Weekly 08 To 14 April 2013 For WEB2

08TH APRIL 2013 TO 14TH APRIL, 2013
Strictly for Internal Circulation (Not for sale)

WEEKLY CURRENT
AFFAIRS BULLETIN
Visit:ias100.in
Call: 09582948810, 09953007628
[ 2 ] Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Current Affairs Notes for I AS PT 2013
UPSC: The central recruiting agency in India, nowadays emphasizing more on applicable part of
knowledge. GS syllabus has undergone an overhaul from the past few years and requires
multidimensional approach to handle this. The paper concentrates more on concepts related to
general awareness i.e. what we see around us.
Its recruiting pattern wants an IAS aspirant to have grip on socio-economic problem-solving-
skills; applicable knowledge of science; ability to logically analyse the situations and interpret
the outcomes accordingly.
Thus CHRONICLE IAS ACADEMY is launching a comprehensive material which includes:
Important Bills; Committees; Reports; Current affairs of the past one year.
This will provide a "trustworthy and time saving guide" for all I AS aspirants preparing for
Prelims.
Topics Covered :-
1. INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION SUMMITS
2. Bills in Parliament
3. Biotechnology-1
4. Constitutional news
5. Environmental news
6. Health News
7. Important Reports 2012-13
8. INDIA - HDR 2011
9. International News
10. Science and Technology
11. Prelims Special Part-1
12. Prelims Special Part-2
13. Prelims special Part- 3
Package Fee
Current Affairs Notes for PT 2013 for Weekly E-Magazine Subscriber (Printed) ........... 2000.00
Current Affairs Notes for PT 2013 (Printed) ............................................................................ 2500.00
Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013 [3]
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Programme Assistance:
Email id:talkback@campus100.in
Technical Assistance : Sushil Singh
Email id: sushil@campus100.in
Call: 9582948810, 9953007628
Mail: talkback@campus100.in
productivity, Microirrigation, Urbanization,
Government Initiatives......
Indian Economy Basics, Planning & Trade
1. Industry Services, Agriculture, Energy.....
2. Balance of Payments. Foreign Direct Investment.......
3. Growth, Development and Other Issues.........
4. Poverty Estimates, Impact of Poverty........
5. Exchange rate. Role of RBI.....
6. Nature of Planning - Five Year Plan, Planning after
1991 (LPG), Inflation.....
Governance and Contemporary Political
Developments: Development Politics, Political and
Administrative Institutions, Good Governance, Internal
Security....
SECTIONAL TESTS
(PAPER I & II)
1. Ecology and environment
2. Comprehension
3. Polity and Governance
4. English Language Comprehension + Logical
Reasoning
5. Geography
6. Decision Making and Problem Solving
7. General Science and Science and Technology
8. Mental Ability, Basic Numeracy, Data
Interpretation and Data Sufficiency
9. History
10. Indian Economy
FULL MOCK SCHEDULE
31st March ...... Mock 1 Paper 1, Mock 1 Paper 2
7th April ......... Mock 2 Paper 1, Mock 2 Paper 2
21st April ........ Mock 3 Paper 1, Mock 3 Paper 2
28th April ....... Mock 4 Paper 1, Mock 4 Paper 2
TOPICAL TESTS
Infrastructure & Resources
1. Transportation infrastructure: Road and Highway
Networks, Mass Transit Systems, Railways,
Waterways, Ports....
2. Energy infrastructure:- Thermal Power Generation,
Natural Gas Pipelines & Petroleum Pipelines, Nuclear
Energy, Renewable Energy......
3. Water management infrastructure:- Drinking water
supply, Sewage Collection and Disposal of Waste
water, Flood Control, Water Harwesting.....
4. Communications infrastructure:- Television and
Radio Transmission, Internet, Social Network, Search
Engines, Communications Satellites......
5. Solid Waste Management
6. Economic Infrastructure: Manufacturing Infrastructure,
including Industrial Parks and Special Economic zones,
Agricultural, Forestry and Fisheries Infrastructure....
7. Resources: Water Resources, Forest Resources, Land
Resources, Energy Resources, Minerals, Resource
Management.....
Demography : Population Composition, Density, Literacy,
Sex Ratio...
Environmental Problems & Global Environmental
Governance : Deforestation, Pollution: Air, Water, Land,
Noise, Desertification, Biodiversity Depletion, Global
Warming, SD.......
Human Development, Social Sector Initiatives and
Programmes & Policies
1. Concept of Human Development, Development
vs. Growth, Human Development Index, MPI,
Innovation.....
2. Social Inclusion, Child Welfare, Women Welfare....
Agriculture, Urbanisation, Health : Agriculture and
GDP, Agricultural Regionalization, Production and
Fee Structure :
All India Complete Test Online ...................................... 6000/-
All India Complete Test Postal ....................................... 4000/-
All India Mock Test Online ............................................. 3000/-
40
Qs of IAS 2012 prelims paper were close and directly from Chronicles 2012 test series. When it comes to matching the
format of question in the exam it was 100% identical. Have you ever heard of such claim in IAS exam, indeed we
do it habitually! After all it is a matter of experiences. Testimonial is available at chronicleias.com as well in the public domain,
since it was conducted in 22 cities of India. We dont claim your success, but our performance. Lets begin...
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
NATIONAL
GoM curbs system of 'inviolate' mining areas
A Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by
agriculture minister Sharad Pawar has restricted the
environment ministry from executing the system of
'inviolate' mining areas. The proposed inviolate
mechanism would deal a blow to the country's
power, steel and cement plants, which are still
reeling under the impact of the earlier system of
'go', 'no-go' zones imposed by Natarajan's
predecessor Jairam Ramesh, which had rendered
about 660 million tonne of coal reserves unmineable.
The necessity of propelling economic growth at
8 per cent has emerged as a pressing concern for
the UPA government, thus it is fast tracking the
passage of infrastructure projects.
This is seen as a setback for environment
minister Jayanthi Natarajan's efforts to secure her
ministry's control on implementing stricter green
norms.
Wildlife sanctuaries, tiger reserves, national
parks - as well as a buffer zone of one km around
such protected areas - compact patches of very dense
forest, the last remnant of a forest type and forests
very near perennial rivers will all be automatically
placed within the inviolate zone. Further there will
be six measurable parameters for identification of
inviolate areas - forest type, biological richness,
wildlife value, forest cover, landscape integrity and
hydrological value. All parameters will be scored
on a 0-100 scale. The inter-ministerial panel observed
that the scientific basis of such parameters need to
be analysed further before taking a decision.
Thus until finalisation of new norms, the existing
framework will continue.
India taking new steps to get WHO's polio
eradication certificate
Having successfully completed two polio-free
years, India is preparing to receive the crucial polio
eradication certificate from the World Health
Organisation (WHO). The certificate is issued on
completion of incident-free three years. This
primarily involves the destruction or safe storage of
all laboratory sources of wild poliovirus. The storage
should be in laboratories that meet international
standards of biosafety.
To achieve this, the Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare has set up a National Task Force for
Containment of Wild Poliovirus. Chaired by the
Director-General of the Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR), it will identify laboratories that
could store wild poliovirus or potentially infectious
material.
Wild poliovirus could be present in certain types
of clinical samples stored at or below minus 20
degrees Celsius. These could have been collected
for investigations not related to wild poliovirus
detections. There are several medical colleges/
universities, colleges and research institutions that
work on infectious material and, therefore, have
clinical samples collected over several decades.
Information from these institutions will be collected
and compiled for preparing a national inventory.
The process has to be completed by December
and failure to do so will delay the certification
process. A pre-tested form has been sent to all
laboratories and institutions to elicit information on
wild poliovirus.
The WHO's Global Action Plan for containment
of wild polioviruses advises that when polio cases
are decreasing, national health authorities must alert
laboratories, encourage destruction of all unneeded
wild poliovirus material and compile an inventory
of all laboratories retaining such materials.
Poliomyelitis (polio) is a highly infectious
viral disease, which mainly affects young
children. The virus is transmitted through
contaminated food and water, and multiplies in
the intestine, from where it can invade the
nervous system. Many infected people have no
symptoms, but do excrete the virus in their
faeces, hence transmitting infection to others.
Initial symptoms of polio include fever,
fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the neck,
and pain in the limbs. In a small proportion of
cases, the disease causes paralysis, which is often
permanent. Polio can only be prevented by
immunization.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
India's vaccine regulatory system meets
international standards: WHO
India is a major vaccine producer that has 12
major vaccine manufacturing facilities. These
vaccines are used for the national and international
market (150 countries), which makes India a major
vaccine supplier across the globe. More than 70%
of all measles vaccines used globally are produced
in India.
Recently a WHO-led team of international
experts from eight countries has granted clean chit
to the National Regulatory Authority of India (NRA)
and affiliated institutions as they meet WHO
published indicators for a functional vaccine
regulatory system.
One of the requirements to become eligible and
retaining the prequalification status is to have a
National Regulatory Authority (NRA) assessed as
functional against the WHO published NRA
indicators. The regulatory functions of the Indian
NRA (Central Drugs Standards Control
Organization) and its affiliated institutions were
assessed for compliance against the revised WHO
NRA indicators endorsed by the international
consultation of experts in 2011. In addition to the
general framework for the system, the following
regulatory functions were evaluated: marketing
authorization and licensing; post-marketing
surveillance, including for adverse events following
immunization; lot release by the national regulatory
authority; laboratory access; regulatory inspections
of manufacturing sites and distribution channels; and
authorization and monitoring of clinical trials.
With a regulatory system for vaccines assessed
as functional by WHO, vaccine manufacturers in
India continue to remain eligible to apply for
prequalification of specific products. WHO
prequalification, which is a guarantee that a specific
vaccine meets international standards of quality,
safety and efficacy, is a prerequisite for
manufacturers to supply to countries through United
Nations procuring agencies.
WHO had scaled up its technical support to the
Indian NRA over the past several months in the
context of this assessment. This status will help in
re-affirming the joint mutual strategic priority
under the WHO' s new Country Cooperation
Strategy with India (2012-17), of supporting an
improved role of India in global health, including
strengthening the pharmaceutical sector and drug
regulatory capacity.
The Government of India has undertaken
committed efforts to ensure that the regulatory
oversight of the NRA for vaccines continues to meet
international standards. It has decided to further
strengthen the Central as well as the State Drugs
Regulatory Systems during the 12th Five Year Plan
(2012-17).
India leads the world in dengue burden
Dengue, the world's most rapidly spreading
mosquito-borne viral disease, is taking a far bigger
human toll than was believed. As many as 390
million people across the globe could be falling
victim to the virus each year. According to the World
Health Organisation (WHO), incidence of dengue
has shot up 30 fold in the past 50 years. Its estimate
has been that globally there were 50-100 million
dengue infections taking place annually.
A map-based approach to model how many
dengue cases were occurring in various parts of the
world has been used to capture its global
distribution.
According to the report worldwide, 96 million
people suffered each year from 'apparent infections'
where the disease was severe enough to disrupt an
individual's regular routine. In addition, there were
294 million asymptomatic infections. With "large
swathes of densely populated regions coinciding
with very high suitability for disease transmission,"
Asia bore 70 per cent of the apparent infections that
took place. Africa contributed about 16 per cent of
the global dengue infections and the Americas 14
per cent.
India emerges in the analysis as the country with
the world's highest dengue burden, with about 34
per cent of all such cases occurring here.
World Bank to support seven low-income
States
The new World Bank Group strategy for India
shifts support significantly to low-income states,
where most of the poor live, and is the institution's
first country strategy to set specific goals on reducing
poverty and increasing prosperity.
The World Bank proposes a lending programme
of $3 billion-5 billion every year over the next four
years. The Bank's objective is to bring down poverty
levels in the seven low-income States to just 5.5 per
cent in 2030 from 29.8 per cent in 2010. The States
identified for the focused support are Bihar,
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha,
Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
According to a World Bank, 60 per cent of the
financing will go to State government-backed
projects and 30 per cent will go to low-income or
special category States where public services face
high delivery costs. Under the Bank's previous
support strategy plan, 18 per cent of its lending went
to these States.
In the next five years the strategy will focus on
three key areas: integration, transformation, and
inclusion. A common theme across these areas will
be improved governance, environmental
sustainability, and gender equality.
a) Integration - The focus will be on improving
infrastructure needs both through public and
private investments. Reforms are needed in the
power sector to rationalize energy pricing and
improve the capacity and reliability of the
generation, transmission and distribution
system. A vibrant manufacturing sector -
especially small and medium size enterprises -
require reforming labor laws, and improving
access to land and finance. Better integration
would result in more-balanced growth among
Indian states, helping low-income states
converge more quickly with their faster-growing
neighbors.
b) Transformation - By 2031, it is projected that
600 million people will live in India's cities. The
World Bank Group's engagement on the rural-
urban transformation and particularly on
urbanization is expected to intensify over the
strategy period and beyond and represents a
significant shift in the World Bank Group's
strategy. It will focus on supporting the efforts
of national, state, and city governments to
improve the management and livability of
medium-sized cities.
c) Inclusion - Economic integration and rural-
urban transformation can benefit a large share
of India's population only if there is a stronger
focus on human development and on policies
that help make growth inclusive. India's weak
health care system and poor nutritional
outcomes undermine its competitiveness. The
World Bank Group will support the national
government and states in strengthening the
nutrition policy as well as systems and capacities
to improve nutrition. It will support government
efforts to improve education mainly at the
secondary and tertiary levels, with a more
pronounced focus on quality. It will also work
to improve access to finance and to enhance
social protection coverage for more than 90% of
the labor force, which currently works in the
informal sector.
Centre formed new action plan to develop
naxal-affected areas
Integrated Action Plan was formulated as an
additional central assistance scheme on 100% grant
basis in November 2010. The funds were to be
placed at the disposal of the Committee headed by
the District Collector and consisting of the
Superintendent of Police of the district and the
District Forest Officer. The Committee drawn up a
Plan consisting of concrete proposals for public
infrastructure and services such as School Buildings,
Anganwadi Centres, Primary Health Centres,
Drinking Water Supply, Village Roads, Electric
Lights in public places such as PHCs and Schools
etc. The concerned Development Commissioner/
equivalent officer in charge of development in the
State shall be responsible for scrutiny of expenditure
and monitoring of IAP.
Concerned over the extreme left groups'
penetration into tribal territories and their ability to
win over the hearts and minds of people deprived of
basic necessities of life, the government has drawn-
up a nine point action plan to deal with a host of
development challenges. The action plan is an
outcome of series of meeting of a specially constituted
Review Group of LWE (Left-Wing Extremism) under
the aegis of the Cabinet Secretariat.
According to the Planning Commission
Secretary, there was no incentive in IAP to motivate
the machinery to reduce the incidence of left-wing
extremism and hence it was felt that there was a
need to advance from the ad hoc criteria of selecting
districts to a more outcome oriented criterion. Taking
note of the gap and requirement of large residential
schools, the Director of School Education and the
Ministry of Tribal Affairs are looking to establish
such institutions with a minimum of 1000-2000
students in the LWE areas.
The government had also decided to expedite
the "recognition of forest rights," as well as review
the definition of backward districts under the
Integrated Action Plan/Backward Region Grant
Fund (BRGF) as part of the action plan.
To improve the communication infrastructure
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) will install
2199 low cost mobile towers in those areas. The
Telecom Commission is also exploring energy
efficient alternate fuels such as solar energy.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
A special window, too, has been introduced

