consists of a gold medal, a memento, a citation and Rs.1 lakh
37. A big rock art site has been discovered at Kovanur, Perianaickenpalayam taluk, 30 km northwest of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
The site has about 60 paintings, both group compositions and individual images. The paintings portray the hunting of an elephant and a herd of deer, and images of a tiger, herds of bisons, a monitor lizard and hunters with bows and arrows.
38. The eight-legged ‘oracle' Octopus Paul was declared an “honorary friend” of a Spanish town in a ceremony at his German aquarium
39. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act:
It is a federal statute in the United States that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010.The Act is the product of the financial regulatory reform agenda of the Democratically-controlled 111th Congress and the Obama administration.
The Act is categorized into sixteen titles, and by one law firm's count, it requires that regulators create 243 rules, conduct 67 studies, and issue 22 periodic reports.The stated aim of the legislation is:
To promote the financial stability of the United States by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, to end "too big to fail", to protect the American taxpayer by ending bailouts, to protect consumers from abusive financial services practices, and for other purposes
40. The Reserve Bank of India will allow take-out financing through external commercial borrowings (ECB) for refinancing of rupee loans availed of from domestic banks
What is exisitng norm?
refinancing of domestic rupee loans with ECB is not permitted
What's the change?
Keeping in view the special funding needs of the infrastructure sector, it has been decided to review the ECB policy and put in place a scheme of take-out finance
41.After years of discussions Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus have launched a customs union as a first step towards forming a broader EU-type economic alliance of former Soviet states.
42. The Spitzer infra-red telescope has uncovered 14 of the coldest stars known in our universe. These failed stars, called brown dwarfs, are so cold and faint that they'd be impossible to see with current visible-light telescopes
43. Evidence of early humans who lived in colder climate found:
early humans had indeed ventured beyond 45 deg. N latitude some 7,00,000 years ago and reached Pakefield, Suffolk in the U.K that lies at 52 {+o} N latitude
44. The government has approved the release of Rs4,868 crore as interest subvention to public sector banks (PSBs), regional rural banks (RRBs) and cooperative banks as also NABARD for refinance to RRBs and cooperative banks for lending at concessional rate to farmers.
This is to ensure that farmers get short-term crop loans at a concessional rate of 7 per cent per annum (5 per cent for prompt payers)
What is Interest Subvention?
A subvention is a subsidy, so an interest subvention is a subsidy on interest. If the government is offering 5 % interest subvention on an farm loan which otherwise would have cost 10 % then the farmers can get loans at 5% interest rate.
44.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raised its short-term lending and borrowing rates by a higher than expected 0.25 per cent and 0.50 per cent respectively in an avowed attempt to bring the double-digit inflation down to six per cent by March 2011, in a move that would put pressure on banks' interest rates.
The increase in short-term lending rate (repo) to 5.75 per cent and short-term borrowing rate (reverse repo) to 4.5 per cent will be effective immediately
45. President Pratibha Patil appointed Election Commissioner (EC) Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) under Clause 2 of the Article 324 of the Constitution.
46.Mahela Jayawardene now has the most Test hundreds at a single venue. He overtook the legendary Don Bradman's nine centuries in Melbourne, when he reached the three-figure mark and notched up his 10th century at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground
47. The international flavour of the week seems to be the WikiLeaks expose of the documents concerning the operations against the Al Qaeda and its allies in Afghanistan.
The New York Times reported on Sunday, July, 18, 2010, that military field documents included in the leak suggest that Pakistan has been allowing "representatives of its spy service to meet directly with the Taliban in secret strategy sessions to organise networks of militant groups that fight against American soldiers in Afghanistan, and even hatch plots to assassinate Afghan leaders".
48. China stakes sovereign claim over entire South China Sea:
Reiterating historical claims the Chinese military declared that China had "indisputable sovereignty" over the South China Sea, but back-pedalled somewhat by saying it would continue to allow others to freely navigate what is one of the busiest waterways in the world. These remarks, in part, are a reaction to a move last week by the United States, Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries to challenge China's claims to the whole sea
The South China Sea
Part of the Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea encompasses an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around 3,500,000 km². It is considered as the largest or the second largest body of water after the five oceans depending on measurement.
Located south of China it has Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam as the littoral countries. It has hundreds of small islands scattered on its surface all of which are claimed by the various littoral nations on its rim.
This body of water has great geo-political significance being the second most used sea lane in the world. In terms of world annual merchant fleet tonnage, it is estimated that over 50 per cent passes through the Strait of Malacca, the Sunda Strait, and the Lombok Strait.
49. The Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc) at Chennai unveiled India's seventh-fastest supercomputer, Annapurna, to provide a boost to simulations and numerical calculations in the areas of statistical mechanics and condensed matter physics.
Annapurna is a high-performance computation (HPC) cluster having 1.5 Tera Byte (TB) memory and 30 TB storage space cluster capacity.
Among broad-based scientific institutions in India, the Annapurna cluster is the third fastest, ranking below the IISc Bangalore and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai.
Vindhya, Aravalli and Kabru - the other supercomputers built by the institute
49.Tata Chem's low-cost water purifier Tata Swach in WSJ's best Asian innovations shortlist. The fact that the purifier, branded Tata Swach, doesn't require electricity and running water unlike existing water purifiers is what makes the purifier really innovative.
50. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has selected three biometric solution providers and awarded contract to consortiums led by Accenture, Mahindra Satyam-Morpho and L1 Identity Solutions to implement the core biometric identification system in for the `Aadhaar' programme
51. Apple's glitches and antenna issues with iPhone 4 notwithstanding, the $57.4-billion brand that raced past Microsoft in May as the largest technology company, has topped the 'The World's Most Valuable Brands' list compiled by Forbes
Brand Microsoft comes in second with $56.6 billion, followed by Coca Cola ($55.4 billion), IBM ($43 billion) and Google ($39.7 billion) which bagged the third, fourth and fifth spots on the list.
Monday, July 5, 2010
1st week of July - CA
1. India's growing trade deficit
April-May 2010:
country exported goods and services worth $33.03 billion (Rs149,111 crore) while cumulative value of imports for April-May 2010 stood at $54.75 billion (Rs247,211 crore), recording an increase of $21.71 billion (Rs125,100 crore).
2. Net International Investment Position
The difference between a country's external financial assets and liabilities is the net international investment position (NIIP)
A country's international investment position (IIP) is a financial statement setting out the value and composition of that country's external financial assets and liabilities.
International Investment Position = domestically owned foreign assets - foreign owned domestic assets.
In layman's terms, it means the difference between the amount of foreign investment in India and Indian investment abroad
So what is India's NIIP?
As of end-March 2010 increased by $94.8 billion over the previous financial year, primarily due to increase in net inflow of portfolio and direct investment in India.
India's total external financial liabilities went up by $127.5 billion to $536.5 billion as of end-March 2010 over the previous year.
Total external financial assets increased by $32.6 billion to $378.8 billion as of end-March 2010 from $346.2 billion at end-March 2009
3. India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is partnering Swedish company Saab in fitting its CARABAS (Coherent All RAdio BAnd Sensing)
radar on the HAL-developed Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). This would allow the scanning of wide swathes of territory to detect deep buried IEDs well in advance.
Recently Naxal IEDs have been playing havoc in parts of central India causing extensive casualties amongst para-military personnel.
The CARABAS radar is designed to detect metallic components of an IED, even when it is buried deep below the ground. A computer scan of fresh images of a particular area, compared to previous images of the same area, allow the detection of any new metallic objects recently embedded. With such information in hand the IEDs can be defused of by bomb disposal squads.
4.After nearly a five-year wait, India has finally become a full-fledged member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an inter-governmental body responsible for setting global standards on anti-money laundering (AML) and combating financing of terrorism (CFT).
With its induction as the 34th member-country of the global body that chalks out policies to counter financial frauds, India will have access to information on suspicious financial transactions in Switzerland, China, the U.S. and the U.K. The development marks a significant step towards tracing the source of terror financing and black money stashed away in tax havens abroad.
5. Ending six decades of hostility, China and Taiwan signed a historic trade pact under which Beijing generously granted tariff cuts and concessions to hundreds of products to export dependent Taipei.
The Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) pact, which was finalised after months of excruciating negotiations signed by both sides in China’s Chongqing city . The new deal was expected to boost their $110 billion bilateral trade to a new high with Taiwan expected to make the most of it.
6. Access to Medicine Index:
- The companies are graded on many factors, including whether they offer lower prices or donate drugs in poor countries, whether they license generic versions of their products or fight to prevent them, whether they donate expertise or money to struggling health systems and whether they do research on neglected diseases
- GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Novartis have taken the top three spots again on the Access to Medicine Index, which ranks pharmaceutical companies on how readily they make their products available to the world's poor. It was the second time the rankings, which were created in 2008, have been issued. This time, 95 per cent of the brand-name companies approached by the Dutch foundation that started the index agreed to provide information; two years ago, only about half did
- The index is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Dutch and British governments, Oxfam and other donors
- For the first time, generic drugmakers were ranked separately. Three Indian companies, Ranbaxy Laboratories, Cipla and Dr. Reddy's, took the top three spots.
7. Steps taken by government in the textile sector:
- scheme for integrated textile park (SITP) - to supplement the efforts of the industry by providing state-of-the-art infrastructure facilities in textile growth centres. Forty parks have been sanctioned throughout the country
- Recent inaguration of Dodballapur Integrated Textile Park at Benguluru
- subsidy of Rs912 crore to 7,383 beneficiaries within 3 working days under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS)
- inclusion of sericulture and allied activities in the central government's Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), extending the various benefits to the silk industry.
- The Central Silk Board, Bengalure in association with Indian Space Research Organisation intends to take up remote sensing imagery rogramme in eight sericulture districts to assess mulberry acreage in the country
8. Aditya Puri, managing director of HDFC Bank Limited and Sam Ghosh, CEO of Reliance Capital, have won nominations as `Asian Captain of Finance 2010' in a poll conducted by `Institutional Investor' magazine
9. Resveratrol — found in red wine — stops out-of-control blood vessel growth in the eye
10.Induction of two new warships to Indian Navy:
- The Indian Navy inducted two indigenously built fast attack craft, INS Cankarso and INS Kondul
- Fitted with a 30-mm CRN-91 gun and Igla missiles and light and heavy machine guns, the warships will be tasked to detect, locate and destroy small but fast-moving enemy surface craft engaged in covert operations
- INS Cankarso and INS Kondul, named after two islands off Goa and in Nicobar, have a displacement of 325 tons each and reach a speed of 35 knots.
11. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) announced its seventh oil discovery in exploration block CB-ONN -2003/1 (CB 10 A&B) in the Cambay basin off the Gujarat cost, at a distance of 130 km from Ahmedabad
- The block, awarded under the NELP-V round of exploration bidding, covers an area of 635-sq km in two parts, viz. Part A and Part B. RIL, as operator, holds 100 per cent participating interest (PI) in the block.
12. Research on effects of oil spill:
Oil spills can increase levels of toxic arsenic in the ocean, creating an additional long-term threat to the marine ecosystem
Arsenic is a poisonous chemical element found in minerals and it is present in oil. High levels of arsenic in seawater can enable the toxin to enter the food chain. It can disrupt the photosynthesis process in marine plants and increase the chances of genetic alterations that can cause birth defects and behavioural changes in aquatic life
For their research, the team analysed a mineral called goethite, one of the most abundant ocean sediments in the world, which is an iron bearing oxide.
