Jan 23 Jan 29 2011 Upper House of the Russian Parliament endorsed the new START (Strategic Arms Reduction

on Treaty), a landmark nuclear arms reduction treaty that Russia and USA signed in April 2010. The US Senate approved of it in Dec 2010. According to the treaty, over the next seven years (till 2017), both countries would reduce the number of warheads they deploy on strategic nuclear delivery vehicles from 2,200 to 1,550.

Jan 30 Feb 5 2011 US President Barack Obama has named two Indian Americans for key posts in his administration. Vivek Murthy has been appointed on the advisory group of Prevention, Health, Promotion and Integrative and Public Health, and Islam Siddiqui would be the Chief Agricultural Negotiator Tri Valley University in California had enrolled 1,500 Indian students, 20% from AP alone. This university has been exposed as the centre of visa fraud by the US authorities. Following this, all Indian students were forced to wear ankle radio tags, so that the US could track their movements. This has been opposed to vehemently by the External Ministry of India GDP growth rate for 2009 2010 has an upward revision to 8% from the previous 7.4% estimate, according to data released by the CSO. This is due to high growth in manufacturing (8.8%), finance, insurance, real estate, business services (9.2%). Likewise, Gross Domestic Saving also sawan upward revision to 33.7% of GDP at market prices. Due to high growth rate of GDP in FY 2010, the estimate of 8.75% growth rate in 2010 2011 year would be pulled down due to high base effect Lakshmi Chand Jain was a freedom fighter and Gandhian activist. After independence, he served as member of Planning Commission, and as secretary of Indian Cooperative Union and All India Handicrafts board. He was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service. He passed away in Nov 2010. His autobiography was posthumously published in Feb 2011 Shanti Teresa Lakra received the Florence Nightingale Award 2010 for her nursing work for the Ongees, an indigenous Andamanese tribe. She now has received the Padma Shri for her continued work Chiang Mai Initiative is a multilateral currency swap arrangement between countries of ASEAN, China, Japan and South Korea. It daws from a forex pool of $120 bn (launched in March 2010) and seeks to negate the factors that resulted in the 1997 Asian financial Crisis Fissile Missile Cutoff Treaty (FMCT) is a proposed international treaty to prohibit the further manufacture of fissile material for nuclear

weapons. The Geneva based Conference on Disarmament (CD) has agreed to set up a negotiating committee for the FMCT but Pakistan has repeatedly blocked it, in defiance of 63 countries. Pakistan had again blocked it in Feb 2011 Central Government had proposed in 2008 to set up a middle office to facilitate Debt Management (which is currently being done by RBI) of the Government which would eventually metamorphose into a Debt Management Office. The Central Govt borrowed Rs 4.56 lakh crore in 2009 2010. Seeing states apprehension to join the DBO, Finance Ministry has kept it optional for states to join DMO. In Mar 2011, Govt has decided to set up the DMO by 2012

6 Feb 2011 12 Feb 2011 IPv4 address system provides for approximately 4.3 billion unique addresses (2^32 addresses) for the internet. This is going to run out soon so the Internet Engineering Task Force is phasing in the IPv6 system which can provide 2^128 addresses. India is pursuing a National IPv6 Deployment Road Map with a 2012 deadline for central and State Govt departments and PSUs to become compatible. Nandan Nilekani, the Technology Adivsory Group for Unique Projects (TAGUP) chairman submitted its report which details specific recommendations for various IT intensive projects pertaining to the Finance Ministry. These would help in various projects such as Tax Information Network (TIN), New Pension Scheme (NPS), National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA), Expenditure Information Network (EIN) and Goods and Service Tax (GST) India is contemplating to move the WTO against the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (2010) which levies 2% tax on all goods and services procured by the US from countries not party to an international procurement agreement with it UK based Indian writer Kishwar Desai won Britains prestigious Costa Prize (given to a first book) for her novel Witness the Night, which is based on female infanticide The second advance estimate of foodgrain production for 2010 2011 was released, with record production being predicted in wheat, pulses and cotton. Some of the predictions are as follows o o o o o o Wheat: 82 million tonnes (Prev record of 80.8 MT in 2009 10) Pulses: 16 million tonnes (Prev record of 14.9 MT in 1998 99) Cotton: 33.9 million bales of 170 kg each (25.88 mn bales in 2007 08) Rice: 94 MT (99.18 MT in 2008 09) Coarse Cereals: 40 MT (33.55 MT in 2009 10) Total Foodgrain Output: 232.07 MT, against 218.11 MT last year, growth of 6%

Industrial growth for December remained gloomy, continuing its trend from November. The Index for Industrial Production (IIP) for December grew at a meagre 1.6%, the lowest in 20 months. Last December it grew at an exponential 18%. Soaring interest rates, high input cost and a large base effect are termed as reasons for the dismal growth. Steady

growth in the first part of the fiscal however ensured that cumulative growth for Apr Dec 2010 for IIP remained at a stable 8.6%.

