Civil Services Mentor January 2012

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LOKPAL BILL
A DRAMA UNFOLD..
INDIA-JAPAN
STARTING ACTIVE PARTNERSHIP
I NDEX
I NDEX
PAGE NO: 3
PAGE NO: 8
Civil Services
Mentor
Januar y: 2012
Chief Editor:
Sachchida Nanda Jha
Editor:
Yagya
Designed by:
Chandan Kumar
011 45151781
Disclaimer:
For Adver t i sement
Cont act at : 01145151781
Edi t or and Publ i sher ar e not
r esponsi bl e f or any v i ew s,
dat a, f i gur es et c. Ex pr essed
i n t h e a r t i c l e s b y t h e
aut h or ( s) . Maps ar e n ot a-
t i onal .
National Issues 15
International Issues 24
Economy Issues 31
India & The World 47
Science & Technology 53
Sports 67
Awards & Prizes 72
In the News 77
Special Study Material:
SCRA: Exam Practice Paper 93
The Jan Lokpal Bi l l campai gn began
i n Januar y 2011 i n t he backdr op of
t he publ i ci t y t hat accompani ed t he
sever al mega-scams t hat sur f aced
i n 2010, not abl y t hose relat i ng t o t he
Co m m o n w e al t h Gam es an d t h e
t el ecom spect r u m al l o cat i on s. I t
caught t he publ i c i magi nat i on w i t h
Anna Hazar e' s f ast at Jant ar M ant ar
i n New Del hi i n Ap r i l 2011. Th at
f orced t he UPA gover nment t o con-
st i t ut e a j oint draf t ing commi t t ee f or
a Lokpal bi l l . The ci vi l soci et y r epr e-
sent at i ves i n t he commi t t ee pr o-
posed a bi l l cal l ed t he Jan Lokpal
bi l l , w hi ch became t he basi s f or di s-
cu ssi ons. Th e b asi c p r i nci pl es on
w hi ch t h e b i l l w as d r af t ed w er e
cul l ed f r om t he Uni t ed Nat i ons Con-
vent i on agai nst Cor r upt i on, w hi ch
r equi r ed al l count r i es t o put i n pl ace
ant i -cor r upt i on i nvest i gat i ve agen-
ci es t hat w oul d be i ndependent of
t he execut ive government and would
have t he j ur i sdi ct i on t o i nvest i gat e
al l publ i c ser vant s f or cor r upt i on.
The Lo k Sab h a passed a hi st o r i c
Lokpal and Lokayukt as Bi ll , 2011, but
d ef eat ed a par al l el Co n st i t ut i o n
( 1 16 t h Am e n d m e n t ) Bi l l , w h i ch
w oul d have gi ven t he Lokpal const i -
t ut ional st at us. On December 22, t he
go v er n m en t i n t r o d u ced t h e Bi l l
al ong w i t h t he Const i t ut i on (116t h
Amendment ) Bi l l i n t he Lok Sabha.
However t he UPA government didn t
put i t t o vot e i n t he Upper House.
Thi s Bi l l i ncor por at ed some of t he
r ecommendat ions of t he Par l iamen-
t ar y St andi ng Commi t t ee on Person-
nel , Publ i c Gr i evances, Law and Jus-
t i ce. Thi s w as a compl et el y new Bi l l
as t he gover nment had w i t hdr aw n
i t s pr evi ous Lokpal Bi l l , w hi ch i t i n-
t roduced in t he Lok Sabha on August
4, 2011, and l at er r ef er r ed t o t he
St andi ng Commi t t ee. The St andi ng
Commi t t ee t abl ed i t s r epor t on De-
cember 9, 2011. The August Bi l l di d
not pr opose t o conf er const it ut i onal
st at us on t he Lokpal . The St andi ng
Commi t t ee r ecommended const i t u-
t i onal st at us so t hat t he Lokpal had
hi gher st at ur e and i ncr eased l egi t i -
macy. The commi t t ee bel i eved t hat
const i t ut ional st at us woul d enhance
t he l egal and mor al aut hor i t y of t he
Lokpal i nst i t ut i on and al so i nsul at e
t he basi c pr i nci pl es of t he Lokpal
f r om t he vi ci ssi t udes of or di nar y or
t r ansi ent maj or i t i es.
Yet , t he Lok Sabha, w hi ch passed t he
Lokpal and Lokayukt as Bi l l w i t h a
f ew amendment s, r ej ect ed t he Con-
st i t ut i on (116t h Amendment ) Bi l l ,
w hi ch r equi r ed t w o-t hi r ds maj or i t y
of t he House pr esent and vot i ng f or
i t s passage. The obj ect of t he Con-
st i t ut i on Amendment Bil l is l audabl e
as i t seeks t o cr eat e an aut onomous
and i ndependent Lokpal at t he Cen-
t r e and Lokayukt as in t he St at es wi t h
pow er s of super i nt endence and di -
r ect i on over i nvest i gat i on and pr os-
ecut i on of publ i c ser vant s accused
of cor r upt i on. Yet , i t f ai l ed t o secure
t he r eq ui si t e su p po r t i n t he Lo k
Sabha because member s f ound a
huge gap bet w een i t s obj ect and t he
p r o v i si o n s o f t h e Lo k p al an d
Lokayukt as Bi l l .
Dur i ng t he debat e i n Parl i ament , t he
o p p o si t i o n w as cr i t i cal o f t h e
government ' s cont rol over t he selec-
t i on and r emoval of member s of t he
Lokpal . But t he St andi ng Commi t -
t ee r epor t show s t hat i t w ant ed t o
di l ut e t he pr ovi si ons w i t h r egar d t o
select ion and removal in t he Bil l t hat
w as i nt r oduced i n August . That Bi l l
had pr oposed a ni ne-member sel ec-
t ion commit t ee, f i ve of w hom w oul d
have been gover nment nomi nees.
Th e St and i n g Com mi t t ee r eco m-
mended a f our -member sel ect i on
comm i t t ee compr i si n g t he Pr i me
M i ni st er, t he Speaker of t he Lok
Sabh a, t he Chi ef Ju st i ce of I nd i a
(CJI), an emi nent Indi an nomi nat ed
unani mousl y by t he Compt rol ler and
Audi t o r Gener al (CAG), t he Chi ef
El ect i on Commi ssi oner (CEC) and
t he Chai r man of t he Uni on Publ i c
Ser vi ce Commi ssi on (UPSC), and t he
Leader of t he Opposi t i on i n t he Lok
Sabha. The December Bi l l pr oposes
f i ve members, of whom t hr ee should
b e go v e r n m en t n o m i n ee s t h e
LOKPAL BILL
A Drama Unfold
Pr i m e M i ni st er, t h e Sp eaker, t he
Leader of t he Opposi t i on i n t he Lok
Sabha and t he CJI or a j udge of t he
Supreme Court nominat ed by t he CJI,
and one emi nent j urist nomi nat ed by
t he Pr esi dent . Had t he gover nment
accept ed t he St andi ng Commi t t ee' s
r e co m m en d at i o n , i t co u l d h av e
dent ed somew hat t he opposi t i on' s
cr i t i ci sm.
Though t he Bi l l kept t he CBI w i t h t he
gover nment , i t al lowed t he Lokpal t o
have i t s ow n ant i -cor r upt i on i nves-
t i gat i ve body. It el i mi nat ed t he need
t o get pr i or sanct i on f or i nvest i ga-
t ion from t he government . It provided
f or t he conf i scat i on of t he asset s of
cor r upt publ i c ser vant s and t he r e-
cover y of l osses caused by t hei r act s
of cor r upt i on f r om t hem. But i t cr e-
at ed a t er r i bl y cumber some pr oce-
dur e f or i nvest i gat i on, by w hi ch a
pr el i mi nar y i nqui r y and hear i ng of
t he corrupt public servant were made
com p ul sor y b ef o r e i nv est i gat i o n
coul d begi n. Thi s ended t he possi -
bi l i t y of maki ng sur pr i se r ai ds and
sei zur es on t he pr emi ses of cor r upt
publ ic ser vant s or t heir abet t or s. The
Bi l l o f Au gu st p r o vi d ed t h at t h e
Lokpal w oul d have i t s ow n i nvest i -
gat i on and pr osecut i on w i ngs. The
St an d i n g Co m m i t t e e, h o w e v er,
sought t o di l ut e t hi s by r ecommend-
i ng i nst ead t hat t he Lokpal conduct
a prel imi nary inqui ry, af t er w hi ch t he
Ce n t r al Bu r eau o f I n v est i gat i o n
(CBI ) w oul d i nvest i gat e. Al so, t he
CBI w oul d have aut onomy over i t s
i nvest i gat i on.
The commi t t ee al so pr oposed t hat
t he Lokpal w i l l have a super vi sor y
r ol e over t he CBI i n cases r el at i ng
t o Gr oup A and B of f i cer s. The Bi l l
of December f ur t her di l ut ed t hese
r eco mmendat i ons. The Lokpal , i t
says, shal l r ef er a pr el i mi nar y i n-
qui r y agai nst Gr oup A, B, C and D
empl oyees t o t he Cent r al Vi gi l ance
Commi ssi on (CVC). The Bi l l f ur t her
says t hat af t er conduct i ng t he i n-
qui r y, t he CVC shal l submi t a repor t
t o t he Lokpal i n t he case of Gr oup A
and B empl oyees and pr oceed ac-
cor di ng t o speci f i ed pr ocedure i n t he
case of Gr oup C and D st af f. The
CVC, accor di ng t o t he cur r ent Bi l l ,
shal l send per i odi c r epor t s t o t he
Lokpal on i t s cases.
The Raj ya Sabha w i t nessed a sor di d
dr ama. Sever al par t i es w hi ch had
w al ked out i n t he Lok Sabha (t he
Samaj w adi Par t y and t he Bahuj an
Samaj Par t y) or had not moved any
amendment s t here (t he Tr i namool
Congr ess) moved amendment s i n
t he Raj ya Sabha and t hei r r epr esen-
t at i ves del i ver ed f i er y speeches op-
posi ng t he pr ov i si o ns o f t h e Bi l l .
When i t became cl ear t hat at l east
t hr ee of t he amendment s (t hose r e-
l at i ng t o t he sel ect i on and r emoval
of Lokpal member s, t he CBI bei ng
br ought under t he admi ni st r at i ve
cont r ol of t he Lokpal , and t he del e-
t i on of t he chapt er on Lokayukt as i n
t he St at es) w ere l i kel y t o be passed,
t he gover nment engi neer ed di st ur -
bances i n t he House, r esor t ed t o f i l i -
bust ering and prevent ed t he amend-
ment s f r om bei ng vot ed upon. And
t he House w as pr or ogued w i t h t he
Bi l l hangi ng i n t he ai r.The drama i n
t he Raj ya Sabha show ed t hat t he
gover nment w as not even w i l l i ng t o
go by t he w i l l of Par l i ament . Thi s
gi ves r i se t o f undament al quest i ons
about t he f unct i oni ng of Indi an de-
mocracy.
The Bi l l adds t hat i f a pr i ma f aci e
case exi st s agai nst a publ i c ser vant ,
t he Lokpal may r ef er i t t o t he CBI f or
i nvest i gat i on. Al so, i t may r ef er a
case f or pr el i mi nar y i nqui r y t o t he
CBI (ot her t han Gr oup A, B, C and D
of f i cer s). The Bi l l al so pr ovi des t hat
t he Lok pal shal l exer ci se gener al
super i nt endence over t he CBI (si mi -
l ar t o t h e CVC' s su per vi si on cu r -
r ent l y). These addi t i onal di l ut i ons i n
t he l at er Bi l l , accor di ng t o cr i t i cs,
r educe t he Lokpal t o j ust a post of -
f i ce.
The commi t t ee r ecommended t hat
t he Lokpal conduct onl y t he pr el i mi -
nary inqui ry and t hat i t be aut hor ised
t o ini t i at e i t suo mot u. In such cases,
t he i nqui r y w oul d have t o be done
by a f i ve-member Lokpal Bench t hat
i s not connect ed w i t h t he suo mot u
i ni t i at i on. M or e i mpor t ant , t he ac-
cused w oul d not get an oppor t uni t y
t o be hear d at t hi s st age, t hough t he
Bi l l of August al l ow ed t hat . The l at er
Bil l rej ect s bot h t hese recommenda-
t i ons and st i cks t o t he August ver -
si on, w hi ch pr ovi ded t hat t he Lokpal
coul d i ni t i at e an i nqui r y onl y on t he
basi s of a compl ai nt by a ci t i zen. The
onl y concession t he Bi l l makes is t hat
t he Lokpal shal l have i t s ow n i nqui r y
w i ng t o conduct a pr el i mi nar y i n-
qui r y on a compl ai nt i t has r ecei ved
and has deci ded can be i nqui r ed
int o.
Under Article 252 or 253
Some par t i es quest i oned t hat l okpal
bi l l shoul d be br ought under ar t i cl e
253 & not under ar t i cl e 252.
Ar t i cl e 252: Ar t i cl e 252. Pow er of
Par l i ament t o l egi sl at e f or t w o or
mor e St at es by consent and adop-
t i on of such l egi sl at i on by any ot her
St at e
(1) If i t appear s t o t he Legi sl at ur es
of t w o or mor e St at es t o be desi r -
abl e t hat any of t he mat t er s w i t h
r espect t o w hi ch Par l i ament has no
pow er t o make l aw s f or t he St at es
except as pr ovi ded i n Ar t i cl es 249
and 250 shoul d be r egul at ed i n such
St at es by Par l i ament by l aw, and i f
r esolut i ons t o t hat ef f ect ar e passed
by al l t he House of t he Legi sl at ur es
of t hose St at es, i t shal l be l aw f ul f or
Par l i ament t o pass an Act f or r egu-
l at i ng t hat mat t er accordi ngl y, and
an y Act so p assed sh al l appl y t o
such St at es and t o any ot her St at e
by w hi ch i t i s adopt ed af t er w ards by
r esol ut i on passed i n t hat behal f by
t he House or, w here t here are t w o
Houses, by each of t he Houses of
t he Legi sl at ur e of t hat St at e.
(2) Any Act so passed by Par l i ament
may be amended or r epeal ed by an
Act of Par l iament passed or adopt ed
i n l i ke manner but shal l not , as re-
spect s any St at e t o w hi ch i t appl i es,
be amended or r epeal ed by an Act
of t he Legi sl at ur e of t hat St at e
Ar t i cl e 253: Ar t i cl e 253. Legi sl at i on
f o r gi vi ng ef f ect t o i nt er nat i on al
agr eement s Not w i t hst andi ng any-
t hi ng i n t he f or egoi ng pr ovi si ons of
t hi s Chapt er, Par l i ament has pow er
t o make any l aw for t he whole or any
p ar t o f t h e t er r i t o r y o f I nd i a f o r
impl ement i ng any t reat y, agreement
or convent i on w i t h any ot her coun-
t r y or count ries or any deci si on made
at any i nt er nat i onal conf er ence, as-
soci at i on or ot her body.
Rel at i on bet w een Uni on and St at es
Th e r el at i o n b et w een Uni o n and
St at es i s t he ver y bedr ock of t he In-
di an Feder al syst em. Indi a i s a f ed-
er al St at e w i t h a nat i onal gover n-
ment and a government of each con-
st it uent st at e. Alt hough t he st ruct ure
of Indi a i s f ederal i n a general way,
yet t here are cert ai n aspect s t hat are
uni que t o f eder al i sm as pr act i ced i n
I ndi a. The I ndi an gover nment f ol -
l ow s a st r ong cent r al bi as.
Some of t he speci al f eat ur es of In-
di a ar e as f ol l ow s:
Agr eement bet w een t he St at es: If
t w o st at es agr ee t hat t he Parl iament
can l egal l y make l aw s w i t h respect
t o t he t w o st at es, t hen t he Par l i a-
ment can make l aw s rel at i ng t o any
law or set of law s r el at ed t o t he St at e
Law s. Thi s i s an ext ensi on of t he Par -
l i ament ar y l egi sl at i ve as l ai d dow n
by t he Ar t i cl e 252 of t he Indi an Con-
st i t ut i on.
Impl emen t at i on of Tr eat i es: Th e
Par l i am e n t m akes l aw s f o r t h e
i mpl ement at i on of t r eat i es, even i f
t he subj ect f al l s under t he l egi sl a-
t i ve pow er of t he St at e, f or t he bi g-
ger i n t er n at i on al i n t er est of t h e
count r y. Thi s pow er has been gi ven
t o t he Uni on by t he Ar t i cl e 253.
Su ggest ed Am en d m en t s: Te am
Anna had suggest ed 34 amendment s
t o r ect i f y t he gover nment ' s Bi l l , and
poi nt ed out t hat f our of t hese w er e
cr i t i cal t o maki ng t he Lokpal a w or k-
abl e inst i t ut i on. These w ere t hat t he
sel ect i on and r emoval pr ocedur e
shoul d be made i ndependent of t he
go v er n m en t ; t h e CBI sh o u l d b e
br ought under t he Lokpal ' s admi n-
i st rat i ve cont rol or, al t ernat i vel y, t he
Lokpal shoul d have i t s ow n i nvest i -
gat i ve b ody; al l go ver nm ent ser -
vant s shoul d be br ought under t he
Lokpal ' s i nvest i gat ive ambit ; and t he
pr ocedur e f or i nvest i gat i on shoul d
be i n l i ne w i t h t he nor mal cr i mi nal
invest igat ion procedure. But t he gov-
er nment w as adamant i n not ac-
cep t i n g any o f t hese ei t her, an d
w ent on t o bul l doze t he passage of
i t s Bi l l . I t r ej ect ed al l t he amend-
ment s moved by t he Opposi t i on i n
t he Low er House.
Notices for 187 Amend-
ments in Rajya Sabha
Not i ce had been gi ven f or as many
as 187 amendment s t o t he Lokpal
and Lokayukt a Bi l l , 2011 i ncl udi ng
f r om t h e Tr i n amo ol Co ngr ess f or
del et i on of t he ent i r e Par t III of t he
Bi l l r egar di ng est abl i shment of t he
Lokayukt as. The Bi j u Janat a Dal and
t he Shiromani Akali Dal t oo had given
si mi l ar not i ces. By af t er noon, t he
Raj y a Sab h a h ad r ece i v e d 17 3
amendment not i ces. The number
sw el l ed t o 187 by eveni ng as an-
nounced by t he M i ni st er of St at e f or
Per sonnel V. Nar ayanasamy. Nor -
mal l y not i ces are t aken 24 hours i n
advance but on Thur sday, not i ces
were accept ed t ill l at e evening, w hi le
t he government t ook t he st and i n t he
House t hat t her e w er e t oo many
amendment s w hich needed consi d-
erat i on.
Among maj or amendment s w ere t he
ones gi ven by t he Bhar at i ya Janat a
Par t y f or del et i on of w or ds not l ess
t han 50 per cent of member s of
Lo k p al b e l o n gi n g t o Sch e d u l e d
Cast es, Sch e d u l ed t r i b es, Ot h er
Backw ar d Cl asses, M i nor i t i es and
Women i n Cl ause 3. They al so asked
f or del et i on of t he w or d M i nor i t i es'
i n Cl ause 3 and i ncl usi on of Leader
of Opposi t i on i n Raj ya Sabha on Se-
l ect i on Commi t t ee i n Cl ause 4. They
al so w ant ed Lokpal t o appoi nt hi s
secr et ar y and n o t sel ect f r o m a
panel gi ven by t he gover nment .
The Communi st Part y of Indi a (M ar x-
i st ) gave amendment f or r epl ace-
ment of emi nent j ur i st on t he Sel ec-
t i on Commi t t ee w i t h an emi nent
per son t o be nomi nat ed by t he Chief
El ect ion Commi ssioner, Compt rol l er
and Audi t or General and Uni on Pub-
l i c Ser vi ce Commi ssi on. They al so
w ant ed t he Inqui r y Wi ng under t he
Lokpal t o be r epl aced by Invest i ga-
t i on Wi ng w i t h t he Cent ral gover n-
ment pr ovi di ng of f i cer s and st af f
under excl usi ve j ur i sdi ct i on of t he
Lokpal as deci ded i n consul t at i on
w i t h t he Lokpal . The Par t y gave an-
ot her amendment f or i ncl usi on un-
der t he Lokpal of any cor por at e
body, i t s promot ers, i t s of f i cers i n-
cludi ng Dir ect or agai nst w hom t her e
i s a compl ai nt of cor r upt i on i n r el a-
t i on t o gr ant of gover nment l i cence,
l ease, cont r act , agr eement or any
ot her act i on t o i nf l uence gover n-
ment policy t hrough cor rupt means.
Th ey w ant ed Lo k p al t o t ake su o
mot u act i on i n a compl i ant of cor -
rupt ion.
Other Angle
Passi ng of Lokpal Bi l l seems qui t e
an i mpossi bl e t ask,because ever y
par t y t o i t has i t s i nt erest .The UPA
go v e r n m e n t su m m ar i l y ch e ck-
m at e d t h e so ci al act i v i st s an d
dr ove t hem i nt o exi st ent i al cr i si s
w hi l e si mul t aneousl y r educi ng t he
Lokpal bi l l t o a maer e a game t ool .
At t he moment , t he act i vi st s w i l l be
happi er w i t h t he no bi l l at al l t han
t he cur r ent ver si on of t he bi l l t abl ed
by t he gover nment . None of t he po-
l i t i cal par t i es w ant s t he Lokpal bi l l .
Even i f i ndi vi dual pol i t i ci ans w ant i t ,
t hey can t do a t hi ng about i t be-
cause t hei r Hi gh Command does
not want i t . But t he count r y s f ut ure
i s at st ake. The pol i t i ci ans are out
t o mai nt ai n t he st at us-quo i n or der
t o prot ect t hei r cor rupt pract i ces and
i l l -got t en w eal t h. But Team Anna
has accept ed t hi s mi ssi on and i s not
goi ng t o r el ent unt i l t hei r goal s ar e
met . Team Anna ral l i ed t he masses
and raised hopes of a ut opi an t omor-
r ow - one w i t h a cl ean and i ndepen-
d en t CBI u n der an i n co r r u p t i b l e
Lokpal . But af t er an ent i r e year of
w r angl i ng w i t h t he gover nment .
M eanw hi l e, t he el ect i ons i n UP ar e
round t he cor ner, and t he Congress
has been expandi ng i t s r each w i t h
some cr af t y el ect or al mat hemat i cs,
a sp e ci al i zat i o n o f f e r e d at t h e
Al l ahabad Uni ver si t y. Aj i t Si ngh i s
al r eady i n t he bag. He w as t r aded
t he l ucr at i ve ci vi l avi at i on mi ni st r y
i n r et ur n f or j oi ni ng t he Congr ess
elect oral al l iance i n UP. Li kew i se, t he
Rai l way M i ni st r y i s bei ng dangl ed
i n f ront of M ul ayam Si ngh Yadav of
t he SP. Doi ng w ell i n t he UP elect i ons
w i l l sur el y ser ve as a shot i n t he ar m
f o r t he Co n gr ess. Fi r st , i t m i gh t
cau se a m en t al b r eak d o w n f o r
M ayaw at i , especi al l y af t er t he el ec-
t i on commi ssi on deci ded t o cover
her st at ues acr oss t he st at e. Sec-
ond l y, i t set s t h e st age f or Rahul
Gandhi s coronat i on as t he PM . Be-
si des, i t w i l l al so gi ve t he Congr ess
gr eat er l ever age agai nst Di di .
On t he ot her si de of t hi s pi t ched
bat t le is t he oppor t uni st i c BJP, w hich
r ecent l y t hr ew open i t s gat es f or
M ayawat i discards i n UP. In cont rast ,
t h e sam e BJP p assed a st r o n g
Lokayut kha bi l l i n Ut t ar khand. The
BJPs goal i s si mpl e - st al l t he bi l l ,
har p on t he gover nment s i ncompe-
t ence, and cash in on t he general di s-
cont ent i n t he count r y, i n hope of
r iding an ant i -cor r upt i on w ave t o get
back i n pow er. The bat t l e l i nes are
dr aw n. On one si de i s t he Congr ess
par t y and i t s f i ckl e, cal cul at i ve al -
l i es. Th e l e ad i n g t r o u b l e - m aker
among t he al l i es i s t he TM C. The
Congr ess needs her now and she
know s t hat . Her pr i mar y l ong-t er m
goal i s t o put t he CPI(M ) out of busi -
ness i n W. Bengal . But at present ,
ever yt hi ng she does is t o ext r act t he
maxi mum f r om t he Congr ess.
Conc lusion
I ndi as pol i t i ci ans agai n st and di s-
cr edi t ed i n t he eyes of peopl e, w ho
ar e aski ng quest i ons t o w hi ch t he
pol i t i ci ans, bot h t he r ul i ng par t y and
t he opposi t i on, do not have an an-
sw er. If w e t r ul y want t o make Indi a
cor r upt i on f r ee w e need t o l ook at
t he new generat i on. Yes t he gover n-
ment can hel p f i r st by cl eani ng
up t hei r admi ni st r at i on and t hen by
puni shing cor rupt peopl e so severely
t hat puni shment becomes a det er -
r ent t o cor r upt i on. The gover nment
can suppor t and r ew ar d honest y
r ew ar d peopl e w ho pay t axes i n-
st ead of har assi ng t hem and go af -
t er t he peopl e w ho do not pay t axes
and yet l ead opul ent l i ves. Rew ar d-
i ng honest y and penal i si ng di shon-
est y w i l l cr eat e an ecosyst em t hat
suppor t s a l i f e of i nt egr i t y. Let t he
honest man be pr i vi l eged and ac-
know l edged so t hat peopl e aspi r e t o
be honest .
We need t o t arget school s and col -
l eges; mot i vat e t he youngst er s t o
t ake char ge so t hat t hey can st ar t
changing t he world around t hem. We
have t o st op payi ng t he cop f or t r af -
f i c of f ences, and w e have t o have
t he w i l l t o f i ght each t i me a br i be i s
asked of us. The peopl e of Indi a need
t he medi a now t he medi a t hat
cat apul t ed t he movement t o f ame
needs t o open an act i on l i ne w her e
ever y act of cor r upt i on can be r e-
por t ed and exposed. Because t hi s
bat t l e can be w on, t hi s change can
be made and w e do not need r egu-
l at i on t o do so.
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India-Japan
Starting Active Partnership
The det er mi ned ef f or t by Indi a and
Japan t o i nj ect l i f e i nt o t hei r bi l at -
er al r el at i onshi p i s show i ng posi t i ve
r esult s. The meet i ng bet ween Pr ime
M inist er M anmohan Si ngh and Japa-
nese pr emi er Yoshi hi ko Noda, t he
si xt h of t he annual Indi a-Japan sum-
m i t s, i s a m ar ke r o f t h e st ead y
pr ogr ess. It yi el ded t he f i r st of f i ci al
conf ir mat i on si nce Japan' s devast at -
i ng t sunami -ear t hquake-Fukushi ma
mel t dow n t hat t he count r y has not
shut t he door on a ci vi l i an nucl ear
d eal w i t h I nd i a. Whi l e M r. Nod a
st r essed t he i mpor t ance of l ear ni ng
t h e r i gh t l e sso n s f r o m Jap an ' s
nu cl ear acci d ent , i t app ear s t h at
negot i at i ons on a deal t o assi st In-
di a devel op peacef ul nucl ear ener gy
w i l l cont i nue.
Hi s pl edge of $4.5 bi l l i on over t he
next f i ve year s f or t he devel opment
of t he Del hi -M umbai Indust r i al Cor -
r i dor, a commi t ment of f i nanci al as-
si st ance f or t w o mor e inf r ast r uct ur e
p r o j ect s Phase 3 of t h e Del h i
M et r o and a bi odi ver si t y conser va-
t i on proj ect i n West Bengal and
hi s i nt er est i n shar i ng hi gh-speed
railw ay t echnology wit h Indi a are si g-
ni f i cant . Japan' s enhancement of i t s
cur rency swap ar r angement f r om $3
bi l l i on t o $15 bi l l i on w i l l hel p Indi a
bet t er manage t he r upee' s sl ump
agai nst t he dol l ar. Thi s shoul d al so
boost f inanci al cooperat ion and eco-
nomi c and t r ade t i es, w hi ch ar e cur -
r ent l y f ar bel ow pot ent i al . The In-
di an si de w ant s mor e Japanese i n-
vest ment . For i t s par t , Japan, w hi ch
has j ust l i f t ed a l ongst andi ng ban on
t he expor t of w eapons, w i l l be l ook-
i ng t o sel l def ence har dw ar e t o New
Del hi .
Pr i me M i ni st er Noda r ei t er at ed hi s
grat it ude f or t he subst ant ial suppor t
ext ended f rom Indi a i n t he wake of
t he Great East Japan Ear t hquake.
Pr i me M i ni st er Si ngh expr essed hi s
hope t hat Japan w i l l make a f ul l re-
cover y as ear l y as possi bl e.The t w o
Pr i me M i ni st er s concur r ed t hat , as
next year mar ks t he 60t h anniversary
of t he est abl i shment of di pl omat i c
r el at i ons bet w een Japan and Indi a,
t hey w oul d make best use of t he
oppor t uni t y t o st r engt hen cul t ur al
and peopl e-t o-peopl e exchanges i n
or der t o deepen mut ual under st and-
i ng at t hei r ci t i zens' l evel .
Pr i me M i ni st er Noda' s vi si t capped
a year of i nt ense bi l at eral act i vi t y.
The For ei gn M i ni st er s hel d a st r at e-
gi c di al ogue i n Oct ober, f ol l ow ed by
t al ks bet w een t he def ence mi ni s-
t er s. I n Feb r u ar y, t h e t w o si d es
signed t he Comprehensive Economic
Par t n er sh i p Agr eement cov er i n g
t r ade i n goods as w el l as ser vi ces;
i t came i nt o ef f ect i n August . Ear l i er
t hi s mont h, I ndi a, Japan, and t he
Uni t ed St at es hel d t hei r f i r st t r i l at -
er al st r at egi c di al ogue. It i s cr edi t -
abl e t hat despi t e t he pol i t i cal i nst a-
bi l i t y i n Japan, and t he scandal -i n-
duced par al ysi s i n Indi a, bot h coun-
t r i es managed t o f i t i n t hese hi gh-
l evel exchanges. I t i s cr uci al t hat
gr ow i ng Indi a-Japan t i es ar e vi ew ed
i ndependent l y of each count r y' s r e-
l at i ons w i t h Chi na. New Del hi and
Bei j i ng ar e engaged i n i mpr ovi ng
r el at i ons at var i ous l evel s, i ncl udi ng
t r ade, event ual l y ai mi ng t o ami ca-
bl y r esol ve t he boundar y quest i on.
Chi na i s Japan' s bi ggest t r adi ng part -
ner ; t he t w o have a bi l at er al t r ade
of $340 bi l l i on t hat nei t her can af -
f o r d t o e n d an ger. Th e f e ar s ex-
pr essed i n a sect i on of Chi na' s new s
medi a t hat M r. Noda' s vi si t i s par t
of a cont ai nment st rat egy ai med
at Bei j i ng ar e needl ess. The Chi nese
gover nment has done w el l t o pl ay
t hem dow n.
History
Exchange bet w een Japan and Indi a
i s sai d t o have begun i n t he 6t h cen-
t ury w hen Buddhism w as int r oduced
t o Jap an . I nd i an cu l t ur e, f i l t er ed
t hr ough Buddhi sm, has had a gr eat
i mpact on Japanese cult ur e, and t hi s
i s t h e so u r ce o f t h e Jap an e se
peopl e' s sense of cl oseness t o I n-
di a. Af t er Wor l d War II, i n 1949, In-
d i an Pr i m e M i n i st e r Jaw ah ar l al
Nehr u donat ed t wo Indi an el ephant s
t o t h e Ue n o Zo o i n To k y o . Th i s
br ought a r ay of l i ght i nt o t he l i ves
of t he Japanese peopl e w ho st i ll had
not recovered f rom defeat in t he war.
Jap an an d I n d i a si gn ed a p eace
t r eat y and est abl i shed di pl omat i c
r el at i ons on 28t h Apr i l , 1952. Thi s
t r eat y w as one of t he f i r st peace
t reat ies Japan si gned af t er t he Worl d
War II. Ever si nce t he est abl i shment
o f di p l o m at i c r el at i o n s, t h e t w o
count r i es have enj oyed cor di al r el a-
t i ons.
Bilateral Treaties and
Agreements
Treat y of Peace (1952)
Agr eement f or Ai r Ser vi ce (1956)
Cul t ur al Agr eement (1957)
Agr eement of Commer ce (1958)
Convent i on f or t he Avoi dance of
Doubl e Taxat i on (1960)
Agr eement on Cooper at i on i n t he
f i el d o f Sci en ce an d Tech n o l o gy
(1985)
I n t he po st Wo r l d War I I p er i o d,
Indi a' s i r on or e hel ped a gr eat deal
Jap an ' s r eco v er y f r o m t h e
d ev ast at i on . Fol l ow i ng Japan ese
Pr ime M i ni st er Nobusuke Ki shi' s vi si t
t o I n d i a i n 19 57 , Jap an st ar t e d
pr ovi di ng yen l oans t o Indi a i n 1958,
as t he f i r st yen l oan ai d ext ended
b y Jap an e se go v er n m e n t . Si n ce
1986, Jap an h as b eco m e I n d i a' s
l ar gest ai d donor, and remai ns so.
Pr i me M i ni st er M or i ' s vi si t t o Indi a
i n Au gu st 20 0 0 p r o v i d e d t h e
moment um t o st r engt hen t he Japan-
Indi a rel at ionship. Si nce t hen, annual
meet i ngs bet w een pr i me mi ni st er s,
i ncl udi ng Pr i me M i ni st er Koi zumi ' s
vi si t t o I ndi a i n Apr i l 2005, Pr i me
M i ni st er Si ngh' s vi si t t o Japan i n
Decemb er 2006, Pr i m e M i ni st er
Abe' s vi si t t o Indi a i n August 2007,
and Pr i me M i ni st er Si ngh' s vi si t t o
Japan i n Oct ober 2008, have l ed t o
t he est abl i shment of t he " St r at egi c
an d Gl ob al Par t ner shi p b et w een
Jap an an d I n d i a" as w el l as t h e
f urt her st rengt heni ng of t he bi lat er al
rel at i onshi p. M ost recent l y, dur i ng
Pr i me M i ni st er Hat oyama' s vi si t t o
Indi a i n December 2009, Japan and
I nd i a si nged t he Jo i nt St at em ent
" New St age of Japan-Indi a St r at egi c
and Gl obal Par t ner shi p" .
Whi l e Indi a has become t he l ar gest
r eci pi en t of Jap an ese ODA si nce
2003- 04, b o t h b i l at er al t r ad e i n
go ods and Jap an s FDI i nt o I nd i a
have al most st agnat ed dur i ng t he
p ast d ecad e. Wi t h m aj o r I n d i an
expor t s t o Japan bei ng domi nat ed
by pr oduct s of mi ner al oi l s, gems &
j ew el s, m ar i n e p r o d uct s ( mai nl y
sh r i mps) and i r on or e, I n di a and
Japan have not yet f or med such a
dynam i c i nt er nat i onal di vi si o n of
l abour as can be seen among t he
East Asi an co u n t r i es. Jap an s
cumul at i ve FDI i nt o Indi a i s so f ar
l ar ger t han t hat of Kor ea, but as f ar
as e l ect r o n i cs ap p l i an ce s ar e
co ncer ned , Jap an ese co m p ani es
have been over w hel med by Kor ean
compani es i n t he Indi an mar ket .
I n d i a an d Jap an ar e h i gh l y
complement ary economies, but t heir
mut ual complement ar it ies remained
underexpl oi t ed hi t her t o. Recent l y,
h o w e v er, a n e w t i d e h as b ee n
obser ved i n Japan t o expand Indo-
Jap an r el at i ons based on mut ual
co m p l em e n t ar i t i e s. Jap an h as
ab u n d an t cap i t al an d i s h i gh l y
advanced i n t echnol ogi cal ski l l s and
pr oduct devel opment w hi l e Indi a i s
endow ed w i t h a huge mar ket and
abundant human resources. Japan i s
o u t st an d i n g i n t e r m s o f
manu f act ur i n g abi l i t i es, w her eas
Indi a has advant ages i n IT ser vi ces
an d b i o i n f o r m at i cs. Th an k s t o
vi gor ous economi c gr ow t h i n t he
wake of t he economi c ref or ms and
t he Look East Pol i cy i nt r oduced
af t er 1991, Indi a has successf ul l y
deepen ed i t s eco nom i c r el at i o ns
w i t h t he East Asi an count r i es. We
can see a r emar kabl e expansi on of
I ndi as economi c t i e-ups w i t h t he
ASEAN count r i es, Chi na and Kor ea
si n ce t h e l at e 1 99 0s, w i t h o n l y
IndoJapan r el at i ons l aggi ng behi nd.
I n d i a- Ch i n a b i l at e r al t r ad e h as
r emar kabl y expanded t o be mor e
t han f our t i mes l ar ger t han Indi a-
Japan bi l at er al t r ade.
Koizumis Visit to India
in 2005
The si gni f i cance of vi si t of Japanese
Pr i me M i ni st er Juni chi r o Koi zumi i n
2 0 05 can n o t b e u n d er st at e d
consider ing t he f act t hat t his w as t he
f ir st vi sit by a Japanese head of st at e
af t e r a h i at u s o f n ear l y h al f a
d e cad e. Pr i o r t o t h at , o n l y t w o
ser v i n g Jap an ese h ead s o f st at e
have visit ed India w it h a 10 year gap.
W h i l e t h e se st at i st i cs am p l y
demonst r at e t hat a regular exchange
o f hi gh -l ev el p ol i t i cal vi si t s h av e
been a w eak l i nk i n Indo-Japanese
t i e s, p e r h ap s Pr i m e M i n i st e r
Koi zumi s vi si t i s a l andmar k one as
i t p r o m i ses t o i n i t i at e b i l at e r al
compr ehensi ve vent ur es i nt o t w o
ar eas - eco n o m i c an d st r at egi c,
w h i ch w e r e l y i n g p o t e n t i al l y
u nt ap ped f o r sev er al y ear s. Th e
highli ght of t he Pr i me M i ni st er s vi si t
w as i ndubi t abl y t he si gni ng of t he
Japan-I ndi a Par t nershi p i n a New
Asi an Er a: St r at egi c Or i ent at i on of a
Japan-Indi a Global Part ner shi p an
e i gh t - f o l d i n i t i at i v e an n o u n ce d
t ow ar ds st r engt heni ng Japan-Indi a
Gl obal Par t ner shi p, w hi ch i ncl ude
t he f ol l ow i ng:
Enhanced and upgr aded di al ogue
archit ect ure, includi ng st rengt hening
o f t h e m o m en t u m o f h i gh - l e v el
exchanges, l aunching of a Hi gh Level
St r at e gi c Di al o gu e an d f u l l
ut i l i zat i on of t he exi st i ng di al ogue
mechani sms.
Co m p r e h en si v e e co n o m i c
engagement , t hr ough expansi on of
t r ad e i n go o d s an d se r v i ces,
i nvest ment f l ow s and ot her areas of
e co n o m i c co o p er at i o n , an d
e xp l o r at i o n o f a Jap an - I n d i a
economi c par t ner shi p agr eement .
Enhanced secur i t y di al ogue and
cooperat i on.
Sci ence & Technol ogy Ini t i at i ve
Cul t ur al an academi c i ni t i at i ves
and st r engt hen i n g of peo pl e- t o -
peopl e cont act s
Cooper at i on i n usher i ng a new
Asi an er a
Cooper at i on i n t he UN and ot her
i nt er nat ional or ganizat ion, i ncl uding
ear l y r ef o r m o f t h e UN Secur i t y
Counci l
Co o p er at i o n i n r esp o n d i n g t o
global chal l enges and oppor t uni t i es.
W h i l e t h i s e i gh t - f o l d i n i t i at i v e
i ncorporat es many i ssues addressed
by t he t w o count r i es i n t hei r Joi nt
Decl ar at i on of December 2001, i t i s
cer t ai n l y a mo r e com p r ehensi v e
del i neat i on and f r amew or k of ar eas
of common i nt er est s and concer ns.
In a nut shel l , i t can be st at ed t hat
t her e i s a uni que par adox t hat has
d ef i n ed I n d i a- Jap an r el at i o n s at
l ar ge. On t he one hand, t her e has
b een t h e ab sen ce o f an y m aj o r
di sput e. On t he ot her, how ever, what
has been mi ssi ng i s t he r i chness t hat
coul d have char act er i zed bi l at er al
t i es. In ot her w or ds, t he rel at i onshi p
t o dat e can be chr oni cl ed as one of
mi ssed oppor t uni t i es. It i s cl ear t hat
t h e sy n e r gy o f I n d o - Jap an ese
cooper at i on i s essent i al not j ust t o
f urt her bi lat er al r el at ions, but f or t he
gr eat er cause of a mor e secure Asi a-
Paci f i c r egi on. Even t hough t he vi si t
by Pr ime M inist er Koi zumi was shor t ,
i t shoul d be used as bed r ock f or
f ur t her i ng bi l at er al t i es.
An i ncr eased aw ar eness among t he
gener al popul ace of t he t w o nat i ons
as envi saged under t he ei ght -f ol d
i ni t i at i ve i s equal l y cr uci al as t he
ext ent of medi a cover age r ecei ved
by such landmar k st eps as Koi zumi s
vi si t and need t o be hi ghl i gh t ed.
Whi le Indias embar kat i on on a Look
East pol i cy i n t he l ast decade was
sy mp t o m at i c of t h e si gni f i can ce
India at t aches t o t he region, t he t i me
has come t o expl oit t he f ul l pot ent ial
of i nt er act i on w i t h co unt r i es l i ke
Japan . The t w o co unt r i es shou l d
w o r k t o ge t h e r i n t h e ar e as o f
common i nt er est s and concer ns i n
t he year s t o come so t hat t hey can
look back at t hei r r el at i ons wi t h pri de
and sat i sf act i on at t he end of t he
n e xt f i v e d e cad e s, w h e n w e
cel ebr at e a hundr ed year s of t he
est abl i shment of r el at i ons.
Bi l at er al t r ade i s expandi ng i n t he
r ecent years. How ever, t he speed
and sco p e o f exp ansi o n ar e st i l l
l i mi t ed. Jo i nt St ud y Gr ou p ( JSG),
composed of gover nment of f i ci al s
and repr esent at i ves of busi ness and
academi a f r om t he t w o count r i es,
hel d f our meet i ngs af t er Jul y, 2005.
JSG sub mi t t ed i t s r epor t t o b ot h
Pr i me M i ni st er s w hen t hey met i n
Ju l y, 2 0 0 6, w h i ch i n cl u d es a
recommendat i on f or l aunchi ng EPA
negot iat ions. In December, 2006, t he
Pri me M i nist er s of t he t w o count r ies
d e ci d e d t o l au n ch i m m e d i at e
negot i at i ons f or t he concl usi on of a
b i l at e r al Eco n o m i c Par t n e r sh i p
A g r e e m e n t / Co m p r e h e n s i v e
Economi c Par t ner shi p Agr eement
ai mi ng t o compl et e i n subst ance as
soon as possi bl e i n appr oxi mat el y
t w o y ear s. Th i r t e en r o u n d s o f
negot i at i ons w er e hel d in New Del hi
and To kyo r espect i vel y as o f Jul y
2010.
Japan-I ndi a St r at egi c Di al ogue on
Economi c Issues w hi ch r evi ew s t he
cur r ent st at us of bi l at er al economi c
i ssu e s d i scu ssed at Su m m i t
m ee t i n gs, an d u n d er t akes
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Japanese pr i vat e-sect or s i nt erest i n Indi a i s r i si ng, and, cur rent l y, about
627 Japanese compani es have br anches i n Indi a. (The f i gur e doubl ed over
t he l ast 3 year s.)
coor di nat i on as necessar y w as hel d 3 t i mes i n New Del hi and Tokyo
r espect i vel y as of Jul y 2010 si nce t he Di al ogue w as l aunched i n Jul y 2007.
In August 2007, t he Busi ness Leader s' For um w as hel d i n New Del hi on t he
occasi on of Pr i me M i ni st er Abe' s vi si t t o Indi a, and t he Second meet i ng
was hel d i n Tokyo i n Oct ober 2008.
The t w o Pr i me M i ni st er s w el comed t he ent r y i nt o f or ce of t he Japan-Indi a
Comprehensi ve Economi c Par t nershi p Agreement (CEPA) i n August t hi s
year and t he commencement of negot i at i ons on an agr eement on soci al
secur i t y. Wit h regard t o t he Del hi-M umbai Indust ri al Cor ri dor (DM IC), Pr ime
M i ni st er Noda announced t he i nt ent i on of t he Gover nment of Japan t o
make avai l abl e f i nance t ot al i ng 4.5 bi l l i on US dol l ars i n t he next f i ve years.
The t w o Pr i me M i ni st er s concur r ed t hat t hey w oul d pr omot e par t i ci pat i on
of Japanese compani es t o r eal i ze t he DM IC.
In t hi s r egar d, bot h Gover nment s r eached an agr eement on such i ssues as
Jap an ' s i n v o l v e m e n t w i t h t h e De l h i - M u m b ai I n d u st r i al Co r r i d o r
Devel opment Cor por at i on (DM ICDC), r el axat i on of f i nanci al r est r i ct i ons
so as t o pr omot e DM IC proj ect s, all ocat i on of nat ur al gas f or DM IC pr oj ect s,
and ear ly reali zat i on of t hree model proj ect s, namel y, seawat er desal i nat ion
at Dahej , Guj ar at , a mi cr ogr i d syst em usi ng l ar ge-scal e phot ovol t ai c (PV)
pow er gener at i on Pr oj ect at Neemr ana Indust r i al Ar ea i n Raj ast han, and
gas-f i r ed i ndependent pow er pr oducer (IPP) Pr oj ect i n M ahar asht r a. The
t w o Pr i me M i ni st er s concu r r ed on t he need t o st r engt hen bi l at er al
cooper at ion on inf r ast r uct ure development in Sout hern Indi a, i mprovement
of connect i vi t y bet w een Chennai and Bangal or e, and devel opment of India' s
Hi gh- speed r ai l w ay sy st em. Pr i m e M i n i st er No d a pl edged t h at t h e
Gover nment of Japan w oul d ext end ODA l oans t ot al i ng appr oxi mat el y 1.7
bi l l i on US dol l ar s (appr ox. 134. 3 bi l l i on yen) i n t ot al f or t w o pr oj ect s
i ncl udi ng f or t he Del hi M ass Rapi d Transpor t Syst em Proj ect . The t w o Pri me
M i n i st er s d eci d ed t o en h an ce t h e ear l i er b i l at er al cu r r en cy sw ap
ar r angement f r om 3 bi l l i on US dol l ar s t o 15 bi l l i on US dol l ar s. Concer ni ng
ci vi l nucl ear cooper at i on, Pr i me M i ni st er Si ngh not ed t hat he under st ood
Japan' s sensi t i vi t y w el l . The t w o Pr i me M i ni st er s deci ded t o move f or w ar d
w i t h t he negot i at i ons w i t h a vi ew t o
co n cl u d i n g an Agr e e m e n t f o r
Cooper at i on i n t he Peacef ul Uses of
Nu cl e ar En e r gy i n a m u t u al l y
sat i sf act or y manner. Wi t h regard t o
r are eart hs, t he t w o Pri me M i ni st er s
sh ar e d t h e v i ew t h at b o t h
Gover nment s shoul d cont i nue t hei r
di al ogue i n or der f or Japanese and
I n d i an e n t e r p r i se s t o j o i n t l y
under t ake i ndust r i al act i vi t i es.
The l ong-awai t ed Indi a-Japan CEPA/
EPA was f i nal l y si gned i n Febr uar y
2 01 1 , an d cam e i n t o e f f e ct i n
August . Tar i f f s w i l l be el i mi nat ed on
90 per cent of Indi an and 97 per cent
of Japanese goods over t en year s.
Japan i s expect ed t o expor t mor e
au t o-p ar t s an d st eel pr odu ct s t o
Indi a and i mpor t mor e agr i cul t ur al
an d mar i n e p r odu ct s f r om I ndi a.
Nat i onal t r eat ment , on t he si de of
Jap an , i s acco r d e d f o r t h e
ap p l i cat i o n o f ap p r o v al s f o r t h e
r el ease of gener i c medi ci nes. Some
impr ovement has been made f or t he
movement of peopl e, i ncl uding Yoga
i n st r u ct o r s, Engl i sh t eacher s and
Indi an cui si ne mast er s. Indi aJapan
bi l at er al t r ade w i l l be mor e t han
doubled t o $25 bi ll i on by 2014 under
t he CEPA/ EPA.
What is CEPA ?
The second phase of I ndi as Look
East Pol i cy aims t o achieve j ust t hat .
Agai n st t h i s b ack gr o u n d , I n d i a-
Jap an t i e s ar e ap p r o p r i at el y
p o si t i o n ed f o r t ake - o f f . Th e
si gn i f i can ce o f Pr i m e M i n i st e r
Si nghs vi si t t o Japan can be seen i n
f our ar eas: concl usi on of f our year s
of negot iat i ons on a Compr ehensi ve
Economi c Par t ner shi p Agr eement
( CEPA) , d eci d i n g t o sp e ed u p
negot i at i ons on a ci vi l nucl ear deal ,
si m p l i f yi ng vi sa p r o ced ur es, an d
f i n d i n g co m m o n gr o u n d f o r
conver gence of i nt er est s i n secur i ng
peace and st abi l i t y i n Asi a. CEPA i s
br oader t han a f ree t r ade agr eement
because i t i ncludes st eps t o pr omot e
gr eat e r i n v e st m en t an d al so
ad d r e sses i n t el l ect u al p r o p e r t y
r i ght s. The CEPA w i l l hel p address
t hi s i mbal ance and Japan w i l l have
t o r educe t ar i f f s on 97 per cent of
Indi an i mpor t s, and Indi a w i l l have
t o r educe t ar i f f s on 90 per cent of
goods i mpor t ed f r om Japan over t he
next decade. Japan w i l l get gr eat er
mar ket access f or most i ndust r i al
go o d s, as w e l l as se v er al
agri cul t ur al product s such as duri an,
cur r y, t ea leaves, l umber, shr i mp and
sh r i m p p r o d u ct s. I n d i a w i l l ge t
i mproved mar ket access i n Japan i n
aut o par t s, st eel panel s, and ot her
i ndust r i al mat er i al s, as w el l as DVD
p l ay e r s, v i d e o cam er as an d
i ndust r i al machi ner y.
The t w o count r i es began t al ks on a
ci vi l i an nucl ear deal in June 2010 but
t he subj ect i s t oo sensi t i ve i n Japan
because Indi a has r ef used t o adher e
t o t he NPT and CTBT as i t consi der s
t hem di scr i mi nat or y, even t hough
I n d i a h as v o l u nt ar i l y su sp en d ed
nucl ear t est i ng. In l at e 2009, Pr i me
M i n i st e r Si n gh sai d t h at I n d i a s
posi t i on on t he CTBT coul d change
i f Bei j i ng and Washi ngt on w ere t o
j oi n t he pact . Chi na, Indi a and t he
US are t hree of t he ni ne Annex 2
st at es t hat must r at i f y t he t r eat y f or
i t t o ent er i nt o f or ce. Japan t hus
agr eed t o st ar t nego t i at i o n w i t h
I n d i a o n a f r am e w o r k f o r t h e
peacef ul t r ansf er of nucl ear pow er
t ech n o l o gi e s t o I n d i a. Pr i m e
M i ni st er Kan agr eed t o speed up
negot i at i ons, w hi l e seeki ng Indi as
u n d e r st an d i n g f o r Jap an s
sent i m ent s. Bot h l eader s agr eed
t hat ci vi l nucl ear ener gy can be a
m u t u al l y b e n e f i ci al ar e a f o r
co o p e r at i o n . I n d i a w e l co m e s
Japanese f i r ms t o par t i ci pat e i n t he
expansi on of i t s nucl ear i ndust r y f or
peacef ul pur poses.
Unt i l recent l y, Japanese compani es
had a negat i ve i mage about Indi as
i n v est m en t en v i r o n m en t , w h i ch
co n st i t u t e d a se n se o f
psychol ogical di st ance f r om Indi a.
Ho w ev er, t h e success o f Ko r ean
compani es i n gai ni ng a l ar ge shar e
of t he Indi an consumer el ect r oni cs
mar ket indicat es t hat w hat Japanese
co mp ani es t end ed t o i d en t i f y as
ar eas o f co n ce r n , i . e . ad v er se
i nvest ment envi r onment , ar e not
n ecessar i l y cr i t i cal f act o r s t h at
d et er r ed Kor ean o r Si n gap or ean
compani es. The number of Japanese
compani es i n I ndi a has i ncr eased
f r om 267 i n Januar y 2006 t o 438 i n
Jan u ar y 2 00 8 an d f r o m 5 5 0 i n
Oct ob er 2008 t o 725 i n Oct o ber
2010. Thei r i nvest ment val ue has
more t han doubled t o 189 bil li on yen
i n 2007-08 and t ot al l ed 809 bi l l i on
y en i n 2 0 08 - 0 9, o u t st r i p p i n g
Japanese FDI i nt o Chi na.
Japan i s gl obal l y ranked t he second
l argest IT mar ket w i t h an est i mat ed
t ur nover of $100 bi l l i on. Japan i s
r e n o w n ed as o n e o f t h e m o st
co m p e t i t i v e n at i o n s i n
m an u f act u r i n g i n d u st r i e s o r
har dw ar e pr oduct i on. As of 2007,
Jap an h ad a t o t al o f 907, 9 90 I T
engi neer s and w as shor t of 501,000
I T e n gi n e e r s i n cl u d i n g 3 6 0 , 0 0 0
pr of essi onal s. Gener al l y speaki ng,
Japanese compani es ar e i ncl i ned
t ow ar ds i n-house pr ocur ement and
ar e r at her caut i ous about over seas
I T o f f sh o r i n g. Bu t w h e n t h e y
of f shore, t hey pref er t o t urn t o Chi na
, As f or t he dest i nat i on of Japans IT
of f shor i ng, cur r ent l y 80 per cent of
Jap an ese com p an i es o f f sh o r e t o
Chi na and onl y 25 per cent t o Indi a.
For I ndi a, Japan account s f or onl y
l ess t h an 2 p er cen t o f i t s t o t al
sof t w ar e and IT ser vi ces expor t s. As
f or Japanese subsidi ar ies of IBM and
Accen t ur e, t h ey ar e al r eady f ul l y
ut i l i zi ng Indi an IT r esour ces t hr ough
o f f sh o r i n g t o t h e i r I n d i an
subsi di ar i es. It w i l l be st r at egi cal l y
m o r e i m p o r t an t f o r Jap an e se
compani es t o f ocus on Indi a as an
I T of f sho r e l ocat i o n, especi al l y i f
t hey w ant t o go gl obal .
Th e l ev e l o f p e o p l e - t o - p e o p l e
exchange bet w een Indi a and Japan
i s st i l l f ar f r om sat i sf act or y, w hi ch
i s exempl i f i ed by st agnat ed st udent
exchanges. It should be r emembered
t h at t her e ar e as m an y as t hr ee
mi l l i on I ndi an Amer i cans, most of
w hom ar e pr of essi onal s, pl ayi ng an
i ndi spensabl e r ol e i n deepeni ng and
cement i ng t he r el at i onship bet w een
I n d i a an d USA. I m p r o v i n g t h e
schol ar shi p and Japanese l anguage
t r ai n i n g sch e m e s f o r I n d i an
st udent s, i ncr easi ng t he number of
l ect ur es gi ven i n Engl ish at Japanese
uni versit ies, and pr ovidi ng at t ract ive
car eer pat hs f or Indi an gr aduat es t o
appl y f or Pr ospect s and Chal l enges
f or Expandi ng Indi a-Japan Economi c
Rel at i o n s en l ar ged em p l o y m en t
o p p o r t u n i t i e s i n Jap an e se
compani es ar e ur gent l y needed f or
at t r act i ng mor e Indi an st udent s t o
Japan. Now i s a good t i me, w hen
ent er i ng a new phase of Indi a-Japan
r el at i ons, f or us t o consol i dat e our
r el at i o n s e sp eci al l y t h r o u gh
acce l er at ed p eo p l e- t o - p e o p l e
exchan ges. Nu mb er o f Jap an ese
nat i onal s r esi di ng i n Indi a: 3,284 (as
of Oct ober, 2008)
Number of Indi an nat i onal s r esi di ng
i n Japan: 22,335 (as of December,
2008).
The Japanese economy has been
st r ai n ed i n t h e af t er m at h of t he
massi ve ear t hquake and t sunami ,
accompani ed by r adi at i on l eak at
t he Fukushi ma nucl ear pow er pl ant .
We cannot i gnore t he af t er ef f ect s
of t he Great East Japan Ear t hquake
on Indi a-Japan economi c r el at i ons.
Fi r st , t h e n u m b e r o f I n d i an I T
engineer s wor ki ng in Japan has been
r educed f r om 15,000 t o 7,000, si nce
many Indi an IT engi neer s have not
yet ret urned t o Japan. Fur t her, si nce
domest i c suppl y chai ns have been
damaged b y t h e ear t h quake and
gi ven t he r ecor d appr eci at i on of t he
yen, Japanese compani es ar e under
even gr eat er pr essur e t o r eal l ocat e
t h ei r p r o d u ct i o n f aci l i t i e s t o
emer gi ng economi es.
Al l t hese f act o r s p r o vi de a goo d
oppor t uni t y f or f ur t her accel er at i ng
Jap an ese FDI i n t o I n d i a. Th e
f o l l o w i n g t w o t ask s sh o u l d b e
ad dr essed f o r f ur t h er exp an di ng
I n d i a- Jap an eco n o m i c r el at i o n s.
Fi rst , t he Del hi -M umbai I ndust r i al
Cor ri dor shoul d be st ar t ed al ong t he
r i gh t l i n e, w h i ch w i l l b e t h e
t ouchst one f or f ut ur e I ndi a-Japan
co l l ab o r at i o n . Seco n d , h u m an
exchanges shoul d be pr omot ed by
al l m e an s f o r cem e n t i n g an d
expandi ng bi l at er al r el at i ons.
Jap an e se Ai d t o I n d i a ( 1 , 5 45 . 7
mi l l i on dol l ar s)
Keral a Wat er Suppl y Pr oj ect (I I)
(Yen Loan: 273.1 mi l l i on dol l ars)
De l h i M ass Rap i d Tr an sp o r t
Syst em Proj ect (Phase 2) (I I) (Yen
Loan: 113.2 mi l l i on dol l ar s)
Guj ar at For est r y Devel opm ent
Proj ect (Phase 2) (Yen Loan: 146.0
mi l l i on dol l ar s).
Tr an sm i ssi o n Sy st e m
M oder ni zat i on and St r engt heni ng
Pr oj ect i n Hyder abad M et r opol i t an
Ar e a ( Ye n Lo an : 1 97 . 5 m i l l i o n
dol l ar s)
Conclusion
As t hi s year mar k s t he f i f t h year
si n ce t h e e st ab l i sh m e n t o f t h e
Jap an -I nd i a St r at egi c and Gl o bal
Par t ner shi p i n 2006, w i t h t he 60t h
anni ver sar y of t he est abl i shment of
di pl omat i c rel at i ons next year, t hi s
St at e vi si t by Pr i me M i ni st er Noda
h as i m p r e sse d o n al l si d e s t h e
f r i e n d l y b i l at er al r e l at i o n sh i p
b et w e en Jap an an d I n d i a, an d
cont r i but ed t o f urt her consol i dat i ng
a t rust ing relat i onshi p at t he l eaders'
l e v e l . W i t h r e gar d t o b i l at er al
r el at i ons, t he t w o Pr i me M i ni st er s
shar ed t he vi ew t hat t hey shoul d
expand cooper at i on i n t he ar ea of
mar i t i me securi t y i n t he pol i t i cal and
secur i t y f i el ds. Subst ant i al pr ogr ess
w as made i n many economi c ar eas,
i ncl udi ng cooper at i on f or t he DM IC,
i n f r ast r u ct u r e d e v e l o p m e n t i n
So u t h er n I n d i a i n cl u d i n g t h e
connect i vi t y bet w een Chennai and
Ban gal o r e, en h an cem en t o f t h e
b i l at e r al cu r r e n cy sw ap
ar r an gem en t , ext en si on o f ODA
l oans i ncl udi ng f or t he Del hi M ass
Rapi d Transpor t Syst em, j oi nt r are
eart hs pr oj ect s, among ot her s. Wi t h
r egar d t o r egi onal si t uat i ons and
gl o b al i ssu e s, t h e t w o Pr i m e
M i ni st er s al so af f i r med t hat t he t w o
count r i es cont i nue cooper at i on i n
var i ous r egi onal i ssues i n Asi a and
ot her i nt er nat i onal i ssues such as
t he gl o bal eco no my an d cl i m at e
change.
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Dear Candidat es,
As Civil Services aspirant s, all of you are facing a number of problems, from choosing opt ional Subj ect s t o
what t o read in General St udies and many more. These are t he main hurdles bet ween you and your
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launching a free guidance Programme. Where you can avail t he guidance of our expert s.
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How t o choose your opt ional subj ect s?
What t o read and how t o read?
What should be t he right approach for t his examinat ion?
Overall st rat egy and individual specific st rat egy.
Suggest ed readings and many more.
Along wit h t hese guidance programmes we are also providing.
I mport ant news and Art icles from The Hindu, Times of I ndia and I ndian Express on a daily basis.
I mpor t ant Ar t i cl es f r om Pr ess I nf or mat i on Bur eau and f r om var i ous w ebsit es of Gover nment Mi ni s-
t r i es on a w eekl y basi s.
Our main concern at t he moment , is t o creat e equalit y among t he aspirant s because t he candidat e who are
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National Issues
Infant Mortality
Rate is Declining
I n f an t m o r t al i t y r at e ( I M R) h as
show n a 3 poi nt decl i ne, dr oppi ng
f r om 50 deat hs per 1,000 l i ve bi r t hs
t o 47 and movi ng a st ep cl oser t o
achi evi ng t he M i l l enni um Devel op-
ment Goals (M DG) t arget of 30. How-
ever, IM R i ncreased by one poi nt i n
Ker al a, M i zo r am an d Dad r a an d
Nagar Havel i . Accor di ng t o t he l at -
est Sam p l e Regi st r at i o n Sy st em
(SRS), conduct ed by t he Regi st r ar -
Gener al of Indi a, t he t w o w or st per -
f or mi ng St at es M adhya Pr adesh
an d Hi m ach al Pr ad e sh h av e
show n an i mpressive 5 point decl ine.
