Chief Ministers & Governors of Indian States
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• To arrest without a warrant and with the use of necessary force anyone who has committed certain offenses or is suspected of having done so • To enter and search any premise in order to make such arrests. It gives Army officers legal immunity for their actions. There can be no prosecution, suit or any other legal proceeding against anyone acting under that law. In 2004, in the wake of intense agitation that was launched by several civil society groups following the death of Thangjam Manorama, while in the custody of the Assam Rifles and the indefinite fast undertaken by Irom Sharmila, Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil visited Manipur and reviewed the situation with the concerned state authorities. The central government accordingly set up a five-member committee under the Chairmanship of Justice B P Jeevan Reddy, former judge of the Supreme Court. The panel had to review the provisions of AFSPA and advisthe Government of India whether (a) to amend the provisions of the Act to bring them in consonance with the obligations of the government towards protection of human rights, or (b) to replace the Act by a more humane Act. The Reddy committee submitted its recommendations on June 6, 2005. However, the government failed to take any concrete action on the recommendations Irom Sharmila Irom Sharmila Chanu known as the Iron Lady of Manipur or Menghoubi (the fair one) is a civil rights activist, political activist, and poet from the Indian state of Manipur. Since 2 November 2000, she has been on hunger strike to demand that the Indian government repeal the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA), which she blames for violence in Manipur and other parts of India's northeast. She was awarded the 2007 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights, which is given for an outstanding person or group, active in the promotion and advocacy of Peace, Democracy and Human Rights. She shared the award with Lenin Raghuvanshi of People's Vigilance Committee on Human Rights, a northeastern Indian human rights organization. In Addition the largest monetary prize the first Rabindranath Tagore Peace Prize was given to her in 2010 by the New Delhi IIPM. She was awarded the Sarva Gunah Sampannah Award for Peace and Harmony aka the 12th Signature Women of Substance award (Assam) also in 2010. she is the recipient of the first Mayillama Award (Kerala). in 2010 she was awarded in absentia a lifetime achievement award in Bangalore. 120Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on 16 October 2011 voiced the Finance Ministry’s decision to to recapitalise State Bank of India (SBI). Funds would be provided to the PSU lender to enable it to achieve compliance with capital adequacy ratio (CAR) norms. Fresh capital is to be infused in SBI. The government will inject Rs 3,000-4000 crore into SBI during the current fiscal 2011-12 to help it achieve an 8 per cent capital adequacy ratio (CAR). Recapitalisation of banks is a continuing process and the government will continue to provide funds to PSU lenders through the Budget to ensure that they can meet solvency requirements. According to estimates, SBI needs about Rs 20000 crore of fresh capital to maintain the pace of growth without sacrificing solvency margin norms. Moody's had recently downgraded the credit rating of SBI, citing inadequate capital and poor asset quality as reasons. Following the downgrade, major private sector lenders like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank currently have a better standing than SBI in terms of their credit rating. The government holds a 59 per cent stake in the country's largest bank, SBI. 121Red Bull sealed the constructors’ title at the Korean Grand Prix on 16 October 2011. Red Bull sealed the 2011 season with 558 points. McLaren with 418 points was second and ferrari with 310 points was third. Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull who won the world championship at the Suzuka in Japan notched up his 10th victory of the 2011 season. McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton was second while another Red Bull driver Mark Webber finished third. Vettel, who started from second on the grid, passed pole-sitter Hamilton on the first lap and dominated the 55-lap race before crossing the finish line in 1 hour, 38 minutes, 01.994 seconds, 12 seconds ahead of the McLaren driver. McLaren’s Jenson Button and Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso finished fourth and fifth, respectively. 123Union Agriculture Commissioner Gurbachan Singh was in october 2011 appointed Chairman of the Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board for a seven-year term until further orders or till he attains the age of 65, whichever is earlier. The Board is crucial to recruitment of farm researchers and policy formulation. During the tenure of Dr. Singh as Agriculture Commissioner, India achieved its highest foodgrain production including a record as pulses output, has assumed charge of his new post. Born in Bhaini Maraj village in Sangrur district of Punjab, Dr. Singh holds a Ph.D. in Agronomy. He specialises in developing alternate approaches to a sustainable use of soil resources. He is the reviewing referee for several peer-reviewed international journals including the Journal of Professional Association of Cactus Development, US, Acta Horticulture and Geoderma. He is the alumnus of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) and the founder-President of the Indian Society of Soil Salinity and Water Quality. 124Rajasthan Water Resources Minister Mahipal Maderna was dropped from the Cabinet on 16 October 2011 after an official recommendation sent to the Raj Bhavan for his dismissal. He was dismissed in the wake of allegations about his involvement in a case of mysterious disappearance of an auxiliary nurse midwife, Bhanwari Devi. Maderna, son of powerful Jat leader and Congress veteran Parasram Maderna could not be persuaded to put in his papers, following which Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot decided to recommend his sacking to the Governor. The State government announced his removal a day before a habeas corpus writ petition filed by Bhanwari Devi's husband comes up for the next hearing in the Rajasthan High Court. Maderna figures as an accused in the first information report registered for rape, kidnap and murder of Bhanwari Devi, 36, who has been missing from Jaliwada village in Jodhpur district since 1 September 2011. Maderna faces charges under Sections 376 (rape), 302 (murder) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. 125President of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, HEU Thein Sein visited India from 12 to 15 October 2011. This was the first State visit of any political head from Myanmar to India following the swearing in of a new government in Myanmar in March 2011. During this visit, India and Myanmar agreed to step up cooperation in oil and natural gas with discussions touching on new gas pipelines. India also offered an additional 5oo million US dollars line of credit. India agreed to resolve border issues and step up energy and trade links. In security, India and Myanmar agreed to increase the effectiveness of coordinated operations on either side of the border through better intelligence sharing. Both nations will jointly work out a schedule for repairing boundary pillars in a time-bound manner. India also agreed to increase training slots for Myanmar students and establish more I.T. training centres. India and Myanmar discussed the Moreh-Mae Sot road that would connect India and Thailand via Myanmar. This will open a direct road link between India and Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). This direct road link will also accelerate the plans of ASEAN for the Mekong-Ganga corridor. India welcomed Myanmar's progress towards an open and democratic framework. Why Myanmar is Important for India The visit of Myanmar’s President takes place in a context when Myanmar is no longer a pure military regime. Following elections in November 2010, a civilian government took charge, with an elected Parliament. Myanmar is important for India, because it is a gateway to the ASEAN, it holds the key for the successful implementation of India’s look east policy. India stood as Myanmar’s fourth largest trading partner after Thailand, Singapore and China with bilateral trade valued at 1.071 billion US dollars in the year 2010-11. Myanmar's total export to India valued at 876.91 million US dollars, while its import from India was amounted to 194.92 million US dollars. Agricultural produce and forestry products are leading in Myanmar's export to India whereas medicine and pharmaceutical products are the major import items from India. India is a major buyer of Myanmar's beans importing 70 percent of the latter's agricultural produce. 126Scientists found the Ozone hole above Antarctica, which spans about 25 million square kilometers and it is as big as North America. The Ozone hole found by the scientists reached its maximum annual size on 14 September 2011, becoming the fifth largest on record.
A spacecraft called POES discovered the Antarctic Ozone hole for the first time in the late 1970s. POES could measure Ozone and it was run by the National Oceanic and Administration (NOAA). The largest Antarctic ozone hole ever recorded occurred in 2006, at a size of 27.5 million square kilometer. Scientists stated that intense cold in the upper atmosphere of the Arctic activated ozone-depleting chemicals and that resulted in ozone hole ever recorded over the high northern regions. What is Ozone?