13 Feb 19 Feb 2011 Exports from India in January have risen 32.5% over last year, touching $20.6 bn, which reinforces the goal of $220 bn exports this fiscal. During the Apr Dec 10 period, exports totalled $184.6 bn, growing at a rate of 29.4% over the last year. The reason for increase in exports is said to be demand from Latin America, and Africa. Imports for January also grew by 13.1% to $28.6 bn, resulting in a trade deficit of $8 bn for January Raymond Davis is an American who was arrested in Pakistan for gunning down two people on a motorbike. Pakistan claims that he might be a CIA agent and theyve arrested him; USA claims that he is a diplomat, and has asked Pakistan to release him as per the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Immunity. News reports have emerged that he is a CIA agent who was checking on militant groups JNU professor Arun Mohanty has won the prestigious Pushkin Award for his contribution to studies on Russia and promotion of bilateral relations between Russia and India. The award is given annually by the Russian Government to exceptional contributions to the promotion of Russian language and culture. Since 1977, over 10 Indians have won this award MoEF has agreed to relax environment criterion, by increasing the threshold of the Comprehensive Environment Pollution Index (CEPI, check this link) from 70 to 75 which would free 16 blocks for coal mining Heading for a confrontation with the Finance Ministry, the Employee Provident Fund Organization (EPFO)s chief decision making body the Central Board of Trustees (CBT) has decided to go ahead with offering 9.5% rate of return for the FY 2010 11 even after Finance Ministry snubbed its move. CBT has declined to invest in equity. However, they have decided to invest in LIC Housing, which was banned by the CBT after the housing scam came into picture in Nov 2010 The Health and HRD Ministries have agreed on jurisdiction of medical education. The National Commission for Human Resources in Health (NCHRH), a body under the health ministry would set up minimum

educational standards in medicine, whereas health related research would come under the National Commission for Higher Education and Research (NCHER), a body under the HRD Ministry

Feb 20 Feb 26 2011 India adopted the new Consumer Price Index (CPI) series to reflect prices at the macro level, signalling a shift from the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) series. The base year would be taken as 2010. Current data indicate an inflation of 6% as of Jan 2011. The series would be issued for all India, states and UT territories, for rural, urban and combined prices for the purpose of temporal comparison. In addition, series for five major sectors food, beverages & tobacco, fuel and light, housing, clothing and miscellaneous The Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine trials on cervical cancer administered by PATH had created a controversy after 4 girls in AP who took the trial died. The three member committee set up to look into the alleged irregularities submitted its final report The central bank heads and finance ministers of G 20 countries met in Paris where they reached an agreement on reducing trade imbalances and controlling inflation, especially food inflation. Focus was also on currency rates, especially that of Chinese Yuan, and also unregulated capital inflows which can potentially cause asset bubbles. Indias position on currency was that it must be market determined as far as possible. India also called for actions to strengthen local capital markets and domestic currency borrowing which are long term antidotes for asset bubbles caused by capital inflows The new Animal Welfare Act 2011 proposes a massive hike in animal cruelty fines as opposed to the existing Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960. The changes proposed in the act can be read here The Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) has launched trading of Renewable Energy Certificates on its platform. REC represents attributes of electricity generated from renewable energy sources. 1 REC represents

delivery of 1MWh of electricity generated from renewable sources and the benefits of displacing 1MWh of conventional electricity from the grid

Feb 27 Mar 5 2011 Major Mitali Madhumita became the first woman Army Officer to receive a gallantry award in the Army. She was awarded the Sena Award (Gallantry), for acts of bravery and distinguished service Direct Tax Collections in FY 11 have reached to Rs 3.35 lakh crore till the end of February, up 20% since last year. Its share in GDP has also increased from 4.1% to 6.1%. The sustained growth has been possible due to rationalization of tax structure and improvement in tax administration Exports for January registered a phenomenal 32.4% growth over the same period last year, to $20.61 billion. The growth was mainly on the back of fresh demand in US and Latin American markets. If the present trend continues, exports are likely to surpass the $200 bn target and end up with $225 bn in shipments. The entire article can be read here Singapore has appointed Brigadier General Ravinder Singh as its next Army Chief, the first Sikh chief in 30 years to be appointed to the post. Singh joined the Singapore Armed Forces in 1982 Union Cabinet clears child protection bill which seeks to prevent sexual abuse of children, with provisions for stringent punishment for such offences. Notably, the bill defines the age of sexual consent to be 16 years. The article can be read here

Mar 6 Mar 12 2011 In a bid to bring about transparency and good governance in sports administration, the sports ministry has drafted a National Sports Development Bill, which among other things will force officials to abide by age and tenure relations. The article can be accessed here ISRO plans to launch the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV C 16) around April 10. It will put Resourcesat 2 and two other satellites into orbit. Images from Resourcesat 2 will help in monitoring the health of crops, estimating crop yield, checking deforestation and locating groundwater. Another satellite Youthsat is carrying two Indian and one Russian payloads, and is meant for studying the effects of sun on Earths upper atmosphere The new FRBM Act would contain some leeway for counter cyclical adjustments in case of crisis, rather than rigid goalposts as targets. The Act would be as an amendment to FRBM Act 2003, which would be tabled during Monsoon Session of Parliament. It is likely to affirm the medium term fiscal deficit margins as mentioned in the Budget 2011 12, of 4.6% in FY 12, followed by 4.1% and 3.5% of GDP in the next two fiscal years In a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court has permitted passive euthanasia of patients in a Permanant Vegetative State (PVS) by withdrawing of life support. Until Parliament passes a law, the procedure is that close relatives and doctor of the patient concerned can apply to the courts for permission for passive euthanasia. SC has still disallowed

