Week:dec28to2jan,2013

Weekly Current Affairs update Major news of the week

National

1. Central and State governments are out of broadcasting business The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has recommended to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) that policy framework be put in place to ensure that departments or undertakings of Central and State governments not be allowed to enter into the business of broadcasting and or distribution of TV channels. 2. New water policy adopted Despite opposition from the States to several contentious clauses in the draft National Water Resources Policy, 2012, the National Water Resources Council meeting here on Friday chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh adopted the policy with modifications and decided to hold wider consultations with them in a follow-up action. 3. Largest number of households headed by women According to new census Lakshadweep top the list with 43.7 % with Kerala at second position at 23%. Lakshadweep also has given the youngest MP to the nation Hamdullah Sayeed. 4. Move to include karate, judo in school curriculum from next year Beginning from the next academic year, all upper primary and high schools may have to train girls in self-defence as a measure to equip them to deal with eve-teasing in public spaces. In addition to the 108 service that will be shortly activated to register complaints of eve-teasing, stalking and other forms of sexual harassment, Home Minister P. Sabitha Indra Reddy has proposed to train all girl students from class VII onwards in self-defense. 5. Kingfisher Airlines lost its flying licence Kingfisher Airlines lost its flying licence as the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) refused to renew its Air Operator Permit (AOP) without a viable turnaround plan. The license expired on 31 Dec 2012, three months after it stopped flying. Unless revived earlier, the license will lapse forever in two years and then fly into history like Paramount, MDLR, East-West and Damania. The lapsed license of only one Indian carrier ModiLuft that flew from 1993 to 1996 has so far been revived again and it was later used to start low-cost carrier Spice-Jet in 2004. 6. 99% fail test for school teacher In an alarming indictment of the quality of training given to prospective school teachers, more than 99% aspirants failed to clear the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) 2012. The results of the competency test conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), declared on December 27, 2012, showed that less than 1% of the 7.95 lakh who appeared managed to clear the exam. Infact, since the exam was introduced in 2011, the pass percentage has been consistently declining. Educationists described the situation as alarming and a wakeup call for the quality of BEd degrees being granted in the country. The CTET was introduced in 2011 by the Union HRD ministry to improve the quality of teaching in schools after enactment of the Right to Education Act. CTET certification has been made mandatory to become a teacher for classes I to VIII in any central government school, while CBSE-affiliated schools can either recruit teachers based on CTET or the respective test conducted by states. 7. Honey Singh denies penning songs promoting violence, misogyny Rapper Honey Singh (28) on Tuesday denied having written songs that have provoked outrage for promoting violence and misogyny a day after his Gurgaon show on Jan 1 was called off following womens rights groups opposition and an internet petition against it. He has already written to various digital platforms to immediately take down the video/songs and is also considering appropriate legal action for defamation, loss of reputation and violation of privacy. An FIR lodged was lodged against the rapper in Lucknow a day earlier.