under the Forest Conservation Act to expedite the
laying of transmission lines under the Rajiv Gandhi
Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojna (RGGVY). The Ministry
of Environment and Forests has given a notification
to cover all the 82 IAP districts granting general
approval under the Forest Conservation Act for
diversion of forest land up to 5 acres.
The Ministry of Power will review pending
works in 1776 villages to ascertain the ones which
can be "cleared with the issuance of the new
notification." The Mobile Health Units will address
the LWE districts "endemically affected" by malaria.
Additionally, an increase in Mobile Health Units is
likely to be introduced in the 12th Plan.
To address the absence of post offices and banks
in the LWE affected areas, there has been "a proposal
to open post offices in 12898 gram panchayats in 82
identified LWE affected districts."
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Asian Development Outlook 2013: ADB
The Manila-based lender's 2013 Asian
Development Outlook revealed that Economic
growth in developing Asia is picking up,
underpinned by China's rebound and strength in
countries such as Indonesia, but political disputes
pose an increased threat to growth. Political disputes
are "calling into question the ability of authorities
to find compromise solutions to nagging fiscal
problems in the US, deepening austerity fatigue in
the euro area and simmering border disputes in
Asia." Over the past year, several Asia nations have
been roiled by territorial disputes, including a high-
profile row between China and Japan over disputed
islands in the East China Sea.
Further the report stated that developing Asia,
which includes giant emerging economies such as
China, India and Indonesia, will expand 6.6 percent
this year, unchanged from its previous forecast in
December. Growth is forecast to inch higher to 6.7
percent in 2014. The region grew 6.1 percent in 2012.
Developing Asia includes 45 developing or
newly industrialized countries in Asia and the
Pacific but excludes Japan.
The ADB also stated that inflation would tick
higher but would be kept in check, with consumer
prices rising by 4 percent this year and 4.2 percent
in 2014, up from 3.7 percent in 2012. The report
warned policymakers to keep an eye on rising prices
because as growing factory output eliminates slack
in production capacity, "loose monetary policy risks
reigniting inflation."
China's economy, the world's second biggest,
will expand 8.2 percent this year after growing 7.8
percent in 2012, driven by strong domestic
consumption and investment. The forecasts are both
0.1 percentage point higher than the ADB's
December prediction. China is rebounding from its
deepest slump since the 2008 global crisis though
analysts warn recovery will be shaky. China's growth
rate will ease to 8 percent in 2014 as authorities bring
in policies aimed at reducing pollution and reducing
the gap between rich and poor.
INTERNATIONAL
The report also stated that Southeast Asia will
maintain its growth rate as robust private
consumption and investment outweigh softer
demand for exports. Indonesia will expand about
6.5 percent in each of the next two years while the
Philippines will grow about 6 percent.
India, the region's other giant, will expand 6
percent this year and 6.5 percent next year but
warned that the country risks being held back by
structural and policy issues that hamper investment.
The slowing growth has been paired with
persistently high inflation. High prices, especially
for food, limit the central bank's scope to reduce
interest rates, although the Reserve Bank of India
last month made its second cut this year to a key
lending rate.
In contrast, the developed economies of the US,
Japan and the 17 nations the use the euro will eke
out a 1 percent expansion this year, rising to 1.9
percent in 2014.
The ADB also warned that Asia needs to secure
enough clean and cheap energy to support long-
term growth. With developing Asia's share of global
energy use forecast to grow from barely a third in
2010 to more than half by 2035, the region, which
has plenty of coal but relatively little oil and natural
gas, may be hard pressed to meet its demands.
Land desertification and drought causes
billions of losses: UN
Some 600 scientists, government officials and
representatives of civil society organizations are
gathered in Bonn to carry out the first ever
comprehensive cost-benefit analysis of
desertification, land degradation and drought.
The study titled, 'The Economics of
Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought:
Methodologies and Analysis for Decision-Making,
has revealed that loss of land through desertification
and drought costs up to five percent of world
agricultural gross domestic product (AGDP), or some
$450 billion (340 billion euros), every year.
The report - the first economic evaluation of its
kind in over twenty years - shows that up to 12 per
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
cent of Africa's agricultural GDP is being lost due to
environmental degradation while the levels in
individual countries vary widely, from six per cent
in Paraguay to 24 per cent in Guatemala.
The social costs of land degradation are even
more staggering with nearly 870 million people
suffering from chronic hunger globally. The UN
agency reports that in Uzbekistan, food yields have
declined by 20 to 30 per cent while in East Africa
nearly 3.7 million people still require food assistance
following the drought of 2011.
The report, which looks at the costs and benefits
of addressing desertification, land degradation and
drought, finds that the existing scientific research
mostly focuses on the direct economic costs of these
phenomena, but overlooks the unintended
consequences, including indirect and off-site costs.
Scientific understanding of all land degradation
and drought is need to be strengthened especially
in the context of the changing climate.
The last such economic valuation of
desertification was made in 1992 by UNEP. At that
time, the direct cost was estimated at USD42 billion
every year.
Luxembourg to ease bank secrecy norms from
2015
Last month's 10bn euro (8.5bn) bailout of
Cyprus, whose banking system was swollen by
foreign deposits attracted by low taxes and easy
regulation, has put the spotlight on tax havens.
Austria and Luxembourg are the only European
Union states that do not share with other EU
members the identities of EU residents with cross-
border bank accounts.
Thus faced with growing international pressure
over tax evasion, Luxembourg confirmed to
implement rules on the automatic exchange of bank
account information with its EU partners from 2015.
Luxembourg is reviewing the current system
which levies a withholding tax on the interest earned
on bank saving accounts. While the withholding tax,
levied at 35 percent, was "a most effective instrument
to ensure tax compliance and guarantee data
protection," the government had to adapt to the times.
But now it would report "all interest payments
made" to individuals resident in another EU member
state so as to ensure they paid the proper tax due
there. Significantly, the statement did not mention
other accounts such as for life insurance or property
investment -- major parts of the Luxembourg
financial sector -- which are also supposed to be
covered from 2015. In addition, the exchange of
information will be based strictly on the EU's 2003
directive on savings accounts.
Further there would also be no change for
residents in Luxembourg, who pay a 10-percent
withholding tax and who will enjoy bank secrecy as
it exists today.
Accounts held by US citizens or residents will
be covered by a separate agreement with
Washington. The US Foreign Account Tax
Compliance Act (FATCA) passed in 2010 requires
US depositors to declare their overseas accounts and
foreign financial institutions to report on the balance
and activities of its US account-holders to American
tax authorities.
Britain France, Germany, Italy and Spain also
agreed to work on setting up a multilateral exchange
facility modelled on FATCA which "will not only
help in catching and deterring tax evaders but it
will also provide a template as to the wider
multilateral agreement we hope to see in due course."
G8 inks historic agreement against rape in war
zones
Foreign Ministers of the world's eight most
advanced countries (G8) adopted a declaration
committing the international community to tackle
sexual violence in conflict zones. G8 members have
announced a new fund which amounts to nearly
$35.5 million or 23 million.
It includes over 10 million from the United
Kingdom: 5million from the Foreign and
Commonwealth Office to support grassroots and
human rights projects on sexual violence against
women and girls and wider projects on violence
against women and girls. The other 5million is from
the Department for International Development, to
look at what drives violence against women and
girls in conflict settings.
Finally, the Declaration emphasises that
protection efforts against sexual violence should be
included in the first phase of all responses to conflict
and humanitarian emergencies. And it includes vital
commitments on women and children's rights, the
protection of women human rights defenders, and
the need for a comprehensive approach to health,
psychological, legal and economic support for
survivors of sexual violence.
[ 10] Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
UN launched new plans to save children from
pneumonia, diarrhoea
Pneumonia and diarrhoea account for 23 and 12
per cent of deaths respectively in children below
the age of five in India. They remain major killers of
young children globally too, accounting for 29 per
cent of all child deaths - a loss of 2 million lives -
each year. Children are dying because services are
being provided piecemeal and those at the highest
risk are not being reached. Use of effective
interventions is too low - for instance, only 39 per
cent of infants are exclusively breast-fed, while only
60 per cent of children with suspected pneumonia
are able to access appropriate care. Moreover,
children are not receiving life-saving treatment - only
31 per cent of children with suspected pneumonia
receive antibiotics and only 35 per cent of those with
diarrhoea receive oral rehydration therapy.
Thus the United Nations has launched a global
plan to combat two of the leading killers of children
under five, potentially saving two million youngsters
each year who would otherwise die from pneumonia
and diarrhoea in low- and middle-income countries.
The GAPPD aims to provide a framework by
which to protect children, prevent diseases and
enable treatment using proven interventions. It calls
on national governments to prioritise the fight
against pneumonia and diarrhoea and is designed
to inform country policies and practices.
The achievable goals set by the GAPPD for 2025
are: to reduce mortality from pneumonia in children
less than 5 years of age to fewer than 3 per 1,000
live births; reduce mortality from diarrhoea in
children less than 5 years of age to fewer than 1 per
1,000 live births; and reduce the incidence of severe
pneumonia by 75 per cent in children less than 5
years of age compared to 2010 levels.
It also seeks to reduce the incidence of severe
diarrhoea by 75 per cent in children less than 5 years
of age, compared to 2010 levels, and bring down, by
40 per cent, the global number of children under 5
years of age who are stunted, compared to 2010 levels.
To achieve these targets, full immunisation
coverage will need to be reached by the end of 2025,
with 90 per cent of full-dose coverage of each
relevant vaccine, 90-per-cent access to appropriate
pneumonia and diarrhoea case management and at
least 50-per-cent coverage of exclusive breastfeeding
during the first 6 months of life.
By the end of 2030, there must be universal access
to basic drinking-water in healthcare facilities and
homes; universal access to adequate sanitation in
healthcare facilities by 2030 and in homes by 2040.
The MDGs, adopted at the UN Millennium
Summit in 2000, also seek to slash a host of social ills,
including global poverty and hunger, disease, and
lack of access to health and education, all by 2015.
Serbia rejects E.U. brokered Kosovo deal
Serbia has rejected a European Union-brokered
deal on normalising ties with its breakaway province
of Kosovo. The government of Serbia stated that it
cannot accept principles verbally presented to its
negotiating team in Brussels, since they do not
guarantee full security and protection of human
rights to the Serb people in Kosovo.
Kosovo had unilaterally declared independence
in 2008. While many countries recognise it as an
independent country, Serbia does not.
The EU had given ultimatum to Serbia to
relinquish its effective control over northern Kosovo
in return for the start of EU membership talks. The
Membership talks would mark a major milestone in
Serbia's recovery from a decade of war and isolation
under late strongman Slobodan Milosevic and
provide a much-needed boost for its ailing economy,
still the biggest in the former Yugoslavia.
Australia, China push defence ties
Australia and China have agreed to considerably
expand defence ties following the visit of Prime
Minister Julia Gillard to Beijing, which also saw both
countries elevate their relationship to a "strategic
partnership" - a level of engagement Australia shares
with few countries, including India and Indonesia.
Australia proposed holding three-way defence
exercises with the United States and China.
Both countries has signed a landmark agreement
to directly trade in their currencies - China has
similar arrangements only with the U.S. and Japan
- and agreed $3 billion worth of investment deals,
which are set to further boost the sizeable $120 billion
bilateral trade that has propelled resource-hungry
China to become Australia's biggest trading partner.
Gun control bill clears in Senate
Congress' gun-control effort has cleared its first
hurdle as the Senate pushed past conservatives'
attempted blockade.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Proposed Congressional Actions
a) Requiring criminal background checks for all
gun sales, including those by private sellers that
currently are exempt.
b) Reinstating and strengthening the ban on assault
weapons that was in place from 1994 to 2004.
c) Limiting ammunition magazines to 10 rounds.
d) Banning the possession of armor-piercing bullets
by anyone other than members of the military
and law enforcement.
e) Increasing criminal penalties for "straw
purchasers," people who pass the required
background check to buy a gun on behalf of
someone else.
f) Acting on a $4 billion administration proposal
to help keep 15,000 police officers on the street.
g) Financing programs to train more police officers,
first responders and school officials on how to
respond to active armed attacks.
h) Provide additional $20 million to help expand
the a system that tracks violent deaths across
the nation from 18 states to 50 states.
i) Providing $30 million in grants to states to help
schools develop emergency response plans.
j) Providing financing to expand mental health
programs for young people.