In seven years as a Honda driver, Button had only once managed to win the race at the Honda-owned circuit. In winning, Button denied Vettel his third successive Japanese Grand Prix win. Button’s victory cut Vettel’s overall lead over the Briton to 114 points, an insurmountable advantage with a total of 100 left to be won. Fernando Alonso stood second. Mark Webber was fourth for Red Bull ahead of McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher, who was sixth. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel made his way to the record books as Formula One’s youngest double world champion after finishing third in a Japanese Grand Prix. Vettel had needed only a point at Suzuka to clinch his second successive crown. He was only the ninth driver to take back-to-back championships and on the podium for the 14th time in 15 races in 2011. Ferrari’s Fernando Alons had become the previous youngest double world champion when he had won for Renault aged 25 in 2006. 128Vinod Kumar of RSPB (Railway Sports Promotion Board) on 14 October 2011 won the 55 kg freestyle gold medal in the 56th Senior National wrestling championships at Nandininagar, Uttar Pradesh. Anil won the gold medal in 60 kg Greco Roman category. Pradeep Kumar captured RSPB's second gold in 66kg freestyle division. 129Kamal Nath Minister of Urban Development, Government of India and Gregory Clark, Minister of State for Decentralization and Cities agreed to work towards a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and UK on 14 October 2011 at London. The MoU would aim at enhancing cooperation and deepen the engagement between India and UK in the areas of capacity building, land economics, heritage management, sustainable master planning, transport planning etc. Another area of cooperation would be the sharing of knowledge in the formulation of Public Private Partnership Models. Kamal Nath was in London on 14 October 2011 to participate in the UK India Business Forum organised by the UKIBC, UK Trade & Investment and Indian Chamber of Commerce. 130In Jammu and Kashmir, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna, jointly sponsored by the Centre and State governments was formally launched by State Health and Family Welfare Ministry in Srinagar on 13 October 2011. The scheme has been initially launched in the twin capital districts of Jammu and Srinagar and will be gradually extended to all the districts of the State. The initial launch of the scheme will benefit around 66000 BPL families in Srinagar and Jammu. Entitled to cashless hospitalization coverage for most of the diseases through the network of identified hospitals up to expenditure of 30000 rupees per family per annum. This will cover five members of a family which include the head of the household, spouse and up to three dependents. The Central and State Governments will pay the premium to the healthcare providers (insurance companies) being selected by the State Government. The contribution will be on 90-10 basis annually and the beneficiary family has to pay only registration fee of 30 rupees only. Data of every family will be stored in the computer and head of the family will be provided with Smart Cards, which will enable their admission in the designated hospitals. 131India and United States agreed to explore new models for educational institutions to take knowledge partnership to a higher level. This will also help in further deepening the bilateral strategic cooperation. In a Joint Statement issued at the end of the India-US Higher Education Summit in Washington, the goals of the partnership were outlined.
Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal, during discussions in the summit, made it clear that India is keen to strengthen teacher exchange programmes to promote development of human resources. India intends to sponsor initially up to 1500 faculty and junior scholars to leading universities and research institutes in the United States 132Australian Scientists created the world’s first drug which can prevent blindness from cataracts. At present, the only treatment available to prevent the blindness from cataracts is to remove surgically the affected eye lens and replace it with a synthetic lens. Cataracts are formed when a protein, known as calpain, clouds the eye lens and impairs vision. This is for the first time that a non-surgical cure for the debilitating condition was discovered 133The Union Cabinet of India on 13 October 2011 approved the proposal of Information and Broadcasting Ministry to publicize the Digitalisation of Analogue Cable Systems Ordinance. The objective of the ordinance is the complete digitalisation of cable television in the four metros by 31 March 2012. By the end of 2014, all parts of India are expected to have phased out analogue cable TV. India has started the process of a global transition towards digitalisation. USA completed the process in 2009, China has set the deadline of 2015 to phase out anologue transmission. The approval of the ordinance means that all customers must have a set top box whether they want to receive free-to-air or pay channels. They could watch high quality channels of their choice and will get access to internet and telephone through the same digital cable. Broadcasters will generate more revenue directly from subscribers, and it could reduce their dependence on TRPs and advertisers. 134Supreme Court of India slashed the amount of compensations to the Uphaar theatre fire tragedy victims awarded by the Delhi High Court. A bench headed by Justice R V Raveendran reduced the amount of compensation from 18 lakh to 10 lakh rupees to the families of deceased where the victims were above 20 years of age and for the victims below 20 years, it was reduced to 7.5 lakh rupees from 15 lakhs. The bench also drastically reduced the punitive damages to be paid by Uphaar Cinema owners, Ansal brothers to the Centre from 2.5 crore rupees to 25 lakh rupees. The court, however, retained the part of the High Court's verdict that mandated payment of 1 lakh rupees as compensation to those injured in the incident. 59 people were killed and 103 injured following a devastating fire in an electrical transformer during a film show on 13 June, 1997 at the Uphaar theatre in South Delhi. 135The Supreme Court of India directed the states and Union territories to appoint child welfare officers in every police station for monitoring and extending better treatment to juveniles by the police. The apex court, which is monitoring the implementation of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, also directed that state and national legal services authorities issue appropriate guidelines for training and orientation of police officers, who could be designated as child welfare officers. A bench of justices R V Raveendran and A K Patnaik said that the training and orientation should be done over a period of six months to one year in every state and Union territory. 136A team of British scientists and engineers planned to drill three kilometers through the ice in Antarctica to explore signs of life in a lake called Ellsworth, which is buried under the glacial surface. The buried lake has been isolated from the outside world for at least 1 lakh 25,000 years. Scientists believe such lakes could give important clues to development on earth and the pattern of climate change in the region. The mission will use hot water to melt its way through the 3-kilometer thickness of ice to reach Lake Ellsworth. 137The Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) on 13 October 2011 announced introduction of a new Niryat Bandhu scheme for international business mentoring for young turks in international business enterprises. The officer (Niryat Bandhu) would function in the mentoring' arena and would be a handholding experiment for the young turks in international business enterprises. Under the scheme, officers of DGFT will be investing time and knowledge to mentor the interested individuals who want to conduct the business in a legal way. The DGFT also announced that it became India's first digital signature enabled department. According to the new Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) unveiled, a higher level of encrypted 2048 bit Digital Signature has been introduced. Digital certificate provides a high level of security for online communication such that only intended recipient can read it. It provides authentication, privacy, non-repudiation and integrity in the virtual world. Also, import of radioimmunoassay kits was classified in the restricted category as per ITC HS-Import Schedule. Since the import item is intended for the diagnosis of disease/disorders in humans and animals, the import policy regime for this item was liberalised to free subject to prior permission of Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. The procedure for transfer or sale of imported firearms was also simplified. For sale/transfer of imported firearms prior permission from DGFT is not required after 10 years of import. Further, this condition of 10 years would not apply if importer attains 60 years of age. Local police licensing authorities or District Magistrates can give permission of sale/ transfer directly. Even for Shooters category, sale/transfer of imported weapons would not require approval from DGFT. For the first time in the history of foreign trade formulation, the draft text for amendment of HBP v1 was uploaded on the website of DGFT seeking suggestions on the draft. 