13. Rana Kapoor, founder, managing director and CEO of YES Bank, has been conferred with the `Indian Business Leader of the Year' award at the Global Indian Business Meeting held in Madrid
14. The Banker magazines' annual survey
four UK-based banks figure in the top 15 in the list of biggest 1,000 global lenders
In terms of size:
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) - 4th
HSBC - 1st
Barclays Bank - 4th
Lloyd's - 12th
The US, home to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, is the most powerful banking centre in the world, followed by the UK at the second spot, according the survey.
The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the China Construction Bank and Goldman Sachs are the most profitable banks in the world according to the survey.
15. foundation of Rohtang tunnel near Manali
The idea of constructing a tunnel beneath the Rohtang Pass at 13,000 feet was envisaged in 1983 and its construction received an impetus after the Kargil conflict
16. Indian-American Nisha Desai Biswal - has been nominated to the post of Assistant Administrator for Asia in the United States Agency for International Development (USAID),
17. scientists have discovered the oldest fossils of a multi- cellular organism Shaped like biscuits, the specimens are 200 million years older than for any previous claim
The ancient macrofossils were discovered near Franceville in Gabon two years ago.
After analysing their structure and chemical content, it emerged the specimens were not rock formations, but the remains of living organisms.
The first traces of life were simple "prokaryotic" organisms, which appeared 3.5 billion years ago, while 600 million years ago the Earth underwent The Cambrian Explosion - where oxygen levels in the atmosphere soared alongside a huge proliferation in the numbers of different species of life.
18. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed limiting annual salary increases of CEOs or wholetime directors of private banks to 10-15 per cent, besides a provision for slashing remuneration in case of poor financial showing.
19. India's external debt as of end-March 2010 increased by $36.9 billion to $261.4 billion, recording an increase of 16.5 per cent over the end-March 2009 level even as the external debt to GDP ratio stood at 18.9 per cent. The increase is attributed to a significant increase in IMF liabilities due to additional allocations of SDR, commercial borrowings, NRI deposits and short-term trade credits
20. Key component identified that helps plants go green
Plants have an array of photoreceptors that are tuned to different wavelengths of light. One type, called phytochromes, are sensitive to red and far-red light and play a major role in the making of chloroplasts and the growth of the stem
One of the first things that happens when the plant detects light is that these phytochromes move from the cell's cytoplasm to its nucleus, where the genes are kept. The photoreceptors gather in discrete spots known as phytochrome nuclear bodies
Identification of a new gene called HEMRA(named after Greek goddess of daylight, Hemera), that seems to be required for both the localization and the signaling of phytochrome.
21. Arunachal Pradesh, home to 570 species of orchids, half the number available in the country, is facing problems because of numerous hydro projects, roads, airports and other infrastructure coming up under the Prime Minister’s package.
Over 80 species of orchid, including some rare ones, have been relocated by the forest department in the same climatic zone from the project area of the 2000 MW Lower Subansiri hydro power project being constructed at Gerukamukh by the CPSU major NHPC
- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Fauna and Flora (CITES) stipulates protection of orchids in their natural habitat and prohibits their export.
Even tourists are not allowed to disturb orchids habitats, which is is punishable under law
April-May 2010:
country exported goods and services worth $33.03 billion (Rs149,111 crore) while cumulative value of imports for April-May 2010 stood at $54.75 billion (Rs247,211 crore), recording an increase of $21.71 billion (Rs125,100 crore).
2. Net International Investment Position
The difference between a country's external financial assets and liabilities is the net international investment position (NIIP)
A country's international investment position (IIP) is a financial statement setting out the value and composition of that country's external financial assets and liabilities.
International Investment Position = domestically owned foreign assets - foreign owned domestic assets.
In layman's terms, it means the difference between the amount of foreign investment in India and Indian investment abroad
So what is India's NIIP?
As of end-March 2010 increased by $94.8 billion over the previous financial year, primarily due to increase in net inflow of portfolio and direct investment in India.
India's total external financial liabilities went up by $127.5 billion to $536.5 billion as of end-March 2010 over the previous year.
Total external financial assets increased by $32.6 billion to $378.8 billion as of end-March 2010 from $346.2 billion at end-March 2009
3. India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is partnering Swedish company Saab in fitting its CARABAS (Coherent All RAdio BAnd Sensing)
radar on the HAL-developed Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). This would allow the scanning of wide swathes of territory to detect deep buried IEDs well in advance.
Recently Naxal IEDs have been playing havoc in parts of central India causing extensive casualties amongst para-military personnel.
The CARABAS radar is designed to detect metallic components of an IED, even when it is buried deep below the ground. A computer scan of fresh images of a particular area, compared to previous images of the same area, allow the detection of any new metallic objects recently embedded. With such information in hand the IEDs can be defused of by bomb disposal squads.
4.After nearly a five-year wait, India has finally become a full-fledged member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an inter-governmental body responsible for setting global standards on anti-money laundering (AML) and combating financing of terrorism (CFT).
With its induction as the 34th member-country of the global body that chalks out policies to counter financial frauds, India will have access to information on suspicious financial transactions in Switzerland, China, the U.S. and the U.K. The development marks a significant step towards tracing the source of terror financing and black money stashed away in tax havens abroad.
5. Ending six decades of hostility, China and Taiwan signed a historic trade pact under which Beijing generously granted tariff cuts and concessions to hundreds of products to export dependent Taipei.
The Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) pact, which was finalised after months of excruciating negotiations signed by both sides in China’s Chongqing city . The new deal was expected to boost their $110 billion bilateral trade to a new high with Taiwan expected to make the most of it.
6. Access to Medicine Index:
- The companies are graded on many factors, including whether they offer lower prices or donate drugs in poor countries, whether they license generic versions of their products or fight to prevent them, whether they donate expertise or money to struggling health systems and whether they do research on neglected diseases
- GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Novartis have taken the top three spots again on the Access to Medicine Index, which ranks pharmaceutical companies on how readily they make their products available to the world's poor. It was the second time the rankings, which were created in 2008, have been issued. This time, 95 per cent of the brand-name companies approached by the Dutch foundation that started the index agreed to provide information; two years ago, only about half did
- The index is supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Dutch and British governments, Oxfam and other donors
- For the first time, generic drugmakers were ranked separately. Three Indian companies, Ranbaxy Laboratories, Cipla and Dr. Reddy's, took the top three spots.
7. Steps taken by government in the textile sector:
- scheme for integrated textile park (SITP) - to supplement the efforts of the industry by providing state-of-the-art infrastructure facilities in textile growth centres. Forty parks have been sanctioned throughout the country
- Recent inaguration of Dodballapur Integrated Textile Park at Benguluru
- subsidy of Rs912 crore to 7,383 beneficiaries within 3 working days under the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS)
- inclusion of sericulture and allied activities in the central government's Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), extending the various benefits to the silk industry.
- The Central Silk Board, Bengalure in association with Indian Space Research Organisation intends to take up remote sensing imagery rogramme in eight sericulture districts to assess mulberry acreage in the country
8. Aditya Puri, managing director of HDFC Bank Limited and Sam Ghosh, CEO of Reliance Capital, have won nominations as `Asian Captain of Finance 2010' in a poll conducted by `Institutional Investor' magazine
9. Resveratrol — found in red wine — stops out-of-control blood vessel growth in the eye
10.Induction of two new warships to Indian Navy:
- The Indian Navy inducted two indigenously built fast attack craft, INS Cankarso and INS Kondul
- Fitted with a 30-mm CRN-91 gun and Igla missiles and light and heavy machine guns, the warships will be tasked to detect, locate and destroy small but fast-moving enemy surface craft engaged in covert operations
- INS Cankarso and INS Kondul, named after two islands off Goa and in Nicobar, have a displacement of 325 tons each and reach a speed of 35 knots.
11. Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) announced its seventh oil discovery in exploration block CB-ONN -2003/1 (CB 10 A&B) in the Cambay basin off the Gujarat cost, at a distance of 130 km from Ahmedabad
- The block, awarded under the NELP-V round of exploration bidding, covers an area of 635-sq km in two parts, viz. Part A and Part B. RIL, as operator, holds 100 per cent participating interest (PI) in the block.
12. Research on effects of oil spill:
Oil spills can increase levels of toxic arsenic in the ocean, creating an additional long-term threat to the marine ecosystem
Arsenic is a poisonous chemical element found in minerals and it is present in oil. High levels of arsenic in seawater can enable the toxin to enter the food chain. It can disrupt the photosynthesis process in marine plants and increase the chances of genetic alterations that can cause birth defects and behavioural changes in aquatic life
For their research, the team analysed a mineral called goethite, one of the most abundant ocean sediments in the world, which is an iron bearing oxide.
13. Rana Kapoor, founder, managing director and CEO of YES Bank, has been conferred with the `Indian Business Leader of the Year' award at the Global Indian Business Meeting held in Madrid
14. The Banker magazines' annual survey
four UK-based banks figure in the top 15 in the list of biggest 1,000 global lenders
In terms of size:
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) - 4th
HSBC - 1st
Barclays Bank - 4th
Lloyd's - 12th
The US, home to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, is the most powerful banking centre in the world, followed by the UK at the second spot, according the survey.
The Industrial & Commercial Bank of China, the China Construction Bank and Goldman Sachs are the most profitable banks in the world according to the survey.
15. foundation of Rohtang tunnel near Manali
The idea of constructing a tunnel beneath the Rohtang Pass at 13,000 feet was envisaged in 1983 and its construction received an impetus after the Kargil conflict
16. Indian-American Nisha Desai Biswal - has been nominated to the post of Assistant Administrator for Asia in the United States Agency for International Development (USAID),
17. scientists have discovered the oldest fossils of a multi- cellular organism Shaped like biscuits, the specimens are 200 million years older than for any previous claim
The ancient macrofossils were discovered near Franceville in Gabon two years ago.
After analysing their structure and chemical content, it emerged the specimens were not rock formations, but the remains of living organisms.
The first traces of life were simple "prokaryotic" organisms, which appeared 3.5 billion years ago, while 600 million years ago the Earth underwent The Cambrian Explosion - where oxygen levels in the atmosphere soared alongside a huge proliferation in the numbers of different species of life.
18. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed limiting annual salary increases of CEOs or wholetime directors of private banks to 10-15 per cent, besides a provision for slashing remuneration in case of poor financial showing.
19. India's external debt as of end-March 2010 increased by $36.9 billion to $261.4 billion, recording an increase of 16.5 per cent over the end-March 2009 level even as the external debt to GDP ratio stood at 18.9 per cent. The increase is attributed to a significant increase in IMF liabilities due to additional allocations of SDR, commercial borrowings, NRI deposits and short-term trade credits
20. Key component identified that helps plants go green
Plants have an array of photoreceptors that are tuned to different wavelengths of light. One type, called phytochromes, are sensitive to red and far-red light and play a major role in the making of chloroplasts and the growth of the stem
One of the first things that happens when the plant detects light is that these phytochromes move from the cell's cytoplasm to its nucleus, where the genes are kept. The photoreceptors gather in discrete spots known as phytochrome nuclear bodies
Identification of a new gene called HEMRA(named after Greek goddess of daylight, Hemera), that seems to be required for both the localization and the signaling of phytochrome.
21. Arunachal Pradesh, home to 570 species of orchids, half the number available in the country, is facing problems because of numerous hydro projects, roads, airports and other infrastructure coming up under the Prime Minister’s package.
Over 80 species of orchid, including some rare ones, have been relocated by the forest department in the same climatic zone from the project area of the 2000 MW Lower Subansiri hydro power project being constructed at Gerukamukh by the CPSU major NHPC
- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Fauna and Flora (CITES) stipulates protection of orchids in their natural habitat and prohibits their export.