active euthanasia (injecting poisonous substances etc to facilitate death). This judgement was given in the trial where author Pinki Virani had applied for mercy killing of Aruna Shanbaug, a nurse at KEM hospital who has been in PVS for 37 years after being sodomized by a wardboy. The SC ruled that the hospital nurses and staff, who have been taking care of her every single day for 37 years, construed her close friends and only they had a right to appeal for euthanasia, and hence the SC dismissed Pinki Viranis petition In order to promote funding of infrastructure, the Budget for FY 12 contained many provisions, one of them being setting up of infrastructure debt funds which would attract foreign funds. These would be under the purview of RBI which may relax the capital adequacy norms for these funds. In order to fund the plan of spending $1 trillion in the 12th Plan on infrastructure, the govt has taken many steps in the budget, some of them being approval of issuance of tax free infrastructure bonds by various government undertakings, and increase in FII limit in these bonds from $5 bn to $25 billion annually In what is likely to revolutionize potato production in India, the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI) Shimla has developed a technique based on aeroponics to produce seed potatos without exposing them to soil. Aeroponics is the technique of growing plants in air or moist medium without exposing them to soil Indias exports have crossed FY 11s target o $200 bn by February end, and seem set to hit $230bn for the fiscal year. The increase in exports is mainly due to resurgent demand from US, EU, Japan and notably, Latin America. Imports for the fiscal look to reach the $350 bn mark, resulting in a Current Account Deficit of around 2.5% of GDP

20 Mar 26 Mar 2011 After the UNSC voted in favour of military action against Col. Muammar Gaddafi (India abstained from voting), US, European and Arab leaders began the largest international military intervention since the invasion of Iraq, to stop Gaddafis war on the Libyan opposition. The operation is called Op Odyssey Dawn, which is authorized by UNSC Resolution 1973 The draft Mental Health Bill 2010 prohibits chaining and the use of electro convulsive without muscle relaxants and anaesthesia in adults, and prohibits it completely for minors. The bill seeks to replace the Mental Health Act 1987. The entire article can be read here The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research, Hyderabad which conducts exploration for Uranium across the country, has found a 44,000 tonne reserve of natural Uranium in the Tumullapalle belt in the southern part of Kadapa basin in AP. This

promises to be one of the top 20 Uranium reserves in the world. The Uranium Corporation of India Limited has sanctioned a mine at the location, which will start producing yellow cake for fuel of PHWR plants early next year The Mines Ministry looks to ascertain whether the proposed National Mineral Regulatory Authority could be empowered to review the envisaged 26% profit sharing formula as mentioned in the draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Bill 2010. As per the initial draft, all mining companies were mandated to share 26% of profits with the locals being affected by mining activities. Subsequent draft showed flexibility by empowering the proposed NMRA to review the percentage of profits to be shared

27 Mar 2 Apr 2011 The Central Government has set aside a Rs 2,500 crore corpus for the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (TUFS) for the Micro, Small and Medium sector (MSME) enterprises to be used for technology modernization. At present, only textile sector avails of the TUFS. From now on, all MSME companies can avail of it whereby they would be eligible for 5% subsidy on loans for technology Upgradation Pulitzer prize winning author Joseph Lalyveld has written a new biography on Gandhi in which it is alleged that Gandhi was a bisexual. The Centre has sought a ban on the book

Apr 3 Apr 9 2011 To overcome the lack of quality in publicly funded medical research, the government finalized National Health Research Policy, which envisages creation of an overarching National Health Research Management Forum which will oversee medical research. The full article can be read here Centres receipts from indirect taxes have overshot its revised estimate of Rs 3.34 lakh crore to touch Rs 3.4 lakh crore. The entire article can be read here The fourth SAARC sanitation conference SACOSAN IV (South Asian Conference on Sanitation) commenced in Colombo. The conference aims

to give a final push for the SAARC countries to meet the MDG goals. The entire article can be read here Gandhian and social activist Anna Hazare has started an indefinite strike in order to pressurize the government to accept the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by civil society as against the ministry drafted Lokpal Bill. The differences between the two bills can be read here. Anna Hazare is most famous for the turnaround of the Ralegan Siddhi village in Maharashtra, which now is considered a model village for emulation across the country Pratik Chaudhury has been appointed the new Chairman of SBI after OP Bhatt completed his five years in office. In his first briefing, Chaudhury talked about the standoff SBI is having v/s the RBI over the matter of teaser loans being given out to home loan buyers. As per the scheme, home loan buyers need to pay interest at a 2% discount of 8 8.5% for the first two years for a loan charging 10% rate. RBI has said that most people dont understand the scheme and it would lead to defaults, and recommended that the teaser loan provisioning be only 0.40% instead of the existing 2%, over which the SBI is unhappy

10 April 16 April 2011 The launch of Resourcesat 2 using the PSLV C16 launch vehicle is scheduled for April 20. It is an advanced remote sensing satellite which will be used in study and management of Indias natural resources. Two other satellites, Youthsat (joint Indo Russian for stellar and atmospheric studies) and X Sat (microsatellite for imaging applications built by NTU Singapore) will be launched along with it