I n t he f or mer, t he f i gure dropped
f r om 67 i n 2009 t o 62 i n 2010 and i n
t he lat t er, it was f rom 45 t o 40 . Whi le
t he IM R nat i onal aver age i s 47, i t
st ands at 51 i n t he r ur al ar eas and
31 i n t he ur ban r egi ons. How ever,
neo-nat al deat hs cont i nue t o be a
chal l enge w her e 34 babi es ar e st i l l
dyi ng f or ever y 1,000 bor n.
Uni on Heal t h and Fami l y Wel f ar e
Secret ar y P. K. Pr adhan sai d Bi har,
Guj ar at , Odi sha, Punj ab, Raj ast han,
Tami l Nadu, M eghal aya, Si kki m and
Tr i pura had show n a f our-poi nt de-
cl i ne i n t he IM R. Andhr a Pr adesh,
Assam , Ch h at t i sgar h , Har y an a,
Kar n at ak a, M ah ar ash t r a, Del h i ,
Nagal an d , Ut t ar ak h an d an d
Chandi gar h have sho w n a t hr ee-
point decl ine. Simi larl y, i n Jhar khand,
Ut t ar Pradesh, West Bengal , Jammu
and Kashmir, M ani pur and Andaman
and Ni cobar Isl ands, t he IM R came
d ow n by t w o p oi n t s w hi l e i t r e-
mai ned st at i c i n Lakshdw eep and
Puducherr y. A one poi nt decl i ne was
r epor t ed f r om Ar unachal Pr adesh,
Goa and Daman and Di u. I mp or -
t ant l y, t he gover nment i nt ended t o
set up f aci l i t i es such as Speci al New
Bo r n Car e Un i t s, Ne w Bo r n
St abi l i sat i on Uni t s and New Bor n
Baby Cor ner s at dif f erent l evel s wi t h
at l east one at t he di st r i ct l evel . The
mot her and chi l d t r acki ng syst em
had evoked a huge response, w i t h
1.32 cr or e w omen and 82.6 l akh chil -
dr en al r eady r egi st er ed.
50 % of HIV Patients in
Asia live in India
Indi a has hal f of Asi a' s HIV pat i ent s
and i s w ay ahead of Chi na i n di s-
ease bur den. It al so f i nds a pl ace i n
t he l i st of 22 count r i es pr i or i t ised f or
pr event i ng mot her t o child t ransmi s-
si on i nf ect i on, accor di ng t o t he l at -
est UNAIDS r epor t , dr af t ed j oi nt l y
w i t h t he Uni t ed Nat i ons Chi l dr en' s
Fund (UNICEF) and t he Worl d Healt h
Or gani sat i on (WHO). About 48 l akh
peopl e w er e l i vi ng w i t h HIV i n Asi a
i n 2010 and near l y hal f of t hem 49
per cent t o be pr eci se ar e i n Indi a,
says t he r epor t r el eased on t he eve
of Wor l d AIDS Day. The percent age
of pr egnant women w ho t est ed posi-
t i ve f or HI V i nf ect i on i n Indi a al so
r ose f r om 2 per cent i n 2005 t 0 23
per cent i n 2010.
Seven Asi an count r i es r epor t an es-
t i mat ed 100,000 or mor e peopl e l i v-
i ng w i t h HI V i n 2009, col l ect i vel y
account i ng f or mor e t han 90 per cent
of peopl e w i t h HIV i n t he r egi on. In-
di a t ops t he l i st f ol l ow ed by Chi na,
Th ai l an d , I n d o n e si a, M al ay si a,
M yanmar and Vi et nam, t hough t he
hi gh est pr eval en ce r at e, one per
cent , w as obser ved only i n Thail and.
In Asi a, t he r at e of HIV t r ansmi ssi on
appear s t o be sl ow i ng dow n. The
est i mat ed 3,60,000 peopl e who were
new l y i nf ect ed w i t h HIV i n Asi a i n
2010 w er e consi der abl y f ew er t han
t he 4,50,000 est i mat ed f or 2001.
Ex-Im Bank of India
Amendment Bill, 2011
Raj ya Sabha appr oved t he Expor t -
Impor t Bank of I ndi a Amendment
Bi l l , 2011, on 27 December 2011. It
ai ms at p r o m ot i n g i n t er n at i on al
t r ade by r ai si ng t he capi t al f unds of
over seas t r adi ng f r om t wo t housand
cr or e r upees t o t en t housand cr or e
r upees. The Bi l l w as passed by t he
Lok Sabha ear l i er.
Lokpal and Lokayukta
Bill, 2011
The Lok Sabha on 27 December 2011,
appr oved t he Lokpal and Lokayukt a
Bi ll , 2011 w it h t he gover nment mak-
i n g i t cl e ar t h at set t i n g u p o f
Lokayukt as by t he st at es w oul d not
be mandat or y. However, t he Const i -
t ut i onal Amendment Bi l l , desi gned
t o conf er const it ut i onal st at us on t he
an t i - co r r u p t i o n w at ch d o g, f e l l
t hr ough, as t he gover nment f ail ed t o
get t w o-t hi r ds suppor t f or i t .
The Lokpal and Lokayukt a Bi l l , 2011
w as appr oved af t er t he gover nment
m o v ed a f ew o t h er key am en d -
ment s, i ncl udi ng keepi ng t he De-
f ence For ces and Coast Guar d per -
sonnel out of t he pur view of t he ant i-
gr af t ombudsman and i ncreasi ng t he
exempt i on t i me of f or mer M Ps f r om
f i ve t o seven year s. A number of
amendment s moved by t he Opposi -
t i on, i ncl udi ng Cor por at es, M edi a
and NGOs recei ving donat i ons, w er e
def eat ed. The gover nment r ej ect ed
t he opposi t ion' s demand t o br ing CBI
under Lokpal .
Regulation of Factor
(Assignments Rec eiv-
able) bill, 2011 Ap-
proved
Raj ya Sabha appr oved t he Regul a-
t i on of Fact or (Assi gnment s Recei v-
abl e Bi l l , 2011) o n 27 Decem ber
2011 t o hel p mi cr o, smal l and me-
di u m ent er pr i ses.Th e bi l l ai ms at
r egul at i n g assi gnm en t o f r ecei v -
abl es by maki ng pr ovi si on f or r egi s-
t r at i on of t he r i ght s and obl i gat i ons
of par t i es t o cont r act . It appl i es t o
al l t ypes of i ndust r y w het her i t i s
smal l , medi um or bi g. It w i l l hel p
mi t igat e t he payment problem of t he
M SM E uni t s. Fact or s w i l l be r egu-
l at ed by t he Reser ve Bank of Indi a.
The Lok Sabha had al r eady passed
t he bi l l .
A bill to Add More
Scheduled Tribes to
List passed
Raj ya Sabha of Indi an Par l i ament on
2 2 De cem b e r 2 0 1 1 p asse d t h e
b i l l t h e Co n st i t u t i o n ( Sch ed u l ed
Tr i b es) Or d er ( Am en d m ent ) Bi l l ,
2011 t o amend t he l i st of Schedul ed
Tr i bes an d add m or e t r i bes f r om
Nort h-East er n India. The bill i ncl udes
si x mo r e t r i b es nam el y Th an gal ,
Zem e , M at e, I n p u i , Li an gm ai ,
Rongmei f r om M ani pur and subst i -
t ut es Gal o i n pl ace of Gal ong i n t he
l i st of Schedul ed t r i bes i n Ar unachal
Pr adesh. At present , 26 communit i es
e x i st i n t h e l i st o f Sch e d u l e d
Tr i bes i n Ar unachal Pradesh, w hi ch
i ncl udes Gal ong as w el l . The Lok
Sabh a had passed t h e Bi l l o n 19
December 2011.
Indian Army Blinded
by Controversial
Equipment
The Indi an Army' s i mager y i nt er pr e-
t at i on capabi l i t i es, cr i t i cal t o pr ovi d-
i ng i nf or mat i on on t he l ocat i ons of
enemy t r oops and t hei r mi l i t ar y as-
set s, have been compr omi sed by
f l aw ed cont r act s pl aced w i t h a com-
pany t hat has f ai l ed t o pr ovi de cr i t i -
cal sof t war e upgr ades, an invest i ga-
t i on by The Hi ndu has f ound. Docu-
ment s obt ai ned by The Hi ndu f r om
t he M i ni st r y of Def ence show t hat
t he f i r m r esponsi bl e f or suppl yi ng
and i nt egr at i ng sof t w ar e used i n
cr i t i cal i mage i nt el l i gence anal ysi s
w as r el i eved of i t s r esponsi bi l i t y t o
pr ovi de f r ee upgr ades i n 2008
and i s now on t he ver ge of r ecei vi ng
a Rs.165-cr or e cont r act f or t he sup-
pl y of sof t ware i t may no longer have
l i censi ng r i ght s f or. M I17 t he su-
per -secr et mi l i t ar y i nt el l i gence de-
par t ment t hat anal yses dat a pr o-
vi ded by Indi a' s spy sat el l i t es r e-
l i es on sof t w ar e pr ovi ded by gl obal
sof t w ar e gi ant s Int er gr aph, Or acl e,
and Bent l ey.
Rol t a, an Indi an company, suppl i ed
phot ogr ammet r y and geogr aphi cal
i n f o r m at i o n sy st em so f t w ar e l i -
censed f r om t hese f ir ms t o t he Army
i n 1996, i n t egr at i ng t h em i nt o a
si ngl e package t o meet M I17' s spe-
ci f i c n e ed s. Fr o m t h en t o 2008,
t hi ngs w ent wel l w hen a new con-
t r act f or 14 phot ogr ammet r y and
geogr aphi cal i nf o r mat i on syst em
packages came up t o be si gned. The
ear l i er cont r act bound Rol t a t o pr o-
v i d e so f t w ar e u p d at es and u p -
gr ades f r ee of cost , as par t of a
m ai n t e n an ce co n t r act . I n 200 8,
t hough, t he phr asi ng w as changed
t o j ust updat es f r eei ng Rol t a of
t he obl i gat i on t o pr ovi de t he most
r ecen t sof t w ar e r el eased b y t h e
or i gi nal equi pment manuf act urer.
Rol t a w as pai d Rs.506.45 cr or e f or
equipment purchased bet ween 1998
and 2008. I n addi t i on, i t r ecei ved
annual mai nt enance cont r act s f or
equi pment pur chased dur i ng t hi s
per i od; as of December 2008, t hei r
cu m u l at i v e v al u e w as Rs. 4 0. 66
cr ore per annum.
But by ear l y t hi s year, hi ghl y-pl aced
mi l i t ar y sour ces sai d, M I17' s i mage-
pr ocessi ng speeds had f al l en t o j ust
a sevent h of t hose bei ng obt ai ned
by t he Nat i onal Techni cal Research
Or gani sat i on, w hi ch al so anal yses
t he same dat a using si mi l ar sof t w ar e
wi t h t he lat est upgrades, Int er gr aph-
Er das. The r ecor ds of t he cont r act
n ego t i at i o n co m m i t t ee, o r CNC,
show a ser i es of quest i onabl e deci -
si ons l ed t o t hi s out come. I n t he
f o ur t h meet i ng o f t h e CNC, o n e
member not ed t hat an odd change
had been made t o t he name of t he
sof t w ar e bei ng suppl i ed t o M I 17:
t he v en do r, he ob ser v ed , h ad
added [ t he] company name Rol t a'
i n al l t he sof t war e bei ng pr ovi ded by
hi m. The change of name i mpl i ed
t hat t he equi pment bei ng suppl i ed
w as not t he same as w as pur chased
i n 1996, w hi ch w oul d have necessi -
t at ed f resh acqui sit ion procedures t o
be i ni t i at ed.
Free Medicare For Poors
in Maharashtra
M ahar asht r a gover nment wi l l spend
Rs. 800 cr or e on t he f i r st phase of a
heal t h scheme f or t he poor, w hi ch
i s sl at ed t o benef i t near l y 50 l akh
f am i l i es f r o m ei gh t d i st r i ct s,
M ahar asht r a Deput y Chi ef M i ni st er
Aj i t Paw ar sai d at a f unct i on. Under
t h e Raj i v Gan d h i Je e v an d ay e e
Arogya Yoj ana,' any f ami l y ear ni ng
bel ow Rs. 1 l akh per annum can get
f r ee medi cal t r eat ment and car e
w o r t h Rs. 1. 5 l ak h a y ear.
M ah ar ash t r a Ch i e f M i n i st e r
Pr i t hvi r aj Chavan sai d t hat no ot her
St at e h ad i m p l e m e n t e d su ch a
scheme on such a w i de l evel . He,
al ong w i t h t he Deput y Chi ef M i ni s-
t er and St at e Healt h M i ni st er Sur esh
Shet t y di st r i but ed i dent i t y car ds t o
needy f ami l i es f r om t he ci t y at t he
f unct i on her e.
4.5 Percent Quota For
Minorities
The Uni on cabi net of Indi a on 22
December 2011 appr oved 4.5 per -
cent shar e f or mi nor i t i es w i t hi n t he
27% OBC quot a i n j obs and uni ver -
si t y seat s. The appr oval w i l l come
i n f orce f rom 1 Januar y, 2012. It sug-
gest s t hat mi nor it ies can get 4.5 j obs
out of ever y 100 gover nment j obs
and uni ver si t y seat s. As per t he dat a
r el eased by t he Nat i onal Commi s-
si on f or Rel i gi ous and Li ngui st i c M i -
nor i t i es, t he OBC popul at i on w as 52
p er cent o f I n di a s p op ul at i o n, o f
w hi ch mi nor i t i es const i t ut e 8.4 per -
cent . Just i ce Raj i nder Sachar Com-
mi t t ee Report -rel eased i n November
2006- had f ound t he mi nor i t y com-
m u ni t y u n d er - r ep r esen t ed i n al l
spher es of pr of essi onal and publ i c
l i f e.
Notices for 187 Amend-
ments in Rajya Sabha
Not i ce had been gi ven f or as many
as 187 amendment s t o t he Lokpal
and Lokayukt a Bi l l , 2011 i ncl udi ng
f r om t he Tr i namoo l Congr ess f or
del et i on of t he ent i r e Par t III of t he
Bi l l r egar di ng est abl i shment of t he
Lokayukt as. The Bi j u Janat a Dal and
t he Shi romani Akali Dal t oo had given
si mi l ar not i ces. By af t er noon, t he
Raj y a Sab h a h ad r ece i v e d 17 3
amendment not i ces. The number
sw el l ed t o 187 by eveni ng as an-
nounced by t he M i ni st er of St at e f or
Per sonnel V. Nar ayanasamy. Nor -
mal l y not i ces are t aken 24 hours i n
advance but on Thursday, not i ces
were accept ed t i ll lat e evening, whi le
t he government t ook t he st and in t he
House t hat t her e w er e t oo many
amendment s which needed consi d-
erat i on.
Among maj or amendment s were t he
ones gi ven by t he Bhar at i ya Janat a
Par t y f or del et i on of w or ds not l ess
t han 50 per cent of member s of
Lo k p al b e l o n gi n g t o Sch e d u l e d
Cast es, Sch ed u l e d t r i b es, Ot h er
Backw ar d Cl asses, M i nor i t i es and
Women i n Cl ause 3. They al so asked
f or del et i on of t he w or d M i nor i t i es'
i n Cl ause 3 and i ncl usi on of Leader
of Opposi t i on i n Raj ya Sabha on Se-
l ect i on Commi t t ee i n Cl ause 4. They
al so w ant ed Lokpal t o appoi nt hi s
secr et ar y and n o t sel ect f r o m a
panel gi ven by t he gover nment .
The Communi st Part y of Indi a (M ar x-
i st ) gave amendment f or r epl ace-
ment of emi nent j ur i st on t he Sel ec-
t i on Commi t t ee w i t h an emi nent
per son t o be nomi nat ed by t he Chief
El ect ion Commi ssioner, Compt rol l er
and Audi t or General and Uni on Pub-
l i c Ser vi ce Commi ssi on. They al so
w ant ed t he Inqui r y Wi ng under t he
Lokpal t o be r epl aced by Invest i ga-
t i on Wi ng w i t h t he Cent ral gover n-
ment pr ovi di ng of f i cer s and st af f
under excl usi ve j ur i sdi ct i on of t he
Lokpal as deci ded i n consul t at i on
w i t h t he Lokpal . The Par t y gave an-
ot her amendment f or i ncl usi on un-
der t he Lokpal of any cor por at e
body, i t s promot ers, i t s of f i cers i n-
cludi ng Dir ect or agai nst w hom t her e
i s a compl ai nt of cor r upt i on i n r el a-
t i on t o gr ant of gover nment l i cence,
l ease, cont r act , agr eement or any
ot her act i on t o i nf l uence gover n-
ment policy t hrough cor rupt means.
Th ey w ant ed Lo k p al t o t ake su o
mot u act i on i n a compl i ant of cor -
rupt ion.
Courts Can Interfere in
the Case of
Contractual Job
The Supr eme Cour t of Indi a on 20
December 2011 ruled t hat cour t s can
i nt er f er e i n t he case of cont r act ual
j ob i f t he deci si on t aken by t he man-
agement i s ar bi t rar y. A bench of t he
apex cour t , however, said t hat scope
of such j udi ci al r evi ew i s not al l per -
vasi ve. It sai d a w ri t Cour t i s ent i t l ed
t o j udi ci al l y r evi ew of t he act i on and
det er mi ne w het her t her e w as any
i l l egal i t y, per versi t y, unreasonabl e-
ness, unf ai r ness or i r r at i onal i t y t hat
w oul d vi t i at e t he act i on. The cour t
passed t he or der on a pet i t i on f i l ed
by Gr i d Cor por at i on of Or i ssa Lt d
chal l engi ng t he Or i ssa Hi gh Cour t ' s
order. In i t s order Or i ssa hi gh cour t
asked t he gr i d cor porat i on t o rei n-
st at e one of i t s empl oyee w hose
cont r act ual j ob w as t er mi nat ed.
National Food Security
Bill approved
The Uni on Cabi net of Indi a on 18
December 2011 appr oved a dr af t
Nat i o n al Fo o d Se cu r i t y Bi l l t h at
seeks t o gi ve l egal ent i t l ement of
cheaper f ood-gr ai ns t o 62.5 per cent
of t he count r y' s popul at i on. The t o-
t al f inancial li abi li t y t o implement t he
l aw w oul d be 3.5 l akh cr or e r upees,
as f unds w i l l be r equi r ed t o r ai se
agr i cul t ur e pr oduct i on, cr eat e st or -
age sp ace an d p u b l i ci t y am o n g
ot her s. The bi l l ai ms t o pr ovi de In-
di an ci t i zens access t o nut r i t i onal
f ood at af f or dabl e pr i ces. Thi s bi l l
pr oposes t o gi ve a l egal ent i t l ement
t o f ood t o 75 per cent of our r ur al
popul at i on and 50 per cent of our
ur ban popul at i on.
The bi l l al so pr ovi des f or 7 kg of r i ce,
w heat and coar se gr ai ns per per son
per mont h t o pr i or i t y househol ds at
3 Rupees, 2 r upees and 1 r upee per
kg respect i vel y.
Ancient numbers in the
land of Ramanujan
Li t er ar y sour ces i n Tami l ment i on
numbers onl y in words. However, we
do have anci ent l i t er ar y r ef er ences
sp eci f i cal l y m ent i o n i n g eN ( n u -
m er al ' ) as d i st i n gu i sh e d f r o m
ezhut t u ( l et t er of t he al phabet ,' f or
exam p l e, To l k ap p i y am 6 5 5. 4 ,
Ti r uk kur al 392). But as pal m l eaf
manuscr i pt s decay w i t h t i me and
har dl y l ast f or mor e t han 200 year s,
w e have t o t ur n t o dur abl e st one or
pot t ery inscript ions t o know what t he
anci ent Tami l numeral s l ooked l i ke.
We i l l ust rat e t w o of t hem here, one
f r om each cl ass (Fi gs. 1 & 2). The
ol dest st one i nscr i pt i on f eat ur i ng a
numer al i s t he Tami l -Brahmi cave
i n scr i p t i o n f r o m To n d u r, n e ar
Gi ngee, i n Vi l l upur am di st r i ct , as-
si gned t o about t he 3r d cent ur y C.E.
(Fi g. 1). The numeral 3 engraved at
t he end of a shor t t w o-l i ne i nscr i p-
t i on i n t he cave i s r epr esent ed by
t hr ee hor i zont al par al l el l i nes. The
i nscr i pt i on r ecor ds t hat t he vi l l age
of Agal ur gi f t ed t hr ee st one beds i n
t he cave chi sel l ed by M osi . The gi f t
w as made t o t he Jai na monks r esi -
dent i n t he cave. The vi l l age st i l l
exi st s w i t h t he same name Agal ur,
near Tondur, bot h of w hi ch st i l l have
si zeabl e Jai na popul at i ons. The nu-
mer al 3 has t he same f or m as in con-
t empor ary Pr akr i t i nscr ipt i ons i n t he
Br ahmi scr i pt i n Nor t h Indi a.
A wel l -preser ved pot t er y i nscr i pt i on
f r o m Al agan k u l am n e ar
Ramesw ar am has onl y t he numer al
i nci sed i n f ai r l y l arge si ze (Fi g. 2).
The i nscr i pt i on i s dat ed t o t he 1st or
2nd cent ur y C.E. The number i s r ead
408, f r om r i ght t o l ef t , f ol l ow i ng t he
anci ent convent i on of r eadi ng t he
di gi t s f r om t he r i ght (ankaanaam
vaam at o gat i h). The f i r st di gi t at
ri ght looki ng l i ke t he cross is t he sym-
bol f or 4. It i s f ol l ow ed by t he sym-
bol f or 100 (r esembl i ng t he Br ahmi
l et t er sa) and t he l ast symbol at l ef t
i s 8, i nci sed i n r ever sed di r ect i on.
As t her e i s no accompanyi ng t ext ,
w e do not know t he si gni f i cance of
t he number. The f i nd i s st i l l i nt erest -
i ng f or t he absence of t he pl ace-
val ue syst em. The convent i on of us-
i ng symbol s f or 10, 100, and 1000 i n
expr essi ng t he higher numer al s w as
cur rent i n Tami l Nadu unt i l t he ad-
vent of pr i nt i ng and t he adopt i on of
t he i nt er nat i onal f or m of Indi an nu-
mer al s w it h pl ace-val ue syst em. The
pot t er y i nscr i pt i on i s al so good evi -
dence f or w i despread l i t er acy, i n-
cl udi n g nu mer acy, i n t he anci ent
Tami l count r y.
Animals also Entitled to
Ac cident Compensation
A bench of t he Supr eme Cour t i n-
cl udi ng Just i ces BS Chauhan and TS
Thakur on 16 December 2011 r ul ed
t hat even ani mal s ar e ent i t l ed t o
acci dent compensat i on. The cour t
uphel d an aw ar d of 13.48 l akh r u-
pees f or t he deat h of a t empl e el -
ep han t . The an i mal w as hi t by a
KSRTC (Keral a St at e Transpor t Cor-
por at i on) bus. The cour t r ef used t o
accept t he cont ent i on t hat t he M o-
t or Vehi cl es Act w oul d be appl i cabl e
t o human beings and not t o ani mals.
I t cl ar i f i ed t hat t he d ef i ni t i on o f
proper t y i n t he M ot or Vehi cl es Act
i s ver y i ncl usi ve and w i de. Ther e-
f or e, ani mal shoul d be i ncl uded un-
der t hi s act . The court added t hat t he
el ephant w as ow ned by t he t empl e
and i t was Gods proper t y.
5 Girls Gailed as icons'
by President
The gi r l s, w i t h l i t t l e educat i on and
al most no sup por t , t ur ned do w n
mar r i age pr oposal s and f aced t he
anger of t hei r f ami l i es and t he com-
muni t y. Thei r st or i es of courage i m-
pr essed t he Pr esi dent so much t hat
sh e go t t h em i n v i t e d t o t h e
Rasht r apat i Bhavan. They ear ned
pr ai se f r om t he Pr esi dent , w ho de-
scr i bed t hem as i cons and asked
t hem t o shar e t hei r st or i es and en-
cour age gi r l s t o say no t o under -age
mar r i ages. For Af sana and Suni t a,
i t w as t hei r second meet i ng w it h t he
Pr esi dent w ho encour aged t hem t o
camp ai gn agai n st chi l d m ar r i age
among t hei r peer s.
Whi l e educat i on opens up new av-
en ues f or t he gi r l ch i l d, an ear l y
mar r i age br i ngs w i t h i t a cycl e of
mi ser y, poor heal t h and pover t y, she
sai d. A young mot her w i t h chi l dr en
of t en become vi ct i m of poor heal t h
and mor t al i t y. She urged t he di st r i ct
aut hor i t i es t o cr eat e mor e aw ar e-
ness of w hat t he gi r l s have done by
t aki ng t hem on a t our of t hei r di s-
t r i ct dur i ng t hei r school hol i days t o
i nspi r e ot her s.
10 % of the Group B Posts
in Paramilitary Forces to
Ex-Servic emen
The Uni on M i ni st r y of Home Af f ai r s
agr eed t o f i l l 10% of t he Gr oup B
post s i n Cent r al Par ami l i t ar y For ces
f r om among Ex-Ser vi cemen. Pr es-
ent l y, t he scheme cat ers t o 38 l akh
benef i ci ar i es i ncl udi ng 12 l akhEx-
Servi cemen and over 26 l akh depen-
dent s. Thi s scheme i s cur r ent l y be-
i n g i m p l e m en t e d t h r o u gh 2 4 7
pol ycl i ni cs. I ni t i al l y, 227 pol ycl i ni cs
had been appr oved by t he Uni on
Cabi net of Indi a. Lat er, i n 2008 an-
ot her 199 pol ycl i ni cs w er e san c-
t i oned, out of w hi ch 20 ar e f unc-
t i onal and 179 pol ycl i ni cs ar e in var i -
ous st ages of i mpl ement at i on. Dur -
i ng t he year 2010-11, a t ot al of 89
l akh pat i ent s at t ended t he pol ycl i n-
i cs. Wi t h t he commi ssi oni ng of al l
t he sanct i oned pol ycl i ni cs, t he en-
t i r e f r at er n i t y o f Ex- Ser v i cem en
w oul d be covered comprehensi vel y.
Cable Television Net-
works Regulation Act
amended
The Lok Sabha on 13 December 2011
unani mousl y passed a Bi l l t o f ur t her
am en d t heCab l e Tel ev i si o n Net -
w or ks Regul at i on Act , 1995. I t r e-
pl aces a Pr esi dent i al Or di nance of
2 5 Oct o b e r, 2 01 1 . As p e r t h e
amendment s, t her e w i l l be a check
o n o b j ect i o n ab l e co n t e n t s.
Door dar shan w i l l be abl e t o pr ovi de
mo r e f r ee- on-ai r chann el s i n t he
DTH mode t o audi ences acr oss t he
count r y. Cabl e TV operat ors vi ol at -
i ng t he pr ovi si ons of t he Bi l l w il l f ace
penal t y.
The l egi sl at i on w i l l r educe depen-
dence on t he t elevision rat i ng poi nt s,
TRP. By 2014, t he ent i re cabl e net -
w or k w i l l be di gi t i zed. Those Cabl e
oper at or s w ho w i l l vi ol at e t he Cabl e
Tel e v i si o n Ne t w o r k Re gu l at i o n
Act ,1995 Gover nment w i l l have t he
r i ght t o consi der about t he cont i nu-
i t y of t he Li cence of t hose cabl e op-
erat ors. Ti l l dat e, t hi s ki nd of provi -
sion was not in exi st ence i n t he f or m
of Act .
Kalam Favours
Linking of Rivers
For mer President of India A.P.J. Abdul
Kal am advocat ed i nt er l i nki ng r i ver s
and dams t o f or m a smar t nat i onal
w at er gr i d management scheme as
Indi a cannot af f or d ci vi l w ar or con-
f l i ct over wat er. He sai d r i vers, wa-
t er w ays and w at er r esour ces must
be nat i onal i sed on t he l i nes of r oads
and pow er sect or s. Wat er i s now
i n t he cont r ol of St at es. It has t o be
l i nked by f or mi ng a nat i onal wat er
gr i d management j ust l i ke Nat i onal
Hi ghways and pow er gr i d, he sai d.
Inaugurat i ng Agr i con 2011' , a con-
f er ence on agr i cul t ur e R& D t r ends
2020, organi sed by CII, he sai d, Wa-
t er cannot be a [ sour ce of ] conf l i ct
i n Indi a. Indi a cannot af f or d t o have
a ci vi l w ar on w at er w hen w e have
t o w or k uni t edl y f or devel opment .
Nat i on i s bi gger t han t he i ndi vi dual
par t i es (pol i t i cal par t i es) and St at es.
Indi an r iver s have t o be oper at ed by
t he Ar my, Navy or t he ar med f orces
f or equit abl e dist ri but i on of w at er t o
doubl e f ood product i on.
About 170 mi l l i on hect ar e ar abl e
l and w i l l be r educed t o 100 mi l l i on
hect ar e due t o i ncreasing populat i on
gr ow t h and af f or est at i on and envi -
ronment al preservat i on act ivi t i es, Dr
Kal am sai d and ur ged agr i cul t ur al
sci ent i st s and t echnol ogi st s t o w or k
w i t h or gani sat i ons such as IFFCO t o
enhance aver age pr oduct i vi t y per
h e ct ar e f r o m 1. 1 t o n n es t o 3 . 4
t onnes of t he avai l abl e l and f or cul -
t i vat i on w i t h l ess need of wat er. Re-
f er r i ng t o pr eci si on f ar mi ng pr oj ect
of t he St at e, he sai d by doi ng t he
r i ght t hi ng, i n t he r i ght pl ace at t he
r i ght t i me, Tami l Nadu had creat ed
a gr eat aw ar eness among t he f ar m-
ers w hi ch gave hi gher product i vi t y,
mar ket access and made f ar mers as
ent r epr eneur s.
When t he ent i r e nat i on w as st r ug-
gl i ng t o achi eve even t w o per cent
gr o w t h i n agr i cu l t u r e , Gu j ar at
post ed seven t o ni ne per cent over
t he past si x year s. The Guj ar at gov-
er nment w as abl e t o do i t by i mpl e-
ment i ng mi ssi on mode act i on. Dr.
Kal am al so ci t ed Bi har ' s exper i ence
i n doubl i ng t he product i vit y and sai d
t hese experi ences clearl y show t hat
w e can do i t ' , but w hat w e need i s
a mi ssion mode approach across t he
nat i on w i t h r espect t o agr i cul t ur e;
and w e need a cr eat i ve l eader shi p
w ho has a vi si on f or l eadi ng t he sec-
ond gr een revol ut ion f or t he next 10
year s.
Mullaperiyar Dams
Water Level Should Not
Exceed 136 Feet
The Supr eme Cour t of Indi a di r ect ed
Tami l Nadu t o ensure t hat t he wat er
l evel i n t he M ul l aper i yar dam does
not exceed 136 f eet but decl i ned t o
ent er t ai n Keral as pl ea f or reduci ng
t he l evel t o 120 f eet . A f i ve-Judge
Const i t ut i on Bench, headed by Jus-
t i ce DK Jai n gave t he order. The Su-
preme Cour t asked Tami l Nadu and
Ker al a t o mai nt ai n r est r ai nt on t hei r
st at ement s on t he M ul laper iyar dam
row. Urgi ng f or sani t y and sensi t i v-
it y, t he court lament ed t hat t hey were
addi ng f uel t o t he f i r e i nst ead of
dousi ng i t . The Bench al so asked t he
Cent re t o cl ari f y it s posi t i on on Tami l
Nadu' s pl ea f or depl oyment of Cen-
t r al Indust r i al Secur i t y For ce t o pr o-
t ect t he dam f r om possi bl e vandal -
i sm.
Karnataka Now Third in
Sugar Produc tion
Kar nat aka has now emer ged as one
of t he t op sugar pr oduci ng St at es i n
t he count r y, af t er M aharasht ra and
Ut t ar Pr adesh. The St at e' s sugar pr o-
duct i on has shot up t o 37.14 l akh
t onnes, an i ncr ease of 12. 25 l akh
t onnes i n j ust under a year, accord-
i ng t o r epor t s r ecei ved i n t he St at e
headquar t er s about a f or t ni ght ago.
The sugar year commences i n Oct o-
ber and ends i n Sept ember. Even
sugar r ecover y has i mpr oved dr a-
mat i cal l y, and Kar nat aka now st ands
second, af t er M ahar asht r a. Sugar
r ecover y i s t he yi el d of sugar f or ev-
er y t onne of sugar cane cr ushed i n
f act or i es. The aver age r ecover y i n
t he St at e i s now 10.95 per cent . It i s
11.50 per cent i n M ahar asht r a and
9.7 per cent i n Ut t ar Pr adesh. It w as
a happy augur y t hat Kar nat aka had
emer ged as t he t hi r d l ar gest sugar
pr oducer i n t he nat i on. It w as onl y
some year s ago t hat t he St at e over -
t o o k An d h r a Pr ad esh an d Tam i l
Nadu. It now has al most 60 sugar
f act or i es, a quant um j ump over t he
past decade. Sugar cane pr oduct i on
i n t he St at e has i ncr eased f r om 228
l akh t onnes t o 339.03 l akh t onnes
i n j ust about a year al t hough t he
ar ea under sugar cane has onl y mar -
gi nal l y i ncr eased.
Amendment s t o t he Pet r ol eum and
M i ner al s Pi pel i ne Act
passed t he amendment s t o t he Pe-
t r ol eum and M i ner al s Pi pel i nes (Ac-
qui si t i on of Ri ght of User i n Land)
Act , 1962. The Bi l l ai ms t o make
pr ovi si ons f or suf f i ci ent det er r ence
t o cr i mi nal s f r om commi t t i ng t he
of f ence of pi lf er age or sabot age. The
exist i ng sub-sect i on (2) of sect i on 15
pr ovi des t hat w hoever w i l l f ul l y r e-
moves, di spl aces, damages or de-
st r oys any pi pel i ne, shal l be puni sh-
abl e w i t h r i gor ous i mpr i sonment of
a t er m w hi ch shal l not be l ess t han
one year, but w hi ch may ext end t o
t hr ee year s and shal l al so be l i abl e
t o f i ne. Sect i on 16 pr ovi des t hat of -
f ence under sub-sect i on 15 shal l be
deemed t o be cogni zabl e under t he
Co d o f Cr i m i n al Pr o ce d u r e ,
1973. The pr oposed amendment s
pr ovi de f or hi gher quant um of pun-
i shment i n t er ms of i mpr i sonment
and pr ovi si on f or deat h penal t y i n
r ar e cases w her e t he Act of sabo-
t age i s danger ous and i s l i kel y t o
cause deat h of any ot her per son. The
Bi l l f ur t her pr oposes t o amend sec-
t i on 16 of t he af oresai d Act t o make
t he of f ences under sub-sect i on (2),
(3) of sect i on 15 of t he sai d Act t o
be cogni zabl e and non-bai l abl e. The
amendment t o t he act w as neces-
sar y t o pr event pi l f er age of pet r o-
l eum by or gani zed gangs and sabo-
t eur s.
Supreme Court direction
for Night Shelters for
Homeless People
The Supr eme Cour t di r ect ed st at e
government s t o build adequat e num-
ber of ni ght shel t er t o ensur e t hat
no homel ess per son has t o sl eep
under sky t his w int er. A bench of j us-
t i ces Dal veer Bhandar i and Just i ce
Di pak M i sra asked t he gover nment s
t o f i l e t hei r det ai l ed r epor t by 3
Januar y 2012 on t he st at us of ni ght
shelt ers, w hi ch ar e operat i ng in t hei r
st at es. The bench , w hi ch p assed
separ at e or der s f or di f f er ent st at es,
asked t he Chi ef Secr et ar i es t o en-
sur e const r uct i on of suf f i ci ent num-
ber of shel t er s f or t he homel ess and
poor peopl e.
NCT of Delhi Laws
(Special Provisions) Bill
of 2011
unani mousl y passed t he Nat i onal
Capi t al Ter r i t or y of Del hi Law s (Spe-
ci al Pr ovi si ons) Bi l l of 2011, w hi ch
grant ed a t hr ee-year t er m ext ension
t o t he M ast er Pl an of Del hi (M PD).
I t i s m eant t o ensu r e co nt i n ued
i mpl ement at i on of al l t he ongoi ng
schemes f or i t s bet t er ment . The r e-
vi sed mast er pl an of Del hi w i l l have
a l ong-t er m vi si on of 25 year s t o
ad d r e ss t h e p r o b l e m s sp e ci al l y
f aced by t he w eaker sect i ons of t he
soci et y. The gover nment i nt ends t o
i mpl ement t he second phase of t he
Jaw ahar l al Nehr u Ur ban Renew al
M i ssi on af t er i t s cur r ent phase i s
over. The obj ect i ve of t he bi l l i s t o
pr event seal i ng and demol i t i on of
unaut hor i sed st r uct ur es i n Del hi t i l l
31 Decem b er, 2014 . I t seek s t o
mai nt ai n t he st at us quo r egar di ng
un au t h or i sed col on i es, w hi ch i n-
cl udes st or ages, w ar ehouses, and
godow ns f or f ar m pr oduce, vi l l age
ab ad i s ( set t l em e n t s) an d t h e i r
ext ensi ons. Commer ci al est abl i sh-
ment s i n r ur al ar eas and ur bani sed
vi l l ages of Del hi ar e expect ed t o get
a r epr i eve af t er t he pr oposed bi l l i s
enact ed.
Village Water and
Sanitation Committee in
Each Gram Panchayat
The Gover nment deci ded t o set up
a vi l l age w at er and sani t at i on com-
mi t t ee i n each Gr am Panchayat , vi l -
l age and ward t o ensure saf e dr i nk-
i ng wat er suppl y. The commi t t ee w i l l
be set up as a st andi ng commi t t ee
i n each Gr am Panchayat f or pl an-
ni ng, moni t or i ng, i mpl ement at i on
and mai nt enance of w at er suppl y
schemes in t he ar ea w i t h act i ve par -
t i ci pat i on of t he vi l l ager s. The mem-
ber shi p of t he commi t t ee w i l l con-
si st of 6 t o 12 per sons compr i si ng
el ect ed Panchayat member s and at
l east 50 per cent w omen w i t h due
r epr esent at i on t o Schedul ed cast es
and Tr i bes. The commi t t ee w i l l be
an i n t egr al p ar t o f t h e v i l l age
panchayat . Thi s i ni t i at i ve has been
t aken under t he Nat i onal Rural Drink-
i ng Wat er Programme t o decent ral -
i ze pow er and r esponsi bi l i t i es and
t o gi ve gr eat er f ocus on w at er and
sani t at i on i ssues.
Constitutional
Amendment to Set up
NJC Suggested
The Par l i ament ar y panel on l aw and
j ust i ce, headed by Abhi shek Si nghvi
st at ed t hat t he Const i t ut i on shoul d
be amended t o set up a Nat i onal
Judi ci al Commi ssi on w i t h pow er s t o
i n i t i at e cr i mi nal p r osecu t i o n and
sacki ng of cor r upt j udges. The con-
cl uded t hat j udi ci ar y cannot be l ef t
unpol i ced i n mat t er s of cor r upt i on.
The r epor t pr epar ed by t he Par l i a-
ment ar y panel r ecommended set -
t i ng up of a Nat i onal Judi ci al Com-
mi ssi on (NJC) t o cr eat e a b r oad-
based and compr ehensi ve model of
j udges appoi nt ment s. If necessar y i t
shoul d i ncl ude amendment s i n t he
Const i t ut i on i n t he pr ocess of com-
pr ehensi ve model of j udges appoi nt -
ment .
Recommendat i ons of t he Par l i a-
ment ar y Panel
The NJC has t o be ent r ust ed w i t h
pow er s of bot h t r ansf er and cr i mi -
nal prosecut ion of j udges f or cor r up-
t i on.
The panel st at ed t hat Judi ci al Ac-
co u n t ab i l i t y Bi l l i s m e an t t o
st rengt hen t he exist ing i n-house pr o-
cedur e of t he j udi ci ar y t o deal w i t h
w r ong behavi our of j udges.
The panel al so r ecommended t hat
t he f or mer j udges w or ki ng as chai r -
per sons and member s of t r i bunal s
shoul d al so be br ought under t he
NJC.
It may al so be gi ven t he pow er f or
di smi ssal or r emoval of j udges by
r el evant amendment s i n t he const i -
t ut i on.
Tamper-Free High
Security Number Plates
for Vehicles
Supr eme Cour t of Indi a on 8 Decem-
ber 2011 di r ect ed al l st at es t o en-
sur e vehi cl es car r y t amper -f r ee hi gh
secur i t y number pl at es w i t hi n f our
w eeks. Gi vi ng l ast oppor t uni t y t o
st at e government s t o i mpl ement t he
scheme, a bench of t he apex cour t
ruled t hat cont empt proceedings wi ll
be i ni t i at ed agai nst t he st at e au-
t hor i t i es i n case of non-compl i ance
of t he scheme w i t hi n t he t i me l i mi t
f i xed by i t .
The bench added t hat no f urt her t ime
w i l l be gr ant ed t o put i n f or ce t he
scheme and di r ect ed t he st at e au-
t hor i t i es t o f i l e t hei r af f i davi t s on
compl i ance of i t s or der w i t hi n f our
w eeks. The cour t passed t he or der
on a PIL seeki ng i t s di r ect i on t o i n-
t roduce t amper-pr oof number plat es
and l i cences f or vehi cl es.
Inspection of
Mullaperiyar Dam by
Empowered Committee
The Empow er ed Commi t t ee i n i t s
meet i ng on 5 December 2011 de-
ci ded t o send t w o t echni cal mem-
ber s t o i n spect t he M u l l ap er i y ar
dam bef or e f i nal i si ng i t s r epor t f ol -
l o w i n g ap p r eh en si o n s r ai sed b y
Ker al a about t he saf et y of t he dam
af t er mi l d t r emor s occur r ed i n t he
ar ea. The Empow er ed Commi t t ee i s
headed by f or mer Chi ef Just i ce of
I ndi a, A. S. Anand. The commi t t ee
had conduct ed a spot i nspect i on of
t he dam i n December 2010. Dur i ng
it s meet ing on 5 December, t he com-
mit t ee consi der ed t he report s of t he
st u d i e s an d i n v est i gat i o n s co n -
duct ed by var i ous agenci es i t con-
st i t ut ed t o st udy t he dam' s saf et y. It
al so di scussed t he appl i cat i ons f i l ed
r espect i vel y by Ker al a an d Tami l
Nadu and t ook not e of t hei r submi s-
si ons.
The commi t t ee, accor di ng t o Ker al a
ought not t o have r el i ed on t he Su-
pr eme Cour t ' s or der as i t w as not
bar r ed f r om r ecei vi ng evi dence i n
r esp ect o f sei sm i c t h r eat t o t h e
dam. Fol l ow i ng Keral as argument
t he commi t t ee agr eed t o hear t he
St at e' s ar gum ent s o n t hi s cou nt .
Si nce Ker al a f i l ed an appl i cat i on f or
br i ngi ng on r ecor d t he r ecent t r em-
or s and sought an or al hear i ng, t he
commi t t ee deci ded t o send t w o of
i t s member s t o conduct a spot i n-
spect i on of t he dam. Ker al a' s pl ea
f or or al hear i ng w as al so accept ed.
The commi t t ee di rect ed Tami l Nadu
and Keral a t o make submi ssi ons on
2 Januar y 2012. On 3 Januar y t he
commi t t ee w i l l consi der t he modal i -
t i es f or f i nal i si ng i t s r epor t t o t he
Supr eme Cour t .
During t he mont hs of Jul y-November
2011, 25 eart hquakes were repor t ed
i n t he M ul l aper i yar dam r egi on .
Some of t he ear t hquakes on 26 Jul y
and 18 and 26 November were mor e
t han magni t ude 3 on t he Ri cht er
Scal e. The hi ghest magni t ude 3. 8
w as r ecor ded on 26 Jul y 2011. The
f requent ear t hquakes caused pani c
among 50 l akh peopl e i n t he dow n-
st r eam r egi on of t he Per i yar dam.
The f ear w as f ur t her hei ght ened by
t he i ncessant rai n i n t he cat chment s
of M ull aper i yar shoot i ng t he st or age
above 136 f eet mandat ed by t he pro-
vi si ons of t he Amendment Act of
2006. If t he M ul laperiyar dam br eaks
due t o f l ood or ear t hquake, a mass
di sast er w oul d f ol l ow, w herei n not
onl y t he l i f e and pr oper t y of 50 l akh
peopl e w i l l be af f ect ed i n Ker al a, but
l akhs of f ar mers of Tami l Nadu w i l l
al so l ose i r r i gat i on of about 2.5 l akh
acr es. Ker al a t her ef or e f eel s t hat
Tami l Nadu shoul d agree f or t he con-
st r uct i on of a new dam of f er ed by
Ker al a as a pr ecaut i onar y measur e.
Adultery Law
Biased against Men
The Supr eme Cour t of I ndi a on 1
Decemb er 2011 st at ed t hat sec-
t i on497 of t he Indi an penal Code i s
bi ased agai n st men. The sect i on
puni shes a man al one f or adul t er y
f or havi ng consensual sex w i t h a
marr ied woman. As per t he observa-
t i on of t he cour t , t he pr ovi si on of
sect i o n 4 97 r ed u ces a m ar r i e d
w oman t o a pr oper t y of t he husband
and i t punishes man only despit e t he
f act t hat t he w oman w i t h w hom he
had consensual sex w as an equal
par t ner i n t he al l eged cr i me. The
cour t added t hat t he pr ovi si on i s
under cr it i ci sm f r om cer t ain sect i ons
f or show i ng a st r ong gender bi as. A
bench of t he Supr eme Cour t i ncl ud-
i ng Just i ces Af t ab Al am and R M
Lodha made t he above obser vat i on.
Sect i on 497 of IPC: Sect i on 497 of
IPC st at es t hat w hoever has sexual
i nt er cour se wi t h a per son w ho i s and
w hom he know s or has r eason t o
bel i eve t o be t he w i f e of anot her
man, w it hout t he consent or conni v-
ance of t hat man, such sexual i nt er -
course not amount i ng t o t he of f ence
of r ape, i s gui l t y of t he of f ence of
adul t er y, and shal l be puni shed w i t h
i mpr i sonment of ei t her descr i pt i on
f or a t er m w hi ch may ext end t o f i ve
year s, or w i t h f i ne, or w i t h bot h. In
such case, t he w i f e shal l not be pun-
i shabl e as an abet t or.
21 Anti-Retroviral
Treatment Plus Centres
Th e Nat i o n al AI DS Co n t r o l
Or gani sat i on (NACO) deci ded t o r ol l
ou t 21 Ant i -Ret r ov i r al Tr eat ment
(ART) Pl us cent r es t o meet t he i n-
cr easi ng demand of pr ovi di ng sec-
ond l i ne dr ugs t o HIV pat i ent s w ho
f ai l ed t o r espond t o t r eat ment pr o-
vi ded previ ousl y. The NACOs ART
pr ogr amm e i s h eaded by Dr B B
Rew ar i . 21 mor e ART Pl us cent r es
w il l be r ol l ed out excl usi vely f or such
HIV posi t ive people who r equir e sec-
ond l i ne dr ug t herapy. 2600 peopl e
ar e cur r ent l y on second l i ne dr ugs
f or HIV as t hey w er e cr i t i cal despi t e
t aki ng medi cat i on. Pr esent l y a t ot al
of 4.48 l akh peopl e ar e avai l i ng f r ee
of cost dr ugs at 324 ART cent r es.
Cent r es w er e p r op osed i n Sur at ,
Pat n a, Gu w ah at i , Lu ck n o w,
Ahmedabad, and Jai pur. The govern-
ment ear mar ked Rs 350 crore f or t he
ent i r e pr oj ect of pr ovi di ng f r ee of
cost dr ugs at al l ART cent r es. Of
t hese 21 cent r es, seven ar e al r eady
f unct i onal . 10 cent r es had al so been set up t o pr ovi de t he f aci l i t y f or second l i ne dr ugs and seven paedi at r i c HIV
cent res i n t he count r y. In addi t i on t o t he 324 ART cent res and ot her second l i ne ones, t here are 678 l i nk cent res
and 259 communi t y car e cent r es.
NACO st r eeses on st r engt heni ng t he l i nk bet w een t he ART cent r es and mor e t han 5000 Int egr at ed Counsel l i ng
and Test i ng Cent res w here peopl e are i ni t i al l y i dent i f i ed and det ect ed w i t h t he vi r us. As per t he Nat i onal Fami l y
Heal t h Sur vey-3, t her e ar e 2.47 mi l l i on HIV i nf ect ed peopl e i n Indi a of w hi ch 3.8 per cent ar e chi l dr en. Near l y 40
per cent of t he peopl e ar e unaw ar e of t hei r HIV st at us. Accor di ng t o NACO, t her e ar e ar ound 30000 pat i ent s
avai l i ng of medi cat i on i n t he pr i vat e sect or. The Wor l d AIDS Day t heme was get t i ng t o zero, but f or t he NACO i t
w as al so pr ovi di ng 100 per cent access t o ant i -r et r ovi r al dr ugs.
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International Issues
Pakistan Budges on
Bonn Meet
Paki st an on Wednesday hint ed at t he
po ssi bi l i t y of par t i ci pat i n g i n t he
co mi n g Bon n Con f er ence o n Af -
ghani st an but r ul ed out any hi gh-
l evel r epr esent at i on on t he gr ound
t hat Af ghan soi l had been used by
Nor t h At l ant i c Treat y Organi sat i on
(NATO) t o at t ack t he count ry in w hat
t he Ar my cal l s a del i berat e act of
aggr essi on. Agr eei ng t o consi der
Ger man Chancel l or Angel a M er kel ' s
r epeat ed r equest s f or Isl amabad' s
par t i ci pat i on, Pr i me M i ni st er Syed
Yusuf Raza Gi l ani sai d he w oul d re-
f er t h e su gge st i o n o f h av i n g
Paki st an' s Ambassador i n Ger many
at t end t he del i ber at i ons t o t he Par -
l i ament ar y Commi t t ee on Nat i onal
Securi t y. M s. M erkel cal led M r. Gi lani
t o i mpr ess upon hi m t he i mport ance
of Paki st an' s par t i ci pat i on at t he
meet i ng t o make i t meani ngf ul . As
M r. Gi l ani was unw i l l ing t o budge on
hi gh-l evel par t i ci pat i on , sh e su g-
gest ed t he Ambassador be per mi t -
t ed t o r epr esent Paki st an so t hat i t s
seat at t he t abl e was not l ef t vacant .
In vi ew of bi l at er al r el at i ons and t he
f act t hat t he Ger man For ei gn M i ni s-
t er w as among t he f i r st t o per son-
al l y cal l hi s Paki st ani count er par t t o
expr ess sol i dar i t y w i t h Paki st an and
condol e t he deat h of 24 Paki st an
Ar my sol di ers i n t he NATO f i r i ng at
Pak i st an i o u t p o st s o n Sat u r d ay
mor ni ng, M r. Gi l ani agreed t o ref er
t he r equest t o t he Par l i ament ar y
Commi t t ee. M eanw hi l e, t he f or mal
communi cat i on t o t he U.S. aski ng i t
t o vacat e t he Shamsi ai r base has
been sent w i t h December 11 set as
t he deadl i ne. Paki st an has r el eased
f oot age of t w o post s w hi ch came
under f i r e f r om hel i copt er s of t he
coal i t i on f or ces i n Af ghani st an and
w ant ed t o know w her e t he NATO
casual t i es w er e i n case t her e w as
f i r i ng f r om t he Paki st ani si de.
EU to ban Import of
Iranian Crude Oil
Th e memb er st at es o f Eu r o pean
Un i o n ( EU) o n 4 Jan u ar y 2 0 12 ,
agr eed i n pr i nci pl e t o ban i mpor t of
Ir ani an cr ude oi l t o put pr essur e on
Ir an f or it s nuclear programme. How-
ever, t he t i me-f rame t o i mpl ement
t hi s w as not deci ded. The Uni t ed
St at es, w hi ch recent ly imposed f resh
sanct i ons on Ir an, has wel comed t he
n e w s. M ean w h i l e, I r an h as d i s-
mi ssed t he t hr eat of new sanct i ons
and deni es West er n cl ai ms t hat i t i s
t r yi ng t o develop a nuclear w eapons
programme. West ern powers accuse
I r an of t r yi n g t o dev el op nucl ear
w eapons under t he cover of a ci vi l -
ian energy programme. The EU is one
of Irans bi ggest mar ket s f or oi l . Thi s
gen e r at e s m o st o f t h e I r an i an
gover nment s revenue. Chi na i s t he
t op buyer of Irani an oi l .The EU i s a
pol i t i cal and economi cal uni on of 27
member st at es.
Ban lifted by
Maldives on Spas
M al di ves on 4 Januar y 2012 l i f t ed
ban on spas i n t he upmar ket t our i st
dest i nat i on f ol l ow ing i t s ver i f i cat i on
t hat t hese spas w er e not bei ng used
f or pr ost i t ut i on. Ear l i er, i t w as al -
l eged t hat t hese spas w er e t he hub
of pr ost i t ut i on. Fol l ow i ng t hi s, t he
t our i sm mi ni st r y or der ed al l mas-
sage cent r es t o cl ose si x days ago.
The t our ism indust r y i s an i mpor t ant
f or ei gn exchange ear ner and em-
pl oyer i n t he M al di ves and t he ban
on spas coul d har m t he i ndust r y.
M aldives i n 2011 r eceived more t han
850000 t our i st s.
Israel-Palestine talks
The Isr ael -Pal est i ne t al ks ended i n
t he f i r st w eek of Januar y 2012 w i t h
t he i nt er nat i onal medi at or s f r om
Quar t et (t he Uni t ed Nat i ons, t he
Uni t ed St at es, t he Eur opean Uni on,
and Russi a) and Jor dan ended w i t h-
out any br eakt hr ough i n Amman,
capi t al of Jor dan. The t al ks and t he
out come w er e posi t i ve and t he t w o
si des agr eed t o car r y f or w ar d t he
di scussi ons. The Amman r ound of
peace t al ks may not have yi el ded a
breakt hrough, yet i t has broken t he
i ce bet w een t he Isr ael i and Pal es-
t i ni an si des t o di scuss r esumpt i on
of t he st al l ed p eace t al ks. I sr ael
char ged t he Pal est i ni ans w i t h r ag-
i ng pr opaganda campai gns and uni -
l at er al di pl omat i c i ni t i at i ves agai nst
i t whi le Palest i ne asked Israel t o st op
set t l ement const r uct i on and accept
t he 1967 bor der s. USA and Saudi
Ar abi a i nked an Agreement w or t h
29.4 bi l l i on US Dol l ar s
White Paper by China
Chi na on 29 December 2011 i ssued
a w hi t e paper ent i t l ed Chi nas Space
Act i vi t i es i n 2011. The w hi t e paper
i s on t he devel opment of space i n-
dust r y si nce 2006 and t he maj or
t asks f or t he next f i ve year s. It w as
t h e t h i r d w hi t e pap er o n Chi nas
space act i vi t i es. The w hi t e paper
w as i ssued by t he St at e Counci l In-
f or mat i on Of f i ce. Chi na has made
t he space indust r y an import ant par t
of t he nat i ons overal l devel opment
st rat egy wi t h t he obj ect i ve of explor-
i ng an d u t i l i zi n g o ut er space f o r
peacef ul pur poses. The M aj or t asks
, w hi ch w er e l i st ed i n t he w hi t e pa-
per f or t he next f i ve year s i ncl ude
space t r anspor t at i on syst em, Ear t h
sat el l i t es, human spacef l i ght s and
deep-space expl or at i on. The w hi t e
paper st at ed t hat Chi na w oul d w or k
t oget her wi t h t he i nt er nat i onal com-
muni t y t o pr omot e w or l d peace and
development .
India wanted 358
items removed
Indi a i s one of onl y f our count r i es
w hi ch, dur i ng t he f i r st hal f of 2011,
request ed Google t o remove cont ent
on t he basi s t hat i t w as cr i t i cal of
t he gover nment . Googl e r ef used t o
compl y. The ot her count r i es w ere
Thai land and Tur key -- where Googl e
r est r i ct ed l ocal user s f r om access-
i ng t he of f endi ng cont ent -- and t he
Uni t ed St at es, w her e i t r ef used. Ac-
cor di ng t o Googl e' s Tr ansparency
Repor t f or Januar y t o June 2011, t he
Int er net sear ch gi ant r ecei ved r e-
quest s f r om t he Indi an gover nment
w hi ch seems t o i ncl ude St at e and
Cent r al gover nment s, p ol i ce and
cour t s t o r emove 358 i t ems. In a
br eakdow n of r easons f or such r e-
quest s, 255 i t ems w er e cl assi f i ed
under t he gover nment cr i t i ci sm
cat egor y. I t i s not cl ear i f Googl e
w oul d cl assi f y of f ensi ve i t ems about
a pol it i cal l eader under t he cat egor y
of def amat i on or gover nment cr i t i -
ci sm . I n t er est i n gl y, t h e b i ggest
chunk of t hi s i s account ed f or by a
si ngl e r equest f r om a l ocal l aw en-
f or cement agency t o r emove 236
communi t i es and pr of i l es f r om [ so-
cial net wor king si t e] orkut t hat w er e
cr i t i cal of a l ocal pol i t i ci an. Googl e
di d not i dent i f y t hi s pol i t i ci an, but i t
di d st at e t hat w e di d not compl y
w i t h t hi s r equest , si nce t he cont ent
di d not vi ol at e our Communit y St an-
dards or l ocal l aw. Googl e' s st at i s-
t i cs gai n si gni f i cance i n t he l i ght of
i t s all eged r ef usal t o comply w it h t he
Indi an gover nment ' s recent demand
t o bl ock t he publ i cat i on of i ncendi -
ar y hat e speech f r om i t s si t es. On
M onday, Union M inist er for Commu-
ni cat i ons and Inf or mat i on Technol -
ogy Kapi l Si bal summoned execu-
t i ves of Googl e, Yahoo, Facebook
and M i cr osof t f or a meet i ng af t er
t hey st onewal led r epeat ed r equest s
t o bl ock i ncendi ar y communal ma-
t er i al bei ng post ed on soci al net -
w or ki ng si t es t hey oper at ed.
How ev er, Goo gl e' s Tr an sp ar ency
Repor t dat a seems t o i ndi cat e t hat
onl y 8 i t ems w er e r equest ed t o be
r emoved under t he cat egor y of hat e
speech. Inst ead, 39 i t ems w er e r e-
quest ed t o be r emoved on gr ounds
of def amat ion, 20 due t o pri vacy and
secur i t y concer ns, 14 due t o i mper -
sonat i on, t hr ee i dent i f i ed as por no-
gr aphi c i t ems, and one r equest due
t o nat i onal secur i t y r easons. How -
ever, t he si ngl e l argest cat egor y i s
gover nment crit ici sm; apart f rom t he
236 i t ems on or kut , t he gover nment
al so asked f or 19 i t ems on YouTube
t o be r emoved on t hese gr ounds.
Overal l, Googl e says i t compl i ed f ull y
or par t i al l y w i t h 51 per cent of t he
r equ est s. We r ecei ved r equ est s
f r om st at e and l ocal l aw enf or ce-
ment agenci es t o remove YouTube
v i d e o s t h at d i sp l ay e d p r o t est s
agai nst soci al l eader s or used of f en-
si ve l anguage i n r ef er ence t o r el i -
gi ous l eaders, sai d t he Googl e re-
por t . We decl i ned t he maj or i t y of
t hese r equest s and onl y l ocal l y r e-
st ri ct ed vi deos t hat appear ed t o vi o-
l at e l ocal l aw s pr ohi bi t i ng speech
t hat coul d i nci t e enmi t y bet w een
communi t i es.
Iranian Embassy shut
down by UK
The Uni t ed Ki ngdom shut dow n t he
Ir ani an embassy i n London and ex-
pel l ed al l i t s st af f i n r et al i at i on t o
t he st or mi ng of t he Br i t i sh di pl o-
mat i c compound by an angr y mob.
They w ere asked t o l eave t he UK
w i t hi n 48 hour s. The Br i t i sh gover n-
ment al so shut i t s embassy i n Ir an
and evacuat ed t he st af f. France and
Ger many have bot h r ecal l ed t hei r
ambassador s t o Ir an f or consul t a-
t i ons f oll ow ing t he at t ack on t he U.K.
embassy i n Tehran.
Arab League Observers
in Syria
A t eam of 50 Ar ab League Obser v-
er s ar r i ved i n Damascus i n Syr i a on
26 December 2011. The t eam con-
si st i ng of exper t s f r om Al ger i a and
Tuni si a i s l ed by Sudanese General
M ust af a Daby. It w oul d t ake about a
w eek f or Ar ab League t o f i nd out i f
t he peace pl an i s bei ng i mplement ed
i n t ot al i t y. The Arab Obser ver mi s-
si on t o moni t or t he i mpl ement at i on
o f Leagu e m ed i at ed p eace p l an
w oul d vi si t t he w or st hi t ci t i es i n
p hases. Ho w ev er, t he gr ou p w i l l
mai nt ai n an el ement of sur pr i se by
onl y announci ng t he speci f i c ar eas
t hey w oul d be vi si t i ng on t he same
day of depar t ur e. The 50-member
gr oup consi st s of pol i t i ci ans, l aw -
makers and mi l i t ar y of f i ci al s. They
w i l l spl i t t hemsel ves i nt o t en gr oups
f or di f f erent ci t i es. The t eam i s l i kel y
t o vi si t Homs ami dst r epor t s of ki l l -
i ngs of 23 peopl e by t he secur i t y
f or ces.
Ir ani an Exi l es i n Ir aq t o be r el ocat ed
The Uni t ed Nat i ons (UN) and t he
Ir aqi Gover nment on 24 December
2011 si gned an agr eement t o r el o-
cat e Ir ani an exi l es l i vi ng i n a camp
in nort heast er n part of Iraq. The Iraqi
gover nment has been i nsi st i ng on
cl osi ng t he camp by t he end of t hi s
mont h. Under t he agr eement , UN
Hi gh Commi ssi on f or Ref ugees w i l l
moni t or t he r el ocat i on w hi l e I r aqi
Gover nment w i l l be r esponsi bl e f or
t hei r secur i t y. UNHCR w oul d deci de
t he r ef ugee st at us f or t he r esi dent s
of Ashr af her e. Thi s w i l l be t he f i r st
st ep t ow ar d r eset t l em ent t o t he
t hi r d count ri es ot her t han t he nat ive
or t he host count r i es. Camp Ashr af
w as t he base of di ssi dent Ir ani ans
l ed by t he Peopl e' s M uj ahedeen Or -
gani zat i on of Ir an. The gr oup moved
t o Camp Ashr af dur i ng t he r egi me
of Saddam Hussei n and si ded w i t h
Ir aq i n t he w ar agai nst Ir an i n t he
1980s. The camp, now home t o over
3 4 00 d i ssi d e n t I r an i an s w i l l b e
shif t ed t o Camp Li ber t y, a f ormer U.S.
mi l i t ar y base near t he Baghdad In-
t ernat i onal Ai r por t .