138Union Commerce and Industry Ministry on 13 October 2011 announced a Rs. 900-crore package for exporters taking the total Diwali bonanza to Rs.1,700 crore with an objective to support exporters exporters against slowdown in the U.S. and Europe. The package was announced as part of the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) released by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma. The announcement of the 900 crore package followed notifying the interest subsidy of 2 per cent for labour-intensive industries such as handicrafts, handlooms, carpets and small and medium exporters by the RBI. The benefits will largely accrue to exporters of engineering goods, pharmaceuticals and chemicals. The policy announced reward for all those scouting for markets in Latin America, Africa and CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States). The new measures will be incorporated in the annual supplement of the Foreign Trade Policy (2009-14). Around 50 products in engineering, pharmaceuticals and chemicals would get special bonus of additional one per cent of export value between October and March period of 2011-12 fiscal. Shipments to Latin America, Africa and CIS regions will also be eligible for additional one per cent duty credit besides three per cent already being given. The policies are in sync with the export diversification strategy in the wake of demand sluggishness in the U.S. and European markets. The apparel sector was given duty credit under Market Linked Focus Product Scheme (MLFPS) for export to the U.S. and Europe. The 2 per cent duty credit would be available to exports made during 2011-12. The Ministry decided to extend MLFPS benefit for exports of agricultural tractors (over 1800 cc capacity) to Turkey. The list of items under FPS was expanded to include 130 additional items mainly in the chemical, pharmaceutical, textiles, handicrafts, engineering and electronics sectors. The products covered under FPS are entitled for 2 per cent duty credit scrip. The ministry declared Firozabad for glassware, Bhubaneswar for marine products and Agartala for bamboo and cane products as town of export excellence to boost shipments from these areas. 139All central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) were on 13 October 2011 elegated with more powers for acquisition of raw material assets abroad. The Union Cabinet approved a new policy for acquisition of overseas raw material assets which would be applicable to CPSEs in agriculture, mining, manufacturing and power sectors with a three year track record of making net profits. With an intention to address the issue of acquisition of raw materials before global raw material assets were no longer available or were available at exorbitant prices, the government vested the CPSEs with the responsibility to acquire raw material assets abroad. Maharatna and Navratna entities were vested with enhanced power to acquire raw material assets worth Rs.5000 crore and Rs.3000 crore respectively from Rs.1000 crore without having to consult the government. The government also set up a Coordinating Committee of Secretaries (CCoS) under the Cabinet Secretary to expedite proposals which require approval of various ministries and involve government funds. The government maintained that it would consider constituting a dedicated Sovereign Wealth Fund to go with the new policy to protect the long-term economic interests of the country. 140The World Mental Health Day is anually observed on 10 October. World Mental Health Day was observed on 10 October 2011 with the theme, The Great Push: Investing in Mental Health. The theme for 2011 World Mental Health Day invited a multisectoral approach in removing barriers to mental healthcare, thereby reducing the burden of neuropsychiatric disorders. It also highlighted the long term cost effectivenes of investing in interventions for prevention of mental disorders and promotion of mental wellbeing. The day was celebrated in 2011 with an intention to enhance discussions on mental disorders, and to encourage investments in prevention, treatment and promoting awareness of mental illnesses. A separate day to acknowledge mental health was created by the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) in 1992 with a hope to create public awareness on mental health related issues. The day is significant in drawing attention to issues concerning not only mental illness, but mental well being as well. The World Health Organisation (WHO) describes mental health as a state of well being in which the individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community. According to an estimation, around 450 million people worldwide have a mental health problem. By the year 2020, the WHO has projected that depression will be the second leading cause of disability in the world. Mental health is an important factor in the overall health of a person. Without good mental health, a person will be unable to fulfill its full potential. 141A study conducted jointly by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, University of Hong Kong and the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) found that Avahan successfully slowed the transmission of HIV among the general population. Avahan managed to slow down transmission of HIV by raising the coverage of prevention interventions in high-risk groups like female sex workers, their clients and partners, men who have sex with men (MSM), intravenous drug users and truck drivers. About 100, 000 fresh HIV cases among the general population were averted in India in five years by targeting the most vulnerable section. Avahan was launched in 2003 and received $258 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It complemented the government’s own efforts on HIV prevention. The programme was implemented in four large states — Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu and two small northeastern states of Manipur and Nagaland. These six states were estimated to have the highest HIV prevalence in India in 2003, and a total population of 300 million. The study, Assessment of population-level effect of Avahan, an HIV-prevention initiative in India, published in the British Medical Journal, The Lancet highlighted that interventions like safe-sex counselling by peers, clinical services like treatment for sexually transmitted infections, distribution of free condoms and needle and syringe exchange programmes among the most-at-risk population prevented the virus from spreading among the general population. Lead author of the study Professor Lalit Dandona from the PHFI mentioned that HIV mainly spread in India through sexual intercourse. According to Lalit, high-risk population like sex workers would infect their clients who would then spread it to other female partners like their wives. Similarly, MSMs infected each other and then spread it within the general population through unprotected sex. Avahan showed that by targeting high-risk groups, the virus spread among the general population could be controlled. India has an estimated 2.4 million living with HIV, making it one of the largest infected populations in the world. 142RBI’s data published on 8 october 2011 showed that India’s foreign exchange reserves fell for the second consecutive week, going down by $1.23 billion to $311.48 billion, for the week ended 30 September 2011. The total reserves had fallen by a staggering $4.05 billion to $312.71 billion in the previous week (week ended 23 September 2011). Foreign currency assets, the biggest component of the foreign reserves, were down $1.235 billion to $275.699 billion for the week ended 30 September. Foreign currency assets expressed in US dollar terms include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of the non-US currencies such as the pound sterling, euro and yen held in reserve. India's gold reserves were up by USD 348 million at 28.667 billion, while the special drawing rights (SDRs) were up by a marginal USD 7 million to USD 4.504 billion. The country's reserve position in the International Monetary Fund was down by USD 345 million to 2.612 billion. The value of special drawing rights (SDRs) rose by $7 million to $4.50 billion during the week ended 30 september 2011. 143Indian swimmers won eight gold medals on the first day (10 October 2011) of the 7th Asian age group swimming championship at Jakarta Indonesia. Olympian Sandeep Sejwal and Arjuna awardee Virdhaval Khade opened with a gold each in the 7th Asian Age Group Swimming Championship in Indonesia. Sejwal who had won a silver in the last edition of the championship, clinched the gold in 50m breaststroke with a timing of 28.36 secs. Khade swept 100m butterfly with a timing of 54.86. Khade later combined with Aaron D Souza, Anshul Kothari and Rehan Poncha to fetch another gold in 4x100 free style relay. Karnataka’s Rehan Poncha won the bronze in the 200m backstroke with a timing of 02:07:76secs. Saurabh Sangvekar, too, bagged the bronze in the 200m freestyle boys group with 01:52:77 secs. Saurabh also won a silver medal in 800m free style, clocking 08.18.40. Surabhi Tipre was the only Indian women with a podium finish. Tipre won a bronze in 400m Free Style with a timing of 04:26.07 secs. Tipre bagged another bronze after she along with Talasha Prabhu, Kshipra Mahajan and Richa Mishra won the 4x100 free style relay with a timing of 04.01:18. 144Noted economist Vishnudutt Nagar passed away after suffering a heart attack on 10 October 2011 at the ager of 82. Nagar was born on December 16, 1930 at Chanchoda in Madhya Pradesh's Guna district. He played a prominent role in the establishment of an economics department at the Vikram University at Ujjain. Nagar's analytic columns on the general budget in national dailies were well received. 145Social networking site Facebook acquired Friend.ly on 10 October 2011. Friend.ly is a social question and answer service. Friend.ly designed an app for Facebook that helped users pose questions to online friends. 146The Union Cabinet of India on 13 October 2011 approved the introduction of the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011in the winter session of Parliament. The Bill seeks to amend the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act and Recovery of Debts due to Banks & Financial Institutions (RDBF) Act so as to strengthen the regulatory and institutional framework related to recovery of debts due to banks and financial institutions through the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2011. The proposed amendments would enable banks to improve their operational efficiency, deploy more funds for credit disbursement to retail investors, home loan borrowers, etc. without fearing for recovery, thus bringing about equity. Further, mandatory registration of subsisting security interest (equitable mortgages) would promote innovation in credit information. The suggested amendments would strengthen the ability of banks to recover debts due from the borrowers, enhance the ability of the banks to extend credit to both corporate and retail borrowers, reduce the cost of funds for banks and their customers and reduce the level of non-performing assets.