i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
WTO cuts 2013 trade growth forecast
The World Trade Organization has slashed its
forecast for trade growth in 2013. It cut its forecast
for global trade growth in 2013 to 3.3 percent from
4.5 percent and said trade grew only 2.0 percent in
2012. That was the smallest annual rise since records
began in 1981 and the second weakest figure on
record after 2009, when trade shrank. Trade in
commercial services also grew by only 2 percent in
2012, to $4.3 trillion.
Improved economic prospects for the United
States in 2013 will only partly offset the continued
weakness in the European Union whose economy
is expected to remain flat or even contract slightly
this year according to consensus estimates.
China's growth would continue to outpace other
leading economies, cushioning the slowdown, but
exports will still be constrained by weak demand in
Europe. As a result, this year looks set to be a "near
repeat" of 2012, with both trade and output
expanding slowly.
GIC to manage fund to cover oil from Iran
The government has decided to set up an Indian
Energy Insurance Pool of Rs 2,000-cror, to back
Indian firms that insure domestic refineries
processing Iranian crude oil. Indian insurance firms
depend on large European counterparts to reinsure
their risks as they would otherwise end up in deep
financial trouble in case of large payout.
The fund, which would cover oil imports from
Iran, would be managed by General Insurance
Company (GIC) and would have contributions from
both insurance and oil industry companies.
The problem has arisen since under the US and
the European Union (EU) sanctions, global insurers
have added a "sanctions clause" in their contract
that limits the amount to be paid in case of a claim.
That is why domestic insurance companies have
refused cover to refineries processing Iranian oil as
they could not get reinsurance from their European
counterparts. Reinsurance makes up for 90% of the
insurance cover.
The contributions to the fund will be done by
the insurance companies and Oil Industry
ECONOMY
Development Board (OIDB) under the Petroleum
Ministry.
The move to form the insurance fund will come
as a relief to Indian refiners, especially Mangalore
Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL),
whose current insurance cover is coming to an end
in May. It has so far not found any insurer willing
to cover risks.
Following U.S. and EU pressure and uncertainty
over the implications of the sanctions imposed by
them, India reduced Iranian crude purchases to less
than 13 million tonnes in the previous financial year
from 18.1 million tonnes in the year before that. The
U.S., last December, renewed a waiver for India and
eight other nations from a law that cuts institutions
off from its banking system if they process payments
for Iranian oil.
FinMin instructed government banks to reduce
NPA
The Finance Ministry has asked all public sector
banks to reduce their bad loans, or non-performing
assets, to one per cent of their total advances by the
end of the current financial year (March 31, 2014).
With the economy registering the lowest growth
in a decade, public sector banks have seen their
NPAs go up significantly. According to data
collected for a meeting between Finance Ministry
and public sector bank officials last month, bad loans
with respect to the priority sector, which include
agriculture and medium and small enterprises, had
gone up during the quarter ended December 31 vis-
-vis the previous quarter.
Interestingly, however, the NPA position in
relation to retail and real estate loans improved
during the period.
The gross NPAs of public sector banks rose to
4.18 per cent of advances by the end of December
2012, compared to 3.22 per cent a year ago. Net
NPAs, which are arrived at after making provisions
from the gross amount, has increased to 2.12 per
cent in December 2012.
In absolute term, gross NPA of PSU banks
jumped to Rs 1,84,193 crore in December 2012
compared to Rs 1,37,102 crore in March 2012, an
increase of Rs 47,091 crore in the nine months period.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
The gross NPA in corporate lending rose to Rs
98,884 crore in December, as against Rs 68,221 crore
in March. In the case of farm loans, the gross NPA
rose to Rs 30,800 crore in December as against Rs
24,827 crore in March.
Another highlight is that the top 30 non-
performing accounts made up close to half (around
44 per cent) the bad loans of the 19 nationalised
banks. While for the SBI group, this was around
19.3 per cent, for public sector banks as a whole
they were around 34 per cent.
Banks have been advised to adopt a multi-
pronged strategy for loan recovery. The multi-
pronged strategy includes constitution of a board-
level committee for monitoring recovery, review of
NPA accounts of Rs 1 crore and above by the board
of directors, and the top 300 NPA accounts by the
management committee of the boards, and
guidelines for NPA management as part of an early-
warning system. Apart from restructuring, banks
have been advised to initiate penal measures against
wilful defaulters. These include not granting them
additional facilities and debarring the
entrepreneurs/promoters of defaulting companies
from getting institutional finance for floating new
ventures for a period of five years.
Banks have also been asked to lodge a formal
complaint against the auditors of the borrowers with
the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, if it
is observed that there was negligence or deficiency
in the conduct of audit.
NPAs are a debt obligation where the
borrower has not paid any previously agreed
upon interest and principal repayments to the
designated lender for an extended period of
time. The nonperforming asset is therefore not
yielding any income to the lender in the form
of principal and interest payments.

