Wednesday, Feb 8th, 2012

HEADLINES

• Police revolt forces Maldives president from office, Vice president Mohammed Hassan monik has been sworn in.
• Transfer order of Poll observer, IAS officer Pawan Kumar Sinha cancelled; Will be in UP till elections
• Science communicator R.D. Sharma passes away.

NATIONAL NEWS

• The Election commission has said that its order banning the exit polls was applicable to the electronic media during the 48 hours prior to the conclusion of the polling hours, and there is no banning the print media
  
  
• CEC rejects ICFRE's suggestion on mining in the western ghats
  • The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) in its report submitted to the court has rejected the suggestion by noting that “ICFRE has gone totally out of context and beyond its terms of reference.
  • The ICFRE in its Macro-Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study report indirectly suggested that mining of iron ore in the Western Ghats may be permitted stating that, “there is a need to commission a feasibility study in order to bring in superior underground mining technology, which is more environment friendly, in the Western Ghats to extract 10 billion tonnes of magnetite iron ore available in the country, out of which 8 billion tonnes is in Karnataka”
    
    
• Luxembourg comes calling
  • Roadshows will be held in major Indian cities to create awareness about Luxembourg as an international hub of investment funds and increase trade relations with India
  • “Though the Luxembourg Investment Fund size is 200 billion Euros, India accounts for just two per cent of it”
  • Luxembourg was ready to offer technologies to India in steel, coke production, car components, space research, ICT and security among others, while India had lots of products to offer that could be marketed through Luxembourg and in Europe.
    
    
• Tamil Nadu a significant business destination for Australian companies
  • Australia could provide “competitive solutions and expertise” both in traditional and emerging sectors for businesses in Tamil Nadu
  • Sector potential Australian involvement in Tamil Nadu includes automotive, education-based learning and skill development, food and beverage and agribusiness, infrastructure and more broadly building and construction, clean energy solutions for energy generation as well as water and waste management, sports, health and medical products and services and training.
  • India was Australia's fourth largest trading partner. Growth in two-way trade had reached Rs.1.1 lakh crore in 2010-11 and “it is expected to reach Rs.2 lakh crore in the next three years.”
    
    
• Proposed mega leather clusters will not have tanneries
  • The Council for Leather Exports (CLE), sponsored by Ministry of Commerce and Industry, on Tuesday said that various locations were being explored for setting up proposed mega leather cluster
  • The proposal to set up mega leather clusters in seven States was announced in the Union Budget 2011-12.
  • Tamil Nadu is one of the states identified for implementing the scheme and the Centre is yet to notify the guidelines. The proposed mega leather cluster in Tamil Nadu will not have any tanneries, but will have manufacturing units of value added products such as footwear including non-leather ones, leather goods, garments, gloves, components and accessories only
  • The mega leather cluster will not involve any leather processing as tanneries will not form part of it.
    
    
• UK wants enduring ties with India
  • Three recent defence deals in which the British benefited through BAE Systems Hawk advanced trainer jet and AgustaWestland AW101 helicopter that the Indian Air Force is procuring for VVIP travel and Sonardyne's Sentinel underwater surveillance system
  • The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) database shows that Britain has exported arms worth $ 15.34 billion between 1950 and 2010, which is the third largest after the then Soviet Union/Russia and the United States of America.

• UIDAI launches Aadhar authentication services
  • Having wrangled a mandate to continue collecting biometric information and issue the unique identity numbers termed Aadhaar, the UIDAI has now announced the launch of its authentication services programme.
  • The UIDAI team is trying to convince them that whether it's a State Public Distribution System eyeing a shift to cash transfers, an MGNREGS payment or an application for a mobile SIM card, their procedures would be streamlined by using Aadhaar's global online authentication services. Delegates were invited to register their interest in being declared Authentic User Agencies and Authentication Service Agencies.

• Climate critical to farm policy decisions
  • The impact of climate change needs to be factored in development programmes so as to tackle the long-term requirement of mitigation and adaptation
  • climate change was affecting every region in the world and to feed the growing population, production should be increased by 75-100 per cent by 2050
  • The two-day conference organised jointly by the Indian Council of Agriculture Research and the National Council for Climate Change, Sustainable Development and Public Leadership (NCCSD), emphasized on these points.

INTERNATIONAL

• After Security review Indian embassy in Beijing to be inaugurated today
  • The building, which was scheduled to open in 2010, had to undergo a half- year-long security review in the wake of concerns expressed by some officials over inadequate security arrangements following the 2009 attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul.
  • The building, made of sandstone brought in from India, was designed by architect Raj Rewal.
  • The atrium structure, was inspired by the hexagonal designs common to basket weaving in India and China.

• Indus valley civilization seal found in Pakistan
  • The seal in steatite material with the carved figure of ibex and two pictographs was discovered during a survey of different sites near the Derawar Fort along the ancient bed of the Hakra river
  • The seal is said to date back to 2500-2000 B.C and could be reflective of a regional influence and possibly even a separate identity in the Harappan domain.
  • The UNESCO sponsored to explore sites along the Hakra river project aimed at learning more about Buddhist influence in this region which has its own distinctive features as opposed to the Gandhara school of art further north.
  • The team also conducted excavations at Sui-Vihar which is billed as the only existing example of Sankhya doctrines in Pakistan

EDITORIALS, OPINIONS AND COLUMNS

• An article on the controversies surrounding Maldives
• Editorial on Maldives
• Editorial on death penalty

BUSINESS/ECONOMICS

• Iran agrees for part payment in rupees for crude oil sale
  • Iran has agreed to accept 45 per cent of the payment for its crude imports in rupees through three Indian banks to beat the effect of western sanctions
  • Under the agreement, 45 per cent of the payment would be made in rupees through three Indian banks and Iran could utilise this for buying Indian machinery, metal products, iron, steel, minerals, clothes, fibre, sugar, tea, wood and automobile spare parts. Indian companies can also invest in projects in Iran like developing its oil and gas fields, extraction of iron ore and building roads and railways.