The banks and financial institutions (FIs) were facing numerous problems in recovery of defaulted loans on account of delays in disposal of recovery proceedings. The Government, therefore, enacted the RDBF Act in 1993 and SARFAESI Act in 2002 for the purpose of expeditious recovery of non-performing assets (NPAs) of the banks and FIs. Although these two acts have helped in reducing the NPAs, banks have sent certain suggestions for further strengthening of the secured creditor rights. 147A 14-day long India-Bangladesh joint military exercise started on 9 October 2011 at Jalalabad Cantonment in Sylhet division, some 240 km northeast of capital Dhaka. The military exercise between the two nations was codenamed Op Sampriti. Under the joint military exercise, counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency operations will be practiced as per the UN mandate. India fielded around 40 troops of its elite 21 Para (Special Forces) battalion for the exercise while the Bangladesh Army deployed one of its Para Commando battalions. Around 40 to 50 troops took part in the exercise. 148Sistema Shyam TeleServices on 12 October 2011 announced the launch of High Speed Data (HSD) connectivity across the 350 km long Chennai-Bengaluru stretch of National Highway, one of the business stretches in India. Sistema Shyam TeleServices provides services under MTS with over 13 million wireless subscribers. 149India and Japan on 10 October 2011 agreed to cooperate in the field of tourism and infrastructure. The agreement was finalised between Tourism Minister of India, Subodh Kant Sahai and Japanese Tourism minister, Matsubara in Tokyo. India and Japan also discussed opportunities for investment in tourism infrastructure in India. The Japanese government showed desire to invest in Buddhist and Medical Tourism in India. Indian cultural troupe will participate in the festival of India in Japan. It will be organised to celebrate the 60th year of diplomatic relations with Japan and India. A Taj Mahal made of ice will also be replicated in this festival. 150Ukraine’s former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko was sentenced to 7 years in prison on 11 October 2011 on charges of abuse of office in signing a gas deal with Russia in 2009. Tymoshenko currently the nation’s top opposition leader, denounced the trial as rigged by president Viktor Yanukovych in order to get rid of a popular political opponent. Judge Rodion Kireyev declared Tymoshenko guilty of exceeding her authority as premier when she signed a natural gas imports contract with Russia in 2009. He also banned her from occupying government posts for three years after the completion of her prison term and fined her 1.5 billion hryvna ($190 million) for the damages her actions cost the state. As a convicted criminal, she would be unable to participate in Ukraine's next presidential elections in 2012. In May 2010, Ukraine's state prosecutor launched a criminal case relating to misuse by Tymoshenko’s govt of about $290 million in cash received for selling carbon quotas. Prosecutors mentioned that the deal saddled Ukraine with an exorbitant price for supplies of Russian gas. Yulia Tymoshenko born in November 1960 and was trained as an engineer. In the mid-1990s she formed United Energy Systems, which helped supply gas to Ukraine's huge industrial base. Her early involvement in the gas industry in the 1990s, after Ukraine had gained its independence with the break-up of the Soviet Union, earned her the nickname gas princess. She shot to prominence when she led the Orange Revolution street protests in Kiev in 2004-05 She entered parliament in 1996 and was made a deputy PM in charge of the energy sector in 2000 by PM Viktor Yushchenko. she became PM and Yushchenko the president in 2005. She was however sacked after 8 months in office. She was reappointed PM in September 2007. As PM, Tymoshenko brokered the 10-year gas deal with Russian PM Putin in January 2009. In 2010 Tymoshenko lost the presidential election to Viktor Yanukovych. 151 According to a report by Crisil, increase in equated monthly installments (EMIs) due to rising interest rates and reset of teaser loans is expected to put additional annual burden of about Rs 6000 crore on home loan borrowers. Higher EMIs and slowdown in economic growth is also likely to increase bad loans for lenders. To check inflationary pressures, RBI hiked key policy rates 12 times in the past 18 months, leading to higher interest burden for home loan borrowers. The reference floating rate for the industry increased by 200-250 bps during the 18 month period, which translates into an average increase of 15% in EMIs. banks and housing finance companies reset their benchmark rates. However the increase has not yet affected customers who opted for teaser loan schemes launched in early 2009 to stimulate dwindling home demand. For a teaser scheme customer, the rates are fixed for the initial 2-3 years, and subsequently get linked to the prevailing market rates. According to the Crisil report, a large number of borrowers who are on teaser loans will get hit with a sudden jump in rates when the teaser rates reset to market rates. This shift is expected to take place from April 2012. The difference between the teaser rate and the reset rate is likely to be as high as 300-350 basis points (bps). The report highlighted that at the end of June 2011 quarter the asset quality of industry players like HDFC, LICHFL and DHFL deteriorated by 10-40 bps on a quarteron-quarter basis. The report however mentioned on the positive side that yields for financiers will improve in 2012-13 as teaser loans availed in 2009-10 get reset to market rates. The yields for a teaser loan customer is expected to increase by 300-350 bps once they are reset to market rates. This will have a net positive impact of around 30 bps on the net profit margins of housing finance players in 2012-13. The impact of rising interest rates is best reflected on the EMI of a borrower with a 15-year home loan for Rs 15 lakh. With the current mortgage rates hovering around the 11%, the borrower’s EMI would have risen by 15% from Rs 14771 to Rs 17049. If rates were to go up to 13%, his EMI will rise to Rs 18979. Economists who met RBI governor D Subbarao on 11 October 2011 suggested that central bank continue with its rate increases as inflation continues to be high. However the bankers and corporates have asked the central bank to halt rate hikes. While bankers have pointed out to a moderation in demand, corporates have highlighted the industrial slowdown as the need for measures to revive the economy. Corporates specified that steep inflation is owing to international factors and rate hikes will do more harm than good to the Indian economy. 152The finance ministry in October 2011 revised the Budget estimate of direct tax collection upwards by Rs 53000 crore to Rs 5.85 lakh crore. The higher target marked an increase of 31% over last year’s collection of Rs 4.46 lakh crore. The Budget estimate of direct tax collection was revised upwards to bridge the shortfall that might occur due to reduction in customs duty on crude oil to offset price rise.
The growth in net direct tax collection in the April-September 2011 period was only 7% or Rs 1.94 lakh crore. But the overall gross collection rose by 23% to Rs 2.57 lakh crore. The collection was 36% of the budget estimates of Rs 5.32 lakh crore for 2011-12. CBDT officials opined that the government will have to move fast on increasing the strength of the department. There are 1,200 posts of additional commissioners, considered the backbone of tax collection, of which there are at least 600 vacancies. CBDT created several new investigative departments, including a Directorate of Criminal Investigation with the mandate of inducting a marine and armed unit to tackle white-collar crimes and deal with tax evaders even on foreign shores. CBDT’s request to enhance the manpower was personally vetted by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and the file was moved to DoPT for final approval. 153The All India Football Federation (AIFF) on 11 October 2011 appointed Dutchman Robert Baan as the Technical Director (TD) for a period of two years. Baan has a 46-year experience in football management and was involved in a similar capacity with the Australia Football Federation. Baan is one of the most high profile coaches to have worked in India having been an assistant coach at PSV Eindhoven from 1995-98 and also the TD at Feynoord Rotterdam from 1998-2004. He has also served as the TD of the Netherlands youth team. He was briefly appointed a caretaker manager of the senior Dutch team for a match against Cyprus back in 1981. He performed a similar duty during Socceroos’ 1-0 win over Nigeria in 2007. As a TD he will drive the development of a philosophy and style of playing. He will also be the main link between the newly-planned academies, the age-group and senior national teams. Baan who will take charge from 1 November is expected to have a major say in appointment of India’s next coach. 154Environmentalist, lawyer and former Union Minister, Mohan Dharia was selected as the winner of the 26th Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration in October 2011. Mohan Dharia was selected for the prestigious award for his yeoman's service in promoting and preserving spirit of national integration. The 86-year-old Padma Vibhushan awardee currently runs the Vanrai NGO in Pune. He was elected to Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha and has been Union Minister and Deputy Chairperson of Planning Commission from December 1990 to June 1991. The award was constituted by Congress in its centenary year to give recognition to outstanding contribution to the cause by an individual or institution. It carries a citation and cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh. The award will be presented by committee chair and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on 31 October 2011, the anniversary of Indira Gandhi's death. 155The Indian government in October 2011 decided not to discontinue circulation of higher denomination notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 despite demands from civil society groups that big currency notes made it easier for those with black money to stash their cash and were the primary causes of inflation. Of the total Rs 9.70 lakh crore worth currency notes in circulation as on 30 June 2011, more than 80% are in the denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 1000. The total value of notes of Rs 2, 5, 10, 50 and 100 in circulation is less than Rs 2 lakh crore. The demand to curb higher denomination notes was with an objective to check the menace of unaccounted money, stop fake currency circulation and curb anti-national and terrorists using these counterfeit currency to destabilize the economy. Civil society groups demanding withdrawal of higher denomination notes pointed out that even US and European countries where the per capita income is much higher than India’s, the denomination used is much smaller in comparison. The largest denomination note in the US is of $100. Civil society groups’ demand had the support from revenue intelligence agencies which have been grappling with the menace of counterfeiting. A recent report prepared by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in association with the Intelligence Bureau, RAW and CBI had pointed out that fake Indian currency notes in circulation in India could be as high as worth Rs 6000 crore and it seriously undermined the credibility of the rupee. 