Even tourists are not allowed to disturb orchids habitats, which is is punishable under law
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Sunday, June 27, 2010
CA- 20th- 26th June
1.The CoRoT team has announced the discovery of six diverse new planets, from 'shrunken-Saturns' to 'bloated hot Jupiters' as well a very rare brown dwarf with 60 times the mass of Jupiter.
CoRoT (Convection, Rotation and Transits), a space telescope operated by the French space agency CNES, discovers exoplanets when they pass in front of their stars - the so-called 'transit method'.
2.Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) report on causes of muslim backwardness in India:
- lack of access to educational institutions,
- inadequate number of educational institutions,
- a low literacy rate among parents and poor implementation of the Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS)
- poor participation of Muslims in the professional and managerial cadre
3.Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata Group of Companies, has been made an Honorary Doctor of Law by the University of Cambridge in recognition of his business achievements and philanthropic work
4. The proposed sale of nuclear reactors to Pakistan by China and objections by the international community:
The rules of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, of which China is a member, prohibit reactor sales to countries that do not have full-scope safeguards.
By claiming its proposed export of the Chashma-3 and 4 pressurised water reactors forms part of an earlier agreement with Pakistan that predates its membership of the NSG, Beijing denies the sale would violate the guidelines of the 46-nation cartel. Other NSG members dispute that, pointing to China's 2004 declaration limiting its ‘grandfathering' obligations to just the equipment and fuel for Chashma-1 and 2
The Chashma Nuclear Power Plant near Chashma, Punjab, Pakistan, consists of Chashma Nuclear Power Plant I (CHASNUPP-1) and Chashma Nuclear Power Plant II (CHASNUPP-2). Chashma Nuclear Power Plant's reactors and other facilities are being built and operated by the Pakistani government with Chinese support.
NSG:
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials.
Initially the NSG had seven members, Canada, West Germany, France, Japan, the USSR, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 1976-77, membership was expanded to fifteen with the admittance of Belgium, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland
China became a member in 2004. The European Commission participates as an observer. The 2009/2010 NSG Chair is Hungary
NSG members are meeting in New Zealand this year
5. Financial Inclusion:providing financial services to the vast sections of the population not covered by the formal banking system
Steps taken by RBI to ensure financial inclusion:
- Licensing laws have been tweaked to persuade banks to open branches in remote areas
- RBI has directed all banks to open “no-frills” accounts, characterised by low minimum balances and charges, but limited facilities
- Priority sector lending mandated by the central bank has financial inclusion as one of its objectives
6. 2011 census will, for the first time, include a counting of the diabled
7.India's share in U.S. imports of special purpose fabric (technical textiles) and non-woven fabrics was merely 2.6 per cent and 1.2 per cent, respectively in 2009 as compared to China's share of 15 per cent and 12 per cent
FICCI recommendations towards developing technology-intensive products in textile:
- formulate a comprehensive research and development (R&D) policy for the Indian textile industry which would provide a special focus on eco-friendly textiles that would help in reducing carbon footprint
- The chamber has also recommended setting up of a National Textiles Research Council with a seed-money of Rs. 30 crore and an annual grant of Rs. 10 crore.
8. The Indian Air Force (IAF) may grant the honorary rank of group captain to batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar in recognition of the laurels he has brought to the country
In the past, the IAF had accorded the honorary rank of air commodore to industrialist Vijaypath Singhania after he won the gold medal in the 24-day, 34,000 km Federation Aeronautique Internationale air race in 1994
9. Ratnam pens:
Maker of the famous Ratnam Pens based out of Rajahmundry
known as ‘swadeshi' pens during the freedom movement, brought fame to Rajahmundry and the pen-maker, K.V. Ratnam
Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, S. Kasturiranga Iyengar of The Hindu, Indira Gandhi, V.V. Giri, Ramnath Goenka of the Indian Express, and Archibald Nye, Governor of Madras, were known to have used them
K.V. Ramana Murthy of Ratnam and Sons has designed a pen which is of 3.5 cm long and 1.7 gm in weight, with a 14 carat gold nib with a pen point, a clip and ring band
he describes it as the world's smallest fountain pen
10.1000 Genomes Project
The 1000 Genomes Project, launched in January 2008, is an international research effort to establish by far the most detailed catalogue of human genetic variation. Scientists plan to sequence the genomes of at least one thousand anonymous participants from a number of different ethnic groups within the next three years, using newly developed technologies which are faster and less expensive.
The project unites multidisciplinary research teams from institutes around the world, including the United Kingdom, China, the United States and Germany
It has released first phase data
11. foreign direct investment (FDI) in the services sector drop by 33.5 per cent to $4.39 billion during 2009-10
During 2008-09, India received $6.61 billion FDI in the services sector.
FDI ranking in India country wise: Mauritius($10.37 bn) > Singapore > U.S.A
12.Two Indian women — Roshni Nadar and Nisa Godrej — have been listed among Forbes magazine’s list of “a breed of heiresses who choose to live a lower-key life ... and working to make a difference behind the scenes.”
13. The World Bank's total financial commitment towards India's development agenda is set to touch $9.3 billion by the end of the bank's fiscal year ending June
total expected lending this year (July-June 2010) would include $2.6 billion in the form of credits from the International Development Association (IDA) in addition to $6.7 billion as long-term, low-interest loans from the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
14. RBI revises norms for non-convertible debenture issue:
A corporate entity should have tangible net worth of not less than Rs4 crore, as per the latest audited balance sheet, and should have sanctioned working capital limit or term loan by banks or all-India financial institutions to be eligible to issue non-convertible debentures (NCDs) of original or initial maturity up to one year
An eligible corporate intending to issue NCDs should obtain credit rating for issuance of the NCDs from one of the rating agencies, viz., the Credit Rating Information Services of India Ltd. (CRISIL) or the Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Ltd. (ICRA) or the Credit Analysis and Research Ltd. (CARE) or the FITCH Ratings India Pvt Ltd or such other agencies registered with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) or such other credit rating agencies as may be specified by the Reserve Bank of India from time to time,
The maturity of NCDs should not be less than 90 days from the date of issue and the exercise date of option (put/call), if any, attached to the NCDs should not fall within the period of 90 days from the date of issue
15. ISRO has announced that it will make a detailed study of green house gases and forest fires for with funds from the union ministry of environment and forests. The satellite for this purpose which is under designing stage will be implemented in two to three years
16. The union government has decided to lift price control on petrol and allow an increase of Rs3.50 per litre of petrol. The empowered group of ministers (EGoM) also approved a hike of Rs2 per litre of diesel and Rs35 per cylinder of LGP
The EGoM, headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, decided to opt for a market-driven increase in the prices of petrol and diesel as the pressure to cut budget deficit outweighed concerns of the political fallout the measures.
17.Japan - one of the staunchest supporters of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty - has decided to jettison its opposition to nuclear deals with non-signatories of the NPT and enter into negotiations with India for sale of nuclear technology. The move will allow technology companies, such as Toshiba Corp and Hitachi Ltd, to breathe easy and bid for the burgeoning nuclear market in India, which is the second-biggest after China.
According to the World Nuclear Association, India plans to construct 35 new reactors in the next decade - a number that is the second biggest after China
The decision is historic because it would be the first such agreement between Japan and a country that is a non-signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Japan, along with China and Australia and a few other nations had opposed the waiver granted to India by the Nuclear Suppliers Group in 2008.
18. Beginning 1 July, the World Bank will offer access to its files under the Right to Information Act.
19. The longest professional tennis match, in terms of both time and total games played, was the Wimbledon 2010 first round match between Nicolas Mahut and John Isner on the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th of June, 2010, lasting 11 hours and 5 minutes, with a total of 183 games. The fifth set of the match, lasting 138 games, played over 8 hours 11 minutes, was also the longest set in history by both time and games. In addition, this match set duration records for:
Longest play in a single day: The first 118 games of the fifth set, played on 23rd of June 2010, lasted 7 hours and 6 minutes. This time is longer than the entire Nelson-Hepner match (below) and any other match in tennis history.
Most games in a single day: 118, on the 23rd of June
The longest women's match (by time) took place in 1984, when Vicki Nelson took 6 hours, 31 minutes to defeat Jean Hepner 6–4, 7–6(11). The match featured a 29-minute, 643-shot rally, the longest in professional tennis history.This match is also the longest professional match completed in a single day; the Mahut-Isner match was twice suspended by darkness, lasting three days.
20.Renewable energy major Suzlon Energy Ltd will supply 48.3 MW wind turbines to a Chinese power producer
21.India has extended the ban on import of milk and milk products from China for another six months
The items prohibited for import into India from the neighbouring country would include chocolate and chocolate products, candies, confectioneries and food preparations with milk as an ingredient
Imports of milk and milk products from China have been prohibited since September 2008
Though the directorate general of foreign trade has not cited any reason for the ban, it is understood that it was over fears of Chinese milk containing melamine, a deadly chemical
22.Saina Nehwal - first-ever Indian shuttler to win three Super Series titles
23. Facts on the Kishenganga project and the reason for the controversy:
The Kishenganga is a tributary of the Jhelum. It originates in J&K, crosses the Line of Control, runs for some 150 km in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and joins the Jhelum (in PoK).
India proposes to build a dam on the Kishenganga shortly before it crosses the LoC, divert a substantial part of the waters of the river through a tunnel to the hydroelectric project (330 MW, that is, 110 MW x 3) located near Bonar Nala, another tributary of the Jhelum, and then return the diverted waters, after they have passed through the turbines, to the Jhelum via the Wular Lake.
Why is Pakistan opposing to this project?
- Any diversion of waters from a river is bound to reduce the flows downstream of the diversion point. It is true that the diverted waters will be returned to the Jhelum, but there will certainly be a reduction of flows in the stretch of the Kishenganga (some 150 km) before it joins the Jhelum
- the existing agricultural use and use for hydro-electric power generation on the Kishenganga in Pakistan will be affected
What does the treaty say about this?
Two articles of the treaty contradict each other. While One says against the project the other says in favour of it.
Art. III (2) of the Treaty requires India to let flow all the western rivers to Pakistan and not permit any interference with those waters, and Art. IV (6) calls for the maintenance of natural channels
On the other hand, there is another provision (Ann. D, paragraph 15 (iii)) which specifically envisages water released from a hydroelectric plant located on one tributary of the Jhelum being delivered to another tributary; this seems to permit inter-tributary diversion
24.India has joined the Thirty Metre Telescope (TMT) project, the next generation astronomical observatory that will be located on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
- India has been granted observer status on the TMT Board. This is the first step to becoming a full partner in TMT, which will mean participating in the development and scientific use of what will be the world's most advanced and capable astronomical observatory
- The TMT project is an international partnership among Caltech, the University of California and the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy.
The National Astronomical Observatory (NAO) of Japan joined TMT as a collaborating institution in 2008. The National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences joined TMT with the observer status in November 2009.
The TMT was proposed by American scientists after the enormous success of the first new technology telescope, the twin 10 m Keck Telescope, on Mauna Kea. The TMT's primary mirror builds on the technological and operational heritage of Keck.
25. World Refugee Day, observed June 20 each year, is dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the world
- On 4 December 2000, the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 55/76 decided that, from 2001, 20 June would be celebrated as World Refugee Day. In this resolution, the General Assembly noted that 2001 marked the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees
26. University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Baskakov study on possible use of Blue green bacteria to generate 'green' electricity:
cyanobacteria possess a natural light-dependent electrogenic activity. The bacteria can generate and transfer high-energy electrons -- generate electricity -- to the external environment under illumination. Cyanobacteria fix within themselves an estimated 25 Giga tons of carbon, in the form of CO2 per year and account for 20-30 per cent of Earth’s total photosynthetic productivity
27. A.K. Antony on Tuesday became the first Defence Minister to land at the Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) of Nyoma in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.