Growth in industrial production (as measured by IIP) for February dipped from 15.1% last year to 3.6% this year dragged down by dismal performance of mining and manufacturing sector along with a continuation of contraction of capital goods Coal India Ltd has been conferred the Maha Ratna status, making it the fifth firm to get the coveted status (after NTPC, IOCL, ONGC and SAIL). Maharatna firms can invest upto Rs 5,000 crores in joint venture or wholly ventured subsidiaries independently without cabinet approval. For navratna companies, the limit is Rs 1,000 crore Maharatna companies will soon be allowed to invest Rs 25,000 crores in assets abroad without Cabinet approval. This will hold them in good stead amidst increasing international competition in the fields of oil, gas, coal and other mineral resources. Currently, any investment greater than Rs 5,000 crore needs approval of Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA). This cap will be maintained for domestic investments The leaders of the BRICS countries met at Sanya, China and among other things have decided to enter into an agreement which would allow authorized credit agencies to disburse loans in local currencies. This is seen as a significant first step to move away from dependency of the US Dollar. However, mutual trade would still be conducted in $ for now Novelist Vikas Kumar Jha has been chosen for the2011 International Indu Sharma Katha Samman for his novel McCluskieganj. The award is awarded in Britain in memory of poetess and short story writer Indu Sharma who died of cancer in 1995

17 Apr 23 Apr 2011 PSLV C16 is all set to launch from Sriharikota on April 20. It will put into orbit three satellites Indias ResourceSat 2, an Indo Russian satellite

called Youthsat and a micro satellite named X Sat from NTU Singapore. ResourceSat would be used in estimating health of crops, locating ground water, monitoring deforestation, measuring level of water in reservoirs and glacial melt in Himalayas, and consequent receipt of water in rivers. YouthSat would be used in stellar and atmospheric studies. It would be the 18th launch of the PSLV, and the 17th successive success. The first flight in 1993 was not a success, all other missions that followed it were The Stockholm Convention deals with persistent organic pollutants. Parties to the convention are scheduled to meet in Geneva in April end to discuss among other things, a global ban on the pesticide endosulfan. Indias vote will be closely monitored, because India is the only member of the treaty opposed to the ban of the pesticide. Indian manufacturers of the pesticide oppose the ban saying that it will deprive farmers of an inexpensive and broad spectrum pesticide. However, NGOs campaigning against the pesticide point out that the pesticide has caused more than 150 diseases and abnormalities, especially in Kasaragod district of Kerala Exports for FY11 have soared to an all time high of $246 billion, zooming past the target of $200bn. A sharp jump of 85% in engineering goods helped total merchandise exports increase by 37.5% to $246 bn this year. The strategy of diversifying markets by reaching out to Latin America and Africa seems to have paid off. Imports too have increased 21% to $350 bn. The full article can be read here Indian born doctor Siddhartha Mukherjee has won the Pulitzer Prize (category of General Non Fiction) for his book The Emperor of All Maladies: A biography of Cancer. He is an assistant professor and cancer physician at Columbia University. Gobind Behari Lal was the first Indian to win a Pulitzer way back in 1937; Siddhartha Mukherjee is the fourth. The Pulitzer Prize is a US award for achievements in newspaper, online journalism, literature and musical composition, administered by the Columbia University (Yes! Conflict of interest?) After the departure of OP Bhatt, SBI has buckled under RBI pressure and has decided to withdraw the teaser loan scheme in its home loans from May 1 onwards. Interest rates will increase from 8 8.5% to 9.5 10.25% from the start of the loan itself The full Planning Commission meeting chaired by PM Singh has set a target of 9 9.5% growth for the 12th FY Plan. Other notable targets include 100% literacy, increase in health expenditure to 2 2.5% of GDP and addition of 1,00,000 MW (100 TW) of power generating capacity. The entire article can be read here Finance Ministrys chief economic advisor Kaushik Basu has said that India must seriously consider setting up a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) of its own soon. SWFs are financial vehicles owned by governments which manage public funds in the form of foreign exchange and invest them in a variety of assets having a long investment horizon. There are over 50

SWFs managing over $3 trillion worldwide. China for example, is aggressively using its SWF to acquire natural and mineral resources all over the world. India is currently sitting on forex reserves of $300 billion which can be put to good use through a SWF 24 Apr 30 Apr 2011 Government has planned a Right to Privacy Bill 2011 which among other things would set up a Data Protection Authority of India whose main functions would entail compliance with privacy laws and investigation of any data security breach. The entire article is here India has intimated the US that both its fighter jets, the F 16 Super Viper and the F/A 18 Hornet were out of contention in the $10 billion Medium Multirole Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition of the IAF. IAF intends to buy atleast 126 fighter jet from one of the six competitors. Only two jets, the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Rafaele have made it to the final round. Two other jets, the Saab Gripen and MiG 35 also were discarded. Under the terms of the deal, 18 aircraft would be delivered ready to fly whereas the remaining would be produced in India through transfer of technology. 50% of the deal value would have to be sourced from within India All non retail investors in IPOs will have to use the Application Supported by Blocked Amount (ASBA) facility for subscribing to IPOs from May onwards. This facility deducts the money from bank account only after allotment of shares is completed, and the money is blocked in the bank account till then

1 May 7 May 2011 RBI has yet again hiked key policy rates in their mid quarterly review to tame persistent inflation. Both repo and reverse repo rates were hiked by 50 bps, which was more than expected. Current repo rate stands at 7.25% and reverse repo at 6.25%. RBI has decided to have only one key policy rate, the repo rate. Reserve repo rate would be pegged at 100 bps lower than the repo rate going forward Also, to provide some relief from inflation, RBI has hiked the savings bank deposit rate from existing 3.5% to 4% Leaders of two Palestinian factions, Hamas and Fatah signed a landmark peace agreement paving way for a transitional national government followed by elections. This ends four years of feuding between the two factions. Entire article can be read here A giant asteroid YU55 weighing 55 million tonnes is heading close to the earth, but it will just miss impact. It would pass between the Earth and the Moon in November. If it would have hit the earth, it would have had an impact equivalent to 65,000 atomic bombs