CSTO agreed to
Tighten Rules
The l eader s of t he CSTO (Col l ect i ve
Secu r i t y Tr eat y Or gani sat i on) na-
t i ons on 21 December 2011 agr eed
t hat t he depl oyment of f oreign bases
i n t hei r t er r it or y w oul d be done wi t h
t he appr oval of al l par t ner s of t he
def ence al l i ance. The CSTO summi t
w as h e l d i n M o sco w . Besi d es
Bel ar us and Kazakhst an, CSTO i n-
cl udes Ar meni a, Russi a, Taj i ki st an,
Ky r gy zst an an d Uzb ek i st an .
Kazakhst an succeeded Bel ar us as
t he Presi dent of CSTO. How ever, t he
CSTO agr eement does not appl y t o
exi st i ng f aci l i t i es such as a Ger man
ai r t r ansi t f aci l i t y i n Uzbek i st an ,
French mi l i t ar y ai rcraf t i n Taj i ki st an
and US t ransi t cent re i n Kyrgyzst an.
A unique protest in
China
I t i s t he f ar mer s w ho ar e usual l y
evi ct ed i n l and conf l i ct s i n Chi na' s
vi ll ages. But i n t he sout her n Chi nese
vi l l age of Wukan t hi s w eek, a f i r st -
of -i t s-ki nd r ebell i on by 20,000 vi l lag-
er s over a l and conf l i ct has f or ced
out t he ent i r e l ocal gover nm ent ,
Com muni st Par t y l eader shi p and
pol i ce f or ces, spar ki ng cl ashes t hat
r esul t ed i n an unpr ecedent ed si ege
of t he vi l l age, l ocat ed i n pr osper ous
sout her n Guangdong pr ovi nce, on
Wednesday. Accordi ng t o account s
f r om w i t nesses post ed on Chi nese
w ebsi t es, t he vi l l age has now been
sur r ounded by t housands of r i ot po-
l i ce, w hi l e vi l l ager s had bar r i caded
t hemsel ves i n by blocking r oads w it h
t r ees and r ocks. The si ege of Wukan
w as t he denouement of mor e t han
t hr ee mont hs of pr ot est s over l and
acq u i si t i o n , seen as t h e b i ggest
dr i ver o f t he mor e t han 180,000
mass i nci dent s Chi nese aut hor i -
t i es record ever y year.
Local aut hor i t i es had r ecent l y ap-
pear ed w i ll i ng t o address gr i evances
over w hat vi l l ager s sai d w as i nad-
equat e l and compensat i on, w hen
t hey w elcomed a gr oup of r esi dent s,
el ect ed by t he l ocal communi t y t o
r epr esent t he f ar mer s' i nt er est s, t o
negot i at e. How ever, t he chi ef nego-
t i at or, Xue Ji nbo, was subsequent l y
hel d by aut hor i t i es and di ed i n cus-
t ody t hi s w eek. The Luf eng ci t y gov-
er nment , w hi ch over sees Wukan,
sai d i n a st at ement he di ed of hear t
pr oblems, t hough Wukan' s resident s
w i del y suspect ed he w as mur der ed
w hi l e i n cust ody. Fol l ow i ng Xue' s
deat h and af t er mont hs of st al l ed
negot i at i ons w i t h l ocal of f i ci al s, t he
r esi dent s of Wukan deci ded enough
w as enough, st or mi ng t he l ocal po-
l i ce st at i on and cl ashi ng w i t h pol i ce.
By Wednesday, aut hor i t i es had been
dr i ven out of t he vi l l age, w i t h bot h
t he l ocal pol i ce st at i on as w el l as
t he Communi st Par t y' s l ocal of f i ces
r epo r t ed as bei ng d eser t ed, and
Wukan vi l l age i n a l i kel y f i rst i n
Chi na' s moder n hi st or y bei ng en-
t i rely cont r oll ed and admini st ered by
i t s r esi dent s.
Vi l l ager s i n Wukan have demanded
t hat of f i ci al s ret ur n Xue' s body, as
w el l as susp end pl an s t o acq ui r e
l ands f or a devel opment pr oj ect . It
r emai ns uncl ear w het her t he l ocal
o f f i ci al s w i l l co n ced e t o t h e d e-
mands, or on t he ot her hand use
gr eat er f or ce t o di sper se t he pr o-
t est s. Thi s w eek' s i nci dent came as
Ch i n a' s h i gh e st l e ad e r s m e t i n
Beij i ng f or an annual economi c wor k
conf er ence. The meet i ng, chai r ed by
Pr esi dent Hu Ji nt ao, concl uded w i t h
a d ecl ar at i o n t h at t h e f o cu s o f
Chi na' s economi c devel opment i n
t he comi ng year w oul d be maki ng
pr ogr ess w hi l e mai nt ai ni ng st abi l -
i t y.
Hillary Clinton visited
Myanmar
M aki ng a di pl omat i cal l y r i sky t r i p t o
t he l ong-i sol at ed Sout heast Asi an
nat i on of M yanmar, U.S. Secret ar y of
St at e Hi l l ar y Rodham Cl i nt on sai d
sh e w an t e d t o se e f o r h e r se l f
w het her new ci vi l i an l eader s w er e
t r ul y r eady t o t hr ow of f 50 year s of
mi l i t ar y di ct at or shi p a t est t hat i n-
cl udes r ar e f ace-t o-f ace meet i ngs
w i t h f or mer member s of t he j unt a.
Dur i ng her vi si t , M s. Cl i nt on w il l al so
encour age M yanmar t o sever mi l i -
t ar y and nucl ear t i es w i t h Nor t h Ko-
r ea. M s. Cl i nt on ar r i ved i n t he capi -
t al of Naypyi daw on t he f i r st t r i p by
a U.S. Secr et ary of St at e t o M yanmar
i n mor e t han 50 year s. She i s t o
meet seni or M yanmar of f i ci al s on
Thursday bef ore heading t o t he com-
merci al capi t al of Yangon, where she
w i l l see opposi t i on l eader Aung San
Suu Kyi .
Most Uncharitable Na-
tion in South Asia is India
As per t he Chari t i es Ai d Foundat ions
Wor l d Gi vi ng Index, Indi a ranked as
t he m ost un ch ar i t ab l e n at i o n o f
Sout h Asi a in 2011. Indi a i s t he w or st
per f or mer i n Sout h Asi a w i t h a gl o-
bal ranki ng of 91. Indi a was ranked
at 134 i n 2010. Paki st an was ranked
t o 34t h posi t i on i n 2011 w hi l e Sr i
Lanka ranked 8t h. Bangl adesh was
pl aced at 78t h posi t i on and Nepal
at 84t h. Thai l and w as t he most gen-
er ous nat i on, w i t h 85 per cent of i t s
people. The Unit ed Ki ngdom w as t he
second most gener ous nat i on, w i t h
7 9 p e r ce n t r e gu l ar l y gi v i n g t o
char i t y.Char i t i es Ai d Foundat i ons
Wor l d Gi vi ng Index ranked nat i ons
on t he st r engt h of monet ar y dona-
t i ons and char i t abl e act s.
Switzerland may Free
Nuclear Smugglers
I n an unexpect ed t ur n of event s,
Sw i ss aut hor i t i es announced a de-
ci si on t o ent er i nt o a pl ea bar gai n
w i t h t he n ot or i ous Ti n ner f ami l y
members, who have been i n j ail over
nucl ear smuggl i ng char ges i n t he i l -
l i ci t net w or k of di sgr aced Paki st ani
sci ent i st Abdul Qadeer Khan. The
Ti nners, Fr i edr i ch and hi s t w o sons
Ur s and M ar co, w er e al so accused
of bei ng i nf or mant s f or t he CIA and
one of t he f at her -sons t eam w as
act ual l y sai d t o have been a CIA con-
t ract or. The Of f i ce of t he At t or ney
Gener al of Sw i t zer l and has not ed
t hat i t had f or mal l y f i l ed char ges
agai nst t he Ti nnners under t he War
M at er ial Act , an i ndi ct ment based on
t hei r al l eged ai di ng of t he i l l egal
nucl ear w eapons pr ogr amme of an
unknow n st at e t hr ough var i ous ac-
t i vi t i es.
How ever, t he Sw i ss aut hor i t y al so
sought t o cl ose t he case agai nst t he
Ti nners af t er t he cour t s f ound ver-
di ct s of gui l t i n rel at i on t o of f ences
under t he WM A and agai nst one of
t he sons f or f orger y of document s.
The pr osecut or s sai d t he pr oceed-
i ngs i n r espect of ot her of f ences had
al r eady been dr opped and t he cour t
w as r eq uest ed t o accep t a p l ea
bar gai n bet w een t he par t i es cover -
i n g sen t en ces, t h e al l o cat i o n o f
cost s, t he f or f ei t ur e of asset s and
ot her mat t ers.
Sanctions on Libya lifted
by USA
The USA gover nment on 16 Decem-
ber 2011 l i f t ed most of i t s sanct i ons
on Li bya, unf r eezi ng some of Li bya' s
asset s hel d i n t he Uni t ed St at es. The
USA gover nment f r eed about 30 bi l -
l i on dol l ar s i n asset s ow ned by t he
Li b yan gover nment and 2 Li b yan
banks t hat had been bl ocked si nce
Febr uar y. But hol di ngs of t he l at e
l eader M uammar al -Qadhaf i and hi s
f ami l y, as w el l as t hose of hi s ai des,
w i l l be kept f rozen. The US deci si on
coinci ded wi t h a simil ar act ion by t he
UN Secur i t y Counci l , w hi ch deci ded
t o end a f r eeze on t he asset s of
Li bya' s f i nanci al i nst i t ut i ons, i ncl ud-
i ng t he cent r al bank.
Fai Pleads Guilty to
Conspirac y
Sy e d Gh u l am Nab i Fai ( 6 2 ) , a
Kashmi r i -or i gi n U.S. ci t i zen ar r est ed
by t he Feder al Bur eau of Invest i ga-
t i on on Jul y 19, 2011 f or al l egedl y
act i ng as an unr egi st ered l obbyist of
Pak i st an ' s I n t er - Ser v i ces I n t el l i -
gence, pl eaded gui l t y t o conspi r acy
and t ax vi ol at i ons. Fai ' s gui l t y pl ea
per t ained t o a decades-long scheme
t o conceal t he t r ansf er of at l east
$3.5 mi ll i on f r om t he government of
Paki st an t o f und hi s l obbyi ng ef f or t s
i n Amer i ca rel at ed t o Kashmi r, t he
U.S. Depart ment of Just i ce (DoJ) sai d
i n a st at e m e n t . Sp e ci f i cal l y Fai
p l ead ed gu i l t y o n t w o cou n t s o f
cr i mi nal i nf or mat i on, t he DoJ re-
por t ed, expl aining t hat t he f ir st count
w as conspi r acy t o f al si f y, conceal
and cover up mat er i al f act s he had
a dut y t o di scl ose; and t o def r aud
t he Treasur y Depar t ment by i mped-
i ng t he l aw f ul f unct i ons of t he IRS i n
t he col l ect i on of r evenue. The sec-
ond count t o which he admi t t ed gui lt
w as t he char ge of endeavour i ng t o
i mpede t he admi ni st r at i on of t ax
l aw s. In a case t hat rocked t he al -
ready di smal U.S.-Paki st an rel at i on-
shi p over t he summer t he ar r est of
Fai w as f ol l ow ed by r evel at i ons t hat
he had ser ved as t he Di r ect or of t he
Kashmi r i Amer i can Counci l (KAC), a
non-gover nment al or gani sat i on i n
Washi ngt on, D.C.
NATO ended its Training
Mission in Iraq
NATO ended i t s t rai ni ng mi ssi on i n
Ir aq on 17 December 2011. The mi s-
si on w as ai med at assi st i ng i n t he
devel opment of Ir aqi secur i t y f or ces
t r ai ni ng st r uct ur es and i nst i t ut i ons.
I t w as compr i sed of 120 sol di er s
f r om 12 count r i es. Al l of t hem w i l l
l eave by t he end of 2012. The move
f o l l o w s a d ay af t e r US m i l i t ar y
handed over t he l ast mi l i t ar y base
i n I r aq an d o f f i ci al l y an n o u n ced
shut dow n of i t s oper at i ons i n t he
count ry.
Ear l i er, t he al l i ance had been asked
by Pr i me M i ni st er M al i ki t o ext end
i t s t r ai ni ng mi ssi on unt i l t he end of
2013 and it had accept ed t he r equest
i n p r i n ci p l e. Ho w ev er, Bagh d ad
made i t cl ear t hat i t can' t gr ant i m-
muni t y t o t he sol di er s on i t s ow n as
t he mat t er has t o be t aken t o t he
cabi net and t hen par l i ament f or ap-
proval .
Sanctions on Libyas
Central Bank lifted by
UNSC
The UN Secur i t y Counci l on 16 De-
cemb er 2011 l i f t ed san ct i o ns o n
Li b y a' s cen t r al b an k an d t h e
co u n t r y ' s f o r ei gn i n v est m en t s
banks. The move i s ai med at easi ng
t he cur r ent cash cr i si s i n Li bya. The
Uni t ed St at es has al so l i f t ed most
of t he sanct i ons agai nst Tr i pol i . The
Li byan banks' asset s abr oad w er e
f r ozen i n ear l y 2011 as par t of sanc-
t i ons agai nst f or mer Li byan l eader
Col . M uammer Gaddaf i . The USA
r ol l ed back most sanct i ons on t he
gover nment of Li bya t o keep i t s com-
mi t ment t o t he Li byan peopl e.
OPEC to increase its
Produc tion
OPEC, (The Or gani sat i on of t he Pe-
t r ol eum Expor t i ng Count r i es) i n i t s
summi t hel d i n Vi enna, on 14 De-
cember 2011 deci ded t o i ncr ease i t s
pr oduct i on cei l i ng t o 30 mi l l i on bar -
rel s a day, w hi ch i s t he f i rst change
i n t hree years. Ear l i er, t he pr oduc-
t i on out put w as 24.88 mi l l i on bar -
rel s per day. OPEC agreed t o t he new
l i mi t but i t w on' t set i ndi vi dual quo-
t as f or each member count r y. OPEC
i s i ncr easi ng i t s quot a t o mat ch up
act ual pr oduct i o n. The l ast OPEC
summi t i n June f ai l ed t o r each con-
sensus w hen si x member s i ncl udi ng
I r an and Venezu el a opp osed t he
i d ea t o p ump mo r e oi l b y Sau di
Ar abi a and t hr ee ot her Gul f coun-
t ri es, w ho increased t hei r oi l pr oduc-
t i on t o make up f or Li byan expor t s
w hi ch w as st opped f ol l ow i ng t he
ci vi l war.
OPEC w i l l need t o pr oduce 30.1 mi l -
l i on bar r el s a day i n 2012 t o bal ance
w o r l d supp l y and demand o f oi l .
OPEC i s an or gani sat i on of t w el ve
oi l -expor t i ng count r i es consi st i ng of
I r an , I r aq , Ku w ai t , Qat ar, Sau d i
Ar abi a, t he Uni t ed Ar ab Emi r at es,
Ni ger i a, Angol a, Venezuel a, Li bya,
Al ge r i a an d Ecu ad o r. Th e
or gani sat i on has i t s headquar t er s i n
Vi enna si nce 1965, and host s r egu-
l ar meet ings among t he oi l mi ni st er s
of i t s member nat i ons.
India signed Loan
Agreement with ADB
The Gover nment of I ndi a and t he
Asi an Devel opment Bank (ADB) on
15 December 2011 si gned an agr ee-
ment f or t he f i r st t r anche (113 mi l -
l i on US dol l ar s) under t he 350 mi l -
l i on US dol l ar s Hi machal Pr adesh
Cl ean Ener gy Transmi ssi on Invest -
ment Pr ogr amme, w hi ch i s a mul t i -
t ranche f i nanci ng f aci l i t y. The t ot al
est i mat ed i nvest ment cost of t he
pr ogr amme i s 437. 85 mi l l i on US
dol l ar s w hi ch i ncl udes f i nanci ng of
87.85 mi l l i on US dol l ar s by t he st at e
go v t . o f Hi m ach al Pr ad esh . Th e
programme is f or t he upgr adat ion of
t r an sm i ssi o n sy st e m t o h e l p
Hi machal Pradesh t ake great er ad-
vant age of i t s vast hydr opow er r e-
sour ces. It w i l l hel p expand t he sup-
pl y of pow er t o i ndust r y, commerce
and househol ds, w i t hi n and out si de
t he st at e, and t her eby cont r i but e t o
j ob cr eat i on and pover t y r educt i on.
US Mission in Iraq ended
The US mi l i t ar y of f i ci al l y ended i t s
m i ssi o n i n I r aq o n 15 Decem ber
2011. As per Pent agon st at i st i cs,
appr oxi mat el y 4487 US sol di er s l ost
t hei r l i ves i n Iraq war, w i t h anot her
32226 Americans wounded i n act ion.
Despi t e t he of f i ci al decl ar at i on of
endi ng i t s mi ssi on i n Ir aq, US mi l i -
t ar y st i l l has t w o bases i n Ir aq and
4000 t r oops. Whi l e i n 2007, t her e
w e r e 5 05 b ases an d m o r e t h an
170000 t roops. How ever, t hese t w o
mi l i t ar y bases w i l l be cl osed and t he
f i nal US t r oops w i l l be w i t hdr aw n by
31 December 2011.
Veiled Women barred
From taking Oath of
Citizenship by Canada
Th e Go v er n m en t o f Can ad a an -
nounced on 12 December 2011 t hat
w omen w ho aspi r e f or Canadian ci t i -
zenshi p can t w ear bur qa or Isl ami c
hi j ab w hen t hey t ake oat h of ci t i zen-
shi p. Bel gi um, France, Aust r al i a and
Net h e r l an d s h av e al so b an n e d
w omen f r om cover i ng t hei r f ace i n
publ i c. The gover nment r ecei ved
co m pl ai n t s f r o m l aw m aker s an d
j udges t hat t hey f ound i t di f f i cul t t o
know w het her w omen w ho masked
t hei r f aces w er e act ual l y r eci t i ng t he
oat h or not .
4th International Tax
Dialogue
The 4t h Int er nat i onal Tax Di al ogue
(ITD), a gl obal conf erence on Tax and
Inequal i t y w as i naugur at ed by t he
Fi nan ce M i n i st r y o f I ndi a f r om 7
December t o 9 December 2011. In-
d i an Fi n an ce M i n i st e r Pr an ab
M ukher j ee i naugur at ed t he t hr ee-
day Tax meet . M ore t han 400 seni or
t ax pol i cymaker s f r om al most 90
co u n t r i e s at t e n d e d i t i n cl u d i n g
Deput y M anagi ng Di r ect or of t he
Int er nat i onal M onet ar y Fund M i n
Zhu, Wor l d Bank Vi ce Presi dent
Ot avi ano Canut o, and Deput y Sec-
r et ar y Gener al of t he Or gani zat i on
f or Economi c Cooper at i on Devel op-
ment Ri nt aro Tamaki . The ITD i s a
j o i n t i n i t i at i v e o f v ar i o u s
or gani sat i ons w or ki ng on t ax i ssues
t he IM F, t he OECD, t he Wor ld Bank,
t he Eur opean Commi ssi on, t he IADB,
and CIAT. Thi s conf erence provi des
an oppor t unit y t o addr ess how t axa-
t i on can be seen as a par t of t he
sol ut i on t o gr ow i ng i nequal i t i es i n
i n co m e an d w e al t h ar o u n d t h e
w or l d. The use of pl enar y and par al -
l el sessi ons, w i t h act i ve count r y par -
t i ci pat i on, al l ow s a peer di al ogue
bet w een M i ni st er s of Fi nance and
Heads of Revenue Admi ni st r at i on
i nt er nat i onal l y.
Issued di scussed
Desi gn of gr ow t h-enhanci ng and
equi t abl e t ax syst ems
Admi ni st r at i ve chal l enges, i ssues
and sol ut i ons f or f ai r t ax syst ems
I ncome t axes, pr ogr essi vi t y and
i nequal i t y acr oss r egi ons
Fai r t ax syst ems: vi t al f or st at e-
bui l di ng and an exi t f r om ai d depen-
dency
Inf or mali t y, inequali t y and t he Rol e
of t he t ax syst ems
Gender f r i endl y t ax syst ems and
i nequal i t y
Taxat i on of el i t es and i nequal i t y
Hi ghl i ght s
M or e gl obal cooper at i on i s r e-
qui r ed t o t ackl e bl ack money i n In-
di a: annual i l l i ci t capi t al out f l ow s
f r o m em e r gi n g an d d e v el o p i n g
economi es has been est i mat ed at
$725-810 bi l l i on
Di r ect Taxes Code (DTC) has been
pr oposed i n Indi a: DTC seeks t o r e-
pl ace t he ar chai c Income Tax Act ,
1961 and t her eby moder ni ze t he
t axat i on regi me. It s supposed t o be
i mpl ement ed f r om 1 Apr i l 2012
Uruguay signed 7 new agr eement s
pr ovi di ng f or t he exchange of t ax
i nf or mat i on.
Japan decided to
Impose Sanctions
Against Iran
Japan announced on 9 December
2011 t h at i t i s i m p o si n g a f r esh
r ound of f i nanci al sanct i ons agai nst
Ir an. Japan w i l l f r eeze t he asset s of
106 or gani zat i ons, one i ndi vi dual
and t hr ee Ir ani an banks.
M or e t han 350 Ir an-based ent i t i es
ar e now subj ect t o Japanese sanc-
t i ons. How ever, t he move w i l l not
r est r i ct i mpor t s of Ir ani an cr ude oi l ,
a st ep many West er n nat i ons have
been ur gi ng. Resour ce-st ar ved Ja-
pan r el i es on Ir ani an oi l f or 10 per -
cent of i t s energy suppl y.
New Sanctions against
Syria by Turkey
Tur key o n 8 Decem b er 2011 an -
n ou n ced a n ew set o f sanct i on s
agai nst Syr i a. Tur key w oul d i mpose
30 per cent t ax o n good s comi ng
f r om Syr i a. The move as a r esponse
t o Damascus i mposi ng 30 per cent
cust oms dut y on goods i mpor t ed
f rom Tur key besi des suspendi ng t he
f r ee t r ade agr eement w i t h Ankar a.
Tur key ear l i er announced a ser i es of
economi c sanct i ons on Syr i a f or i t s
cr ackdow n on ant i -r egi me pr ot est s.
These i ncl ude an i mmedi at e ban on
t ransact ions wi t h t he Syr i an Govern-
ment and i t s cent ral bank and f r eez-
i ng t he Syr i an gover nment asset s i n
Tur key. Tur key has al so been seek-
ing al t ernat ive rout es t o bypass Syr ia
f or t r ade w i t h t he M i ddl e East . The
Tur ki sh gover nment was consider ing
t h r ee al t er nat i ve r ou t es t h r ou gh
Egyp t s Al exan dr i a, Leb an on and
Ir aq t o bye pass Syr i a.
Austerity budget
For 2012 Approved in
Greec e
Gr eek Par l i ament on 7 December
2011 appr oved a budget f or 2012
p l ed gi n g t o u gh f i scal go al s d e -
manded by European Union par t ners
i n r et ur n f or f r esh l oans. The aus-
t er i t y budget pr oj ect s a modest pr i -
mary surpl us excl udi ng i nt erest pay-
ment s on debt . A br oad maj or i t y of
t h e p ar t i es b ack i n g Lu cas
Papademos' caret aker admi ni st ra-
t i o n se cu r e d t h e eco n o m i c
bl uepr i nt ' s passage by 258 vot es t o
41, af t er t he vot e concl uded. Gr eek
has been rel yi ng on loans f r om ot her
eur ozone count r i es and t he IM F (In-
t er nat i onal M onet ar y Fund) si nce
M ay 2010. I n r et u r n, Gr eece cut
sal ar i es and pensi ons and hi ke t axes
t o r educe budget def i ci t s.
New International
Buddhist Organization in
India to be setup
The f i r st Gl obal Buddhi st Congr ega-
t i on w hi ch w as ai med t o pr ovi de a
j oi nt pl at f or m t o Buddhi st commu-
ni t i es acr oss t he w or l d and al so t o
i mpact geo-pol i t i cs i n Asi a w as con-
cl uded i n New Del hi on 30 Novem-
ber 2011. The f our -day congregat ion
deci ded t o set up a new i nt er na-
t ional Buddhi st or gani zat ion i n India.
It w as at t ended by heads and r epr e-
sent at i ves f r om Buddhi st Sanghas,
nat ional Buddhi st f eder at i ons, or ga-
ni zat i ons and i nst i t ut i ons f r om 46
di f f er ent count r i es of t he w or l d. The
i nt er nat i onal Buddhi st or gani zat i on
i n Indi a is t o ser ve as a common pl at -
f or m f or Buddhi st s w or l dw i de. The
congr egat i on i n Indi a w as or gani zed
by t he Asoka M i ssi on. The new body
was named as t he Int ernat ional Bud-
dhi st Conf eder at i on w hi ch w as de-
ci ded t o be based i n Indi a as Bud-
dhi st s al l over t he w or l d r ecogni ze
Indi a as t he home of Buddha. Thi s
move coul d be pr oved t o be an i m-
por t ant one f or a di pl omat i c r ow
bet w een Indi a and Chi na.
Foreign Exchange Re-
serves slipped below
$300- billion
Accor di ng t o dat a r el eased by t he
Reser ve Bank on 6 Januar y 2012,
f or ei gn exchange r eser ves f el l by
over $4.18 bi l l i on t o $296.69 bi l l i on,
sl i ppi ng bel ow t he l ong-hel d $300-
bi l l i on mar k i n t e w eek ended 30
December 2011. The dr op i n t he r e-
ser ves w as at t r i but ed t o t he f al l i n
t h e co r e f or ei gn cu r r ency asset s
(FCAs) and gol d r eser ves. The over -
al l r eser ves sl i pped by $1.23 bi l l i on
t o $300. 86 bi l l i on i n t he pr evi ous
r epor t i ng w eek. FCAs, a maj or com-
ponent of t he f orex kit t y, f el l by $2.72
bi ll ion t o $262.93 bil li on f or t he week
ended 30 December. Gol d reser ves
were dow n by $1.42 bil li on t o $26.62
bi l l i on. Faced w i t h massi ve vol at i l -
i t y i n t he r upee t he val ue of w hi ch
er oded by 20 per cent si nce August
2011, t he apex bank r esor t ed sel l -
i ng dol l ar r eser ves t o l i mi t or ar r est
t he depr eci at i on. The r eser ves de-
cl i ned by $24 bi l l i on si nce ear l y Sep-
t ember 2011. The f or ei gn exchange
ki t t y st ood at $321 bi l l i on on 2 Sep-
t ember 2011. The di p w as pr i mar i l y
due t o revaluat ion in f oreign currency
asset s and a f al l i n t he val ue of gol d
r eser ves.
Tw o st r ong r easons w as i dent i f i ed
f or t he f al l i n t he r eser ves:
The f i r st one i s t he cont i nuous i n-
t er vent i on by t he r egul at or t o cur b
Economic Issues
ext r eme vol at i l i t y i n t he r upee.
The second r eason i s t he dol l ar
has been appr eci at i ng agai nst al l
cur r enci es.
Speci al dr aw i ng r i ght s (SDRs) and
t he r eser ve posi t i on i n t he Int er na-
t ional M onet ar y Fund (IM F) al so f ell .
Whi l e SDRs came dow n by $19 mi l -
l i on t o $4.4 bi l l i on, t he r eser ve posi -
t i on i n t he IM F w as dow n by $12
mi l l i on t o $2.7 bi l l i on. Some exper t s
opi ned t hat t he di p i n f or ei gn ex-
change r eser ve al so r esul t ed f r om
t he payout on account of government
expendi t ur e mi ght be accent uat i ng
t he f al l . Whi l e dur i ng Sept ember -
December 2011, f al l i n t he f or ei gn
exchange r eser ves w as ar ound $24
bi l l i on, t he r eser ves f el l by $34 bi l -
l i on i n t h e co mpar abl e per i od of
2008.
ADB Loan to Finance
Road Projects in
Naxal-hit Areas
The Uni on gover nment i n Januar y
2012 cl ear ed an ext er nal l oan t o f i -
n an ce p ar t o f t h e p r o gr am m e
l aunched by t he M i ni st r y of Rur al
Devel opment i n l ef t w i ng ext r em-
i sm-af f ect ed vi l l ages. The cl ear ance
i s f or a l oan of $500 mi l l i on f r om t he
Asi an Devel opment Bank (ADB) t o
speed up const ruct ion of r ur al r oads.
Uni on M i ni st r y of Rur al Devel op-
ment (M oRD) i ssued di r ect i ons f or
negot i at i ng and ear l y si gni ng of t he
l oan, w hi ch hi s M i ni st r y t o gat her
r e so u r ce s t o gi v e t h r u st t o t h e
Pradhan M ant r i Gram Sadak Yoj ana
(PM GSY). The ADB, w hi ch has al -
r eady ext ended a l oan of $800 mi l -
l i on w as pet i t i oned w i t h a f r esh pr o-
posal f or r ur al connect i vi t y i nvest -
ment pr ogr amme t o const r uct or
upgr ade 7000 km of r oads connect -
i ng el i gi bl e habi t at i ons i n M aoi st -
af f e ct ed St at es o f Bi h ar,
Ch h at t i sgar h , M ad h y a Pr ad esh ,
Od i sh a, West Be n gal , b esi d es
Assam w her e t oo t he PM GSY has
progressed w i t h l i t t l e t o cheer.
The demand f or t he l oan w as made
i n t he backdr op of t he M oRD' s mul t i -
w i nged pr ogr ammes i n t he l ef t w i ng
ext r em i sm -af f ect ed ar eas, und er
w hi ch Cent r al f or ces assi st execu-
t i on of w el f ar e and devel opment
schemes t o w ean t he l ocal peopl e
f rom t he pat h of naxalism. The M oRD
has been pr ovi di ng i ncent i ves and
assi st ance t o t he l ocal peopl e, par -
t i cul ar l y t r i bal s, t o r educe pover t y
and ensur e economi c gr ow t h of t he
r egi on. Rur al connect i vi t y i s consi d-
er ed pi vot al t o t he success of t hi s
st r at agem. As per t he pr ogr amme
pr oposed by t he M oRD, t he Uni on
gover nment w i l l suppl ement w i t h a
cont r i but i on of $127. 6 mi l l i on, i n
addi t i on t o t he $5000 mi l l i on t o f i -
nance t he pr oj ect t hat i ncl udes set -
t i ng up of t r ai ni ng and r esear ch cen-
t r es per t ai ni ng t o r ur al r oads.
IRDA introduced Uniform
Asset- liability
Management Norms
Insur ance r egul at or IRDA on 4 Janu-
ar y 2012 i nt r oduced uni f or m asset -
li abil it y management norms f or mar-
ket pl ayers t o ensure t hei r sol vency.
Insur ance Regul at or y and Devel op-
ment Aut hor i t y (IRDA) announced a
broadly-def i ned uni f or m f r amew or k
f or r epor t i ng asset l i abi l i t y manage-
ment act i vi t i es adopt ed by l i f e and
non-l i f e i nsur ance compani es. The
regul at or al so asked f i r ms t o under-
t ake st ress t est s t o ascer t ai n t hei r
abi l i t y t o meet f i nanci al obl i gat i ons
i n t he event of a cr i si s. IRDA has i s-
sued t hese gui del i nes t o br i ng about
uni f or mi t y i n t he ALM nor ms bei ng
f ol l ow ed by bot h l i f e and non-l i f e
i nsur ance compani es.
IRDA gui del i nes: The IRDA gui de-
l i nes r equi r e t he ALM (asset l i abi l -
i t y management ) pol i cy t o be ap-
proved by t he board of t he i nsurer.
Such boar d-appr oved pol i cy i s t o be
subm i t t ed t o t he I RDA w i t hi n 90
d ay s. Wh i l e ap p r o v i n g t h e ALM
pol i cy, t he board i s t o t ake i nt o ac-
cou nt t he asset -l i ab i l i t y r el at i on-
shi ps, t he i nsur er ' s over al l r i sk t ol -
er ance, r i sk and r et ur n needs, sol -
vency posi t i ons and l iquidit y requir e-
ment s. The gui del i nes al so make i t
m an dat or y f or t h e bo ar d t o f r e-
quent ly revi ew t he ALM pol icy of t he
i nsur er. Any change i n t he po l i cy
must be repor t ed t o t he regul at or.
Under t he unif or m f ramewor k, insur-
er s have t o put i n pl ace an ef f ect i ve
mechani sm t o moni t or and manage
t hei r asset -l i abi l i t y posi t i ons. The
obj ect i ve i s t o ensur e t hat t hei r i n-
vest ment act i vi t i es and asset s po-
si t i ons ar e i n sync w i t h t hei r l i abi l i -
t i es, r i sk pr of i l es and sol vency posi -
t i ons. The gui del i nes, w hi ch w oul d
come i nt o ef f ect f r om 1 Apr i l 2012,
make i t mand at or y f or i nsur ance
compani es t o pr epar e an ALM pol icy
as w el l as get i t appr oved by t he In-
sur ance Regul at or y and Devel op-
ment Aut hor i t y ( I RDA) by end of
M ar ch 2012.
Benefits of ALM Policy
The Asset -Li ab i l i t y M an agem en t
( ALM ) n o r m s ar e cr i t i cal f o r t h e
sound management of t he f i nances
of t he i nsur er s t hat i nvest t o meet
t hei r f ut ur e cash f l ow needs and
cap i t al r e q u i r e m en t s. Th e ALM
pol i cy w i l l enabl e t he i nsur er s t o
under st and t he r i sks t hey ar e ex-
posed t o and devel op ALM pol i ci es
t o man age t hem ef f ect i vel y. The
ALM can be used t o measur e t he
i nt er est r at e r i sk f aced by i nsur er s.
No Floating Interest
Rates on Small Savings
Sc hemes
The Fi nace M i ni st r y on 4 Januar y
2012 cl ar i f i ed t hat t he r at es appl i -
cabl e on smal l savi ngs i nst r ument s
schemes w oul d be announced on
Apr i l 1 each year and t he r at e w oul d
r emai n val i d t i l l t he mat ur i t y of t he
scheme. The M i ni st r y st at ed t hat
bar r i ng t he Publ i c Pr ovi dent Fund
(PPF), t he r at es of i nt er est on al l
smal l savi ngs schemes w i l l r emai n
f i xed t hr oughout t he t enur e of i n-
vest ment . To cl ear t he conf usi on
over t he r et ur ns on i nvest ment i n
smal l savi ngs schemes, t he Fi nance
M i ni st r y poi nt ed out t hat t he r at e
pr evai li ng at t he t ime of i nvest ment s
w i l l r emai n f i xed and unchanged t i l l
t he mat ur i t y of t he i nvest ment . Any
r evisi ons i n i nt er est r at es i n t he sub-
sequent year s w oul d onl y be appl i -
cabl e t o t he i nvest ment s made i n
t he r el evant per i od.How ever, t he
r at e of i nt er est f or t he 15-year PPF
scheme w oul d not r emai n f i xed f or
t he ent i r e per i od as t he i nt er est ac-
cr ual s i n t he PPF account each year
w oul d var y, dependi ng on t he i nt er-
est r at e announced f or t hat par t i cu-
l ar year. For PPF, t he i nt erest rat e
f i xed ever y year w i l l be appl i cabl e
t o al l PPF account s.
The gover nment had hi ked t he int er-
est r at es on smal l savi ngs deposi t s
schemes of var i ous mat ur i t i es w i t h
ef f ect f r o m 1 Decemb er 2011 t o
chanel t he out f l ow of f unds f r om
smal l savi ngs schemes admi ni st ered
by t he Nat i onal Smal l Savi ngs Fund
(NSSF) i n vi ew of t he i nvest or pr ef -
er ence f or bank t er m deposi t s.
The cl ar i f i cat i on f rom t he Fi nance
M i ni st r y came i n t he f ace of f ear s
t hat t he r evi si on of i nt er est r at es on
smal l savi ngs schemes f r om 1 De-
cember 2011, ar e f l oat i ng r at es and
t hat t he r at es w i l l under go change
i n sync w i t h f l uct uat i ons i n yi el ds on
gover nment secur i t i es. It had al so
hi ked t he i nt erest rat es on PPF de-
posit s f rom 8 per cent t o 8.6 per cent
w hi l e r ai si ng t he cei l i ng on annual
cont ribut ions t o t he f und t o Rs.1 lakh
f r o m Rs. 70000. I nt er est r at es on
Post Of f i ce Savi ngs Account s r ose t o
4 per cent f r om 3.5 per cent . Si mi -
l ar l y, i nt er est rat es on deposi t s of
var i ous mat ur i t i es of one year, t w o
year s and f i ve year s t oo w er e r ai sed
f rom December.
DoT emphasised on Ca-
pac ity Constraint
The report of t he Depar t ment of Tele-
communi cat i ons, pr epar ed by t he
w or ki ng gr oup on Tel ecom f or t he
1 2 t h Fi v e Ye ar Pl an ( 2 01 2 - 17 ) ,
emphasi sed on t he t he ur gent need
f or cr eat i ng a secur e i nf r ast r uct ur e
f or government communi cat ion. The
securi t y of gover nemnt communi ca-
t i on need t o be ensur ed by an al t er -
nat i ve mechani sm because nei t her
i s i t adv i sabl e t o w ai t f or such a
mandat i ng and capaci t y buil ding nor
i s i t appr opr i at e t o r el y on t he l evel
o f se cu r i t y p r o v i d ed b y su ch a
scheme gi ven t hat communi cat i on
w i l l cont i nue t o r emai n i n t he open
domai n of Int er net . The repor t hi gh-
l ight ed t he capacit y const raint of t he
cur r ent Indi an syst em t hat al l ow s
t raf f i c t o f l ow out si de t he count r y.
As per t he r epor t an i nvest ment of
Rs.450 cr or e i s needed t o devel op
and depl oy a pan-Indi a secur e net -
w or k and net w or k-based ser vi ces
such as emai l , VoIP mobi l e commu-
ni cat i on t hr ough a sur vi vabl e and
avai l abl e net w or k ar chi t ect ur e f or
secur ed communi cat i on f or gover n-
ment use. Rs.300 cr or e is t o be spent
on est abl i shi ng a f i xed and w i r el ess
communi cat i on syst em f or hi gh se-
cur i t y of cl assif i ed gover nment com-
muni cat i on, Rs.100 cr or e w oul d be
spent f or operat ional expendit ure f or
t he next f i ve year s and Rs.50 cr or e
f or r esear ch and devel opment .
The Def ence Resear ch and Devel op-
ment Or gani sat i on (DRDO) has an
i nt er nal syst em of communi cat i on
t hat act s l i ke a pr i vat e Int er net sys-
t em , con n ect i n g v ar i ou s cen t r es
w or king on cr uci al def ence pr oj ect s,
t hus secur i ng i t f r om any ki nd of
hacki ng or i nt er cept i on. Al so, t he
Def ence Sci ent i f i c I nf or mat i on &
Document at i on Cent r e (DESIDOC)' s
mai n f unct i on i s col l ect i on, pr ocess-
i ng and di ssemi nat i on of r el evant
t echni cal i nf or mat i on f or DRDO sci -
ent i st s. It al so pr ovi des secur e e-
mai l and I nt er net connect i vi t y t o
DRDO l abs t hr ough t he net w or ks of
ERNET (of Dept . of El ect r oni cs) and
NICNET (of t he Pl anni ng Commi s-
si on).
Liquidity Eased by RBI
The Reser ve Bank of Indi a on 3 Janu-
ar y 2011 decided t o conduct an open
mar ket operat i on (OM O) t o i nj ect
mor e l i qui di t y i nt o t he syst em. The
RBI w i l l buy up t o Rs 12000 cr or e of
gover nment bonds vi a open mar ket
operat i ons on 6 January 2012, i nclud-
i ng t he 10-year paper w hi ch t i l l r e-
cent ly was t he benchmark paper. The
cent r al bank has deci ded t o ease l i -
qui di t y by buyi ng back gi l t s f or an
amount of R10,000 crore i n t he back-
dr op of banks accessi ng t he Reser ve
Bank of Indi a (RBI)s bor row i ng w i n-
dow f or mor e t han R1 l akh cr or e
each day. RBI announced an auct i on
f or R10,000 cr or e w or t h of bonds,
ot her w i se know n as open mar ket
oper at i on (OM O).
The OM O announcement came af -
t er t he mar ket t r adi ng hour s. t he
Reser ve Bank of I ndi a deci ded t o
con duct open mar ket oper at i ons
consi st ent w i t h t he st ance of t he
monet ar y pol i cy and based on t he
cur r ent assessment o f pr evai l i ng
and evol vi ng l i qui di t y condi t i ons.
Banks have been bor r ow i ng i n ex-
cess of R 1 l akh cr or e a day f r om t he
RBI ' s l i qui di t y ad j ust ment f aci l i t y
(LAF) or repo w i ndow. The l i qui di t y
def i cit in t he syst em i n r ecent w eeks
has been way beyond t he li mi t of 1%
of t he net l i abi l i t i es of t he syst em,
or ar ound Rs 55000 cr or e.
SEBI allowed Auctioning
of Securities through
Stock Exc hanges
The capi t al mar ket regul at or SEBI on
3 Januar y 2012 al l ow ed auct i oni ng
o f se cu r i t i e s t h r o u gh st o ck e x -
ch an ges an d i n t r o d u ce d a n e w
met hod f or i nst i t ut i onal pl acement
of st ocks. The move w as di r ect ed t o
ki ck-st ar t gover nment ' s di vesment
pr ogr amme as w el l as hel p pr omot -
er s of compani es t o sel l a par t of
t hei r hol di ngs. As per t he auct i on-
i ng r out e, a speci al w i ndow can be
used by pr omot er st akehol ders t o
sel l at l east 1% of t he pai d-up capi -
t al of a company. It i s si mi l ar t o t he
block-deal mechani sm f or secondar y
st ock mar ket t ransact i ons, but w i t h
l esse r r e st r i ct i o n s. Th e au ct i o n
met hod can be only used by promot -
er s of t op 100 compani es based on
aver age mar ket capi t al i sat i on f or
sal e of t hei r st akes.
Inst i t ut i onal Placement Pr ogr amme
Under t he i nst i t ut i onal pl acement
progr amme (IPP), shar es can be sol d
onl y t o qual i f i ed i nst i t ut i onal buy-
er s. Exchanges w i l l pr ovi de a sepa-
r at e w i ndow f or t he of f er f or sal e of
shar es w hi ch w i l l co-exi st w i t h t he
nor mal t r adi ng hour s. pr omot er or
pr omot er gr oup of compani es how -
ever w i l l not be al l ow ed t o bi d f or
t he shar es. Al l ot ment w i l l be done
ei t her on pr i ce pr i or i t y or cl ear i ng
p r i ce b asi s p r o p o r t i o n at el y an d
w o u l d b e o v e r se e n b y t h e ex -
changes. SEBIs measure i s consi d-
er ed t o be ver y pr ogr essi ve st ep t o-
w ar d s cr eat i ng an or gani sed and
ef f ect i ve mechani sm t hat w i l l not
onl y f aci l i t at e f und r ai si ng but al so
assi st compani es t o compl y w i t h t he
l i st i ng nor ms i n a non -di sr u pt i ve
manner. There shal l be at l east 10
al l ot t ees i n ever y IPP i ssuance. No
si ngl e i nvest or shal l r ecei ve al l ot -
ment f or mor e t han 25% of t he of f er
si ze.
Bill to Amend Forward
Contracts Regulation
Act 1952
The Parliament ary St andi ng Commi t -
t ee submi t t ed i t s r epor t on a bi l l t o
amend t he Forw ard Cont r act s Regu-
l at i o n Act 1 9 5 2. Par l i am e n t ar y
St andi ng Commi t t ee on consumer
af f ai r s, f ood and publ i c di st r i but i on,
ch ai r ed b y Co n gr e ss M P Vi l as
Baburao M ut t emwar, submi t t ed i t s
report on t he FCRA (Amendment ) Bi ll
2010 t o Par l i ament on 22 December
2011. The cur r ent depar t ment -r e-
l at ed st andi ng commi t t ee (DRSC),
set up i n 2009, was asked by t he Lok
Sabha speaker i n December 2010 t o
pr epar e a r epor t on t he bi l l and sub-
mi t i t t o t he Lok Sabha Secr et ar i at .
The commi t t ee i n i t s r epor t r ecom-
mended a doubl i ng of t he maximum
penal t y f or t r adi ng r ul e vi ol at i ons t o
Rs 50 l akh. The st andi ng commi t t ee
r epor t suggest ed r ai si ng t he upper
l i mi t on penal t i es f or of f ences l i ke
i nsi der t r adi ng t o Rs 50 l akh f r om Rs
25 l akh st i pul at ed i n t he For w ar d
Con t r act s Regu l at i o n Act (FCRA)
Amendment Bi l l 2010. Insi der t r ad-
i ng i nvol ves usi ng unpubl i shed pr i ce
sensi t i ve i nf or mat i on f or per sonal
gai n.
Repo r t
The r epor t r ecommended t hat op-
t i ons be i nt r oduced f or t he benef i t
of st akehol ders. The i ncl usi on of t he
cl ause w as one of t he r easons w hy
t he bi l l i n i t s ear l i er avat ar dur i ng
t he UPA I regi me f aced resi st ance.
Those who had opposed t he bil l t hen
especi al l y t he Lef t par t i es ar gued
t hat opt i ons w oul d i ncr ease specu-
l at i on i n commodi t i es. The r epor t
suggest ed t hat opt i ons w i l l act ual l y
m ake i t e asi e r f o r f ar m e r s an d
smal l er user s t o par t i ci pat e i n t he
der i vat i v es mar ket as t r adi n g l ot
si zes w i l l be l ow er t han i n f ut ur es
co n t r act s, w h e r e t h e m i n i m u m
t r aded quant i t y f or most f ar m pr od-
uct s i s 10 t onne.
i nvest i ng i n an opt i on al so t ends t o
mi ni mi se l osses as onl y t he pr emium
t o buy (cal l opt i on) or sel l (put op-
t ion) i s f orgone in t he event of pr i ces
movi ng adversel y. a f ut ures posi t i on
t aken by a t rader i s on t he ot her hand
mar ked t o mar ket dai l y. M ar ki ng t o
mar ket i nvol ves dai l y set t l ement of
t he di f f er ence bet w een t he pr i or
agr eed pr i ce and t he dai l y f ut ur es
pr i ce. It can t hus l ead t o huge l osses
al ongsi de super nor mal pr of i t s.
Implementation
of Levy on Railway
Freight Service deferred
The i mpl ement at i on of l evy on r ai l -
w ay f r ei ght ser vi ce w as put of f once
agai n i n t he backdr op of hi gh i nf l a-
t i on. The l evy i s now l i kel y t o come
i nt o f or ce f r om 1 Apr i l i nst ead of 1
Januar y as announced ear l i er. The
l evy on t r anspor t of goods by r ai l
was def er red f or t he si xt h t i me. Fi -
nance M i ni st er Pr anab M ukherj ee i n
t h e 20 1 0- 1 1 Un i o n Bu d get h ad
br ought t r anspor t of goods by r ai l -
w ay under t he ser vi ce t ax net f r om
1 Apr i l 2010. How ever, t he proposal
was vehement ly opposed by Railw ay
M i ni st r y f ear i ng adver se i mpact on
goods movement , f or ci ng t he gov-
er nment t o def er i t repeat edl y. Rai l -
w ay M i ni st r y i s of t he opi ni on t hat
any l evy on f r ei ght ser vi ce w oul d
adversely i mpact t he indust ry. M ove-
ment of coal and cement among ot h-
er s goods w oul d become cost l i er
w i t h t he i mposi t i on of ser vi ce t ax.
RILs $1.529 billion In-
vestment Plan approved
The Uni on gover nment on 3 Januar y
2012 appr oved Rel i ance Indust r i es'
(RIL) $1.529 bi l l i on i nvest ment pl an
f or devel opi ng f our sat el l i t e f i el ds i n
t he f l aggi ng KG-D6 bl ock. RI Ls i n-
vest ment pl an w i l l boost f al l i ng out -
put i n t he Kr i shna-Godavar i Basi n
KG-D6 bl ock. The i nvest ment pr o-
posal w as si gned by t he t hr ee par t -
ners i n t he bl ock- RIL, UK' s BP Pl c
and Ni ko Resources of Canada and
t he represent at i ve of DGH. The KG-
D6 block oversight commit t ee, whi ch
i ncl udes of f i ci al s f r om t he Oi l M i n-
i st r y and i t s t echni cal ar m, t he Di -
r ect or at e Gener al of Hydr ocar bons
(DGH), met f or t he t hird t i me in t hr ee
mont hs on 3 Januar y t o f i nal l y ap-
p r o ve t h e p r o p osal . Th e M C ap -
pr oval , w hi ch i s t he f i nal appr oval
an oper at or needs bef or e begi nni ng
w or k, put a cap on t he cost of devel -
opi ng t he f our f i el ds t hat sur r ound
t he cur r ent l y pr oduci ng Dhi r ubhai -1
and 3 (D-1 & D-3) f i el ds i n t he KG-
D6 bl ock. The cost cannot var y by
mor e t han 15%. The M C had at i t s
t wo pr evi ous meet i ngs i n November
and December 2011 r ef used t o ap-
pr ove t he f i el d devel opment pl an
(FDP) f or t he Dhi r ubhai -2, 6, 19 and
22 (D-2, D-6, D-19 and D-22) f i el ds
af t er t he government represent at i ve
r aised cer t ai n obj ect i ons. RIL agreed
t o cap spendi ng on t he f our f i el ds at
$1.529 bi l l i on, pl us or mi nus 15%.
The f our f i el ds can pr oduce 10 mi l -
l i on cubi c met r es of gas per day by
2016, w hi ch w i l l hel p shor e up out -
put f r om t he bl ock, w hi ch has seen
a 35% decl i ne i n pr oduct i on i n t he
past 15 mont hs.
Export Duty on Iron Ore
Exports raised
The Union gover nment rai sed t he ad
val or em dut y (expor t dut y) on i r on
or e expor t s t o 30 per cent f r om 20
per cent . The deci si on i s expect ed
t o st ep up f i nances of cash-st r apped
government by around Rs 8500-9000
cr or e. The Feder at i on of Indi an M i n-
er al I ndu st r i es, t he apex body of
miners how ever compl ained t hat In-
di an or e w oul d no l onger be com-
pet i t i ve int er nat i onall y. The i ncrease
i n expor t t ax coul d l ow er t he pr of i t
mar gin of Sesa Goa Lt d., Indi a' s l ar g-
est i r on-or e expor t er by vol ume.
Sh i p men t s f r om t he Sout h Asi an
cou nt r y d ecr eased 28% bet w een
Apr i l and November t o 40 mi l l i on
t ons, accor di ng t o t he Feder at i on of
Indi an M i ner al Indust r i es.
Vol umes w ere hi t by a mi ni ng ban i n
t he sout her n st at e of Kar nat aka, a
f r eeze on sal e of ol d st ocks i n w est -
er n Goa st at e and t r anspor t bot t l e-
necks i n t he east er n st at e of Or i ssa.
India export ed 97.64 milli on t ons i ron
or e i n 2012. The Supr eme Cour t had
i n ear l y 2011 banned mi ni ng i n t he
maj or i r on-or e pr oduci ng di st r i ct s of
Kar nat aka t o pr event i l l egal mi ni ng
and envi r onment al damage. In Goa,
moves t o r educe envi r onment al i m-
pact and i l l egal mi ni ng af f ect ed pr o-
duct i on. The t w o st at es account f or
ar ound 70% of Indi a' s i r on-or e ex-
port s.
RBI allowed NRIs to
hedge their Currency
Risk in respect of ECB
The Reser ve Bank of I ndi a o n 29
December 2011 al l ow ed non-r esi -
dent s t o hedge t hei r cur r ency r i sk i n
r espect of ext er nal commer ci al bor -
r ow i ngs (ECB) denomi nat ed i n r u-
pees, w it h AD Cat egor y-I (aut horised
deal er ) bank s i n I nd i a. Th e ap ex
bank ment ioned t hat t he amount and
t enor of t he hedge cannot not ex-
ceed t hat of t he under l yi ng t r ansac-
t i on. Besi des, i t shoul d be i n conso-
nance w i t h t he ext ant r egul at i ons
r egar d i n g t e n o r o f p ay m e n t o r
r eal i sat i o n o f t h e p r o ceed s. Th e
NGOs ( n o n - Go v er n m en t
o r gan i sat i o n s) e n gage d i n
micr of i nance act i vi t i es w er e per mit -
t ed t o avai l t hemsel ves of ECBs des-
i gnat ed i n I ndi an r upee under t he
au t o m at i c r o u t e f r o m o v er se as
or gani sat i ons and i ndi vi dual s as per
t he ECB gui deli nes. Accor di ng t o t he
RBI , once cancel l ed t he cont r act s
cannot be rebooked. The cont ract s
may, how ever, be rol l ed over on or
bef ore mat ur i t y. On cancel l at i on of
t he cont r act s, gai ns may be passed
on t o t he cust omer.
Financ ial Pac kage
of Rs 257 crore
Recommended for NEPA
The Board f or Reconst r uct ion of Pub-
l i c Sect or Ent er pr i ses (BRPSE) r ec-
ommended a f i nanci al package of Rs
257 cr or e t o r evi ve t he si ck new s-
pr i nt uni t NEPA. The i ni t i at i ve was
t aken af t er t he gover nment shel ved
i t s pl an t o di vest maj or i t y st ake i n
t he company and revi ve it t hr ough a
j o i n t v e n t u r e w i t h t h e p r i v at e
sect o r. Th e go v e r n m e n t h o l d s
97 . 7 5 % i n NEPA. BRPSE al so
f avoured t he wai vi ng of f NEPA' s i n-
t er est and st at ut or y dues w or t h Rs
304 cror e. The Boar d f or Reconst r uc-
t ion of Publi c Sect or Ent er pri ses sug-
gest i on was made t o NEPA' s admi n-
i st rat i ve mi nist r y, t he Depar t ment of
Heavy I ndust r y. BRPSE suggest ed
t he depar t ment t o i nf use Rs 175
cr or e i n t he f or m of f r esh equi t y t o
meet par t -f i nance of t ot al expendi -
t ur e of Rs 318 cr or e f or Revi val and
M i l l Devel opment Pl an (RM DP).
I t al so r ecommended sanct i on of
non-pl an l oan of Rs 22.48 cr or e t o-
w ar ds cash l oss f r om pr oduct i on f or
t h e f i r st y ear of p r od uct i on . The
M adhya Pr adesh-based company
suf f er ed a l oss of Rs 70.40 cr or e i n
2010-11.
Union Government
Quadrupled Limits on
Loans
The Uni on gover nment quadr upl ed
(f our t i mes) t he l i mi t s on l oans t hat
a banks i nt er nal commi t t ee can ap-
pr ove. The gi over nment s move i s
expect ed t o qui cken credi t cl earance
at 26 st at e-r un banks, i ncl udi ng t he
Bank of Bar oda and Punj ab Nat i onal
Ban k . Th e go v er n m en t d i r ect ed
banks t o set up a cr edi t appr oval
commi t t ee compr i si ng chai r man,
execut i ve di r ect or s and t hr ee chi ef
gener al manager s w ho i s t o handl e
credi t , f i nance and ri sk management
f unct i ons. The gr oup can appr ove
cr edi t pr oposal s up t o Rs 400 cr or e.
Cur r ent l y, any l oan above Rs 100
cr or e has t o be vet t ed by t he man-
agement commi t t ee of t he boar d,
w hi ch meet once a mont h, or 20
days. Under t he ol d r egi me, a man-
agement commi t t ee of t he boar d,
w hi ch i ncl uded a Reser ve Bank of
India nominee and t wo independent
di r ect or s appoi nt ed by r ot at i on, t he
banks chai r man and managi ng di -
r ect or and execut i ve di r ect or s, t ook
t hese d eci si o ns. Th e p r escr i b ed
l i mi t i s appl i cab l e on Cat egor y A
banks w i t h a busi ness of Rs 3 l akh
cr or e, w hi l e smal l er publ i c sect or
banks can use t he same st r uct ur e t o
appr ove l oans up t o Rs 250 cr or e. If
a l oan under consi der at i on i s hi gher
t han t hese l i mi t s, i t w oul d be t ake
t o t he management boar d.
RBI Ordered Banks to
Keep More Capital
For Investments in
Financ ial Entities
The Reser ve Bank of Indi a (RBI) or -
der ed banks t o set asi de mor e capi -
t al f or t hei r i nvest ment s i n f i nanci al
ent i t i es such as i nsur ance w i t h an
obj ect i ve t o st r engt hens t he r i ng
f ence ar ound banks. How ever t he
move can st r ai n capi t al r esour ces
w h i ch ar e i n cr easi n gl y ge t t i n g
scar ce. The RBI pr oposed t he r ai se
i n r i sk wei ght t o pr event banks f r om
get t i ng af f ect ed because of t hei r
hol di ngs i n ot her f i nance ent i t i es.
The banks ar e t o set asi de 25% mor e
capi t al f ol l ow i ng t he cent r al bank
r ai se of t he r i sk w ei ght f or buyi ng or
hol di ng of equi t y i n f i nanci al ent i -
t i es. Banks i nvest ment s i n pai d-up
equi t y of f i nanci al ent i t i es, even i f
t hey ar e exempt ed f r om t he capi t al
market exposure nor ms, w i l l t hus be
assi gned a 125 per cent r i sk w ei ght .
The pr oposal i s expect ed t o l ead
banks, w hi ch at pr esent set aside Rs
9 f or ever y Rs 100 of i nvest ment i n
f i n an ci al en t i t i es, t o ke ep asi d e
about Rs 11. RBI opi ned t hat con-
so l i d at i o n i n t he b an k i n g sect o r
w oul d pave t he w ay f or st r onger f i -
nanci al i nst i t ut i ons w i t h t he capac-
i t y t o meet cor porat e and inf rast r uc-
t ur e f undi ng needs, and t o r escue
di st ressed l enders. How ever, i t pre-
scr i bed a non-oper at i ve bank hol d-
i ng company st r uct ur e t o avoi d cr e-
at i on of compl ex i nst i t ut i ons.
Uniform Licence Fee of 8
% of AGR recommended
Tel ecom Commi ssi on, t he deci si on-
maki ng body of t he Depar t ment of
Telecommuni cat i ons recommended
a uni f or m l i cence f ee of 8 per cent
of adj ust ed gr oss r evenues (AGR).
Uni f or m l i cense f ee of 8 % w as r ec-
ommended as agai nst t he pr evalent
r at e of 6-8 per cent dependi ng upon
t he t ype of ser vi ce and ci r cl e a f i r m
i s o p er at i n g. Th e Co m m i ssi o n s
move w i l l put mor e f i nanci al pr es-
su r e o n t el eco m o p er at o r s. Th e
Tel ecom Commi ssi on i s al so l i kel y t o
i mpose one-t i me char ges on ext r a
2G spect r um t hat oper at or s have
been hol di ng beyond t he cont ract ual
l i mi t of 6.2 M Hz. The Tel ecom Regu-
l at or y Aut hor i t y of Indi a (TRAI) al so
recommended a charge of 8 per cent
of AGR f or deci di ng t he l i cense f ee.
TRAI r ecommended t hat each M Hz
of addi t i onal spect r um (beyond 6.2
M Hz of cont ract ual radi o waves) held
by oper at or s shoul d have one-t i me
cost of Rs.4571.87 cror e (pan-India).
The Tel eco m Com m i ssi on f u t her
speci f i ed t hat i n f ut ur e addi t i onal
spect r um w oul d be al l ot t ed t hr ough
t he auct ion r out e.
The Tel ecom Commi ssi on had ac-
cept ed t he TRAI r ecommendat ion on
m er ge r an d acq u i si t i o n ( M & A) ,
w hi ch accor di ng t o t he Commi ssi on
w oul d help consol i dat i on of t he mo-
bil e sect or t hat cur r ent l y has ar ound
a dozen pl ayer s, t he hi ghest i n t he
wor ld.
The Commission accept ed t he TRAI' s
recommendat ions on spect rum shar-
i ng as w el l . The spect r um shar i ng
would be permit t ed bet ween any t wo
l i censees hol di ng spect r um, subj ect
t o t he condi t i on t hat t he t ot al band-
w i dt h w oul d not cr oss t he per mi s-
si bl e l i mi t under mer ger s. The per -
mi ssi on woul d be f or f i ve year s, sub-
j ect t o r enew al f or one mor e t er m of
f i ve year s. As per t he new r egul a-
t ion, pr e-2008 oper at or s w il l need t o
pay one-t i me addi t i onal spect r um
char ge. The oper at or s ar e cur r ent l y
payi ng about 6-10%, dependi ng on
t he ci r cl es t hey oper at e i n. The new
f igure of 8% i s much mor e t han w hat
t he TRAI had ear l i er suggest ed at
6%.
Cheques to be issued
conforming to Cheque
Truncation System 2010
Standard
The Reser ve Bank on 27 December
2011 di r ect ed al l ban k s t o i ssu e
cheques conformi ng t o Cheque Trun-
cat i on Syst em (CTS) 2010 st andar d
w i t h uni f or m f eat ur es f r om 1 Apr i l
2012 onw ar ds. Al l banks pr ovi di ng
cheque f aci l i t y t o t hei r cust omer s
w er e advi sed t o issue onl y CTS-2010
st andar d cheques not l at er t han 1
Apr i l 2012 on pr i or i t y basi s i n nor t h-
er n and sout her n r egi on. The t w o-
nor t her n and sout hern regi on wi ll be
par t of t he nor t her n and sout her n
CTS gr i ds r esp ect i vel y. CTS- 2010
st andar d cheques ar e t o be i ssued
by banks acr oss t he count r y by 30
Sep t em ber 2012 t hr o ugh a t i m e
bound act i on pl an. The Indi an Banks
Associ at i on ( IBA) and Nat i onal Pay-
ment Cor por at i on of Indi a ( NPCI)
w er e vest ed w i t h t he r esponsi bi l i t y
of coor di nat i ng and i mpl ement i ng
t he uni f orm cheque st andar d acr oss
t h e co u n t r y b y al l p ar t i ci p at i n g
banks.
Need f or t he CTS
The i nt roduct i on of new cheque st an-
dar ds ' CTS 2010' w as needed on
account of sever al devel opment s i n
t he cheque cl ear i ng: gr ow i ng use of
m u l t i - ci t y an d p ay ab l e- at - p ar
cheques at any br anch of a bank,
i ncreasing popul ar i t y of Speed Clear -
i ng f or l ocal processing of out st at i on
cheques and i mpl ement at i on of gr i d
based Cheque Tr uncat i on Syst em
(CTS) f or i mage-based cheque pr o-
cessi ng et c.