28. Ahakista in Ireland:
- Ahakista (Atha Ciste) is located approximately half way along the Sheep's Head peninsula between Durrus and Kilcrohane in west Cork, Ireland. It is a wooded coastal village with a deep and sheltered harbour
- The Air India Memorial Garden is located here and each June the local community remembers the terrorist attack of 1985 that resulted in the deaths of over 300 people. Just after 08:00 on Sunday 23 June 1985 an Air India Jumbo jet flying from Canada to India and carrying 329 people - most of them Canadian citizens of Indian origin - was approaching the southwest coast of Ireland when it was blown apart by a bomb, killing everybody on board - men, women and children. In the days that followed, a huge search was carried out by ships, planes and helicopters
- The memorial includes a sundial with its shadow designed to touch a precise spot at 8.13 a.m. on June 23 every year. “Time flies, suns rise, shadows fall, let it pass by, love reigns forever overall,” reads the inscription on the sundial
29. The People's Bank of China pledged to make its currency more flexible, ending the yuan's peg to the U.S. dollar since August 2008 +>The yuan is expected to begin appreciating against the U.S. dollar and other currencies => Chinese items will be costlier for other coutries to buy => demand for chinese goods will decrease and demand for imports from other countries would increase since Yuan has appreciated
Why such a move?
This is to diffuse growing pressure on China to move its exchange rate and to diminish the risk that the United States and other countries might retaliate against China's exports if the peg of the yuan to the U.S. dollar persisted.
How is this going to impact the Forex reserves of China?
It will reduce the value of these reserves
For the United States and the rest of the world, appreciation of China's currency will improve the competitiveness of these countries, increasing their exports and helping to deal with global imbalances in saving and investment
How is it going to impact India?
The impact of such a move on India is not very different from the impact it is gooing to have on other countries. Competitiveness of Indian exports will increase because they can compete with Chinese goods on price points
30. Julia Gillard was sworn in as Australia's first woman Prime Minister on Thursday, after she toppled Kevin Rudd as leader of the ruling Labour party
31. New developments in Quantum Computing:
- The remarkable ability of an electron to exist in two places at once has been controlled in the most common electronic material - silicon - for the first time.
- scientists at University of Surrey, have created a simple version of Schrodinger's cat - which is paradoxically simultaneously both dead and alive - in the cheap and simple material out of which ordinary computer chips are made.
What are the advantages of Quantum Computing?
Quantum computers can solve some problems much more efficiently than conventional computers - and they will be particularly useful for security because they can quickly crack existing codes and create un-crackable codes
CoRoT (Convection, Rotation and Transits), a space telescope operated by the French space agency CNES, discovers exoplanets when they pass in front of their stars - the so-called 'transit method'.
2.Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) report on causes of muslim backwardness in India:
- lack of access to educational institutions,
- inadequate number of educational institutions,
- a low literacy rate among parents and poor implementation of the Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS)
- poor participation of Muslims in the professional and managerial cadre
3.Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata Group of Companies, has been made an Honorary Doctor of Law by the University of Cambridge in recognition of his business achievements and philanthropic work
4. The proposed sale of nuclear reactors to Pakistan by China and objections by the international community:
The rules of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, of which China is a member, prohibit reactor sales to countries that do not have full-scope safeguards.
By claiming its proposed export of the Chashma-3 and 4 pressurised water reactors forms part of an earlier agreement with Pakistan that predates its membership of the NSG, Beijing denies the sale would violate the guidelines of the 46-nation cartel. Other NSG members dispute that, pointing to China's 2004 declaration limiting its ‘grandfathering' obligations to just the equipment and fuel for Chashma-1 and 2
The Chashma Nuclear Power Plant near Chashma, Punjab, Pakistan, consists of Chashma Nuclear Power Plant I (CHASNUPP-1) and Chashma Nuclear Power Plant II (CHASNUPP-2). Chashma Nuclear Power Plant's reactors and other facilities are being built and operated by the Pakistani government with Chinese support.
NSG:
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a multinational body concerned with reducing nuclear proliferation by controlling the export and re-transfer of materials that may be applicable to nuclear weapon development and by improving safeguards and protection on existing materials.
Initially the NSG had seven members, Canada, West Germany, France, Japan, the USSR, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 1976-77, membership was expanded to fifteen with the admittance of Belgium, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland
China became a member in 2004. The European Commission participates as an observer. The 2009/2010 NSG Chair is Hungary
NSG members are meeting in New Zealand this year
5. Financial Inclusion:providing financial services to the vast sections of the population not covered by the formal banking system
Steps taken by RBI to ensure financial inclusion:
- Licensing laws have been tweaked to persuade banks to open branches in remote areas
- RBI has directed all banks to open “no-frills” accounts, characterised by low minimum balances and charges, but limited facilities
- Priority sector lending mandated by the central bank has financial inclusion as one of its objectives
6. 2011 census will, for the first time, include a counting of the diabled
7.India's share in U.S. imports of special purpose fabric (technical textiles) and non-woven fabrics was merely 2.6 per cent and 1.2 per cent, respectively in 2009 as compared to China's share of 15 per cent and 12 per cent
FICCI recommendations towards developing technology-intensive products in textile:
- formulate a comprehensive research and development (R&D) policy for the Indian textile industry which would provide a special focus on eco-friendly textiles that would help in reducing carbon footprint
- The chamber has also recommended setting up of a National Textiles Research Council with a seed-money of Rs. 30 crore and an annual grant of Rs. 10 crore.
8. The Indian Air Force (IAF) may grant the honorary rank of group captain to batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar in recognition of the laurels he has brought to the country
In the past, the IAF had accorded the honorary rank of air commodore to industrialist Vijaypath Singhania after he won the gold medal in the 24-day, 34,000 km Federation Aeronautique Internationale air race in 1994
9. Ratnam pens:
Maker of the famous Ratnam Pens based out of Rajahmundry
known as ‘swadeshi' pens during the freedom movement, brought fame to Rajahmundry and the pen-maker, K.V. Ratnam
Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, S. Kasturiranga Iyengar of The Hindu, Indira Gandhi, V.V. Giri, Ramnath Goenka of the Indian Express, and Archibald Nye, Governor of Madras, were known to have used them
K.V. Ramana Murthy of Ratnam and Sons has designed a pen which is of 3.5 cm long and 1.7 gm in weight, with a 14 carat gold nib with a pen point, a clip and ring band
he describes it as the world's smallest fountain pen
10.1000 Genomes Project
The 1000 Genomes Project, launched in January 2008, is an international research effort to establish by far the most detailed catalogue of human genetic variation. Scientists plan to sequence the genomes of at least one thousand anonymous participants from a number of different ethnic groups within the next three years, using newly developed technologies which are faster and less expensive.
The project unites multidisciplinary research teams from institutes around the world, including the United Kingdom, China, the United States and Germany
It has released first phase data
11. foreign direct investment (FDI) in the services sector drop by 33.5 per cent to $4.39 billion during 2009-10
During 2008-09, India received $6.61 billion FDI in the services sector.
FDI ranking in India country wise: Mauritius($10.37 bn) > Singapore > U.S.A
12.Two Indian women — Roshni Nadar and Nisa Godrej — have been listed among Forbes magazine’s list of “a breed of heiresses who choose to live a lower-key life ... and working to make a difference behind the scenes.”
13. The World Bank's total financial commitment towards India's development agenda is set to touch $9.3 billion by the end of the bank's fiscal year ending June
total expected lending this year (July-June 2010) would include $2.6 billion in the form of credits from the International Development Association (IDA) in addition to $6.7 billion as long-term, low-interest loans from the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
14. RBI revises norms for non-convertible debenture issue:
A corporate entity should have tangible net worth of not less than Rs4 crore, as per the latest audited balance sheet, and should have sanctioned working capital limit or term loan by banks or all-India financial institutions to be eligible to issue non-convertible debentures (NCDs) of original or initial maturity up to one year
An eligible corporate intending to issue NCDs should obtain credit rating for issuance of the NCDs from one of the rating agencies, viz., the Credit Rating Information Services of India Ltd. (CRISIL) or the Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Ltd. (ICRA) or the Credit Analysis and Research Ltd. (CARE) or the FITCH Ratings India Pvt Ltd or such other agencies registered with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) or such other credit rating agencies as may be specified by the Reserve Bank of India from time to time,
The maturity of NCDs should not be less than 90 days from the date of issue and the exercise date of option (put/call), if any, attached to the NCDs should not fall within the period of 90 days from the date of issue
15. ISRO has announced that it will make a detailed study of green house gases and forest fires for with funds from the union ministry of environment and forests. The satellite for this purpose which is under designing stage will be implemented in two to three years
16. The union government has decided to lift price control on petrol and allow an increase of Rs3.50 per litre of petrol. The empowered group of ministers (EGoM) also approved a hike of Rs2 per litre of diesel and Rs35 per cylinder of LGP
The EGoM, headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, decided to opt for a market-driven increase in the prices of petrol and diesel as the pressure to cut budget deficit outweighed concerns of the political fallout the measures.
17.Japan - one of the staunchest supporters of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty - has decided to jettison its opposition to nuclear deals with non-signatories of the NPT and enter into negotiations with India for sale of nuclear technology. The move will allow technology companies, such as Toshiba Corp and Hitachi Ltd, to breathe easy and bid for the burgeoning nuclear market in India, which is the second-biggest after China.
According to the World Nuclear Association, India plans to construct 35 new reactors in the next decade - a number that is the second biggest after China
The decision is historic because it would be the first such agreement between Japan and a country that is a non-signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Japan, along with China and Australia and a few other nations had opposed the waiver granted to India by the Nuclear Suppliers Group in 2008.
18. Beginning 1 July, the World Bank will offer access to its files under the Right to Information Act.
19. The longest professional tennis match, in terms of both time and total games played, was the Wimbledon 2010 first round match between Nicolas Mahut and John Isner on the 22nd, 23rd, and 24th of June, 2010, lasting 11 hours and 5 minutes, with a total of 183 games. The fifth set of the match, lasting 138 games, played over 8 hours 11 minutes, was also the longest set in history by both time and games. In addition, this match set duration records for:
Longest play in a single day: The first 118 games of the fifth set, played on 23rd of June 2010, lasted 7 hours and 6 minutes. This time is longer than the entire Nelson-Hepner match (below) and any other match in tennis history.
Most games in a single day: 118, on the 23rd of June
The longest women's match (by time) took place in 1984, when Vicki Nelson took 6 hours, 31 minutes to defeat Jean Hepner 6–4, 7–6(11). The match featured a 29-minute, 643-shot rally, the longest in professional tennis history.This match is also the longest professional match completed in a single day; the Mahut-Isner match was twice suspended by darkness, lasting three days.
20.Renewable energy major Suzlon Energy Ltd will supply 48.3 MW wind turbines to a Chinese power producer
21.India has extended the ban on import of milk and milk products from China for another six months
The items prohibited for import into India from the neighbouring country would include chocolate and chocolate products, candies, confectioneries and food preparations with milk as an ingredient
Imports of milk and milk products from China have been prohibited since September 2008
Though the directorate general of foreign trade has not cited any reason for the ban, it is understood that it was over fears of Chinese milk containing melamine, a deadly chemical
22.Saina Nehwal - first-ever Indian shuttler to win three Super Series titles
23. Facts on the Kishenganga project and the reason for the controversy:
The Kishenganga is a tributary of the Jhelum. It originates in J&K, crosses the Line of Control, runs for some 150 km in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and joins the Jhelum (in PoK).