 Week:dec28to2jan,2013 8. Name anti-rape law after Delhi victim: Tharoor Union minister Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday dived in to what appears to be a growing clamour for making public the identity of the 23-year-old Delhi gang-rape victim by suggesting that the anti-rape law be named after her if the girls parents consented. He was supported by Biocon head Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and activist Kiran Bedi. Under the law, the identity of a rape victim cannot be disclosed and printing or publishing the name or any matter which may make known the identity of any person against whom rape is committed is an offence under Section 228-A of the Indian Penal Code unless the next of kin give their written consent. Section 228-A of IPC is in sync with laws abroad, such as UKs Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act, 1976,which guarantees anonymity to women who complain of rape. These enactments are meant to encourage rape victims to complain against assaulters without having to facing public glare and the resulting humiliation. 9. India to miss UN MDG goals India is expected to miss the crucial UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG), including those related to reduction in poverty, hunger and infant mortality, according to a government report. The poverty ratio is likely to be 26.7% by 2015 as against the target of 23.9%, while infant mortality rate (IMR) would be 43 per 1,000 live births against the milestone of bringing it down to 27. The child mortality rate would be at 52 per 1,000 live births compared to the target of 42, according to the Statistical Year Book 2013 released by minister of statistics and programme implementation Srikant Kumar Jena. 10. Armed forces budget cut by Rs. 10,000 crore The modernization budget of the armed forces has been slashed by around Rs 10,000 crore in a major jolt to them in the New Year. The move will lead to a major slowdown in the ongoing acquisition projects ranging from aircraft and helicopters to howitzers and missiles. It also makes it clear that the already much-delayed $20 billion MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project to acquire 126 fighters will not be inked anytime before March 31. Armed forces sought a defense outlay of 2.39 lakh crore this fiscal, got 1.93 lakh cr Antony had said in Parliament he would seek a hike in 201213 budget against the backdrop of a China-Pakistan nexus. 11. Centre scales down cash transfer scheme Gaps in infrastructure like bank accounts and beneficiary lists has forced the government to pare direct cash transfer of subsidies from the targeted 51 districts to just 20 with the number of schemes also whittled from 34 to 26. Of the 26 schemes, cash transfers will now rollout in seven mostly related to scholarships, stipends and Indira Matrutva Yojna and Dhanalakshmi schemes from January 1, 2013. Cash benefits in the remaining 19 schemes will be available from February and March when government will cover 23 other districts. It is estimated that at least two lakh beneficiaries will receive cash benefits from the scheme starting today. 12. Womens helpline sputters at launch A much-hyped measure aimed at empowering women with a 24x7 helpline that would run from the office of chief minister Sheila Dikshit ran into trouble on Day One. As the government rushed to launch 181 before New Year, the helpline gave officials a few hours of anxiety on Monday morning due to glitches in the MTNL network. MTNL engineers were called to fix the problem and the authorities managed to get all private operators except Aircel on board by the evening. According to the government, the helpline staff received 17 complaints on varied issues like marital discord and family disputes. 13. UGC tells varsities to ensure security for women The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked universities and institutions of higher education to seriously review the security arrangements for girls and women on the campuses and ensure a safe working environment for women employees. It has recommended that every institution set up a task force to ensure womens security and keep it informed of the action taken. 14. Lesson on energy saving The government is planning to introduce energy conservation as a lesson in school syllabus to cultivate the habit of energy conservation from initial stages among children in the State. 15. Notice to Centre, States on womens security The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notice to the Centre and States on a public interest litigation petition seeking comprehensive security measures for women. The petitioner said the U.N. Convention on Elimination of All Forms of

 Week:dec28to2jan,2013 Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was adopted in 1979 and it provided for an agenda to end discrimination against women. Though India had ratified this convention the recent incidents had exposed the plight of women and shortcomings in security measures.
International

1. Defense secretary to visit china next month Defense Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma will visit China next month to discuss plans for a larger joint military exercise. The two countries held a joint army exercise in 2007 after a planning process that lasted three years with the aim of making the Hand-in-Hand exercise a regular feature. The second such exercise was held the next year, but the next edition could not be staged because of visa issue (china denied visa to Arunachal Pradesh army officer). 2. Second stealth frigate from Russia arrived Krivak-II class stealth frigate INS Tarkash arrived at the Western Naval Command headquarters in Mumbai on Thursday. This is the second of the three frigates constructed at the Yantar Shipyard, Kaliningrad in Russia.The frigate was commissioned on November 9 in Kaliningrad by Vice-Admiral Shekhar Sinha, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command. The frigate is armed with advanced combat suite. Its arsenal includes BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, a surface-to-air missile system, an upgraded 100 mm medium range gun, an optically-controlled 30 mm close-in weapon system, torpedoes and anti-submarine rockets. 3. In China, Delhi gang-rape spurs online debate, then censorship The Chinese authorities have moved to censor news about the Delhi gang-rape and ensuing protests after the incident triggered a heated debate online between State media outlets and pro-democracy voices. The incident and the protests in New Delhi in recent days have received wide attention in China. While the brutal attack was initially highlighted by Communist Party-run outlets as indicative of the failures of Indias democratic system to ensure stability, the subsequent protests in Delhi triggered calls from pro-reform bloggers for the Chinese Government to learn from India and allow the public to express its voice. 4. Celebrating flag day: Internet turns 30 quietly The internet, a revolutionary and cheap communications system that has transformed the lives of billions of people across the world, turned 30 on Jan 1. The computer network officially began its technological revolution when it fully substituted previous networking systems on January 1 1983.Known as flag day, it was the first time the US department of defense (DoD )- commissioned Arpanet network fully switched to use of the internet protocol suite (IPS) communications system. Using data packet-switching, the new method of linking computers paved the way for the arrival of the World Wide Web. 5. In rare move, Kim calls for peace with S Korea North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for an end to confrontation between the two Koreas, technically still at war in the absence of a peace treaty to end their 1950-53 conflict,in a surprise New Year speech broadcast on state media. But such a move does not necessarily mean any substantive change in the North Korean regimes policy towards the South. 6. Deal to avoid fiscal cliff faces House hurdle in US Washingtons last-minute scramble to step back from a recession-inducing fiscal cliff shifted to the Republican-controlled House of Representatives on Tuesday after the Senate approved a bipartisan deal to avoid steep tax hikes and spending cuts. In a rare late-night show of unity,the Senate voted 89 to 8 to raise some taxes on the wealthy while keeping income taxes low on more moderate income voters. The bill would raise income taxes on families earning more than $450,000 per year. Low temporary rates that have been in place for less affluent taxpayers for the past decade would be made permanent, along with a range of targeted tax breaks put in place by President Barack Obama in the depths of the 2009 recession. 7. Chavez suffers new post-op complications in cancer fight Venezuela plunged into political uncertainty on Monday after the government said that President Hugo Chavez had suffered a new setback after cancer surgery in Cuba and the situation he was facing was tough.