Advant age of t he CTS
The new cheque st andar d CTS 2010
w i t h set of mi ni mum secur i t y f ea-
t ur es w i l l ensur e uni f or mi t y acr oss
al l cheque f or ms i ssued by banks i n
t he count r y as w el l as hel p pr esent -
i ng b an k s w h i l e scr u t i ni si n g an d
r e co gn i si n g ch eq u e s o f d r aw e e
banks i n an i mage-based pr ocess-
i ng scenar i o, RBI sai d i n a not i f i ca-
t i on. The homogenei t y i n secur i t y
f eat ur es i s al so expect ed t o act as a
det er r en t agai nst cheque f r auds.
Al so , t he st andar di sat i o n of f i el d
pl acement s on cheque f or ms w oul d
enabl e st r ai ght -t hr ough-pr ocessi ng
bot h under CTS and M ICR cl ear i ng.
RBI tightened the
Capital Adequac y
Norms for all NBFCs
The Reser ve Bank on 26 December
2011 t ight ened t he prudent i al nor ms
f or t he non-banki ng f i nanci al com-
p an i es ( NBFCs) u n der w h i ch t h e
NBFCs w i l l have t o account f or r i sks
t o w ar d s of f - bal an ce sheet i t ems
w hi l e comput i ng capi t al adequacy
r equi r ement . The NBFCs can t hus
part icipat e in t he credi t def aul t sw ap
mar ket onl y as users. As users, t he
NBFCs w oul d be per mi t t ed onl y t o
hedge t hei r cr edi t r i sk on cor por at e
bonds t hey hol d. How ever, t hey are
not per mit t ed t o sell prot ect ion. They
are t her ef or e not permit t ed t o ent er
i nt o shor t posi t i ons i n t he cr edi t de-
f aul t cont r act s. NBFCs ar e how ever
per mi t t ed t o exi t t hei r bought CDS
posi t i ons by unw i ndi ng t hem w i t h
t he or i gi nal count er -par t y or by as-
si gni ng t hem i n f avour of buyer of
t he under l yi ng bond. RBI al so t i ght -
ened t he capi t al adequacy nor ms f or
al l NBFCs. The r ul e t i ght eni ng exer -
ci se co m es i n t h e w ake o f t h ei r
st epped-up exposur e t o of f - bal ance
sheet i t ems. The RBI r evi sed capi t al
adequacy nor ms f or non-banki ng f i -
nance compani es (NBFCs) w i t h an
obj ect i ve t o i mpr ove t hei r capaci t y
and hel p manage of f -bal ance sheet
exposur e. The regulat ory f r amework
w as e xp an d e d t o h av e gr e at e r
gr anul ar i t y i n t he r i sk w ei ght s and
cr edi t conver si on f act or s f or di f f er -
ent t ypes of of f -bal ance sheet i t ems.
In t he nor mal cour se of t hei r busi -
ness, NBFCs ar e exposed t o cr edi t
and mar ket r i sks due t o asset -l i abi l -
it y t r ansf or mat i on as t he Indian mar-
ket s are now more i nt egrat ed w i t h
gl obal ones.
Tea Imports Declined
Accordi ng t o t he Tea Board dat a re-
l eased i n December 2011, t ea i m-
por t s decli ned by 14 per cent t o 9.91
mi l l i on kg i n t he Apr i l -Oct ober pe-
r iod of 2011. Import s of t he br ew f el l
by 15% t o 14. 15 m i l l i o n kg f r om
16.57 mi l l i on kg i n Januar y-Oct ober
2010. Th e coun t r y h ad i mp or t ed
11.55 mi l l i on kg of t ea i n same pe-
r i od i n 2010. Indi a, t he w or l d' s l ar g-
est co nsum er o f t ea i mpor t s t ea
l eaves sol el y f or r e-expor t t o ot her
count r i es. The di p i n i mpor t s t her e-
f or e si gnal s l ow er r e-expor t s. The
i nbound shi pment s of t ea f rom most
count ri es, except Argent ina, Iran and
t he UK, r egi st er ed a decl i ne i n t he
f i r st seven mont hs of t he 2011-12
f i n an ci al year. I n d i a i m p o r t s t ea
l ar gel y f r om Kenya, M al aw i , Nepal ,
Ar gent i na, Ir an, Sr i Lanka, Chi na and
Indonesi a, among ot her count r i es.
Indi a is t he second-bi ggest pr oducer
of t ea i n t he w or l d and account s f or
about 28% of gl obal out put and 14%
of t r ade. Ther e ar e ar ound 1600 t ea
est at es i n I n di a and t he i ndu st r y
em p l o y s m o r e t h an t w o m i l l i o n
people.
IT Sector created most
Jobs in the last 5 Years
The i nf ormat i on t echnol ogy (IT) sec-
t or l ed by t he t op t hr ee l i st ed com-
pani es, TCS, Inf osys and Wi pr o, cr e-
at ed t he most j obs i n t he f i ve year s
endi ng 2011 compar ed w i t h ot her
sect or s. I ncr eased empl oyment i n
t he sect or w as boost ed by an over
t wo-f ol d j ump i n aggregat e r evenue.
The dat a i s based on t he hi r i ng t rend
of a sampl e of 600 l i st ed compani es
t hat r epor t ed annual f i nancials along
w i t h headcount i nf or mat i on si nce
2006. The f i ndi ngs pr ovi de a r ef l ec-
t i on of t he changi ng t rend i n Indi as
GDP co m p o si t i o n . Th e r e w as a
m ar ked sh i f t f r o m t h e agr ar i an
phase t o t he ser vi ces phase. The
dat a r evealed t hat t he propor t i on of
ser vi ces sect o r j o b s i n t h e t o t al
headcount of t he sampl e r ose t o
46.5% i n 2011 f r om 41.8% i n 2006.
Th e sam p l e co m p an i es al so e x-
panded t he aggregat e headcount by
48% t o 43. 8 l akh emp l o yees b e-
t w een 2006 and 2011.
IT Sect or
The anal ysi s by Economi c Ti mes (ET)
Int ell igence Group of t he t r end in j ob
cr eat i on by t he or gani sed sect or r e-
f l ect ed t he r i si ng cl out of ser vi ces
compani es. Of t he 14. 3 l akh j obs
creat ed bet w een Fi nanci al 2006 and
2011, over 8 l akh (56%) w er e added
by compani es i n t he ser vi ces sec-
t or s, w hi ch i ncl udes banki ng and f i -
nance, heal t hcare, hospi t al i t y, t ech-
nol ogy, t el ecom, t radi ng and ret ai l .
These compani es cr eat ed f our out
of seven j obs i n t he count r y over t he
past f ive years t hereby out pacing t he
manuf act uri ng sect or. IT sect or play-
ers l ed t he ser vi ce sect or, addi ng as
many as 4.5 l akh empl oyees. TCS,
Inf osys and Wi pr o t oget her added
2.4 l akh peopl e, or mor e t han hal f
t he t ot al addi t i ons f or t he sect or.
First Pan-India
Satellite Survey
The f i r st pan-Indi a sat el l i t e sur vey
j o i n t l y co m m i ssi o n e d b y I n d i an
Sugar M i l l s Associ at i on (ISM A) and
t he Nat ional Feder at ion of Co-oper a-
t i v e Su gar Fact o r i es Lt d ( NFCSF)
pegged t he cane ar ea f or 2011-12
cr op year st ar t i ng Oct ober at 51.82
l akh hect ar es (l h). For t he f i r st t i me
t he sur vey w as car r i ed out St at e-
w i se and di st r i ct -w i se f or t he ar ea
under sugar cane, t hr ough sat el l i t e
mappi ng on such a l ar ge-scal e. Sat -
el l i t e i mages of t he cane ar ea pr o-
cur ed f r om t he Nat i onal Rem ot e
Sensi ng Agency, Hyder abad, w er e
anal ysed usi ng t he Geogr aphi cal In-
f o r m at i o n Sy st e m s so f t w ar e b y
Sout h I ndi a-based f i r m. A sat el l i t e
mappi ng of sugar cane acr eage car -
r i ed out f or t he f i r st t i me acr oss In-
di a show ed an i ncr ease of 3% over
t he gover nment est i mat e. The dat a
show ed acr eage t o be t he same i n
Ut t ar Pr adesh and hi gher by 3% i n
M ahar asht r a as compar ed t o t he f ig-
ur es pr oj ect ed by t he mi ni st r y of
agr i cul t ur e f or t he t w o st at es. Ac-
cor di ng t o t he sat el l i t e dat a, acr e-
age f or 2011-12 has been est i mat ed
at 51.82 l akh hect ar e. The f i gur e i s
hi gh er t han t h e est i mat es made
manual l y by t he sugar i ndust r y at
50.79 l akh hect ar e, by t he mi ni st r y
of agr i cul t ur e at 50.93 l akh hect ar e
and t he mi ni st r y of f ood and publ i c
di st r i but i on at 50.25 l akh hect ar e.
Indi a j oi ned t he r anks of maj or sugar
pr oducer s such as Br azi l and Thai -
l and i n l ever agi ng r emot e sensi ng
t echnol o gy t o est i mat e t he cane
ar ea.
Illegal Mutual Roaming
Agreements to be Scrap
Indi a' s t el ecom mi ni st r y on 22 De-
cember 2011 i nf ormed mobile phone
oper at or s t hat t hey must scr ap i l l e-
gal mut ual roaming agreement s t hat
al l ow t hem t o pr ovi de seaml ess na-
t i on w i de 3G ser vi ces. As per t he
mi ni st r y, t he pact s t hat l et t he op-
er at or s of f er 3G ser vi ces out si de
t hei r l i censed zones ar e i n vi ol at i on
of t er ms and condi t i ons of t hei r l i -
cences.
The gover nment compl ai ned t hat
t elecom operat ors w er eusing t he 3G
r oami ng deal s t o of f er ser vi ces i n
ar eas w her e t hey have not pai d f or
t he spect r um. Leadi ng mobil e oper a-
t ors such as Bhar t i Ai r t el , Vodaf one
and Idea Cel l ul ar had st r uck deal s
w it h each ot her t o of f er ul t r a-f ast 3G
ser vi ces i n ar eas w her e t hey di d not
acqui r e spect r um i n a cost l y band-
w i dt h auct i o n i n 2010. The f i r ms
ent er ed i nt o t he deal s because none
coul d af f or d nat i onw i de 3G spec-
t r um i n t he hi gh-pr i ced sal e.
Bhar t i has 3G bandw i dt h i n 13 of
Indi a' s 22 t el ecom zones w hi l e Idea
h as acce ss i n 11 ar e as an d
Vodaf one' s Indi a uni t i n ni ne. The
announcement by t he mi nist ry deal t
a a bl ow t o t he compani es, w hi ch
had hoped t o r ecover t hei r 3G auc-
t i on payment s by providi ng high-pr e-
mi um 3G dat a ser vi ces acr oss t he
count r y i n Indi a' s f i er cel y compet i -
t i ve t el ecom mar ket .
Ear l i er oper at or s had not ed t hat i n
case t hey coul d not of f er nat i onw ide
r oami ng, t he gover nment shoul d r e-
f und t he sums pai d f or 3G spect r um
or r est age t he auct i on as i t w oul d
al t er t he basi s on w hi ch 3G bi ds
w er e made. Thi r d-gener at i on ser -
vi ces, or 3G, al l ow mobi l e phone
user s t o sur f t he Int er net , vi deo con-
f er ence and dow nl oad musi c, vi deo
and ot her cont ent at a much f ast er
pace t han t he cur r ent second-gen-
er at i on ser vi ce of f er ed i n Indi a.
The gover nment had r eaped $15 bi l -
l i on f r om auct i oni ng t he 3G l i cences
i n 2010. Bhar t i and Idea pai d 123
bi l l i on r upees ($2. 3 bi l l i on) f or l i -
cences w hi l e Vodaf one pai d 116 bi l -
l i on r upees. Indi an t el ecom compa-
ni es w hi ch cur r ent l y gener at e onl y
smal l r evenues f r om dat a ser vi ces
expect t he mar ket t o grow exponen-
t i al l y as l ess t han 10 per cent of t he
1.2 bi l l i on popul at i on has access t o
Int er net at t he moment .
Indi a has some 881.4 mi l l i on mobi l e
and 33.2 mi l l i on f i xed-l i ne subscr i b-
er s w i t h t ot al t el edensi t y at 76, up
f r om 2.5 i n 2000.
Moody's upgraded
Credit Rating of Indian
Government's Bonds
Cr edi t r at i ng agency M oody' s on 21
December 2011 upgraded t he cr edi t
r at i ng of t he I ndi an gover nment ' s
bonds f r om t he specul at i ve t o i n-
vest ment gr ade. Accor di ng t o a r e-
l ease i ssued by t he Fi nance M i ni s-
t r y, M oody' s unif i ed Indi a' s l ocal and
f o r ei gn cur r en cy b ond r at i ngs at
Baa3. The r at i ngs agency i ni t i al l y
had separ at e r at i ng f or i nvest or s
w ho choose t o buy bonds i n f or ei gn
cu r r ency an d separ at e r at i n g f or
t hose w ho have a r upee exposur e.
t he r at i ngs agency had a Baa3 f or -
ei gn cur r ency r at i ng and a Ba1 l ocal
cur r ency r at i ng t il l Sept ember 2011.
M oody' s Invest or Ser vi ce upgr aded
i t s l ocal cur r ency r at i ng f or I ndi an
gover nment bonds t o Baa3 w hi ch i s
i nvest ment gr ade as compar ed t o
t h e ear l i er Ba1 w h i ch i s j u n k o r
specul at i ve gr ade. Indi a' s Baa3 r at -
i ng i ncor por at es cr edi t st r engt hs
such as a l arge, di versi f i ed economy,
r obust medi um t er m gr ow t h pr os-
pect s and a st r ong domest i c savi ngs
pool t hat f aci l i t at es t he f i nanci ng
and r ef i nanci ng of t he gover nment ' s
r el at i vel y hi gh debt bur den. Indi a' s
f or ei gn cur r ency bond cei l i ng i s un-
changed at Baa2, and t he f or ei gn
cu r r en cy b an k d ep o si t cei l i n g i s
Baa3. The l ocal cur r ency bond and
bank deposi t cei l i ngs ar e uni f i ed at
A1. In addi t i on, t he gover nment ' s
l ocal cur r ency shor t -t er m r at i ng has
been changed t o P-3 f rom NP, i ndi -
cat i ng t he gover nment ' s abi l i t y t o
r epay shor t -t er m debt s.
M oody' s expect ed I ndi a' s gr ow t h
dow nt ur n t o per si st f or t he next t w o
quar t ers, but t he GDP gr ow t h w oul d
be above aver age w i t h r espect t o
t he si mi l ar l y r at ed peer s. Gi vi ng t he
r at i onal e f or t he upgr ade, M oody' s
ment i oned t hat di ver se sour ces of
Indi an grow t h have enhanced i t s r e-
si l i e n ce t o gl o b al sh o ck s. Th e
pr esent sl ow dow n coul d r ever se
some t i me i n 2012-13, as i nf l at i on
cool s f r om t he curr ent 9 per cent lev-
el s. M oody s upgrade i s expect ed t o
at t r act For ei gn Inst i t ut i onal Inves-
t ors (FIIs) t o t he Indi an bond mar ket
and boost t he gl oomy economi c out -
l oo k . Th e l ast t i me M o o dy ' s up -
gr aded any Indi an l ong-t er m sover -
e i gn d e b t i n st r u m e n t f r o m t h e
specul at ive t o i nvest ment grade w as
i n 2004.
India exited from
$1 trillion Group
Fear s of cont i nui ng economi c sl ow -
down, l ack of deci si on making at t he
cent r e, r i si ng f i scal def i ci t combi ned
w i t h not -so-i mpr essi ve revenue col -
l ect i ons upset Dalal St r eet i nvest or s
on 20 December 2011 l eadi ng t o a
204 poi nt s l oss i n sensex t o end at
15175. The l oss of 204 poi nt s r epr e-
sent ed a 28-mont h l ow f or t he i n-
dex and i t s f i f t h consecut i ve sessi on
of l osses, dur i ng w hi ch i t has l ost
827 poi nt s, or 5.2%. The day s sl i de
w as t r i gger ed by FII sel l i ng w hi ch
r ecor ded a net out f l ow of Rs 526
crore, t aki ng t he mont hs t ot al net
out f l ow t o about Rs 1300 cr or e. The
Indi an r upee w hi ch had w eakened
f ur t her t o go bel ow 53 t o a US dol l ar
l evel agai n, cl o sed at l evel of Rs
52.89 on 19 December 2011.
The combi ned ef f ect of t he market s
sl i de and t he depr eci at i on of t he r u-
pee f or ced Indi a t o exi t f r om t he se-
l ect group of count r i es w i t h a $1 t r i l -
l i o n m ar ket cap i t al i zat i o n . Wi t h
BSE s m ar ket cap cur r ent l y at Rs
52.53 l akh crore, Indi as mar ket cap
i n dol l ar t er ms w or ks out t o $993
bi l l i on. On 28 M ay 2007, w hen t he
rupee was showi ng unusual st rengt h
agai n st t h e d o l l ar an d h o v e r e d
ar ound t he 40 mar k t hat Indi a had
f i rst ent ered t he $1-t r i l l i on mar ket
cap l eague. However, l at el y t he t wi n
ef f ect of r upees w eakness and t he
sli de of t he market combined t o drag
i t bel ow t he t r i l l i on dol l ar mar k. Ac-
cordi ng t o Bl oomberg dat a, I ndi as
mar ket cap so far i n 2011 went dow n
by 38%, maki ng i t t he w or st per -
f or mi ng mar ket among t he 12 coun-
t r i es t hat w er e i n t he t r i l l i on dol l ar
cl ub.
India's Energy Security
Under Pressure
As per a j oi nt st udy by t he Feder a-
t i on of I ndi an Chamber s of Com-
m er ce and I n d ust r y ( FI CCI ) an d
consul t ancy f i r m Er nst and Young,
Indi a' s ener gy secur i t y i s under se-
ver e pr essur e due t o r easons l i ke
i ncr easi ng dependence on import ed
oi l, r egul at or y uncert ai nt y and nat u-
r al gas pr i ci ng pol i ci es. The r epor t
m en t i o n ed t h at a sm al l p o o l o f
sk i l l ed m an p o w e r an d p o o r u p -
st r eam i nf r ast r uct ur e ar e al so exer t -
i ng pr essur e.
Repo r t
Accordi ng t o t he r epor t , t her e exi st s
a di r e need t o addr ess t he suppl y
i ssue t hr ough a sl ew of pol i cy r e-
f or ms, as w el l as t o l aunch a mas-
si v e aw ar en ess camp ai gn on t he
demand si de management , and t he
pr i ci ng of pr oduct s t o i ncent i vi se i n-
vest ment s f or r ai si ng domest i c pr o-
duct ion. As per t he Int egr at ed Energy
Pol i cy of t he Gover nment , I ndi a' s
r equi r ement of pr i mar y commer ci al
ener gy i s pr oj ect ed t o i ncr ease f r om
551 mi l l i on t onne of oi l equi val ent
i n 2011-12 t o 1823 mt of oi l equi va-
l ent i n 2031-32.
The i ncr ease i n oi l pr i ce by $10 a
b ar r el i s l i kel y t o sl o w t h e GDP
gr ow t h by 0.2 per cent and may i n-
f l at e t he cur r ent account def i ci t by
0.4 per cent . Al so, t he r ecent depr e-
ci at i on of t he r upee r ai sed t he cr ude
oi l i mpor t s cost s, i mpact i ng t r ade
def i ci t and domest i c i nf l at i on. Con-
sequent l y t he i mport of cr ude oil and
oi l pr oduct s r ose f r om $50.3 bi l l i on
i n 2005-06 t o $115.9 bi l l i on i n 2010-
11. In t he cur r ent f i nanci al year (t i l l
Oct ober 2011), oi l i mpor t s t ouched
$75 bi l l i on. The count r y meet s 73
per cent of i t s f uel needs t hr ough oi l
import s.
Suggest i ons M ade
The st udy sugggest ed t he need t o
i nt r oduce r ef or m and f avour abl e
pol i ci es f or t he pr i vat e sect or t o se-
cur e f or ei gn oi l and gas asset s. In-
di a, t hough has sur pl us oi l r ef i ni ng
capaci t y, i t st i l l needs maj or i nvest -
ment s t o upgr ade t he exi st i ng pr o-
d u ct i o n i n f r ast r u ct u r e . I t al so
st r essed on t he need t o shor e up t he
ener gy secur i t y i ni t i at i ves i n an en-
vi r onment of unst abl e geopol i t i cal
si t u at i o n i n t h e M i ddl e East and
Nor t h Af r i ca, f r om w her e Indi a get s
60 per cent of i t s oi l i mpor t s.
DGH approved Cai rn Indias Proposal
The di rect or at e gener al of hydr ocar -
bons (DGH), t he t echni cal ar m of t he
oi l mi ni st r y approved Cai r n Indi as
pr oposal t o commence pr oduct i on
f r om Bhagyam, t he second-l ar gest
oi l f i el d i n t he Raj ast han bl ock. The
company, w hi ch cur rent l y operat es
t he bl ock w i t h a 70% st ake, wai t ed
f or a year t o obt ain appr ovals t o st art
product ion.The DGH gave it s approv-
al s t o commence pr oduct i on f r om
Bhagyam, al ong w i t h bot h t he man-
agement commi t t ee and t he oper a-
t i ons commi t t ee. The management
commi t t ee compr i ses Cai r n I ndi a,
ONGC and r epr esent at i ves of t he
DGH and t he pet r ol eum mi ni st er
w hi l e t he OC i s composed of onl y JV
par t ner s Cai r n Indi a and ONGC.
The r epr esent at i ves of t he oi l mi n-
i st r y al so gave t hei r i n-pr i nci pl e nod
t o commence product i on. Cur rent ly,
M angal a, t he bi ggest of t he 18 di s-
cover i es i n t he Raj ast han bl ock, i s
pr oduci ng 125000 bpd. Bhagyam i s
t ar get ed t o pr oduce a peak out put
of 40000 bpd by t he end of 2011,
w hi ch w oul d hel p Cai r n achi eve t he
ap p r o v ed p e ak o u t p u t o f u p t o
175000 b pd. The appr ov al s w er e
st uck f or mor e t han a year as pr evi -
ousl y, t he mi ni st r y want ed al l pr i or
ent i t l ement i ssues r el at ed t o t he
Vedant a deal t o be resol ved bef ore
gi vi ng Cai r n a go-ahead t o st ar t pr o-
duct i on f r om t he oi l f i el d.
Indian Mobile Phone
Market grew 12%
Accor di ng t o t he Int er nat i onal Dat a
Cor por at i on' s (IDC) Quar t er 3 2011
M obi l e Phone Tracker rel ease, t he
Indi an mobi l e phone mar ket grew
12% i n uni t s shi pped i n t he Jul y-Sep-
t emb er qu ar t er of 2011 t o cl o ck
47.07 mi ll ion uni t s. Year-on-year t oo,
t h er e w as a shi pment gr ow t h of
13. 8%. The sh i pment s w er e pr o-
pel l ed by t he dual -SI M handset s,
which grew by 25.2 per cent over t he
pr evi ous quar t er (Apr i l -June). The
mobi l e phone shi pment s w i t nessed
a spur t , as vendor s bui l t channel i n-
vent or i es ahead of a l ong f est i val
seaso n . Du al - SI M h an d set sh i p -
ment s w er e not abl e w i t h a sequen-
t i al gr ow t h of 25.2% over t he pr evi -
o u s q u ar t er ( ap r i l - Ju n e q u ar t er ) .
How ever t her e w as a shar p decl i ne
i n t he mobi l e ser vi ce subscr i pt i on
adds dur i ng Jul y-Sept 2011.
Accor di ng t o t he r el ease, t he over -
al l , smar t phones shi pment f or t he
Indi a mar ket show ed an i mpressi ve
gr ow t h of 21.4% over t he pr evi ous
quart er and 51.5% year-on-year. Thi s
hel ped t he segment gr ow i t s cont r i -
but i on t o t he mobi le phone shipment
t o 6.5% in t hi rd quart er f rom 5.6% i n
t he second quar t er. From an operat -
ing syst em (OS) perspect i ve, Android
over t ook Symbi an t o emer ge as t he
t op pl at f or m i n Indi a f or t he f i r st
t i me, w i t h a shar e of 42.4% of t he
smar t phone mar ket . The pl at f or m
(Andr oi d) saw a gr ow t h of 90% over
t he previ ous quar t er. The Appl e i OS
consol i dat ed f ur t her, w i t h a 3.09%
shar e of t he smar t phone mar ket ,
compar ed t o a shar e of 2.6% i n sec-
ond quar t er (Apr i l -June) of 2011.
Repo Rate
Unchanged at 8.5 %
The Reser v e Bank of I n di a on 16
December 2011 l ef t i t s pol i cy r at e
unchanged at a t hr ee-year hi gh of
8.5 per cent . RBI paused t he hi ke
af t er 13 consecut i ve rat e hi kes si nce
M ar ch 2010. The Reser ve Bank of
I ndi a kept i t s pol i cy r epo r at e un-
changed at 8.5 per cent at i t s mi d-
quar t er r evi ew t w o days af t er dat a
show ed November w hol esal e pr i ce
i ndex i nf l at i on at 9.11 per cent , f ar
l ow er t han t he 9.73 percent cl ocked
i n Oct ober. The RBI al so l ef t t he cash
reserve rat io unchanged at 6 percent ,
despi t e mar ket specual t i on t hat i t
mi ght cut t he r at i o i n or der t o boost
mar ket l i qui di t y. The cent r al bank
not ed t hat w hi l e i nf l at i on r emai ned
on t he proj ect ed t raj ect or y, dow n-
si d e r i sk s t o gr o w t h cl e ar l y i n -
cr eased. I t r ei t er at ed t hat f ur t her
rat e hi kes mi ght not be war rant ed
as t he grow t h moment um was mod-
er at i ng.
Ret ai ni ng i t s opt i on t o r ai se r at es
agai n i f i nf l at i o nar y expect at i ons
per si st , t he RBI ment i oned t hat t he
t i mi ng and magni t ude of f ur t her ac-
t i on w oul d depend on how t hi ngs
panned out on t he i nf l at i on and r u-
pee f r ont s.
RBIs pol i cy st at ement st at ed t hat
i nf l at i on r i sks r emai n hi gh and i nf l a-
t i on coul d qui ckl y r ecur as a r esul t
of bot h suppl y and demand f or ces.
Al so , t h e r u p ee r em ai n s u n d e r
st r ess. The cent r al bank t hat t he
GDP gr ow t h decl i ned t o 6.9 per cent
i n t he second quar t er (Jul y-Sept em-
ber ) f r om 7.7 per cent i n t he f i r st
(Apr i l -June), and key def i ci t i ndi ca-
t or s w or sened mai nl y due t o hi gher
expendi t ur e and l ow er r evenues.
Not ing t hat l i quidi t y condit i ons w er e
t i ght , consi st ent w i t h t he pol i cy i n-
t ent , t he RBI ment i oned t hat it would
conduct open mar ket operat i ons as
and w hen i t f el t t he need f or i t .
SEBI Directed
Intermediaries
M arket regul at or SEBI on 15 Decem-
ber 2011 direct ed i nt er mediari es not
t o out sour ce t hei r cor e busi ness ac-
t i vi t i es and compl i ance f unct i ons.
Accor di n g t o SEBI , cor e busi ness
act i vi t i es may i ncl ude execut i on of
or der s and moni t or i ng of t r adi ng
act i vi t i es of cl i ent s i n case of st ock
brokers, demat er i al i sat i on of secu-
r i t i es i n case of deposi t ar y par t i ci -
pant s, i nvest ment -r el at ed act i vi t i es
i n case of mut ual f unds and por t f o-
l i o manager s. Int er medi ar i es w oul d
be r esponsi ble f or r eport i ng any sus-
pi ci ous t ransact i ons t o t he Fi nanci al
Int ell igence Uni t or ot her compet ent
aut hor i t y i n r espect of act i vi t i es car -
r i ed out by t he t hi r d par t i es.
Recommendation of
SEBIs Committee on MF
A commi t t ee on mut ual f unds, con-
st i t ut ed by SEBI i n December 2011
r eco mmended t o t he r egu l at or s
boar d t o br eak dow n t he bi f ur cat i on
w i t hi n t he f ee st r uct ur e know n as
expense rat io. According t o t he com-
mi t t ee t he measur e w i l l al l ow mu-
t ual f unds t o manage t hei r expenses
bet t er and possi bl y i mpr ove t hei r
pr of i t s. In t he absence of bi f ur ca-
t i ons w i t hi n t he expense r at i o, f und
houses w i l l t r y t o r educe r ecur r i ng
expenses whi ch, i n t urn, w ill i ncr ease
t hei r prof i t abi l i t y. Cur rent l y mut ual
f unds ar e al l ow ed t o char ge up t o
2.25% as expense r at i o. Of t he 2.25%
ch ar ge d as ex p e n se r at i o , f u n d
houses ar e al l ow ed t o accept onl y
1 . 2 5 % as asse t m an age m e n t
char ges. The r emai ni ng 1% has t o
be mandat or i l y used t o meet r ecur -
r i ng expenses, w hi ch i ncl ude pay-
ment of annual t r ai l f ees, audi t or &
r egi st r ar ch ar ge s an d d e al i n g
charges t o empanel l ed brokers.
Funds w i t h l ar ge cor puses cur r ent l y
char ge 1.75% as expenses char ges.
Ther e exi st s scope f or t hese f unds
t o char ge l ow er expense r at i os. The
SEBI panel al so suggest ed t hat mu-
t ual f unds, w i t h hi gher asset s under
m an agem en t , w i l l h ave t o b r i n g
dow n t heir expense r at io proport i on-
at el y. SEBI was suggest ed t o keep
over all scheme expenses unchanged
at 2.25% f or schemes w i t h asset s
under management not exceedi ng
Rs 400 cr or e. Panel member s asl o
pr oposed an alt er nat i ve sl ab syst em,
w hi ch w i l l br i ng dow n expense r at i o
w i t h a pr opor t i onat e i ncr ease i n t he
asset base of t he f und. Ther e w i l l
be no change i n expense r at i os of
debt f unds. The pan el suggest ed
SEBI t o come out w i t h w i der sl ab
l imit s which br ing dow n expenses on
l ar ge f unds even f ur t her. Expense
r at i o i s mor e t han i mpor t ant i n debt
schemes w her e t he r at e of r et ur n i s
not hi gh. In t he case of equi t y f unds,
t he expense r at i o becomes cr i t i cal
i n t i mes of l ackl ust re mar ket s.
CILs Board approved
Acquisition of Stakes
The w or l d' s l ar gest coal mi ner Coal
Indi a Lt d (CIL' s) boar d on 14 Decem-
ber 2011 appr oved a pr oposal t o
acq u i r e st akes i n u n l i st ed f i r m s
over seas, pr ovi ded t he of f er s w er e
val i d. The pr oposal w as appr oved i n
t he wake of Fi nance M i ni st r y s ap-
pr oval f or t he publ i c sect or f i r m t o
pr oceed w i t h i t s pl an t o acqui r e un-
l i st ed f i r ms over seas. CIL pl ans t o
t ake up t hree of f ers - i n Aust ral i a,
Indonesi a and t he US. The PSU put
t oget her a w ar -chest of Rs. 6,000
cr or e f or acqui si t i on of mi nes. b CIL
sought cl ar i f i cat i ons f r om t he Fi -
nance M i ni st r y bef or e ent er i ng i nt o
di scussi ons w i t h ow ner s, havi ng r e-
cei v ed p r o posal s of f er i n g an I RR
bet w een 9 per cent and 12 per cent .
CIL had r equest f or a r el axat i on i n
t h e PSU gui d el i nes st i p u l at i n g a
mini mum 12 percent i nt er nal rat e of
r et ur n (IRR) on i nvest ment s. In r e-
sponse t o t he request , t he Fi nance
M i ni st r y ment i oned t hat CIL coul d
pr oceed w i t h such pr oposal s, i f t hey
ar e of st r at egi c nat ur e, and subj ect
t o gover nment cl ear ance. CIL al so
sought t o si dest ep t he r ule t hat onl y
t h e m i n e s o f l i st ed co m p an i e s
shoul d be acqui r ed, w hi ch w as per -
mi t t ed by t he Fi nance M i ni st r y.
RBI announced Non-
direct Intervention
Measures
Th e Rese r v e Ban k o f I n d i a an -
no un ced no n- di r ect i nt er vent i o n
m easu r es i n t h e w ake o f st ead y
w eakeni ng of t he r upee agai nst t he
dol l ar. The non-di rect i nt er vent i on
m e asu r e s ar e ai m e d at cu r b i n g
specul at i ve posi t i ons i n t he f or ei gn
exchange mar ket . Re-booki ng can-
cel l ed f or w ar d cont r act s, w hat ever
t he t ype and t enor of t he under l yi ng
exposur e, by r esi dent and f or ei gn
i nst i t ut i onal i nvest or s has been di s-
al l ow ed. For ward cont ract s booked
t o hedge cur r ent account t r ansac-
t i ons r egar dl ess of t he t enor w er e
al l o w e d t o b e can ce l l e d an d
r ebo o ked. Su ch f aci l i t y w as al so
avai l abl e t o hedge capi t al account
t r ansact i ons t hat w er e f al l i ng due
w i t h i n o n e year. Th e ap ex b an k
t hr ough t he new measur es made i t
cl ear t hat f or w ar d cont r act s once
cancel l ed cannot be rebooked. The
cent r al bank al so modi f i ed t he cur -
r ency r isk hedgi ng nor ms f or i mport -
er s and expor t er s.
Impor t er s w er e ear l i er al l ow ed t o
hedge cur r ency r i sk on t he basi s of
a decl ar at i on of an exposur e based
on past per f or mance up t o t he aver -
age of t he pr evi ous t hr ee f i nanci al
year s' act ual import / export t urnover
or t he pr evi ous year ' s i mpor t / expor t
t ur nover, w hi chever i s hi gher. Al so,
cont ract s booked i n excess of 75 per
cent of t he el i gi bl e l i mi t w er e t o be
on a del i ver abl e basi s and coul d not
be cancel l ed. The apex bank r evi sed
t hese nor ms.
As a r esul t of t he r evi si on t he ear -
l i er 75 per cent f aci l i t y st ands r e-
duced t o 25 per cent of t he l i mi t as
compounded by above f or i mpor t ers
w ho avai l t hemsel ves of t he past
per f or mance f aci l i t y. I f i mpor t er s
have al r eady used up i n excess of
t he revi sed or reduced f aci l i t y, t hey
w il l not be al lowed f ur t her bookings.
t he RBI al so speci f i ed t hat t hi s f a-
ci l i t y w i l l be avai l abl e on f ul l y del i v-
erabl e basi s onl y. The RBI reduced
t he net over night open posi t i on li mi t
( NOOPL) o f au t h o r i se d d e al e r s
acr oss t he boar d w i t h an obj ect i ve
t o pr event specul at i ons i n t he f or -
ei gn exchange mar ket . It asser t ed
t hat t he i nt r a-day open posi t i on/
dayl i ght l i mi t of aut hor i sed deal er s
should not exceed t he RBI-appr oved
NOOPL. The apex bank i ndi cat ed
t hat t hese ar r angement s w oul d be
r eviewed per iodical ly i n l ine w it h t he
evol vi ng mar ket condi t i ons.
49% FDI in Insurance
Sec tor rejec ted
A par l i ament ar y commi t t ee on 13
December 2011 r ej ect ed al most al l
t he key changes proposed i n t he In-
su r an ce Law s ( Am en d m en t ) Bi l l
2008, i ncl udi ng t he key r ef or m t o
al l ow 49% f or ei gn di r ect i nvest ment
i n t he sect o r. Th e t h e I n sur ance
Law s (Amendment ) Bi l l w as i nt r o-
duced i n t he Raj ya Sabha i n Decem-
ber 2008 t o bring about improvement
and revision of l aw s per t aini ng t o t he
i nsur ance sect or i n t he changed sce-
nar i o of pr i vat e sect or par t i ci pat i on
and w as subsequent l y r ef er r ed t o
t he st andi ng commi t t ee. The panel
headed by BJP l eader and f or mer
Fi nance M i ni st er (dur i ng NDA r e-
gi me) Yashwant Si nha mai nt ai ned
t hat t he move t o hi ke t he FDI cap i n
t he i nsur ance sect or mi ght not have
t he desi r ed ef f ect and coul d expose
t he economy t o gl obal vul nerabi l i t y.
The st andi ng panel poi nt ed out i n i t s
r epor t t hat t he pr oposal t o i ncr ease
t he FDI cap t o 49 per cent i n i nsur -
ance compani es appear ed t o have
b een d eci d ed u p o n w i t h o u t an y
sound and obj ect i ve anal ysi s of t he
st at us of t he i nsur ance sect or f ol -
l ow i ng l i ber al i sat i on.
Incr eased r ol e of f or ei gn capi t al i t
w as f ear ed w oul d l ead t o t he possi -
bi li t y of exposing t he economy t o t he
vul nerabi l i t i es of t he gl obal mar ket ,
f l i ght of capi t al out si de t he count r y
and also endanger t he i nt erest of t he
pol i cy hol der s. The gover nment ' s
move w as al so opposed by bot h i n-
sur ance r egul at or IRDA and GIPSA
on gr ounds t hat t hat f or ei gn i nsur -
er s w oul d be at an advant age over
t hei r domest i c count er par t s i n t he
mat t er of r egul at i ons.
Health insurance
Business
The panel al so r ej ect ed t he pr oposal
t o hal ve t he mi ni mum pai d up capi -
t al r equi r ed t o st ar t excl usi ve heal t h
i nsur ance busi ness t o Rs 50 cr or e.
The commi t t ee ment i oned t hat t he
amount may be i nadequat e as an
i nsurance company needs t o be f ull y
equipped wit h modern inf rast r uct ure
and ot her f acilit ies. Anot her pr oposal
t o empow er t he i nsur ance compa-
ni es t o appoi nt agent s and do aw ay
w i t h t h e sy st em o f l i cen si n g o f
agent s by t he regul at or, IRDA, was
r ej ect ed. The panel mai nt ai ned t he
m easu r e i s i n ap p r o p r i at e an d
f r aught w i t h t he danger of l eadi ng
t o i nef f ect i ve r egul at i on of t he pr o-
f essi on, par t i cul ar l y i n i nst ances of
unscr upul ous act on t he par t of t he
agent s as al so i nsurance companies.
Prof i t abi l i t y of Text i l e Compani es t o
Improve.
CRISIL Resear ch r el eased i t s r epor t
on pr of i t abi l i t y of t ext i l e compani es
on 14 December 2011. Accor di ng t o
t he r esear ch f i r m, pr of i t abi l i t y of
cot t on y ar n and m an-made f i br e
(M M F) pl ayer s ar e expect ed t o i m-
pr ove over t he next f ew quar t er s on
account of decli ne i n i nput cost s and
moder at e demand gr ow t h. Dur i ng
t he f i r st quar t er of 2011-12, t he t ex-
t i l es compani es w i t nessed sever e
pr of i t abi l i t y pr essur es w hi ch l ed t o
si gni f i cant erosi on i n t hei r mar ket
capi t al i sat i on. cot t on yar n and M M F
pl ayer s have r egi st er ed a negat i ve
r et ur n of 48% and 37%, r espect i vel y
i n t he past one year. CRISIL Research
opi ned t hat t he cur r ent val uat i on of
pl ayer s di scount s t he cur r ent nega-
t i ve sent i ment s ar ound t he sect or
and of f er s good scope f or upsi de.
Al so, st ocks of ready-made gar ment
(RM G) compani es ar e f ai r l y pr i ced
i n spi t e of bei ng at hi st or i cal hi ghs,
as t hey of f er r el at i vel y h i gh an d
st abl e r et u r ns amo ng t he t ext i l e
companies dur ing t he present uncer-
t ai n t i mes. The st ocks of br anded
RM G companies have out -perf ormed
t he S& P CNX NIFTY si gni f i cant l y and
post ed 25% r et ur n on a one-year
basi s.
The sl ow -dow n i n demand i n bot h
domest i c and expor t mar ket s and
t he ant i ci pat i on of a spur t i n gl obal
cot t on pr oduct i on r esul t ed i n shar p
cor r ect i on i n cot t on and yar n pr i ces
i n t he f i r st hal f of 2011-12. Thi s r e-
sul t ed i n cot t on yar n pl ayer s r epor t -
i ng l osses i n t he same per i od as t hey
were carrying hi gh cost cot t on i nven-
t or y f rom t he l ast season. How ever,
t he shar p dr op i n cot t on yar n pr i ces
al so enhanced i t s pr i ce compet it i ve-
ness vi s-a-vi s pol yest er (a subst i t ut e
f or cot t on) t her eby l i mi t i ng t he f l ex-
i bi l it y of M M F pl ayer s t o pass on t he
hi ke i n t h e cost s of t hei r i n put s,
w hi ch ar e der i vat i ves of cr ude oi l .
CRISIL Resear ch cover ed seven t ex-
t il e st ocks Nahar Spi nni ng M i l ls and
M ahar aj a Shr ee Umai d M i l l s i n t he
cot t on yar n segment , JBF Indust r i es
, Sangam (India) , Al ok Indust r ies and
Shr i Lakshmi Cot syn in t he M M F seg-
ment , Kewal Kir an in t he RM G space.
Of t hese, most compani es have a
valuat ion grade of 5/ 5, i ndicat ing t hat
t hese st ocks have a st r ong upsi de
(mor e t han 25%).
CCEA approved
National Elec tricity Fund
The Cabinet Commit t ee on Economic
Af f ai r s( CCEA) on 13 December 2011
appr ovednat i onal el ect r i ci t y f und t o
pr ovide subsi dy of 8466 crore rupees
f or pr oj ect s of el ect r i ci t y di st ri but ion
sect or f or a per i od of 14 year s. The
f und w i l l be oper at i onal w i t hi n a
period of six mont hs t o one year. The
f und i s bei ng set up t o pr ovi de i n-
t er est subsi dy on l oans t o be di s-
bursed t o t he dist ribut i on compani es
bot h i n t he pr i vat e and t he publ i c
sect or. The obj ect i ve i s t o i mprove
t he dist ribut ion net work f or areas not
co ver ed by Raj i v Gan dh i Gr am i n
Vi dy u t i kar an Yo j na ( RGGVY) an d
Rest r uct u r ed Accel er at ed Po w er
De v e l o p m e n t an d Re f o r m s
Pr ogr amme (R-APDRP) pr oj ect ar -
eas.
Mobile Subscriber Base
in India increased to
881.4 million
Accor di ng t o t he dat a r el eased by
t he r egul at or TRAI on 8 December
2011, mobi l e subscr i ber base i n In-
di a i ncr eased t o 881. 4 mi l l i on by
Oct ober 2011 f r om 873.61 mi l l i on i n
Sept ember 2011 regist ering a growt h
of 0. 89%. The over al l t el edensi t y
(t el ephones per 100 peopl e) i n In-
di a reached 76.03%. Tel ecom opera-
t or s added 7.79 mi l l i on mobi l e sub-
scr i ber s i n Oct ober 2011, t aki ng t he
t ot al number of t el ephone user s i n
t he count r y t o 914.59 mi l l i on. The
number of act i ve mobil e subscriber s,
accor di ng t o t he vi si t or l ocat i on r eg-
i st er (VLR) dat a, dur i ng t he mont h
of w as 626.18 mi l l i on. VLR number s
pr ovi de det ai l s on act i ve cust omer s
at any gi ven poi nt of t i me, excl ud-
i ng swi t ched-of f and out -of -t he-cov-
er age ar ea cust omer s.
Performance by the
Telec om Operators
The gr ow t h i n t he w i r el ess cat egor y
was led by Uni nor, w hich added 2.66
mi l l i on new user s, t aki ng i t s sub-
scr i ber base t o 32.31 mi l l i on by t he
e n d o f Oct o b e r 2 0 11 . Tat a
Tel eser vi ces on t he ot her hand l ost
0.93 mi l l i on and i t s subscr i ber base
st ood at 87.83 mi l l i on. The count ry s
l ar gest pri vat e oper at or Bhar t i Ai r t el
added 0.94 mi l l i on subscr i bers, t ak-
i ng i t s user base t o 173.73 mi l l i on.
Vodaf one added 0. 92 mi l l i on new
cust omers t o t ake i t s user base t o
145. 91 mi l l i on . I dea Cel l u l ar and
Ai r cel added 1.63 mi l l i on and 0.48
mi l l i on user s, r espect i vel y, dur i ng
t he per i od. Idea' s subscr i ber base
st ood at 101.81 mi l l i on at t he end
of Oct ober 2011, w hi l e t hat of Ai r cel
st ood at 60.28 mi l l i on. RCom (Rel i -
ance Communi cat i ons) added 1.03
mi l l i on new subscr i bers t o t ake i t s
user base t o 148.11 mi l l i on, w hi l e
SSTL added 0.74 mi l l i on new user s
t o t ake i t s t ot al user base t o 14.01
mi l l i on.St at e-r un t el cos BSNL and
M TNL added 0.40 mi l l i on and 31788
new users i n Oct ober. The subscri ber
base of BSNL st ood at 96.19 mi l l i on
and 5.61 mi l l i on, respect i vel y.
Mobile Number
Portability (MNP)
As per TRAIs r epor t , about 25.38
l akh subscr i ber s submi t t ed r equest
f or M NP i n Oct ober 2011. Si nce t he
i nt r oduct i on of M NP i n November
2010, about 231.66 l akh subscr i ber s
acr o ss I n d i a h ad su b m i t t e d r e -
quest s, t i l l Oct ober, f or changi ng
t hei r ser vi ce pr ovi der s w hi l e r et ai n-
i ng t hei r mobi l e number s. In M NP
Zone-I (Nort hern and West er n India),
maxi mum number of r equest s w er e
r ecei ved i n Guj ar at (22.39 l akh), f ol -
l ow ed by M ahar asht r a (19.10 l akh).
In M NP Zone-II (Sout her n and East -
er n Indi a), maxi mum number of r e-
quest s have been r ecei ved i n Andhra
Pr adesh (19. 46 l akh) f ol l ow ed by
Kar nat aka Ser vi ce ar ea (19.18 l akh).
Broadband
Wi r el i ne cat egor y subscr i ber base
decl i ned t o 33.19 mi l l i on i n Oct ober
f r om 33. 31 mi l l i on i n Sept ember.
Br o adb and su b scr i p t i o n r eached
12.98 mi l l i on i n t he r epor t ed mont h
f r om 12. 84 mi l l i o n i n Sept emb er
2011.
Coal Ministry decided to
Auction 54 Blocks on
The coal mi ni st r y deci ded t o auct i on
54 blocks on upf r ont payment basi s.
The mi ni st r y how ever mi ght not of -
f er mi nes t o pow er compani es. The
mi ni st r y i s cur r ent l y consi der i ng a
proposal t o ear mark blocks t o st at es
t hat can cal l compet i t i ve bi ds f or
pow er suppl y. The coal mi ni st ry al so
deci ded t hat blocks wi l l not be gi ven
f r ee t o go v er n m en t co m p an i es.
Though compet i t i ve bi ddi ng r out e
w oul d not be appl i cabl e t o cent r e
and st at e government proj ect s, PSUs
w i l l have t o pay r eser ve pr i ce f or
coal bl ocks. Pr ef er ence w oul d be
gi ven t o compani es set t i ng up end
use pr oj ect s i n t he st at e t hat host s
t he coal bl ock and agr ee t o mat ch
t he hi ghest bi d. The bl ocks l i e i n t he
co al b e l t s o f se v en st at e s o f
Ch h at t i sgar h , Jh ar k h an d ,
M aharasht ra, West Bengal , Or i ssa,
M ad h y a Pr ad e sh an d An d h r a
Pradesh.
Bl o ck s w i t h o v er 18, 00 0 m i l l i o n
t onnes of r eser ves i s set t o go un-
der hammer in t he f irst round of com-
pet i t i ve bi ddi ng. The gover nment
has not aw ar ded si ngl e coal or l i g-
ni t e bl ock f or capt i ve use t o pr i vat e
compani es si nce Oct ober 2008. The
coal mi ni st r y deci ded t o i nit i at e auc-
t i on by put t i ng t he l i st of bl ocks on
i t s w eb si t e. I nf o r m at i on o n est i -
mat ed r eser ves, expl or at i on st at us
and environment al clearances would
al so be provi ded. The mi ni st r y s ob-
j ect i ve i s t o avoi d doubl e bi ddi ng f or
power compani es t hat af t er Januar y
2011 have t o par t i ci pat e i n t ar i f f -
based bi ddi ng t o bag pow er suppl y
cont r act s f r om st at es.
ICICIs & IDBIs
Launch of CDS
Indi as l argest pr i vat e l ender by as-
set s, ICICI Bank and IDBI Bank, t he
sevent h l ar gest publ i c sect or bank
i n Indi a t oget her l aunched I ndi as
f i r st cr edi t def aul t sw ap (CDS) on 7
December 2011. CDS w as l aunched
seven days af t er t he pr oduct w as
cl ear ed by t he Reser ve Bank of In-
di a on 30 November 2011. Publ i c
sect or under t aki ng Rur al El ect r i f i ca-
t i on Cor por at i on (REC) bought t he
CDS cover f or it s Rs 5 cr or e l oan f rom
ICICI Bank. The l aunch of t he CDS
w as a l andmar k t r ansact i on f or t he
domest i c corporat e debt mar ket and
mar ked t he f or mal i nt roduct i on of
l ocal cur rency CDS mar ket i n Indi a.
IDBI Bank became t he count r ys f irst
PSU bank t o underw r i t e a CDS t r ans-
act i on i n t he domest i c mar ket f or
managi n g cr edi t r i sk s associ at ed
w i t h Indi an cor por at e bonds.
Thi s i s t he f i r st t r ansact i on of i t s
ki nd ent er ed by any publ i c sect or
bank w i t h anot her bank i n Indi a on
sel l i ng pr ot ect i on i n t he domest i c
market on cor porat e bonds. The cen-
t r al bank, RBI had i ssued pr udent i al
gui del i nes on CDS t r ansact i ons on
cor por at e bonds on 30 November
2011. The gui del i nes r ef er ed t o CDS
t r ansact i ons under w r i t t en by Indi an
oper at i ons of f or ei gn banks, Indi an
banks and over seas br anches/ sub-
si di ar i es/ j oi nt v ent u r es of I ndi an
banks.
Ben ef i t s
The l aunch of t he CDS mar ket i n In-
di a w i l l encour age f or ei gn i nst i t u-
t i onal i nvest or s t o i nvest i n domes-
t ic cor porat e bonds. The i nvest ment
i n domest i c cor por at e bo nds w i l l
pr ovi de much-needed f undi ng f or
pr oj ect s, i ncl udi ng i nf r ast r u ct u r e
sect or proj ect s. Cr edi t def ault sw aps
al so w i l l i nvest or s t o t r ansf er and
manage cr edi t r i sk i n an ef f ect i ve
manner t hr ough r edi st r i but i on of
r i sk. Such pr oduct s ar e expect ed t o
i ncr ease i nvest or s i nt er est i n cor -
porat e bonds and i s l i kel y t o prove
benef i cial t o t he devel opment of t he
cor porat e bond mar ket i n Indi a.
What is CDS?
A CDS i s si mi l ar t o a t r adi t i onal i n-
su r an ce p o l i cy w h e r e i t o b l i ges
sel l er of t he CDS t o compensat e t he
buyer i n t he event of a l oan def aul t .
The agr eement i s t hat i n t he event
of a def aul t , buyer of t he CDS r e-
cei ves t he money w hi ch i s equi va-
l ent t o t he f ace val ue of t he loan and
sel l er of t he CDS r ecei ves t he de-
f aul t ed l oan and w i t h i t t he r i ght t o
r ecover i t at some l at er t i me.
ISDC for the Textile and
Apparel Sector
Wi t h t he i naugur at i on of t he f i r st
st at e-of -t he-ar t ATDC-SM ART (Ski l l
f or M anuf act ur i ng Appar el s t hr ough
Research and Tr ai ni ng) i n Egmor e,
Chennai , t he Int egr at ed Ski l l Devel -
opment Scheme (ISDC) f or t he t ex-
t il e and appar el sect or w as l aunched
by t he M i ni st r y of Text i l es. The M i n-
i st r y l aunched t he pr oj ect i n asso-
ci at i on w i t h t he Apparel Trai ni ng &
Desi gn Cent r e (ATDC), w hi ch w as
sel ect ed as a nodal agency f or t he
pr oj ect . The pr oj ect ai ms t o i mpar t
t r ai n i ng t o a w o r kf or ce of abo ut
256000 i n t he next t w o year s. The
ATDC-SM ART pr oj ect w or t h Rs 23
b i l l i o n f o cu se s o n t h e co r e
w or kf or ce r equi r ement s of t he gar -
ment i ndust r y l ocat ed acr oss Indi a.
The i mpor t ance of t he Scheme can
be j udged f r om t he f act t hat t he ap-
par el i ndust r y i s t he second l ar gest
empl oyment pr ovi der i n t he count r y
af t er agr i cul t ur e.
Rur al yout h and w omen st and t o
benef i t t he most f r om t he ISDC. The
r ur al yout h w oul d be abl e t o f i nd
gai nf ul empl oyment i n ar eas near
t hei r domi ci l e w i t h t he hel p of t he
i mpar t ed t rai ni ng. Indi as domest i c
t ext i l e mar ket i s expect ed t o grow
t o US$ 60 bi l l i on and expor t s t o US$
50 bi l l i on by 2015. By 2015 t he sec-
t or i s expect ed t o cr eat e an addi -
t i onal 12 mi l l i on j obs, near l y 40 per
cent of w hi ch w i l l be i n t he cor e pr o-
duct i on act i vi t i es. The handi cr af t s
i ndust r y empl oys 12 mi l l i on peopl e
i n Indi a cur rent l y.
GPON Tec hnology
transFerred to Telecom
Equipment Makers
Th e Cen t r e f o r Dev el o p m en t o f
Tel emat i cs (C-DoT) on 5 December
2011 t r ansf er r ed i ndi genousl y-de-
veloped Gi gabi t Passi ve Opt i cal Net -
w or k (GPON) t echnol ogy t o seven
t el ecom equi pment manuf act ur er s,
i ncl udi ng pr i vat e pl ayer s. The GPON
t echnol ogy w as t r ansf er r ed t o t he
t el ecom equi pment manuf act ur er s
t o gi ve t he much-needed push t o
br oadband penet r at i on i n Indi a. The
gover nment t r ansf er r ed t hi s t ech-
nol ogy t o seven manuf act ur er s i n
publ i c and pr i vat e sect or s I TI ,
Bhar at El ect r oni cs, VM C Syst ems,
Unit ed Tel ecoms, Sai Inf oSyst em (In-
di a), SM Creat i ve El ect roni cs. Trans-
f er of t echnol ogy w as al so si gned
w i t h Tej as Net w or ks f or cust omi sed
development .
What is
GPON Technology ?
The GPON t echnol ogy i s a pi vot al
component r equi r ed f or br oadband
connect i vi t y over opt i cal f i br e.
C-DOT i ndi genousl y desi gned and
devel oped GPON t echnol ogy, w hi ch
can be used t o pr ovi de t r i pl e pl ay
(voi ce, vi deo and dat a) t hr ough f i -
br e-based net w or ks. The pr esent
GPON st andar ds speci f y 2.5 Gbps
(Gi gabi t per second) dow nst r eam
and 1.25 Gbps upst r eam dat a capa-
bi l i t y t o cust omer pr emi se. Apar t
f r om ur ban ar eas, t he l ar ge dat a
car r yi ng capabi l i t y i s i mpor t ant f or
Indi an vi l l ages t oo w her e pr evai l i ng
l ow l i t er acy l evel s w i l l r equi r e bet -
t er d i ssem i nat i o n o f i nf or m at i on
w i t h gr eat er gr aphi c and audi o con-
t ent . Besi des, voi ce t el ephony, hi gh
speed Int er net access and IPTV, t he
C-DOT GPON has pr ovi si on t o car r y
cabl e TV si gnal t oo.The GPON t ech-
nol ogy w as t est ed, val i dat ed, f i el d-
eval uat ed and made oper at i onal i n
BSNL' s n e t w o r k i n Aj m e r
( Raj ast han ). Th e t echn o l o gy w i l l
hel p f ul f i l r equi r ement s of m aj or
nat i onal pr ogr ammes l i ke t he Na-
t ional Opt i cal Fi bre Net w or k and t he
St at e Wi de Ar ea Net w or k.
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Indian China
Indi an di amond t r ader s f r eed
Tw el ve of t he 22 I ndi an di amond
t r ader s, det ai ned i n Chi na f or near l y
2 year s on char ges of smuggl i ng,
r eached Indi a on 5 Januar y 2012 af -
t er t hey w er e l et of f f ol l ow i ng de-
por t at i on or der s by a Chi nese cour t .
Tw ent y-t w o t raders, hai l i ng most l y
f r om Guj ar at and M umbai , w er e ar -
r est ed in sout hern Chi na' s Shenzhen
ci t y i n 2010 and w er e char ged w i t h
smuggl i ng di amonds w or t h 50 mi l -
l i on yuan or 7.3 mi l l i on US Dol l ar s.
They w er e accused of sour ci ng di a-
monds i l l egal l y f r om Hong Kong f or
sal e i n t h e Ch i n ese mar ket . Th e
Sh e n ze n I n t e r m e d i at e Pe o p l e' s
Cour t w hi ch hear d t he t r ader s' case
on 7 December 2011, f ound 12 of
t hem i nnocent and or der ed t hei r
depor t at i on. The r est of t he t r ader s
have been aw ar ded var i ed pr i son
t erms rangi ng f rom six years t o t hr ee
and hal f year s.
Indi a t o Devel op Faci l i t i es Near
Chi na Bor der
Consi der i ng t he count r y' s st r at egi c
and secur i t y r equi r ement s acr oss
t he Chi na-Indi a border, t he Cent re
has embar ked on w or ks t o devel op
i nf r ast r uct ur e, t he gover nment sai d
her e. Consci ous of Chi na devel op-
i ng i nf r ast r uct ur e i n t he bor der r e-
gi ons opposi t e Indi a i n Ti bet and
Xinj i ang Aut onomous Regi ons t here,
t he gover nment was gi vi ng caref ul
and speci al at t ent i on' ' t o t he devel -
India & The World
opment of i nf r ast r uct ur e i n t he bor -
der ar eas opposi t e Chi na, t o meet
our st r at egi c and secur i t y r equi r e-
ment s and al so t o f aci l i t at e t he eco-
nomi c devel opment of t hese areas,
Def ence M i ni st er A.K. Ant ony t ol d
t he Raj ya Sabha. Inf r ast r uct ur e de-
vel opment i ncl uded t he Qi nghai -Ti -
bet r ai l w ay l i ne, w i t h pr oposed ex-
t ensi on up t o Xi gze and Nyi ngchi
besi des r oads and ai r por t f aci l i t i es.
The gover nment keeps a const ant
w at ch on al l devel opment s havi ng a
beari ng on Indi a' s secur i t y and t akes
al l necessar y measures t o saf eguar d
i t , he sai d. The St at es, w here t he
gover nment i s f ocussi ng on i ncl ude
Jam m u an d Kash m i r, Hi m ach al
Pr adesh, Ut t ar akhand, Si kki m and
Ar unachal Pradesh. Among t he mea-
sur es w as t he devel opment of t he
t w o ai r bases f or t he f r ont l i ne ai r
super ior it y f i ght er s Su-30-M KI i n t he
Nor t heast , one at Chabua and an-
ot her at Tezpur.
Chi nese-ow ned Shi ps Evade
Inspect i on
Tw o mer chant vessel s of Chi nese
ow ner shi p l ef t anchor age mi dw ay
t hr ough an i nspect i on by t he Int er -
nat i onal Transpor t Wor kers' Federa-
t i on (ITF), f ear i ng act i on f or not hav-
i ng gi ven mi ni mum w ages t o t hei r
crew. The i nci dent t ook pl ace dur-
i ng t he f i r st day of t he Fl ag of Con-
veni ence (FOC) Week of Act i on be-
i ng obser ved by t he ITF and i t s af -
f i l i at ed uni ons. M .V. Joyf ul Spi r i t ,
ow ned by t he Gol den Ocean Gr oup
Lt d., and m.v. J. Shi ne, ow ned by t he
Ji angsu Ocean Shi ppi ng Company,
w er e FOC shi ps t hat f l ew t he f l ag of
Hong Kong. They depar t ed i mmedi -
at el y af t er unl oadi ng t he car go. An
FOC shi p i s one t hat f l i es t he f l ag of
a nat i on ot her t han t he count r y of
ow nershi p t o avai l cheaper l abour,
evade t axes and pay a l ow r egi st r a-
t i on f ee. The ITF, set up i n 1896, has
more t han si x mi l l i on w or kers be-
l ongi ng t o 600 t r anspor t w or kers'
uni ons i n over 137 count r i es.
Si nce t he l aunch of t he FOC Week
of Act i on 10 year s ago, 780 vessel s
have been i nspect ed and 35 agr ee-
ment s si gned w i t h ITF st andar ds.
Back w ages t o t he t une of $1. 02
m i l l i o n h av e b e e n r e al i se d . A
Cr oat i an shi p, w hi ch f l ew a Panama
f lag, w as arr est ed by t he ITF a year
ago and w as auct i oned f or Rs. 13
cr or e t hr ough a cour t or der .
India - Pakistan
Indi a Rej ect s Paki st an Pr oposal
t o Shi f t Heavy Guns
I ndi a has r ej ect ed Paki st an' s pr o-
posal t o move heavy ar t i l l er y and
mor t ar s aw ay f r om t he Li ne of Con-
t r ol ci t i ng f r equent ceasef i r e vi ol a-
t i ons. I t asked I sl amabad t o come
cl ear on i t s nucl ear pol i cy, i ncl udi ng
command and cont r ol over nucl ear
asset s. Thi s w as conveyed t o t he
Paki st ani of f ici als by Indi a dur ing t he
t w o-day t al ks on nucl ear and con-
vent i onal conf i dence-bui l di ng mea-
sur es (CBM s) hel d i n Isl amabad af -
t er a gap of f our year s, sour ces sai d
her e on Fr i day. I ndi a conveyed t o
Paki st an t he need t o demonst r at e
r est r ai nt and r esponsi bi l i t y i n t he
nucl ear f i el d and ur ged i t t o f aci l i -
t at e t al ks on t he Fi ssi le M at er ial Cut -
of f Treat y (FM CT). Ext er nal Af f ai rs
M i ni st er S.M . Kr i shna i s sl at ed t o
vi si t Paki st an t o r evi ew t he pr ogr ess
i n t al ks and bot h si des are keen t o
have t he meet i ngs bet w een Home
Secret ar i es, Wat er Resources Secre-
t ar i es, Def ence Secr et ar i es and For -
ei gn Secr et ar i es bef or e t he vi si t .