India proposes to build a dam on the Kishenganga shortly before it crosses the LoC, divert a substantial part of the waters of the river through a tunnel to the hydroelectric project (330 MW, that is, 110 MW x 3) located near Bonar Nala, another tributary of the Jhelum, and then return the diverted waters, after they have passed through the turbines, to the Jhelum via the Wular Lake.
Why is Pakistan opposing to this project?
- Any diversion of waters from a river is bound to reduce the flows downstream of the diversion point. It is true that the diverted waters will be returned to the Jhelum, but there will certainly be a reduction of flows in the stretch of the Kishenganga (some 150 km) before it joins the Jhelum
- the existing agricultural use and use for hydro-electric power generation on the Kishenganga in Pakistan will be affected
What does the treaty say about this?
Two articles of the treaty contradict each other. While One says against the project the other says in favour of it.
Art. III (2) of the Treaty requires India to let flow all the western rivers to Pakistan and not permit any interference with those waters, and Art. IV (6) calls for the maintenance of natural channels
On the other hand, there is another provision (Ann. D, paragraph 15 (iii)) which specifically envisages water released from a hydroelectric plant located on one tributary of the Jhelum being delivered to another tributary; this seems to permit inter-tributary diversion
24.India has joined the Thirty Metre Telescope (TMT) project, the next generation astronomical observatory that will be located on Mauna Kea, Hawaii.
- India has been granted observer status on the TMT Board. This is the first step to becoming a full partner in TMT, which will mean participating in the development and scientific use of what will be the world's most advanced and capable astronomical observatory
- The TMT project is an international partnership among Caltech, the University of California and the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy.
The National Astronomical Observatory (NAO) of Japan joined TMT as a collaborating institution in 2008. The National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences joined TMT with the observer status in November 2009.
The TMT was proposed by American scientists after the enormous success of the first new technology telescope, the twin 10 m Keck Telescope, on Mauna Kea. The TMT's primary mirror builds on the technological and operational heritage of Keck.
25. World Refugee Day, observed June 20 each year, is dedicated to raising awareness of the situation of refugees throughout the world
- On 4 December 2000, the United Nations General Assembly in Resolution 55/76 decided that, from 2001, 20 June would be celebrated as World Refugee Day. In this resolution, the General Assembly noted that 2001 marked the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees
26. University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) Baskakov study on possible use of Blue green bacteria to generate 'green' electricity:
cyanobacteria possess a natural light-dependent electrogenic activity. The bacteria can generate and transfer high-energy electrons -- generate electricity -- to the external environment under illumination. Cyanobacteria fix within themselves an estimated 25 Giga tons of carbon, in the form of CO2 per year and account for 20-30 per cent of Earth’s total photosynthetic productivity
27. A.K. Antony on Tuesday became the first Defence Minister to land at the Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) of Nyoma in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.
28. Ahakista in Ireland:
- Ahakista (Atha Ciste) is located approximately half way along the Sheep's Head peninsula between Durrus and Kilcrohane in west Cork, Ireland. It is a wooded coastal village with a deep and sheltered harbour
- The Air India Memorial Garden is located here and each June the local community remembers the terrorist attack of 1985 that resulted in the deaths of over 300 people. Just after 08:00 on Sunday 23 June 1985 an Air India Jumbo jet flying from Canada to India and carrying 329 people - most of them Canadian citizens of Indian origin - was approaching the southwest coast of Ireland when it was blown apart by a bomb, killing everybody on board - men, women and children. In the days that followed, a huge search was carried out by ships, planes and helicopters
- The memorial includes a sundial with its shadow designed to touch a precise spot at 8.13 a.m. on June 23 every year. “Time flies, suns rise, shadows fall, let it pass by, love reigns forever overall,” reads the inscription on the sundial
29. The People's Bank of China pledged to make its currency more flexible, ending the yuan's peg to the U.S. dollar since August 2008 +>The yuan is expected to begin appreciating against the U.S. dollar and other currencies => Chinese items will be costlier for other coutries to buy => demand for chinese goods will decrease and demand for imports from other countries would increase since Yuan has appreciated
Why such a move?
This is to diffuse growing pressure on China to move its exchange rate and to diminish the risk that the United States and other countries might retaliate against China's exports if the peg of the yuan to the U.S. dollar persisted.
How is this going to impact the Forex reserves of China?
It will reduce the value of these reserves
For the United States and the rest of the world, appreciation of China's currency will improve the competitiveness of these countries, increasing their exports and helping to deal with global imbalances in saving and investment
How is it going to impact India?
The impact of such a move on India is not very different from the impact it is gooing to have on other countries. Competitiveness of Indian exports will increase because they can compete with Chinese goods on price points
30. Julia Gillard was sworn in as Australia's first woman Prime Minister on Thursday, after she toppled Kevin Rudd as leader of the ruling Labour party
31. New developments in Quantum Computing:
- The remarkable ability of an electron to exist in two places at once has been controlled in the most common electronic material - silicon - for the first time.
- scientists at University of Surrey, have created a simple version of Schrodinger's cat - which is paradoxically simultaneously both dead and alive - in the cheap and simple material out of which ordinary computer chips are made.
What are the advantages of Quantum Computing?
Quantum computers can solve some problems much more efficiently than conventional computers - and they will be particularly useful for security because they can quickly crack existing codes and create un-crackable codes
Sunday, June 20, 2010
12th till 19th June - CA
1. Media baron and Sun TV promoter Kalanithi Maran is set to buy a 38 per cent stake in India's second-largest low-fare carrier, SpiceJet, from Bhupendra Kansagra and distressed asset specialist W L Ross
2. India-Syria joint declaration:
enhance cooperation in various sectors like:
- oil and gas exploration
- phosphatic fertilisers,
- automobiles,
- processed food products,
- agricultural machinery,
- marine transport
- small and medium enterprises
3.A breakthrough in cancer therapy:
- Research made by a team of British doctors, led by Goa-born Jayant S Vaidya
- could ensure that the painful and time-consuming radiotherapy for breast cancer could soon be a single-dose, 30-minute affair
- `Targeted Intraoperative Radiotherapy' (TIR), conducted in nine countries involving over 2,200 women, confirmed that radiation targeting a specific area of the breast was as effective as whole-breast radiation in reducing breast cancer recurrence in women.
4. World's biggest radio telescope:
- Dutch scientists in the Netherlands have unveiled the largest radio telescope in the world, saying it was capable of detecting faint signals from almost as far back as the Big Bang.
- Instead of the traditional large dish, the LOFAR (Low Frequency Array) system consists of 25,000 small antennas measuring between 50 centimetres and two metres across
- The hub of the system is based near the north-eastern Dutch town of Assen, but the antennas spread out across the rest of the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, France and Britain
5. Combined revenue from BWA(Broadband Wireless Access) and 3G :Rs1.06 lakh crore, which is more than three times the initial estimate of Rs35,000 crore
Unlike the 3G auctions where there were no pan India winners(BSNL and MTNL), in the BWA auctions, Infotel Broadband Services Private Ltd in which Reliance Industries Ltd has announced acquiring a 95-per cent stake , has emerged as the winner in all 22 circles.
RIL has acquired 95-% stake in Infotel Broadband - first foray of RIL into the telecom sector after 2005
BWA offers tremendous potential to these operators as the broadband penetration in India is just 0.74 per cent as compared to an overall tele-density of 52.74 per cent. There are just 0.1 to 0.2 million net broadband additions per month as compared to an addition of approximately 15-18 million wireless subscribers per month.
6. In a startling revelation the US Pentagon has let it be known that Afghanistan has nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits - enough to turn a country racked by decades of conflict into one of the most important mining centres in the world. An internal Pentagon assessment says the huge mineral reserves contain lithium, a key industrial metal, stocks of which are large enough to turn the country into the 'Saudi Arabia of lithium'.
7. Foxconn, which manufactures components for giants like Sony and Apple, has been forced to announce a 66% wage increases after a spate of 11 suicides by its workers and allegations that it was caused by workplace depression and low wages. This has prompted the company to move a part of its plants in southern China to one of the northern cities like Tianjin to overcome the problem of rising wage costs.
Begining of the end of China's factory model:
So far the biggest advantage China has in the world market in terms of export competitiveness is its labour-intensive, low-wage, large-scale and highly-efficient factory model. But in recent months, the durability of the China factory model has come under increasing scrutiny, after a series of strikes across China's manufacturing heartland The debate ignited by the suicides has intensified in recent weeks following a series of high-profile strikes at other factories over low wages. Last week, production at Japanese carmaker Honda's facility in Foshan, in southern China, came to a grinding halt as workers laid down their tools demanding higher pay.
The company was forced to acquiesce to the demands, agreeing to a 24 per cent pay hike. The strike's success prompted workers at a number of other plants across China's Pearl River Delta, the manufacturing heartland, to follow suit After the Foxconn case and the strikes at Honda, a number of foreign companies are raising salaries. The rise in wages, analysts say, will have global repercussions. The wage hike will see between 2,000 and 3,000 Hong Kong-owned factories close in southern China, estimates a Hong Kong-based industry group.
Labour costs in southern China now exceed average costs in seven Asian countries, including India, rising to $1.08 (Rs.50) an hour. Foxconn, which announced a 65 per cent pay hike following the suicides, has already announced it will move some of its factories out of southern China; the company is said to be considering Vietnam and India.
8.Fibertect - a non-woven, environment-friendly cotton carbon absorbent wipes created by Seshadri Ramkumar, Associate Professor of the Texas Tech Institute of Environmental and Human Health. This contains 0.5 per cent wax, which enables it to soak up 40 times its weight.
9. New DTC provisions:
- provident funds would not be taxed on withdrawal
- a proposal to levy MAT on corporates based on their assets had been dropped
- MAT paid by eligible companies are to be computed on profits and not on assets. - retirement funds continue to be exempt from tax on withdrawal
10. 93-year-old Shyam Saran of Kalpa village of Kinnaur district, one of the first few voters of Independent India, was honoured by Chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla at Mr. Saran's home in Himachal Pradesh
11. a centre for studying climate change would be set up exclusively for the north-eastern States This centre will be anchored at the North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) and will have satellite centres in the region
12. Frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis, whose surnames have become part of the fabric of cricket, were both awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire).
The Duckworth-Lewis method was first used in international cricket in 1997 and formally adopted by the ICC as the standard method for setting revised targets in truncated games in 2001.
Other awardees:
Catherine Zeta-Jones - CBE(Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
Bert Williams - MBE the England goalkeeping hero whose fate it is to be remembered for a goal he let in. (Is it the turn of Robert Green next?:-))
13. Centrifuge machines manufactured by Ocean Therapy Solutions, a company co-owned by Kevin Costner to clean oil spill:
After seeing the effects of the Valdez spill in Alaska on TV, Costner put in $24 million of his money in 1995 to fund a team of scientists, including his brother Dan Costner, also a scientist, to develop a technology that could deal with huge oil spills.
BP has signed a letter of intent with Ocean Therapy Solutions, a company co-owned by Kevin Costner to deploy 32 centrifuge machines to assist in the cleanup of oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
The centrifuge machines are sophisticated centrifuge devices that can handle a huge volume of water and separate oil at unprecedented rates. The machines are taken out into the spill area via barges, where they can separate the oil and water.