i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
INDIA AND THE WORLD
India has begun process of group tourist visa
for Pakistanis
After launching 'visa on arrival' facility for
Pakistani senior citizens, India has initiated the
process to provide the 'group tourist visa' on
reciprocal basis.
The 'group tourist' visa was to be launched from
March 15, but it was put on hold after tension along
the border following the brutal killing of two Indian
soldiers.
Besides, Pakistan has also failed to send a list of
authorized tour operators to India.
India has already identified 18 such tour and
travel operators on its side and shared it with
Pakistann.
According to the new liberalized visa pact
between the two countries, group tourist visa would
be offered for a period of 30 days to tourists
travelling in groups with not less than 10 members
and not more than 50 members, organized by
approved tour operators or travel agents.
Though the visa pact was signed in September
last year, it could not be operationalised until
December 14 when Home Minister Sushilkumar
Shinde and his Pakistani counterpart Rehman Malik
had formally launched the process.
Some clauses of the relaxed visa regime like
multiple-entry and police reporting-free visas for
businessmen and allowing them to travel to five
cities instead of the earlier three had come into force
in December last year.
Later, on April 1, both the countries had started
visa- on-arrival facility for each other's senior citizens
(more than 65 years of age). This is a single-entry
visa, granted for a maximum of 45 days. The facility
was started at the Attari Integrated Check Post (ICP)
on reciprocal basis.
2nd India-Germany Intergovernmental
Consultations held
India and Germany held 2nd round of Inter-
Governmental Consultations during which crucial
bilateral, international and regional issues like the
long pending India-EU Free Trade Agreement and
the situation in Afghanistan had been discussed.
Germany is the only country with which India
has such a high-level format of discussion as the
Intergovernmental Consultations. The first round of
Consultations was held when Merkel visited India
in May 2011. Germany is India's largest trading
partner in Europe and fifth largest trading partner
in the world. Bilateral trade between the two nations
stood at 18.3 billion Euros in 2011. However, due to
global economic slowdown, bilateral trade saw a
dip of 5.5 percent last year.
During the meet India and Germany has inked
six key MoUs including that for putting together
Euro seven million for next four years towards joint
research in the field of higher education and a pact
for a soft loan of Euro one billion for strengthening
the green energy corridor.
The lists of documents signed are as follows:
a) J oint Declaration of I ntent regarding promotion
of German as a foreign language in I ndia:
The declaration will include introduction of B.Ed
programmes for German language. Also
scholarships would be awarded for Masters
degree programs and for short stays in Germany
with the goal of improving mutual trust and
intercultural relations.
b) I ntergovernmental MoU between I ndi a &
Germany on Cooperation in the field of Higher
Education:
The MoU intends to facilitate people-to-people
exchanges. This includes students, academics,
and project collaborators.
c) J oint Declaration of I ntent in the area of Civil
Security Research:
The Indo-German research cooperation in this
new area intends to fund 5 pilot projects in 2013
with the identified priorities being natural
disaster management, biological risk situations,
urban security, protection & rescue of people
and social aspects of civil security research.
d) J oint Declaration for cooperation in Agriculture
sector:
Aims at strengthening cooperation in:
plant variety protection;
conservation of plant genetic resources;
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
cooperation between Indian and German
agricultural research institutions and seed
companies.
e) J oint Declaration of I ntent for Cooperation in
Standardisation, Conformity Assessment and
Product Safety:
The declaration aims at strengthening bilateral
cooperation in standardization, conformity
assessment and product safety through bilateral
economic and technical cooperation, intensifying
dialogue and promoting coordinated activities
in international organizations. Also provides for
establishing and Indo-German Working Group
Quality Infrastructure.
f) J oint Declaration of I ntent for Establishment
of Green Energy Corridors
It aims at fostering increased use of renewable
energy in India through technical and fanatical
cooperation by way of integrating additional
renewable energy generation capacity with the
national grid. The Technical cooperation would
be implemented through the German Agency
for International Cooperation (GIZ) and KfW
intends to provide concessional loans of up to
Euro one billion over the next six years.
Under pacts signed, both Germany and India
have committed to Euro 3.5 million each towards
working on joint research and innovation
programmes.
India and Mauritius Sign MoU on Electoral
Cooperation
India and Mauritius have signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) in New Delhi, for
cooperation in the field of election management and
administration.
The MoU was signed by the Chief Election
Commissioner of India, Shri V.S. Sampath and the
Electoral Commissioner of Mauritius, Mr.
Mohammad Irfan Abdool Rahman.
The major aims of MoU are: promotion of
exchanges of knowledge and experience in electoral
processes; exchange of information, materials,
expertise and training of personnel; production and
distribution of materials pertaining to electoral
systems, voting technology, voters' education and
awareness, and participation of women and
minorities in electoral process.
The MoU will help in strengthening and
deepening mutual collaboration between ECI and
the Electoral Commissioner's Office of Mauritius.
Further it would facilitate sharing of best practices,
skills and experiences between the two institutions
for mutual benefit.
Election Commissioner, Mr. Brahma offered the
available expertise and facilities in India for
strengthening the electoral system in Mauritius.
Election Commission of India has so far signed
seventeen MOUs with Election Management Bodies
and international organizations across the world.
Some of the MoU signed recently are with Egypt,
Venezuela, Republic of Korea and UNDP.
Scientific Declaration on Polio Eradication
Hundreds of scientists, doctors and other experts
from around the world has launched the Scientific
Declaration on Polio Eradication, emphasising that
an end to the paralyzing disease was achievable,
and endorsed a comprehensive new strategy to
secure a lasting polio-free world by 2018.
The more than 400 signatories urged
governments, international organisations and civil
society to seize the historic and unique opportunity
to end polio and protect the world's most vulnerable
children and future generations from this debilitating
but preventable disease.
The declaration calls for full funding and
implementation of the Polio Eradication and
Endgame Strategic Plan 2013-2018, developed by the
Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).
The declaration notes that vaccines have already
protected hundreds of millions of children, and
eliminated one of the three types of wild poliovirus,
proving that eradication is scientifically feasible. It
calls on the international community to meet the
goals in the GPEI plan for delivering vaccines to
more children at risk, particularly in Afghanistan,
Nigeria and Pakistan, where polio remains endemic
and emergency action plans launched over the past
year have resulted in significant improvements in
vaccine coverage. The GPEI estimates that it can be
completely ended by 2018 at a cost of $5.5 billion.
The declaration notes that only 223 new cases
due to wild poliovirus were recorded in 2012, a
historic low and more than 99 per cent decrease
from the estimated 350,000 cases in 1988. This year,
just 16 new cases were reported as of April 9. India,
long regarded as the most difficult place to
eliminate polio, has not recorded a case in more
than two years.
The signatories from 80 countries include Nobel
laureates, vaccine and infectious disease experts,
public health school deans and paediatricians. More
than 40 leading universities and schools of public
health and medicine are promoting the declaration
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
on their websites, including Aga Khan University,
the Harvard School of Public Health, the London
School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Al Azhar
University (Egypt), the University of Cape Town,
Redeemers University (Nigeria) and Christian
Medical College, Vellore (India).
India and Russia economic ties
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma
during his recent two-day visit to Moscow met his
Russian counterpart Denis Manturov and Russian
Minister of Economic Development Andrey
Belousov and briefed them about emerging
opportunities for investment in India.
During the meet the Indian minister outlined
immense investment opportunities available in India
in sectors like energy & energy resources,
pharmaceuticals, IT & ITES, minerals & metals,
infrastructure development, aviation, power
generation, shipbuilding, bio and nano- technologies,
fertilizers, chemicals, agricultural and foods items,
automobile industry and diamond. He also sought
investment partnership in the fields of mining, steel
and energy.
On IT sector, Minister Sharma asked Russian
Authorities to expedite details on their IT
innovation policy containing Management,
Development of Software, Commercial Terms, and
Tax benefits in Russia, etc. It would facilitate Indian
Industries to take decision for their participation
in the Russian Technology platform on IT
innovation. Salient possibilities for cooperation with
Russia in the IT sector are BPO/KPO, business
software, setting-up of Techno-Park, e-governance,
tele-medicines, and IT training and education.
However, so far, no concerted effort has been made
by Indian companies to tap or even assess this
potential in the Russian IT market.
Russia has also decided to participate in the
government's initiative of setting up world-class
mega industrial zones under the New Manufacturing
Policy (NMP) in various states.
The New National Manufacturing Policy (NMP)
provides for the National Manufacturing Investment
Zones (NMIZs) with world-class supporting
infrastructure across the states.
The government is offering a host of incentives
like exemption from capital gains tax and a
liberalised labour and environment norms to
promote these zones.
Bilateral trade between India and Russia in 2012
has increased to around US$ 6.7 billion mark,
registering growth of around 14% as compared to
previous year. Exports touched USD 2.15 billion in
2012 compared to USD 1.89 Billion in 2011 and
exports stood at USD 4.5 billion as compared to 4.05
billion previous year.
India, Bangladesh to produce mega film on
1971 War of Liberation
During the meeting between Information and
Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari and his
Bangladeshi counterpart Hasanul Haq Inu, India and
Bangladesh has agreed to consider a joint
collaboration for production of a mega film depicting
the "War of Liberation". On the context mega film,
it was agreed to work towards a roadmap to finalize
the proposal shortly.
Bangladesh Minister also requested that the
Government of India could consider providing the
names of the soldiers who had laid down their lives
during the War of Liberation.
During the discussions, both the Ministers also
agreed to explore the possibility of setting up of a
Joint Working Group on the critical sectors of the
Information and Broadcasting domain. The Working
Group would provide a roadmap for future
collaborations between the two countries.
The Bangladesh Minister also requested India
to facilitate the downlinking of Bangladesh TV
Channels through the private distribution
network. Both Ministers also agreed to intensify
the collaboration between Prasar Bharti and
Bangladesh State Television in view of the
Memorandum of Understanding signed between
the two entities in 2011.
The MoU had focused on mutual cooperation in
the broadcast of television programmes between the
two broadcasters. It was also mentioned that both
countries could consider exchange of programmes
and also explore the possibility of executive TV co-
production.
Both Ministers also agreed to facilitate the
exchange of archival material between the two
countries and discussed on the possibility of
strengthening collaboration as far as training and
capacity building was concerned between
institutions of mutual interests.