156Former Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju was appointed as the new chairman of media regulator Press Council of India (PCI) on 5 October 2011. The appointment of Justice Katju, who retired from the apex court on 19 September 2011 was cleared by a committee headed by Vice President Hamid Ansari and included Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar. In exercise of the powers conferred by the sub-section (2) of section 5 of the Press Council Act, 1978 (37 of 1978), the Central Government notified notified his appointment as the Chairman of the Press Council of India. He succeeded Justice G N Ray. Justice Katju was first appointed a judge of the Allahabad high court in 1981. He delivered landmark judgements that included favouring passive euthanasia, death penalty for honour killings, capital punishment for policemen involved in fake encounters and wanted the corrupt to be hanged from the lamp post. Before his stint in the Supreme Court, Justice Katju served as a Judge of the Allahabad High Court in 1991 and as its acting Chief Justice in August 2004. He was then appointed as the Chief Justice of Madras High Court in November 2004 and went on to become the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court in October 2005. He was appointed as the Judge of the Supreme Court in April 2006 and he retired on 19 September 2011. Katju has written several books which include publications such as Law in the Scientific Era and Interpretation of Taxing Statutes, among others. The Press Council of India (PCI) is the apex media regulator of the country. The Press Council of India is a statutory, quasi judicial body which acts as a watchdog of the media. Its chairman by convention is a retired judge of the Supreme Court. 157According to TNS Global Affluent Investors’ study, India and China surpassed European countries in the number of affluent households. India and China surpassed major European markets like Germany and France. The US remained the most prosperous country in the world, according to a research firm. India, China and Brazil overtook many European countries in this measure of consumer wealth with three million affluent households each in these countries which have over USD 100000 investible funds. While the US is ranked as the world’s most prosperous country, with 31 million affluent households, UAE and India appear in the top five countries where the affluent have more than USD 1 million investable assets on average, alongside Singapore and Hong Kong. The only Europeans to feature in top five were the Swedish. According to the study, UK and France were least likely in Europe to have these levels of investable assets. The study also highlighted that while incidence of affluence would be higher in small, wealthy countries like Luxemburg (29 per cent) and Singapore (20 per cent), this falls to around (1 per cent) in India and China. The survey showed that there exists a great contrast in wealth distribution within emerging markets, even where the actual number of affluent households is high. The survey highlighted a need for very precise marketing strategies to reach the right audience. 158Survey released on 5 October 2011 showed that activity in the services sector shrank and overall economic activity was found to be stagnating. Employment levels fell for the second successive month in September 2011. HSBC Purchasing Managers Index, which is based on a survey of 350 private sector executives showed that the seasonally adjusted Service Sector Business Activity Index fell to 49.8 from 53.8 in August2011. Any reading of less than 50 indicates contraction, while economic activity is seen to be growing if the index is over 50. This is the first time since April 2009 that the services sector, that accounts for more than half the Indian economy slipped into negative terrain. The decline in services sector activity was attributed to lower demand for offshoring and IT and IT-enabled services from the US and Europe, where several economies are grappling with debt problems. The decline in this sectorimpacted financial services as banking activity slowed down on account of higher interest rates and investors are wary of parking their funds in stock markets. Due to the sharper-than-expected global slowdown and the impact of high interest rates on the domestic economy, the overall growth was observed to be slowing down at a faster clip than anticipated earlier. The overall trend is in line with expectations that the Indian economy will grow at less than 8% during 2011-12. The economy expanded 8.5% in 2010 prompting the government to predict 9% growth in 2011. However, as the global economic situation deteriorated and higher interest rates slowed down the growth momentum the government lowered its forecasts. The survey also showed that employment fell as awell increasing worries for policymakers, who want rapid economic growth to take care of the growing population that is joining the workforce. 159India and South Africa on 11 October 2011 signed a pact to facilitate exchange of Knowledge and experience in the field of election management and administration in New Delhi. It was signed by the Chief Election Commissioner of India, SY Quraishi and the Chairperson of the Electoral Coommission of South Africa, Brigalia Bam. The MoU also paves the way for promotion and implementation of educational research and training programmes. The Election Commission of India has so far signed eleven MoUs with Election Management Bodies across the world including Brazil, Russia Indonesia, Bhutan and Nepal. 160India on 10 October 2011 decided to continue with 100 percent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for new ventures in the pharmaceutical sector. The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss the FDI policy in drugs and pharmaceutical sector held in New Delhi. The move will facilitate addition of manufacturing capacities, technology acquisition and development of the pharmaceutical sector in the country.
However, in case of existing ventures in the pharmaceutical sector, FDI will be allowed for a period of six months after approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB). It was also decided that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) will be strengthened for effective oversight on mergers and acquisitions to ensure that there is a balance between public health concerns and attracting FDI in the pharmaceutical sector. 161India took over as the Chairman of United Nations South Asian Regional Commission for tourism. This was announced on 10 October 2011 at the ongoing United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) conference at Gyeongju in South Korea.The chairmanship of the Commission was with Iran for the last four years. It signifies the confidence of various countries in India and the efforts of the Indian government in the promotion of tourism in the country as well as across the globe in a responsible and sustainable manner to achieve inclusive growth. 162Myanmar on 11 October 2011 announced an amnesty for more than 6,300 prisoners.This follows an appeal by the government appointed Human Rights Commission in Myanmar to free prisoners. Earlier, Myanmar's National Human Rights Commission chairman Win Mra had called for the release of prisoners. The decision by the Government of Myanmar is aimed at persuading the West to end sanctions that have hurt the regime. The elections in 2010 brought a civilian-led government in place of the military rule. Still, the military retains control of key positions and most of the candidates who won in the election were just-retired members of the armed forces. It was alleged that the election was rigged in the favour of the members of armed forces. The government is intolerant to political dissidents in Myanmar and according to an estimate, there are 2000 political prisoners, which include pro-democracy activists, government critics and journalists. 163Scientists for the first time discovered that neuronal connections grow excessively under stressful conditions as the brain ages. The finding could help scientists better understand neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.
164European Union on 11 October 2011 launched a Visa Information System (VIS) for Indians and other non-EU citizens applying for a Schengen visa. It will help prevent fraud and process visa applications faster due to the use of biometrics (fingerprints and a digital facial image). The system will also help in quick and effective exchange of data on short-stay visas among Schengen countries. In addition, the new system will make the verification process of visas a more efficient and secure. It should be noted that Indian citizens need the Schengen visa to visit the 25 countries in the Schengen area in European Union. At present, approximately 13 million Schengen visas are issued every year by the 25 countries of the Schengen area. The EU said that it was not always easy to prevent frauds and abuses and the application process was burdensome for those who seek legitimately a short stay visa for travel within the EU. The Schengen Area comprises the territories of twenty-five European countries that have implemented the Schengen Agreement signed in the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, in 1985. 165Veteran ghazal singer Jagjit Singh passed away on 10 October 2011 in Mumbai. He was 70. He was admitted in Lilavati Hospital for more than two weeks. The singer had undergone an emergency surgery for brain hemorrhage at the Hospital on 23 September 2011. The veteran singer, popularly known as the Ghazal King had gained acclaim together with his wife Chitra Singh in 1970s and 1980s. He had sung in Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Gujarati, Sindhi and Nepali languages. Moreover, Jagjit Singh is the only singer and composer to have composed and recorded songs written by former Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, in two albums, Samvedna in the year 2002 and Nayi Disha in the year 1999. His music became popular through films such as Prem Geet, Arth and Saath Saath and TV serials Kahkashan and Mirza Galib. Jagjit Singh was awarded Padmabhushan, India’s third highest civilian honour, in 2003. He was the voice behind Hazaron Khwaishe aisi, Jhuki Jhuki si Nazar and Ye kaghaz ki kashti. Jagjit Singh was born to Sikh parents in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan on 8 February, 1941. He sang the famous song tum jo intna muskura Rahe Ho from Mahesh Bhatt’s film Arth in 1982. Jagjeet Singh began his musical journey singing Shabads or devotional songs in Gurudwaras. He studied in DAV college Jalandar where his fee was waived off because of his voice. He got a chance as a professional singer in Jalandar’s All India Radio. He came to Mumbai in 1961 to try his hand in play back singing but soon returned to Jalandar. He came again to Mumbai to fulfil his dreams in 1965. His voice infused a new melody into Ghazals and brought Ghazals into the mainstream. He also sang duets with his wife Chitra Singh. He sang in Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu and Sindhi. 166Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports on 9 October 2011 launched the nationwide Come and Play scheme in New Delhi. Through this scheme, the ministry aims at opening SAI’s sporting infrastructure for the youth across India. The scheme is targeted at the 8-17 age group. The main objective of the scheme is to provide coaching primarily to sportspersons of young age. Under the Come and Play Scheme, competitions related to various age categories would be conducted twice a year and the top three position holders in the relevant age group would be permitted for admission to boarding scheme in SAI (Sports Authority of India) training centres. 167India and the Czech Republic upgraded their economic cooperation and fixed a target of bilateral trade volume of two billion US Dollars by 2012. The current volume is 1.3 billion US Dollars. The decision was taken on 10 October 2011 in New Delhi between the visiting Czech Minister for Industry & Trade, Martin Kocourek and Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma. During the discussions, Anand Sharma stressed the need for a liberal visa regime for business people and suggested that a system of issue of long-term business visas on the recommendations of the apex business chambers should be put in place.