14. Great Andaman Trunk Road - a threat to the Jarawas:
The Jarawa are one of the adivasi indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands. Their present numbers are estimated at between 250-350 individuals.
The biggest threat to the Jarawa in recent years came from the building of the Great Andaman Trunk Road through their newer western forest homeland in the 1970s. This has led to
widespread encroachment, poaching and commercial exploitation of Jarawa lands
Tourism also is taking a toll on the Jarawas. The volume of sightseeing tours that are operated by private companies, where tourists view, photograph or otherwise attempt interactions with Jarawas, who are often begging by the highway. These are illegal under Indian law, and in March 2008, the Tourism Department of the Andaman and Nicobar administration issued a fresh warning to tour operators that attempting contact with Jarawas, photographing them,
stopping vehicles while transiting through their land or offering them rides were prohibited under the Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Regulation, 1956, and would be prosecuted under a strict interpretation of the statute.
15. Higuain from Argentian became the 48th hat-trick scorer in the FIFA world cup and the third Argentine to acheive the feat following Guillermo Stabile (1930) and Gabriel Batistuta(1994, 1998)
16. How America benefits from economic engagement with India - report based on a joint study by the University of Maryland, India-US World Affairs Institute and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI):
Findings:
- India has invested over $26.6 billion in the US over the last five years thereby creating about 60,000 jobs
- The investments included 372 acquisitions worth a total $21 billion by 239 Indian companies and 127 fresh investments worth $5.5 billion between 2004 and 2009
- Minnesota, Virginia and Texas emerged the top three destinations for green field investments while Ohio, Texas, and California were the top three states in terms of jobs created
17.The Reserve Bank of India has revised the rupee value of the special currency basket for payments under the deferred payment protocol between the Government of India and the erstwhile USSR to Rs63.0402 with effect from 31 May 2010 India and the Russian Federation signed the deferred payment protocols on 30 April 1981 and 23 December 1985 on the debt India owed the erstwhile USSR
This deferred payment protocol pertains to the payment to be made by India to USSR for the purchases that it has made on credit.
18.Ethnic clashes in Kyrgyzstan:
Clash between two main Kyrgyz ethnic groups – the Uzbeks and the Kyrgyz people
The death toll in the week-long ethnic violence in south Kyrgyzstan could cross 2000 mark with over 70,000 refugees fleeing their homes to neighbouring Uzbekistan amid the worst humanitarian crisis since the collapse of the former Soviet Union
The roots of Kyrgyz-Uzbek hostility reach far back in history.
In June 1990, ethnic tensions between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz surfaced in the Osh Oblast, where Uzbeks form a majority of the population. Violent confrontations ensued, and a state of emergency and curfew were introduced
Probable cause:
Sudden ouster in April of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
The anti-Uzbek riots are taking place in the southern region, where the deposed leader retains a strong following among the Kyrgyz population. The region is home to large numbers of ethnic Uzbeks, whose loyalties lie with the political set-up that replaced the corrupt and nepotistic Mr. Bakiyev
CSTO intervention:
On October 7, 2002, the Presidents of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed a charter in Tashkent founding the Collective
Security Treaty Organisation
The CSTO decided to send logistical help such as helicopters and fuel, but no troops
19. India's biggest photovoltaic solar power plant, capable of generating 3 MW - at Yalesandra village in Kolar district of Karnataka has been inagurated
- The plant, using modular crystalline technology to generate solar energy, has been set up at a cost of Rs59.5 crore
- Earlier West Bengal boasted the largest solar poweer plant in the country, though it has only a 1 MW capacity.
- The unique feature of the plant is that the power would be available to farmers during the day, unlike conventional power which is largely available only at night for farmers
20. Sericulture and allied activities would now on be eligible for funding under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY). It will cover sericulture up to the stage of cocoon production along with extension system for cocoon production and silk yarn production in agri-enterprise up to the marketing The benefits of RKVY can now be availed for improvement of sericulture extension system, enhancement of soil health development of rain fed sericulture and for integrated pest management
21. Nobel literature prize winner Jose Saramago is dead
- Portuguese novelist, playwright and journalist
- Saramago was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1998
22. Recent findings from excavation at Pattnam:
- The finds include pottery, metals, objects of personal adornment, and botanical samples. One other interesting find was a broken rim with Brahmi script.
- The imported and fine pottery assemblage comprises Roman, West Asian, Indian Rouletted Ware (IRW) and a host of other unidentified fine wares. The number of Roman amphora sherds and Terra Sigillata excavated at Pattanam continued to be impressive and its record as the largest assemblage of Roman pottery in India will have deeper implications in understanding the Roman role in Indian Ocean trade
23. Nuclear weapons-capable, medium range surface-to-surface Prithvi-II ballistic missile was successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, off the Orissa coast
The Prithvi is the first of the missiles developed under the country's Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme. It now has two variants — Air Force version (Prithvi-II) and Naval (Dhanush) — both having a range of 350 km
24. International Whaling Commission prepares to hold its 62nd annual meeting from June 21 in Agadir, Morocco
Agenda:
Japan and Iceland have been trying to to get the moratorium on the slaughter of whales lifted. The 24-year-old ban on commercial whaling has become an emotive issue for Japan, which cites historic and cultural reasons to justify its abhorrent hunts.
Japan is also using the loophole in one of the provisions in IWC that allows the unilateral issue of permits to kill whales for scientific experiments. They are sending factory ships each year into faraway Antarctic waters to hunt minke whales, and process their meat for sale.
Iceland also used this loophole to launch a similar programme four years ago, while Norway has resorted to an objection clause to claim exemption from the moratorium.
This meeting is very important from the perspecting of keeping the ban intact and not bowing down the pressure from Japan,Norway and Iceland
25. Janani Suraksha Yojana - launched in 2005 to encourage deliveries at government health care facilities, has achieved some of its goals
- the number of deliveries in government health facilities shot up by 36 per cent in Rajasthan and 53 per cent in Madhya Pradesh
- The study revealed that cash payment led to a reduction of about four perinatal deaths per 1,000 pregnancies, and two neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births
- With a budget of Rs.1,540 crore and 9.5 million beneficiaries, JSY is the world's largest conditional cash transfer scheme
26. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) along with its subsidiary MOICML (Mahindra Overseas Investment Company Mauritius Ltd.), Arabia Holdings and Ras Al-Khaimah
Transport Investments LLC, signed an agreement to create a joint venture company in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE for armouring of vehicles
- It would launch a number of MDS' armoured vehicles such as the Marksman, the up-armoured Scorpio and cash in transit van, which have been successful in India
26. An international clinical trial has found that AIDS-fighting antiretroviral drug combinations given to pregnant and breastfeeding women in Botswana, Africa, prevented 99 per cent of the mothers from transmitting he human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to their infants
27. HRV: Heart rate variability refers to variation in the time interval between heart beats during everyday
Eating a Mediterranean-style diet — one characterized by low saturated fats and high in fish, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, olive oil, cereals and moderate alcohol consumption — reduces a person's heart disease risk => increases the HRV
28.Endangered cow cloned:
The team, led by Jeju National University and Mirae Biotech have successfully cloned Huku or black-fur cow
The Huku breed is indigenous to the southern island, where there are about 600 of them.
29. A set of rare paintings by Rabindranath Tagore, who had gifted them to a British missionary and friend Leonard Elmhirst for his private collection in 1939, was sold for a record £1.6 million at an auction
The sale was part of Sotheby's auction of South Asian art, which together fetched £5.5 million and included works of leading Indian artists such as Syed Haider Raza and Francis Souza.
30. Ashok Kumar Attri has been appointed Ambassador of India to Denmark.
31. Nirmalgram Puraskar'
The award is to ensure rural sanitation and eradicate open defecation
Maharashtra Governor K. Sankaranarayanan presented the ‘Nirmalgram Puraskar' to 1,720 villages, in recognition of their achievement of full sanitation
32. New pancreatic cancer mechanism discovered:
- Cancer of the pancreas is a form of cancer that has few treatment options and a poor prognosis. It is linked to two particularly common cellular changes: mutations in a family of cancer genes called RAS and increased activity in the 'Hedgehog' signalling pathway, a molecular signal transmission mechanism that is normally only activated during embryonic growth.
- A new study from Karolinska Institutet shows how RAS and the Hedgehog pathway interact in the development of pancreatic cancer in mice
- Activation of cancer genes in the RAS family causes the tumour cells to secrete the factor (SHH) that activates Hedgehog signalling, and shuts off the tumour cell's own ability to respond to this type of stimulation
- One of the reasons for the poor prognosis associated with pancreatic cancer is that the disease is hard to detect at an early stage
33. India exported goods and services worth around $33 billion in the first two months of the current financial year (April-May 2010) while imports into the country during the two months stood at $54.7 billion.
The trade deficit of the country for the two months stood at a whopping $21.7 billion.
34. 'Impossible' conductivity explained:
- Bring two materials that are not themselves conductive into contact and, exactly at their interface, something remarkable happens: at that precise point, conduction is possible
- Researchers from the MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology of the University of Twente, together with colleagues from Munich, Berkeley and Davis, have now also demonstrated that at this interface two parallel conductive 'paths' are created, just one nanometre apart.
- This breakthrough could lead to new possibilities for nanoelectronics
35. Updates on India-S.Korea relations
India and South Korea agreed to explore possibilities for civil nuclear cooperation between the two countries as well as the launching of South Korean satellites aboard India's space launch vehicles
- - The foreign ministers of both nations noted that after the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement went into effect in January this year, trade volume has picked up 70 per cent. Both countries are targeting a trade volume of $30 billion by 2014
- South Korea and India hold ministerial talks, dubbed the Joint Commission, since 2002. This year was the sixth such meeting of its kind. Form this year the talks will be an annual affair, as agreed upon by leaders of both nations in January this year.
- Krishna also suggested that a bust of Rabindranath Tagore, who had described Korea as the 'Lamp of the East,' be installed at a prominent place in Seoul
36. End of IRDA-SEBI tiff:
- The Insurance Regulatory Authority of India (IRDA) will regulate the issue of unit-linked insurance policies (ULIPs) and the insurance regulator will now come up with revised guidelines on ULIPs.
- The President promulgated an ordinance to this effect. The ordinance will be made into bill to be passed at the next session of Parliament
- The regulatory turf war started in April with the SEBI banning 14 life insurance firms from issuing fresh ULIP schemes and asking them to stop further sales of existing products
37. Union minister for human resource development Kapil Sibal proposed health insurance and life insurance cover as also a group housing scheme for the 6 million school teachers in the country
- While the two insurance schemes will require financial contribution by the centre, the states and the teachers, the group housing scheme will be administered at the central level but will not require financial contribution from the centre or the state governments
38.Higher Education in India:
Two commissions employed to recommend reforms in higher education in recent times are:National Knowledge Commission headed by Sam Pitroda and the other by the Committee on Renovation and Rejuvenation of Higher Education headed by Yash Pal
However to formalise their recommendations effortds are on to provide legislative basis to them.Specifically, the four Bills introduced in Parliament in April and the one on the anvil, if enacted with whatever changes Parliament deems fit, can provide a strong foundation to overcome the present aberrations and enhance the credibility of Indian higher educational qualifications among the nations of the world.
The four Bills are:
- Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, 2010;
- Prohibition of Unfair Practices in Technical, Medical Educational Institutions and Universities Bill;
- the Educational Tribunal Bill and
- the National Accreditation Authority Bill
Foreign Institutions Bill:
The basic premise of the Foreign Institutions Bill is that every foreign educational service provider engaged in offering programmes leading to degrees and diplomas, whether it already operates in India or intends to do so in future either on its own or in collaboration with an Indian partner, must register itself with a designated authority, giving all the necessary information.