i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Coral reef colonies declining in Palk Bay: Study
A recent study taken up by a team of researchers
from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Chennai,
brought to light the serious threat of extinction the
coral reef colonies and mangrove forests in the Palk
Bay are facing. At present, only two per cent of the
coral reefs survive in the area. A decade ago, the
Palk Bay area used to be rich in biodiversity
consisting of coral colonies, sea weed and grass,
besides mangrove forests.
Global warming, siltation, release of untreated
raw sewage into the water bodies and overgrowth
of algae were stated to be the three important reasons
for the possible disappearance of coral colonies and
its associated organisms from the Palk Bay area.
Silt coming from developmental projects, as well
as due to east-flowing rivers do not allow the new
colonies to be formed and, similarly, not allow the
corals to re-colonise in the Palk Bay region.
The study showed that release of untreated raw
sewage from the nearby areas into the water bodies,
which ultimately drained into the sea, led to diseases
in coral colonies. There is an increased growth of
algae. This also led to the disappearance of corals.
Apart from these problems, the conflicts of
interest between the traditional fishermen and the
trawler operators also took a toll on the biodiversity
of the Palk region.
In an attempt to restore the dying coral colonies,
the ZSI researchers are attempting to transplant live
coral colonies from other parts of the Gulf of Mannar
Biosphere Reserve and plant them at Palk Bay. This
work is done with support and assistance from
various funding agencies. More than transplanting
the corals from other areas into the Palk Bay,
conservation efforts have to be taken up by various
agencies to preserve the species.
Drone to keep tabs on Kaziranga animals
Taking a step towards deployment of an
unmanned aerial vehicle, commonly known as
drone, to keep tabs on the animals in the Kaziranga
National Park (KNP) and protect them from
poachers, a test flight of a remote-controlled hobby
flying model of the drone was conducted.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
The drone is solar powered and equipped with
both still and video cameras. It is capable of
transmitting pictures, while doing the sorties, to a
control base where it can be downloaded and
analysed or stored for analysis.
Poachers have killed and dehorned 12 rhinos at
the Kaziranga National Park since January 1. In the
recent Census, the park authorities counted 2329
rhinos - a net increase of 39 even after losing about
125 to poaching, high flood and natural death since
January 2012. The 2012 census had put the count at
2290. The national park also has 106 tigers, 1163
elephants, 1937 buffalos and 1165 swamp deer.
Assam government recently sought a Central
Bureau of Investigation probe into the spurt in rhino
poaching.
New device to detect GI cancers coming soon
Gastrointestinal cancer (GI) occurs when certain
cells within the gastrointestinal tract grow in an
uncontrolled, abnormal, manner. (GI) cancers occur
anywhere along the long twisting tube that includes
the esophagus, stomach, small and large intestine
(which includes the colon), rectum and anus.
A prototype of an advanced multi-bending
cholangioscope (which allows visual diagnosis) has
been developed jointly by Indian and Japanese
healthcare researchers to detect cancer at an early
age. All these years, most patients used to consult
a physician when the disease was in an advanced
stage. But with this new equipment peroral direct
cholangioscope (PDCS), which has a video camera
and can bend easily, cancers of bile duct, liver and
pancreas could be detected early.
The multi-bending PDCS cannot be inserted free-
hand into the bile duct. However, a high success
rate of direct insertion can be achieved when the
endoscope is passed over a guide-wire and an
anchoring balloon.
Barren Island volcano in Andaman Sea could
be at least 1.8 million years old
A group of scientists at Ahmedabad-based
Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) and the Indian
Institute of Technology-Bombay have determined
that Barren Island volcano in Andaman Sea would
be at least 1.8 million years old.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
It became active in 1991 after a dormancy of 159