The Czech Minister agreed that the VISA regime needs to be addressed more forcefully and informed the Indian side that next week their government will discuss Investment Incentive Act for the Czech Republic and corresponding resolution of VISA related issues will form part of the discussion. 168The Election Commission of India raised the cap of minimum votes a political party must secure in election to get the status of a State party or maintain it further. The new minimum limit is 8 per cent of total valid votes polled in State Assembly or Lok Sabha polls. Earlier, the limit was 6 per cent. In addition, the party must have returned at least two members to the Legislative Assembly in case of Assembly polls or at least one member in Parliament from the State in case of Lok Sabha elections. To make these changes, the Commission amended its Election Symbols reservations and allotment order 1968 and issued a new order on 16 September 2011, the Election Symbol reservations and allotment amendment order 2011. The amended order was sent to all States and Union Territories. 169China became Russia’s biggest trading partner. The exports and imports between these two nations touched 50.8 billion US dollars from January to August 2011. The year 2011 marks the 10th anniversary of the signing of China-Russia Good neighborly, Friendly Relations and Cooperation Treaty. On 7 October 2011, at a meeting on customs cooperation, Russia and China agreed to seize the new opportunities for speedy development of bilateral relations to achieve the bilateral trade targets of 100 billion dollars before 2015 and 200 billion dollars before 2020. 170Spanish researchers discovered a rare mollusce in Antarctic waters that looks the same as limpets but is bigger in size. The discovered species was named Zeidora Antarctica. It is 14 milimetre long. It was discovered at a depth of more than 600 metres in the Bellingshausen Sea in Antarctica. The discovery was made by a research team from the Ecology and Zoology Department of the University of Vigo, Spain and was published in The Nautilus. The discovery provides more information on the members of the Zeidora genus and their geographic distribution. The group is made up of 14 species of which very few specimens were found. 171Russia and China on 5 October 2011 vetoed UN Security Council draft resolution recommending sanctions against Syria for the ongoing crackdown on Protesters.The resolution was moved by EU (European Union) member countries and backed by USA. There were nine votes in support of the resolution while two votes were against of it. Four countries abstained themselves from the voting. India along with other member countries of IBSA (Brazil and South Africa) abstained from voting. Lebanon was the fourth nation to abstain. This was the second attempt by the western countries to bring a resolution on the Syrian unrests. Russia and China opined that the threat of sanction was not the best solution for the problem. At present, there are five nations which have veto power at present. These nations are Russia, USA, UK, France and China(often referred as P-5 nations; they are the permanent members of Un Security Council). Among these five, if any nation exercises his Veto power on any resolution moved by Un security council, it could not be implemented.
Assam produces over 51 per cent of the total tea in the country and 13 percent to the global tea production. The state has 64 thousand small tea estates spread over 14 districts. The annual turnover of this industry in Assam is Rs five thousand crore and it employs over 10 lakh workers. 173Egypt's military council on 8 October 2011 amended a contentious election law to allow parties to contest a third of the seats in Parliament reserved for independents. Egypt’s military decided to cancel Article 5 of the election law, which reserved a third of seats for independents. The three-round Parliamentary election will start on 28 November 2011, which will be the first since an uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak on 11 February 2011. The amendment to the election law was made after political parties warned the military, that they would boycott the poll if the article allowing only independent candidates to contest a third of seats were not amended. Political groups feared the law could allow supporters of Hosni Mubarak to return to power. In September 2011, Egypt’s caretaker cabinet had announced that three rounds of elections will start on 28 November and made amendments to the contentious election law. This will be the first parliamentary election since the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak in February this year. Egypt's military council is acting as a caretaker government until the parliamentary elections are over.
While In commercial vehicles, the debutants comprise the Tata Venture, a multi-purpose vehicle, Tata Super ACE, the latest 1 tonne mini-truck, Tata LPO 1823 commuter bus, Tata Xenon 2.2 L Cargo Box, Tata Xenon 2.2 L Double Cab 4x4, Tata LPO 1623 CNG bus and the Tata Xenon CNG. 175The world’s highest webcam was installed on Kala Patthar, a smaller mountain facing the Everest. It is a solar-powered camera and set at 18618 feet (5675 metres). The webcam can withstand temperature as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius and operates from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Web cam will send live images of Mount Everest back to scientists studying the effect of climate change on the planet’s tallest peak. Earlier, scientists had set up a webcam at the base camp of Mount Aconcagua in Argentina. The German surveillance firm Mobotix developed the device and it was installed by the mountain research group, Giampietro Kohl of EV-K2-CNR. 176Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc. died at age 56 from pancreatic cancer on 6 October 2011. Steve Jobs had stepped down as Apple’s chief executive on 24 August 2011. Steve Jobs co-founded Apple in 1976 along with Ronald Wayne and Steve Wozniak. Steve also co-founded and was the CEO of Pixar Animation Studios, which created animated films. He became a member of the board of directors of the Walt Disney Company in 2006, following the acquisition of Pixar by Disney. After leaving Apple, Jobs founded NeXT Computer in 1985. Steve Jobs was from California, USA. Steve Jobs helped create the Macintosh, one of the world’s most influential computers. He also reinvented the portable music player with the iPod, launched the first successful legal method of selling music online with iTunes and reordered the cellphone market with the iPhone. Apple is leading the consumer technology world with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, its family of iPod media players and iTunes media store, and its Mac computers and iLife and iWork application suites. Apple recently introduced the iPad, a breakthrough internet and digital media device, in addition to iBookstore, alongside iTunes and the App store. 177Delhi state government on 8 October 2011 launched a micro-finance project for women. The project aims at providing financial support to over one-lakh vulnerable women in the capital. The project will be implemented by the Samajik Suvidha Sangam(SSS) in collaboration with Delhi chapter of SEWA. SSS is a Delhi government entity set up to provide various services to the poor. Under this project, loans will be given to women at a nominal interest rate of 1.5 percent. The women from economically-weak sections will be given access to funds and other financial services through a cooperative society called Mahila Sewa Urban Cooperative thrift and credit society limited. 178Afghan president Hamid Karzai was on a two-day visit in India on 4 October and 5 October, 2011. The visit meant for both the countries to consolidate their strategic partnership and discuss bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest. On 4 October 2011 India signed three agreements with Afghanistan for both the countries greater strategic partnership. The agreements were singed between Afghanistan President, Hamid Karzai and India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The strategic pact was aimed at bolstering cooperation against international terror. The Three arguments that were signed during the visit were: • Agreement on Strategic Partnership between India and Afghanistan • MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Development of Hydrocarbons • MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Mineral Resources Development 179The largest ever water supply scheme in Himachal Pradesh was inaugurated on 6 October 2011 in Kangehan area of Kangra district. Constructed at a cost of 70 crore rupees, the scheme will benefit a population of one lakh 31 thousand people. This will cater to Changer area which was facing water scarcity. This lift water supply scheme to be operated in full automation will cover a population of more than 1.311 lakh scattered over 35 panchayats of Changar area of Tehsils Jaisinghpur, Dehra, Khundian and Palampur. A provision of storing 91 lakh liters water has been made under the scheme by constructing 15 storage tanks. Himachal Pradesh Government has accorded priority to provide safe drinking water to the people of the State and all the efforts are being made to construct new water supply schemes in the remotest areas of the State, besides augmenting the existing ones. 180Godrej Properties (GPL) announced that it has entered into an agreement with Godrej & Boyce (G&B) whereby GPL will act as development manager and be responsible for the conceptualisation, sales, designs and marketing of all future development on the G&B-owned land in Vikhroli in suburban Mumbai. Godrej Properties is the real estate development arm of the Godrej Group. GPL will get a fee equal to 10 per cent of the total revenue generated from the development for its services. The cost for design and construction of the development will be incurred by Godrej & Boyce in its role as owner-developer whereas the cost for sales and marketing will be borne by Godrej Properties in its role as development manager. The project will be constructed in phases and the details on each phase will be announced before the launch of the individual phase. The development will have a mixed-use character. The first project under this agreement will begin immediately with the launch of Godrej Platinum. 