8 May 14 May 2011 India and Bangladesh are jointly celebrating Rabindranath Tagores 150th birth anniversary this year. Among other things, the celebrations would include a special train Sonar Tori, which would run from Kolkata to Dhaka. India has also instituted an international award in his name for distinguished contribution to promoting international brotherhood India awards three annual international awards, the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development (last awarded in 2010 Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Luca da Silva), Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding (not awarded since 2007), International Gandhi Peace Prize (not awarded since 2005). An article on their relevance can be read here RBI has unveiled guidelines for Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) which will help banks tide over short term liquidity problems. As per the guidelines, banks can borrow upto 1% of their total deposits (Net Demand and Time Liabilities), at a rate which is 100bps greater than the repo rate. There will be only 1 benchmark rate from now on, the repo rate. The MSF rate will be 100 bps higher, and reverse repo 100 bps lower than the repo rate Vijayee Bhava is the first of a series of annual war exercises undertaken by the Armys Western Command (HQ: Chandigarh), and supported by the IAF. It is currently underway in Suratgarh, Rajasthan The island state of Samoa, which (for the purpose of marking time) currently lies to the east of the International Date Line, has decided to shift its position to the west of the IDL, in order to facilitate trade between Australia and New Zealand. Currently it is 21 hours behind Australia, leading to a loss of 2 working days every week. After the shift in December, it will be 3 hours ahead of Australia. There will be no Dec 28 date in Samoa, at midnight of Dec 27th, the clocks there will jump to Dec 29 The new Information Technology Rules 2011 grant unilateral powers to the government to access personal and sensitive data of netizens without a prior warrant or consent. The entire article can be read here A new WikiMaths project is letting people collaborate on solving hard problems, which would lead to conundrums being solved more quickly. It started in 2009 when Cambridge mathematician Tim Gowers floated the idea and took up the Hales Jewett problem as a good starting

example. The Polymath Project as it is now known continues to work on seven different problems with over 5000 contributions already Farmers have been agitating for over a week now in the Greater Noida region, with Bhatta Parsaul village being the focus of the agitation. Their demand is for higher rates to be paid by the government for acquiring their agricultural land to build the Yamuna Expressway. The farmer Manvir Singh Tevatia has emerged as the leader of the farmers agitation. A good editorial comparing land acquisition acts can be read here The IIP for FY 2010 11 has grown at a slower rate of 7.8% as compared to 10.5% in the previous fiscal year, largely due to high base effect and slow factory growth. The entire article can be read here (Business page of Indian Express, 13th May 2011, Useful article as it contains monthwise IIP data, could be asked for mains). IIP is published by CSO has base year as 1993 94, and has weightage of manufacturing (79.36%), mining & quarrying (10.47%) and electricity (10.36%)

15 May 21 May 2011 RBI has initiated discussions on the issue of deregulation of savings rates. Savings rates continue to be the only regulated rate in the country today. A good article talking about the pros and cons is found here The Centres much awaited scheme of providing subsidised sanitary napkins to adolescent girls (11 19 years) in rural areas will be operational by August. It will be a part of the Adolescent Reproductive Sexual Health (ARSH) project of RCH II. ASHAs will provide the napkins at Re 1 each. The entire article can be read here The much popular Duty Entitlement Passbook Scheme (DEPS) is slated to be withdrawn by the government from June 30 onwards. Under the scheme, exporters would get duty refund of the import content of their exported products. This scheme was considered not WTO compliant because tax cuts were not based on actual imports, but on certain assumptions of that, enabling other countries to impose countervailing taxes on Indian exports. Industry feels that withdrawal of this scheme would make exports uncompetitive and severely hamper growth momentum ISROs 3100 kg communication satellite GSAT 8 has been launched by Arianespaces Ariene V rocket from Korou in French Guinea. After 2 successive GSLV failures, ISRO was desperate to have a communication satellite in space. It will be used for beaming tv programmes (especially DTH services), telephone calls, ATM operations, tele medicine, tele education and navigation. It also has a GAGAN payload which would enable aircraft to land with an accuracy of 7.5 m. It couldnt have been launched yet from India because the GSLV Mk III which can deploy payloads over 2000 kg is still under development Union cabinet has approved caste census to be conducted along with the BPL census this year. Methodologies of conduction of both the census can be read here and here

22 May 28 May 2011 A schoolboy has achieved a rare double, by first climbing Mt Everest, and then followed by the neighbouring peak Mt Lhotse. Arjun Vajpayee became the youngest Indian to scale Mt Everest, breaking the record of Krushnaa Patil, 18, who scaled Everest last year The test flight of the UAV Rustom 1 was carried out successfully by the Aeronauticals Development Establishment (ADE), a lab of DRDO. The UAV has an endurance of 14 hours and altitude ceiling of 8000 metres. This was a precursor to a test flight with payloads as required by the services To enable financial inclusion, the Government has started two funds with the NABARD, namely the Financial Inclusion Fund (FIF) and Financial Inclusion Technology Fund (FITF). The objectives of the FIF are to support developmental and promotional activities with a view to securing greater financial inclusion, particularly among weaker sections, low income groups and in backward regions/ hitherto unbanked areas. The FITF aims to enhance investment in Information Communication Technology (ICT) aimed at promoting financial inclusion and stimulate the transfer of research and technology in financial inclusion. The initial corpus of the fund is Rs 500 crore The Ashok Chawla Committee on management of natural resources will submit its draft to the government soon. It contains recommendations on land, forests, telecom, water, coal, gas, mining and petroleum. Please check check Page 9 of Indian Express dated 23 May 2011 for a comprehensive description of all the recommendations in various categories