years. It has since remained active with almost
continuous tephra eruptions or ejection of solid
material into the air. The experts stated that, being
a stratovolcano, it had in the past and would be
likely to have in the future massive eruptions that
could seriously affect life in the Andaman Sea, the
Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the neighbouring
south-east Asian countries. Tsunamis generated by
sub-marine landslides on the flanks of the volcano
can compound the scale of devastation.
Thus the determination of the age is important
to elucidate the history of volcanism in the country
and the evolution of the island arc in the Andaman
subduction zone.
The scientists has determined its age by studying
a 400-cm-long core of marine sediments collected
from the Andaman Sea about 30-km away from the
Barren Island. The core was studied with the help
of the Argon dating facility established at IIT-
Bombay a few years ago.
The new finding follows an earlier study by a
team led by Neeraj Awasthi of IIT- Bombay, which
showed that the volcano, which raises about two-
km above the seafloor with an average height of
about 300-m above sea level, has had seven major
lava eruptions over the past 70,000 years.
The Barren Island stands in the midst of a
volcanic belt on the edge of the Indian and Burmese
tectonic plates. It is the northern-most active system
of the Indonesian volcanic arc. Though forming part
of the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar, it
is totally uninhabited. It is accessible only to the
Coast Guard and naval ships which monitor the
island on a regular basis for any eruption. The
eruption in 1991 lasted for about six months.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
2 - MARKERS
Agni-II successfully tested
The Strategic Forces Command (SFC) of the
Army successfully test-fired Agni-II ballistic missile
from Wheeler Island, off the Odisha coast.
The medium-range missile with a range of over
2,000 km has already been inducted into the Army,
and is part of the Strategic Forces arsenal for nuclear
deterrence. The Agni-II is part of India's Integrated
Guided Missile Development Programme. Other
missiles in series include 700-km range Agni-I, 3000-
km range Agni-III, 3500-km range Agni-IV and 5000-
km range Agni-V.
The two-stage surface-to-surface missile,
equipped with an advanced high-accuracy
navigation system and guided by a novel state-of-
the-art command and control system, is powered by
a solid rocket propellant system.
The missile weighs 17 tonnes and its range can
be increased to 3,000 km by reducing the payload.
It can be fired from both rail and road mobile
launchers. It takes only 15 minutes for the missile to
be readied for firing.
The Defence Research and Development
Organisation first tested Agni-II in 1999.
Amazon Olympics
The Amazon Olympics is an annual sporting
event for indigenous tribes along the Columbian,
Brazilian and Peruvian borders.
The aim of these dangerous games is to test the
skills and disciplines of which are essential for
survival in the jungle.
Rather than well-known sports such as
badminton, football and boxing taking precedence,
disciplines such as tree-felling, canoe-racing, archery
and blow-pipe shooting are prominent amongst the
games. Teams from two-dozen villages and towns
fight for a cash prize of 1,000.
INS Vagli to be turned into museum by 2015
INS Vagli, the decommissioned submarine, will
be converted into Tamil Nadu Maritime Heritage
Museum in Mamallapuram by March 2015.
Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation
(TTDC) will be the nodal agency for setting up the
museum with exhibits on maritime heritage and
marine technology and facilities such as food courts,
audio-visual studio, souvenir shops and aquarium
on Build, Own, Operate and Transfer model.
eCoins
eCoins is an integrated, user-friendly, fully-
electronic and over-the-counter platform for trading
in gold bars, solely aimed at jewellers. eCoins will
provide its retailers/customers with live transparent
benchmark prices along with instant trade and rate
confirmations. The bars will be available on the
terminal in widest range of denominations: 1, 2, 5,
10, 20 and 50 grams in .999 purity.
Dada Sahab Phalke Award
Pran has been awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke
Award (2012), the nation's top cine honour. In 2010,
he was listed by CNN as one of the top 25 Asian
actors of all time.
The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India's highest
award in cinema given annually by the
Government of India. The Award is given to a
prominent personality from the Indian film
industry, noted and respected for significant
contributions to Indian cinema.
NTR National Film Award
Film star Amitabh Bachchan was presented the
NTR National Film Award for 2011. The award
carried Rs.5 lakh cash prize, a citation and a
memento.
Dr Hilary Koprowski
Hilary Koprowski was a Polish virologist and
immunologist, and inventor of the world's first
effective live polio vaccine. Koprowski created the
world's first polio vaccine, based on oral
administration of attenuated polio virus. In
researching a potential polio vaccine, he had focused
on live viruses that were attenuated (rendered non-
virulent) rather than on killed viruses (the latter
became the basis for the injected vaccine that was
subsequently created by Jonas Salk).
Koprowski viewed the live vaccine as more
powerful, since it entered the intestinal tract directly
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
and could provide lifelong immunity, whereas the

