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Bill to protect fisherfolk's traditional rights on anvil he Fisherfolks Rights Bill, guaranteeing traditional marine rights, is on the anvil, Union Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh said. Conceived on the lines of the Forest Rights Act that guarantees traditional user rights and land rights to tribals, Adivasis and forest dwellers, this Bill would provide security of dwelling and habitation, apart from marine resources, to the 70-lakh fisherfolk living along the coastal areas. The draft text was posted on the Ministry's website and the Ministry was open to suggestions. 2. NSC discusses plans to beef up cyber security isturbed over repeated cyber attacks where security gets compromised, the National Security Council under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister had a meeting and deliberated on various plans to beef up cyber security. During the meeting, the present level of preparedness to deal with cyber security issues and a future plan of action was discussed by the NSC. A paper has also been brought out by the NSC Secretariat highlighting several outstanding issues like identification of critical information infrastructure, delineation of responsibilities, dissemination of early warning and incidence response, the sources said. 3. Rail link to Leh: Centre seeks Plan panel nod Taking a step further on the proposed strategic Bilaspur-Manali-Leh railway line, the Union Railway Ministry has sought approval of the Planing Commission of India for the project after examining its feasibility report. In a letter to Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal, Union Minister of State for Railways E Ahamed communicated the fresh development on the ambitious project proposed by the state government. The ministry was also actively considering conversion of narrow gauge PathankotJogindernagar rail track into broad gauge and its further extension up to Mandi. The prefeasibility report pegs the cost of entire 498-kilometre all-weather broad gauge BilaspurManali-Leh railway line at Rs 22,831 crore. 4. Plan to link NREGA wages to inflation hits CP Joshi wall Rural Development Minister CP Joshi has refused to move on a proposal by the Planning Commission to link wages under the national job guarantee scheme to the consumer price index. In fact, the Plan panels proposal was echoed by the National Advisory Council chaired by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.In a presentation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh recently, the Planning Commission made a strong case for aligning the wage levels to rising prices as reflected in the CPI. 5. Kashmir University film on global warming bags award A film on global warming produced by the Educational Multimedia Research Centre (EMMRC) of the Kashmir University has been awarded the best educational video of the year by New Delhi-based Consortium of Educational Communication. The film, Global warming a catastrophe in making, along with the EMMRC Kolkata film, Sound and Images, won the national-level competition organised in Delhi. Produced and directed by Shahid Rasool and Shafqat Habib, the film deals with the impact of global warming in Kashmir and the challenges ahead. 6. With South Africa in, it will be BRICS The BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) grouping will become BRICS with the inclusion of South Africa, according to sources in the government. The third BRIC summit in China in 2011 will see South African President Jacob Zuma present as an observer. Membership of the soon-to-be five nation grouping will then be frozen for some time. This means that aspirants for membership like Egypt and Indonesia will have to wait till the BRICS stabilises. 7. N-plants: India, Russia to counter China in South Asia India and Russia have decided to work together in the field of nuclear commerce. The two countries will help set up smaller nuclear power plants in South Asian countries such as Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. This is a key outcome of Russian President Dmitry Medvedevs visit to India. China is active in most South Asian countries, building infrastructure in a big way, and hence, the India-Russia joint initiative will be an attempt to counter that as well. Page 1 of 2 27th December 2010

8. UNMIN imminent withdrawal sparks controversy in Nepal Just weeks ahead of the withdrawal of the key UN agency tasked to monitor Nepals stalled peace process, the issue has sparked a row between the ruling alliance and the main Opposition Maoists who want the term of the UNMIN to be extended. The ruling 22-party alliance held a key meeting to decide on the future course of action in the country after the withdrawal of United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) next month. 9. Julian Assange in 1 million book deal Struggling to pay his mounting legal bills and keep WikiLeaks afloat, Julian Assange has signed a book deal that, he expects, will earn him more than one million pounds in advance and serialisation rights. The book, an account of his own life and the activities of his controversial whistleblower website, is to be published by Canongate in Britain and Alfred A. Knopf in America. 10. China to set up ovum bank to address women infertility issues China is setting up its first ovum bank to help women postpone pregnancy at a time when infertility is increasing due to high work pressure, stress and changing lifestyle habits. The bank, to be set up at Shanghai in three years, would also help women suffering from cancer to preserve their ovums before they undergo chemotherapy or surgery, which could damage their reproductive ability. After having their healthy ovums frozen and stored, these women may have a chance to have babies in future. 11. China hikes interest rates for second time Hard-pressed to control soaring prices and spiralling inflation, Chinas central bank hiked one-year lending and deposit interest rates for the second time this year. The Peoples Bank of China (PBOC) said that it will hike the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points, which will increase the one-year lending rate to 5.81 per cent and the one-year deposit rate to 2.75 per cent. 12. Govt imposes anti-dumping duty India has imposed anti-dumping duty of up to 266 per cent on imports of an IT equipment also used in the telecom sector to guard the domestic industry from cheap Chinese and Israeli shipments. The restrictive duty on import of Synchronous Digital Hierarchy Transmission Equipment would range from 3 per cent to 266 per cent on the CIF value of imports, the Department of Revenue said. The move would impact import of the equipment from companies like Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell Co Ltd, ZTE Corp and ECI Telecom Ltd. 13. Sebi may consider making listing optional for bourses In the wake of a raging debate over proposed new norms for ownership and governance of stock exchanges, Sebi may consider making listing optional for the bourses and separating their regulatory and business roles. The market regulator is considering whether the bourses can be asked to put in place Chinese Walls between their regulatory and corporate functions. The move is aimed at keeping the front-line regulatory role of the bourses unaffected by their profit-making and other business interests after they become publicly held companies following their listing. 14. Govt to retain borrowing plan of Rs 4.47 lakh cr this fiscal The Government will retain its borrowing plan of Rs 4.47 lakh crore this fiscal, despite reducing the size of market mop-up by Rs 10,000 crore earlier due to cash shortage in the system. This would be done by having another borrowing after February 11 when the scheduled calendar for mop-up ends. It could also be done by adjusting the amount within the planned borrowing. The scheduled market borrowing could also be increased till February 11. 15. Warnes statue at MCC Australian spin wizard Shane Warne will be honoured with a statue by the Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) for his achievements and contribution to the nation. Warne, whose last Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground was in 2006, will be the latest to be honoured with a statue outside the venue. There are already 10 statues erected around the ground, honouring famous figures such as Sir Donald Bradman, Ron Barassi and Betty Cuthbert. Page 2 of 2 27th December 2010