In the wake of the Bhatta Parsaul protests over land acquisition, the NAC has recommended to the government for laws to enable government to acquire 100% of the land for public projects, even if it is being developed by private authorities. Other recommendations include getting asset of atleast 75% of the land owners, and revised compensation of 60% higher than prevailing market price. Entire article is here The Swiss Formula is a mathematical formula designed to cut and harmonize tariff rates in international trade. Several countries are pushing for its use in World Trade Organization trade negotiations. It was first introduced by the Swiss Delegation to the WTO during the Doha Development Round. Check the formula here The aviation ministry has finally created an Accident Investigation Committee (AIC) which will independently probe major aviation accidents. Earlier, DGCA was entrusted with the task. AIC will work under the supervision of Ministry of Civil Aviation and will be headed by Director of Air Safety. All five members will be drawn from the DGCA. On initial notifications of accidents, the regional air safety officer would transfer the matter to the AIC. AIC would then transfer the case to DGCA if it is a minor incident, or would conduct the probe itself in case it is a major incident. Entire article is here After launching the New Pension Scheme for private citizens since 2009, this years NPS yields have given a mixed bag, with results varying from 8.05% to 11.89%. The entire article can be read here Serbian ethnic military leader Ratko Mladic who came into prominence during the ethnic Yugoslav Wars was captured in Serbia after a 16 year manhunt. Imp points for GS Paper II can be the Dayton Peace Accord which was brokered by US diplomat Richard Holbrooke who passed away in 2010 29 May 2011 4 June 2011 In the wake of the increased protests against nuclear energy, the Prime Minister has asked the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to provide the worlds best safety precautions at Indias nuclear power plants. It is important to know the differences between NDMA and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). Check both links In a few food chains, e.g., near hydrothermal vents in the deep sea, autotrophs are able to produce organic compounds without sunlight, through a process similar to photosynthesis called chemosynthesis, using a carbon source such as carbon dioxide and a chemical energy sources such as hydrogen sulfide, H2S, or molecular hydrogen, H2 The Montreux Record is a register of wetland sites on the List of Wetlands of International Importance where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur as a result of technological developments, pollution or other human interference. Two Indian wetlands (Loktak and Koladeo National Park) are in the Montreux Record

AVATAR is a single-stage reusable rocket plane capable of horizontal takeoff and landing, being developed by DRDO along with ISRO. When operational, it is planned to be capable of delivering a payload weighing up to 1,000 kg to low earth orbit. It would be the cheapest way to deliver material to space at about US$67/kg. Each craft is expected to withstand 100 launches Integrated Energy Policy was a report brought out by the Planning Commission under Dr Kirit Parikh which envisions Indias future in power generation. The summary of this report gives a detailed outline of the policy and can be read here Sickle cell anemia is a genetic disorder wherein the RBCs containing haemoglobin and sickle shaped, which decreases their flexibility and causes lots of complications, and there is no treatment so far. This disease is common in 72 tribal districts of central India. It is caused by inheritance of one abnormal gene to form beta globins (normal people inherit two normal genes), and can be prevented by getting the partners blood types matched before marriage. Jharkhand CM Arjun Mundas two sons unfortunately suffer from this disease. He has proposed a plan for the State to pay Rs 20,000 for every couple tying the knot after getting blood types matched in Jharkhand The cumulative impact of rate hikes of 250 bps over the past year was evident in the Q4 GDP results, which showed that GDP growth was 7.8%, the least in five quarters. Overall GDP growth for FY 2011 was 8.5%, a shade lesser than 8.6% as per advance estimates. Agriculture grew at 6.6%, riding on a normal monsoon, whereas industrial growth was at 6.1%, compared to 12.4% last year. Fiscal deficit on the other hand was 4.7% of GDP, as against advance estimates of 5.1%. Revenue deficit was 3.1%. The entire article can be read here or here Dr. Mohan Kohli is an agricultural scientist who had worked with Dr Norman Borlaug in the 1960s. For the past four decades, Kohli has been assisting a variety of South American countries (including Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and Chile) in increasing their wheat production. As a result, Paraguay today is a net exporter of wheat, with production of 1.2 million tonnes, up from 30,000 tonnes in 1978. University of Asuncion in Paraguay has granted him an honorary doctorate for his efforts Oxford University will launch a visiting professorship in memory of Dr Sanjaya Lall, regarded as one of Indias leading developmental economists. He had an illustrious career, having served the World Bank, UNICEF, OECD, and UNIDO among others Indian diplomat Atul Khare has been appointed UN Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations. He is a 1984 batch IFS officer Rare Earth elements are the Lanthanide series of the periodic table plus Scandium and Yttrium (15+2 elements) which are used in micro quantities in almost all electronic hardware, from laptops to missile systems. China has 37% of worlds resources and it is indicating that it will

gradually decrease exports. This makes it all the more important for India to secure alternative resources of Rare Earths. A PSU, Indian Rare Earths is mandated with the task of securing rare earth ores in India. Most deposits occur in Kerala The Gulf Cooperation Council has expanded membership to include Jordan and Morocco. Initially set up to provide safeguard against Iranian offensives, it has now turned to become the last vestige of monarchy in the Arab region. This article suggests how the role of GCC now is to protect its monarchies against revolutions by including the remaining two monarchies of the Arab region in its grouping After inducting 3500 km Agni III missile into the service of the Armed Forces, India will be ready to test the 5,000 km Agni V missile by December. It has been developed by adding a third stage to Agni III missile 14 year old Sukanya Roy of Pennsylvania won the 2011 Scripps National Spelling Bee in USA. Indian Americans have been winning the spelling bee in a row for 4 years now