Salk vaccine required booster shots. Also,
administering a vaccine by mouth is easy, whereas
an injection requires medical facilities and is more
expensive. Koprowski's vaccine was taken by the
first child on February 27, 1950, and within 10 years
was being used on four continents. Albert Sabin's
attenuated-live-virus polio vaccine was developed
from attenuated polio virus that Sabin had received
from Koprowski.
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first woman Prime
Minister who led the Conservative party for more
than a decade through one of the most tumultuous
periods in modern British history and became a
deeply divisive political figure, died. Her political
philosophy and economic policies emphasised
deregulation (particularly of the financial sector),
flexible labour markets, the privatisation of state-
owned companies, and reducing the power and
influence of trade unions.
Thatcher was awarded the Presidential Medal
of Freedom, the highest civilian honour awarded
by the US.
Robert Geoffrey Edwards
He was a British physiologist and pioneer in
reproductive medicine and in-vitro fertilisation (IVF)
in particular. Edwards successfully pioneered
conception through IVF, which led to the birth of
the first test-tube baby, Louise Brown, on 25 July
1978. He was awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in
Physiology or Medicine "for the development of in
vitro fertilization". In 2011, Edwards was knighted
by Queen Elizabeth II "for services to human
reproductive biology."
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
EDITORIALS
We need a unified financial regulator
Our experience with regulators has been rather
mixed, on account of poor legal design. A set of
regulatory provisions for all areas of finance would
make a difference.
The report of the Financial Sector Legislative
Reforms Commission (FSLRC) has generated lots of
comments and reactions. This article looks at the
recommendations on the subject of regulatory
governance, in general, and, regulator-government
interface, in particular.
If acted upon, these can significantly impact
overall governance in India and not merely in
finance. The recommendations of the FSLRC are
mainly contained in chapters 3, 4, 14 &16 of the
report. The idea of an independent regulator is
relatively new.
Modern regulators of this kind at a country level
go back to the Inter-state Commerce Commission
(ICC) of the US created in 1887. In India, though a
law created the RBI in 1934, it was not designed to
be an independent regulator.
The original RBI Act of 1934 was amended many
times to convert a private commercial entity into a
regulator. Post-independence, in 1953, the Forward
Markets Commission (FMC) was created by a
parliamentary law but in the mould of a traditional
government department.
Therefore, it perhaps cannot be characterised as
an independent regulator, though it was and is
statutory.
The first really modern regulator in India is the
SEBI, created by an executive order in 1988 and
sanctified by a parliamentary law in 1992.
Subsequently, India has created many regulators in
the financial and other sectors, which have come up
in many states.
Poor legal design
As a general proposition, it would be fair to say
that the Indian experience with regulators is rather
mixed. A few have been reasonably successful, but
most have been less than optimal in their outcomes.
One is of the opinion that much of this is on account
of poor legislative design. The major
recommendation of FSLRC in this area is that there
should be a unified set of provisions on regulatory
governance for all areas of finance.
The FSLRC has presented this unified set of
provisions and made detailed recommendations on
the structure of the regulatory agency, composition
of its board, selection of board members, functioning
of the board, resource allocation of the regulator,
including powers to levy fees, principles of levying
fees, and performance assessment and reporting.
Another chapter describes in detail what ought
to be the functions and powers of the regulator.
There is a good case for extending these principles
to sectors beyond finance to all statutory regulators.
The practical importance of these recommendations
will be apparent if one looks at the actual practice
in one just area of government-regulator interface -
appointment of regulators.
Systemic problem
As a rule, most present legal provisions in this
regard are vague and do not follow any standard
principle. The many variations in the terms and
processes of the appointments clearly point to a
systemic problem.
For example, in the last decade or so, there have
been governors of the RBI who were varyingly given
a three-year term extended by three years, a single
five-year term, and a three-year term extended by
two years. There have been Deputy Governors who
were given terms of over five years, exactly five
years, three years, three+two years and two years
and 3 months, extended by nine months!
A major part of the problem is the RBI Act, which
prescribes no age limit for Deputy Governor or
Governor, no process for appointment and no limits
on terms.
Similar is the story with the Securities and
Exchange Board of India (SEBI). One chairman was
appointed for five years, and extended for another
two years, when the law then provided for a three-
year term. The term of another was not extended
beyond three years when the law provided for a
five-year term.
While recently whole time members (WTM) have
been given five-year terms, the chairman was given
only a three-year term. One WTM was appointed
for three years, completed this, demitted office and
was then given a fresh term, while the terms of two
identically placed WTMs were not renewed.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
If all this points to confusion and mindlessness,
it also translates into the effective lack of operational
autonomy for the regulators, given the uncertainty
of tenure and the ability of the government to pick
and choose individuals in the regulatory agency who
are "fit" for extension and who are "not".
Lack of autonomy
Contrast this with fixed terms prescribed in the
Constitution for election commissioners and the
CAG of India and the obvious consequences in terms
of institutional effectiveness.
Likewise, there are board members of some
regulatory agencies who have been on these boards
for over a decade and some who have been given
three years.
Boards of some regulatory agencies have no
regulatory powers at all with regulatory functions,
including the drafting of regulations being done
entirely by the staff of the agency without any
clearance of the board. In the case of some other
agencies, board-level clearance is mandatory for
issuing regulations.
Auditing a regulator
Orders passed by some regulatory agencies have
no appeal/recourse of any kind. In the financial
sector, all regulators are free from resource
constraints, but some have been accused of charging
excess fees as the law confers powers to levy fees
without any guidance or principle.
The CAG of India mandatorily audits some
financial sector regulatory agencies in accordance
with their statute whereas firms of chartered
accountants audit some regulators. Given the
enormous powers of the regulators, it will be a brave
chartered accountant who actually does a tough
audit of a regulator.
It is these and many similar aspects of regulatory
governance and accountability that need to be
legislatively reformed in India.
The FSLRC recommendations directly address
these and will go a long way in remedying this
governance deficit in regulatory structure and design.
Source: Business Line
Why Indian cities lag behind global
metropolises
The results of an ET-Janaagraha survey assessing
India's top 11 cities against two global metropolises
are disheartening. These cities scored in the range
of 0.7 to 4.5 across four categories on a scale of 0 to
10 against New York and London, which scored
between 8.1 and 9.9. The comparisons included how
cities are planned, their capacity to raise resources,
empowerment of political representatives and
people's participation.
A missing component that can be incorporated
in future surveys is how efficient cities are in energy
use, given that they need to lower energy
consumption in transport, water supply and waste
management. Rightly, the survey offers prescriptions
to reform governance. It says cities should set up
metropolitan planning committees (MPC) to prepare
a draft plan for the area.
The Constitution does mandate MPCs and lists
out their functions. There is no excuse for non-
compliance. Kolkata's MPC and its sectoral and
executive panels are examples for other cities.
Greater financial autonomy for municipal entities,
too, makes eminent sense. They should be able to
raise debt and access new forms of financing through
public-private partnership. It is also imperative to
revive and develop a flourishing municipal bond
market to finance and create new cities.
A robust institutional framework to levy and
collect user charges by municipal bodies would help,
provided more services are brought under pricing.
The survey found mayors and city councils weak.
They must be empowered to bring about change in
civic affairs. The larger point is that the pace of
urbanisation will surge as the economy grows. So,
urban renewal and development should be top-of-
the-mind issues for policymakers now, before it
becomes too late.
Source: Economic Times
Why India is right on Sri Lanka
Unless Colombo treats its Tamil citizens with
dignity and respect, New Delhi will continue to have
limited options
Contemporary developments in India's foreign
policy are often based on perceptions and not facts,
views divorced from reality and political advocacy
based on make-believe. India's approach to the Sri
Lankan issue and the vote in the Human Rights
Council (HRC) is a case in point. Variously described
as a "new low" in our foreign policy and a departure
from our principled stand of not supporting country-
specific resolutions, this line of reasoning suggests
that New Delhi should ignore and overrule regional
sentiment, and refrain from meddling in the affairs
of a small neighbour.
But first the perceptions. One, in 1956, Solomon
West Ridgeway Dias (SWRD) Bandaranaike enacted
the Sinhala-Only Act. Sections of the political class
in New Delhi welcomed it as a consolidation of anti-
imperialist sentiment. Years later, Tamils were
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
reduced to second-class citizens and discrimination
against them became systemic and entrenched. The
anti-Tamil riots in Colombo following the killing of
the Mayor of Jaffna, Alfred Duriappa, by a young
Prabhakaran led to the rise of Tamil militancy.
Perception two, Most Sinhalese believe, with
good reason, that Tamil militancy, rightly viewed
by them as terrorism, would not have succeeded in
tearing apart Sri Lanka's social fabric but for
support from across the Palk Straits. Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi sought course correction. He
committed India to Sri Lanka's unity and territorial
integrity. This fundamental turnaround meant India
would not support the break-up of Sri Lanka and
would also cooperate in ending support for
terrorism. There was, however, one caveat. The
Tamil minority should be treated with dignity and
as equal citizens of a multicultural, multiple-ethnic
and multilingual Sri Lanka.
Resolution was minimalist
What the international community is questioning
is not Colombo's military operation against the LTTE
or human rights violations but specific allegations
of war crimes during the last 100 days of military
operations. Visual documentation, including by
triumphant victors on mobile phones has contributed
to Sri Lanka's discomfort. The U.S. resolution at the
19th session of the HRC in March 2012 was a
minimalist attempt. It invited Sri Lanka to act on
the recommendations of its own Lessons Learnt and
Reconciliation Commission. Even the assistance to
be made available to Colombo would have been
provided only with its consent. Instead, Colombo
chose to prevaricate. With additional visual
documentation being made available, the demand
for accountability gained momentum. Having voted
in favour of the resolution in March 2012, it was
next to impossible for India to change its vote in
March 2013, especially in the absence of any credible
steps by Sri Lanka towards reconciliation and
devolution.
It is both in India's and Sri Lanka's interest to
get a full and final closure on these allegations. Not
to do so will allow the wounds to fester.
Sovereignty has never succeeded in providing a
cover against genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes
and crimes against humanity. To suggest that India
does not support country-specific resolutions is
absurd. Even more, that we have a principled
position on this. In any perceived clash between
principle and national interest, it is invariably the
latter that is invoked and reigns supreme. Following
the anti-Tamil riots in Colombo in 1983, New Delhi
mustered sufficient courage to spearhead a resolution
against Sri Lanka in the Sub-Commission on
Prevention of Discrimination and the Protection of
Minorities. We vote in favour of similar resolutions
against Israel only because they deal with gross and
systematic violations of human rights of Palestinian
people in the occupied territories. We have never
hesitated to take a position on country-specific
resolutions whether on DPRK or Iran, whenever our
national interest so demanded.
To dismiss popular sentiment in Tamil Nadu as
the machinations of politicians is both a misreading
of the situation and a recipe for disaster. Why should
Sri Lanka not be held to account for not respecting
understandings given bilaterally to India, such as
those of April-May 2009?
13th Amendment
India can be against the LTTE but cannot afford
to be against the Tamils. The problem both amongst
the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka and large sections
of the Tamil population in India, is that the LTTE
successfully manipulated Tamil opinion by
projecting itself as the only physical shield against
Sinhala repression. We cannot wish away this
sentiment. The only safeguard for the Tamils in Sri
Lanka is delivery of the promised devolution based
on the 13th Amendment.
Both the AIADMK and the DMK, along with
the smaller parties in Tamil Nadu are on the same