On t he nucl ear CBM s, Indi a made i t
cl ear t o Pak i st an t h at v i ew s o n
n u cl e ar d o ct r i n e s co u l d b e e x -
changed onl y w hen of f i ci al docu-
ment s enunci at ing t he pol ici es wer e
avai l abl e i n t he publ i c domai n. Of f i -
ci al s poi nt ed out t hat Indi a had an-
nounced it s nuclear doct r ine of cr ed-
i bl e mi ni mum det er r ence i n 2003,
w hi ch placed t he command and con-
t r ol of nucl ear devi ces w i t h t he ci -
vi l i an l eader shi p. Indi a st r essed t he
need t o have t r anspar ency and pr e-
di ct abi l it y i n nuclear pol i ci es and t he
i m po r t ance o f dem on st r at i ng, i n
pr act i cal measur e, r est r ai nt and r e-
sponsi bi l i t y i n t he nucl ear f i el d. In-
di an of f i ci al s al so asked t hei r Paki -
st ani count er par t s t o al l ow di scus-
si on on t he Fi ssi l e M at er i al Cut -of f
Treat y at t he Conf erence on Di sar-
mament . Thi s w oul d be a CBM ,
sour ces sai d.
6t h Round of Tal ks Bet w een
Indi a & Paki st an
Indi a and Paki st an concl uded t hei r
Si xt h Round of Exper t Level Tal ks on
Nucl ear Conf i dence Bui l di ng M ea-
sur es i n Isl amabad on 27 December
2011. In t hi s meet i ng, bot h t he na-
t i ons agr eed t o r ecommend t o t hei r
f or ei gn secr et ar i es t o ext end t he
val i di t y of t he agr eement on r educ-
i ng t he r i sk f r om acci dent s r el at i ng
t o nucl ear w eapons. Paki st an sug-
gest ed t o Indi a t hat heavy ar t i l l er y
shoul d be r emoved f r om t he Li ne of
Cont rol i n Jammu and Kashmi r.Indi a
an d Pak i st an al so r ev i ew ed t h e
i mpl ement at i on and st r engt heni ng
of CBM s i n t he f ramew or k of Lahor e
M oU. The nat i ons al so agr eed t o
exp l or e possi bi l i t i es f or mut ual l y
accept abl e addi t i onal CBM s. Indi a
and Paki st an di scussed a pr oposal
seeki ng a cooper at ive mechani sm t o
deal w i t h a cr i si s l i ke Fukushi ma.
India-Russia
Indi a-Russi a Ti es, An Anchor of
Peace & St abi l i t y
Gl obal pol i t i cs w i l l be hi gh on t he
age n d a o f Pr i m e M i n i st e r
M anmohan Si ngh' s vi si t t o Russi a i n
t he cont ext of shi f t i ng pow er equa-
t i ons i n t he w or l d, sai d Indi a' s en-
voy t o Russi a. The w or ld i s w i t ness-
i ng a pr of ound t r ansf or mat i on and
a sh i f t i n t h e gl o b al b al an ce o f
p o w e r, sai d Am b assad o r Aj ai
M al hot r a. Our r el at i onshi p ser ves
as an anchor of peace and st abi l i t y
dur i ng t hi s t ransi t i ons phase. The
i n t er n at i onal agenda of t al ks ac-
qui r es speci al r el evance i n t he l i ght
of Indi a t aki ng t he Chai r of BRICS i n
2012 and host i ng t he gr oup' s next
summi t i n l at e M arch, M r. M al hot ra
t ol d t he medi a ahead of t he summi t
her e on December 15-17. It w i l l be
t he 12t h bil at er al summi t since 2000
w hen t he t w o count r i es agr eed t o
hol d t op-l evel meet i ngs annual l y.
Not i ng t hat Indi a and Russi a have
i dent i cal , cl ose or common per-
spect i ves on a w i de r ange of i nt er -
nat i onal i ssues, t he I ndi an envoy
ur ged t he t w o count r i es t o st ep up
coo per at i on on t he gl obal st age.
Gl obal chal l enges make i t i mpera-
t i ve t hat we f ur t her i nt ensi f y our dia-
l ogue on i ssues such as t he need t o
revi ve t he w or l d economy, t he si t u-
at i on i n West Asi a and Nor t h Af r i ca,
chal l enges i n nei ghbour i ng Af ghani -
st an, cooper at i on w i t hi n BRICS, as
w el l as new t hr eat s posed by cl imat e
change and pi racy.
Indo-Russi an Cooper at i on Can
Push Gl obal Changes i n The Ri ght
Di r ect i on
Toget her Indi a and Russi a can hel p
shape gl obal r esponses, he sai d.
The changes under way of f er an
oppor t uni t y t o br i ng about an i nt er -
nat i onal or der t hat i s democr at i c,
i ncl usi ve, based on t he supr emacy
of i nt er nat i onal l aw and consi st ent
w i t h t he obj ect i ves and pr i nci pl es
cont ai ned i n t he U.N. Char t er. Dur-
i ng hi s t al ks w i t h Pr esi dent Dmi t r y
M e d v e d ev an d Pr i m e M i n i st e r
Vl adi mi r Put i n, t he Indi an Pr emi er i s
expect ed t o di scuss bi l at er al coop-
er at i on i n def ence, space, at omi c
ener gy, hydrocar bons, and sci ence
and t echnol ogy, he sai d. He poi nt ed
out t hat t he ongoi ng pr ot est s t hat
have hel d up t he commi ssi oni ng of
t he f i r st of t w o Russi an-bui l t nucl ear
r eact or s at Kudankul am w i l l not i m-
pact on col l abor at i on w i t h Russi a i n
nucl ear energy. We w i l l f ul f i l l our
commi t ment s as r egar ds Indo-Rus-
si an cooper at i on i n at omi c pow er
energy. It i s underst ood t hat a con-
t ract for t he const ruct ion of t wo more
r eact or s of t he Russi an desi gn at
Kudankul am has been f i nal i sed but
may not be si gned at t he M oscow
summi t . Bot h si des under st and t hat
w e need t o pr oceed w i t h due car e
an d cau t i o n i n r egar d o f t h e
Kudankul am pr ot est s, he sai d. The
out goi ng year has seen an encour -
agi ng gr ow t h i n peopl e-t o-peopl e
cont act , w i t h t he Indi an embassy i n
Russi a i ssui n g 25 p er cen t m or e
t our i st , busi ness and conf er ence-
l i nked visas compared w i t h l ast year,
sai d t h e I n d i an env o y. I n di a has
l i b er al i sed vi sa r u l es f or Ru ssi an
vi si t or s si nce June, and Russi a r e-
ci pr ocat ed t he move on December
1.
5 Agr eement s Si gned Bet w een
Indi a & Russi a
The Pr i me M i ni st er of Indi a vi si t ed
Russi a on 15-17 December 2011 t o
part i ci pat e in t he 12t h Indo-Russi an
an nual summ i t . I n di a an d Russi a
si gned f i ve maj or agr eement s dur -
i ng t hi s summi t , w hi ch i ncl udes l i -
censed pr oduct i on of an addi t i onal
42 Sukh oi comb at pl an es an d t o
manage f l y ash r esi due at t her mal
pl ant s i n Si ber i a. A M oU was si gned
on i ncr easi ng cooper at i on and ex-
changes bet w een ant i -monopol i es
agen ci es an d an o t h er M o U w as
si gned t o over see t he saf et y and
qual i t y i ssues by t he dr ug st andar ds
and saf et y or gani sat i ons t o i ncr ease
t rade i n t he phar ma sect or. Indi a and
Russi a al so si gned an educat i onal
exchange pr ogr amme t o shar e ex-
per i ences i n t he f i el d of pedagogy
and t o f or m a j oi nt w or ki ng gr oup t o
monit or t he agr eement ' s impl emen-
t at i on. Dur i ng t hi s vi si t , Indi a and
Russi a al so i ssued a j oi nt decl ar a-
t i on.
The mai n f eat ur es of t hi s j oi nt dec-
l ar at i on ar e as f ol l ow i ng:
Indi a and Russi a deci ded t o com-
memor at e t he 65t h anni ver sar y of
est abl i shment of di pl omat i c r el a-
t i ons bet w een I ndi a and Russi a i n
2012 i n bot h t he count r i es i n a f i t -
t i ng manner.
The si des commended t he suc-
cessf ul launch, by Indi a, of t he j oint l y
b ui l t Yo u t h Sat f o r sp ace sci ence
st udi es; and expr essed sat i sf act i on
on t he pr ogr ess i n i mpl ement at i on
of t he j oint lunar explorat i on pr oj ect .
The nat i ons w el comed t he out -
come of t he el event h meet i ng of t he
I nd i a-Ru ssi a I nt er Go ver nm en t al
Commi ssi on on M i l i t ar y-Techni cal
Cooper at i on i n addr essi ng i ssues of
mut ual concer n.
As an i mpor t ant el ement of t hei r
St r at egi c Par t ner shi p, bot h si des r e-
af f i r med t hei r commi t ment t o w or k
t oget her t o st r engt hen t he cent r al
coor di nat i ng r ol e of t he Uni t ed Na-
t i ons i n i nt er nat i onal af f ai r s as w el l
as t he cr uci al r ol e of i t s Secur i t y
Counci l i n t he mai nt enance of i nt er -
nat i onal peace and secur i t y.
The si des expr essed concer n over
n egat i v e t r e n d s i n t h e gl o b al
economy.
The nat i ons i dent i f i ed successf ul
compl et i on of t he IM F r ef or m under
t he t er ms and condi t i ons agr eed i n
t he f ramew or k of t he G-20 as a key
element of t he gener al r ef orm of t he
i nt er nat i onal f i nanci al ar chi t ect ur e.
In t he cont ext of t he si t uat i on i n
t he M iddle East and Nort h Af ri ca, t he
si des r eaf f i r med t hei r commi t ment
t o t he pr i nci pl es of : sear chi ng t he
w ay t o over come cr ises in t he r egion
i n compl i ance w i t h l aw, excl usi vel y
t hr ough peacef ul means, avoi di ng
vi ol ence and out si de i nt er vent i on,
t hr ough br oad, i ncl usi ve nat i onal
di al ogue on democrat ic ref or ms, t ak-
i ng i nt o account t he legi t i mat e r ight s
and aspir at i ons of t he peopl es of t he
r egi on.
The si des agr eed t hat t he Shang-
hai Cooper at i on Or gani zat i on (SCO)
had become an i mpor t ant f act or f or
r egi onal secur i t y and cooper at i on.
The si des at t ached i mpor t ance t o
st r engt heni ng cooper at i on among
BRICS count r i es.
Indi a and t he Russi an Feder at i on,
as r espon si bl e st at es, po ssessi ng
ad v an ced n u cl ear t ech n o l o gi e s,
shar e t he obj ect i ve of pr event i ve
pr ol i f er at i on of w eapons of mass
dest r uct i on and t hei r means of de-
li very, includi ng prevent i ng t hei r pos-
sibl e acqui si t i on by t er ror i st groups.
The si des r ecal l ed t he bi l at er al
M oscow Decl ar at i on bet w een Indi a
and t he Russian Feder at i on on Int er -
nat i onal Terrori sm si gned on Novem-
ber 6, 2001 i n M oscow.
Bot h sides r eaf f i r med t he need f or
al l st at es t o combi ne ef f or t s t o van-
qui sh t er r or i sm.
The si des emphasi zed t he i mpor -
t ance of j oi nt bi l at er al and mul t i l at -
er al ef f or t s i n t he f i ght agai nst i l l i ci t
dr ug t r af f i cki ng whi ch poses a gr ow -
i ng t hr eat t o i nt er nat ional peace and
st abi l i t y.
Indi a and t he Russi an Feder at i on
expr essed concer n over t he si t ua-
t i on emergi ng around Irans nucl ear
pr ogr amme. Bot h si des suppor t a
co m p r e h e n si v e an d l o n g- t e r m
set t l ement of t he si t uat i on t hr ough
excl usi vel y pol i t i cal and di pl omat i c
means by pr omot i ng di al ogue.
Indi a, Russi a t o Focus on St r at e-
gi c Communi cat i ons
I n d i a an d Ru ssi a w i l l f o cu s o n
del i ver abl es i n def ence and st r at e-
gi c communi cat i ons besi des t aki ng
f or w ar d t al k s on p ar t ner shi ps i n
nucl ear ener gy and hydr ocar bons
sp h e r es d u r i n g Pr i m e M i n i st e r
M anmohan Si ngh' s vi si t t o M oscow.
As i s t he t r adi t i on dur i ng summi t s
i n M oscow, Dr. Si ngh w i l l al so meet
Pr ime M i ni st er Vl adi mi r Put i n, ar chi -
t ect of r est or i ng I ndi a-Russi a t i es
t hat w er e i n di sar r ay d ur i n g t h e
Yel t si n er a. Br i ef i ng new spersons,
For ei gn Secr et ar y Ranj an M at hai
pai nt ed a w i de canvas of i ssues t hat
w oul d be t aken up dur i ng t he Pr i me
M i ni st er ' s t w o subst ant i al i nt er ac-
t i ons w i t h M r. M edvedev and M r.
Put i n schedul ed on Fr iday. Thi s i s t he
t w el f t h t i me t he t w o count r i es w i l l
m ai n t ai n t h e r i t u al o f h o l d i n g
st andal one annual summi t s ever y
year besi des meet i ng r egul ar l y on
t he si del i nes of i nt er nat i onal meet s.
Havi ng expr essed di si nt er est i n gas
deposi t s i n Yamal Peni nsul a on ac-
count of ext r eme w eat her condi -
t i ons, gi ven i t s ener gy w oes, Indi a
i s now keen on di scussi ng modal i -
t i es f or t eami ng up w i t h Novat ech
f or expl or at i on. Tal ks w i l l al so be
hel d on ot her oppor t uni t i es as Rus-
si a opens up i t s st r at egi c deposi t s
t hough t her e are st if f t er ms. The t wo
si des w i l l t r y sor t i ng out t he t axa-
t i on pr obl ems f aci ng Imper i al En-
ergy, bought i n hast e by ONGC and
an i mpor t ant vehi cl e f or t aki ng f or -
w ar d Indi a' s quest f or f ossi l f uel s i n
Russi a.
An i mpor t ant event t aki ng pl ace on
a day Russi a j oi ns t he Wor l d Trade
Or gani sat i on, w i l l be an i mpor t ant
event t aki ng pl ace on t hat day w i l l
be an Indi a-Russi a CEOs meet w i t h
Tat a M o t o r s M D Rav i Kan t an d
Sist ema chief V.P. Evt ushenkov i n t he
chai r. Dr. Si ngh and M r. M edvedev
w i l l have a br i ef i nt er act i on w i t h 20
CEOs and ask t hem t o pr epar e t he
gr ound f or a Compr ehensi ve Eco-
nomi c Par t ner shi p Agr eement . En-
er get i c ef f or t s have been under w ay
t o not only maint ai n t he moment um
but also inf use great er cont ent in our
bil at er al t i es. In t he l ast f ew mont hs,
bi l at eral vi si t s and t al ks have t aken
pl ace at t he l evel s of Home, Ext er -
n al Af f ai r s, Def ence, Co mm er ce,
Heal t h, Tour i sm, St eel and Pow er
M i ni st ers,' ' sai d M r. M at hai . On t he
next t w o uni t s of Kudankul am, M r.
M at hai sai d di scussi ons ar e i n ad-
vanced st ages and t her e w er e pr os-
pect s f or t aki ng t hem f or w ar d ver y
soon.
India and Nepal
I ndi a and Nepal on 27 November
2011 si gned a revi sed Doubl e Taxa-
t i on Avoi dance Agreement (DTAA).
Thi s w i l l hel p pr event t ax evasi on
and f aci l i t at e exchange of i nf or ma-
t i on on banki ng bet w een t he t w o
count r i es. DTAA, w i l l al l ow Indi an
t r ader s and i nvest or s t o enj oy t ax
r el axat i on i n I ndi a once t hey pay
t axes i n Nepal . The agr eement i s
al so l i kel y t o i ncrease conf i dence of
i n vest o r s an d h el p Nep al at t r act
mor e invest ment f r om India. The re-
vised DTAA bet w een India and Nepal
w i l l r epl ace an ear l i er agr eement
si gned bet w een Indi a and Nepal i n
1987.
Impor t ant Inf or mat i on:
Indi an f i r ms ar e t he bi ggest i nves-
t o r s i n Ne p al . Th ey acco u n t f o r
about 47.5 per cent of t ot al approved
FDIs (For ei gn Di r ect Invest ment s).
Indi a i s t he bi ggest sour ce of f or -
ei gn i nvest ment s i n Nepal and i t s
l ar gest t r adi ng par t ner. How ever,
Nepal account s f or onl y 0.44 per cent
of Indi a' s t ot al t r ade.
The bi l at er al t r ade bet w een Indi a
and Nepal i ncr eased f r om USD 1.98
b i l l i o n US d o l l ar s i n 20 09- 10 t o
ar ou nd 2. 70 bi l l i o n US d ol l ar s i n
2010-11, w hi ch i s an i ncr ease of 37
per cent .
India - Japan
Al l ayi ng appr ehensi ons r egar di ng
nucl ear cooperat i on i n t he wake of
t he Fukushi ma acci dent , Japan on
Wednesday expressed keenness t o
expand t i es i n t he sect or af t er t ak-
i ng i nt o con si der at i o n t he saf et y
aspect s. Seeking t o expand coopera-
t i on i n t he 60t h year of est abl i shi ng
di pl omat i c t i es, Indi a and Japan de-
ci ded t o expedit e w or k on i nf rast ruc-
t ur e pr oj ect s and agreed t o enhance
t he cur r ency sw ap ar r an gemen t
f r om $3 bi l l i on t o $ 15 bi l l i on. Thi s
w as f i nal i sed dur i ng t he t al ks be-
t w een Pr i me M i ni st er M anmohan
Si n gh an d h i s v i si t i n g Jap an ese
count er par t Yoshi hi ko Noda. We
shal l pr oceed w i t h t he negot i at i ons
on t he [ ci vi l nucl ear ] agr eement af -
t e r gi v i n g d u e co n si d er at i o n t o
nucl ear saf et y, nucl ear di sar mament
an d no n-p r ol i f er at i on, M r. No da
sai d at a j oi nt pr ess conf er ence w i t h
Dr. Si ngh af t er t he t al ks.
Combat i ng Ter r or i sm
The t w o l eader s resol ved t o devel op
gr eat er cooper at i on i n combat i ng
t er r or i sm t hr ough shar i ng i nf or ma-
t i on and ut i l i si n g t he I ndi a-Japan
Joi nt Wor king Group on Count er-Ter-
r or i sm, as w el l as mul t i l at er al f or a
such as t he Fi nanci al Act i on Task
Force and t he Global Count er-Terror-
i sm For um. Reaf f i r mi ng t he i mpor -
t ance of count er -t err or ism cooper a-
t i on at t he UN, t hey r ecogni sed t he
ur gent need t o f i nal ise and adopt t he
Comprehensive Convent i on on Int er-
nat i onal Ter ror i sm and cal l ed upon
al l st at es t o cooper at e i n r esol vi ng
t h e o u t st an d i n g i ssu e s e x p ed i -
t i ousl y.
Nucl ear Test s
He sai d Japan at t ached i mpor t ance
t o t he vol unt ar y commi t ment s and
act i ons I ndi a had expr essed w i t h
r egar d t o t est i ng of nucl ear devi ces.
At t he same t i me, M r. Noda sai d i t
w as Japan' s dut y t o shar e t he expe-
r i ences and t he l essons l ear nt f r om
t h e n u cl e ar p o w e r acci d e n t at
Fukushi ma and cont i nue t o cont r i b-
ut e t o n ucl ear saf et y ar ound t he
w o r l d . M r. Noda' s com ment s as-
sum e si gn i f i can ce as t her e h av e
been quest i ons on t he f at e of t he
pr oposed deal , w hi ch i s under ne-
got i at i on, af t er t he r adi at i on scar e
i n Fukushi ma w hen t sunami hi t a
nucl ear pl ant t her e on M ar ch 11.
M ar i t i me Secur i t y
Dr. Si ngh and M r. Noda agr eed t o
expand cooper at i on i n mar i t i me se-
cur i t y i ncl udi ng saf et y and f r eedom
of navi gat i on and ant i -pi r acy act i vi -
t i es, by pr omot ing bil at er al and mul -
t i l at er al exer ci ses, and t hr ough i n-
f or mat i on shar i ng, as w el l as di a-
l ogues. Th ey al so w el com ed t h e
j oi nt exer ci ses bet w een t he Coast
Guar ds of t he t w o count r i es pr o-
posed t o be hel d i n Januar y 2012, a
j oint st at ement issued af t er t he t al ks
sai d.
M or e Invest ment Sought
No t i n g t h at FDI f r o m Jap an ac-
count ed f or j ust over one per cent
of i t s t ot al out war d FDI f l ow s, Dr.
Si ngh sai d w e w oul d l i ke t o see
much more Japanese invest ment and
t echnol ogy t r ansf er i n Indi a, w hi ch
w e w i l l f aci l i t at e. M r. Noda sai d
cooper at ion r egar ding peacef ul uses
of nucl ear ener gy w as conduci ve t o
Japan' s ef f or t s t o addr ess cl i mat e
change and t o st r engt hen t he gl o-
bal par t ner shi p w i t h Indi a.
Rai l Technol ogy
Dr. Si ngh w el com ed t he i n t er est
sh o w n b y Jap an i n sh ar i n g h i gh
speed r ai l t echnol ogy f or passenger
net w or ks i n Indi a.
India and Australia
Indi a and Aust r al i a on 16 December
2011 signed an agreement t o amend
DTAA (Doubl e Taxat i on Avoi dance
Agr eement ) w i t h t he obj ect i ve of
ensur i ng mor e ef f ect ive exchange of
f i nanci al i nf or mat i on bet w een t he
t w o count r i es. DTAA was si gned be-
t w een Indi a and Aust r al i a i n 1991.
The r evi sed t ax agr eement w i l l f a-
ci l i t at e t he exchange of i nf or mat i on
on banki ng r el at ed i nf or mat i on and
t axat ion pol i ci es. The r evi sed agr ee-
ment al so has a pr ovi si on t hat Indi a
and Aust r al i a can assi st each ot her
i n t he col l ect i on of r evenue cl ai ms.
The agr eement st at es t hat nat i on-
al s of one count r y w i l l not be di s-
cr i mi nat ed agai nst t he nat i onal s of
t he ot her count r y, a f eat ure absent
i n t he ear l i er agreement . M oreover,
t her e w as no t hr eshol d l i mi t f or de-
t ermining permanent est ablishment .
I n t h e r e v i se d agr e e m en t , t h e
t hr eshol d l i mi t has been r at i onl i sed
t o avai l t he exempt i on f or ser vi ce
and expl or at i on t o boost cr oss bor -
der movement of capi t al and ser -
vi ces.
Ur ani um Expor t s t o Indi a
Appr oved
Aust ral i as r ul i ng Labour Par t y on 4
December 2011 i n i t s annual pol i cy
conf er ence appr oved pl ans t o open
u p u r an i u m sal es t o I n d i a. Th i s
cl ear ed t he w ay f or t al ks on a bi l at -
er al nucl ear agr eement bet w een In-
di a and Aust r al i a. The conf er ence
hel d i n Sydney over t ur ned i t s ow n
ban, w hi ch pr ohi bi t s Aust ral i a t o sel l
ur anium t o nat ions such as Indi a t hat
have not si gned Nucl ear Non-Pr ol i f -
er at i on t r eat y. The pol i cy change
does not need t o be appr oved by
Par l i ament . Aust r al i a possesses ap-
p r o x i m at e l y 4 0 p e r ce n t o f t h e
w or l ds know n urani um reser ves.
Science & Technology
Top 10 Breakthroughs of
The year 2011
HPTN 052: The j our nal Sci ence has
l auded an eye-openi ng HIV st udy,
know n as HPTN 052, as t he most
i mport ant sci ent i f i c br eakt hr ough of
2 01 1. Th i s cl i n i cal t r i al d em o n -
st rat ed t hat people inf ect ed wit h HIV
are 96 per cent l ess l i kel y t o t rans-
mi t t he vi r us t o t hei r par t ner s i f t hey
t ake an t i r et r ov i r al d r u gs ( ARVs) .
Some r esear cher s consi der HPTN
052 a " game-changer " because of it s
near -100 per cent ef f i cacy i n r educ-
i ng HIV t r ansmi ssi on r at es. And, i n-
deed, i t has al r eady spr ung many
cl i n i ci ans and p ol i cymaker s i nt o
act i o n . Fo r al l t h e se
r e aso n s, Sci e n ce sp o t l i gh t s t h e
HPTN 052 st udy as t he 2011 Break-
t hrough of t he Year. Sci ence' s and i t s
publ i sher, AAAS, t he non-prof i t sci -
ence soci et y, have i dent i f i ed ni ne
ot her gr oundbr eaki ng sci ent i f i c ac-
compl i shment s dur i ng 2011.
The Hayabusa M i ssi on: Af t er some
near -disast rous t echni cal di f f icul t i es
and a st unni ngl y successf ul r ecov-
er y, Japan ' s Hayab usa spacecr af t
r et urned t o Eart h w i t h dust f r om t he
sur f ace of a l ar ge, S-t ype ast er oi d.
Thi s ast er oi d dust r epr esent ed t he
f i r st di r ect sampl i ng of a pl anet ar y
body i n 35 year s, and anal ysi s of t he
grains conf ir med t hat t he most com-
mo n met eor i t es f o un d o n Ear t h,
know n as or di nar y chondr ul es, ar e
bor n f rom t hese much l arger, S-t ype
ast er oi ds.
Unr avel i ng Human Or i gi ns: St udy-
i ng t he genet i c code of bot h anci ent
and modern human beings, research-
er s di scover ed t hat many humans
st i l l car r y DNA var i ant s i nher i t ed
f r om ar chai c humans, such as t he
myst er i ous Deni sovans i n Asi a and
st i ll -uni dent i f i ed ancest ors i n Af ri ca.
One st udy t his year revealed how ar -
chai c humans l i kely shaped our mod-
er n i mmune syst ems, and an anal y-
sis of Aust r alopit hecus sedi ba f ossil s
i n Sout h Af r i ca show ed t hat t he an-
cient homini n possessed bot h pr i mi -
t i ve and Homo -l i ke t rai t s.
Capt ur i ng a Phot osynt het i c r ot ei n:
In vi vi d det ai l , r esear cher s i n Japan
have mapped t he st r uct ur e of t he
Phot osyst em II, or PSII, pr ot ei n t hat
pl ant s use t o spl i t w at er i nt o hydr o-
gen and oxygen at oms. The cr yst al -
cl ear i mage show s of f t he pr ot ei n' s
cat al yt i c cor e and r eveal s t he spe-
ci f i c or i ent at i on of at oms w i t hi n.
Now, sci ent i st s have access t o t hi s
cat al yt i c st r uct ur e t hat i s essent i al
f or l i f e on Ear t h one t hat may al so
hol d t he key t o a pow er f ul source of
cl ean energy.
Pr i st i ne Gas i n Space: Ast r onomer s
usi ng t he Keck t el escope i n Haw ai i
t o p r o b e t h e f ar aw ay u n i v er se
w ound up di scover i ng t w o cl ouds of
hyd r ogen gas t h at seem t o h ave
mai nt ai ned t hei r or i gi nal chemi st r y
f or t w o bi l l i on year s af t er t he bi g
bang. Ot her r esear cher s i dent i f i ed
a st ar t hat i s al most compl et el y de-
voi d of met al s, j ust as t he uni ver se' s
ear l i est st ar s must have been, but
t hat f or med much l at er. The di scov-
er i es show t hat pocket s of mat t er
per si st ed unscat hed ami d eons of
cosmi c vi ol ence.
Get t i ng t o Know t he M i cr obi ome:
Resear ch i n t o t h e co u n t l ess m i -
cr obes t hat dw el l i n t he human gut
demonst r at ed t hat ever yone has a
d om i n ant b act er i u m l eadi n g t h e
gan g i n t h ei r d i ge st i v e
t r act : Bact er o i d es , Pr ev o t el l a o r
Rumi nococcus . Fol l ow -up st udi es
r eveal ed t hat one of t hese bact er i a
t hr i ves on a hi gh-pr ot ei n di et w hi l e
ano t h er p r ef er s veget ar i an f ar e.
These f i ndi ngs and mor e hel ped t o
cl ar i f y t he i nt er pl ay bet w een di et
and mi cr obes i n nut r i t i on and di s-
ease.
A Pr omi si ng M al ar i a Vacci ne: Ear l y
r esul t s of t he cl i ni cal t r i al of a ma-
l ar i a vacci ne, know n as RTS,S, pr o-
vi ded a shot i n t he ar m t o mal ar i a
vacci ne r esear ch. The ongoi ng t r i al ,
which has enr oll ed mor e t han 15,000
chi l dr en f r om seven Af r i can coun-
t ri es, r eassur ed mal ar i a r esear chers,
w ho ar e used t o bi t t er di sappoi nt -
ment , t hat di scover i ng a m al ar i a
vacci ne r emai ns possi bl e.
St r ange Sol ar Syst ems: Thi s year,
ast r on om er s got t hei r f i r st go od
vi ew s of sever al di st ant pl anet ar y
syst ems and di scover ed t hat t hi ngs
ar e pr et t y w ei r d out t her e. Fi r st ,
NASA' s Kepl er obser vat or y hel ped
i dent i f y a st ar syst em w i t h pl anet s
or bi t i ng i n w ays t hat t oday' s mod-
el s cannot expl ai n. Then, r esear ch-
er s di scover ed a gas gi ant caught i n
a r ar e " r et r ogr ade" or bi t , a pl anet
ci r cl i ng a bi nar y st ar syst em and 10
pl anet s t hat seem t o be f r eel y f l oat -
i ng i n space al l unl i ke anyt hi ng
f ound i n our ow n sol ar syst em.
Desi gner Zeol i t es: Zeol i t es ar e po-
r ous mi ner al s t hat ar e used as cat a-
l yst s and mol ecul ar si eves t o con-
ver t oi l i nt o gasol i ne, pur i f y wat er,
f i l t er ai r and pr oduce l aundr y det er -
gent s (t o name a f ew uses). Thi s
year, chemi st s r eal l y sho w ed of f
t hei r cr eat i vi t y by desi gni ng a r ange
of new zeol i t es t hat ar e cheaper,
t hi nner and bet t er equi pped t o pr o-
cess l ar ger or gani c mol ecul es.
Cl ear i n g Senescent Cel l s: Exper i -
ment s have r eveal ed t hat cl ear i ng
senescent cel l s (t hose t hat have
st opped di vi di ng) f r om t he bodi es of
mi ce can del ay t he onset of age-r e-
l at ed sympt oms. M i ce w hose bod-
i es w er e cl ear ed of t hese l oi t er i ng
cel l s di dn' t l i ve l onger t han t hei r
unt r eat ed cage-mat es but t hey
di d seem t o l i ve bet t er, w hi ch pro-
vi ded r esear cher s w i t h some hope
t hat bani shi ng senescent cel ls might
al so pr ol ong our gol den year s.
A new Candidate
Malaria Vacc ine
A new candi dat e mal ar i a vacci ne
w i t h t he pot ent i al t o neut r al i se al l
st r ai ns of t he most deadl y speci es
of mal ar i a par asi t e has been devel -
oped by a t eam l ed by sci ent i st s at
t he Uni ver si t y of Oxf ord. The r esul t s
of t hi s new vacci ne i ndependent l y
conf i r m t he ut i l i t y of a key discover y
r epor t ed l ast mont h f r om sci ent i st s
at t he Wel l come Tr ust Sanger Inst i -
t ut e w ho had i dent i f i ed t hi s t ar get
w i t hi n t he par asi t e as a pot ent i al
Achi l l es' heel ' t hat coul d hol d si g-
ni f i cant pr omi se f or vacci ne devel -
opment . The most deadl y f or m of
mosqui t o, Pl asmodi um f al ci par um ,
i s r esponsi bl e f or ni ne out of t en
deat hs f r om mal ar i a. Vacci nat i ng
agai nst mal ar i a i s l i kel y t o be t he
most cost -ef f ect i ve w ay of pr ot ect -
i ng p op u l at i on s agai n st d i sease;
how ever, no l i censed vacci ne i s cur-
r ent l y avai l abl e.
Dr Sandy Dougl as, a Wel l come Tr ust
Cl i ni cal Resear ch Tr ai ni ng Fel l o w
f r om t he Uni ver si t y of Oxf or d and
f i rst aut hor on t he new st udy, adds:
We have cr eat ed a vacci ne t hat
conf i r ms t he r ecent di scover y r el at -
i ng t o t he bi ol ogy of RH5 ant i gen,
gi ven i t can gener at e an i mmune
r esponse i n ani mal model s capabl e
of neut r al i si ng many and pot en-
t i al l y al l st r ai n s o f t h e P.
f al ci par um par asi t e, t he deadl i est
speci es of mal ar i a par asi t e. Our
next st ep w i l l be t o begi n saf et y
t est s of t hi s vacci ne. If t hese pr ove
successf ul , cl i ni cal t r i al s i n pat i ent s
may begi n w i t hi n t he next t w o t o
t hr ee year s.
Fighting Iron Deficiency
Someone w i t h an i r on def i ci ency
sh ou l d su bst an t i al l y r educe co n-
sumpt i on of cof f ee and bl ack t ea.
Thi s i s accor di ng t o Pet r a Renner -
Weber, a m em b er o f Ger m any ' s
Home Economi cs and Nut r i t i on Sci -
ence Associ at i on. She says t hat t an-
ni n i n t he dr i nks i nhi bi t s t he absor p-
t i on of iron. About t w o hours should
pass af t er a meal bef or e dr i nki ng
cof f ee or t ea, she added. Renner-
Weber sai d t he body absor bed i ron
f r om ani mal pr oduct s such as meat
an d sau sage b est . When i t s i r on
st or es ar e depl et ed, t he body ab-
sor bs a l ot of i r on f r om f ood. When
st ores are w el l suppl i ed, i t t akes i n
l i t t l e of t he mi ner al .
She advi ses veget ar i ans t o eat i r on-
r i ch veget abl es su ch as beet s as
w el l as l egumes and w hol e gr ai ns.
She sai d t hat vi t ami n C and or gani c
aci ds enhanced t he absor pt i on of
i ron f r om pl ant f oods and so she r ec-
ommends dr i nki ng a gl ass of or ange
j ui ce at meal s or havi ng f r ui t sal ad
f or desser t . Iron def i ci ency, w hi ch a
doct or can det ect w i t h a bl ood t est ,
i s caused by an unbal anced di et or,
i n w omen, heavy menst r ual peri ods,
Renner-Weber sai d. Sympt oms i n-
cl u d ed t i r e d n ess, w e ak n e ss, i n -
cr eased suscept i bi l i t y t o i nf ect i ons,
pr obl ems w i t h hai r and nai l gr ow t h,
and dr y, chapped ski n. M en requi re
ab o u t 10 m g o f i r o n d ai l y, an d
w omen 15.
Supernova of a
Generation
It w as t he br i ght est and cl osest st el -
l ar expl osi on seen f r om Ear t h i n 25
y ear s, d azzl i n g p r o f essi o n al an d
backyar d ast ronomers al i ke. Now,
t hanks t o t his rar e discover yw hich
some have cal l ed t he super nova of
a gener at i on ast r onomer s have
t he most det ail ed pi ct ur e yet of how
t h i s k i n d o f e xp l o si o n h ap p en s.
Know n as a Type I a super nova, t hi s
t ype of bl ast i s an essent i al t ool t hat
al l o w s sci ent i st s t o measu r e t he
expansi on of t he uni ver se and un-
der st and t he ver y nat ur e of t he cos-
mos. On August 24, t he Pal omar
Transi ent Fact or y (PTF) t eam discov-
er ed t he super nova i n one of t he
ar ms of t he Pi nw heel Gal axy (al so
cal l ed M 101), 21 mi l l i on l i ght year s
away. They caught t he super nova
j ust 11 hour s af t er i t expl oded.
27 Club' Hypothesis is
Inc orrect
The l i st of w el l kn ow n m usi ci ans
w ho have di ed at age 27 may l ook
l i ke more t han a coi nci dence Amy
W i n e h o u se , Ji m M o r r i so n , Ji m i
Hendr i x, Jani s Jopl i n, Kur t Cobai n,
and Br i an Jones t o name a f ew
but t hei r age i s unl i kel y t o have been
t he cause of t hei r demi se, accor d-
i n g t o r e se ar ch p u b l i sh e d i n
t he Br i t i sh M edi cal Jour nal . Whi l e
f ame may i ncr ease t he r i sk of deat h
f or musi ci ans, pr obabl y due t o t hei r
r ock and r ol l l i f est yl e, t hi s r i sk i s not
l i mi t ed t o age 27, say t he aut hor s
l e d b y Ad r i an Bar n et t f r o m
Queensl and Uni versi t y of Technol -
ogy in Aust rali a. To t est t he 27 cl ub
hypot hesi s, t he aut hor s compar ed
t he mor t al i t y of f amous musi ci ans
w i t h t hat of t he UK popul at ion. They
i ncl uded 1,046 musi ci ans (sol o ar t -
i st s and band member s) w ho had a
number one al bum i n t he UK char t s
bet w een 1956 and 2007.
Duri ng t his per iod (1956-2007) it w as
f ound t hat 71 (7 per cent ) of t he
musi ci ans di ed. The aut hor s used
mat hemat i cal analysi s t o det ermi ne
t he si gn i f i can ce o f age 27. They
f ound no peak i n t he r i sk of deat h at
t hi s age, how ever musi ci ans i n t hei r
20s and 30s w ere t w o t o t hr ee t imes
more l i kel y t o di e premat urel y t han
t he gener al UK popul at i on. The r e-
sear ch t eam f ound some evi dence
of a cl ust er of deat hs i n t hose aged
20 t o 40 i n t h e 1970s an d ear l y
1980s. But t her e w er e no deat hs i n
t hi s age gr oup i n t he l at e 80s. The
aut hor s concl ude t hat t he 27 cl ub
i s based on myt h , bu t w ar n t hat
m u si ci an s h av e a gen e r al l y i n -
cr eased r i sk of dyi ng t h r ough out
t hei r 20s and 30s.
Pr ot ect i ng an ant i -m al ar i al dr ug
f r om devel opi ng r esi st ance: It i s a
dr ug t hat has i t s r oot s i n anci ent
Ch i n e se m e d i ci n e . I n t h e f i gh t
agai nst mal ar i a, a di sease t hat over
200 mi l l i on peopl e ar e est i mat ed t o
have caught i n 2010, some 655,000
of w hom di ed of i t , pr ot ect i ng t he
ef f ect i veness of ar t emi si ni n-based
dr ugs has become vi t al l y i mpor t ant .
A number of Indi an phar maceut i cal
compani es have been among t hose
manuf act ur i ng and mar ket i ng dr ugs
t hat are l i kel y t o f ost er resi st ance t o
ar t emi si ni n i n t he mal ar i a par asi t e,
accordi ng t o t he l at est Wor l d M a-
l ar i a Repor t t hat w as r ecent l y r e-
l eased. Ar t emi si n and i t s der i vat i ves
have saved count l ess l i ves af t er t he
si ngl e-cel l ed par asi t e, Pl asmodi um
f al ci par um , t hat causes t he most
danger ous f or ms of t he di sease be-
came r esi st ant t o t he dr ug chl or o-
qui ne. How ever, st rai ns t hat are re-
si st an t t o even ar t em i si ni n have
emer ged i n par t s of Sout h-East Asi a
and coul d pot ent i al l y spr ead, as has
happened w i t h ear l i er ant i mal ar i al
dr ugs.
To prevent t hat f rom happening, t he
gl obal heal t h agency r ecommends
t hat ar t emi si ni n be gi ven i n combi -
n at i o n w i t h an o t h er d r u g. Su ch
ar t e m i si n i n - b ase d co m b i n at i o n
t her apy (ACT) sho ul d, i t says, be
f i r st -l i ne t r eat ment f or uncompl i -
cat ed m al ar i a cau sed b y P.
f al ci par um . The t w o-dr ug combi na-
t i on r ed uced t he ch an ces of t he
p ar asi t e d ev el o p i n g r esi st an ce.
M oreover, a t hree-day course of a
recommended ACT general ly clear ed
t he parasi t es f rom t he body. The use
of ACT has grow n rapi dl y. Gl obal l y,
t he number of ACT courses procured
by t he publ i c sect or j umped near l y
seven-f ol d bet w een 2005 and 2006,
and t hen mor e t han doubled, r each-
i ng 181 mi l l i on, i n 2010, accor di ng
t o t he Wor l d M al ar i a Repor t . The
demand f or t h ese dr u gs w as ex-
pect ed t o r each 287 mi l l i on t r eat -
ment s t hi s year and t ouch 295 mi l -
l i on courses i n 2012. Ten of t he 28
manu f act ur er s of mo not her api es
w ere i n Indi a, accordi ng t o a spokes-
per son f or t he WHO Gl obal M al ar i a
Pr o gr am m e . Or al ar t e m i si n i n
monot her apy i s banned i n Indi a,
accor di ng t o t he Gui del i nes f or Di -
agnosi s and Treat ment of M al ar i a i n
Indi a' publ i shed i n 2010 by t he Na-
t i onal Inst i t ut e of M al ar i a Resear ch
i n De l h i an d t h e Un i o n He al t h
M i ni st ry' s Nat i onal Vect or Borne Di s-
ease Cont r ol Pr ogr amme.
Nuclear Disaster
Response Failed During
Tsunami
Japan' s r esponse t o t he nucl ear cr i -
si s t hat f ol l ow ed t he M ar ch 11 t su-
nami w as conf used and r i ddl ed w i t h
pr obl ems, i ncl udi ng an er r oneous
assumpt i on an emer gency cool i ng
syst em w as w or ki ng and a del ay i n
d i scl o si n g d an ge r o u s r ad i at i o n
l eaks, an i nt er i m r epor t r eveal ed on
December 26. The dist ur bi ng pi ct ur e
of harr ied and bumbl ing workers and
gover nment of f i ci al s scr ambl i ng t o
r e sp o n d t o t h e p r o b l e m s at
Fukushi ma Dai -i chi nucl ear pow er
pl ant w as depi ct ed i n t he r epor t de-
t ai l i ng a gover nment i nvest i gat i on.
The 507-page i nt er i m r epor t , com-
pi l ed by i nt er vi ew i ng mor e t han 400
peopl e, incl uding ut i l i t y wor kers and
gover nment of f i ci al s, f ound aut hor i -
t ies had grossl y underest i mat ed t su-
nami r i sks, assu mi ng t he hi ghest
w ave w oul d be 6 met er s (20 f eet ).
The t sunami hit at mor e t han doubl e
t hose levels. The repor t cr it icized t he
use of t he t er m sot ei gai , meani ng
out si de our i magi nat i on, w hi ch i t
sai d i mpl i ed aut hor i t i es w ere shi r k-
i ng r esponsi bi l i t y f or w hat had hap-
pened. It sai d by l abel i ng t he event s
as beyond w hat coul d have been
expect ed, of f i ci al s had i nvi t ed pub-
l i c di st r ust .
The r eport , set t o be f i ni shed by mid-
2012, f ound w or kers at Tokyo El ec-
t r i c Pow er Co., t he ut i l i t y t hat r an
Fukushi ma Dai -i chi , w er e unt r ai ned
t o h an d l e em er ge n ci es l i ke t h e
pow er shut dow n t hat st r uck w hen
t he t sunami dest r oyed backup gen-
er at or s set t i ng of f t he w or l d' s w or st
nucl ear di sast er si nce Cher nobyl . A
bet t er r esponse mi ght have r educed
t he core damage, r adiat ion leaks and
t he hydr ogen expl osi ons t hat f ol -
l o w ed at t w o r eact o r s an d sen t
pl umes of radi at i on i nt o t he ai r, ac-
cor di ng t o t he r epor t . The gover n-
ment al so del ayed di scl osur e of r a-
di at i on dat a i n t he ar ea, unneces-
sar i l y exposi ng ent i r e t ow ns t o r a-
diat i on when t hey coul d have evacu-
at ed, t he r epor t f ound. The gover n-
m ent r eco m m end ed chan ges so
ut i l i t i es w i l l r espond pr oper l y t o se-
r i ous acci dent s. I t r ecomm ended
separ at i ng t he nucl ear r egul at or s
f r om t he uni t t hat pr omot es at omi c
ener gy, echoi ng f requent cr i t i ci sm
si nce t he di sast er. Japan' s nucl ear
r egul at or s w er e i n t he same mi ni s-
t r y t hat promot es t he i ndust r y, but
t hey ar e bei ng moved t o t he envi -
ronment minist ry next year t o ensure
more i ndependence.
Mic roalgae
To i t s v o t ar i es, t i ny o r gan i sm s
know n as mi cr oal gae coul d hol d an-
swers t o some i nt r act able problems.
That i ncl udes cur bi ng car bon di ox-
i de emi ssi ons t hat ar e cont r i but i ng
t o gl obal w ar mi ng and r educi ng t he
burden of i ndust r i al ef f l uent s. We
can change t r ash i nt o go l d an d
saf eguar d human exi st ence on t he
pl anet , excl ai med Ji -Won Yang of
t he Depar t ment of Chemi cal and
Bi omol ecul ar Engi neer i ng at t he Ko-
r ea Advanced I nst i t ut e of Sci ence
an d Tech n o l o gy i n So u t h Ko r ea.
M i croal gae, l i ke pl ant s, are capabl e
of phot osynt hesi s, usi ng t he ener gy
f r om sunli ght t o t ur n car bon di oxi de
and w at er i n t o su gar. Pr o f . Yan g
spoke of hi s t eam' s ef f or t s at t reat -
i ng muni ci pal w ast ew at er usi ng t he
si n gl e-cel l ed gr een al ga, Chl or el l a
vulgari s. Such w ast ew at er cont ained
pl ent y of or gani c compounds and
nut r i ent s t o sust ai n t he or gani sm.
The oils t hat t hen accumul at ed i n t he
cel l s coul d be har vest ed and t ur ned
i nt o bi odi esel . It w as f ound t hat un-
t r eat ed w ast ew at er gave t he best
al gal gr ow t h. Ni t r ogen-f i xi ng bact e-
r ia f ound in t he wast ewat er could be
act i n g as gr o w t h en h an cer s, h e
not ed.
A pi l ot pl ant based on t he al ga had
been est abl i shed at a pl ant of t he
Chi na St eel Cor por at i on. To meet
pol l ut ion cont r ol norms, t he ef f l uent
w as ear l i er bei ng neut r al i sed w i t h
sodi um hydr oxi de. The l ar ge quan-
t i t i es of sl udge t hat r esul t ed had
t hen t o be di sposed i n a secur ed
l andf i l l . It had been possi bl e t o en-
gi neer a t r eat ment pr ocess t o ef f i -
ci ent l y car r y out t he neut r al i sat i on
by pr ovi di ng sui t abl e condi t i ons f or
a b l u e gr ee n al ga, Ch r o o co ccu s
t ur gi dus, t o gr ow i n t he ef f l uent . As
t he al ga grew, i t reduced t he aci di t y
of t he ef f l uent . Thi s al gal st r ai n had
been i sol at ed f r om t he ef f l uent i t -
sel f. The remedi at i on plant had been
w or ki ng wel l f or over f i ve year s, pro-
d u ci n g n e gl i gi b l e q u an t i t i e s o f
sl udge and savi ng money t hat had
ear l i er been spent on sodi um hy-
droxi de.
Ordinary Tissue
TransFormed into Heart
Muscle Cells
Scient i st s discover ed a w ay t o t r ans-
f or m or di nar y t i ssue i nt o beat i ng
hear t muscl e cel l s. It coul d pave t he
way f or new t her apeut i c appr oaches
f or maki ng a damaged hear t t o r e-
pair i t sel f. Scient ist s used a zebraf i sh
syst em t o devel op a smal l and r o-
bust mol ecul e, w hi ch can t r ansf or m
st em cel l s i nt o beat i ng hear t muscl e
cel l s. The sci ent i st s i n t hei r exper i -
ment f ound t hat car di onogen t r eat -
ment enl arged t he zebr af i sh heart by
st i mul at i ng pr oduct i on of new car -
di ac muscl e cel l s f r om st em cel l s.
Th e sci en t i st s d i sco v er e d t h r ee
st r u ct u r al l y r el at ed m o l e cu l e s
(Car di ongen-1, 2 and3) af t er scr een-
i ng 4000 compounds. It coul d pr o-
mot e or i nhi bi t hear t f or mat i on de-
pendi ng on w hen t hey w er e admi n-
i st er ed dur i ng development .
New theory
Explains How Fishes
Grew into Amphibians
A smal l f i sh cr aw l i ng out of a dr yi ng
deser t pond underl ines a t heory t hat
t i es up t he f i shes w i t h t he amphi b-
i ans, reveal s a st udy. Such a pl ucky
hypot het i cal ancest or of our s pr ob-
abl y coul d not have sur vi ved t he
over w hel mi ng odds of per i shi ng i n
a t rek t o anot her shr i nki ng pond,
sai d Gr egor y J Ret al l ack, pr of essor
of geol ogi cal sci ences at Uni ver si t y
of Oregon, w ho l ed t he st udy. Thi s
scenar i o comes f r om t he l at e Devo-
ni an per i od, r oughl y 390 mi l l i on t o
360 mi l l i on year s ago, w hi ch l at e
Har v ar d p al ae o n t o l o gi st Al f r e d
Romer pr opounded, t he Jour nal of
Geo l o gy r ep o r t e d . Ch al l e n gi n g
Ro m er ' s t heo r y on f i sh su r v i v al ,
Ret al l ack sai d t hat t he t r ansi t i onal
f ossi l s w er e not associ at ed wi t h dr y-
i ng ponds or desert s, but w er e f ound
consi st ent l y w i t h humi d w oodl and
soil s, accor ding t o a univer sit y st at e-
ment .
Papaya Mealy Bug
In Indi a meal ybug i nf est s a w hol e
r ange of cr ops nd numer ous w eeds.
I nf est ed gr ow i n g po i n t s b ecom e
st unt ed and sw ol len whi ch may var y
dependi ng upon t he suscept i bi l it y of
each host . Heavy cl ust er i ng of mea-
l ybugs can be seen under l eaf sur -
f ace gi vi ng t he appearance of a t hi ck
mat w i t h w axy secr et i on. Sever e i n-
f est at i ons r esembl e pat ches of cot -
t on al l over t he pl ant . They excr et e
copi us amount of honey dew t hat
at t r act s ant s t hat l eads t o t he de-
vel opment of bl ack soot y moul d,
w hi ch i nhi bi t s t he pl ant s' abi l i t y t o
manuf act ure f ood. Bot h nymphs and
ad ul t s su ck t h e sap f r o m l eav es
causi ng w i t her i ng and yel l ow i ng of
l eaves. Fr ui t may dr op pr emat ur el y
on cr op pl ant s. Heavy i nf est at i on
can cau se d ef o l i at i o n an d ev en
deat h of t he pl ant . When f r ui t s ar e
i nf est ed, t hey may be ent i r el y cov-
er ed w i t h t he w hi t e, w axy coat i ng
of t he meal y bug. Inf est at i on can
lead t o f ruit drop, or f r uit may r emain
on t he host i n dr i ed and shr i vel l ed
condit i on.
Bi ol ogical cont r ol by r el ease of nat u-
r al enemi es has pr oved t o be ver y
successf ul . The Nat i onal bur eau of
agr i cu l t u r al l y i m p o r t an t i n sect s
(NBAI I) has successf ul l y i mpor t ed
t hr ee par asi t oi ds t o suppr ess t he
meal ybugs ef f ect i vel y. The l ar vae
of Spal gi us api us commonl y cal l ed
as bl ue but t er f l i es f eed on al l st age
of t he meal ybug. As t he young l ar -
vae ar e si mi l ar i n appear ance t o
meal ybugs, i t is dif f i cul t t o r ecogni ze
t hem ami dst t he host popul at i on.
Adul t i s a smal l but t er f l y w i t h upper
si d e o f t h e w i n gs dar k br o w n i n
col our and ash col our ed l ow er si des
w i t h dar k st r i at i ons. Kr i shi Vi gyan
Kendr a at Kar ur has mass mul t i pl i ed
t he par asi t oi ds successf ul l y i n t he
l abor at or y as w el l as f i el d condi -
t i ons.
Solar-Powered Sprayer
That Solves Many
Problems
One need not be a genius t o develop
any commonl y used devi ces. Take
t he case of t he humbl e yet i mpor -
t ant knapsack manual spr ayer (hung
on t h e sh oul der s). Th ough many
model s ar e avai l abl e on t he shel ves,
pr i ced at di f f er ent r at es, most of
t h em l ast f o r o n l y a f ew y ear s.
Regul ar l y f i l l i ng t hem w i t h wat er,
pest i ci des and f uel (i n case of f uel
operat ed ones) makes i t di f f i cul t t o
l i f t and hang t hem on t he shoul der.
Af t er an hour of sprayi ng, t he w ei ght
of t he machi ne cr eat es a backache
and shoul der pai n f or f ar mers, says
M r. Davi d Raj a Bel eau , Assi st ant
Di r ect or of Hor t i cul t ur e Kadayam,
Tami l Nadu, w ho devel oped a sol ar
pow er ed bat t er y oper at ed spr ayer
f or f ar mer s.
High- Speed
Bullet Train in China
Ch i n a o n 23 Dece m b e r 20 1 1
l aunched a hi gh-speed bul l et t r ai n
i n Qui ngdao, Shandong provi nce. It s
speed can reach up t o 500 kil omet r e
per hour. The t rai n was l aunched by
Chi nas l ar gest rai l vehi cl e maker,
CSR Cor p. Lt d. The si x-car t r ai n has
a maxi mum t r act ive pow er of 22800
ki l ow at t s, compar ed w i t h 9600 ki l o-
w at t s f or t he CRH380 t r ai ns. The
t r ai n i s made f r om pl ast i c mat er i al s
r ei nf or ced w i t h car bon f i br e. I t i s
desi gn ed t o r esembl e an an ci ent
Chi nese sw or d. CRH 380 t r ai ns ar e
cur r ent l y i n ser vi ce on t he Bei j i ng-
Sh an gh ai Hi gh - sp eed Rai l w ay. I t
hol ds t he w or l d speed r ecor d of 300
ki l omet res per hour.Chi na has t he
l ar gest net w or k of bul l et -t r ai n t r ack
i n t he w o r l d, w i t h 8000 mi l es of
t rack.
Memory Gene Npas4
A t eam of neur osci ent i st s f ound a
gene t hat t ur ns on w hen memor i es
ar e st or ed i n t he br ai n. Thi s di scov-
er y coul d hel p t r ace t he exact l oca-
t i ons of memor i es i n t he br ai n. I t
coul d hel p i n cr eat i ng and al t er i ng
memor y. The gene i s cal l ed Npas4 ,
w hi ch i s ver y act i ve i n t he hi ppoc-
ampus. The ani mal i s know n t o have
a br ai n st r uct ur e cr i t i cal i n f or mi ng
l ong-t er m memor i es. Dur i ng mi ce
st udi es Sci ent i st s f ound t hat by t ak-
i ng out Npas4 f r om t est subj ect s,
neur osci ent ist s w er e able t o prevent
new memor i es f r om f or mi ng.
Tube Light Flicker
Bot h convent i onal f l uor escent l amp
and compact f l uorescent l amp (CFL)
pr oduce w hi t e l i ght by t he pr ocess
of f l uor escence under l yi ng t he con-
ver si on of i nvi si bl e ul t r a-vi ol et (UV)
gener at ed f r om t he el ect r i cal di s-
char ge (passage of el ect r i ci t y) al ong
t he col umn of t he t ube t o visibl e light
occur ri ng on t he w hit e coat i ng made
of pow der y l umi nescent mat er i al
coat i ng i nsi de t he w al l s of t he t ube.
Th e pr ocess o f gen er at i ng w hi t e
l i ght f r om t hese l amps i s t he same
al t hough chemi cal composi t i on of
t he l umi nescent mat er i al s (phos-
phor s) used i n t hese l amps ar e di f -
f er ent w hi ch event ual l y det er mi ne
t he l i ght out put pr oduced. Ther e i s
sl i ght di f f er ence i n t he pr ocess of
i ni t i at i ng t h e el ect r i cal d i schar ge
bet w een CFL and convent i onal f l uo-
r escent l amp.
In a convent i onal f l uor escent l amp,
t he el ect r i cal di schar ge al ong t he
l engt hy col umn of t he t ube (usual l y
4 f eet l ong) i s st r uck t hr ough a hi gh
vol t age w i t h t he hel p of a choke
(vol t age conver t er ) and bi -met al l i c
st r i p st ar t er co m b i n at i o n . Up o n
sw i t ch i n g o n, t he l amp ci r cu i t i s
cl osed due t o t he def l ect i on of bi -
met al l i c st r i ps est abl i shi ng cont act .
Al so t he el ect r i cal di schar ge i s i ni -
t i al l y bui l t al ong t he medi um ar gon/
neon-mer cur y mi xt ur e f ol l ow ed by
r egul ar di schar ge t hr ough mer cur y
vapour s t o yi el d st abi l i zed gener a-
t i o n of UV l i gh t . Th ese t w o p r o -
cesses t ake some t i me t o st abi l i ze.
On t he ot her hand i n t he case of CFL
havi ng bui l t -i n i nt egr at ed el ect r oni c
bal l ast compr i si ng ar r ay of AC-DC-
AC conver t er s and osci l l at or s, w i t h
t he i nst ant gener at i on of hi gh f r e-
quency (50 kHz) i n t he CFL col umn,
t he el ect r i c di schar ge i s st r uck i n-
st ant l y w i t hout any del ay and st ar t s
f l uor esci ng f aci l i t at i ng a qui ck st ar t
as hi gh f r equency hel ps t o st r i ke
el ect r i cal di scharge f ast er.
Higgs Boson
The r esul t s announced f r om CERN
on December 13 by t he t w o t eams
ATLAS and CM C do not provi de
def i ni t e and concl usi ve evi dence of
t he pr esence of t he el usi ve Hi ggs
boson, but t hey have col l ect ed suf -
f i ci ent dat a t hat i s consi st ent w i t h
t he possi bl e appear ance of t he God
p ar t i cl e. Acco r d i n g t o t h e o r i st s
some subat omi c par t i cl es gain mass
by i nt er act i ng w i t h t he Hi ggs boson.
The Hi ggs boson i s t he onl y undi s-
cover ed par t of t he St andar d M odel
of physi cs, w hi ch descr i bes t he ba-
si c bui l di ng bl ocks of mat t er and
t hei r i nt er act i ons.
The combi ned resul t s pr esent ed l ast
mont h by t he t wo t eams provided no
r oom f or t he Hi ggs boson t o hi de i n.
The r esul t s had nar r ow ed dow n t he
mass r egi on w her e t he Hi ggs par -
t i cl e i s most l i kel y t o be bet w een
114 GeV and 141 GeV (gi gael ect oron
vol t ). The l at est r esul t s have f ur t her
narrowed t he mass range 115-130
GeV range i n t he case of ATLAS, and
117-127 GeV by CM C. We have not
col l ect ed enough evi dence f or a di s-
cover y. There i s an excess of event s
compat ibl e w i t h t he hypot hesi s t hat
i t coul d be a Hi ggs, Gui do Tonel l i ,
spokesman f or CM C was quot ed as
sayi ng i n Nat ur e . But mor e conf i r -
mat or y dat a i s r equi r ed bef or e i t s
pr esence can be pr oved. Accor di ng
t o t he j our nal , i f suppor t ed by f ur -
t h er d at a, t h e r esu l t s su ggest a
Hi ggs par t i cl e w i t h a mass of about
125 GeV. Thi s i s because t he ATLAS
resul t s are consi st ent w i t h a 125-
126 GeV Hi ggs at a st at i st i cal l evel
of at most 3.6 st andar d devi at i on,
w hi l e t he CM C t eam f ound 124 GeV
si gn al o f at m o st 2. 6 st an d ar d
devi at i on, Nat ure st at es.
Oyster language'
Sci e n t i st s i n Jap an h av e b e gu n
st udyi ng t he l anguage' of oyst er s i n
an ef f or t t o f i nd out w hat t hey ar e
saying about t heir envi ronment . Re-
sear cher s ar e moni t or i ng t he open-
i ng and cl osi ng of t he mol l uscs i n
r esponse t o changes i n seaw at er,
such as r educed oxygen or r ed t i de,
a suf f ocat i ng al gal bl oom, t hat can
l ead t o mass di e-of f s. Usi ng a de-
vi ce t hey have ni cknamed t he kai -
l i n gu al , ' sci en t i st s f r o m Kagaw a
Uni ver si t y w ant t o see i f t hey can
decode oyst er movement s t hat might
w ar n of possi bl e pr obl ems. The kai -
l i ngual uses a ser i es of sensor s and
magnet s t o send i nf or mat ion on t he
openi ng and cl osi ng of shel l s i n r e-
sponse t o envi r onment al changes.
The t echnique has never bef ore been
used on oyst ers f armed f or f ood, but
has been empl oyed by pear l oyst er
f ar mers.
Kepler-20e and
Kepler-20f
NASA' s Kepler missi on on 20 Decem-
ber 2011 di scover ed t he f i r st Ear t h-
si ze pl anet s or bi t i ng a sun-l i ke st ar
out si de our sol ar syst em. The pl an-
et s, cal l edKepl er -20e and Kepl er -
20f, are t oo cl ose t o t hei r st ar t o be
i n t h e so - cal l e d h ab i t ab l e zo n e
w her e l i qui d w at er coul d exi st on a
pl anet ' s sur f ace, but t hey ar e t he
smal l est exopl anet s ever conf i r med
around a st ar l i ke our sun. The di s-
cover y mar ks t he next i mpor t ant
mi l est one i n t he ul t i mat e sear ch f or
pl anet s l i ke Ear t h. The new pl anet s
are t hought t o be rocky. Kepl er-20e
i s sl i ght l y smal l er t han Venus, mea-
sur ing 0.87 t i mes t he r adi us of Ear t h.
Kepl er -20f i s a bi t l ar ger t han Ear t h,
m easu r i n g 1. 03 t i mes i t s r adi us.
Bot h pl anet s r esi de i n a f i ve-pl anet
syst em cal l ed Kepl er -20, appr oxi -
mat el y 1000 l i ght -year s aw ay i n t he
const el l at i on Lyra.