Economy

Week:dec28to2jan,2013

1. Mistry to take over his office Chairman for 21 years, Ratan Tata, retiring on his 75th birthday to make way for his appointed successor Mr. Mistry. He is the sixth chairman of the 144-year old Tata Group and has worked with the Tata group since 2006. Mr. Tata will be Chairman `Emeritus' of the Tata Group. 2. NABARD sanctions Rs.407.84 crore to Kerala The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned Rs.407.84 crore to the State for rural infrastructure projects. The funds are sanctioned from the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) of the Bank for providing infrastructure facilities to agriculture and related sector and social and connectivity sectors. 3. Subbarao takes charge of monetary policy dept Reserve Bank of India governor D Subbarao has taken charge of the crucial monetary policy department with deputy governor Subir Gokarns term coming to an end on December 31 without the government naming his successor. RBI has distributed some of his responsibilities to other deputy governors. In addition to existing portfolios, deputy governor K C Chakrabarty will now also look after DICGC, Raj Bhasha department and right to information division. Another deputy governor, Anand Sinha, will look after department of communication and risk monitoring department. H R Khan, the third deputy governor, has been given additional charge of the financial markets department. In addition to the monetary policy department, Subbarao will also have direct charge of the economic and policy research department and the department of statistics and information management and monetary policy department. 4. Easy debt allocation norms for FIIs The FIIs need to acquire investment limits in debt securities by bidding in a period auction conducted by SEBI. Earlier in November 2012,Sebi had allowed FIIs to re-invest 50% of their debt holdings from the previous calendar year to the succeeding calendar year with effect from January 1,2014. In a part-modification of this circular, SEBI has now allowed certain FIIs to reinvest up to 50% of their maximum debt holdings at any point of time in 2013 itself. These FIIs would be those which purchased debt investment limits during the year 2012 and did not hold any debt investment limits prior to that. Sports 1. Martin-Jenkins dies of cancer Christopher Martin-Jenkins, cricket commentator and former president of the MCC, has died of cancer aged 67. MartinJenkins, who was born in Peterborough, joined the BBC as part of the channels Test Match Special team in 1973,after a modest cricket career. He was given an MBE in 2009 and served as the Marylebone Cricket Clubs president in 2010 and 2011.Martin-Jenkins was diagnosed with terminal cancer in January 2012,shortly after returning from Englands tour of the United Arab Emirates. The journalist, also known as CMJ, worked as the BBC's cricket correspondent twice,first between 1973 and 1980 and then from 1985 and 1991,while also commentating on the network's television coverage between 1981 and 1985. 2. Hockey league gets title sponsor The organizers of the Hockey India League (HIL) signed on Tuesday a three-year deal with the Hero MotoCorp which will be the title sponsor of the five-team competition. The deal is believed to be worth crores.