page on the Sri Lanka issue. The problem will
continue to fester till Colombo has a genuine change
of heart. Recent signals are anything but
encouraging. Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa
said on March 27, 2013: "Could we afford to have a
provincial administration here, which pointed a gun
at the national leadership at the drop of a hat? We
don't want to be at the mercy of scheming provincial
administrations." Let alone the 13th Amendment,
the Defence Secretary seems to be suggesting the
winding up of provincial councils altogether!
Notwithstanding assurances to India, the
"Brothers" running Sri Lanka appear to have no
intention to move on political reconciliation and
devolution. This "majoritarianism" in total disregard
of respecting and protecting the rights of minorities
is a narrow and calibrated political strategy
designed to safeguard Sinhalese parliamentary
strength. The recent attacks on the Muslim trading
community in the heart of Colombo by fanatic
Sinhalese, allegedly led by Buddhist monks are
manifestations of similar callous and cynical
disregard for the rights of linguistic, religious and
cultural minorities. India did the right thing by
supporting the resolution on war crimes.
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
Exaggerated projections of Chinese inroads and
influence are a bogey which many of our smaller
neighbours periodically try on us. Apart from being
practical, the Chinese are also hard headed. They
will pursue economic and commercial opportunity
irrespective of the way India votes. Support for Sri
Lanka up to 2012 did not prevent them from looking
for commercial projects there. Many Chinese
successes have something to do with our own
inability to deliver commercial projects on time.
Sri Lanka is not only India's closest neighbour
but in many respects, culturally and emotionally,
closest to us as well. We need to reach out to
Colombo and drive home the point that it takes two
to tango. Relations between countries are assiduously
built, step by step. Unless Colombo treats its Tamil
citizens with dignity and respect, New Delhi will
continue to have limited options. If New Delhi
continues to base its choices on misplaced
"perceptions" and does not effectively articulate the
reasons for the choices so made, only brickbats will
be in the offing.
Source: The Hindu
Changing course in Africa
The continent is experiencing rising rates of
growth. But wi l l growth be transl ated i nto
development?
Africans know a thing or two about herd instinct.
Like wildebeest and zebra migration across the
Serengeti, investment managers and consultants too
have a habit of running together and, every now
and then, changing direction. Right now, herd
instinct is taking every investment, fund and private
equity manager on an African safari.
If, a decade ago, The Economist ran a cover story
dubbing Africa "The hopeless continent", it caught
up with a changing reality by the end of 2011 with a
cover on "Africa rising." More recently, it
acknowledged the emergence of an "Aspiring Africa".
What has fuelled this journey of the so-called dark
continent into the bright new world of economic
growth and political stability? What are the new
business opportunities and political risks? How
diverse is the experience of different regions of this
vast continent? To what extent is this new growth
process driven by enduring change, rather than
fleeting opportunity? Do countries blessed by oil and
gas have the capacity to use their new-found wealth
to fuel long-term growth and development, or will
they fall victim to the infamous "resource curse"? Does
Africa have the political leadership it requires to
resolve intra-country and inter-country conflict and
deal with new security challenges like drug and arms
trafficking, terrorism and Islamic radicalism?
Such were the questions that an international
conference on the geo-economics of resources and
conflict in Africa sought to address earlier this week
at the Bahrain Centre of the International Institute
for Strategic Studies (IISS). The verdict was clear.
The "rising" and "aspiring" Africa story is well
founded. However, not all of the 54 countries of the
continent are rising at the same pace and,
worryingly, there are still many pockets of
"hopelessness" and sources of potential conflict that
require urgent attention.
Fred Swaniker, founder and CEO of the Africa
Leadership Academy, identified five long-term
trends that are driving the African growth story,
and the four risks it faces. The five drivers are:
improving political governance, young and better-
educated population, urbanisation, skilled workforce
and a more hospitable global geopolitical
environment. With access to education and
urbanisation, several pre-requisites for sustained
growth are now in place, like physical, social and
financial infrastructure. The rise of China, followed by
India and other emerging economies, has had beneficial
geo-economic consequences for the continent. Africans
are pleased to find themselves being courted by
erstwhile colonisers even as they exude confidence in
being able to deal with rising powers.
So what are the risks? As in India, the so-called
demographic dividend can only be a driver of
growth if the young are educated and better skilled.
If not, a restive youth would become a liability.
Africa is experiencing rising rates of growth, but
will growth get translated into development?
Urbanisation is a positive force, but the lack of rural
opportunities? Does Africa not require a green
revolution that enriches the peasantry, creates a
bigger home market and ensures food security?
Unplanned urbanisation can create urban chaos and
trigger urban violence. With rapid growth comes
social and regional inequality. This, too, needs
managing. Finally, Africa's new political leadership
has to manage the fluid geopolitics of an increasingly
multi-polar world, benefiting from the global race
for resources, rather than getting unduly exploited.
Emmanuel Kwesi Aning of the Kofi Annan
International Peacekeeping Training Centre drew
attention to another downside risk - the debilitating
impact of the dangerous cocktail of drugs and arms
trafficking, al-Qaeda, terrorism and Islamic
radicalism both on Africa's west coast and along the
northeastern coast, the Horn of Africa. Economic
growth alone cannot address the demands of an
aspiring Africa. Many countries need modern
institutions that are accountable, transparent, just
and efficient. Africa's security challenge was brought
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
out starkly by the fact that if the single biggest
employer in China is Sinopec, a petrochemical
company, and in India it is the railways, across
Africa it is G4S, a private security firm.
The continent's major powers, like South Africa,
Nigeria and Kenya, will be required to provide
leadership in their respective regions to ensure
regional peace and security. If not, outside powers
will step in, as France has done in Mali. With new
oil and gas discoveries, Africa's energy exporters
will have to invest in defence capability and work
with other Indian Ocean powers to ensure security
of sea lanes.
As in the case of any continental entity, Africa is
also characterised by wide diversity. While negatives
dominate western Africa and the Sahel region, many
positives define eastern and east coastal Africa, led
by Kenya, and southern Africa, led by South Africa.
New oil and gas discoveries in Kenya and
Mozambique are attracting global oil majors,
including from China and India. How these
resources are utilised is key. Will they be afflicted
by the resource curse - falling victim to a
combination of cronyism, authoritarianism,
inequality and lack of incentives for growth of
manufacturing - or will they be able to use these
resources wisely to build the foundations for
sustainable development? The key to Africa's rise
lies in the answer to these questions.
Today's youth see new hope in the new
opportunities that a new world offers. What was
striking, however, was the contrast between the
confident optimism of younger Africans and the
more cautious, even worried, outlook of the older
generation. As in India so in Africa, the older
generation has lived through an earlier phase of
optimism fuelled by the promise of decolonisation.
That hope never materialised. This time, Africa is
determined to succeed.
Source: Indian Express
Colonising riverbeds
Green activists root for a monitoring commission
to ensure that our rivers are effectively protected
Green activists are elated that the National Green
Tribunal has issued notices to Union Ministry of
Environment and Forests, Governments of Uttar
Pradesh, Delhi and Haryana, and Union Ministry of
Water Resources with regard to the land mafia's
reckless encroachment on the floodplains of Yamuna
and Hindon.
This was in response to an application filed by
environmentalists. The plea states: "The river beds,
considered highly eco-fragile, have been usurped by
land mafia in connivance with administration
officials. Colonies have come up on the riverbeds".
The petition cites a media report about an estimated
1,618 hectares of the Yamuna flood plain having been
grabbed by the land mafia, along 30 km of the river
as it flows through Noida. Encroachments include
farmhouses, homes, schools, crusher and hot-mix
plants, concrete ready-mix and quartz-washing
plants, etc. Thousands of hectares have similarly
been encroached upon in cities along the Yamuna:
Delhi, Faridabad, Mathura and Agra. The petition
singles out the Delhi Government for foisting
encroachments via Commonwealth Games Village
and DTC Bus Depot "on the eco-sensitive Yamuna
banks".
Illegal plots in the flood plains areas are being
sold with the connivance of Government
functionaries, with registration and mutation being
undertaken. Though concerned agencies at the
Centre and in States have not granted environmental
clearance, which clearly has not even been sought,
such land grab continues to occur with impunity.
Encroachments by colonisers in Faridabad, Agra and
Mathura have increased the toxic pollution load. As
a result, aquatic species have almost been decimated.
The petitioners want a monitoring commission
to be set up, to ensure that provisions under the
National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for protecting
rivers be implemented in a transparent way as per
the deadline. Applications or appeals are to be
disposed of within six months of filing.
This is one side of the issue of development. The
other side has bankers and tycoons meeting Union
Minister for Finance P Chidambaram with their
litany of complaints concerning environmental
hurdles, land acquisition, coal linkage and banks'
reluctance to restructure loans, thereby stalling
projects. The high-powered meet was attended by
the Minister and Financial Services secretary Ravi
Takru, the business sector was represented by Mr
Anil Ambani, Mr Ajit Gulabchand, Mr Prashant
Ruia, Mr Kumar Managalam Birla, Mr Madhu
Kannan and heads of public-sector banks. There are
almost 350 such projects facing impediments.
Environmental clearance is seen to be the main
obstruction. Mr Chidambaram will now coordinate
with different Ministries to get road blocks removed.
So, on the one hand, the Green Tribunal, set up
on October 18, 2010, under National Green Tribunal
Act, as well as law courts are intervening in support
of conservation causes; on the other, corporates,
realtors, land mafia and a chain of beneficiaries cite
the need for high growth as the rationale for
pummelling the Government into submission.
So long as population continues to explode, with
India's numbers in 2011 totalling 1,241,491,960, as
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
i
a
s
1
0
0
.
i
n
per World Bank estimates, high growth gains will
be out-paced by the astronomical increase in people.
The Congress-led UPA Government has completely
failed to address this problem during its two
successive tenures, since 2004.
It is a colossal failure, but quite understandable
in view of obsession with high economic growth
trajectories and policies, and freebies for select vote
banks. These formulae for disaster, vesting in the
unlikely reconciliation of the capitalist module of
development with the socialist welfare state, do not
seem to have factored in family planning
programmes, to be implemented on an emergency
basis.
India is reported to harbour over 17.5 per cent of
the entire population of the world. The 2001 census
findings indicate that 72.2 per cent of the people are
found in an estimated 6,38,000 villages, which figure
very low on policymakers' list of priorities in
planning since metropolises seem to have first right
over funds and resources.
Mark the disproportionate amount of finance
allotted to Delhi for upgradation of infrastructure
and creation of amenities, geared to hosting of the
CWG in October 2010. As per census data, 27.8 per
cent comprises urban dwellers. Since policymakers
and enforcers are not serious about curbing
population growth, India is expected to beat its giant
neighbour China, which has enforced the 'one child
rule', as the world's most populous country by 2025.
Electoral compulsions ensure that the small family
unit, projected as the ideal by the slogans "Hum do,
hamaare do" and "Hum do hamaara ek", has been
shelved. The more the better appears to be the
current norm since that translates into larger vote-
banks and recipients of Government largesse.
China's policy dates back to 1979. It generally
applies to urban Han Chinese, and is credited with
reducing population by about 300 million in the first
two decades. However, after the Congress's aborted
sterilisation programme in the 1970s, the subject is
taboo for politicos.
Source: The Pioneer

Weekly 08 To 14 April 2013 For WEB2

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Weekly 08 To 14 April 2013 For WEB2

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

08TH APRIL 2013 TO 14TH APRIL, 2013

Strictly for Internal Circulation (Not for sale)

A special window, too, has been introduced

[ 12] Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013

[ 14] Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013

Weekl y Current Affai rs 08th Apri l to 14th Apri l , 2013 [17]

It became active in 1991 after a dormancy of 159

and could provide lifelong immunity, whereas the

You might also like