To val i dat e Kepl er-20e and Kepl er-
20f, ast ronomers used a comput er
program cal l ed Bl ender, w hi ch r uns
si mul at i ons t o hel p r ul e out ot her
ast r ophysi cal phenomena masquer -
adi ng as a pl anet . Kepl er -20e or bi t s
i t s par ent st ar ever y 6. 1 days and
Kepl er -20f ever y 19.6 days. These
shor t or bi t al per i ods mean ver y hot ,
i nhospi t abl e w or l ds. Kepl er-20f, at
800 degr ees Fahr enhei t , i s si mi lar t o
an aver age day on t he pl anet M er -
cur y. The sur f ace t emper at ur e of
Kepl er -20e, at mor e t han 1400 de-
gr ees Fahr enhei t , w oul d mel t gl ass.
The Kepl er -20 syst em i ncl udes t hree
ot her pl anet s t hat ar e l ar ger t han
Ear t h bu t smal l er t h an Nep t un e.
Kep l e r - 2 0 b , t h e cl o sest p l an et ,
Kep l er -20c, t h e t hi r d pl anet , and
Kepl er -20d, t he f i f t h pl anet , or bi t
t hei r st ar ever y 3.7, 10.9 and 77.6
days. Al l f i ve pl anet s have or bi t s l y-
i ng r oughl y w i t hi n M er cur y' s or bit i n
our sol ar syst em. The host st ar be-
l ongs t o t he same G-t ype cl ass as
o u r su n , al t h o u gh i t i s sl i gh t l y
smal l er and cool er.
Measuring Radiation on
Journey to Mars
The Radi at i on Assessment Det ect or,
t he f i r st i nst r ument on NASA' s next
r over mi ssi on t o M ar s t o begi n sci -
ence oper at i ons, w as pow er ed up
and began col l ect i ng dat a Decem-
ber 6, al most t w o w eeks ahead of
schedul e. RAD i s t he only i nst r ument
schedul ed t o col l ect sci ence dat a on
t he j our ney t o M ars.The i nst r ument
i s measur i ng t he ener get i c par t i cl es
i nsi de t he spacecr af t t o char act er -
i ze t he r adi at i on envi r onment an
ast r onaut w oul d exper i ence on a
f ut ur e human mi ssi on t o t he Red
Pl anet . We are seei ng a st rong f l ux
i n space, even i nsi de t he spacecr af t ,
about f our t i mes hi gher doses of r a-
di at i on t han t he basel i ne w e mea-
sur ed on t he l aunch pad f r om t he
RTG, or r adi oi sot ope t her moel ect r i c
generat or, used t o pow er t he rover.
It ' s ver y excit i ng t o begi n t he science
mi ssi on. RAD w i l l measure t he rel -
ev ant en er get i c p ar t i cl e sp eci es
o r i gi n at i n g f r o m gal act i c co sm i c
r ays, t he Sun and ot her sour ces. Of
par t i cul ar i nt er est ar e t he par t i cl es
accel er at ed by cor onal mass ej ec-
t i o ns on t h e sur f ace of t h e Sun ,
w hi ch spew f ast -movi ng cl ouds of
r adi at i on acr oss t he sol ar syst em.
RAD w as desi gned t o char act er i ze
r adi at i on l evel s on t he sur f ace of
M ar s, but an i mpor t ant secondar y
obj ect i ve i s measur i ng t he r adi at i on
on t he al most ni ne-mont h j our ney
t hrough int erplanet ary space, t o pr e-
par e f or f ut ur e human expl or at i on.

NASA Developed
Spac e Harpoon
NASA( Nat i o n al Aer o n au t i cs an d
Space Admi ni st r at i on) bui l t a pr ot o-
t ype capabl e of l aunchi ng t est har -
poon t i ps acr oss a di st ance of a mi l e
(1.6km). It w oul d be saf er t o col l ect
comet mat er i al usi ng t he space har -
poon bef or e l andi ng on t he cel est i al
bodi es. The sampl es t hus col l ect ed
w i l l hel p r eveal t he or i gi ns of t he
pl anet s and how l i f e w as cr eat ed on
Ear t h. NASAs St ardust mi ssi on had
r ecover ed par t i cl e sampl es i n 2002.
These sampl es i ncl uded an ami no
aci d, gl yci ne, w hi ch i s used by l i v-
i ng or gani sms t o cr eat e pr ot ei ns. It
endorsed t he f act t hat some of l i f es
i ngr edi ent s had f or med i n space and
w er e del i ver ed t o Ear t h by met eor -
i t e and comet i mpact s. A comet i s
an i cy smal l Sol ar Syst em body t hat ,
w hen cl ose enough t o t he Sun, di s-
pl ays a vi si bl e coma and somet i mes
a t ai l .
India Successfully Test-
Fired N-c apable
Agni-I Missile
I n d i a su cce ssf u l l y t e st - f i r e d i t s
nucl ear capabl e Agni -I st r at egi c bal -
l i st i c mi ssi l e on 1 December 2011
f r om t he t est r ange at Wheel er Is-
l and of f Odi sha coast , as par t of t he
Indi an Ar my' s user t r i al . It w as t est -
f i red f rom a mobi l e l auncher, f rom
l aunch pad-4 of t he Int egrat ed Test
Ran ge ( I TR). Th e St r at egi c Fo r ce
Command (SFC) of t he Ar my, as par t
of t hei r t r ai ni ng exer ci se, execut ed
t he t r i al w i t h l ogi st i c suppor t pr o-
vi ded by Def ence Resear ch Devel -
opment Or gani sat i on (DRDO) at t he
I TR. The t r aj ect or y of t he mi ssi l e,
w h i ch h ad an o p er at i o n al st r i ke
range of 700 km, was t racked by so-
phi st i cat ed r adar s and el ect r o-opt i c
t el emet r y st at i ons l ocat ed al ong t he
sea coast and shi ps posi t i oned near
t he i mpact poi nt i n t he dow nr ange
ar ea.
Agn i -I mi ssi l e i s equ i pped w i t h a
speci ali sed navi gat ion syst em w hi ch
ensur es i t r eaches t he t ar get w i t h a
hi gh degree of accuracy. Agni -I was
dev el oped by Advanced Syst ems
Labor at or y (ASL), t he pr emi er mi s-
si l e devel opment l abor at or y of t he
DRDO in col l abor at i on w i t h Def ence
Resear ch Devel opment Labor at or y
(DRDL) and Resear ch Cent r e Imar at
(RCI) and i nt egr at ed by Bhar at Dy-
nami cs Li mi t ed (BDL), Hyder abad.
The l ast t r i al of t he Agni -I mi ssi l e
w as successf ul l y car r i ed out on 25
No v em b er 2 010 f r o m t h e sam e
base.
Det ai l s of Agni -I:
Agni -I st r at egi c bal l i st i c mi ssi l e i s
an i ndi genousl y devel oped sur f ace-
t o-sur f ace mi ssi l e
It i s a si ngl e-st age mi ssi l e
It i s pow er ed by sol i d pr opel l ant s
Agni -I can car r y payl oads up t o
1000 kg
It Wei ghed 12 t onnes
It w as 15-met r e-l ong
Why Mobile Phones
Switched When
Travel in a Flight?
Ai r pl anes, soon af t er t akeo f f and
much bef or e l andi ng, f l y at an al t i -
t ude of hi gher t han a ki l omet r e dur -
i ng t hei r f l i ght . They have t o ascend
t o t hese hi gh al t i t udes f or t he aer i al
f l i ght t o avoi d t ur bul ence due t o
cl ouds and t he cl ear ai r t ur bul ence
(CAT) present at l ow and nor mal al -
t i t udes. At such hi gh al t i t udes, t he
pi l ot s have t o l ar gel y depend on t he
av i o n i cs an d co m p u t er - assi st ed
coded si gnal communi cat i ons. The
pi l ot s know t he f l i ght l ocat i on and
d e st i n at i o n b e si d e s o t h e r ge o -
gr aph i cal d et ai l s by gui ded co m-
mands f r om t he Gl obal Posi t i oni ng
Syst em (GPS) whi ch l i nks t he cont rol
t ow er, ai r pl ane cockpi t and geost a-
t i onar y sat el l i t es. Fur t her, t hey can
know t he w eat her and ot her met eo-
r ol ogi cal condi t i ons and di r ect i ons
of l andi ng and t akeof f at t he ai r -
port s, onl y t hrough w ir el ess commu-
ni cat i ons f r om t he cont r ol t ow er s at
t he ai r por t s. In poor w eat her, t he
pi lot s use inst rument l anding syst em
(I LS) t o f i nd t he r unw ay. M ost of
t hese avi oni cs ar e r emot e oper a-
t i ons and al l t he communi cat i ons
ar e i n w i r el ess r adi o and mi cr ow ave
semi oni cs. Al l t he w i r el ess si gnal
t raf f i cki ng is accompl ished by modu-
l at ed r adi o and mi crowave t r ansmis-
si ons w hi ch t ype t he cel l phones
al so ow e t heir f unct ioning t o. If t here
ar e any mobi l e phones on boar d i n
t he cabi n of t he f l i ght i n on' mode
dur ing t akeof f, f li ght and l andi ng, t he
mi cr ow ave t r ansmi ssi on bet w een
t he mobi l e phone t ow er s and t he
mobi l e phones mi ght i nt er f er e w i t h
t he communi cat i ons t he f l i ght s ar e
b u si l y en gaged i n ( b et w een t h e
cockpi t and t he cont r ol t ow er s).
YETI Demystifies
Mathematical Modeling
Young Ecol ogi st s Tal k and I nt eract
(YETI) 2011, at t he Indi an Inst i t ut e
of Techonl ogy-Guwahat i , w i t nessed
a uni que act i vi t y on t he second day.
Inst ead of i nt er act i on on ecol ogy or
conser vat i on, par t i ci pant s i n one of
t he w or kshops w ere asked t o do an
ar i t hmet i c exer ci se usi ng cal cul a-
t or s. They w er e amazed at t he r e-
sul t s t hey got as t hey had no i dea
t hat t hese coul d be r el at ed t o st ud-
i es i n ecol o gi cal sci ences. I t w as
Vi shw esha Gut t al , assi st ant pr of es-
sor at t he Cent r e f or Ecol ogi cal Sci -
ences (CES), Indi an Inst i t ut e of Sci -
e n ce s ( I I Sc) , Ban gal o r e , w h o
demyst if i ed mat hemat ical modelli ng
of ecol ogy f or t he young ecol ogi st s.
M r. Gut t al hel ped t hem underst and
t hat t hr ough pr oper appl i cat i on of
si mpl e mat hemat i cal model l i ng, i n-
t er est i ng r esul t s of ecol ogi cal st ud-
i es coul d be f ound.
Innovative Technique
Showcased at
National Conference
A si ngl e person combi nes i n hi m-
sel f t he w or k of a w eat her man, an
engi neer, a mar ket i ng execut i ve, a
vet er i nar i an, and above al l a st at es-
man endow ed w i t h t he r esponsi bi l -
i t y of f eedi ng hi s peopl e, says M r G.
R. Sakt hi vel an ent er pr i si ng and i n-
n o v at i v e f ar m er f r o m
Sat h y am an gal am , Er o d e , Tam i l
Nadu. A member of t he sci ent i f i c
advisory commit t ee of M YRADA-KVK
and Er ode di st r i ct or gani c f ar mer s'
f ederat i on, M r. Sakt hi vel devel oped
a si mpl e yet ef f ect i ve mechani sm t o
f i l t er cat t l e w ast e and use t he same
i n sugar cane cul t i vat i on. The f our
compar t ment syst em i ncl udes t he
f il t r at ion t echni que, ensur ing t hat an
enr i ched sol ut i on get s col l ect ed at
t he end, mi xed w i t h wat er, and sent
by dr i p i rr i gat ion syst em t o t he f iel d.
The f i r st sect i on i s meant f or col l ec-
t i on of cow dung and ur i ne mi xi ng.
Af t er t hor ough mi xi ng, t he sol ut i on
i s sent t o t he second compar t ment
f or f i r st f i l t r at i on. The sol i d mat t er
is used f or bi ogas pr oduct i on and t he
upper par t of t he sol ut i on i s t hen
all ow ed t o f l ow int o a t hi rd compart -
ment where j agger y is added f or f er -
ment at i on. The cl ear enr i ched f i l -
t rat ed medi um i s col lect ed and used
f or i r r i gat i on. By adopt i ng t hi s t ech-
n o l o gy t h e f ar m e r can sav e
Rs. 27, 000 per acr e as i t r ed uces
l abour and f er t i l i zer cost , accor di ng
t o M r. Sakt hi vel . Thi s t echno l ogy
ai ds w at er hol di ng capaci t y i n t he
soi l and pr esence of ear t h w or ms i s
consi der abl y i ncr eased i n t he f i el ds.
Land Mine
Technology to Help
Detect Breast Cancer
Sci ent i st s cl ai med t hat now a simpl e
t est coul d di agnose br east cancer i n
w omen i n ei ght seconds. They cl ai m
t o have developed i t f rom a t echnol -
o gy t h at i s u sed t o d e t ect l an d
m i nes. Th e n ew scr een i ng t oo l ,
cal l ed M ARI A, i s saf er an d mo r e
comf or t abl e t han t r adi t i onal mam-
mogram X-r ays. I t can be used on
w omen of any age, unl i ke cur rent
t echnol ogy. Sci ent i st s al r eady car-
r i ed out t hr ee successf ul t r i al s w i t h
3 00 w o m e n at Fr e n ch ay an d
So u t h m ead h o sp i t al s. Th ey al so
cl ai med t hat r esul t s f r om t he t r i al s
show ed a di agnost i c success r at e of
8 0 p e r ce n t . M ARI A st an d s f o r
M ul t i st at i c Ar r ay pr ocessi ng f or Ra-
di o w ave Image Acquisi t i on, i s made
f r om 60 ant ennas, w hi ch cr eat e a
compl et e scan of t he br east i n ei ght
seconds.
Genetic Tests to
Detect Breast Cancer
Sci ent i st s r ecent l y devel oped a ge-
net i c t est t o det ect breast cancer. It
w i l l hel p t hose w omen w ho ar e i n
t he ear l y st ages of breast cancer. It
w i l l save t hem t he t r oubl e of under -
goi ng chemot herapy. Sci ent i st s i n-
vent ed t he Oncot ype DX t est , w hi ch
can hel p doct ors det er mi ne t he l i ke-
li hood of br east cancer r et urning and
i f f ur t her i nt er vent i on i s needed.
Th e t est u ses a sm al l sam p l e o f
br east t umour t i ssue and f ocuses on
groups of genes, w hi ch can inf l uence
how a cancer i s l i kel y t o grow and
r espond t o t r eat ment . At pr esent ,
t he t est i s avai l abl e i n t he US and
Amer i can Soci et y f or Cl i ni cal Oncol -
ogy and t he Nat i onal . Compr ehen-
si ve Cancer Net w or k i ncl ude i t i n
t hei r t r eat ment gui del i nes f or t he
ear l y st age of breast cancer.
Why is it Hard
to Pull an Empty Mug
Completely Immersed
Upside Down in Water?
Not onl y i s i t har d t o pul l out any
empt y mug compl et el y i mmer sed
upsi de dow n i n w at er but al so i t i s
harder t o push an empt y mug upsi de
dow n i nt o wat er.The l at t er di f f i cul t y
i s mai nl y due t o t he buoyancy, t he
ai r sac, capt ur ed i nsi de t he mug,
exper i ences dur i ng such oper at i on.
However, when we t r y t o pul l out t he
same empt y mug or t he mug alr eady
drow ned, i n an upsi de manner, w e
exper i ence cer t ai n di f f i cul t y of pul l -
i ng i t out . Thi s di f f i cul t y st ems f r om
a di f f er ent cause and ow es t o t he
sur f ace t ensi on phenomenon of l i q-
ui ds. The at oms or mol ecul es of a
l i qui d i n i t s bul k r egi ons have t hei r
chemi cal val ences f ul l y sat i sf i ed i n
al l t he si x di rect i ons (f ront and rear,
l ef t and r i ght and up and dow n or
mat hemat i cal l y, x and x' , y and y'
and z and z' di r ect i o ns of space)
w her eas t hose pr esent on t he sur -
f ace of t he l i qui d have onl y f i ve of
t hei r di rect i ons (f ront and rear, l ef t
and r i ght and dow n) chemi cal l y sat -
i sf i ed w hi l e l eavi ng t he upw ar d con-
nect i vi t y mi ssi ng (say, z di rect i on).
Thi s def i ci en cy h as t h e ef f ect o f
keepi ng al l t he at oms or mol ecul es
of t he l i quids, on t hei r sur f ace, mor e
f i rml y coher ent on t hei r l at eral sides
enabl i ng t he sur f ace of such l i qui d
act l i ke an el ast i c ski n . Hence, i t
w oul d demand cer t ai n amount of
f or ce t o t ear of t he sur f ace of t he
l i qui ds.
The amount of f orce required t o open
apar t one uni t l engt h of t he l i qui d' s
sur f ace i s def i ned as t he sur f ace
t en si on o f t he l i qui d. I t s val ue i s
uni que t o t he l i qui d and i s hi ghl y
sensi t i ve t o t he t emper at ur e, pr es-
sur e and pur i t y of t he l i qui d. For
wat er, i t s val ue i s about 72 dynes
p er cm ( o r 72 mi l l i new t o ns per
met er ). When a mug i s pul l ed out
upsi de dow n, i t s br i m has t o t ear
open t he sur f ace of w at er l ayer by a
l en gt h ( p er i m et er ) eq u al t o t h e
mug' s br i m t o det ach i t sel f f r om t he
sur f ace of t he wat er. Say, t he mug
has a per i met er (br i m) of about 12
i nches (i . e. , about 30 cms) and a
mass of about hal f ki l ogr am w i t h
negl i gi bl e t hi ckness. Then, i t i s hel d
on i t s br i m by t he w at er sur f ace by
a sur f ace f or ce of about 0.02 new -
t ons w hen t he mug i s about t o de-
t ach f r om t he sur f ace. Thi s means,
w e have t o appl y t hi s much addi -
t i onal f or ce (besi des t he f or ce r e-
qui r ed agai nst gr avi t y ) w hen t he
mug' s br i m i s pul l i ng out f r om t he
l i qui d' s sur f ace besi des t he usual
f or ce of about 5 newt ons agai nst t he
gravi t y. The 5 new t ons agai nst t he
gr avi t y w oul d have been t he onl y
f or ce r equi r ed had t her e been no
su r f ace t e n si o n p h e n o m e n o n .
Hence, w e f eel i t har d t o pul l out an
empt y mug, upsi de dow n, f r om w a-
t er.
Technology to Produce
Pocket TV
Br it i sh sci ent ist s r ecent l y developed
a t echnol ogy, w hi ch coul d be used
t o produce pocket TV. Sci net i st s de-
vel oped a new f or m of li ght -emi t t ing
cr yst al s, know n as quant um dot s.
These dot s can be used t o pr oduce
ul t r a-t hi n t el evi si ons. The t i ny cr ys-
t al s ar e 100000 t i mes smal l er t han
t he w i dt h of human hai r. Thi s can be
pr i nt ed ont o f l exi bl e pl ast i c sheet s
(w hi ch can be r ol l ed up) t o pr oduce
a paper-t hi n di spl ay.
Blue Brain Project
Sci ence has advanced i n t he Second
M i l l enni um i n w ays t hat w e now
chal l enge our sel ves i nt o doi ng w hat
w e coul d not have ear l i er. We have
embar ked on an exper i ment t o de-
t er m i n e t h e u l t i m at e p ar t i cl e o f
w hi ch al l nucl ei , at oms, mol ecul es
and mat er i al s ar e made anyw her e
on ear t h or i n t he vast sky. We l ook
f or t he God par t i cl e. We have sent
man-made cr af t s t o ot her pl anet s,
and have made machi nes and t ool s
t hat enqui re whet her l i f e exi st s el se-
w here i n t he sky, and w het her t here
are ot her pl anet s si mi l ar t o our s t hat
may suppor t s l i f e- second ear t hs.
We have read t he book of human
l i f e, t he 3.2 bi l l i on- l et t er-l ong code
of DNA t hat makes us w hat w e are.
Ther e ar e t w o ways t o appr oach t hi s
gr and chal l enge. One i s t o t r y and
underst and t he neurons (ner ve cell s)
of l ow er organi sms w or ms, f l i es,
f i sh, r at s and such, and bui l d on t hi s
kn ow l edge. Th i s i nv ol v es exper i -
ment s on t he normal organism and
on i t s mut ant s i t s cousi ns w ho
are bor n (or t amper ed wit h in t he lab)
w i t h one or mor e neur al pr obl em.
M any bi ologi st s ar e i nvol ved i n such
exper i ment s, and sever al mor e di -
r ect ly st udy humans w it h neur ol ogi -
cal probl ems and t r y t o make sense
out of t he basi s behi nd such er r or s
i n t he br ai n.
By t he mi d-1970s, i nf or mat i on t ech-
nol ogy had advanced t o such a l evel
t hat compani es, not abl y IBM , had
t hought of model l i ng t he t hought
behi nd chess games t hat we humans
pl ay. The advanced comput ers pro-
gr ammi ng t hat t hey di d at t hat t i me
was chr i st ened Deep Thought (a
t er m co i n ed b y r e se ar ch e r s at
Car negi e M el l on Uni versi t y, i ncl ud-
i ng Dr. Thomas Anant haraman). It i s
t hese advances i n comput er s t hat
l ed Dr. Hen r y M ar k r am o f Eco l e
Polyt echni que Feder al de Lausanne,
Sw i t zer l an d, t o t h i n k of cr eat i n g
super comput er model s of t he br ai n
t hat w oul d be accur at e t o t he l ast
bi ol ogi cal det ai l s. To t hi s end, he
has put t oget her w hat he cal l s t he
Bl ue Br ai n Pr oj ect (t he bl ue her e
symbol i zi ng super comput er s).
The approach of Blue Brai n i s bi nar y.
I t uses t he i nf or mat i on avai l ab l e
f r om t he hundr eds of t housands of
publ i cat i ons of neur osci ent i st s on
one hand, and abi l i t y of comput er
p r o gr am m e r s t o cr eat e
connect i vi t i es bet w een t he mi l l i ons
of neurons i n si l i co on t he ot her.
Combi ni ng t he t w o, he expect s t o
bui l d a f aci l i t y t hat w oul d ai m at
dat a i nt egr at i on and hel p bui l d br ai n
model s.Gest ur e-based communi ca-
t i ons ar e qui t e common i n ot her pr i -
mat es such as or angut ans and chim-
panzees, w hi ch cannot speak but
use a var i et y of hand, f eet and l i mb
gest ur es t o com muni cat e among
t hemsel ves and al so w i t h t hei r hu-
man care-t akers. Dr. Amy Fol l i ck of
Emor y Uni versi t y, At l ant a has been
abl e t o di st i ngui sh 31 manual ges-
t ures and i s 18 f aci al / vocal gest ures.
Bone Marrow Cancer
Genes Identified
Sci ent i st s i dent i f i ed genes t hat can
i ncrease a persons r i sk of devel op-
i ng mult i pl e myeloma by 30 per cent .
M ul t i pl e myel oma i s an aggr essi ve
f or m of bone mar row. A t eam at t he
Inst i t ut e of Cancer Resear ch used a
t echni que know n as genome w i de
associ at i on st udy t o scan t he DNA
of 1675 pat i ent s w i t h mul t i pl e my-
el o m a. Wh en r esu l t s w er e com -
par ed, sci ent i st s f ound t hat t w o r e-
gi ons of t he DNA t hat w er e mor e
com mon i n p eopl e w i t h m ul t i pl e
myel oma and w ere t heref ore l i nked
t o a hi gher chance of devel opi ng t he
di sease. M ul t i pl e myel oma i s al so
know n as pl asma cel l myel oma or
Kahl er ' s di sease. I t i s a cancer of
pl asma cel l s, a t ype of w hi t e bl ood
cel l r esponsi bl e f or t he pr oduct i on
of ant i bodi es.
More Potent Ways to
Design HIV Drugs found
In per haps t he most compr ehensi ve
sur vey of t he i nner w or ki ngs of HIV,
an i nt er nat i onal t eam of sci ent i st s
l ed by r esear cher s at t he Uni ver si t y
o f Cal i f o r n i a, San Fr an ci sco h as
mapped ever y appar ent physi cal i n-
t eract i on t he vi r us makes w i t h com-
ponent s of t he human cel l s it i nf ect s.
Thi s w or k may r eveal new w ays t o
desi gn f ut ur e HI V/ AI DS d r u gs. I n
back-t o-back paper s publ i shed i n
t he j our nal Nat ur e , t he sur vey r e-
v eal s a pat h o gen i c l an d scape i n
w h i ch HI V' s h an d f u l o f p r o t ei n s
makes hundreds of physi cal connec-
t ions wi t h human prot ei ns and ot her
component s i nsi de t he cel l . In one
paper, t he t eam det ai l s 497 such
connect i ons, onl y a handf ul of w hich
had been pr evi ousl y r ecogni zed by
sci ent i st s.
Di sr upt i ng t hese connect i ons may
i nt er f ere wi t h HIV' s li f ecycl e, and t he
exi st ence of so many new connec-
t i ons suggest s t her e may be sever al
novel w ays t o t ar get t he vi r us. In a
compani on paper, Krogan and col -
l ab o r at i n g l ab s i n vest i gat ed on e
such connect i on i n det ai l . They di s-
cover ed t hat an HIV pr ot ei n cal l ed
Vif makes a physi cal connect i on w it h
a human pr ot ei n cal l ed CBF-, hi -
j acki ng i t s f unct i on. The UCSF-l ed
st udy has pr ovi ded t he most com-
pr ehensi ve and det ai l ed pi ct ur e t o
dat e of al l t he i nt er act i ons HIV has
w i t h t he human cel l s i t i nf ect s, and
i dent i f yi ng t hese i nt er act i ons may
l ead t o t he dev el op ment of new
dr ugs t o t r eat t he di sease. Int er f er -
i ng w i t h t hi s associ at i on may be a
way t o bl ock t he vi r us. Ul t i mat el y, i f
sci ent i st s can desi gn compounds t o
do t hi s saf el y and ef f ect i vel y, t hose
compounds coul d f or m t he basi s f or
a new t ype of HIV/ AIDS t reat ment .
Mechanism Controlling
the Fat in Human Body
Sci ent i st s m ad e a key d i sco v er y
about t he mechanism cont rol ling t he
f at in human body. It sheds new l i ght
on how pr ot ei ns r egul at e appet i t e
cont rol and i nsul i n secret i on.Thi s i s
t he f i r st t i me such a mechani sm w as
descr i bed and i t ' s uni que, show i ng
t he i mpor t ance of t hi s pr ot ei n t o
cel l ul ar f unct i on.
CPT1 i s t he pr ot ei n r esponsi bl e f or
r egulat i ng f at t y aci d oxi dat i on in t he
l i ver and i s cr i t i cal f or met abol i sm.
It s act i vi t y det er mi nes w het her a
person suf f er s f r om f at t y li ver i n one
case or ket osi s i n t he ot her. The di s-
cov er y w i l l hel p i n b et t er und er -
st andi ng of w hy some peopl e has a
sp e e d y m e t ab o l i sm an d o t h er s
st ruggle t o cont rol t heir appet it e.This
w oul d be a maj or br eakt hr ough i n
t ackl i ng t he obesi t y cr i si s f aced by
humans.
Diamond- Studded
Planets
Recent f i ndi ngs have r eveal ed t hat
some st ars i n t he M i l ky Way coul d
be har bour i ng car bon super ear t hs
gi gant i c pl anet s compl et el y be-
r ef t of l i f e but pot ent i al l y hol di ng
bi l l i ons of t onnes of di amond. The
f indi ng comes f r om a lab exper iment
at Ohi o St at e Uni versi t y, w here sci -
ent i st s r ecr eat ed t he t emper at ur es
an d p r essu r e s o f e ar t h ' s l o w e r
mant le t o st udy how di amonds f or m
t her e. The goal w as t o under st and
w hat happens t o car bon i nside plan-
et s i n o t h er so l ar sy st em s, an d
w het her sol ar syst ems t hat ar e r i ch
i n carbon coul d produce pl anet s t hat
are most ly made of di amond. Wendy
Paner o, r esear cher i n t he School of
Ear t h Sci ences at Ohi o St at e al ong
w i t h d o ct o r al st u d e n t Cay m an
Unt er bor n used w hat t hey l ear ned
f r om t he exper i ment s t o const r uct
comput er model s of t he mi ner al s
t hat f or m i n pl anet s composed w i t h
mor e car bon t han ear t h. It i s pos-
si bl e f or pl anet s t hat ar e as bi g as
15 t i mes t he mass of t he Ear t h t o be
h al f m ad e o f d i am o n d , sai d
Unt er bor n, accor di ng t o a uni ver si t y
st at ement . Our r esul t s suggest car -
bon-r i ch pl anet s can f or m w i t h a
core and a mant l e, j ust as Eart h did,
sai d Paner o. How ever, t he cor es
w ou l d l i kel y b e ver y car bo n -r i ch
much li ke st eel and t he mant le would
al so be domi nat ed by car bon, much
i n t he f or m of di amond, he added.
National Seminar on
Ec o-Friendly
Crop Protection
In r ecent year s, t her e has been r e-
new ed i nt er est i n popul ar i zi ng or -
gani c and consumer -saf e pest man-
agement t echnol ogi es, t o cat er t o
or gani c and expor t -f ocus cul t i vat i on
of cr ops i n Indi a. A nat i onal semi nar
on Bi ot echnol ogi cal appr oaches i n
or gani c and eco-f r i endl y cr op pr o-
t ect i on t ow ar ds pr omot i ng know l -
edge t ransf er and t echnology awar e-
ness w as or gani sed r ecent l y by t he
Sun Agr o bi ot ech r esear ch cent r e
(SABRC) and t he Depar t ment of Zo-
o l o gy, Un i v e r si t y o f M ad r as i n
Chennai . He al so emphasi zed t he
need t o adequat el y suppor t t he or -
gani c f ar mi ng communi t i es w i t h ap-
pr opr i at e t echnol ogi es, especi al l y
eco-f r i endl y pest cont r ol opt i ons t o
be avai l abl e at f ar m l evel . He al so
r ecal l e d t h e p ast i n i t i at i v e s o f
SABRC i n conveni ng t w o such na-
t ional semi nar s ear li er in t he l ast f ive
year s, w i t h f ocus on or gani c and
eco-f ri endl y pest management t ech-
nol ogi es. He expl ai ned t hat t hi s suc-
cessf ul campai gn f or mass pr oduc-
t i on and f iel d r elease of t he import ed
bi oagent w as an out st andi ng suc-
cess st or y i n bi ol ogi cal pest cont r ol
at nat i onal l evel . About 60 exper t s
f r om sever al I CAR i n st i t u t es and
ot her Uni ver si t i es par t i ci pat ed.
Adult Stem Cells
in the Heart
An i nt er nat i onal t eam of sci ent i st s
l ed by Pr of Ri char d Har vey of t he
Uni versi t y of New Sout h Wal es and
col l eagues at Vi ct or Chang Car di ac
Resear ch Inst i t ut e di scovered a new
popul at i on of adul t st em cel l s i n t he
hear t . The f i ndi ngs w er e pi bl i shed
f ol l ow i ng r ecent r epor t s t hat st em
cel l s har vest ed f r om human hear t s
dur i ng sur ger y show pr omi se f or r e-
ver si ng hear t at t ack damage. Sci en-
t i st s cl ai med i n t hei r f i ndi ngs, pub-
l ished in t he lat est edit ion of t he ' Cel l
St em Cel l ' j our nal t hat t he adul t
st em cel l s can augment t he devel -
opment of new r egener at i on and
repair t herapi es f or people w ho have
suf f er ed car di ac f ai l ur e. Thi s i s t he
f i r st t i me t hi s n ew pop ul at i o n of
st em cel l s w as f or mal l y descr i bed,
an d i t s o r i gi ns cl ear l y d ef i n ed. A
mouse w as used as a model syst em.
The f i r st par t of t he st udy i ncl uded
t he di scover y and char act er i sat i on
of a new populat i on of mult i -pot ent ,
adult st em cel l s t hat li ve i n t he hear t
. The st em cel l s w er e f ound t o be
pow er f ul i n di vi di ng, and r espond-
i ng t o t hei r nat i ve envi r onment t o
f or m w hat ever t i ssue i s needed f or
repai r. The new gr oup of cel l s are
mul t i -pot ent , and hi ghl y speci f i c t o
t he hear t . These cel l s w hen t r ans-
l at ed i nt o t he human set t i ng i s ex-
pect ed t o w or k w el l at r egener at i ng
and r epai r i ng a br oken hear t or a
h e ar t t h at h as su f f e r e d i n j u r y
t h r o u gh h ear t at t ack o r h ear t
f ai l u r e. The sci ent i st s ar e o f t he
opi ni on t hat popul at i on of cel l s ar e
ver y hi gh up i n t he st em cel l hi er ar -
chy, and can generat e a number of
pr ogeni t or cel l s t hat w oul d exi st i n
a heal t hy hear t , r eady f or act i on.
Hydro Gel Developed
by Researchers
Sci ent i st s developed a hydro gel t hat
r egener at ed heal t hy and scar -f r ee
t i ssue on ski n damaged by sever e
bur ns. The hydr o gel hel ps i n f or -
mat t i ng of new bl ood vessel s and
ski n i ncl udi ng hai r f ol l i cl es. The i n-
j u r e d so l d i e r s, f i r e v i ct i m s an d
peopl e w i t h t hi r d degr ee bur ns can
avai l of t he gel . Thi r d-degr ee bur ns
t ypi cal l y dest r oy t he t op l ayer s of
ski n dow n t o t he muscl e. The t r eat -
m en t i n v o l v es, d r essi n g u p t h e
w ound, w hi ch i ncl udes hydr o gel
and 3D f r amew or k of pol ymer s.
Saguna Baugh
Saguna Baug i s a f ar mi ng out f i t at
M al egaon-Ner al of Rai gad Di st r i ct .
It w as set up as a r ol e model t o i n-
spi r e t hose w ho move aw ay f r om
f ar ming. St ar t ed by a Gandhian f r ee-
do m f i ght er, pop ul ar l y kn ow n as
Har i kaka Bhadsavl e i t i s pr esent l y
bei ng t aken care by hi s son. Af t er
t w ent y year s of t edi ous and per si s-
t ent ef f or t s t hi s beaut i f ul agr i cul -
t ur al pr oj ect i s w i de-open f or vi si -
t ors.
Oxidative Stress
Damages DNA
Resear cher s have now decoded t he
mechani sm t hat r epai r s DNA dam-
aged i n t hi s way. Thi s repai r mecha-
ni sm coul d l ead t o l ess i nvasi ve ap-
proaches i n cancer t herapy.
Pattern of Hydrogen
Bonds
A pat t er n of hydr ogen bonds be-
t w een o dor ant an d r ecept or, ac-
count i ng f or t he speci f i ci t y of t he
ol f act or y sensor s has been f ound.
Comput er si mul at i ons hel ped pr e-
di ct i f odor ant s act i vat e a cer t ai n
r ecept or or not .
Bees, Flowering Plants
Adjust to Earlier Spring
An anal ysi s of bee col l ect i on dat a
over t he past 130 year s show s t hat
spr i ng ar r i ves about 10 days ear l i er
t han i n t he 1880s, and b ees and
f l ow er i ng pl ant s have kept pace by
ar r i vi ng ear l i er.
Maturation Clock
An i ncr ease i n f r ui t yi el d mi ght be
achi eved by mani pul at i ng a mol ecu-
l ar t i mer t hat det er mi nes t he num-
ber of branches t hat make f l ow ers.
Small Spiders Brains
Overflow into Their Legs
Smi t hsoni an r esear cher s r epor t t hat
t he br ains of t i ny spi der s ar e so l arge
t hat t hey f i l l t hei r body cavi t i es and
over f l ow i nt o t hei r l egs. As t he spi -
ders get smal ler, t heir brains get pro-
por t i onal l y bi gger.
New hor ned di nosaur announced
A new speci es of hor ned di nosaur
w as j ust announced by sci ent i st s,
near l y 100 year s af t er t he i ni t i al di s-
cover y of t he f ossi l .
Stradivarius Violin
Usi ng comput ed t omogr aphy i mag-
i ng and advan ced manuf act ur i ng
t echni ques, a t eam of exper t s has
cr eat ed a r epr oduct i on of a 1704
St r adi var i us vi ol i n.
Fire & Wind
Fi rst l y, consi der t he pr esence of a
l ow veloci t y w ind. ( say, vi r t ual l y, st i l l
ai r ). At any moment of t i me, t hi s
w i nd i s j ust suf f i ci ent t o sust ai n t he
f i r e. That i s, i t f unct i ons j ust as an
el ement .' Obvi ousl y, i t cannot pro-
vi de any mot i ve f or ce (ki net i c en-
er gy) f or t he f i r e (f l ame). Hence, t he
f i r e cann ot sp r ead. Ul t i m at el y, i t
bl ow s out . Second l y, consi der t he
pr esence of a hi gh vel oci t y w i nd. At
any moment of t ime, t here is not only
suf f ici ent suppl y of ai r t o sust ain t he
f i r e but al so t her e i s adequat e ai r t o
pr ovi de mot i ve f or ce. Thus, i t s f unc-
t i on i s t w o-f ol d: as an el ement and
as a mot i ve f or ce. Hence, t he f i r e
spr eads.
Bacteria Live Inside Cells
Bact er i a bui l d camouf l aged homes
f or t hemsel ves i nsi de heal t hy cel l s,
and cause di sease, by mani pul at i ng
a nat ur al cel l ul ar pr ocess.
Vanishing Elephants,
Rise of Modern Humans
W i t h t h e d i sap p e ar an ce o f e l -
eph ant s i n t h e M i d dl e East , new
homi ni ds w ho had t o be mor e agi l e
and sk i l l f u l l t o hu n t smal l er an d
f ast er pr ey t ook over t he M i ddl e
East er n l andscape and event ual l y
r epl aced Homo er ect us.
300 Year Old
JACK Tree
The t r ee i s pr esent l y i n t he f i el d of
f ar mer M r. K. Narasi mhai ah and i s
near l y 300 year s ol d and t he t r ee
b ear s near l y 300 f r u i t s ann u al l y,
w hich t he f ar mer sel ls f or Rs 20,000-
Rs.30,000.
Evolution & Skull Shape
Skul l shape di d not occur i ndepen-
dent l y t hr ough separ at e evol ut i on-
ar y event s, but by act ual l y pr eci pi -
t at i ng each ot her.
Cassini Delivers
Holiday Treats
Radi o si gnal s f l yi ng cl ear acr oss t he
sol ar syst em f r om NASA' s Cassi ni
spacecr af t have del i ver ed a hol i day
package of gl or i ous i mages , i ncl ud-
i ng t hose of Sat urn' s moon Tit an and
ot her i cy baubl es or bi t i ng Sat ur n.
New Kind of Metal
New exper iment s and comput at i ons
have reveal ed t hat ir on oxide under -
goes a new ki nd of t r ansi t i on under
deep-Ear t h condi t i ons due t o hi gh
pr essur es and t emper at ur es (as at -
om s, el ect r o ns ar e squ eezed t o -
get her).
Darwin About Emotions
Cont r ar y t o w hat many psychol ogi -
cal sci ent i st s t hi nk, peopl e do not al l
have t he same set of bi ol ogi cal l y
basi c' emot i ons.
Genes of Thyroid
Cancer Found
Thr ee genes t hat i ncr ease t he r i sk
of t hyroi d cancer, w hi ch has t he l arg-
est i nci dence i ncr ease i n cancer s
among bot h men and w omen, have
been di scover ed, r ai si ng i mpor t ant
det ai l s r el evant t o di agn osi s and
t reat ment .
Why Alcohol Makes
Some Aggressive
If peopl e w ho f ocus on t he her e and
now, w i t hout t hi nki ng about t he i m-
pact on t he f ut ur e, t end t o be ag-
gressi ve even w hen sober, t he ag-
gr essi v e e f f e ct ge n e r al l y ge t s
gr eat l y magn i f i ed w hen t hey ar e
drunk.
Foetal Arsenic Exposure
A st udy advances our under st anding
of t he sour ces of exposur e t o ar -
seni c and t he pot ent i al f or consum-
i ng har mf ul l evel s of ar seni c vi a r i ce.
Ar seni c exposur e dur i ng pr egnancy
has heal t h r i sks t o t he f oet us.
Steroids to Retina
St er o i ds hi t ch i n g a r i de i n t o t h e
r e t i n a o n n an o p ar t i cl e s cal l e d
dendr i mer s of f er a new way t o t r eat
age-r el at ed macul ar degener at i on
and r et i ni t i s pi gment osa. The st e-
r oi ds t ar get damage-causi ng cel l s.
Cornea Gene
Disc overed
Si nce a t r anspar ent cor nea i s essen-
t i al f or vi si on, t he eye has evol ved
t o nour i sh t he cor nea w i t hout bl ood
vessel s. A gene pl ays a maj or r ol e
i n mai nt ai ni ng cl ar i t y of t he cor nea
i n humans.
Elderly as Fast as Young
in Some Brain Tasks
Heal t hy ol der peopl e can be t r ai ned
t o r espond f ast er i n some deci si on-
maki ng t asks w i t hout hur t i ng t hei r
accur acy meani ng t hei r cogni t i ve
ski l l s i n t hi s ar ea ar en' t so di f f er ent
f r om younger adul t s.
Sauropoda Dinosaur
For t he f i r st t i me, t he f ossi l r emai ns
of saur opoda has been r ecor ded i n
Ant arct i ca. Unt i l now, remai ns of t he
her bi vor ous di nosaur s had been r e-
cover ed f r om al l ot her cont i nent al
l andmasses.
Prehistoric Wood Found
Under t he col d cl ear wat ers of Lake
Hur on, r esear cher s have f ound a
f i v e - an d - a- h al f - f o o t - l o n g, p o l e -
shaped pi ece of w ood t hat i s 8,900
year s ol d.
Brighter Future For
Solar Energy
The ef f i ci ency of convent i onal sol ar
cel l s can be i ncr eased up t o 66 per
cen t b y u si n g an o r gani c p l ast i c
semi conduct or mat er i al . It i s based
on har vest i ng doubl e t he number of
el ect r ons f r om one phot on.
Left-Handedness is a
Normal Variant
M ost of t he t i me, l ef t -handedness
i s si mpl y a nat ur al l y occur r i ng, nor -
mal vari ant . In some cases, however,
i t i s di sadvant ageous and may w el l
r ef l ect a genet i c def ect or ear l y de-
vel opment al di st ur bance.
Microbes in
Mars-like Conditions
M i cr obes f r om i ce w i t hin a lava t ube
have been f ound t o t hr i ve i n col d,
M ars-l i ke condi t i ons. They can t ol -
er at e t emper at ur es near f r eezi ng,
l ow oxygen l evel s, and can gr ow i n
t he absence of or gani c f ood.
New Vaccine Attacks
Breast Cancer in Mice
A new vacci ne devel oped at t he Uni -
ver si t y of Geor gi a and t he M ayo
Cl i ni c i n Ar i zon a dr amat i cal l y r e-
duces t umour s i n a mouse model
t hat mi mi cs 90 per cent of human
br east and pancr eat i c cancer cases.
Frogs Find Mates With
Matching Chromosomes
When i t comes t o l ove songs, f emal e
t ree f rogs are pret t y pi cky. Cer t ai n
f emal e t ree f rogs may be remar kably
at t uned t o t he songs of mat es w ho
shar e t he same number of chr omo-
somes as t hey do, says a new st udy.
Double Destruction Due
to Double Tsunami'
The dest r uct i ve t sunami gener at ed
by t he M arch 2011 Japan ear t hquake
w as a m e r gi n g t su n am i ' t h at
doub l ed i n i nt en si t y o ver r u gged
ocean r i dges, ampl i f yi ng i t s dest r uc-
t i ve pow er bef or e r eachi ng shor e.
Record Massive Black
Holes Discovered
Ast r onomer s have di scover ed t he
l ar gest bl ack hol es t o dat e t w o
monst er s w i t h masses equi val ent t o
10 bi l l i on suns t hat ar e t hr eat eni ng
t o consume anyt hi ng, even l i ght ,
w i t hi n a r egi on f i ve t i mes t he si ze
of our sol ar syst em.
Solar Storms Could
Sandblast the Moon
Sol ar st or ms and associ at ed Cor o-
nal M ass Ej ect i ons (CM Es) can si g-
nif i cant l y er ode t he l unar surf ace ac-
cor di ng t o a new set of comput er
si mul at i ons by NASA sci ent i st s. Thi s
coul d al so cause at mospher i c l oss
f or M ar s.
Comet Lovejoy
Snapped
Th e r e cen t l y d i sco v e r ed Co m et
Lovej oy has been capt ur ed i n st un-
ni ng phot os and t i me-l apse vi deo
t aken f rom t he European Sout her n
Obser vat or y' s Par anal Obser vat or y
i n Chi l e.
Global CO {-2}
Emissions
Gl o bal car bo n di o xi de em i ssi on s
f r om bur ni ng f ossi l f uel s have i n-
cr eased by 49 per cent i n t he l ast
t w o decades, accor di ng t o t he l at -
est f i gur es by an i nt er nat i onal t eam.
Cric ket
Indi a - West Indi es
One Day Ser i es
Indi a beat West Indi es by 34 r uns t o
w i n t he f i f t h and f i nal cr i cket one-
day mat ch and recorded an emphat ic
4-1 ser i es t r i umph i n Chennai on 11
December 2011. El ect i ng t o bat , In-
di a scor ed 267 r uns w i t h t he l oss of
si x w i cket s i n t he st i pul at ed overs.
M anoj Ti war y 104 and Vi rat Kohl i 80
w er e t he t op scor er s f or Indi a. In r e-
pl y, West Indi es reached as cl ose as
233 i n 44.1 over s. K. Pol l ar d 119 and
A Russel 53 w er e t op scor er s f or
West Indi es. Dar ren Sammy was t he
cap t ai n o f West I n d i es w h i l e
Vi r ender Sehw ag w as t he capt ai n of
Indi an si de f or t hi s ser i es. Gaut am
Gambhi r w as t he st andi n capt ai n
f or t he l ast onedayer. Indi as M anoj
Ti w ar y w as decl ar ed M an of The
M at ch an d I ndi an bat sm an Rohi t
Sharma got M an of t he Ser ies Awar d.
M anoj Ti war y and K. Pol l ard scored
t hei r i nt er nat i onal one day career s
f i r st cent ur i es i n t hi s mat ch. Indi a
and West I ndi es pl ayed t hi s f i ve-
oneday mat ch ser i es f r om 29 No-
vember 2011 t o 11 December 2011.
Science & Technology
Paki st an - Bangl adesh
Test Ser i es
Paki st an def eat ed Bangl adesh by
seven w i cket s i n t he second and f i -
nal cr i cket Test i n Dhaka on 21 De-
cember 2011. Paki st an by def eat i ng
Bangl adesh i n t he second t est w as
abl e t o t o sw eep t he ser i es 2-0. Pa-
kist an w as set 103 t o w in af t er bowl -
i ng Bangl adesh out f or 234 i n i t s
seco nd i nn i ngs and ach i eved t he
t ar get i n t he f i nal sessi on. Paki st an
capt ai n M i sbah-ul -Haq secur ed t he
v i ct o r y b y h i t t i n g a si x af t e r
M ohammad Haf eez made 47 and
Azhar Al i chi pped i n w i t h 34. Ear l i er,
lef t -arm spinner Abdur Rehman t ook
4-51 t o r est r i ct Bangl adesh.
Tennis
Davi s Cup
Spai n w on i t s f i f t h Davi s Cup t i t l e
af t e r Raf ael Nad al d e f e at e d
Argent i nas Juan M ar t i n del Pot ro 1-
6 6- 4 6-1 7-6 (0) on 4 Decem ber
2011. The vi ct or y ear ned Nadal hi s
f i r st t i t l e si nce w i n ni ng hi s si xt h
Fr ench Open i n June 2011. Nadal
w i t h t he vi ct ory st r et ched hi s r ecor d
on cl ay t o 16-0. Nadal ear ned hi s
20t h st r ai ght vi ct or y si nce debut i ng
i n t he compet i t i on i n 2004. Nadal
caught Del Pot r o out w i t h one of 35
w i nners t o t ake t he second set and
cruise t hrough t he t hird set . However
Pot r os l at e f i ght back broke Nadal
f our t i mes i n t he f our t h set t o send
i t t o a t i ebreaker, w here Nadal raced
ahead w i t hout l osi ng a poi nt bef or e
securing vict or y wit h a f orehand wi n-
ner. Ar gent i na remai ned t he onl y
nat i on t o pl ay i n f our Davi s Cup f i -
nal s and never w i n one.
Bar cl ay s ATP
Wor l d Tour Fi nal s
Sw i ss t enni s st ar Roger Feder er de-
f eat ed Jo-Wi l f r i ed Tsonga of France
i n t hei r si ngl es f i nal t enni s mat ch at
t he Barcl ay s ATP Wor l d Tour Fi nal s,
i n t he O2 ar ena i n London on 27
November 2011. The vi ct or y ear ned
hi m a record si xt h ATP Wor l d Tour
Fi nal s t i t l e.
The vi ct or y al so hel ped hi m move
ahead o f Pet e Sampr as and I van
Lendl on t he li st of Tour Fi nal s cham-
pi ons i n t he 100t h f i nal of hi s career.
Feder er has w on 70 t r ophi es i n hi s
car eer and has al so equal l ed Lendl ' s
r ecor d of 39 mat ch w i ns i n t he end-
of -season event .
Fed e r er r ece i v e d t h e w i n n er s'
cheque wor t h $770,000. For t he f i rst
t i me si nce 2002 he ended t he sea-
son w i t hout a Gr and Sl am t i t l e.
Badminton
BWF Wor l d Super Ser i es
Badmi nt on Champi onshi p
I ndi an ace badmi nt on pl ayer and
Wor l d No. 4 Sai na Nehwal of Indi a
was def eat ed by Wor l d No. 1 Wang
Yi h an 18- 21, 21- 13, 21- 13 i n t h e
w o m e n s si n gl es f i n al o f t h e
$500000 BWF Wor l d Super Ser i es
badmi nt on champi onshi p i n Chi na
on 18 December 2011. In 2011 Sai na
w on onl y t he Sw i ss Open Super Se-
ries t it le. Wang proved t o be t oo good
f or t he Indi an shut t l er i n t he cr uci al
phases of t he 72-mi nut e f i nal . The
scor es w er e l evel l ed t w i ce, f our -al l
and 11-all , before t he Chi nese picked
seven poi nt s i n a row t o t ake a huge
18-11 l ead. Wi t h t hi s w i n, Yi han kept
her 100 per cent recor d agai nst Sai na
i nt act , havi ng now beat en her i n al l
t h ei r f o u r f ace o f f s so f ar. Sai n a
Nehw al had cr eat ed hi st or y by be-
comi ng t he f i r st ever Indi an t o ent er
t he si ngl es f i nal of t he Wor l d Super
Ser i es. Gut t a Jwal a and V. Di j u w ere
t he onl y ot her Indi ans w ho made i t
t o t he f i nal i n mi xed doubl es i n t he
2009 edi t i on.
Indi a Open Gr and Pr i x
I n don esi as exper i enced shut t l er,
Tauf i k Hi dayat , w on hi s f i rst M ens
Si ngl es t i t l e o f 2011 at t he 2011
$120, 000 Sy ed M od i I n d i a Open
Gr and Pr i x Gol d badmi nt on champi -
onshi p w hen he def eat ed Sour abh
Ver ma of I ndi a. Tauf i k i s cur r ent l y
Wor l d Number 12 i n M ens Si ngl es
w or l d r anki ngs. Hi dayat w ho ended
hi s t i t l e dr ought of 2011 w i t h a 21-
15, 21-18 t r i umph over Saur abh r e-
cei ved $9,000 as t he pr i ze money.
In t he f i r st set of t hi s f i nal bat t l e,
Tauf i k played w it h preci si on and won
i t w i t h a comf or t abl e scor e. i n t he
second game, Sour abh el evat ed hi s
l evel of pl ay and mat ched t he speed
of Tauf i k but l ost t he set w i t h a de-
cent margi n. Ranked 72 i n t he w or l d
and on hi s debut season on t he se-
ni or i nt er nat i onal ci r cui t , Sour abh
had w on t he Bahr ai n Int er nat i onal
Ch al l en ge i n 2011 an d h ad al so
r eached t he quar t er f i nal s of TATA
Open Indi a Int er nat i onal Chal l enge,
Thai l and Gr and Pr i x Gol d and Indi an
Super ser i es.
The w omen' s si ngl es f i nal w as w on
by t hir d seed Int hanon Rat chanok of
Thai l and. Naoki Kaw amae & Shoj i
Sat o (Jpn) emer ged w inner s i n M en' s
doubl es w hi l e i n w omen' s doubl es,
Sh i n t a M u l i a Sar i & Le i Yao o f
Si ngapore def eat ed M iyuki M aeda &
Sat ako Suet suna of Japan t o emerge
champi ons.
Motor Rac ing/ F1
JK Tyr e-FM SCI Nat i onal Raci ng
Champi onshi p
Ameya Wal aval kar of M ar s Raci ng
r egi st er ed hi s si xt h w i n of 2011 i n
t he For mul a LGB Sw if t cl ass, t her eby
cl i nchi ng hi s mai den dr i ver s' cham-
pi onshi p t i t l e i n t he JK Tyre-FM SCI
Nat ional Raci ng Champi onshi p at t he
M M RT i n Ir ungat t ukot t ai on 27 No-
vember 2011. Wal aval kar f i ni shed
22 poi nt s ahead o f t eamm at e R.
Deepak, w ho came f i f t h i n t he r ace.
Sar osh Hat ar ia of M eco M ot orsport s
st ood second. Kar t hi k Kr i shna f i n-
i shed t hi r d but w as penal i sed f or
over t aki ng when t he yell ow f lag was
bei ng w aved and t hus conceded hi s
podi um pl ace t o Chi t esh M andody.
Rahi l Noor ani , a champi onshi p con-
t ender i n t he Pol o R Cup ser i es w as
excl uded f rom t he compet i t ion af t er
a post -r ace i nci dent i n t he pi t s af t er
he vent hi s f r ust r at i on at Aj ay Ki ni .
Golf
Goodr i cke East Indi a Amat eur
Gol f Champi onshi p
Del hi ' s Honey Bai soya became t he
y o u n ge st w i n n e r o f t h e 22 n d
Goodr i cke East Indi a amat eur gol f
champi onshi p at RCGC on 25 De-
cember 2011. The 15-year -ol d de-
f eat ed t he count r y' s No.1 amat eur,
S. Chi kkar angappa t o w i n 3 and 2.
Bot h had t o pl ay t w o r ounds of 36
hol es on t he f i nal day. Bai soya se-
cur ed a w i nni ng st ar t af t er maki ng
bi r di es on f i r st , f our t h, f i f t h, ni nt h,
12t h and 15t h i n t he f i r st r ound of
18 hol es w her e bot h Bai soya and
Ch i k ka h al ved 11 ho l es. Tho ugh,
Chi kka w on on sevent h, 11t h and
14t h, Bai soya was 2-up af t er t he f i rst
r ound. In t he second r ound, Bai soya
agai n t ook an ear l y l ead af t er mak-
i ng a bi r di e on t he f i r st t o go 3-up
t hough Chi kka kept gi vi ng a t ough
compet i t ion. Bai soya i n t ot al had si x
bi r di es i n t he f i r st r ound of 18 and
t hr ee mor e i n 16 hol es i n t he sec-
ond r ound w hi l e Chi kka had t hr ee
bi r di es i n bot h r ounds. Bai soya al so
dr opped f ew er bogeys.
Football
Indi an Pl ayer of t he Year
Indi a st r i ker Suni l Chhet r i was on 20
December 2011 vot ed Pl ayer of t he
Year by t he Al l Indi a Foot bal l Fed-
er at i on. He w as chosen by I-League
coaches f r om a f i ve-pl ayer shor t l i st .
He w i l l r ecei ve a cash aw ar d of Rs 2
l akh and a si l ver pl aque. The cr i t e-
ri a of select ion were Per f or mance f or
Indi a and general conduct on and of f
t he f i el d. Chhet r i scor ed 13 goal s i n
17 i n t er n at i on al s i n 2011, w h i ch
w as t he hi ghest t he by an Indi an.
Chet t r i has al so scor ed 11 goal s i n
20 appear ances f or I -League cl ub
M ohun Bagan. He w on t he man of
t he champi onshi p i n t he SAFF Cham-
pi onshi p i n New Del hi i n 2011. He
has al so been aw ar ded t he pr est i -
gi ou s Ar j u na Aw ar d i n t he p ast .
I.M .Vi j ayan was t he f i rst reci pi ent of
t he awar d i n 1992. In 2010 t he award
w as best owed on Gouramangi Si ngh
6t h SAFF Champi onshi p
Indi a won it s 6t h SAFF Champi onship
t i t l e agai nst t he new comer, Af ghani -
st an on 11 December 2011. Indi a' s
st ar st r i ker Suni l Chhet r i w on al l t he
individual awards i n t he t ournament .
India w as a f i ve t i me SAFF champi on
bef or e i t w on t he 2011 SAFF. The
ot her par t i ci pat i ng nat i ons i n t he
2011 Sout h Asi an Foot bal l Feder a-
t i on Champi onshi p (SAFF) w er e Af -
gh an i st an , Sr i Lan k a, Bh u t an ,
Bangl adesh, M al di ves, Nepal and
Paki st an. Wi nner Indi a r ecei ved a
pr i ze pur se of USD 50,000 w hi l e Af -
ghani st an t ook home USD 25,000. In
addi t i on, Al l Indi a Foot bal l Feder a-
t i on announced a cash aw ar d of Rs.
1 l akh f or each pl ayer f or w i nni ng
t he t ournament .
Hockey
Champi ons Chal l enge Hockey
Tour nament
Bel gi um def eat ed Indi a 4-3 i n t he
f i nal of t he Champi ons Chal l enge
hockey t ournament in Johannesburg,
Sout h Af r i ca on 4 December 2011.
The vi ct or y enabl ed Bel gi um, w ho
are al ready t hr ough t o t he 2012 Lon-
don Games, t o qual i f y f or t he next
Champi ons Trophy i n Aust ral i a. The
Bel gi um si se w as coached by Col i n
Bat ch. Tom Boon scored t he w i nni ng
goal f or Bel gi um and i n t he pr ocess
became t he j oi nt t op scor er of t he
t our nament al ong w i t h Just i n Rei d
Ross of Sout h Af r ica wi t h ei ght goals.
VR Raghunat h, Sandeep Si ngh and
Shi vender Si ngh scor ed f or I ndi a.
Sandeep Si ngh f i ni shed t he t our na-
ment w i t h seven goal s, al l t hr ough
penal t y cor ner s, and w on t he Pl ayer
of t he Tour nament award.
Four -nat i on Tour nament
The I ndi an w omen' s hockey t eam
def eat ed Ir el and 4-1 w i n t o cl i nch
t he br onze medal i n t he f our -nat i on
t our nament hel d i n Par ana, Ar gen-
t i na i n December 2011. Bot h t he
t eams w ere l ocked 1-1 at hal f -t i me
but Indi a came back st r ongl y i n t he
second sessi on t o scor e t hr ee goal s.
Jaspreet Kaur, Anuradha Thokchom,
Vandana Kat ar i ya and Preet y Suni l a
Ki r o 69t hscor ed f or Indi a Indi a t hus
w on br onze medals at bot h t he f our -
nat i on t our nament s hel d at Buenos
Aires and Parana on t he current t our.
In t he f i nal Wor l d champi on Argen-
t i na def et ed Sout h Af r i ca 2-0 t o w i n
t he t ournament .
Arc hery/ Shooting
32nd Sahar a Seni or Nat i onal
Ar cher y Champi onshi p
Th e Ar cher y Associ at i o n o f I nd i a
(AAI) announced i n l at e December
2011 t hat t he 32nd Sahar a seni or
Nat i o n al ar ch e r y ch am p i o n sh i p
(recur ve and compound) w il l be hel d
at t h e JRD Tat a Spo r t s Com pl ex,
Jamshedpur f r om 24 t o 29 Januar y
2012. The meet i s t o ser ve as t he
sel ect i on t r i al s f or aspi r ant s o f a
pl ace i n t he Indi an ar cher y t eam f or
t he f irst Asi an Grand Pr i x at Bangkok
schedul ed t o be hel d 14 t o 20 Feb-
r uar y 2012. The best f i ve f i ni sher s
i n t he men' s r ecur ve sect i on w i l l vi e
f or t hr ee pl aces i n t he Indi an t eam,
and t he best f i ve w omen w i l l vi e f or
one spot i n t he w omen' s r ecur ve
t eam at a sel ect i on t r i al s t o be hel d
at SAI, East er n Cent r e, f r om 3 t o 6
Feb r uar y 2012. The AAI r et ai ned
Jay an t a Tal u kd ar an d t h e t h r e e
w omen ar cher s, Chekr ovol u Sw ur o,
Deepi ka Kumar i and L. Bombayl a
Devi , i n t he Indi an t eam f or al l i n-
t er nat i onal compet i t i on t i l l t he Lon-
don Ol ympi cs si nce t hey ear ned t he
count r y f our Ol ympi c quot a pl aces.
Athletic s
Fukuoka M en' s M ar at hon
Josphat Ndambi r i of Kenya w on t he
Fukuoka men' s mar at hon i n Japan
w i nni ng t he 42.195km r ace i n 2hr s
7mi ns and 36secs on 4 December
2011. M w angi st ood second. Bot h
Ndambi r i and M w angi cur r ent l y r e-
si de i n Japan. M w angi cr ossed t he
l i ne one mi nut e and t w o seconds
af t er Ndambi r i w ho had opened up
a si zeabl e l ead f ol l ow i ng t he 35km
mar k. Yuki Kaw auchi of Japan f i n-
i shed i n t hi r d pl ace w i t h a t i me of
t w o hour s, ni ne mi nut es and 57 sec-
onds. The Fukuoka mar at hon, now
i n i t s 64t h year, i s w i del y regarded
as a pr est i gi ous t i t l e. I n 2011 t he
ocassi on w as t r eat ed as val uabl e
prepar at i on f or next year ' s Ol ympics
i n London.
Chess
Wor l d Women' s Team Chess
Champi onshi p
Th e I n d i an t eam f i n i sh ed at t h e
f o u r t h p o si t i o n i n t h e Wo r l d
Women' s Team Chess Champi on-
shi p at M ardi n,Tur key on 27 Decem-
ber 2011. Indi a' s chances of wi nni ng
a medal w as bl ow n aw ay f ol l ow i ng
a l oss t o Geor gi a and t hen Chi na.
