Tuesday, April 3, 2012

HEADLINES

• Madhya Pradesh bans Gutka with Tobacco; first Indian state to do so
• Supreme Court bats for poor rickshaw pullers and reverses Delhi HC decision which sets the ceiling on number of licenses
• Supreme Court to hear the 2G review petitions today (against the SC decision which permitted a private complainant to prosecute a public servant, and cancelled 122 licenses and ordered auctioning of the same)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Narmada Bachao Andolan is speading falsehood, says Maheshwar Dam promoters
  • Shree Maheshwar Hydel Power Corporation Ltd (SMHPCL), promoters of the Maheshwar dam project, have objected to the Narmada Bachao Andolan's (NBA) claim that massive submergence would take place in the Narmada valley if the dam is filled up to154 metres;
  • SMHPCL accused the NBA of spreading “falsehood” and urged the media to “not give credence” to the NBA. The NBA warned that people would be forced to resort to a “jal satyagraha” and face submergence but would not give up their land.
• Centre awards to 8 states
  • The Centre has rewarded eight States for performing well in executing rural drinking water schemes during 2011-12. The Union Minister of Rural Development has decided to provide bonus funds to Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Tripura, Assam, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu for successfully expending 60 per cent of their annual allocation under the National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) by December 2011;
  • Assam and Gujarat have been given the highest bonus of Rs. 100 crore each, followed by Tamil Nadu with Rs. 98.20 crore, Arunachal Pradesh (61.01 crore), Punjab (46.82 crore), Haryana (Rs. 35 crore), Meghalaya (Rs. 31.50 crore) and Tripura (Rs. 30.01 crore).
• Gujarat opposes shifting of Gir lions to Madhya Pradesh
  • The Gujarat Govt strongly opposed in court the Central Govts move to shift the Asiatic lions from the Gir forest to Kuno Palpur in Madhya Pradesh. It contended that the lions would not be safe there;
  • The Gujarat Govt said that the apprehension that an epidemic in the Gir forest might wipe out the entire species of the Asiatic lions was not borne out of correct facts and also argued that the Gir lions were not genetically weak;
  • The Gujarat Govt argued that the Kuno reserve forest was not suitable for lions because it was meant for tigers and its weather and environment were not conducive for the survival of the Asiatic lions. It also argued that there were 25 tigers in Kuno Palpur once, but the population was zero now due to poaching and therefore said that the Madhya Pradesh Govt was not in a position to protect the Gir lions;
  • Initially, the Kuno region was meant to be used for a cheetah project and it was suggested that cheetahs should first be allowed to acclimatise themselves in the reserve forest and then steps taken for the translocation of the Asiatic lions. Some argue that moving the lions first may impact the cheetahs when they are introduced into the region.
• Conservation authority formed for protecting Pallikaranai marshland in Chennai area
  • The Tamil Nadu State Forest Department has formed a conservation authority for protecting and managing the Pallikaranai marshland. Pallikaranai marshland is the last remaining natural resource located in the Chennai city limits. The water body faces threat in the form of dumping of garbage, release of untreated raw sewage into it and its habitat is fragmented due to unplanned development;
  • Pallikaranai is home to more than 40 species of fishes, a variety of local migratory birds and is habitat to smaller birds such as purple moore hen and pheasant-tailed jacana. The northern portion of the marshland is still used as a dump yard for the garbage generated from the city, which is yet to be handed over to the TN State Forest Department;
  • A TN Govt order has indicated that an authority to conserve the marshland will be set up and conservation, development and restoration works will be undertaken soon.
• $43.84 million ADB loan for Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand tourism now
  • The Union Govt and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), along with Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand, on Monday signed a $43.84-million loan agreement towards the second tranche for an infrastructure development investment programme for tourism in the two States. The agreement is aimed at enhancing the tourism environment in both States with a view to drawing an increased volume of national and international tourists;
  • The objective of the second tranche is to support upgrading and constructing tourist facilities through improvement of urban infrastructure and connectivity to the tourist attractions in Uttarakhand and Tamil Nadu. While the loan portion for Tamil Nadu is to flow on a back-to-back basis to the State government, the assistance to Uttarakhand will be 90 per cent grant and 10 per cent loan as it has been designated as a ‘special category' State;
  • Approved in 2010 for extending $250 million as a multi-tranche financing facility, the programme was for the development of tourism-related infrastructure in four participating States. The first tranche of $43.42 million meant for Punjab and Himachal Pradesh is already under being disbursed.
• As the Right to education Act turns 2 years old, monitoring division left without staff
  • The RTE Division of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) — entrusted with the responsibility of monitoring the implementation of the Act — is virtually winding up. The existing team put in their papers on March 31;
  • The division that had been created as a special panel within the NCPCR after it was mandated to monitor that implementation of this flagship programme that makes elementary education as a legal entitlement for the children in the age group of 6 to 14 years, now has just a retired Army officer and a young woman — both of whom were appointed two weeks ago and are yet to be given specific responsibilities.
• India's longest tunnel being built in J&K
  • A new passage to Srinagar now under construction will not only bring the regions of Jammu and Kashmir closer but will also end the isolation of the valley from the rest of the country. A number of state-of-the-art tunnels are being dug through the Pir Panjal ranges, among others, for easy roadways and a pioneering railway line both of which will give easy access to the valley;
  • Even as the railways are planning a 90-km-long network of tunnels, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has undertaken a project to upgrade the present national highway (NH 44) stretch from Jammu to Srinagar into four lanes. The project includes two major tunnels. The 288-km distance between Jammu and Srinagar will be reduced to 238 km but more importantly the 10-hour journey will be covered in just about five hours, avoiding perilous points such as Khooni Nala (bloody path) where shooting stones slide at the speed of a bullet taking a heavy toll of life;
  • The two tunnels will also end the snow-related traffic jams that last several days. The Chenani-Nashri Tunnel which is being blasted through the Mury formation range of the Shivalik range — derived from Mury village in Pakistan from where it starts — at an elevation of 1.2 km is 9 km long and will be the longest tunnel in the country when completed in 2016, the deadline for the entire project estimated to cost Rs. 10,600 crore.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

