HEADLINES
- All party meet on maoist issue mooted
- No stake in firm, no conflict of interest for Dhoni
NATIONAL
NEWS
- Political parties come under the ambit of RTI act
- In a landmark judgment, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has ruled that political parties come under the ambit of the Right to Information Act.
- 62 countries sign arms trade treaty
- Amnesty International on Monday challenged governments to deliver on their promises to rapidly and rigorously implement the life saving Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), as 62 nations signed the landmark agreement here.
- Parliamentary panel seeks public opinon on biosecurity bill
- The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture has invited public comments on Agriculture Biosecurity Bill, 2013 that provides for the establishment of an integrated national biosecurity system, covering plant, animal, marine and farm microorganisms to combat threats of bioterrorism from pests and weeds. An agriculture biosecurity authority is proposed to be set up for prevention, control, eradication and management of pests and diseases of plants and animals and unwanted organisms.
- The Biosecurity Bill that was introduced in the Lok Sabha in March is also meant to meet India’s international obligations to facilitate import and export of plants, plant products, animals, animal products, aquatic organisms and regulation of agriculturally important microorganisms.
- The proposed Authority will regulate the export and import of plants, animals and related products, prevent entry of quarantine pests from outside India and take steps for post-entry quarantine measures.
- The proposed autonomous Authority is meant to improve safety, efficiency, transparency and compliance of quarantine and pest management regulations and respond swiftly to contain biosecurity problems. It will also ensure the conduct of bio-secure international trade in agriculture.
- New blue print for old monuments
- The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has revised the century-old national conservation policy and presented a draft that it hopes would help protect more structures and take care of monuments better.
- It acknowledges the need to broadbase the definition of monuments to include industrial sites, cultural routes and rural heritage.
- If the policy finds fruition, the government would be compelled to estimate the carrying capacity of each monument in terms of the number of tourists it can accommodate and regulate visitors. It recognises different ways of conserving buildings, including retrofitting and reconstruction.
- There is an emphasis on making monuments accessible to the differently abled. Special modes of access will have to be built, and where that is not possible, special areas have to be created within or around a monument to provide maximum view.
- The policy requires that only ancillary structures, and not the main monument, be put for “sympathetic and compatible” reuse. It advises against reconstructing damaged sculptures and inscriptions, but permits reconstructing of geometric patterns and interiors of heritage structures. Communities that are traditionally associated with monuments would be encouraged to continue their “intrinsic relationship,” in order to strengthen conservation efforts and improve community participation.
- Railways to launch four digit helplines
- The Railways propose to launch a series of four-digit customer helpdesk lines for 900 crore passengers which will comprise either SMS or voice recording facility or both in some cases.
- Approving a uniform number scheme for the implementation of the service, the railways have obtained the permission of the Department of Telecom for the purpose.
- Initially, only a security helpline was planned on 132, but it has been decided to migrate to a four-digit number for better uniformity and more services to the benefit of passengers
INTERNATIONAL
NEWS
- Talks with Iran not progressing : IAEA chief
- Talks between the U.N. atomic agency and Iran “have been going around in circles”, said the organisation’s head on Monday, acknowledging that attempts to probe alleged secret nuclear weapons work by Tehran have failed and suggesting Iran was to blame.
- International exasperation with the IAEA-Iran stalemate is compounded by deadlock in repeated attempts by six world powers to persuade Tehran to curb uranium enrichment a technology that can generate both nuclear power and the core of nuclear weapons. Iran denies any work interest in such arms and insists atomic activities are peaceful. It has been hit by U.N. Security Council and other sanctions for its refusal to halt enrichment.
OPINION/EDITORIALS
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