The l osses by Tani a Sach dev and
Soumya Sw aminat han of India paved
t he w ay f or an easy Geor gi an vi c-
t or y i n t he end.
Chi na w on t he gol d medal w i t h 16
poi nt s w hi l e t he si l ver w as cl ai med
by t he Russi ans w ho f i ni shed w i t h
13 poi nt s i n al l . Geor gi a ended w i t h
t he br onze w hi l e Indi a and Ukr ai ne
were t ied f or t he f ourt h spot . Ukr aine
caused t he bi ggest sur pr i se of t he
champi on shi p w i t h a sen sat i o nal
2.5-1.5 vi ct or y over l eader s Chi na.
Tho u gh Chi n a w as n o t m uch af -
f ect ed, t he h el ped t he Ukr ai n i an
eves come i nt o r eckoni ng af t er a
r at her subdued per f or mance i n t he
f i rst hal f.
London Chess Cl assi cs Open
Indi an Gr andmast er Abhi j eet Gupt a
w o n t h e Lo n d o n Ch ess Cl assi c' s
open sect i on, w i t h a har d-ear ned
v i ct o r y o v e r Gr an d m ast er Kei t h
Ar kel l of Engl and. Abhi j eet , a f or mer
w or l d j uni or champi on and r ei gni ng
n at i on al ch amp i o n , sco r ed ei gh t
poi nt s i n al l . The chess t our nament
w as hel d f r om 3 December 2011 t o
12 December 2011.
Anot her Indi an, Int er nat i onal M as-
t er Sahaj Gr over pull ed hi mself t o t he
second spot af t er def eat i ng Engl i sh
Grandmast er Pet er Wel l s i n t he f i -
nal r ound of t he event . Sahaj , w ho
scor ed 7.5 poi nt s i n al l .
Volleyball
Vaj payee Cup
Ker al a def eat ed Andhr a Pr adesh i n
st r ai ght set s t o l i f t t he men' s t i t l e i n
t he 10t h Al l -Indi a Invi t at i onal vol l ey-
bal l t our nament f or t he Vaj payee
Cup on 25 December 2011. Ker al a
w on t he game 25-20, 25-18, 25-18.
Kar nat aka out di d Tami l Nadu t o oc-
cupy t he t hi rd posi t i on i n t he mens
cat egor y.
The Ker al a on t he ot her hand de-
f eat ed Cent r al Rai l w ay (M umbai )
and t o cl ai m t he t i t l ee. Ti j i Raj u and
N. Bij ina l ed t he t urnaround as it w on
20-25, 18-25, 25-23, 26-24, 15-13.
The w omen had t o come back f r om
t w o set s dow n t o t ake t he t i t l e. The
Ker al a w omen l ost t he f i r st set 20-
25 bef o r e f i n d i n g t h em sel v es i n
deep t r ouble af t er l osi ng t he second
set 18-25. In t he deci di ng set Ker al a
o u t d i d Cen t r al Rai l w ay 15- 13 t o
cl i nch t he t i t l e. Sout her n Rai l w ay
( Ch e n n ai ) f i n i sh e d t h i r d i n t h e
w omen' s sect i ons.
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Sahitya Akademi
Awards
Tw ent y-t w o w r i t ers sel ect ed on 21
December f or t he prest igious Sahit ya
Ak ad e m i aw ar d s f o r 2 011 . Ei gh t
books of poet r y, seven novel s, t hree
essays and one each shor t st or i es,
nar rat i ve hist or y, bi ography and play
w er e sel ect ed f or t he aw ar ds. Wr i t -
er s i n 23 l anguages ar e r econgi sed
every year by t he Akademi.The books
w er e sel ect ed on t he basi s of r ec-
ommendat i ons made by a j ur y of
t hr ee member s i n each l anguage.
The aw ar ds t hat are given ever y year
an d con t ai n an engr aved co op er
pl aque, a shaw l and a cheque of Rs
1 l akh.
Sahi t ya Akademi aw ar ds f or Po-
et r y Poet s chosen f or t he aw ar d
i n cl u d es: Lat e Kab i n Ph u k an
( Assam ese ) , M an i n d r a Gu p t a
(Ben gal i ), Pr em an an da M o sahar i
(Bodo), Naseem Shaf ai e (Kashmi r i ),
M e l v y n Ro d r i gu e s ( Ko n k an i ) ,
Har ekr i shna Sat apat hy (Sanskr i t ),
Adi t ya Kumar M andi (Sant al i ) and
Khal eel M amoon (Ur du).
Sahi t ya Akademi aw ar ds f or Nov-
el s Novel i st s w ho w on t he aw ar d
i ncl ude: Kashi nat h Si n gh (Hi ndi ),
Ksh e t r i Bi r a ( M an i p u r i ) ,
Kal panakumar i Devi (Odi a), Bal dev
Si n gh ( Pu nj ab i ) an d At u l Kan ak k
(Raj ast hani ).
Award & Prizes
Tami l novel i st Su Venkat esan' s , de-
but novel Kaval Kot t am ear ned hi m
t he covet ed Sahit ya Akademi Aw ar d
i n Tami l sect i on. The book i s about
t he 600-year ol d hi st or y of t he ci t y
of M adur ai and a secur i t y syst em
t hat pr evai l ed t her e
Aw ar dees i n Essays Cat egor y
Lal i t M ago t r a ( Do gr i ) , Gr ace
( M ar at h i ) an d Sam al a Sad asi v a
(Tel ugu) recei ved t he award for t hei r
books on essays.
Aw ar dees i n Ot her Sect i ons
Hi st or i an Ramachandr a Guha w as
chosen f or t he aw ar d f or hi s book of
n ar r at i v e h i st o r y - I n d i a Af t e r
Gandhi . M ohan Par mar (Guj ar at i )
was chosen f or hi s short st ori es, M .K.
Sanu (M al ayal am) f or hi s bi ogr aphy
and M ohan Gehani (Si ndhi ) f or hi s
book on pl ays.
Bharatendu Harish
Chandra Awards
Four t een per sons (Leadi ng w r i t er s
an d j o u r n al i st s) w e r e gi v e n
Bhar at endu Har i sh Chandr a Aw ar ds
f or 2009 and 2010 by M i ni st er of
St at e f or Inf ormat ion and Br oadcast -
i ng, S Jagat hr akshakan on 28 De-
cember 2011.
2009 Wi nner s
The f i r st pr i ze i n t he Jour nal i sm and
M ass Communi cat i on cat egor y f or
t he year 2009 w as aw ar ded t o Di l i p
Ch an d r a M an d al f o r h i s
manuscr ipt Corporat e, Lokt ant ra aur
Pai d Ne w s. Ku m u d Sh ar m a s
b o o k Sam ach ar Bazar k i
Nai t i kt a bagged t he second pr i ze.
Th e t h i r d p r i ze w e n t j o i n t l y t o
Shi vananda Kamde f or hi s book Car -
t oon Pat rakar i t a and Dr. Akel a Bhai
f o r h i s b o o k Rad i o Sah i t y a au r
Pat rakar i t a. In t he Womens i ssues
cat egor y, t he f i rst pr i ze f or 2009 was
gi v e n t o Lat a Ko t f o r h e r
manuscr i pt Adha Asmaan Hamar a.
The f i r st pr i ze i n Chi l drens Li t er a-
t ur e cat egor y f or 2009 w as gi ven t o
Ghamandi Lal Agr aw al f or hi s book
Geet Gyan Vi gyan Ke and t he sec-
ond pr ize t o Renu Saini f or her manu-
scr i pt Bachpan ka Saf ar .
2010 Wi nner s
For 2010 t he second pr i ze i n Jour -
nal i sm and M ass Communi cat i on
cat egor y w as aw ar ded t o Pr anj al
Dh ar s m an u scr i p t Sam k al e e n
Vai shw i k Pat rakar i t a M ei Akhbaar.
No one w as aw ar ded f i r st pr i ze f or
2010 i n t hi s cat egor y. In Womens
i ssues cat egor y f or 2010, Sum an
Rai s b o o k Gh ar e l u Hi n sa m e i n
M ahi la Sanrakshan Adhini yam 2005,
2006 got t h e f i r st pr i ze. San j eev
Jai sw al Sanj ay s book Dooba Hua
Qi l a and t he book Cycl e Par Thaa
Kavva by Pr abhat r ecei ved t he f i r st
and second pr i ze r espect i vel y i n t he
Chi l drens Li t erat ure cat egor y. In t he
Nat i onal I nt egr at i on cat egor y f or
2010, Shi v Kumar Rai s manuscr i pt
M er i Jat i Bhar t i ya w as gi ven t he
f i r st pr i ze.
About Bhar at endu Har i sh Chandr a
Aw ar d s: Th e Bh ar t en d u
Har i shchandr a Aw ar ds ar e gi ven t o
publ i shed or unpubl i shed books i n
f o u r cat ego r i es- Jo u r n al i sm an d
M ass Communi cat i on, Womens Is-
sues, Chi l drens Li t erat ure and Na-
t i onal Int egr at i on. The aw ar ds w er e
i nst i t ut ed i n 1983 t o encour age ori gi -
nal Hi ndi w r i t i ngs on t opi cs r el at ed
t o j our nal i sm and mass communi ca-
t i on. Awards f or w ri t i ngs on w omens
i ssues, chi l drens l i t erat ure and na-
t i onal i nt egr at i on w er e i ncl uded i n
f r om 1992-93. The Aw ar ds scheme
i s coor di nat ed by Publ i cat i ons Di vi -
si on, M i ni st r y of I nf or mat i on and
Br oadcast i ng, Gover nment of Indi a.
The M inist r y of Inf ormat i on & Broad-
cast i ng, i ncr eased t he Bhar t endu
Har i shchandr a aw ar d money f r om
t he year 2009.
For j our nal i sm and mass communi -
cat i on cat egori es, t he f i r st pr i ze now
car r i es an aw ar d of Rs 75000, up
f rom Rs 35000 ear l i er. The amount
f or t he second pr i ze w as i ncr eased
f r om Rs 25000 t o Rs.50000 and t he
t hi r d f r om Rs.20000 t o Rs.40000. For
books in cat egor y of Womens Issues,
Chi l dr ens Li t er at ure and Nat i onal
Int egr at i on, t he f i r st pr i ze car r i es an
aw ar d o f Rs 4 00 0 0 i n st e ad o f
Rs. 1 5 00 0 an d t h e se co n d p r i ze
Rs.20000 i nst ead of Rs.10000.
Mahatma Gandhi
International Award
Ti bet an spi r i t ual l eader, t he Dal ai
Lama w as pr esent ed t he M ahat ma
Gan d h i I n t e r n at i o n al Aw ar d f o r
Peace and Reconci l i at i on on 4 Janu-
ar y 2011, t he f our t h day of t he t en-
day Kal achakr a i ni t iat ions. The gr and
daught er of M ahat ma Gandhi , I l a
Gandhi , pr esent ed t he aw ar d, i nst i -
t ut ed i n 2003, t o t he Dal ai Lama at
t he Kal achakr a gr ound. Il a Gandhi ,
w h o i s b ased i n So u t h Af r i ca, i s
chai r man of t he Gandhi Devel op-
ment Tr ust t hat gi ves t he award. Ti -
bet an Nobel Peace Laur eat e on t he
occasi on encour aged ever yone t o
use human i nt el l i gence i n chal l eng-
i ng and over comi ng negat i ve emo-
t i o ns w i t h p osi t i ve emot i ons. He
ment i oned i n hi s speech t hat di sar -
mament i s needed t o at t ai n com-
pl et e non-vi ol ence. He al so men-
t i oned t hat ment al peace r esul t s i n
non-vi ol ent act i ons and ment al un-
r est causest he opposi t e. He con-
cl uded by st at i ng t hat t he r eal pat h
t o a happy l i f e i s not t hr ough money
n pow er but t hr ough honest y and
compassi on. The Dal ai Lama w as
su p p o sed t o h av e r ecei v e d t h e
aw ar d i n Oct ober 2011 as par t of a
much ant i ci pat ed vi si t t o Sout h Af -
r i ca. The vi si t how ever had t o be
cal l ed of f f ol l ow i ng a f i ve-w eek w ai t
f or a vi sa t o be i ssued. For mer r e-
ci pi ent s of t he M ahat ma Gandhi In-
t er nat i onal Aw ar d i ncl ude Bur mese
pro-democracy l eader Aung San Suu
Kyi , So u t h Af r i can l eader Nel so n
M an d e l a an d Tan zan i a s Ju l i u s
Nyerer e.
Justice P.N. Bhagwati
Award
For mer presi dent A.P.J. Abdul Kal am
present ed t he Just i ce P.N. Bhagwat i
Award t o O.P. Ji ndal Gl obal Uni ver-
si t y chancel l or and managi ng di r ec-
t or of Ji ndal St eel and Pow er Lt d,
Naveen Ji ndal on 6 December 2011.
The award w as conf er red upon Jindal
f or hi s out st andi ng cont r i but i on t o
l egal educat i on and cor por at e phi -
l ant h r op y. Ju st i ce P. N. Bh agw at i
Aw ar d has been i nst i t ut ed by t he
Capi t al Foundat i on. Naveen Ji ndal i s
t he Foundi ng Chancel l or of t he O.P.
Ji ndal Gl obal Uni versi t y. He i s al so
a M ember of Par l i ament , t he Chai r -
m an an d M an agi n g Di r ect o r o f
Ji ndal St eel and Pow er Lt d (JSPL),
and a spor t s ent husi ast . The O. P.
Ji nd al Gl obal Uni ver si t y h as f o ur
school s: Ji ndal Gl obal Law School
(JGLS), Ji ndal Gl obal Business School
(JGBS), Ji nd al Schoo l of I nt er n a-
t i onal Af f ai r s (JSIA) and Ji ndal School
of Gover nment and Publ i c Pol i cy
(JGSP) . Th e Bhagw at i Aw ar d w as
al so gi ven t o Ar un M ohan, a seni or
advocat e i n t he Supr eme Cour t , i n
r ecogni t i on of hi s out st andi ng con-
t ri but ion t o access t o j ust i ce. Human
Reso u r ce Dev el o p m en t M i n i st er
Kapi l Si bal and Law and Just i ce M i n-
i st er Sal m an Khu r shi d w er e co n-
f er red t he Just i ce V.R. Kr i shna Iyer
Aw ar d on t he occassi on.
Life Time Achievement
Award
Lor d Sw r aj Paul , l eadi ng NRI i ndus-
t r i al i st w as conf er r ed w i t h t he Li f e
Ti me Ach i ev ement aw ar d f o r h i s
out st andi ng cont r i but i ons i n var ious
f i el ds. The aw ar d, i nst i t ut ed by an
Indi an company Pow er br ands, w as
pr esent ed t o Lor d Paul on 12 De-
cember 2011 by Subrat a Roy, chi ef
of t he Sahar a Gr oup.
Lor d Paul , Chai r man of t he Capar o
Gr oup, dedi cat ed t he aw ar d t o t he
or di nar y peopl e of Indi a w ho he f el l s
have li t t le, but never complai ns. Phi -
l ant hr opi st and Labour pol i t i ci an,
Lor d Paul i s t he chancel l or of t he
Uni ver si t y of Wol ver hampt on and
t he Uni versi t y of West mi nst er. Paul
was aw ar ded t he Padma Bhushan by
t he Gover nment of Indi a i n 1983. He
w as el evat ed t o t he Br i t i sh Peer age
i n 1996. Raghupat i Si nghani a of J K
Ty r es w as ear l i er gi v e n t h e
Pow er br ands Hal l of Fame Aw ar d.
42nd International Film
Festival of India (IFFI)
The 42nd edi t i on of Int er nat i onal
Fi l m Fest i val of Indi a (IFFI) was hel d
i n Panaj i , Goa f r om 23 November t o
3 December 2011. Fi l m st ar Shah
Rukh Khan i naugur at ed t he 42nd
edi t i on of IFFI. The i naugur al cer -
emony was mar ked by present at i on
of Li f e Ti me Achi evement aw ar d,
w hi ch w as r evi ved af t er al most 10
years t o French f i l m maker Ber t rand
Taver ni er by Shah Rukh Khan. The
openi ng f i l m of t he f est i val w as The
Con sul o f Bo r d eau x, di r ect ed b y
Fr anci sco M anso and Joao Cor r ea.
The 42nd IFFI came t o an end w i t h
t he Asi a pr emi er e of t he f i l m The
Lady di r ect ed by Luc Besson. For t he
f irst t ime, t he inaugurat ion ceremony
w as hel d 30 km aw ay f r om t he mai n
act i on poi nt . Ther e w as a f i r st -ever
open scr een on a f oot bal l gr ound f or
f r ee di spl ay of soccer f i l ms. The f es-
t i val w as t he f i r st t o f eat ur e t he new
se ct i o n s l i ke 3 D, An i m at i o n
(Sket ches on Scr een) and Fest i val
Kal ei doscope f i l ms.
Aw ar ds pr esent ed dur i ng t he Fes-
t i val : The 42nd Int er nat i onal Fi l m
Fest i val of Indi a come t o an end at
t he Kal a Academy i n Panaj i w i t h t he
pr esent at i on of aw ar ds i n f i ve di f -
f er ent segment s. The Gol den Pea-
cock Awar d f or t he Best Fi l m w as
gi ven t o a Col umbi an Fi l m Por f i r i o.
The Chi ef Guest of t he cl osi ng cer -
emony, Sout her n Superst ar, Sur i ya
pr esent ed t he aw ar d t o t he Di r ect or
Al ej an d r o Lan d es an d Pr o d u cer,
Fr anci sco Al j ur e. The Si l ver Peacock
Aw ar d f or Best Act or (Femal e) cat -
e go r y w as gi v en t o t h e act o r
Nadezhda M ar ki na f or her r ol e in t he
Russi an f i l m El ena. Wher eas, t he
Si l ver Peacock Aw ar d f or Best Act or
(M al e) cat egor y w as w on by Sasson
Gabey f or hi s r ol e i n an Isr ael i f i l m
Rest or at i on. The Speci al Jur y Aw ar d
w as pr esent ed t o Sal i m Ahamed f or
di r ect i ng M al ayal am f i l m Adami nt e
M akan Abu meani ng Abu, Son of
Adam. The Speci al Jur y Aw ar d car -
r i es a Si l ver Peacock Trophy, a cer-
t i f i cat e an d Rs. 15 l ak h. The f i ve
member s Jur y under t he chai r man-
shi p of Adoor Gopal akr i shnan had
scr een ed 14 f i l m s f r om as many
count r i es and unani mousl y deci ded
t he aw ar ds.
Gomant Vibhushan
Wor ld renow ned archit ect and Goa' s
son-of -t he-soi l Char l es Cor r ea w as
best ow ed w i t h Goa' s hi ghest ci vi l -
i an honour, t he Gomant Vi bhushan,
on t he eve of t he Gol den Jubi l i ee of
Goa' s Li ber at i on on 18 December
2011. The aw ar d w as pr esent ed t o
h i m b y Go a go v e r n o r K
Shankar anar ayanan. Goa gover nor
present ed Cor r ea wi t h t he over half -
met re hi gh, glass-encased br ass r ep-
l i ca of Goa' s st at e symbol al ong wi t h
a cash aw ar d of Rs 5 l akh and a ci -
t at i on i n one of Cor r ea' s ow n ar chi -
t ect ur al creat ions, t he Kala Academy
at Panaj i . Cor r ea' s ar chi t ect ur al ge-
ni us and pr oj ect s dot snot only Indi an
ci t i es b u t al so ci t i es ar ou n d t h e
w or l d, i ncl udi ng Bost on and Li sbon.
Cor r ea i s t he second r eci pi ent of t he
Gomant Vi bhushan, t he f i r st bei ng
e m i n e n t n u cl e ar sci e n t i st An i l
Kakod kar, w ho w as aw ar ded t h e
Gomant Vi bhushan i n 2010. Cor r ea
h as ear l i er b een co n f er r ed w i t h
I n d i a' s Pad m a Sh r i an d Pad m a
Vi bhushan.
Clean Development
Mec hanism Project
Award
Delhi M et r o Rail Cor porat i on(DM RC)
w o n a gr een aw ar d f or r edu ci ng
emi ssi ons of pol l ut i ng gases i n t he
nat i onal capi t al by 6.3 l akh t ons ev-
er y year. The best Cl ean Devel op-
m en t M ech ani sm ( CDM ) p r o j ect
aw ar d w as pr esent ed at Ur ban M o-
bi l i t y Conf er ence, 2011 w hi ch con-
cl uded i n New Del hi on 7 December
2011. Th e b est CDM aw ar d w as
gi ven t o Del hi M et r o f or f or it s M odal
Shi f t Pr oj ect under w hi ch i t became
t he f i r st M et r o r ai l and r ai l -based
syst em i n t he w or l d t o be cer t i f i ed
by Uni t ed Nat i ons f or get t i ng car bon
cr edi t s f or r educi n g gr een ho use
gas(GHG) emi ssi ons. Del hi M et r o,
w hi ch f er r i es ar ound 18 l akh peopl e
dai l y, hel ped t o reduce pol l ut ion l ev-
el s i n t he ci t y by 6.3 l akh t onnes ev-
er y year, t hus hel pi ng i n reduci ng
gl o b al w ar m i n g. DM RC d i r ect o r
(Wor ks) M angu Si ngh recei ved t he
award on t he organi sat i on' s behal f.
Thi s is t he second CDM pr oj ect f r om
DM RC t o be r egi st er ed w i t h t he UN
i n t he l ast t hr ee year s. DM RC' s f i r st
CDM proj ect on regenerat i ve brak-
i ng had al so achi eved many i nt er -
nat i onal f i r st s apar t f r om ear ni ng
val uabl e f or ei gn exchange f or t he
count ry.
Grammy Award
The Academy of Recor di ng Ar t s and
Sci en ce s o n 2 1 Decem b er 20 11
chose Appl e co-f ounder St eve Jobs
t o be post humousl y honour ed w i t h
a Gr ammy aw ar d f or his cont ri but i on
t o musi c t echnol ogy. Jobs i s t o be
honoured as a creat i ve vi si onar y. He
i s o n e o f 11 peo pl e w h o w i l l b e
honour ed w it h speci al awar ds. Jobs,
w ho di ed on 5 Oct ober 2011 of pan-
creat i c cancer, w i l l recei ve a Tr ust -
ees Aw ar d on 13 Febr uar y 2012 f or
hel pi ng cr eat e pr oduct s t hat t r ans-
f or med t he way musi c, TV, movi es
and books are consumed. Apple Com-
put er Inc f i rst recei ved a Techni cal
Gr ammy Aw ar d i n 2002 f or cont r i -
but i ons of out st andi ng t echnical si g-
n i f i can ce t o t h e r eco r d i n g f i el d .
Ban d l ead er an d co m p o ser Dav e
Bar t hol omew, r ecor di ng engi neer
Rudy Van Gelder wi l l al so recei ve t he
award al ong wi t h Jobs. The academy
al so p i cked t h e Al l man Br o t h er s,
Gl en Campbel l , Di ana Ross and Br a-
zi l i an pi ani st / si nger / gui t ar i st Ant o-
nio Carl os Jobim as recipient s of Li f e-
t i me Achi evement Aw ar ds. Jobi m
w as know n f or composi ng The Gi r l
f r om Ipanema, a w or ldw ide hit in t he
mi d-1960s w hi ch w on a Gr ammy f or
Record of t he Year i n 1965.

Tr ump et er Wayne Jackson, saxo-
phoni st Andr ew Love of t he M em-
phi s Hor ns, count r y l egend Geor ge
Jones, and t he l at e Gi l Scot t -Her on
w er e al so named as r eci pi ent s. Ger -
m an so u n d - t e ch n o l o gy f i r m
Cel emony and t he l at e audi o engi -
neer Roger Nichols, w ho w orked wi t h
ar t i st s i n cl u d i n g Ro ss, Pl aci d o
Domi ngo, James Tayl or and St evi e
Wonder, w ere al so recogni sed w i t h
Gr am my Tech n i cal Aw ar d s. Th e
Tr ust ees Awards are gi ven t o peopl e
w ho make a cont r i but i on t o musi c
beyond per f or mance. The Academy
of Recor di ng Ar t s and Sci ences al so
chose seven per f or mer s t o r ecei ve
Li f et i me Achi evement Aw ar ds: The
Al l m an Br o t h e r s Ban d , Gl e n
Camp bel l , An t o ni o Car l os Job i m ,
Geor ge Jones, The M emphi s Hor ns,
Di ana Ross, Gi l Scot t -Her on.
Shakti Bhatt
First Book Prize
Jami l Ahmad w as decl ar ed t he w i n-
ner of t he Shakt i Bhat t Fi rst Book
Pr i ze f or hi s book The Wander i ng
Fal con at t he Br i t i sh Counci l i n New
Del hi on 21 December 2011. The
Wand er i n g Fal con , i s a n ar r at i ve
about t he l ives of t r ibal peopl e al ong
t he bor der s of Af ghani st an, Paki st an
and Ir an. The book cont ai ned per -
sonal si ght s, sounds, act ual f aces
and conver sat i ons. The book t hat
has w on cr i t i cal accl ai m w or l dw i de
w as w r i t t en decades ago and t hen
w ent i nt o hi ber nat i on f or 40 year s.
He st ar t ed w r i t i ng t he book i n 1971,
i t w as compl et ed by 1973 and t hen
i t hi ber nat ed f or 40 year s.
Bor n i n Jal an dh ar i n 1933, Jami l
Ahmad i s a Paki st ani nat i onal . He
had not agr eed t o t he demands of
t he publ i sher s, w hi ch event ual l y l ed
t o t he book bei ng l ocked away f or
f our decades. The book w as pub-
l i shed by Hami sh Hami l t on an
i mpr i nt of Pengui n ear l i er i n 2011.
Ahmad was post ed i n Quet t a i n 1959
w her e he f i r st came i nt o cont act
w i t h t r i bal s and w as f asci nat ed by
t hei r l i ves and t hei r st or i es.
The f or mer ci vi l ser vant f r om Paki -
st an, Ahmad gave aw ay t he pr i ze
money of Rs. 1 l akh t o St . Col umba' s
School , w her e he w as enr ol l ed f r om
1941 t o 1944. The pr i ze i s set up i n
memor y of w r i t er and edi t or Shakt i
Bhat t . A shor t l i st of si x books w as
announced ahead of t he pr i ze cer -
emony. The shor t l i st i ncl uded The
Col l aborat or by M i r za Waheed, The
Tr u t h Ab o u t M e b y A. Re v at h i ,
Chi naman by Shehan Kar unat i l aka,
A Fr ee M an by Aman Set hi and R.D.
Bur m an: The M an, The M usi c by
Ani r udha Bhat t achar j ee and Bal aj i
Vi t t al . The w i nner w as chosen by a
j ur y compr i si ng graphi c novel ist and
i l lust r at or Sar nat h Banner j ee, w r it er
and bl ogger Jai Ar j un Si ngh, and nov-
el i st Pal ash Kr i shna M ehr ot r a.
Sangita Kalanidhi M.S.
Subbulakshmi Award
S.R. Nat han, f or mer Pr esi dent of t he
Republ i c of Si ngapor epr esent ed t he
San gi t a Kal an i d h i M . S.
Su b b u l ak sh m i Aw ar d t o San gi t a
Kal ani dhi -el ect Tr i chy Sankaran at
t he i naugur at i on of t he 85t h annual
conf erence of t he M usi c Academy i n
Chennai on 15 December 2011. S.R.
Nat han al so i naugur at ed t he 85t h
an n ual co n f er en ce of t h e M u si c
Academy. On t he occassion t he sec-
o n d v o l u m e o f t h e San gi t a
Sam p r ad ay a Pr ad ar si n i w as
l aunched. The M usi c Academy and
t he Si ngapore Indi an Fi ne Ar t s Soci -
et y (SIFAS) exchanged a memoran-
dum of under st andi ng on educat i on
and t r aini ng in Carnat i c musi c, dr af t -
i ng of syl l abus and t r ai ni ng of t each-
er s dur i ng t he i naugral ceremony.
The M usi c Academy pi oneer ed t he
M ar gazhi musi c f est i val i n Chennai ,
w hi ch had evol ved i nt o a w ondr ous
phenomenon t hat gr eat l y enr i ched
t he cul t ur al under pi nni ng of t he ci t y
over t he l ast ei ght decades. The f es-
t i v al r emai ns u npar al l el ed f or i t s
sheer si ze, aest het i cs, qual i t y and
undi l ut ed cl assi ci sm.
Tr i chy Sankar an:Tr i chy Sankaran i s
t he mr i dangam maest r o and f l ag-
bearer of t he Pudukot t ai ' percussi ve
t radi t i on. Tr i chy i s 2011s desi gnat e
f or t he Academy' s Sangi t a Kal ani dhi .
Tr i chy Sankar an, w h o i s based i n
Toront o became t he f i rst recipi ent of
t h e Sangi t a Kal ani d hi t i t l e i n t he
Pudukkot t ai parampara of hi s gur u
Pal ani Su br amani a Pi l l ai . San gi t a
Kal ani dhi M .S. Subbul akshmi Award
has been i nst i t ut ed by The Hi ndu.
The aw ar d car r i es a cash pr i ze of Rs.
1 l akh.
In The News
Appointed
Ki m Jong-un
Nor t h Kor ea decl ar ed t he young un-
t est ed hei r Ki m Jong-un as supr eme
head of t he count r y, as t ens of t hou-
sands of peopl e r al l i ed i n Pyongyang
one day af t er t he f uner al of hi s f a-
t her, Ki m Jong-i l , t o sw ear t hei r al l e-
gi ance t o t he dynast i c t r ansf er of
pow er. Ki m Jongun, bel i eved t o be
i n hi s l at e 20s, w as unvei l ed as suc-
cessor i n Sept ember l ast year, f ol -
l ow i ng hi s f at her ' s 2008 st roke. Af -
t er hi s f at her ' s sudden deat h Dec.
17, he w as r api dl y el evat ed t o t he
t op mi l i t ar y and par t y po st s, al -
t hough he has yet t o assume t hose
of f i ci al t i t l es. How much he has con-
sol i dat ed hi s gr i p on pow er bef or e
hi s f at her ' s deat h and w het her he
w oul d have t o depend on caret ak-
er s or even r egent s r emai n t opi cs of
i nt ense specul at i on and cont ent i on
among out si de anal yst s. Al l i ndi ca-
t i ons f rom t he Nor t h, how ever, sug-
gest t hat at l east i n t he publ i c eye,
he w il l not shar e power w it h anyone.
Nor t h Kor ea sai d t he " gr eat succes-
sor " w i l l f ai t hf ul l y f ol l ow hi s f at her ' s
songun, or " mi l i t ar y-f i r st ," pol i cy,
w h i ch h as r ai sed t en si o n s w i t h
Washi ngt on and Seoul .
Vi nod Rai
The Compt roller and Audi t or General
(CAG) of Indi a, Vi nod Rai w as on 8
December 2011 elect ed chai rman of
t he Uni t ed Nat i ons panel of ext er -
nal audi t ors. Rai succeeded Nor ber t
Hauser, vi ce-presi dent of Ger many' s
Feder al Cour t of Audi t or s as chai r -
man of t he Uni t ed Nat i ons panel of
ext er nal audi t or s. As head of t he
panel , Rai w i l l shoul der t he r espon-
si bi l i t y of over seei ng t he ext er nal
audi t w or ks and per i odi cal r epor t s
on account s and management of t he
UN and i t s speci al i sed agenci es. As
chai r man Rai w i l l over see t he audi t
of t he Int er nat i onal At omi c Ener gy
Agency (IAEA), besi des set t i ng au-
di t agenda f or al l UN speci al i zed
agenci es such as t he Wor l d Heal t h
Or gani zat i on (WHO), Wo r l d Food
Programme and t he Wor l d Int el l ec-
t ual Pr oper t y Or gani zat i on. Jagbans
Si ngh, di r ect or gener al i n t he of f i ce
of t he CAG, w as el ect ed chai r man
of t he Techni cal Gr oup of t he UN
panel . M uch of t he ext er nal audi t or s'
w or k i s det er mi ned by t he t echni cal
gr oup t hat i s mandat ed t o set spe-
ci f i c t opi cs of i nt erest t o be t aken
up f or audi t .
The account s and management op-
er at i ons of t he UN, t he speci al i zed
agen ci es (WHO, WFP, WI PO et c. )
and t he IAEA ar e r equi r ed t o be au-
di t ed and r epor t ed per i odi cal l y by
i ndependent ext er nal audi t or s, w ho
ar e supr eme audi t i nst i t ut i ons of
var i ous count r i es sel ect ed by t he
UN. Rai w i l l gi ve di r ect i on t o t he
ext er nal audi t or s and w i l l have a f i -
nal say i n pr epar at i on of t he r epor t s
bef or e t hey ar e pl aced t o t he UN
General Assembl y. The f i ndi ngs and
recommendat i ons of Uni t ed Nat i ons
panel of ext er nal audi t ors are t aken
seri ousl y, and t he repor t s are cl osel y
moni t or ed f or ef f ect i ve impl ement a-
t i on.
Aj i t Si ngh
Rasht r i ya Lok Dal (RLD) l eader Aj i t
Si ngh w as i nduct ed i nt o t he Uni on
Cabi net as ci vi l avi at i on mi ni st er on
1 8 De cem b e r 2 0 1 1. Pr e si d e n t
Pr at i bha Pat i l admi ni st ered t he oat h
of of f i ce and secr ecy t o Si ngh at a
cer emony i n Rasht r apat i Bhavan.
The Jat leader wi l l f ace t he chal l enge
of r evi vi ng t he avi at i on sect or i n
general and t he government -ow ned
Air Indi a i n part i cular as t he new Ci vi l
Avi at i on mi ni st er. The Ci vi l Avi at i on
M i ni st r y w as hel d by Over seas In-
di an Af f ai r s M i ni st er Vayal ar Ravi
af t er t he el evat i on of Pr af ul Pat el as
Cabi net M i ni st er.
Pr of. Par vi n Si ncl ai r
Not ed mat hemat i ci an and t he Pr o-
Vi ce Chancel l or, IGNOU Prof. Par vi n
Si ncl ai r w as appoi nt ed t he Di r ect or
of Nat i onal Counci l of Educat i onal
Research & Trai ni ng (NCERT) on 25
December 2011. Par vi n w i l l hol d t he
post f or f i ve year s or unt i l f ur t her
orders, w hi chever i s ear l i er. A Ph. .D
i n M at hemat i cs f r om t he Uni ver si t y
of M umbai , Prof. Par vi n Si ncl ai r has
w or ked i n t he f i el d t he Educat i onal
Resear ch and Trai ni ng si nce 1979.
Par vi n Si ncl ai r i s cur r ent l y a Pr of es-
sor w i t h t he Indi r a Gandhi Nat i onal
Open Uni versi t y. Prof par vi n Si ncl ai r
i s know n f or her w or k i n t he f i el d of
m at h e m at i cs an d d esi gn i n g o f
cour se mat er i al t o sui t l ear ner s of
t he subj ect on t he di st ance mode.
Wi t h a M Sc i n M at hemat i cs f rom IIT-
Del hi , Si ncl ai r w or ked w i t h t he TIFR,
M umbai , t i l l 1987 af t er w hi ch she
j oi ned t he IGNOU. She has been en-
gaged i n r esear ch w or k on w ays of
communi cat i ng mat hemat i cs t o chil -
dr en of al l age gr oups. Si ncl ai r w as
al so Chi ef Advi sor, M at hemat i cs Syl -
l abus Desi gn Commi t t ee, NCERT, i n
2005 and 2006.
M oncef M ar zouki
The Nat i onal Const i t uent Assembl y
(ANC) of Tuni si a el ect ed t he l eader
of t he par t y, Counci l f or t he Repub-
l i c (CPR), M oncef M ar zouki as t he
new Presi dent of Tuni si a on 12 De-
cember 2011. He became Tuni si a' s
f i r st el ect ed pr esi d en t si n ce t h e
Nor t h Af r i can count r y' s r evol ut i on
spar ked t he Arab Spr i ng. He was a
l eader of t he cent r e-l ef t Congr ess
f or t he Republ i c par t y. M ar zouki
became i nt er i m pr esi dent w i t h 153
out of 217 vot es in t he assembly, w it h
t hr ee vot i ng agai nst , t w o abst en-
t i ons and 44 bl ank bal l ot s cast as a
p r o t est v ot e by so me m em ber s.
M arzouki s appoi nt ment followed an
ani mat ed debat e w i t hi n t he Con-
st i t uent Assembl y f ocused on t he
f or mat i on of Tuni si as pr ovi si onal
const i t ut i on. He had t he suppor t of
hi s gr oup and t he ot her t w o maj or
f orces i n t he Tuni si an Assembl y, t he
Nahda I sl ami c M ovement and t he
At akat ol par t y.
Ri t a M enon
Fo r m e r Tex t i l es Se cr e t ar y, Ri t a
M enon on 3 Januar y 2011 t ook over
as t he Chai r man-cum-M anagi ng Di -
rect or of t he Indi a Trade Promot i on
Or gan i sat i o n ( I TPO) , w h i ch
o r gan i ses exh i b i t i o n s an d t r ad e
f ai r s. She succeeded Raj eev Kher,
Addi t i onal Secr et ar y i n t he Com-
merce M i ni st r y, w ho was of f i ci at i ng
as t h e CM D o f t h e o r gan i sat i o n
si nce August 2011. Ri t a M enon i s a
19 75 b at ch I AS o f f i cer o f Ut t ar
Pr adesh cadre w ho ret i r ed as Tex-
t i l es Secr et ar y o n 31 Decem b er
2011. I TPO, among ot her f ai r s, i s
know n f or i t s annual f l agshi p event
Indi a Int er nat i onal Trade Fai r.
M .P. M ur al i dhar an
The Uni on gover nment on 5 Januar y
2012 cl ear ed t w o key mi l i t ar y ap-
p o i n t m e n t s. Vi ce Ad m i r al M . P.
M ur al i dh ar an t ook char ge as t he
19t h Di r ect or -Gener al of t he Indi an
Coast Guar d. The posi t i on of Coast
Guar d Chi ef l ay vacant si nce Vi ce-
Admi r al Ani l Chopr a w as pr omot ed
as t he East ern Naval Command chief
i n Oct ober 2011. Lt -Gener al Sanj eev
Ch achr a w as appoi nt ed t h e next
Ar my mi l i t ar y secret ar y. Pr ior t o t ak-
ing over as t he Dir ect or-General, Vice
Admir al M ur al i dhar an w as t he Chi ef
of Personnel at t he Int egr at ed Head-
quar t er s (IHQ), M i ni st r y of Def ence.
Ear l i er he had ser ved as t he f i r st
Commandant of t he Indi an Naval
Academy at Ezhi mal a. An al umnus
of t he Nat i onal Def ence Academy,
he w as commi ssi oned i nt o t he Navy
i n 1975. Dur i ng t he l ast t hr ee and
hal f decades, he hel d sever al si gni f i -
cant oper at i onal and st af f appoi nt -
ment s. The Admi r al i s an al umnus
of Nat i onal Def ence Academy and
w as commi ssi oned i nt o t he Indi an
Navy on 1 Jan 1975. A Navi gat i on
and Di r ect i on Speci al i st , he i s al so
a gr aduat e of Def ence Ser vi ces St af f
Col l ege, Wi l l i ngt on.
Lt -Gener al Sanj eev Chachr a
Lt -Gen Chachra i s t o t ake over as t he
new mi l i t ar y secr et ar y w hen Lt -Gen
G M Nai r r et ir es on 31 Januar y 2012.
The mi l i t ar y secr et ar y' s post gai ned
some pr omi nence af t er a pr evi ous
i ncumbent Avadhesh Pr akash f aced
a co u r t m ar t i al i n t h e i n f am o u s
Sukna l and scam case as al so due
t o t he on goi ng co nt r ov er sy ov er
Ar my chi ef Gener al V K Si ngh' s ac-
t ual dat e of bi r t h.
Death
Dev Anand
An i con of Indi an ci nema and ever -
gr een st ar Dev Anand di ed at t he age
of 88 i n London on 3 December 2011
(4 December accor di ng t o IST) af t er
suf f er i ng a massi ve car di ac ar r est .
Dhar am Dev Anand w as bor n on 26
Sept ember 1923 and i s mor e popu-
l ar l y k n o w n as De v An an d . Dev
Anand was an Indi an f i l m act or, di -
r ect or and pr oducer know n f or hi s
w or k i n Hi ndi ci nema. Anand came
Bombay i n t he ear l y 1940s and be-
gan h i s car e e r i n t h e m i l i t ar y
censor ' s of f i ce at Chur chgat e. He
j oi ned hi s ol der brot her, Chet an, as
a member of t he I ndi an Peopl e' s
Theat re Associ at i on (IPTA).
Fi l m Car eer : He was of f ered a st ar-
r i ng rol e i n Prabhat Fi l ms' Hum Ek
Hai n (1946) soon af t er h e j oi n ed
IPTA. Anand was of f ered hi s f i rst bi g
break by Ashok Kumar. He was picked
as t he hero f or t he Bombay Tal ki es
product i on, Zi ddi (1948), co-st ar r i ng
Kami ni Kaushal . Zi ddi w ent on t o
b e co m e a h u ge su ccess. An an d
st ar t ed pr odu ci ng f i l ms af t er t he
success of Zi dd i . h e l aunch ed h i s
o w n co mp any Nav ket an i n 1949
w hi ch, by 2011, had pr oduced 31
f i l ms. Dev chose Gur u Dut t as di r ec-
t o r f o r t h e cr i m e
t h r i l l er, Baazi ( 19 51 ) . Hi s act i n g
i n Kal a Pani (1958), as t he son w ho
i s w il l i ng t o go t o any lengt hs t o cl ear
hi s f r amed f at her ' s name w on hi m
hi s f i rst Fi l mf are award f or Best Ac-
t or f or t he f i l m. He at t empt ed f i l ms
o f t r agi c ge n r e o ccasi o n al l y
l i ke Pocket maar (1956), Kal a Pani
(1958), Bombai Ka Baboo (1960)
and Shar abi (1964) and t ast ed suc-
ce ss i n t h em as w e l l . De v al so
played a f ew charact ers wi t h a nega-
t i ve shade, l i ke i n Jaal (1952). Hi s
f i r st co l o u r f i l m , Gu i d e w i t h
Waheeda Rehman was based on t he
novel of t he same name by R. K.
Narayan. Gui de, dir ect ed by younger
br ot her Vi j ay An an d, w as an ac-
claimed movi e. His di rect or i al debut ,
t he espi onage dr ama Pr em Puj ar i ,
w as a f l op. He how ever t ast ed suc-
ce ss w i t h h i s 19 7 1 d i r ect o r i al
e f f o r t , Har e Ram a Har e
Kr i sh n a w h i ch t al ked ab o u t t h e
pr eval ent hi ppie cult ur e. Har e Rama
Har e Kr i shna t hat l aunched Zeenat
Aman became a cult movi e. Dev also
became know n as a f i l mmaker of
t r enchant l y t opi cal t hemes.
Pol i t i cal act i vi t y: Dev Anand had
b een p o l i t i cal l y act i v e. He l ed a
gr o u p o f f i l m p e r so n al i t i e s w h o
st ood up agai nst t he Int er nal Emer -
gency i mposed by t he t hen Pr i me
M i ni st er of Indi a, Indi r a Gandhi . He
act i v el y cam pai gn ed agai nst her
w i t h hi s suppor t er s i n Indi an par l i a-
ment ar y el ect i ons i n 1977. He al so
f or med a par t y cal l ed t he Nat i onal
Par t y of I ndi a, w hi ch he l at er di s-
banded.
Aw ar ds: The Gover nment of Indi a
h o n o u r ed h i m w i t h t h e Pad m a
Bhushan i n 2001 and t he Dadasaheb
Phal ke Award i n 2002 f or hi s cont r i -
but i on t o Indi an cinema. He won t he
f i l mf ar e aw ar d t hr i ce- Best act or f or
kal apani (1958), Best Fi l m f or Gui de
(1966), Fi l mf ar e Li f et i me Achi eve-
m e n t Aw ar d ( 1 9 9 1) . Li f e t i m e
Achi evement Aw ard f or Out st andi ng
Achi evement i n Indi an Ci nema w as
best ow ed on hi m at IIFA Aw ard i n
Johannesbur g, Sout h Af r i ca i n 2003.
In 2004, he w as gi ven t he Li vi ng Leg-
end Aw ar d by t he Feder at i on of In-
di an Chamber of Commer ce and In-
dust r y (FICCI) i n r ecogni t i on of hi s
cont r ibut ion t o t he Indi an ent er t ai n-
ment i ndust ry.
He r ecei ved sever al i nt er nat i onal
aw ar d as w el l : He w as honour ed by
an Aw ar d at t he hands of t he t hen
Fi r st Lady of t he Uni t ed St at es of
Amer i ca, Hi l l ar y Rodham Cl i nt on i n
Jul y 2000. He w as al so aw ar ded t he
Indo-Amer i can Associ at i on St ar of
t he M i ll ennium Award. Donna Ferrar,
M ember New Yor k St at e Assembl y,
honoured hi m w i t h a New Yor k St at e
Assembl y Ci t at i on f or hi s Out st and-
i ng Cont r i but i on t o t he Ci nemat i c
Ar t s Wort hy of t he Est eem and Grat i-
t ude of t he Great St at e of New Yor k
on 1 M ay 2001.
He w as h ono ur ed w i t h a Speci al
Nat i onal Fi l m Award by t he Gover n-
m e n t o f Ne p al at Nep al s f i r st
Nat i o n I n d i an f i l m f e st i v al i n
St ockhol m i n 2005.
Ki m Jong-i l
The eni gmat i c l eader of Nor t h Ko-
r ea Ki m Jong-i l passed aw ay on 17
December 2011 af t er he suf f er ed a
massi ve hear t at t ack on a t r ai n. The
new s of hi s deat h w as announced
b y t h e st at e t el evi si o n f r o m t h e
Nor t h Korean capi t al , Pyongyang on
19 December 2011. An aut opsy con-
duct ed ment i oned t hat t he deat h
w as caused by physi cal and ment al
over -wor k. Ki m Jong-i l l ed hi s nat i on
f or 17 year s and t hr ough a devas-
t at i ng f ami ne w hi l e f r ust r at i ng t he
Uni t ed St at es and ot her global pow -
er s w i t h appr oach t o t al ks on gi vi ng
up nucl ear ar ms i n r et ur n f or f ood
and ot her assi st ance. Ki m t ook over
af t er hi s f at her and f oundi ng Pr esi -
dent Ki m Il -sung di ed i n 1994, com-
i ng t o pow er w i t h a r eput at i on as a
pl ayboy. In t he mi d- t o lat e-1990s he
pr esi ded over a f ami ne w hi ch ki l l ed
hundreds of t housands of hi s peopl e.
Ki m Jo n g- i l w as b o r n as Yu r i
Irsenovi ch Ki m on 16 Febr uary 1941/
2. He w as t he Gener al Secr et ar y of
t he Wor kers' Par t y of Korea, t he r ul -
ing par t y since 1948, Chair man of t he
Nat i on al Def ence Com mi ssi on of
Nor t h Kor ea, and t he supr eme com-
mander of t he Korean People' s Army,
t he f our t h-l ar gest st andi ng ar my i n
t h e w o r l d . I n Ap r i l 2 009 , No r t h
Kor ea' s const i t ut i on w as amended
t o r ef er t o hi m i mpl i ci t l y as t he su-
preme l eader. On 24 December 1991,
Ki m w as al so named supr eme com-
mander of t he Nor t h Kor ean ar med
f or ces.
Ki r o Gl i gor ov
Ki ro Gli gorov, t he f i rst democrat ical ly
el ect ed p r esi d en t of M acedo n i a
di ed in Skopj e on 1 Januar y 2012. He
had l ed hi s nat i on t hr ough a bl ood-
l ess secessi on f rom t he f or mer Yu-
go sl av i a. Gl i go r o v h ad b e cam e
pr esi dent of M acedoni a i n Januar y
1991 w hen i t was st i l l a Yugosl av
r ep u bl i c. He l ed h i s cou n t r y men
t hr ough a r ef er endum i n w hi ch t hey
vot ed f or i ndependence, and t he t er-
r i t or y of 2.1 mi l l i on peopl e became
t he onl y republ i c t o secede f rom Yu-
gosl avi a w i t h ou t a w ar. Gl i go r o v
served t wo consecut ive pr esi dent i al
t erms, l eadi ng t he nat i on f r om Janu-
ar y 1991 t o November 1999.
S.Bangar appa
Vet eran pol i t i ci an and f or mer Chi ef
M i nist er of Kar nat aka S.Bangarappa
w h o w as t h e Ch i e f M i n i st e r o f
Kar nat aka f r om 1990-92 di ed on 26
December 2011. He w as bor n on 26
Oct ober 1932 i n Kubat ur vi l l age of
Shi moga Di st r i ct , he w as a hi ghl y
r espect ed l eader among backw ar d
cl asses. He r epr esent ed Shi moga
const i t uency i n t he 14t h Lok Sabha.
S Bangar appa changed par t i es and
co n st r u ct e d p ar t i e s b u t f i n al l y
l an d ed i n Jan at a Dal S Par t y.
Bangar ap pa, w ho h ad t est ed h i s
pol i t i cal f or t unes i n t he Bhar at i ya
Janat a Par t y (BJP) af t er a l ong st i nt
i n Congr ess, had r ecent l y j oi ned t he
H D De v ego w d a- l e d Jan at a Dal
(Secul ar ). The t hr ee t i me Lok Sabha
member r epr esent ed Shi moga con-
st i t uency and has been a l egi sl at or
sever al t i mes. S Bangar appa w as a
keen ent husi ast i n cul t ur e of t he
st at e. Bangar appa w as i n t o st age
pl ays, si ngi ng and w as par t of one
o r t w o f i l m s i n Kan n ad a. S
Ban gar app a w as i nst r u ment al i n
hol ding t he f ir st Indi an i nt er nat i onal
f i l m f est i val i n Bengal ur u i n 1993.
Vacl av Havel
Fo r m e r Czech p r esi d e n t Vacl av
Havel w ho had been suf f er i ng f r om
chronic respi rat or y problems di ed on
18 December 2011 at t he age of 75.
He w as one of t he l eadi ng ant i -Com-
muni st di ssi dent s of t he 1970s and
1980s. He w as t he t ent h and l ast
pr esi dent of Czechosl ovaki a (1989
92) and t he f i r st Pr esi dent of t he
Czech Rep ub l i c ( 19932003). He
pl ayed a semi nal rol e i n t he Vel vet
Revol ut i on t hat w on his peopl e t hei r
f r eedom. The peacef ul r esi st ance
pur sued by hi m exposed t he empt i -
ness of a r epr essi ve i deol ogy. He
w as hi s count r y' s f i r st democr at i -
cal l y el ect ed presi dent af t er t he Vel -
vet Revol ut i on. The non-vi ol ent Vel -
vet Revol ut i on ended f our decades
of r epr essi o n by a r egi m e w hi ch
Hav el r i d i cu l e d as Ab su r d i st an .
Vacl av Havel , t he di ssi d en t pl ay-
w r i ght w ove t heat r e i nt o pol i t i cs t o
peacef ul l y br i ng dow n communi sm
i n Czechosl ovaki a and t hus became
a h er o o f t h e epi c st r u ggl e t h at
ended t he Col d War.
Vacl av Havel was bor n on 5 Oct ober
1936 i n Prague. Hi s f ami l y s asset s
were conf iscat ed by t he communist s
i n 1948. Havel w ho w as deni ed a
f or mal educat i on had t o ear n a de-
gr ee at ni ght school .
Hi s pol i t i cal act i vi sm began i n Janu-
ar y 1977, w hen he co-aut hor ed t he
human r i ght s mani f est o Char t er 77,
w hi ch dr ew w i de at t ent i on i n t he
West . Havel f i rst made a name f or
hi msel f af t er t he 1968 Sovi et -l ed i n-
v asi o n t h at cr u sh ed t h e Pr agu e
Spri ng r ef or ms of Alexander Dubcek.
He w r ot e a ser i es of under gr ound
essays t hat st and w i t h t he w or k of
Sovi et di ssi dent Andr ei Sakhar ov.
Hav el f i r st came t o i nt er n at i o nal
f ame as a dissident playwr i ght in t he
1970s. The pl ayw r i ght t ur ned pol i t i -
cal act i vi st spen t f our -an d-a-hal f
y ear s i n p r i so n f o r o p p o si n g
Czechsl ovakia' s Communi st gover n-
ment bef or e emer gi ng as a l eader
of t he non-vi ol ent Vel vet Revol ut i on
i n 1 98 9. Du r i n g h i s p r esi d e n cy,
Czechosl ovaki a broke up i nt o Czech
Republ i c and Sl ovaki a i n 1993. He
w as cr edi t ed wi t h laying t he ground-
w or k t hat br ought hi s Czech Repub-
l i c i n t o t h e 2 7- n at i o n Eu r o p e an
Un i on. Czech Repu bl i c became a
mamber of t he Eur opean Uni on i n
2004. Dur i ng hi s r egi me hi s count r y
al so j oi ned NATO i n 1999. Havel l ef t
of f i ce i n 2003.
P. K. Iyengar
The f or mer Chai r man of t he At omi c
En e r gy Co m m i ssi o n ( AEC) , P. K.
I yengar, 80, w ho passed aw ay i n
M umbai on Wednesday, was a great
sci ent i st and a r ol e model t o many
peopl e, accor di ng t o AEC Chai r man
Sr i kumar Baner j ee. He exci t ed t he
m i n d s o f y o u n gst e r s i n sev e r al
f i el ds. Dr. I yengar w as Chai r man,
AEC, and Secret ar y, Depar t ment of
At omi c Ener gy (DAE) f r om 1990-93.
He w as Di r ect o r, Bhab ha At o mi c
Resear ch Cent r e (BARC), f r om 1984
t o 1990. Pr i or t o t hi s, he headed t he
Physi cs group i n BARC. Dr. Iyengar,
w ho bel onged t o Ti r unel vel i di st r i ct
i n Tam i l Nad u , d i d h i s
post gr aduat i on i n physi cs i n 1952
f rom t he Uni versi t y of Tr avancor e
and obt ai ned hi s Ph.D. f r om t he Uni -
ver sit y of Bombay i n 1963. He j oi ned
t he Tat a I nst i t ut e of Fundament al
Resear ch (TIFR) of t he DAE i n 1952.
He w as deput ed t o Chalk Ri ver Labo-
r at or i es of t he Canadi an At omi c En-
er gy Est abl i shment . He w as t r ai ned
i n Can ad a u n d er Dr. B. N.
Br ockh ouse, a No bel Laur eat e i n
Physi cs.
Af t er he ret urned t o India, Dr. Iyengar
pioneer ed resear ch i n neut ron phys-
i cs an d b u i l t an i n t er n at i o n al l y
r ecogni sed t eam i n t hat f i el d i n t he
BARC. He l ed a t eam t hat i nd i g-
enously designed and developed t he
PURNIM A react or, w hi ch was com-
mi ssi oned i n 1972. He made a si g-
ni f i cant cont r i but i on t o t he i ndi g-
enous bui l di ng of t he Dhr uva r eac-
t or, w hi ch at t ai ned cr i t i cal i t y w hen
he was Di rect or, BARC. Dhr uva con-
t i nues t o be a w or l d-cl ass f aci l i t y
even t oday, and Dr. Iyengar ' s cont r i -
but i on dur i ng t he f i nal st ages of i t s
commi ssi oni ng w as si gni f i cant .
St art ing his r esear ch i n nuclear phys-
i cs i n t he TIFR i n 1952, Dr. Iyengar
f or esaw t he advent of nucl ear r eac-
t or s and t he oppor t uni t i es t hey of -
f er ed i n bot h basi c r esear ch and
n u cl e ar t e ch n o l o gy. He st ar t ed
bui l di ng neut r on spect r omet er s i n
1958 ar o u n d Ap sar a, Asi a' s f i r st
nucl ear react or, even before t he high
f l ux r eact or CIRUS w as oper at i onal ,
and gave Indi a an ear l y st ar t i n neu-
t r on beam r esear ch. He encour aged
r esear ch and devel opment i n mat e-
r i al sci ence, r adi at i on physi cs, mo-
l ecul ar bi ol ogy, l asers and accel era-
t or s. He w as pr i mar i l y r esponsi bl e
f or t he est abl i shment of t he Raj a
Ramanna Cent re for Advanced Tech-
nol ogy i n Indor e.
As AEC Chai r man, Dr. Iyengar vi gor-
ousl y pur sued t he nucl ear pow er
programme wi t h t he commissioning
o f r e act o r s at Nar o r a i n Ut t ar
Pr adesh and Kakr apar a i n Guj ar at .
He emphasi sed t he i mpor t ance of
t he devel opment of t he Fast Breeder
Test React or at t he Af t er hi s ret i re-
ment f rom t he DAE, Dr. Iyengar hel d
sever al posi t i ons. He r ecei ved sev-
e r al aw ar d s, i n cl u d i n g Sh an t i
Sw ar u p Bh at n agar aw ar d an d
Padma Bhushan. He i s sur vi ved by
hi s w i f e, a son and a daught er.
Ami chand Raj bansi
Char i smat i c and cont r over sial Sout h
Af r i can Indi an pol i t i ci an Ami chand
Raj bansi , 69, di ed i n a hospi t al her e
on Thursday. He was admi t t ed t w o
mont hs ago f or a br onchi al condi -
t i on. He di ed j ust a f or t ni ght shor t
o f h i s 70t h b i r t hd ay. Ni ck n amed
The Bengal Ti ger because of hi s
f i er y nat ur e, Raj bansi cour t ed pol i t i -
cal cont r over sy t hr oughout hi s ca-
r eer but r emai ned popul ar w i t h a
sect i on of t he I ndi an communi t y,
w hi ch r epeat edl y vot ed hi m back
i nt o posi t i ons t hr ough hi s M i nor i t y
Front par t y. Raj bansi and hi s w i f e,
phar maci st Shameen Thakur, w ere
t he onl y t w o r epr esent at i ves of t he
par t y i n t he KwaZul u-Nat al provi n-
ci al l egi sl at ur e. Raj bansi cl ai med t o
h av e h o n e d h i s p o l i t i cal sk i l l s
t hr ough w or ki ng w i t h l eader s of t he
Af r i can Nat i on al Co ngr ess (ANC)
su ch as Al b e r t Lu t h u l i , M o se s
M abhi da and Nel son M andel a. I n
Januar y 2009, Raj bansi r ecei ved a
Li f et i me Achi evement Aw ar d f r om
t he Indi a Int er nat i onal Fr i endshi p
Soci et y i n New Del hi .
Ram Nat h Si ngh
Po et Ram Nat h Si ngh , po p u l ar l y
known as Adam Gondvi , breat hed his
l ast i n Lucknow on 18 December
2011. Gon dvi l i ved l i ke a vi l l ager
t hr oughout hi s l i f e and w r ot e r evo-
l ut i onar y poet r y f ocusi ng on t he pa-
t het i c st at e of dal i t s and t he poor.
He h i msel f di ed i n poor f i nan ci al
con di t i on an d cul t ur al and soci al
act i vi st s had t o appeal f or donat ions
f or hi s t r eat ment . Adam Gondvi w as
bor n on 22 Oct ober 1947 i n Aat aa
Par aspur vi l l age of Gonda di st r i ct i n
Ut t ar Pr adesh. Hi s coupl et , Kaaj u
b h u n i p l at e m ei n , w h i sk y b h ar i
gi l aas m e i n , u t r a h ai r aam r aaj
vi dhayak ni w as mei n w as a gr eat hi t
am o n g t h e m asses. Go n d v i al so
cr i t i ci sed p o l i t i ci an s w ho so u gh t
vot es on cast e and communal basi s
i n hi s gazal col l ect i ons. Hi s col l ec-
t i on Dhar t i ki sat ah par and Samay
se M u t h b h ed m ad e h i m an ac-
cl ai med gazal w r i t er. He was f el i ci -
t at ed w i t h Dushyant Kumar pr i ze i n
1998 by M adhya Pr adesh gover n-
ment .
Socr at es Br asi l ei r o de Souza
Vi er a de Ol i vei r a
Br azi l ' s f o r m er f o o t b al l cap t ai n ,
Socrat es w ho l ed Brazi l i n t w o Wor l d
Cups di ed of sept i c shock on 4 De-
cember 2011 i n Sao Paul o. Socr at es
w as al so know n as t he Gol den Hee
and t he Bi g Thi n One. He w as r e-
n o w n e d as o n e o f t h e gr e at
pl aymakers of hi s generat i on. Bor n
on 19 Febr uar y 1954, Socr at es w as
part of a golden Br azi l ian gener at i on
w ho i ncl uded mi df i el der Zi co, Jun-
i or, Fal cao and Eder.
Socrat es Brasil ei ro de Souza Vi era de
Ol i vei r a made hi s i nt er nat i onal de-
but i n 1979 and capt ai ned Br azi l at
t he 1982 and 1986 Wor ld Cups. How-
ever Br azi l di d not manage t o w i n
t he cup under t he capt ai ncy of t he
former at t acking midf i el der. Socrat es
w on 60 caps and scor ed 21 goal s i n
hi s seven-year Brazi l career. He had
scor ed 25 goal s i n 63 games f or Br a-
zi l . Socr at es w as a al so a cul t ur al
i con and a poli t i cal act i vi st w ho used
hi s cel ebr i t y t o f i ght f or t he end of
Br azi l ' s 1964-1984 mi l i t ar y gover n-
ment . Socr at es w as a physi ci an and
had pr act i ced medi ci ne af t er r et i r -
i ng as a pl ayer i n 1989.
Jacob E. Gol dman
Jacob E. Gol dman, a f ounder of t he
Pal o Al t o Research Cent er (PARC)
t hat devel oped br eakt hr ough com-
put i ng i nnovat i ons di ed on 20 De-
cemb er 2011. The Pal o Al t o Re-
search Cent er devel oped comput ing
i nnovat i ons such as t he gr aphi cal
user i nt er f ace and et her net net -
w or ks. Physi ci st Jacob E. Gol dman,
as Xer ox' s chi ef sci ent i st f ounded
t he company' s vaunt ed Pal o Al t o
Research Cent er, w hi ch i nvent ed t he
modern personal comput er. In 1970s,
t he l abor at or y cr eat ed a st r i ng of
i nnovat i ons f r om l aser pr i nt i ng t o
obj ect -or ient ed programmi ng t o t he
w or l d' s f i rst WYSIWYG (What -You-
See - I s- W h at -Yo u - Get ) ed i t o r.
Gol dman pl ayed an i mpor t ant r ol e
bot h at t he For d M ot or Co., dur i ng
t he 1950s, and l at er at Xer ox i n t he
1960s and 1970s, i n f i nanci ng basi c
sci ent i f i c r esear ch i n an ef f or t t o
spar k cor por at e i nnovat i on. He be-
came a pr i vat e i nvest or af t er r et i r e-
ment , accor di ng t o t he book Deal -
ers of Li ght ni ng: Xerox PARC and t he
Daw n o f t h e Co m p u t e r Age b y
M i chael Hi l t zi k.