181The Sports Authority of India and the All India Football Federation signed an agreement to develop the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium as the football hub in India. According to the agreement, SAI will permit AIFF to use the stadium (including the main pitch) for a maximum period of 40 days in a year. Besides, SAI will provide AIFF the outside practice ground of the stadium in addition to other necessary facilities. These facilities will be available to SAI for 50 days in a year for the smooth conduct of national and international football tournaments. In exchange, AIFF will repair the turf on the main pitch of the Nehru Stadium. AIFF will hold the SAFF CUP in December, the Nehru Cup, domestic tournaments and international matches in the next one year. The agreement is valid for one year and can be extended further for two years on the basis of review and mutual understanding 182Project Management Institute (PMI) on 7 October 2011 signed a MoU( Memorandum of Understanding) with the Engineering Society for advance mobility land, sea, air and space( SAEINDIA) to collaborate in advancing the mutual objectives of promoting the profession of project management by both these institutes.The MoU was signed by SAEINDIA President and Maruti Suzuki Executive Officer R. Dayal and PMI India Managing Director Raj Kalady. Under the MoU, the institutes agreed to utilise complementary capabilities of both the organisations to advocate, promote and institutionalise the profession of project management, across organisations within the mobility sector. Both organisations will work jointly towards identification and development of training modules, designed to the requirements of government departments, PSUs and corporates. Both organisations would think about joint funding arrangements and sponsorship of research projects of mutual interest at universities and technical institutes in India. The institutes also agreed to explore opportunities to support the development and expansion of university programmes in project management. 183The Goa Legislative Assembly on 5 October 2011 unanimously passed Goa Lokayukta Bill 2011. The bill is a modified version of Goa Lakayukta Bill 2003. It was reintroduced in the state assembly after the said clauses were amended. The bill had been sent back to the state legislature by the centre sans Presidential assent because of a couple of legal infirmities. The bill empowers the ombudsman to even investigate the Chief Minister. The bill states that Lokayukta’s term would be for three years and he would be appointed by the Governor on the advice of Chief Minister in consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court and the leader of opposition. The bill further states that Lokayukta or Upa-Lokayukta, shall not be removed from his office except by an order of Governor passed after an address by the State Legislative Assembly supported by majority of the House. Moreover, the Lokayukta can investigate the complaint suo moto or on complaint made to him. The Bill mentions that after preliminary inquiry, if Lokayukta finds that there are reasonable grounds for detailed investigation, he should forward the complaint to the government and the concerned authority.
Congress legislator Agnelo Fernandes tabled the Bill, which was passed after a brief discussion. 184India and Iran on 5 October 2011 agreed to set up a mechanism for payment of crude oil and ensure bilateral trade. Both sides agreed that the mechanism will cover the payment to Indian exporters and some other areas. The two countries have decided to continue their dialogue on the issue. Earlier, Iran had threatened to stop crude oil supplies to India if a mechanism to pay for imports is not found quickly. India has to pay Iran 9 billion dollars, which is now seven months in arrears. Iran is second only to Saudi Arabia as an oil supplier to India, while India is Iran's second-biggest crude buyer after China, accounting for about 20 per cent of its exports. India imports 40000 barrels of oil from Iran on daily basis. Nearly 12 percent of India's oil demand is met by oil supply from Iran. Indian firms are finding it difficult to pay Iran because of international sanctions imposed over Iran's controversial nuclear programme. The sanctions include banking restrictions. TThe problem over payment to Iran happened after the Reserve Bank of India on 23 December 2010 scrapped the Asian Clearing Union (ACU). As an alternative to Asian Clearing Union, India tried to make payments through countries like the UAE, Turkey and Russia. However, these nations had objections to routing big amount of 13 billion dollars which India pays for Iranian oil annually. They wanted to route small payment upto 6-7 million dollars. MMangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals-a susidiary of ONGC- is the biggest consumer of Iranian crude in India. 185The World's cheapest computer cum access device, Aakash was launched on 5 October 2011. Aakash is a part of the Indian Government's National Mission on Education's Sakshat Project. It is one of the main agendas of the Mission which aimed to link all higher education institutions in India. Aakash has three fold purpose of access, equity and quality. It is designed to revolutionize the education system in the country. Open source materials from IITs are to be created by Aakash. The government's endeavour is to ensure that every student in any part India has access to technology and they can access lectures. The software for the tablet was developed indigenously by the Indian Institute of Technology, Rajasthan. The device is seven inch touch screen, equipped with wi-fi Internet, media player, 3 hours battery power and several other multimedia applications. This device is to be sold only through colleges and universities. 186The Asian Development Bank (ADB) extended 200 million US dollar loan to Assam to improve the water supply and other urban services in two of the Assam’s major cities, Guwahati and Dibrugarh. The projects were aimed to be completed by December 2017. The funds were meant for providing clean piped water to about 3,50,000 residents in the capital city of Guwahati. Besides this, major upgrades in sewerage and solid waste systems in the two cities were also planned to be done. The required water for the water supply scheme was set to be drawn from the Brahmaputra. A water treatment plant was also be set up in the Sunsali area on the banks of the river, Brahmaputra. At least seven to eight reservoirs were to be constructed on elevated areas including the hillocks so that the advantage of the natural elevation can be utilized to ensure free flow of water to the households. The drainage and solid waste management schemes of Dibrugarh town, which were planned to be parts of the ADB scheme, were also scheduled to be completed in five years. 187Former Bihar Chief Minister Bhagwat Jha Azad died on 4 October 2011 at the age of 89. He was a six-time member of the Lok Sabha from Bhagalpur, Bihar. He was a veteran Congressman who served as the Chief Minister of Bihar from February 14, 1988 and March 10, 1989. However, a little before his death he joined the BJP. Azad superceded the boards of three apex cooperative institutions namely Bihar State Co-operative Bank, Bihar State Co-operative Marketing Union and Bihar State Co-operative Land Development Bank. He appointed three IAS officers, B K Sinha, P K Basu and R K Singh respectively as the administrators of these three apex cooperative institutions. This troika became popular as the group of BK, PK and RK that went on to create terror in the minds of the cooperative mafia.
Name of the Agreements • Agreement on Strategic Partnership between India and Afghanistan • MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Development of Hydrocarbons • MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Mineral Resources Development The Three Agreements signed were to create an institutional framework for our future cooperation in the fields of political and security cooperation, trade and economic cooperation, capacity building and education, and social, cultural, civil society and people- to-people relations. Both the countries agreed for Afghanistan's economic integration with the Indian economy and South Asia as a whole to be in the national interest of the people of Afghanistan. One of the ways to achieve this was agreed to be to promote closer trade, investment and transit links. The two countries discussed the recent spurt in violence in Afghanistan and Pakistan's role in fomenting terror in Afghanistan. India and Afghanistan took into account a proposed exit by international forces in 2014 while signing the agreement. India committed to stand by the people of Afghanistan as they prepare to assume the responsibility for their governance and security after the withdrawal of international forces in 2014. The strategic agreement also comprised joint initiatives on key international issues and support for UN reforms, including permanent seat for India in the UN Security Council. 189On 4 October 2011 the credit rating of the State Bank of India was downgraded by the Global ratings firm Moody’s. The ratings agency took SBI's grading to D+ from C-.
SBI had a shortage of capital to cushion bad loans or contingencies and thus started weakening asset quality. High interest rates in a slowing economy results in shorthand for loans that do not yield interest. This led Moody’s to adopt a negative view on SBI’s creditworthiness. As a result, the borrowing companies suffer. Rating downgrades usually are caution signals to bond investors. The Banking customers do not have encounter risk. After the downgrade, SBI shares slipped 4% to Rs 1,787 on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the Sensex dropped 1.77% or 302 points to 15,685.