• After poll sweep in Myanmar, National League of Democracy spells out reform agenda
  • Exceeding all expectations, including its own, Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) has said it has won at least 43 of the 45 seats in Sunday's by-polls, including in the administrative capital, Naypyitaw;
  • Senior leaders in the party have indicated that reforms will be the key for the way forward, including the removal of legislations which contain emergency provisions, ban democractic organisations, ban the internet. Judicial reforms is also identified as critical.
• China boosts trade with Nepal
  • China will provide Nepal with technology and assistance to build a border land port (near the border with Tibet) that will boost trade and serve as a transit point on a proposed railway line. Both countries also discussed plans for a railway line connecting Nepal and the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), and agreed to have more frequent high-level visits.
• Tension marks 30th anniversary of Farklands war
  • Britain and Argentina on Monday observed the 30th anniversary of the Falklands war amid renewed diplomatic tensions between the two countries over their rival territorial claims;
  • Both claim sovereignty over the islands, controlled by Britain since 1833, and fought a 74-day war in 1982 that Argentina lost, leading to the collapse of its ruling military dictatorship while giving a huge political boost to the then British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher;
  • A few days ago, both sides re-asserted their positions with British Prime Minister David Cameron rejecting Argentinean calls for negotiations saying it was for the islanders to decide their future;
  • Argentina has protested to the United Nations accusing Britain of “militarising” the region by deploying one of its most modern Navy ships, HMS Dauntless, to the South Atlantic, off the Falklands. It has also banned Falklands-flagged ships from docking in its ports and threatened to legal action against companies involved in oil exploration in the region;
  • Argentina, which calls the islands Las Malvinas, says it inherited them from Spain. It has the backing of its regional allies including Brazil, Chile and Uruguay.
• Turkey pleads Iran's case with the West

EDITORIALS, OPINIONS & COLUMNS

• Read this editorial on the Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill which was recently cleared by the Union cabinet
• Read this article on the need for the Govt to focus on the elderly with the reduction of the death rate

ECONOMY & BUSINESS NEWS

• SEBI allows listing of stock exchanges
  • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on Monday, decided to allow stock exchanges to list. However, they can't list on themselves. No stock exchange shall be permitted to list within three years from the date of approval by SEBI. Depository may also be allowed to list but not the clearing corporation considering its risk bearing role;
  • The SEBI stipulated that stock exchanges would have a minimum net worth of Rs.100 crore. The existing stock exchanges would be given three years to achieve this net worth of Rs.100 crore;
  • The SEBI also formulated a policy for market infrastructure institutions (MIIs), which include stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories, based on the report of the Bimal Jalan Committee. Read more details here.