Prerequisites:
these institutions must have a track record of 20 years in offering recognised and accredited degree programmes in their home country
National Accreditation Authority Bill:
license competent professional organisations to undertake the accreditation responsibilities, in accordance with norms and standards prescribed by a competent agency.
National Commission on Higher Education and Research (NCHER)'s responsibilities:
- primary task is to evolve norms and standards for various aspects of higher education, including assessment and accreditation. Several of the regulating bodies dealing with academic norms for higher education will consequently stand abolished.
- identification of academic-administrators of national standing who are eligible and qualify for appointment as Vice-Chancellors of universities or heads of central educational institutions
39. Indonesia has filed a lawsuit against the ban implemented by U.S. administration that bans the trade of clove cigarette in the U.S. territory
- lawsuit has been filed to Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) last week, an agency under the control of the World Trade Organization (WTO), particularly tasked to settle trade dispute
- The other reason to file the lawsuit was that the U.S. agency did not respond to Indonesia's request to prove scientifically over the agency's statement that the cigarette with aroma and odor is more dangerous than the ones without them
- The U.S. agency's policy to ban trade of clove cigarette in that country would cost Indonesia significantly as 99 per cent of cigarettes supplied to the United States come from Indonesia
40. India and China, the region's largest food grain producing and consuming countries, have identified the emerging food grain storage sector as a new are of cooperation between the two.
41. Kartar Singh Lalvani, founder of pharmaceutical major Vitabiotics in Britain, has been awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in her Birthday Honours List
Lalvani has established Indali Lounge, recognised as the ‘healthiest curry house in world.'
Anil Kumar Bhanot has been honoured for services to the Hindu Community and to Inter-Faith Relations, while Janti Champaneri figures in the list for services to the local government in Birmingham, and Kailash Chand Malhotra for services to healthcare in Cheshire
42. India created history by fielding its first professional symphony orchestra in the Fifth Festival of World's Symphony Orchestras here, and winning the applause of Muscovites, one of the most demanding audiences in the world.
- The Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI), during its maiden foreign trip, performed Beethoven's 9th symphony in the finale of the 10-day festival in the historical House of Columns, once the club of Russian Imperial gentry
- The SOI was formed by the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in 2006
43. The Centre has approved capital infusion of Rs.6,211 crore in five public sector banks to help them in attaining a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by March 31, 2011, and ensure an additional Rs.77,637 crore in lending capacity to various sectors of the economy.
Those are: IDBI Bank, Central Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, UCO Bank and Union Bank of India
- The continuing exercise of capital infusion is a part of the budgetary promise to provide a sum of Rs.16,500 crore to ensure that the public sector banks are able to attain a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by the end of the current fiscal.
2. India-Syria joint declaration:
enhance cooperation in various sectors like:
- oil and gas exploration
- phosphatic fertilisers,
- automobiles,
- processed food products,
- agricultural machinery,
- marine transport
- small and medium enterprises
3.A breakthrough in cancer therapy:
- Research made by a team of British doctors, led by Goa-born Jayant S Vaidya
- could ensure that the painful and time-consuming radiotherapy for breast cancer could soon be a single-dose, 30-minute affair
- `Targeted Intraoperative Radiotherapy' (TIR), conducted in nine countries involving over 2,200 women, confirmed that radiation targeting a specific area of the breast was as effective as whole-breast radiation in reducing breast cancer recurrence in women.
4. World's biggest radio telescope:
- Dutch scientists in the Netherlands have unveiled the largest radio telescope in the world, saying it was capable of detecting faint signals from almost as far back as the Big Bang.
- Instead of the traditional large dish, the LOFAR (Low Frequency Array) system consists of 25,000 small antennas measuring between 50 centimetres and two metres across
- The hub of the system is based near the north-eastern Dutch town of Assen, but the antennas spread out across the rest of the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, France and Britain
5. Combined revenue from BWA(Broadband Wireless Access) and 3G :Rs1.06 lakh crore, which is more than three times the initial estimate of Rs35,000 crore
Unlike the 3G auctions where there were no pan India winners(BSNL and MTNL), in the BWA auctions, Infotel Broadband Services Private Ltd in which Reliance Industries Ltd has announced acquiring a 95-per cent stake , has emerged as the winner in all 22 circles.
RIL has acquired 95-% stake in Infotel Broadband - first foray of RIL into the telecom sector after 2005
BWA offers tremendous potential to these operators as the broadband penetration in India is just 0.74 per cent as compared to an overall tele-density of 52.74 per cent. There are just 0.1 to 0.2 million net broadband additions per month as compared to an addition of approximately 15-18 million wireless subscribers per month.
6. In a startling revelation the US Pentagon has let it be known that Afghanistan has nearly $1 trillion in untapped mineral deposits - enough to turn a country racked by decades of conflict into one of the most important mining centres in the world. An internal Pentagon assessment says the huge mineral reserves contain lithium, a key industrial metal, stocks of which are large enough to turn the country into the 'Saudi Arabia of lithium'.
7. Foxconn, which manufactures components for giants like Sony and Apple, has been forced to announce a 66% wage increases after a spate of 11 suicides by its workers and allegations that it was caused by workplace depression and low wages. This has prompted the company to move a part of its plants in southern China to one of the northern cities like Tianjin to overcome the problem of rising wage costs.
Begining of the end of China's factory model:
So far the biggest advantage China has in the world market in terms of export competitiveness is its labour-intensive, low-wage, large-scale and highly-efficient factory model. But in recent months, the durability of the China factory model has come under increasing scrutiny, after a series of strikes across China's manufacturing heartland The debate ignited by the suicides has intensified in recent weeks following a series of high-profile strikes at other factories over low wages. Last week, production at Japanese carmaker Honda's facility in Foshan, in southern China, came to a grinding halt as workers laid down their tools demanding higher pay.
The company was forced to acquiesce to the demands, agreeing to a 24 per cent pay hike. The strike's success prompted workers at a number of other plants across China's Pearl River Delta, the manufacturing heartland, to follow suit After the Foxconn case and the strikes at Honda, a number of foreign companies are raising salaries. The rise in wages, analysts say, will have global repercussions. The wage hike will see between 2,000 and 3,000 Hong Kong-owned factories close in southern China, estimates a Hong Kong-based industry group.
Labour costs in southern China now exceed average costs in seven Asian countries, including India, rising to $1.08 (Rs.50) an hour. Foxconn, which announced a 65 per cent pay hike following the suicides, has already announced it will move some of its factories out of southern China; the company is said to be considering Vietnam and India.
8.Fibertect - a non-woven, environment-friendly cotton carbon absorbent wipes created by Seshadri Ramkumar, Associate Professor of the Texas Tech Institute of Environmental and Human Health. This contains 0.5 per cent wax, which enables it to soak up 40 times its weight.
9. New DTC provisions:
- provident funds would not be taxed on withdrawal
- a proposal to levy MAT on corporates based on their assets had been dropped
- MAT paid by eligible companies are to be computed on profits and not on assets. - retirement funds continue to be exempt from tax on withdrawal
10. 93-year-old Shyam Saran of Kalpa village of Kinnaur district, one of the first few voters of Independent India, was honoured by Chief Election Commissioner Navin Chawla at Mr. Saran's home in Himachal Pradesh
11. a centre for studying climate change would be set up exclusively for the north-eastern States This centre will be anchored at the North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) and will have satellite centres in the region
12. Frank Duckworth and Tony Lewis, whose surnames have become part of the fabric of cricket, were both awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire).
The Duckworth-Lewis method was first used in international cricket in 1997 and formally adopted by the ICC as the standard method for setting revised targets in truncated games in 2001.
Other awardees:
Catherine Zeta-Jones - CBE(Commander of the Order of the British Empire)
Bert Williams - MBE the England goalkeeping hero whose fate it is to be remembered for a goal he let in. (Is it the turn of Robert Green next?:-))
13. Centrifuge machines manufactured by Ocean Therapy Solutions, a company co-owned by Kevin Costner to clean oil spill:
After seeing the effects of the Valdez spill in Alaska on TV, Costner put in $24 million of his money in 1995 to fund a team of scientists, including his brother Dan Costner, also a scientist, to develop a technology that could deal with huge oil spills.
BP has signed a letter of intent with Ocean Therapy Solutions, a company co-owned by Kevin Costner to deploy 32 centrifuge machines to assist in the cleanup of oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
The centrifuge machines are sophisticated centrifuge devices that can handle a huge volume of water and separate oil at unprecedented rates. The machines are taken out into the spill area via barges, where they can separate the oil and water.
14. Great Andaman Trunk Road - a threat to the Jarawas:
The Jarawa are one of the adivasi indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands. Their present numbers are estimated at between 250-350 individuals.
The biggest threat to the Jarawa in recent years came from the building of the Great Andaman Trunk Road through their newer western forest homeland in the 1970s. This has led to
widespread encroachment, poaching and commercial exploitation of Jarawa lands
Tourism also is taking a toll on the Jarawas. The volume of sightseeing tours that are operated by private companies, where tourists view, photograph or otherwise attempt interactions with Jarawas, who are often begging by the highway. These are illegal under Indian law, and in March 2008, the Tourism Department of the Andaman and Nicobar administration issued a fresh warning to tour operators that attempting contact with Jarawas, photographing them,
stopping vehicles while transiting through their land or offering them rides were prohibited under the Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Regulation, 1956, and would be prosecuted under a strict interpretation of the statute.
15. Higuain from Argentian became the 48th hat-trick scorer in the FIFA world cup and the third Argentine to acheive the feat following Guillermo Stabile (1930) and Gabriel Batistuta(1994, 1998)
16. How America benefits from economic engagement with India - report based on a joint study by the University of Maryland, India-US World Affairs Institute and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI):
Findings:
- India has invested over $26.6 billion in the US over the last five years thereby creating about 60,000 jobs
- The investments included 372 acquisitions worth a total $21 billion by 239 Indian companies and 127 fresh investments worth $5.5 billion between 2004 and 2009
- Minnesota, Virginia and Texas emerged the top three destinations for green field investments while Ohio, Texas, and California were the top three states in terms of jobs created
17.The Reserve Bank of India has revised the rupee value of the special currency basket for payments under the deferred payment protocol between the Government of India and the erstwhile USSR to Rs63.0402 with effect from 31 May 2010 India and the Russian Federation signed the deferred payment protocols on 30 April 1981 and 23 December 1985 on the debt India owed the erstwhile USSR
This deferred payment protocol pertains to the payment to be made by India to USSR for the purchases that it has made on credit.
18.Ethnic clashes in Kyrgyzstan:
Clash between two main Kyrgyz ethnic groups – the Uzbeks and the Kyrgyz people
The death toll in the week-long ethnic violence in south Kyrgyzstan could cross 2000 mark with over 70,000 refugees fleeing their homes to neighbouring Uzbekistan amid the worst humanitarian crisis since the collapse of the former Soviet Union
The roots of Kyrgyz-Uzbek hostility reach far back in history.
