HEADLINES
- PM says that some US funded NGOs are behind the Kudankulam stir against the nuclear plant; Govt revokes the licenses granted to 3 NGOs as funds are not being used for purposes stated
- Roddam Narasimha, member of the Space Commission and one of the authors of the report on the Antrix-Devas scam has resigned over the treatment of scientists by the Govt further to the exposure of the scam
- Chidambaram writes to 10 Chief Ministers on the NCTC and says aim is not to impact federal structure and that the centre intends to work with the states
NATIONAL NEWS
- Kerala Minister agrees that the Western Ghats are ecologically sensitive
- Kerala's revenue minister has clarified that it by rejecting the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecological Expert Panel it does not mean that it is saying that the region is not ecologically sensitive, but that the recommendations would cause inconvenience to the state.
- Adivasis demand ban on the Shabari Kumbh Mela
- A delegation of Adivasis from Nandurbar met President Pratibha Patil and demanded a ban on the Shabari Kumbh mela organised in the Dangs area of Gujarat, stating that it had no sanction in any religious text;
- The mela was organised in 2006 by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Aseemanand, who was later arrested for allegedly masterminding the Malegaon blasts. It also had the backing of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi;
- While only four Kumbh Melas are held in India, the VHP introduced the Shabari Kumbh as the fifth one. A village in the Dangs district was identified as the place where Shabri met Lord Rama and a pond was converted into a Pampa Sarovar. A temple called Shabari Dham was also built near Subir, which underwent a makeover to handle the huge influx of pilgrim. This however has no backing in religious texts;
- A peitition was filed before the Supreme Court to prevent the mela in 2006 but was rejected.
- Indian Unmanned Aerial vehicle only for surveillance
- The Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a laboratory of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), has said that it has only received the mandate from the Government to develop unmanned vehicles for use in surveillance operations not for combat;
- The Rustom II, India's medium altitude long endurance Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV), is likely to be completed by 2013. The DRDO is likely to also commence work on a solar-powered UCAV soon.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
- Sri Lanka readies for fight on civilian deaths before the UN Human Rights Council
- Barely few days ahead of the United Nations Human Rights Council session in Geneva, Sri Lanka has begun a no-holds-barred attack on its “enemies”, is making fervent appeals to countries it considers friends, and is galvanising support back home in a bid to cash in on the siege mentality it is trying to create;
- The issue at the Rights Council relates to Sri Lanka's unwillingness to admit to civilian deaths during the end stages of Eelam War IV (January-May 2009);
- The United Nations Secretary-General's Expert Panel on Accountability in Sri Lanka has said that upwards of 40,000 civilians were killed. The second issue relates to Sri Lanka delaying any kind of political solution to the Tamils of the Northern Province, where the Tamil Tigers held sway for over three decades;
- The UNHRC session will witness a resolution against Sri Lanka, which will cite the lack of progress on the promises it had made earlier on a political solution to the Tamils of the Northern Province, and also on make adverse comments on the complete absence of accountability and respect for human rights during the end stages of the war. The United States has made it clear that it will support a resolution of this nature. Canada, United Kingdom, and most of Europe, are likely to demand greater accountability for war crimes;
- Sri Lanka has said that such a resolution will just impede the process of reconciliation in the country.
- Russia, China boycott 'Friends of Syria' conference
- The Tunisian capital, Tunis, is hosting an international conference on Syria, minus Russia and China — two key members of the United Nations Security Council — amid suspicions that the meeting, backed by the West, will seek fresh avenues to remove Bashar al-Assad from the Syrian presidency;
- The meeting of the Friends of Syria is taking place outside the fold of the United Nations, where Russia and China have blocked moves to unseat Mr. Assad;
- The meeting in Tunis resembled a similar effort earlier to form the Libya Contact Group, which played a considerable part in forcing the exit of Muammar Qadhafi, who was eventually executed;
- At the conference, the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC), urged participants to allow the group to import weapons and benefit from military support from member countries in order to achieve its political goals.
EDITORIALS, OPINIONS & COLUMNS
- Read this article on the problems in Hungary
- Read this article on the standoff between Sudan and South Sudan
- If you have time then read this article by Noam Chomsky
ECONOMY & BUSINESS NEWS
- Citi sells its entire stake of 9.85% in HDFC for approximately USD 1.9 billion
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