Wednesday, January 11th, 2012

HEADLINES

• 42% of Indian Children are malnourished. PM calls it a national shame.
• Rs. 500 crore grant relief for TN and 125 crore for Puducherry from the centre.
• SM Krishna calls on India and Israel to work together in the fight against terror.

NATIONAL NEWS

• 42 % of Indian Children are moalnourished
  • A new study based on a survey of the height and weight of more than one lakh children across 6 states showed that 42% of under five's are severely or moderately underweight, and 59% of them suffer from moderate to severe stunting
  • The findings are contained in the Hunger and Malnutrition (HUNGaMA) report by Naandi foundation.
  • The 6 states are Bihar, Jharkand, MP, Orissa, Rajastan and UP.
  • It is found that children from Muslim or SC/ST background are generally more affected

• “Hum aur tum sab” a unique play by the sex workers of Veshya Anyay Mukti Parishad (VAMP), a group of over 5000 sex workers in the six districts of Karnataka and Maharashtra
  
  
• Chinese dancer Zhang jun, who brought bharathanatyam to Mao's china dead.
  
  
• Hungary keen to improve ties with India
  • Hungary has invited investors from India for revamping its bus and truck manufacturing facilities.
  • The bilateral trade between the two countries is on the upswing with it touching $ 1 bn
    
    
• Padma Subramaniyam receives the first “Natya Kala Acharya” award.
  
  
• INCOIS
  • Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services(INCOIS) has been providing advisories and warnings on ocean state to a string of agencies with the twin objective of protecting life, property and economy
  • Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) has been set up at the INCOIS
  • ITEWC has the capability to issue Tsunami warnings in less than 10 mins of the major earthquake in the Indian ocean region.
  • Recently the ITEWC has been designated as the Regional Tsunami Advisory Service Provider(RTASP) and started providing advisories to all Indian Ocean Rim countries.
  • With the recent establishment of Oceansat – 2 in its campus, it gives daily fishing advisories to 60,000 fishermen on the Potential Fishing Zone(PFZ) using satellite imagery on sea surface temperature and the presence of chlorophyll
  • It has also started a service named 'high wave alert' notifying the areas that will experience such waves due to bad weather, approaching cyclone or freak wave travelling towards Indian coast.
    
    
• First crocodile survey in Sunderbans.
  • The experts are relying on the fact that the crocodiles being cold blooded animals emerge from water and bask in the winter sun during this part of the climate.
  • The survey is done based on the direct sightings along transects and 1000 kms of river banks would be covered.

• Oxford university launches study on politicisation of Indian Jobless youth.
  • The study would be done in Nepal, Sri Lanka and North India
  • The study would be to address the questions like “whether globalisation is changing their lives for the better”, “ Their political view change after school”, and “ why the protest groups are not long lasting”.

• New earthworm species found in Port blair.
  • The species has been named Moniligaster ivaniosi
  • The unique feature of the new species is the three pairs of genital apertures and a black line which runs along the middle region.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

• Oil prices jump as millitary tensions engulf Iran
  • Iran is conducting Shohaday e – vahdat(Martyrs of unity) army exercise aimed at countering infiltration.
  • The US has started off its largest ever millitary exercise that has been conceived by two allies, Austere Challeng 12, with Israel.
  • Russia has sent its flotilla, led by Admiral Kuznetsov to Syria which is a supporter of Iran.
    
    
• Iran warns US's biggest warship John C. Stennis to keep off from its former base in the persion Gulf.

• US regulator approved new reactor design.
  • The US nuclear regulatory commission has approved the reactor design of Wettington's AP1000 reactor for use in the US

EDITORIALS, OPINIONS AND COLUMNS

• Editorial on HIV infection in humans
• Opinion on Sheik Hasina's visit to India(Tripura)

BUSINESS NEWS

• 100 % FDI in single brand retail notified
  • The notification says that in respect of the proposals involving FDI over 51% the mandatory sourcing of atleast 30% would have to be done from domestic small and cottage industries, which have a maximum investment of $ 1 mn