In June 1990, ethnic tensions between Uzbeks and Kyrgyz surfaced in the Osh Oblast, where Uzbeks form a majority of the population. Violent confrontations ensued, and a state of emergency and curfew were introduced
Probable cause:
Sudden ouster in April of President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
The anti-Uzbek riots are taking place in the southern region, where the deposed leader retains a strong following among the Kyrgyz population. The region is home to large numbers of ethnic Uzbeks, whose loyalties lie with the political set-up that replaced the corrupt and nepotistic Mr. Bakiyev
CSTO intervention:
On October 7, 2002, the Presidents of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan signed a charter in Tashkent founding the Collective
Security Treaty Organisation
The CSTO decided to send logistical help such as helicopters and fuel, but no troops
19. India's biggest photovoltaic solar power plant, capable of generating 3 MW - at Yalesandra village in Kolar district of Karnataka has been inagurated
- The plant, using modular crystalline technology to generate solar energy, has been set up at a cost of Rs59.5 crore
- Earlier West Bengal boasted the largest solar poweer plant in the country, though it has only a 1 MW capacity.
- The unique feature of the plant is that the power would be available to farmers during the day, unlike conventional power which is largely available only at night for farmers
20. Sericulture and allied activities would now on be eligible for funding under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY). It will cover sericulture up to the stage of cocoon production along with extension system for cocoon production and silk yarn production in agri-enterprise up to the marketing The benefits of RKVY can now be availed for improvement of sericulture extension system, enhancement of soil health development of rain fed sericulture and for integrated pest management
21. Nobel literature prize winner Jose Saramago is dead
- Portuguese novelist, playwright and journalist
- Saramago was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1998
22. Recent findings from excavation at Pattnam:
- The finds include pottery, metals, objects of personal adornment, and botanical samples. One other interesting find was a broken rim with Brahmi script.
- The imported and fine pottery assemblage comprises Roman, West Asian, Indian Rouletted Ware (IRW) and a host of other unidentified fine wares. The number of Roman amphora sherds and Terra Sigillata excavated at Pattanam continued to be impressive and its record as the largest assemblage of Roman pottery in India will have deeper implications in understanding the Roman role in Indian Ocean trade
23. Nuclear weapons-capable, medium range surface-to-surface Prithvi-II ballistic missile was successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, off the Orissa coast
The Prithvi is the first of the missiles developed under the country's Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme. It now has two variants — Air Force version (Prithvi-II) and Naval (Dhanush) — both having a range of 350 km
24. International Whaling Commission prepares to hold its 62nd annual meeting from June 21 in Agadir, Morocco
Agenda:
Japan and Iceland have been trying to to get the moratorium on the slaughter of whales lifted. The 24-year-old ban on commercial whaling has become an emotive issue for Japan, which cites historic and cultural reasons to justify its abhorrent hunts.
Japan is also using the loophole in one of the provisions in IWC that allows the unilateral issue of permits to kill whales for scientific experiments. They are sending factory ships each year into faraway Antarctic waters to hunt minke whales, and process their meat for sale.
Iceland also used this loophole to launch a similar programme four years ago, while Norway has resorted to an objection clause to claim exemption from the moratorium.
This meeting is very important from the perspecting of keeping the ban intact and not bowing down the pressure from Japan,Norway and Iceland
25. Janani Suraksha Yojana - launched in 2005 to encourage deliveries at government health care facilities, has achieved some of its goals
- the number of deliveries in government health facilities shot up by 36 per cent in Rajasthan and 53 per cent in Madhya Pradesh
- The study revealed that cash payment led to a reduction of about four perinatal deaths per 1,000 pregnancies, and two neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births
- With a budget of Rs.1,540 crore and 9.5 million beneficiaries, JSY is the world's largest conditional cash transfer scheme
26. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) along with its subsidiary MOICML (Mahindra Overseas Investment Company Mauritius Ltd.), Arabia Holdings and Ras Al-Khaimah
Transport Investments LLC, signed an agreement to create a joint venture company in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE for armouring of vehicles
- It would launch a number of MDS' armoured vehicles such as the Marksman, the up-armoured Scorpio and cash in transit van, which have been successful in India
26. An international clinical trial has found that AIDS-fighting antiretroviral drug combinations given to pregnant and breastfeeding women in Botswana, Africa, prevented 99 per cent of the mothers from transmitting he human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to their infants
27. HRV: Heart rate variability refers to variation in the time interval between heart beats during everyday
Eating a Mediterranean-style diet — one characterized by low saturated fats and high in fish, fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, olive oil, cereals and moderate alcohol consumption — reduces a person's heart disease risk => increases the HRV
28.Endangered cow cloned:
The team, led by Jeju National University and Mirae Biotech have successfully cloned Huku or black-fur cow
The Huku breed is indigenous to the southern island, where there are about 600 of them.
29. A set of rare paintings by Rabindranath Tagore, who had gifted them to a British missionary and friend Leonard Elmhirst for his private collection in 1939, was sold for a record £1.6 million at an auction
The sale was part of Sotheby's auction of South Asian art, which together fetched £5.5 million and included works of leading Indian artists such as Syed Haider Raza and Francis Souza.
30. Ashok Kumar Attri has been appointed Ambassador of India to Denmark.
31. Nirmalgram Puraskar'
The award is to ensure rural sanitation and eradicate open defecation
Maharashtra Governor K. Sankaranarayanan presented the ‘Nirmalgram Puraskar' to 1,720 villages, in recognition of their achievement of full sanitation
32. New pancreatic cancer mechanism discovered:
- Cancer of the pancreas is a form of cancer that has few treatment options and a poor prognosis. It is linked to two particularly common cellular changes: mutations in a family of cancer genes called RAS and increased activity in the 'Hedgehog' signalling pathway, a molecular signal transmission mechanism that is normally only activated during embryonic growth.
- A new study from Karolinska Institutet shows how RAS and the Hedgehog pathway interact in the development of pancreatic cancer in mice
- Activation of cancer genes in the RAS family causes the tumour cells to secrete the factor (SHH) that activates Hedgehog signalling, and shuts off the tumour cell's own ability to respond to this type of stimulation
- One of the reasons for the poor prognosis associated with pancreatic cancer is that the disease is hard to detect at an early stage
33. India exported goods and services worth around $33 billion in the first two months of the current financial year (April-May 2010) while imports into the country during the two months stood at $54.7 billion.
The trade deficit of the country for the two months stood at a whopping $21.7 billion.
34. 'Impossible' conductivity explained:
- Bring two materials that are not themselves conductive into contact and, exactly at their interface, something remarkable happens: at that precise point, conduction is possible
- Researchers from the MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology of the University of Twente, together with colleagues from Munich, Berkeley and Davis, have now also demonstrated that at this interface two parallel conductive 'paths' are created, just one nanometre apart.
- This breakthrough could lead to new possibilities for nanoelectronics
35. Updates on India-S.Korea relations
India and South Korea agreed to explore possibilities for civil nuclear cooperation between the two countries as well as the launching of South Korean satellites aboard India's space launch vehicles
- - The foreign ministers of both nations noted that after the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement went into effect in January this year, trade volume has picked up 70 per cent. Both countries are targeting a trade volume of $30 billion by 2014
- South Korea and India hold ministerial talks, dubbed the Joint Commission, since 2002. This year was the sixth such meeting of its kind. Form this year the talks will be an annual affair, as agreed upon by leaders of both nations in January this year.
- Krishna also suggested that a bust of Rabindranath Tagore, who had described Korea as the 'Lamp of the East,' be installed at a prominent place in Seoul
36. End of IRDA-SEBI tiff:
- The Insurance Regulatory Authority of India (IRDA) will regulate the issue of unit-linked insurance policies (ULIPs) and the insurance regulator will now come up with revised guidelines on ULIPs.
- The President promulgated an ordinance to this effect. The ordinance will be made into bill to be passed at the next session of Parliament
- The regulatory turf war started in April with the SEBI banning 14 life insurance firms from issuing fresh ULIP schemes and asking them to stop further sales of existing products
37. Union minister for human resource development Kapil Sibal proposed health insurance and life insurance cover as also a group housing scheme for the 6 million school teachers in the country
- While the two insurance schemes will require financial contribution by the centre, the states and the teachers, the group housing scheme will be administered at the central level but will not require financial contribution from the centre or the state governments
38.Higher Education in India:
Two commissions employed to recommend reforms in higher education in recent times are:National Knowledge Commission headed by Sam Pitroda and the other by the Committee on Renovation and Rejuvenation of Higher Education headed by Yash Pal
However to formalise their recommendations effortds are on to provide legislative basis to them.Specifically, the four Bills introduced in Parliament in April and the one on the anvil, if enacted with whatever changes Parliament deems fit, can provide a strong foundation to overcome the present aberrations and enhance the credibility of Indian higher educational qualifications among the nations of the world.
The four Bills are:
- Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, 2010;
- Prohibition of Unfair Practices in Technical, Medical Educational Institutions and Universities Bill;
- the Educational Tribunal Bill and
- the National Accreditation Authority Bill
Foreign Institutions Bill:
The basic premise of the Foreign Institutions Bill is that every foreign educational service provider engaged in offering programmes leading to degrees and diplomas, whether it already operates in India or intends to do so in future either on its own or in collaboration with an Indian partner, must register itself with a designated authority, giving all the necessary information.
Prerequisites:
these institutions must have a track record of 20 years in offering recognised and accredited degree programmes in their home country
National Accreditation Authority Bill:
license competent professional organisations to undertake the accreditation responsibilities, in accordance with norms and standards prescribed by a competent agency.
National Commission on Higher Education and Research (NCHER)'s responsibilities:
- primary task is to evolve norms and standards for various aspects of higher education, including assessment and accreditation. Several of the regulating bodies dealing with academic norms for higher education will consequently stand abolished.
- identification of academic-administrators of national standing who are eligible and qualify for appointment as Vice-Chancellors of universities or heads of central educational institutions
39. Indonesia has filed a lawsuit against the ban implemented by U.S. administration that bans the trade of clove cigarette in the U.S. territory
- lawsuit has been filed to Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) last week, an agency under the control of the World Trade Organization (WTO), particularly tasked to settle trade dispute
- The other reason to file the lawsuit was that the U.S. agency did not respond to Indonesia's request to prove scientifically over the agency's statement that the cigarette with aroma and odor is more dangerous than the ones without them
- The U.S. agency's policy to ban trade of clove cigarette in that country would cost Indonesia significantly as 99 per cent of cigarettes supplied to the United States come from Indonesia
40. India and China, the region's largest food grain producing and consuming countries, have identified the emerging food grain storage sector as a new are of cooperation between the two.
41. Kartar Singh Lalvani, founder of pharmaceutical major Vitabiotics in Britain, has been awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in her Birthday Honours List
Lalvani has established Indali Lounge, recognised as the ‘healthiest curry house in world.'
Anil Kumar Bhanot has been honoured for services to the Hindu Community and to Inter-Faith Relations, while Janti Champaneri figures in the list for services to the local government in Birmingham, and Kailash Chand Malhotra for services to healthcare in Cheshire
42. India created history by fielding its first professional symphony orchestra in the Fifth Festival of World's Symphony Orchestras here, and winning the applause of Muscovites, one of the most demanding audiences in the world.
- The Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI), during its maiden foreign trip, performed Beethoven's 9th symphony in the finale of the 10-day festival in the historical House of Columns, once the club of Russian Imperial gentry
- The SOI was formed by the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in 2006
43. The Centre has approved capital infusion of Rs.6,211 crore in five public sector banks to help them in attaining a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by March 31, 2011, and ensure an additional Rs.77,637 crore in lending capacity to various sectors of the economy.
Those are: IDBI Bank, Central Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra, UCO Bank and Union Bank of India
- The continuing exercise of capital infusion is a part of the budgetary promise to provide a sum of Rs.16,500 crore to ensure that the public sector banks are able to attain a minimum 8 per cent Tier-I capital by the end of the current fiscal.
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