5 June 11 June 2011 Dr Jack Kevorkian, popularly known as Dr Death passed away at the age of 83. He is famous for assisting over 130 sick people commit suicide, and was imprisioned for the same India has approved its biggest ever defence purchase from the USA, with the Cabinet Committee of Security clearing purchase of 10 Boeing C

 17 Globemaster heavy lift aircraft worth $4.1 billion. It is a four engine aircraft with a range of 4,500 km, having a capacity of carrying 77 tonnes of cargo. It can be used for carrying cargo, paratroopers, and carrying humanitarian aid. As per the offsets policy, Boeing would invest nearly $1 billion in the domestic market The Cabinet Committee on Security has given in principle approval to Home Ministrys ambitious NATGRID (National intelligence grid) project, which was conceived after the 26/11 attacks. The project aims to collate data of citizens from 21 database categories such as railway and air travel, income tax, bank accounts, credit card transactions etc. Combined data will be given to 11 intelligence agencies, including RAW, IB, ED, NIA, CBI, NCB etc TigerText is a application for android phones which allows users to send texts or photos that automatically get deleted after a specified period of time. They are also not stored in any central server, so there is no way to retrieve the messages once they are deleted. This has proved to be worrisome for Indias Law Enforcement Agencies, and they have asked Indian mobile service providers not to provide for this app until adequate security requirements as regards storing of the texts are met. This comes close on the heels of the Black Berry issue, which has still not yet been resolved satisfactorily USA has drafted non papers to three regimes: the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and the Australia Group, to induct India as a full member in all of the groups. While India is already eligible for membership into the Australia Group and Wassenaar Arrangement, NSG and MTCR might prove to be hurdles because both of them have conditions drawn from the NPT. Members need to be NPT complaint although it is not specifically stated PM has given in principle approval to the National Manufacturing Policy which aims to increase % share of manufacturing to 25% of GDP by 2025 from 16% currently. Read this CSO has come out with a new index for the IIP series, with base year as 2004 05 (as opposed to 1994 95 earlier). Weight of manufacturing has decreased to 75.5% (earlier it was 79.3%), and weights of both mining (new: 14.1%) and electricity (new: 10.3%) have increased. Read this for the changes and this for the trends of IIP in April After the assassinations of (Pakistans) Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti due to their outspoken opinions against the blasphemy law, Pakistans third high profile murder is that of Saleem Shahzad, a journalist who had written extensively against the ISI.

JUNE Nirmala Rao, professor of politics at the University of London and Namita Punjabi, who runs a chain of popular British eateries have been awarded the Order of British Empire CAG has unearthed another potential irregularity costing the public exchequer. This leads to oil and gas exploration and the way Production Sharing Contracts are designed in India. This article gives a good explanation of the scam A molecule extracted from a marine micro organism off the Rameshwaram coast, Transitmycin is slated to be the next big development in the fight against TB and HIV. The article is here At the recently concluded SCO meeting at Khazakstan, India pitched for its entry as a member. India is currently an observer. One of the many tangible benefits of India being admitted as a member would be Indias ability to work with the Regional Anti Terrorism Structure (RATS). The Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS), headquartered in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, is a permanent organ of the SCO which serves to promote cooperation of member states against the three evils of terrorism, separatism and extremism. The Head of RATS is elected to a three-year term. Each member state also sends a permanent representative to RATS Agenda 21 is an action plan of the United Nations (UN) related to sustainable development and was an outcome of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992 (Earth Summit). It is a comprehensive blueprint of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the UN, governments, and major groups in every area in which humans directly affect the environment. The number 21 refers to an agenda for the 21st century. It may also refer to the number on the UN's agenda at this particular summit Central government has drafted a model Property Rights to Slum Dwellers Act which once enacted by states (housing is a state subject), would for the first time give every landless slum dweller living in an urban area ownership rights to a house. Read this and this Macaulays minutes on education can be read here. A book on this was released recently, so this might be asked in GS The Election Commission has unveiled prototypes of Voter Verifiable Paper Trail Audit (VVPAT) based EVMs which would give a printed confirmation of the cast vote to the voter, thus ensuring vote authenticity Eminent economist and former chairman of PMEAC Suresh Tendulkar passed away. He is most famous for his poverty estimates which are