As of June 2011, the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of the SBI stood at 11.6 %. CAR is a measure of the back-up money a bank has to withstand loan uncertainties. Tier-I capital stood at 7.6 % which was a little below the 8 % desired by the government. Tier-I capital broadly refers to shareholder equity. 190Cholamandalam MS General Insurance Company Limited on 3 October 2011 announced the launch of its Chola Critical Healthline Policy, which provides for a reasonable amount on being diagnosed with any of the named critical illnesses. The Company is a joint venture between the Murugappa Group and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group Japan. Some of the key features of Chola Critical Healthline are as following: • Entry upto 65 yrs • No medical check-up upto 55 yrs • Lifetime renewal facility. This policy does not need any proof of hospitalization or even treatment. The claim will be settled on the basis of the proof of diagnosis of a critical illness and the necessary survival period. The premium paid for Chola Critical Healthline Policy is eligible for tax exemption up to 20000 rupees under section 80(D) of Income tax act.
The list of diseases covered under the policy are, Stroke, First heart attack, Open Chest CABG, Cancer, Kidney Failure, Major Organ / Bone Marrow Transplant, Primary Pulmonary Hypertension, , Multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, Surgery of Aorta and Motor Neuron Disease. 191Myanmar was banned from taking part in qualifying matches for the 2018 World Cup and fined 25000 Swiss francs (28000 US dollars) by FIFA on 30 September 2011. FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) banned Myanmar because of the trouble caused by the crowd in 2014 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers against Oman on 28 July 2011.
Myanmar was trailing 2-0 in the second leg in its capital Yangon when the crowd became violent just before the end of the first half. FIFA immediately awarded Oman a 2-0 victory over Myanmar. The game was stopped after the fans threw rocks and glass bottles at the Oman football coach Paul Le Guen and the Oman players. The matter was subsequently referred to the FIFA Disciplinary Committee, and their decision is as follows:
2. The Myanmar Football Federation is excluded from taking part in the matches of the preliminary competition for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia. 3. The costs of these proceedings of 2,000 Swiss francs are to be borne by the Myanmar Football Federation. The 2018 world cup football is scheduled to take place in Russia. 192Weiss Umwelttechink of Germany on 2 October 2011 launched its Indian subsidiaryWeiss Technik India Pvt. Ltd. with the objective of catering to the growing needs of the Indian market. Weiss Umwelttechnik GmbH is a subsidiary of the Shcunk Group and a manufacturer of testing chambers and systems for environmental simulation. The company already has over 700 installations in India.Weiss at present has a manufacturing facility in China with technology from Germany. A facility in India would focus on a different range of products. The market size for environmental simulation chambers and systems in India is about 100 crore rupees and Weiss has 45 per cent market share in it. The company's customers include DRDO, ISRO, Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki. The market size is likely to reach Rs 200 crore in the next five years. The products are used by vehicle manufacturers, pharmaceutical, electronic, aviation, aerospace and defence industries. The company has 450 customers in India. The company will have branch offices at Delhi, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata with Hyderabad as its headquarters.
NISSM is modeled on the lines of China Institute of Sports Sciences (CISS). The decision to set up the institute was taken during the visit of Indian President to China on 27 May 2010. NISSM will be registered as Society under Societies Registration Act by 1 November 2011. This institute will be headed by a Director equivalent to a Vice- Chancellor of a Central University. A search committee will be appointed to identify and recommend the name of person to Head this Institute. The NISSM will work in close partnership with national and international partners from USA, UK, China, South Korea, Australia, Germany and South Africa. NISSM will function under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. It will also provide evaluation, performance and assessment related advice to sportspersons and start high quality research in the field of sports medicine and sports sciences. 194The United States on 1 October 2011 issued a world-wide travel alert to its citizens, warning of a heightened risk of violence in the wake of the killing of key al-Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki. The US-born radical Islamist cleric was killed by US drones in Yemen on 30 September 2011.
The state department has warned that his death would provide motivation for retaliation against US interests. US-born propagandist Samir Khan was also killed in the drone attack. 195The Assam government launched the social auditing programme of Gram Panchayats at Aamlokhi Gram Panchayat under Baajia Development Block in Nagaon district on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti (2 October 2011). The government launched the programme to ensure transparency and check corruption in Panchayat Raj institutions. It is considered as a tool through which Government Departments can plan, manage and measure their functions, efficiency and consequences. A total of 2202 Gram Panchayats under 219 Blocks will be covered under the audit. On the first day one panchayat each in 219 Development Blocks will be audited at public meeting where citizens can raise objections on implement of various rural development schemes. 196For the first time in India, the genome and coding parts of multi-utility neem plant, Azadirachta indica, was sequenced and analyzed. The process was disclosed in Bangalore on 29 September 2011. The project funded jointly by Government of India and Government of Karnataka, has helped bare most useful biological information of Indian neem varieties that has received prominence in our traditional medicines. Scientists informed that understanding the molecular architecture of neem genome and its various coding parts, will enhance the knowledge of this wonder species further. They further noted that they are currently building an information knowledge portal to store, retrieve and share neem data. Scientists felt that open information portal is key to sharing knowledge openly and empowering young people to utilize the information and come up with newer innovation. 197Scientists gained fresh knowledge about how viruses such as flu and HIV jumped between species, a finding that is expected to help predict the appearance of new diseases. The research carried out by Edinburgh and Cambridge universities sought to understand how viruses such as bird flu infected distant species like humans.
198The Union government on 30 September 2011 increased the foreign direct investment limit for FM radio from 20 per cent to 26 per cent. The government also exempted the education sector and old-age homes from the conditions imposed in the construction sector. The FDI limit in terrestrial broadcasting and FM radio was approved by the Cabinet in July 2011. TRAI in 2010 had made necessary recommendations arguing that increasing the limit will help the third-phase for FM radio, which will see 806 FM stations across 217 cities. FDI into construction activities in the education sector and old-age homes has been exempted from the conditionalities imposed on FDI in the construction development sector. This would mean that schools, universities and colleges would not have to meet minimum area and built-up area requirement, minimum capital requirement, minimum capitalisation requirement and lock-in period. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) mentioned that the educational institute and old-age homes have their own special requirements which do not fit these conditionalities. The government allowed overseas investment in bee-keeping and share-pledging for raising external debt. The FDI policy highlighted that liberalisation will bring in international best practices to upgrade the product in these sectors. Research and development in biotechnology, pharmaceutical and life sciences sector would be covered under the industrial parks scheme, where 100 per cent FDI is permitted under automatic route. The revised policy also allowed pledging of shares of an Indian company, which has raised ECBs, for securing the ECB raised. It also provides for opening and maintaining, without RBI approval, non-interest bearing rupee Escrow accounts by non-residents towards payment of share purchase consideration in a move to facilitate FDI. The circular also said that procedure for conversion of imported capital goods and machinery and pre-operative expenses into equity has been made easier. 199According to Comptroller General of Accounts data released on 30 September, the government’s fiscal deficit surged nearly two-fold to Rs 2.73 lakh crore during the first five months (April-August) of the current fiscal 2011-12 due to low revenue realisation. Deficit was Rs 1.5 lakh crore in April-August period of 2010. The higher deficit in the April-August, 2011 was attributed to slowdown in net revenue collection following higher refunds and moderation in economic growth rate. The government decided to increase 2011’s borrowing target by an additional Rs 53,000 crore anticipating slower tax collections and lower disinvestment proceeds. The deficit in the April-August period was 66.3 per cent of the target originally estimated at the beginning of the 2011-12 fiscal for the whole year. Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) chairman C Rangarajan pointed out that the target to cut fiscal deficit to at 4. per cent of the GDP for the current financial year would be missed. The government's decision to borrow Rs 52872 crore more from the market, over and above Rs 4.17 lakh crore estimated earlier for the current year, put pressure on the deficit number. The net tax revenue receipts for April-August period stood at Rs 1.44 lakh crore, which is 21.8 per cent of the budget estimates. On the other hand, total expenditure was at 37.5 per cent of the target at Rs 4.72 lakh crore. During April-August 2011, the direct tax mop-up was at Rs 96738 crore, which is 3.3 per cent less than the corresponding period in 2010 on account of huge refunds of Rs 57622 crore. The advance tax paid by corporates witnessed a marginal growth of 13 per cent to Rs 68000 crore in the second quarter of 2011-12, compared with the corresponding period in 2010. However, the indirect tax collection in the first five months stood at Rs 1.40 lakh crore, an increase of 26 per cent, over the corresponding period in 2010. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had lowered the fiscal deficit target to Rs 412,817 crore or 4.6 per cent of the gross domestic product from 4.7 per cent achieved during 2010-11. 200 Yüklə 0,55 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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