being used as a benchmark by the government in designing social sector schemes The six Indians who were a part of the ill fated crew of m. v. Suez that was recently freed by Somali pirates reached India after a 10 month ordeal. Pakistani Navy ship PNS Babur had rescued the sailors after m v Suez started sinking off the Indian Ocean. There was a tussle between PNS Babur and INS Godavari, with both ships alleging that the other had tried dangerous manevours when the ships were nearby. (Problem of pirates, how to tackle? Please prepare). Pakistani human rights activist Ansar Burney was instrumental in securing the $2.1 million ransom required for the release of the sailors The Puyehue-Cordn Caulle volcanic complex in Chile erupted, leading to evacuation of 3,500 people from nearby areas. The ash cloud from the eruption has encircled the globe near the Antarctic region, and has disrupted transport in 3 continents India is averse to linking thre military pacts with the USA, mostly on security and political concerns. The article can be read here The Union Cabinet has launched an ambitious National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms which aims to reduce pending time in cases from the present 15 years to 3 years. The article can be read here Government has notified new e-waste (Management & Handling) Rules 2011, which will come into effect from May 1 2012. Read the provisions here NSSOs sample survey on employment reveals that over half of Indias employment is self employment. Read here Harish Manwani has been elevated to the position of COO in Unilever. He is currently a non executive chairman The NSG has effectively ended Indias waiver granted to them in 2008, atleast in the realm of enrichment and reprocessing equipment (ENR) technology. The 46 member group has agreed to strengthen its guidelines on transfer of ENR technologies, and one of the guidelines specifically mention the requirement of signing of the NPT. The article can be read here. The US move to push the new guidelines may be a result of our rejection of their fighter aircraft in the MMRCA deal Government had specified the modalities of the proposed Infrastructure Debt Funds that will be used to fund infrastructure projects. They can be set up either as trusts (Mutual Funds) or companies (NBFC). Read my Budget article for provisions for infrastructure development in India. It is a probable question this time Eurocopter X3 and Sikrosky X2 are two hybrid helicopters with elements of aircraft (such as wings and propellers) which aim to combine the speed of a turboprop of aircraft and full hover flight capabilities of helicopter

One of Indias premier football clubs of yesteryear, JCT FC (Jagajit Cotton Textiles Football Club) was disbanded on June 20. It was known for producing top players from Punjab. The decline started in 2009 10 when seven top local players left the club, bringing it down to its knees Steel Ministry has proposed to set up Ultra Mega Steel Plants (UMSPs) in India to bridge the widening demand supply gap in steel. It has proposed for a Steel Finance Corporation (SFC) as a nodal agency to help set up steel plants on a fast-track basis in the next few years. According to the proposal, each UMSP will come with a yearly capacity of 10 million tonne (MT) and would be set up in mineral-rich states of Orissa, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh Aimed at promoting habit of book reading, Centre proposes to recognize publishing as a small scale industry or priority sector. Read this article

JULY Thailand is gearing up for a potentially violent parliamentary election which would pit the Red Shirts against the Yellow Shirts. Here is a synopsis of what to expect Micheal Noobs is an Australian who has been appointed as Indias Hockey coach Prime Minister Singh in an interaction with newspaper editors has criticized the CAG by commenting that It has never been in the past that the CAG has held a press conference. Never in the past has the CAG decided to comment on policy issues. CAG must limit itself to the role defined in the Constitution. In a 2005 judgement of the Madras High Court, CAG and its functionaries were given the right to brief the media through press conferences on contents of reports prepared by them. (PG Narayan v/s CAG case) Also, note the relevant provisions of Constitution relating to CAG The Pheu Thai party led by Yingluck Shinawatra has won a landslide victory, paving way for her to become the countrys first woman Prime Minister. This heralds an extraordinary political turnaround 5 years after her brother and then PM Thakshin Shinawatra was toppled in a bloodless coup and was convicted of graft. A large mandate to govern could help the new government navigate its way through the crisis that has plagued the country since 2006. Read this for insight Indian athletics has plunged into an overnight doping crisis, with over eight positive tests in less than a week. Three quarters of the CWC Gold winning Womens relay team (AC Ashwini, Mandeep Kaur, Sini Jose) have been tested positive for methanedienone by the NADA. The Ukranian coach Yuri Ogorodnik of the womens relay team has been sacked by the sports ministry. The girls allege that the food supplements provided by him were the cause of the positive dope tests. Some recommendations are here Government has recently removed CBI from the purview of RTI Act, citing that CBI performs intelligence gathering work. Good article talking about why this is a bad move Supreme Court lambasted the Government for its inaction on black money and has appointed a SIT to overview recoveries of the same. This

article analyzes why this necessarily need not be best recourse, and this touches upon judicial activism in general. The GN Bajpai Committee set up to suggest reforms in the New Pension Scheme have suggested a complete overhaul in its incentive and fee structures. The Recommendations can be read here The Ministry of Finance has proposed to bring all micro finance institutions (MFIs) under the regulatory ambit of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) as proposed under the Micro Finance Institutions Development and Regulation Bill 2011. Read this for the bill India has revised its 10 year old remote sensing data policy, easing restrictions on high resolution satellite imagery of sensitive areas in the country. Read this Union Cabinet gave the go ahead for third phase of radio expansion in India. Read this and this. Read about Phase I and II from IYB West Bengal and the rebel Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) have signed a draft pact for establishment of the Autonomous Territorial Council. The pact would be forwarded to the union Home Ministry to lay the grounds for tripartiate meeting. Read this. Probable pub ad question Exports grew 46% in Q1 this year, mainly on US and European demand. Read this Global warming and consequent melting of Arctic ice caps has led to a cold rush. Read this India has impressively brought down its maternal and infant mortality rates, an indication that it will successfully reach the MDG goals in these two areas. Read this _____, social activist and wife of the late Baba Amte passed away. She was most famous for her care of leprosy victims.