M ar i o M i r anda
The w o r l d r en ow ned car t o on i st ,
M ar i o M i r anda di ed i n Goa on 11
December 2011. He w as 85. He f a-
mousl y capt ur ed vi gnet t es of Goan
l i f e on canvas i n hi s t r ademar k st yl e
f or over t w o decades. M i r anda w as
t he r eci pi ent of t he Padma Bhushan
( 20 0 2 ) an d Pad m a Sh r i ( 1 9 88 )
aw ar ds. He st ar t ed hi s car eer as a
car t ooni st f or t he Ti mes of I n di a
Gr oup i n 1953 and l at er moved i nt o
i l l u st r at i on and f i ne ar t . Hi s cr e-
at i ons such as M i ss Ni mbupani and
M i ss Fonseca w hi ch appear ed on a
r egul ar basi s i n Femi na, Economi c
Ti mes, and The Il l ust rat ed Weekl y
of India brought him f ame. In his st i nt
w i t h t he Ti mes of I ndi a, M i r anda
w or ked w i t h t he not ed car t ooni st ,
R.K. Laxman. M i randas ow n books
are Goa w i t h Love, A l i t t l e Wor l d of
Humor, Sket ch b ook, Ger many i n
Wi nt ert i me, Impr essi on of Pari s and
M ar i o de M i r anda.
Vasant Ranj ane
For mer Indi an Test (medi um-pace)
cr i cket er Vasan t Ranj ane passed
aw ay i n Pu n e o n 2 2 De ce m b e r
2011. Bor n i n Pune on 22 Jul y 1937,
Ranj ane grabbed 19 w i cket s i n Test s
at 34.15 per i nni ngs and 175 w i ck-
et s f r om 64 f i r st cl ass t i es. Ranj ane
t hus made a successf ul f i r st -cl ass
debut i n 1956-57, w hen he t ook 9
f or 35 and 4 f or 36 f or M ahar asht r a
agai nst Saur asht r a. Ranj ane pl ayed
seven Test s f or Indi a bet w een 1958
an d 1 96 4 an d r e p r ese n t e d
M ahar asht r a and Rai l w ays i n f i r st -
cl ass cr i cket f rom 1956 t o 1971. He
made hi s Test debut agai nst West
Indi es i n 1958-59. Next he w as cho-
sen f or hi s second game i n1961-62,
w h en En gl an d t o u r e d I n d i a. He
pl ayed t w o more Test s i n t hat ser i es
and was t aken on t he 1962 t our of
West Indi es, w here he pl ayed one
game, t he f i nal Test at Ki ngst on. He
pl ayed t w o more Test s, agai nst En-
gl an d i n M ad r as i n 1963- 64 an d
agai nst Aust r al i a at t he same venue
a year l at er and f i ni shed w it h 19 Test
w i cket s at an average of 34. Ranj ane
w or ked f or Indi an Rai l ways as a f i t -
t er and r et i r ed i n 1994.
Geor ge Whi t man
George Whit man, t he American-born
ow ner of Shakespeare & Company,
a f abled Engl i sh-l anguage bookst or e
on t he Lef t Bank i n Par is died in Par i s
on 14 December 2011. His bookst ore
ser ved as a magnet f or w r i t er s , po-
et s and t our i st s f or cl ose t o 60 years.
Bor n i n East Or ange, New Jersey,
Uni t ed St at es he w as aw ar ded t he
Of f i ci er des Ar t s et Let t r es medal by
t he Fr ench gover nment f or hi s con-
t r i but i on t o t he ar t s over t he pr evi -
ous f i f t y year s.
Hami l t on Bobby
For mer Indi an f oot bal l er Hami l t on
Bobby passed aw ay f ol l ow i ng a car -
di ac ar r est on 17 December 2011.
Bobby, an assi st ant manager of In-
di an Bank w ho f el l unconsci ous at
hi s pl ace of w or k coul d not be saved
t hough he w as i mmedi at el y r ushed
t o t h e h o sp i t al . He h ad t w i ce
capt ai ned Tami l Nadu in t he Sant osh
Tr ophy and al so r epr esen t ed t he
st at e f or seven year s f r om 1993 t o
2000. The f oot bal ler had al so played
i n t he under -16 and under -23 na-
t i onal t eams and w as a member of
t he seni or Indi a nat i onal t eam at
Pr esi dent ' s Cup i n Col ombo.
Sat yadev Dubey
Theat re di rect or, screenpl ay w r i t er
and act or Sat yadev Dubey, credi t ed
w i t h i nt r oduci ng exi st ent i al and ab-
sur d t heat r e, passed aw ay on 25
December 2011. Dubey w as a mav-
er i ck w ho w ent on t o become a t he-
at r e gu r u . Bo r n i n Bi l asp u r,
Chhat t i sgar h, i n 1936, Dubey' s f i r st
ambi t i on was t o become a cr i cket er.
How ever af t er comi ng t o M umbai ,
he gave up t he i dea of becomi ng a
cr i cket er. Dubey came i nt o promi -
nence w i t h Dharamvi r Bharat i s ra-
di o-pl ay Andha Yug t hat brought t o
t he f or e t he per vasi ve cr i mi nal and
h om i ci d al t end en ci es du r i n g t h e
t i mes of war. He penned dow n t he
screenpl ay f or Shyam Benegal s f i l m
Bhumi ka as w el l . He penned scr een-
pl ays/ di al ogue of some accl ai med
f i l ms i n t he 1970s, i ncl udi ng Shyam
Benegal ' s Ni shant , Ankur, Kal y ug
and Bhumi ka, and al so acqui r ed a
di st i nct i dent i t y as t heat r e di r ect or -
t eacher. He w on t he Fi l mf are Award
f or Best Di alogue i n 1980 f or t he f il m
Junoon. He al so w on t he Si l ver Lo-
t us Aw ar d i n 1978 f or Best Scr een-
pl ay f or t he f i m Bhi mi ka. He shar ed
t hi s aw ar d w i t h Shyam Benegal and
Gi r i sh Kar nad
KV Var adar aj
KV Varadaraj , one of t he f ew Indi an
f oot bal l er s w ho pl ayed i n t w o Olym-
pi cs i n 1948 and 1952, passed aw ay
i n Bangal or e on 20 December 2011.
Varadaraj w as ni cknamed 6-f oot er
by t he Engl i sh. Bor n on 7 M ay 1924,
Varadaraj came up qui ckl y t hrough
t he r anks r epr esent i ng Chal l enge
Uni on M ysor e, M ysor e Rai l ways and
Bangal or e Bl ues.
Varadaraj was t he goal keeper of t he
I ndi an t eam l ed by M ohun Bagan
defender Tal i meren Ao t hat t ook t he
f i el d i n t he 1948 Londo n Games.
Desp i t e Var adar aj al so k now n as
M ysore Wal l guardi ng t he goal , In-
di a l ost t o Fr ance 1-2 i n t he f i r st
round. Varadaraj w on t he gold medal
at t he 1951 i naugur al Asi an Games
i n New Del hi as he hel ped Indi a keep
a cl ean sl at e i n al l t h e mat ch es,
beat i ng Ir an 1-0 i n t he f i nal . Lat er
h e al so w o r ked a co ach f o r t h e
HM T.
Varadaraj was one among t he sev-
er al Ol ym pi ans t o hav e emer ged
f r o m Kar n at ak a, t h en k n o w n as
M ysor e. Among hi s i l l ust r i ous con-
t empor ari es were T Shanmugam, BN
Vaj ravel u, Ahmed Khan, SA Basheer
and S Raman.
Acc used/ Resigned
Jacques Chi r ac
A Fr ench cour t sent enced f or mer
Fr ench Pr esi dent Jacques Chi r ac t o
a t w o-year suspended j ai l t er m f ol -
l o w i n g h i s co n v i ct i o n o n gr af t
char ges. He w as hel d gui l t y f or mi s-
appr opr i at i on of publ i c f unds and
embezzl ement . Thi s i s t he f i r st t i me
a Fr ench Head of St at e has been
convi ct ed si nce t he t r i al i n 1945 of
M ar shal Phi l i ppe Pet ai n w ho col -
l abor at ed w i t h t he Nazi s. He i s t he
f i r st f or mer or ser vi ng pr esi dent of
moder n Fr ance t o be t r i ed, al t hough
Nazi - e r a co l l ab o r at i o n i st l ead er
Ph i l i p pe Pet ai n w as co nvi ct ed of
t r eason and ki ng Loui s XVI w as sent
t o t he gui l l ot i ne by r evol ut i onar i es
i n 1793. Chi r ac w ho suf f er s f r om
neurol ogi cal pr oblems and i s i n poor
heal t h w as not pr esent i n t he cour t -
r oom. ser ved t w o consecut ive t erms
as Pr esi dent f r om 1995 t o 2007.
Ch i r ac' s cr i m es dat e b ack t o t he
1990s w hen, as M ayor of Par i s, he
pl aced sever al of hi s par t y men and
w omen on t he publ i c payrol l i n what
has been described as phant om j obs.
Chi r ac' s cr i mi nal conduct had cost
Par i s t axpayers t he equi val ent of 1.4
m i l l i o n e u r o s ( $ 1. 8 m i l l i o n ) . He
b r each ed t h e d ut y o f t r u st t h at
w ei ghs on publ i c of f i ci al s char ged
w i t h car i ng f or publ i c f unds or pr op-
er t y, i n cont empt of t he general i n-
t er est of Par i si ans.
Ogyen Tr i nl ey Dor j e
The 17t h Kar map a Ogyen Tr i n l ey
Dor j e w as named i n a char gesheet
f i l ed by t he pol i ce i n a Hi mach al
Pr adesh cour t on t he sei zur e of f or -
ei gn cur r ency w or t h Rs. 70 mi l l i on
f rom a monast er y i n Januar y.
Il ker Basbug
Tur key ' s f or m er Ar my ch i ef I l ker
Basbug w as ar r est ed on 6 Januar y
2012 over an all eged at t empt on part
of t he chi ef t o t oppl e t he Isl ami st -
root ed gover nment i n t he count r y.
Il ker Basbug, t he 26t h chi ef of st af f
of t he Tur ki sh republ i c was pl aced
i n pr event i ve det ent i on f or set t i ng
up and l eadi ng a t er r or i st gr oup and
of at t empt i ng t o over t hr ow t he gov-
e r n m e n t . Ge n e r al Basb u g, w h o
ser ved as Ar my chi ef f r om 2008 t o
2 01 0 , w as se n t t o a p r i so n at
Ist anbul' s Si li vri pr i son. Basbug is t he
f i r st such hi gh-r anki ng mi l i t ar y com-
mander t o be ar r est ed as a suspect
si nce a f or mer chi ef of st af f i n t he
1960s.
Rod Bl agoj evi ch
Fo r m e r I l l i n o i s Go v e r n o r Ro d
Bl agoj evi ch w as sen t enced t o 14
year s i n f eder al pr i son on 7 Decem-
b e r 2 011 . He w as ar r est e d an d
char ged wi t h a wi de-r angi ng cor r up-
t i on spr ee t hat i ncl uded t r yi ng t o
au ct i o n o f f Pr e si d e n t Bar ack
Ob am a' s v acat ed Sen at e se at .
Bl agoj evi ch, a onet i me r i si ng st ar i n
t he Democr at i c Par t y w hose publ i c
def ense st r at egy i ncl uded st i nt s on
real i t y TV, a medi a t our and a book.
He w as convi ct ed over t he cour se
of t w o t r i al s on 18 count s of cor r up-
t i on. Hi s cr i mes i ncl uded l yi ng t o t he
FBI , at t empt i ng t o shake d ow n a
chi ldren' s hospit al f or campai gn con-
t r i b ut i ons and seeki ng t o secu r e
campai gn f unds, a cabi net post or
an endow ment f or a new f oundat i on
i n exchange f or t he Senat e seat va-
cat ed b y Ob am a. Un d er f ed er al
gui del i nes, he i s t o ser ve 85% of hi s
sent ence, or ar ound 12 year s.
Honour
Ti me Per son of t he Year
Th e Pr o t est e r w as n am ed Ti m e
magazi nes 2011 Person of t he Year
on 14 December 2011. Ti me def i nes
t he Person of t he Year as someone
w h o , f o r b e t t er o r f o r w o r se ,
i nf l u en t h at i nd i v i du al act i o n can
br i ng col l ect i ve, co l ossal chan ge.
2011 w i t nessed unpr ecedent ed r i se
i n bot h peacef ul and somet imes vi o-
lent unr est and dissent f rom t he Arab
Spr i ng t o t he Occupy Wal l St r eet
movement . Peopl e acr oss t he gl obe
i n Tun i si a, i n Egyp t , i n Li bya di s-
sent ed and demanded even w hen
t hey w er e answ er ed w i t h t ear gas
or a hai l of bul l et s. The M i deast w as
t he cent er pi ece of t he year s pr o-
t est s.
US Speci al Oper at i ons Comm and
and over all commander of t he secr et
US m i ssi o n i n t o Paki st an i n M ay
2011 t hat ki l l ed Osama bi n Laden,
came i n at second pl ace on t he Ti me
l i st . Ch i n e se d i ssi d e n t ar t i st Ai
Wei w ei came i n at No 3. Rep. Paul
Ryan, w ho put f or t h a pl an t o t ackl e
Amer i cas burgeoni ng nat i onal debt
st oof f our t h. Br i t ai ns Duchess of
Cambr i dge, Kat e M i ddl et on, w ho
mar r i ed Pr i nce Wi ll i am f i nshed f i f t h.
In 2010, Facebook f ounder and CEO
M ar k Zucker berg got wa named t he
Person of t he Year.
Ti me M agazi ne ment ioned t hat Tur k-
i sh Pr i m e M i n i st er Recep Tayy i p
Er dogan was t he Peopl e' s Choi ce f or
t he Person of t he Year. In an onl i ne
poll , Er dogan recei ved 123000 vot es
nomi nat i ng hi m as t he most i nf l u-
ent i al per son of t he year si gnif icant l y
mor e t han any ot her nomi nee.
Hema M al i ni
Vet er an Bol l yw o od act r ess Hema
M al i ni w as named t he per son of t he
year by Peopl e f or t he Et hi cal Treat -
ment of Animals (PETA). PETA named
her t he Person of t he Year f or rai s-
i ng her voi ce t o oppose cr uel t y t o
ani mal s and her st aunch commi t -
m en t t o a v eget ar i an d i et . Th e
Dr eam Gi r l on behal f of PETA had
r ecent l y appeal ed t o t he mi ni st er of
Envi ronment and Forest s t o t ake i m-
medi at e st eps t o end t he cr uel t r a-
di t i o n of j al l i k at t u. Jal l i kat t u i s a
spor t event i n Tami l Nadu i n w hi ch
t er r i f i ed bul l s are ki cked, punched,
j umped on, dr agged t o t he gr ound
an d o t h er w i se t o r m ent ed. I n r e-
sponse t o her pl ea, t he M i ni st r y i s-
sued a not i f i cat i on i n The Gazet t e
of Indi a st at i ng t hat bul l s coul d no
l onger be used as per f or mi ng ani -
mal s.
Udai pur
Read er s o f i n t er n at i o n al t r av e l
m agazi n e Co n d Nast Tr av e l l e r
vot ed t he l ake ci t y o f Udai pur i n
Raj ast han as t he best l ei sur e dest i -
nat ion i n India. Raj ast han St at e Tour-
i sm M i ni st er Bi na Kak r ecei ved t he
Cond Nast Travel l er Indi a Award-
2011 f rom Uni on Tour i sm M i ni st er
Subodh Kant Sahay i n New Del hi on
3-4 December 2011 w eekend. The
award opened up Raj ast hans t our-
i sm sect or t o t he gl obet r ot t er s and
package t our operat ors i n a bi g way.
Cond Nast Travel l er i s one of t he
worl d' s most r enowned t ravel maga-
zi nes. I t s r eader s vot e f or var i ous
cat egor i es of dest i nat i ons, accom-
modat ions and t ranspor t ever y year.
Al ast ai r Cook
Engl and bat sman Al ast ai r Cook on
6 December 2011 r ecei ved M ember
of t he Or der of t he Br i t i sh Empi r e
(M BE) medal f r om Br i t ai n' s Queen
El i zabet h II at Bucki ngham Pal ace.
The l ef t -han ded o pener ' s p r ol i f i c
f or m i n Aust r al i a dur i ng t he 2010/
11 Ashes ser i es hel ped Engl and t o
a 3-1 ser i es w in - t hei r f i rst Test cam-
pai gn t r i umph Dow n Under i n 24
year s. Cook scor ed a mammot h 766
r uns in t he ser ies t o pl ay a maj or par t
i n t hat ser i es w i n. Then ser i es w i n
hel ped pr opel Engl and t o t he t op of
t he Test r anki ngs. Cook began hi s
Test career w i t h a second-i nni ngs
cent ur y i n Nagpur, Indi a, i n M arch
2006. He has t i l l dat e made 19 Test
t ons i n al l . In t he second i nni ngs of
t he f i r st Ashes Test i n November
2010, Cook made 235 not out . He
t hen scored 148 i n t he second Test ,
82 i n t he f our t h and 189 i n t he f i f t h
and f inal Ashes encount er i n Sydney.
Dam999
Cont r over si al f i lm, Dam999 dir ect ed
by Sohan Roy made i t t o a shor t l i st
f or t he Oscar s under t he Best Pi c-
t ure cat egor y. The f i l m, based on a
cat ast r ophe caused by a 100-year -
old dam i n Indi a gi ving way, is among
t he 265 f i l ms i n cont ent i on f or t he
Best Pict ure. Tami l Nadu government
i mposed a ban ci t i ng t hat i t may
cause animosit y bet w een Kerala and
TN peopl e as t he f i l m w as deal i ng
w i t h t he subj ect of t he 116-year -ol d
M ul l aper i yar dam on t he Ker al a-TN
border. The f i l m al so f ul f i l l ed ot her
cr i t er i a of bei ng exhi bi t ed t heat r i -
cal l y on 35 mm, 70 mm or i n di gi t al
f or mat and havi ng a r unni ng t i me of
over 40 mi nut es. Thr ee of t he songs
f r om Dam 999, The f i l m`s songs -
Dam 999 (Theme song ), Dakkanga
Dugu Dugu and M uj he Chodke w ere
among t he 39 songs shor t l i st ed un-
der t he Best Or i gi nal Song cat egor y.
Al l t hr ee songs w er e w r i t t en by Roy
h i m se l f , an d se t t o t u n e b y
Ousephachan. Nat i onal aw ar d w i n-
ner Har i har an l ent hi s voi ce t o t he
Hi ndi song M uj he Chod Ke.
Under 30 Achi ever s
The For bes' 30 under 30 l i st w as pre-
par ed by sel ect i ng young t ur ks f r om
12 di verse f i el ds i ncl udi ng energy,
f i nance, medi a, l aw, ent er t ai nment ,
sci en ce, d esi gn an d t ech n o l o gy.
Facebook' s M ar k Zucker berg, human
r ight s act ivi st Ronan Farr ow and pop
st ar s Lady Gaga and Just i n Bi eber
ar e al so i n cl u d ed i n Fo r b e s
m agazi n e ' s l i st o f t o p - ach i ev i n g
peopl e under age 30. The l i st r e-
l eased i n December 2011 i ncl uded
10 peopl e of Indi an or i gi n.
Among t he Indi an-or i gi n peopl e on
t he l i st i s 17 year ol d Par am Jaggi , a
st udent and i nvent or at Aust i n Col -
l ege. Jaggi cr eat ed al gae-f i l l ed de-
vi ce t hat f i t s over a car ' s t ai l pi pe and
t ur ns car bon di oxi de i nt o oxygen.
Vi vek Nai r, Chi ef Execut i ve of Dam-
ascus For t une, w ho i s devel opi ng a
t echnol ogy t hat t r ansf or ms i ndus-
t r i al car bon emi ssi ons i nt o car bon
nanot ubes w as al so named i n t he
l i st . M anvi r Ni j har, Co-Head of Eu-
r opean Equi t y Der i vat i ves Sal es at
Ci t i gr oup w as named as w el l . Kunal
Shah, t he youngest M anagi ng Di rec-
t or at Gol dman Sachs w as al so i n-
cl uded i n t he l i st . M aki ng a mar k i n
t he f i eld of science was Raj Kr i shnan,
Chi ef Execut i ve of Bi ol ogical Dynam-
i cs w ho i s devel opi ng bl ood t est s
t hat use el ect r i c f i el ds t o det ect key
si gn al s t h at a pat i ent has cancer
f r om t he bl ood. Si dhant Gupt a, a
gr aduat e st udent at t he Uni ver si t y
of Washi ngt on w ho has been l i st ed
as w el l , i s devel opi ng new sensor s
and sof t w ar e f or t he home t hat con-
ser ve el ect r i ci t y, heat and gas.
Ac c idents
Sukhoi Su-30 M KI Fi ght er Ai r -
cr af t Cr ashed
A Sukhoi Su-30 M KI f i ght er ai r cr af t
f r om t he Lohegaon Ai r For ce St at i on
cr ashed on 13 December 2011 at a
pl ace near Wadebhol ai , 25 km away
f rom t he Pune ci t y. The accident was
expl ai ned as a mechani cal f ai l ur e.
Th e p l an e l o st co n t act w i t h i t s
base' s Ai r Traf f i c Cont rol . A Cour t of
Inqui r y w as or der ed i nt o t he i nci -
dent . How ever, no casual t i es t ook
pl ace due t o t he acci dent . It w as a
r out i ne t r ai ni ng sor t i e. The Sukhoi
bel onged t o t he No 20 ' Li ght eni ng'
squadr on and w as t he 8t h IAF pl ane
t o cr ash i n 2011. The I AF l ost 30
f i ght er ai r cr af t ' s, of w hi ch 10 w er e
l ost f r om 2009 t o 2011.
Commity/ Commission/
Conference
Conf er ence on Aut i sm
Non-government or ganisat i on Asso-
ci at i on f or Behavi our Anal ysi s (ABA-
Indi a) or gani sed t he 2nd ABA-Indi a
conf er ence Aut ism: From Early Chil d-
hood t o Adul t hood Successf ul Dat a
Based Int er vent i on at Indi a Habi t at
Cent r e, New Del hi on 17 and 18 De-
cem b e r 2 0 11 . Asso ci at i o n f o r
Behavi ou r Anal ysi s i s w o r ki ng on
i ncr easi ng t he l i mi t ed r esour ce pool
of behavi our analyst s and educat i ng
parent s of chi l dren w i t h aut i sm.The
conf er ence i s f ocussed on t he chi l d
w it h aut ism and successf ul evi dence
based i nt er vent i ons f or t hese chi l -
dren. Besi des t he keynot e speakers
and present at ions, paper s w ere also
be pr esent ed by par ent s t eachi ng
t hei r chi l dr en usi ng ABA pr i nci pl es.
The conf er ence of f er ed a f i r st one
of a ki nd l ear ni ng oppor t uni t y.ABA-
Indi a i s an af f i l i at e chapt er of ABA
Int er nat i onal , U.S., and i s pi oneer -
i ng t he i nt r oduct i on of ABA i n Indi a.
ABA i s a subj ect deal i ng w i t h t he
sci ent i f i c st udy of human behavi our
and i t s appl i cat i ons i n var i ous f i el ds,
i ncl udi ng ment al heal t h, devel op-
ment al di sabi l i t i es, chi l d devel op-
ment and educat i on. ABA met hods
ar e used t o sh ape b ehavi our f or
br i ngi ng posi t i ve changes i n soci et y.
The Bonn Conf er ence
Th e Gl o b al Co n f e r en ce o n
Af ghanist ans f ut ure concl uded here.
Bonn i s t he capi t al of Ger many. The
one-day gl obal conf er ence i n Bonn
on Af ghani st ans f ut ure ended on 5
December 2011. Duri ng t he summit ,
Af ghani st an pl edged t o i nt ensif y t he
dri ve agai nst cor rupt i on i n exchange
f or i nt er nat i onal suppor t af t er NATO
f o r ces w i t hd r aw i n 2014. Ab ou t
1000 del egat es f r om 100 count r i es
and i nt er nat i onal or gani sat i ons par -
t i ci pat ed i n t he or gani sat i on. Paki -
st an didn t at t end t he Bonn summi t .
Fi r st Bo n n su m m i t w as h e l d i n
2001.
M eet i ng on Ci t i zen Engagement
t hr ough Soci al M edi a
Co mmu ni cat i ons and I T M i n i st er
Kapi l Si bal on 15 December 2011
sought hel p f r om soci al net w or ki ng
w ebsi t es and Int er net compani es i n
pr opagat i ng gover nment ' s var i ous
e-gover nance i ni t i at i ves. The obj ec-
t i ve i s t o make peopl e more aware
of t he onl i n e env i r o nm ent . Si b al
chai r ed a meet i ng Ci t i zen engage-
ment and use of soci al medi a at -
t ended by f unct i onar i es of al l l ead-
i ng I nt er net compani es i ncl u di ng
Googl e, Facebook and Tw i t t er be-
si des ot her st akehol ders. The meet -
i ng w as or gani sed on 15 December
t o di scu ss ho w t he so ci al medi a
coul d empow er t he gover nment ,
si nce under t he nor mal pr ocesses of
gover nance onl y l i mi t ed di al ogue
w i t h t he r epr esent at i ves of soci et y
i s possi bl e. The Int er net compani es
w ere asked t o gi ve t hei r opi ni ons on
how t o use soci al medi a and e-gov-
er nance t o empow er ci t i zens. The
obj ect i ve of usi ng t he i nt er net t o
i m p r o v e ci t i zen en gage m e n t i n
pol icy f ormul at i on and impl ement a-
t i on of i t s pr oj ect s and pr ogr ammes
w as hi ghl i ght ed.
Commi t t ee t o i ncr ease t he
Pr oduct i vi t y of Agr i cul t ur e
Sect or
Pr esi dent Pr at i bha Devi si ngh Pat i l
const it ut ed a 12-member commi t t ee
t o st udy and r ecommend measur es
for increasi ng product i vi t y, prof i t abi l-
i t y and sust ai nabi l i t y of t he agr i cul -
t ur e sect or i n Indi a. The commi t t ee
w i l l w or k under t he Chair manship of
Gover nor of Punj ab and Raj ast han,
Shi vr aj Pat i l . The commi t t ee w i l l de-
l i ber at e on t he need f or f or mul at i ng
r equi si t e pol i cy i ni t i at i ves and l eg-
i sl at i ve measur es and pr ospect s f or
i nvest ment i n t he agr i cul t ur e and
al l i ed sect o r s among ot her s. The
Commi t t ee wi l l also di scuss on mea-
sures f or t r ansf er of i nnovat i ons and
cut t i ng- edge t echnol ogi es t o t he
f ar m and al l i ed sect or s.
Various
Peopl es Nat i onal Par t y w on i n
Jamai ca
Jamai ca' s mai n opposi t i on part y has
w on t he count r y' s par l i ament ar y
el ect i ons, w hi l e t he r ul i ng Jamai ca
Lab o u r Par t y co n ced e d
def eat .Jamai ca i s an i sl and nat i on.
It i s si t uat ed i n t he Car i bbean Sea.
Pr el iminar y r esul t s showed t hat wi t h
50 per cent of t he vot es count ed, t he
opposi t i on Peopl e' s Nat i onal Par t y
i s expect ed t o w i n 42 out of t he t o-
t al 63 par l i ament ar y seat s.
ECU t o deal w i t h Bl ack M oney
i ssue i n IBSA Count r i es
The Indi an gover nment in December
2011 set up an el ect r oni c cent r e uni t
i n t he Fi nance M i ni st r y t o deal w i t h
t he unaccou nt ed mon ey i ssue i n
I BSA co un t r i es- I n di a, Br azi l an d
Sout h Af r i ca. The new uni t i s t o deal
w i t h gover nment s i n exchangi ng i n-
f or mat i on on t ax-evader s and bl ack
money i n IBSA nat i ons. The gover n-
ment r ecei ved i nf or mat i on f r om 10
co unt r i es on t he i ssue. Th e I BSA
el ect r oni c cent r e uni t i s ai med at
t ackl i ng t he bl ack money menace i n
t he IBSA nat i ons. The i nf or mat i on i s
current l y being dissemi nat ed by var i-
ous gover nment agenci es. Pr osecu-
t i on has al so been l aunched i n 17
cases per t ai ni ng t o LTG bank i n Ger-
many. The uni t , i n cl ose associ at i on
w i t h t he r evenue i nt el l i gence agen-
ci es of ot her count r i es, w i l l i dent i f y
and shar e i nf or mat i on on t ax evad-
er s, abusi ve t ax schemes as w el l as
of t he peopl e w ho ar e i nvol ved i n
pr omot i on of such act i vi t i es. Abu-
si ve t ax schemes ar e t r ansact i ons
designed t o reduce or def er t axat ion.
India has Double Taxat ion Avoi dance
Agreement s (DTAAs) i s cur rent l y i n
pl ace w i t h Br azi l and Sout h Af r i ca.
Repr esent at i ves of al l t he count r i es
ar e t o have an exchange of i nf or ma-
t i on and hol d regular meet ings i n t he
t hr ee count r i es by r ot at i on t o w or k
out a j oi nt st r at egy on how t o t ackl e
t h i s gr o w i n g m enace of st ashi ng
f unds abr oad and pr event w ays of
t ax evasi on.
EM B-145I Ai r cr af t
The f i rst f ul ly modi f ied air craf t , EM B-
145I f or t he i ndigenousl y devel oped
Indi an Ai r bor ne Ear l y War ni ng and
Cont r ol Syst em (AEW& C) under t ook
i t s mai den f l i ght f r om Sao Jose dos
Cam pos i n Br azi l on 6 Decem ber
2011. The modi f i ed Embr aer ai r craf t
un der t oo k i t s mai den f l i ght w i t h
about 1000 M i ssion Syst em Compo-
nent s pr ovi ded by t he Cent re f or Air -
bor ne Syst ems (CABS) of t he De-
f e n ce Re se ar ch De v el o p m e n t
Or gani sat i on (DRDO). The compo-
nent s incl ude t he cri t i cal i t em AESA
(Act ive Elect ronic Scanni ng Ant enna)
Radar Ant enna devel oped by DRDO
and cer t i f i ed f r om ANAC, I nt er na-
t i onal FAR Cer t i f i cat i on Agency. The
i n di geno us syst em, AEW& C est i -
mat ed t o cost ar ound Rs 1800 cr or e
w oul d det ect , i dent i f y and cl assi f y
t hr eat s pr esent i n t he sur vei l l ance
ar ea and act as a command and con-
t rol cent re t o suppor t air oper at i ons,
acco r d i ng t o DRDO of f i ci al s. The
syst ems f or t he EM B-145I ai r cr af t i s
cur r ent l y bei ng devel oped by Ban-
gal or e-based Cent r e f or Ai r Bor ne
Sy st e m s ( CABS) , a Def e n ce Re -
se ar ch an d De v el o p m e n t
Or gan i sat i on (DRDO) f aci l i t y. The
i ncl usi on of t hi s ai r cr af t w i l l enabl e
Indi a t o j oi n t he l eague of count r i es
capabl e of devel opi ng and del i ver -
i ng such compl ex Ai r bor ne Syst em
of Syst ems t o i t s user.
Wor l d' s Fi r st Test Tube El d' s Deer
The f i rst El ds deer was bor n vi a i n
vi t r o f er t i l i zat i on i n Thai l and. The
r esearcher s at t he Smi t hsoni an Con-
ser vat i on Bi ol ogy I nst i t ut e (SCBI )
col l ect ed eggs, i nsemi nat ed i n vi t r o
w i t h t haw ed semen t o pr oduce em-
br yos and t r ansf er r ed t he embr yos
t o a sur rogat e mot her. As a resul t , a
f aw n w as bor n on 17 Oct ober 2011
at t he Khao Kh eo w Op en Zoo i n
Thai l and. The Smi t hsoni an Conser -
vat i on Bi ol ogy Inst i t ut e pl ays a key
rol e i n t he Smi t hsoni ans gl obal ef -
f or t s t o conser ve speci es and t r ai n
f ut ur e gener at i ons of conser vat i on-
i st s. El d' s Deer i s al so know n as t he
Thami n or Brow-ant l ered Deer. It i s
an endanger ed speci es of deer i n-
di genous t o sout heast er n Asi a.
Si bsagar
The count r y' s f i r st cooper at i ve uni -
ver si t y w i l l be set up at Si bsagar i n
Assam. To be know n as t he Raj i v
Gandhi Uni ver si t y of Cooper at i ve
M anagement , it w il l of f er courses on
cooper at i ve management and t r ai n
exi st i ng manpow er i n bot h t he gov-
er nment and t he pr i vat e sect or s, t o
manage t he cooperat i ve sect or.
Deadl i ne f or Soci al Net w or ki ng
A Del hi cour t set 6 Febr uar y as a
deadl i ne f or 22 soci al net w or ki ng
si t es i ncl udi ng t he Facebook, t he
Googl e, t he Yahoo and t he M icrosof t
t o r emove al l ant i -r el i gi ous or ant i -
soci al cont ent .The cour t direct ed t he
soci al net w or ki ng si t es t o f i l e com-
pl i ance r epor t s by 6 Febr uar y 2012.
Addi t i onal Ci vi l Judge M ukesh Kumar
had on 20 December i n a ex-par t e
or der i ssued summons t o t he soci al
n et w o r k i n g w e b si t es, gr an t e d
ar ound one and hal f mont h f or com-
pl i ance of hi s order. The cour t af t er
goi ng t hr ough t he sever al pr i nt out s
of t he obj ect i onabl e cont ent s, CD
an d ot h er do cum en t s had f ou nd
t hem def amat or y and der ogat or y
and ordered t o t ake t hem of f f rom
t he si t es. The social net w orking si t es
w er e i ssued summons by t he cour t ,
on gr ounds of carr yi ng obj ect ionabl e
co n t e n t . Th e co m p an i e s w e r e
char ged w i t h sect i on 292 (sal e of
ob scen e b ooks et c), 293 (sal e of
obscene obj ect s t o young per son
et c) and 120-B (cr i mi nal conspi r acy)
of t he IPC.
Ahmedabad
I n an excl usi ve op i ni on po l l co n-
d u ct ed f o r Th e Ti m es o f I n d i a,
Ahmedabad emer ged as t he best
among I ndi as mega-ci t i es, edgi ng
out Pune, M umbai and Del hi . Thi s
f i ndi ng w as done by an excl usi ve
o p i n i o n p o l l co n d u ct ed f o r Th e
Ti mes of I ndi a by l eadi ng mar ket
r esearch f i r m, IM RB. The sur vey was
on qualit y of li f e in Indi a. Ahmedabad
bagged t he nat i onal aw ar d on 13
December 2011, i n t he cat egor y of
Best Ci t y i n t he Impl ement at i on of
Basi c Ser vi ces t o Ur ban Poor (BSUP)
under t he Jawaharl al Nehru Nat ional
Ur ban Renew al M i ssi on (JNNURM )
scheme.
Indi r a Bhavan
The West Bengal Gover nment on 28
December 2011 declared it s deci si on
t o t ake over I ndi ra Bhavan, w hi ch
w as t he of f i ci al r esi dence of f or mer
Chief M i ni st er Jyot i Basu at Sal t Lake.
West Bengal CM M amat a Baner j ee
decl ar ed t hat Indi r a Bhavan w oul d
be t ur ned i nt o a museum and a r e-
search cent r e devot ed t o Kavi Nazrul
I sl am , a co n t em p o r ar y o f
Rab i n d r an at h Tago r e . Af t e r t h e
deat h of Jyot i Basu i n 2010, t he pr e-
vious government (CPIM ) had mulled
many opt ions i ncl uding conver t i ng i t
i nt o a gover nment guest house. The
deci si on t o conver t Indi r a Bhavan
i nt o Nazrul Bhavan was t aken in pub-
l i c i nt er est and t o pr omot e r esear ch
w or k on t he gr eat r ebel poet . The
Nazr ul Bhavan w oul d house a r e-
sear ch cent r e and museum on t he
great r ebel poet who made a memo-
r abl e cont r i but i on t o t he count r y' s
f r eedom movement . The bui l di ng
w i l l h o u se p r i m ar i l y t h e p o et ' s
m e m o r ab i l i a, h i s b o o k s an d r e-
search on t he poet ' s works. The bun-
gal o w w as named I ndi r a Bh av an
dur i ng t he Congr ess Sessi on i n 1972
w hen t he t hen Pr i me M i nist er Indi r a
Gandhi st ayed t her e f or t he dur at ion
of t he sessi on. Indi r a Bhavan w as
bui l t i n 1972 pr i mar i l y t o ser ve as a
guest house f or t hen Pr i me M ini st er
Indira Gandhi for her visit s t o t he cit y.
The Lef t Fr ont gover nment l at er de-
ci ded t o al l ot Indi r a Bhavan f or Basu
t o l i ve i n and he had moved i nt o t he
b u ngal ow i n Au gu st 1989. Si n ce
t hen, he cont i nued t o l i ve t her e t i l l
hi s deat h i n 2010.
M al appur am (Ker al a) Of f -campus
of t he AM U
Uni on M i ni st er f or Human Resour ce
Devel opment Kapi l Si bal dedi cat ed
t he M alappur am (Kerala) of f -campus
of t h e Al i gar h M usl i m Un i ver si t y
(AM U) t o t he nat i on at a f unct i on
hel d i n Per i nt hal manna on 24 De-
cember 2011.
The Al i gar h M usl i m Uni ver si t y spe-
ci al cent r e i n M al appur am i s one of
t he f i ve such cent r es bei ng set up i n
t he count r y. The new campus w i l l
house f i ve host els f or men and t hree
w omen host el s. The const r uct i on
al so i n cl u d e s an ad m i n i st r at i v e
bl ock, t w o academi c bl ocks and 20-
odd st af f quar t er s. The Uni on gov-
ernment sanct i oned Rs 200cr f or t he
AM U campus w hi ch i s expect ed t o
be r eady i n f i ve year s. It w i l l have
f aci l i t i es f r om pr e-school t o a f ul l -
f l edged medi cal col l ege. The st at e
gover nment w i l l spend Rs 100cr on
t he devel opment of t he campus.
Indi a 3r d Amongst t he Lar gest
Pur chaser s of US Ar ms
Accor di ng t o t he Def ence Secur i t y
Cooper at i on Agency (DSCA) r epor t ,
Indi a emer ged as t he t hi r d l ar gest
purchaser of US ar ms w i t h cont r act s
w or t h $4.5 bi l l i on i n t he year ended
30 Sept ember 2011 as US w eapons
sal es r ose t o $34.8 bi l l i on i n f i scal
2011. Def ence Secur i t y Cooper at i on
Agency i s t he Pent agon agency t hat
over sees f or ei gn ar ms sal es. Even
t hough t he US f i r ms l ost t he bi d f or
an est i mat ed USD 10 bi ll i on cont r act
f or sal e of 126 j et s t o Indian Ai r Force
(I AF), Indi a w as l i st ed as t he t hi r d
l ar ge st p u r ch ase r o f US ar m s
t hr ough t he gover nment t o gover n-
ment channel For ei gn M i l i t ar y Sal es
(FM S). Amer i can ar ms sal es t o Indi a
i n cl u d e Nav al Re co n n ai ssan ce
p l an es, gi an t t r an sp o r t er s, se a-
sk i m m i n g m i ssi l es an d o t h e r
w eapon syst ems. Accor di ng t o t he
r epor t gover nment -t o-gover nment
f or ei gn mi l i t ar y sal es t ot al l ed $28.3
bi l l i on i n f i scal 2011, w hi l e ot her
sal es managed by var i ous gover n-
ment agenci es r eached $6.5 bi l l i on.
The Pent agon had proj ect ed govern-
ment -t o-gover nment sal es w oul d
r each $36.3 bi l l i on f or t he year end-
i ng 30 Sept ember 2011. Toppi ng t he
l i st f or t he f i scal year 2011 endi ng
30 Sept ember 2011 w er e- t he Af -
ghan Secur i t y For ces ($5.4 bi l l i on);
Tai wan (US $4.9 bi l l i on); Indi a ($4.5
bil l i on); Aust r ali a ($3.9 bil l ion); Saudi
Ar abi a ($3.5 bi l l i on); Ir aq ($2.0 bi l -
l ion); t he Uni t ed Ar ab Emi r at es ($1.5
bi l l i on); I sr ael ($1. 4 bi l l i on); Japan
($0.5 bi l l i on); and Sw eden ($0.5 bi l -
l i on).
Gr een Fi l m Fest i val
Green Fi l m Fest ival was hel d in Del hi
f r om 6 December t o 10 December
2011. Leadi ng environment and wi ld-
l i f e f il ms f r om acr oss t he w orl d wer e
scr e e n ed as p ar t o f t h e CM S
Vat avaran f i l m f est i val . Bi odi versi t y
Conser vat i on w as t he t heme of t he
f est i val . A t ot al of 114 f i l ms w er e
scr eened, t aki ng vi ew er s i nt o t he
d i v e r se ge o gr ap h i cal r eal m s o f
pl anet Ear t h t hr ough t he l ens of t he
f inest envi r onment and w i ldl i f e f il m-
makers. I t was a summi t f or Asi an
f i l m-makers, speci al programmes for
chi l dr en t hr oughout t he event and
di scussi ons on t he envi ronment wi t h
more t han 50 speakers and 300 del -
egat es f r om 15 di f f er ent count r i es.
It hel d an award cer emony f or young
envi r onment j our nal i st s and f i l m-
makers al so.
Si x Agr ochemi cal M ul t i nat i onal
Cor por at i ons
A panel of j ur or s of t he Per manent
Peopl e' s Tr i bunal , an i nt er nat i onal
opi ni on t r i bunal , pr esent ed i t s f i nd-
i ngs f ol l ow i ng t hr ee days of deposi -
t i ons by ci t i zens f r om ar ound t he
w or l d. The f i ndi ngs of t he panel i n-
di ct ed p ar en t st at es of si x agr o-
chemical mul t i nat ional corpor at i ons,
host count r i es such as I ndi a, and
i nt er nat i onal bod i es (such as t he
Uni t ed Nat i onal , Food and Agr i cul -
t ur al Or gani sat i on and t he Wor l d
Trade Organi sat i on). The panel hi gh-
l i ght ed t hat t he f ai l ur e of st at es t o
r egul at e, moni t or and di sci pl i ne t he
act i vi t i es of t he compani es made
cul pabl e al ong w i t h t he host st at es.
Wi t nesses f r om ar ound t he w or l d
had t est i f i ed i n t he f our -day Per ma-
nent Peopl e' s Tr i bunal regardi ng t he
heal t h i mpact , human r i ght s vi ol a-
t i ons and unet hi cal pr act i ces by si x
t ransnat ional cor porat i ons Bayer,
BASF, Dupont , M onsant o, Syngent a
and Dow Chemi cal .
Ger man economi st El mar Al t vat er
pr esent ed t he f acet s of t he f i ndi ngs
and also ment ioned on t he occassi on
t hat economic li ber al isat i on, der egu-
l at i on and pr i vat i sat i on of f or mer l y
pu bl i c goo ds h av e l ed t o h um an
r i ght s vi ol at i ons and unet hi cal pr ac-
t i ces by si x t r ansnat i onal cor por a-
t i ons. The concl usi on dr aw n mai n-
t ai ned t hat t r ansnat i onal have not
been r esponsi bl e i n t hei r pur sui t of
hi gher pr of i t s, and f or t hi s peopl e
have had t o pay a hef t y pr i ce.
Books
Nahj ul Bal agha
I r an' s f or mer For ei gn M i ni st er Al i
Ak bar Wi l ay at i o n 21 Decemb er
2 01 1 r e l e ase d a 1 00 0 - y e ar - o l d
manuscri pt , Nahj ul Bal agha bel ieved
t o b e a co l l e ct i o n o f l e t t er s,
sp eech es an d ap h o r i sm s o f t h e
f our t h Cal i phat e of Isl am Hazr at Al i
at Al i gar h M usl i m Uni ver si t y. The
manuscr i pt w as r el eased f or publ i -
cat i on at Al i gar h M usl i m Uni versi t y.
The Ur du, Hi ndi and Engl i sh ver sions
of t hi s r ar e manuscr i pt i s t o be pub-
l i shed by t he AM U w i t h f i nanci al
suppor t of t he I r an Gover nment .
Bahr-e-Zakhkhar, anot her book be-
l i eved t o cont ai n a r ar e col l ect i on of
Tazki ra (a sor t of bi ography most l y
i n t he f or m of poet r y) i n Per si an w as
al so r el eased. AM U' s M aul ana Azad
Li br ar y w as al so gi f t ed 3000 Per si an
manuscr i pt s and CDs by t he I r an
Cul t ur al House.
Izhar -e-Khayal
Vi ce Pr e si d en t an d Raj y a Sab h a
Chai r man M Hami d Ansar i r el eased
t w o b o o k sExp r e ssi o n o f
Th o u gh t s ( En gl i sh ) an d I zh ar - e -
Khayal (Urdu) aut hored by K.Rahman
Kh an, Deput y Chai r m an of Raj ya
Sabha i n New Del hi on 19 Decem-
ber 2011. The books i n Engl i sh and
Ur du ar e compi l at i on of hi s sel ect ed
speeches on var i ous subj ect s l i ke
Par l i ament , democr acy and gover -
nance, economy and busi ness, be-
si des i ssues of equi t y, j ust i ce and
secul ar i sm, w omen empow er ment
and devel opment . The books - Ex-
pr essi on of Thought s and Izhar -e-
Khayal w er e r el eased i n t he pr es-
ence of Lok Sabha Speaker M ei r a
Kumar and Leader of Opposi t i on i n
Raj ya Sabha Arun Jai t ley. For mer Lok
Sabha Speaker Somnat h Chat t er j ee
w r ot e t he f or ew or d t o t he Engl i sh
ver si on of t he book, w hi l e Hazr at
M aul ana Rabe Hasan Nadw i Sahab
has w r i t t en f or t he Ur du ver si on. On
t h e o ccasi o n , t h e Vi ce Pr esi d en t
highl ight ed Khans seminal cont r i bu-
t i on t o t he f i el d of educat i on and
mi nor i t y upl i f t i ng especi all y mat t er s
per t ai ni ng t o Wakf. The Wakf Com-
mi t t ee Repor t pr esent ed under hi s
Ch ai r m an sh i p w as a r em ar k ab l e
pi ece of di l i gent w or k.
Non-St op Indi a
The book Non-St op Indi a by j our nal -
i st -aut hor M ar k Tul l y was l aunched
i n Chennai by Edi t or -i n-Chi ef of The
Hi ndu, N Ram on 13 December 2011.
The book w as publ i shed j oi nt l y by
Pengu i n Books I ndi a and M adr as
Book Cl ub. Tul l y, w ho al so aut hored
No Ful l St ops i n Indi a ment i oned on
t he occasi on of t he l aunch t hat he
had ext ensi vel y cover ed Indi a over
t he l ast 20 years. The book t al ked of
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t o a count r y li ke Indi a and added t hat
bot h secul ar i sm and communal i sm
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The Of f i cial Journey t o M akkah Opus
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SCRA
Speci al Cl ass Rai l way
Appr ent i ces
Pract i ce Paper
GENERAL ABI LI TY TEST
SYNONYMS
Di r ect i ons ( Q. No. 1 t o 15) : Each of t he
followi ng 15 it ems consi st s of a word in
capi t al l et t er s, f ol l owed by f our wor ds.
Sel ect t he wor d t hat i s most si mi l ar i n
meani ng t o t he wor d wr i t t en i n capi t al
let t er s.
1. I NSPIRE
( a) Compel (b) Persuade
( c) I nfuse (d) Encourage
2. PROSCRI BE
( a) Recommend (b) Allow
( c) Advance (d) Banish
3. ABBREVI ATE
( a) Short en (b) Enlarge
( c) Decrease (d) Change
4. MULL
( a) Recommend (b) Think
( c) Punish (d) Provoke
5. VI NDI CTI VE
( a) St rat egic (b) Triumphant
( c) Revengeful (d) Demonst rat ive
6. SURFEI T
( a) Sat iat e (b) Pass
( c) Confiscat e (d) Delegat e
7. ZANY
( a) Magician (b) Pet
( c) Thief (d) Clown
8. REGALE
( a) Harass (b) Ent ert ain
( c) Express (d) Suppress
9. APPURTENANCE
( a) Privilege (b) Journey
( c) Concept (d) Necessit y
10. SYCOPHANT
( a) Suppliant (b) Follower
( c) Flat t erer (d) Admirer
11. PERNI CKETY
( a) Spit eful (b) Careless
( c) Fussy (d) I gnorant
12. QUAI NT
( a) Old (b) Quiet
( c) Haunt ed (d) Unusual
13. I NVIDI OUS
( a) I rritable (b) Harsh
( c) Sinful (d) Unpopular
14. PUNCTI LI OUS
( a) St upid (b) Wast eful
( c) Met iculous (d) Timid
15. I MPOSTURE
SCRA
Special Class Railway Apprentices
Practice Paper
( a) Claim (b) St at us
( c) Dest ruct ion (d) Decept ion
ANTONYMS
Di r ect i ons ( Q. No. 16 t o 30) Each of t he
f oll owi ng 15 it ems consi st s of a won i n
capi t al l et t er s, f ol l owed by f our wor ds.
Sel ect t he wor d which i s cl osest t o t he
opposit e in meaning of t he word writ t en in
capit al let t ers.
16. BRIDGE
( a) Divide (b) Blind
( c) Release (d) Open
17. PLATONI C
( a) Lunat ic (b) Sublime
( c) Maj or (d) Sensual
18. NADIR
( a) Progress (b) Libert y
( c) Zenit h (d) Modernit y
19. AVOI DANCE
( a) Possession (b) Passion
( c) Pursuit (d) Power
20. COMPLY
( a) Refuse (b) Agree
( c) Disobey (d) Deny
21. STRI NGENT
( a) Magnanimous (b) Lenient
( c) Vehement (d) General
22. MI TI GATE
( a) St agnat e (b) Suffer
( c) Aggravat e (d) I nst igat e
23. GOBLIN
( a) Angel (b) Hermit
( c) Traveller (d) Pilot
24. LI SSOME
( a) Ungainly (b) Huge
( c) Pungent (d) Crud
25. SPURI OUS
( a) False (b) Genuine
( c) Simple (d) Syst emat ic
26. ZOOM
( a) Soot he (b) Plurmet
( c) Subj ugat e (d) Recit e
27. TANGI BLE
( a) Gent le (b) Eluive
( c) Refined (d) Pabable
28. REPRI MAND
( a) Reward (b) Appreciat e
( c) Encourage (d) Praise
29. SMOTHER
( a) Repress (b) Cheer
( c) Nurture (d) I rrit at e
30. BOI STEROUS
( a) Serene (b) Tumult ous
( c) Brazen (d) Opaque
COMPREHENSI ON
Di r ect i on s: This sect i on you have four
short passages. Aft er each passage you will
f i nd sev er al quest i ons based on t he
passage.- First , read passage- I and answer
t he quest ions based on it . Then go on t o
t he ot her passages.
Ex ampl es I and J have been solved for
you.
Passage
I our approach t o life, be it pragmat ic
or ot her wi se, a basi c f act t hat
confront s us squarely and unmat ch-
abl e is t he desir e for peace, secur it y
and happiess. Di fferent f orms of l ife
at diff erent levels of exist ence make
up t he t eeming denizens of t his eart h
of out And, no mat t er whet her t hey
bel ong t o t he higher groups such as
human beings or t o t he lower gr oup
such as animals, all beings pr imar ily
seek peace, comfort and securit y. Life
is as dear t o a mut e crat uras i t is t o
a man. Even t he lowliest insect st rives
4 pr ot ect i on agai nst danger s t hat
t hr eat en it s life. Just s each one of us
want s t o live and not t o di e, so do all
ot her cr eat ur es.
I . The aut hors main point is t hat
( a) different forms of life are found on
eart h
(b) dif fered levels of exist ence ar e
possible in nat ure
( c) peace ad securit y are t he chief
goals of all living beings
(d) ev en t h e weak est cr eat u r e
st ruggles t o preserve it s life
J. Which one f t he following assumpt ions
or st eps is essent ial in eveloping t he
aut hors posit ion ?
( a) Al l f or m of l i f e have a si ngl e
overriding goal
(b) The will survive of a creat ure is
ident ified wit h a desire for peace
( c) All being, are divided int o higher
and lower groups
(d) A par al l el ; dr awn bet ween
happiness and life, and pain a3
deat h
Ex pl anat i on
I . The i dea whi ch r epr esent s t h e
aut hors mai n poi nt i s peace and
seccur it y are t he chief goals of all
living beings, which is r esponse ( c) .
So ( c) i s t he cor rect answer.
J. The best assur t ion under l yi ng t he
passage is The wi ll t o survive of a
creat ure is-ident ified wit h a desire for
peace, which is response ( b) . So ( b)
is t he correct answer.
Passage I
That ar t if ici al i nt ell igence quot i ent
should seek t o replace t he t ime-t est ed
I .Q. as a measure of ment al abilit y is
per f ect l y i n consonance wi t h t he
pr esent day st andar ds in a plast ic
societ y. However, t he bat t le over grey
cells whet her in human or mechanical
minds, whose lat est round has f ound
Uncle Sam shedding crocodi le t ears
over Japans fail ure t o deliver on it s
promise t o produce a fift h generat ion
comput er, may find t he Asi an Ti ger
Cu bs- Th e u n der - 3 5 Japan ese
researchers- having t he last laugh. For,
t hough all t he boast ful Tokyo t al k a
decade ago t o buil d 1, 000 processor
comput ers t o process knowledge- and
not merely numbers whi ch is all t he
Silicon Valley Chips supposedly do-has
remained j ust t al k, t he 180 young
scient ist s in t he 10- year vent ure have
nevert heless made t he big brains at
Silicon Valley look rat her silly wit h their
product which has a yen for logi cal
programming. The j ubil at ion in t he
Val ley may t urn t o depression when
t h e i n ex or abl e l ogi c of t h i s
development pulls down Washingt on
from it s pedest al of super comput er
supremacy.
31. Asian Tiger Cubs are
( a) young Japanese researchers
(b) mechanical minds
( c) t he big brains at Silicon Valley
(d) fift h generat ion comput ers
32. Uncle Sam react s t o t heir failure wit h
( a) sorrow (b) depression
( c) j ubilat ion (d) insincere sorrow
33. What have t he cubs failed t o produce
?
( a) Numbers processing comput er
(b) Grey cells
( c) The fift h generat ion comput er
(d) A plast ic societ y
34. Wh at h av e t h ey su cceeded i n
producing ?
( a) Grey cells
(b) A fift h generat ion comput er
( c) A knowledge processing comput er
(d) A product which has a yen for
logical programming
35. How is t heir success likely t o aff ect
Washingt ons supremacy ?
( a) I t is likely t o make it look silly
(b) I t is likely t o dislodge it
( c) I t is likely t o have t he last laugh
(d) I t is likely t o produce j ubilat ion in
t he Valley
Passage I I
I t is t o progress in t he human sciences
t hat we must look t o undo t he evils
which have result ed from a knowledge
of t he physi cal wor l d hast i l y and
superfi ciall y acquired by populat i ons
u nconsci ous of t h e chan ges i n
t hemsel ves t hat t he new knowledge
has made imperat i ve. The r oad t o a
happier world t han any known in t he
past li es open before us if at avist ic
dest ruct ive passions can be kept in
leash while t he necessary adapt at ions
are made. Fears are inevit abl e in our
t ime, but hopes ar e equally rat ional
and for more likely t o bear good fruit .
We must lear n t o t hink rat her less of
t he dangers t o be avoi ded. t han of
t he good t hat will l ie wit hin our grasp
i f we can bel i eve i n i t and l et i t
domi nat e our t hought s. Sci ence,
what ever unpleasant consequences it
may have by t he way, i s in it s very
nat ur e a l i ber at or, a l i ber at or of
bondage t o physical nat ure and en t o
come, a liber at or from t he weight of
dest ruct ive passions. We ar e on t he
t h r esh ol d of u t t er di sast er or
u n pr eceden t edl y gl or i ou s
achievement . No. previous age has
been f r au ght wi t h pr obl ems so
moment ous; and it is t o science t hat
we must look t o for a happy fut ure.
36. What does sci ence liber at e us from ?
I t liberat es us from
( a) bondage t o physical nat ure
(b) fears and dest ruct ive passions
( c) idealist ic hopes of a glorious fut ure
(d) slavery to physical nat ure and from
passions
37. To carve out a br ight fut ure a man
should
( a) t ry t o avoid dangers
(b) overcome fears and dangers
( c) cult ivat e a posit ive out look
(d) analyse dangers t hat lie ahead
38. I f mans best ial yearning is cont rolled
( a) t he present will be bright er t han
t he fut ure
(b) t he present will become t olerant
( c) t he fut ure will be bright er t han t he
present
(d) t he fut ure will be t olerant
39. Pears and hopes, according t o t he
aut hor
( a) can yield good result s
(b) can bear fruit
( c) are irrat ional
(d) are closely linked wit h t he life of
modem man
40. Should human sciences be developed
because t hey wil l :
( a) eliminat e t he dest ruct ion caused
by a superficial knowledge of t he
physical world
(b) make us conscious of t he changes
in ourselves
( c) make us conscious of t he changing
world
(d) provide mor e knowledge of t he
physical world
Passage I I I
As heart disease cont inues t o be t he
number one killer in t he Unit ed St at es,
researchers have become increasingly
int erest ed in ident ifying t he pot ent ial
risk fact ors t hat t rigger heart at t acks.
High-fat diet s and life in t he fast lane
have long been known t o cont ribut e
t o t he high incidence of hear t failure.
But according t o new st udies, t he list
of risk fact ors may be signi ficant ly
longer and quit e surprising.
Heart failure, for example, appears t o
have seasonal and t emporal pat t erns.
A higher percent age of heart at t acks
occur s i n col d weat her and mor e
people experi ence heart fail ur e on
Monday t han on any ot her day of t he
week. I n addit ion, people are more
suscept ible t o heart at t acks in t he
fir st f ew hour aft er waki ng.
Car di ol ogi st s f i r st obser v ed t he
morning phenomenon in t he mid-1980
and have sinc discovered a number
of possible causes. A earlymorning rise
i n bl ood pr essur e, hear t r at e ai l
concent r at i ng of heart st i mul at ing
hormones, plug reduct ion of blood flow
t o t he heart , may all cont r ibut e t o
t he higher i ncidence of heart at t acks
bet ween t he hours of 8.00 A.M. and
10.00 A.M.
I n ot her st udies, bot h birt hday and
bachelorhood have been implicat ed as
risk fact ors. St at ist ics Veal t hat heart
at t ack rat es increase significant ly for
bot h females and males in t he few
day s i mmedet el y pr ecedi ng and
following t heir birt hdays.
And unmarried men are more at r isk
for hear t at t ack t han t heir marr ied
count erpart s. Though st ress is fought
t o be l inked in some way t o all of t he
aforemecioned risk fact ors, int ense
r esear ch cont i nues i n t he hope of
fut ure compr ehending why and how
heart ilure is t riggered.
41. Wh at does t he passage mai n l y
discuss?
( a) cardiology
(b) diet and st ress as fact ors in heart
at t ack
( c) seasonal and t emporal pat t erns of
hear at t acks
(d) risk fact ors in heart at t acks
42. The wor d pot ent i al coul d best be
replace by which of t he fol lowing ?
( a) harmful (b) possible
( c) unknown (d) primary
43. According t o t he passage, which of
t he fol lowing is not a possibl e cause
of many heart at t ar s ?
( a) decreased blood flow t o t he heart
(b) increased blood pressure
( c) lower heart rat e
(d) increase in hormones
44. Which of t he fol l owing i s ci t ed as
possible risk fact or?
( a) get t ing married
(b) rainy wat her
( c) eat ing fat t y foods
(d) driven fast
45. Whi ch of t he following does t he page
infer?
( a) We now fully underst and how he
risk fact ors t rigger heart at t acks
(b) We do not . fully underst and he t he
risk fact ors t rigger heart at t acks
( c) We have not ident ified risk fact s
associat ed wit h heart at t acks
(d) We have recent ly begun t o st uff
how risk fact orswork
Passage I V
I do not suggest t hat t he cult ural side
of educat ion should be ignored. On
t he cont rary, I t hink, it is essent i al t o
t he product ion of t he sort of adult
who best fit s t he modern world. But I
t hink t hat what is import ant in cult ural
educat ion should be conveyed, at any
rat e, in t he early st ages, by met hods
far more at t ract i ve t han t hose now
used. Hi st or y and Geography should
be t aught at first by means of t he
cinema. When t aught t his way, t hey
wil l gi ve pl easure; at t ent ion will be
spont aneou s and t her ef or e t he
impression will be less t emporary. I n
spit e of reforming movement s, t here
is st ill among educat ors a feeling t hat
what is enj oyed wit hout effort cannot
have much educat ional value. I would
have chi l dr en made awar e of t he
manners and cust oms of t ri bes and
nat ions ut t erly remore from t heir own.
Educat ion conduct ed on t hese li nes
would do mor e t han many books t o
cur e provinci alism in space and t ime
and t o make chi ldr en r eal i ze t hat
act ual human bei ngs wi t h act ual
f eel i ngs can be out war dl y v er y
different from t he people among whom
t hey live, but inwardl y composed of
the same human material. A Zulu would
not appear st range, remot e or savage
but one like t hemselves.
46. The wri t er said t hat t he cult ur al side
of educat ion i s needed t o make man
( a) admire his environment
(b) suit able for modern civilizat ion
( c) appreciat e ot her civilizat ions
(d) appreciat e ones herit age
47. The wr i t er cr i t i ci zed t r adi t i onal
educat ors for not
( a) i mpar t i ng i nf or mat i on about
various cult ures
(b) imparting information about remote
t ribes.
( c) maki ng l ear ni ng an enj oyabl e
act i vit y
(d) usi ng ci nema as a met hod of
t eaching
48. The r esponse of t he l ear ner s t o
t eaching t hrough cinema is
( a) superficial (b) ent husiast ic
( c) long-last ing (d) absorbing
49. The expression t o cure provincialism
in space and t ime means t o get rid
of
( a) selfish opinion
(b) narrow views
( c) obscure ideas (d) regional feelings
50. One of t he goals of educat ion should
be t o make children realise t hat
( a) t here is a unified syst em of human
v al u es u n der n eat h cu l t ur al
diversit y
(b) t hey must respect values of alien
cult ure
( c) regional cult ures should not be
ignored
(d) human cult ure is diverse
ORDERI NG OF WORDS I N A SENTENCE
Di r ect i ons: I n t he following it ems some
part s of t he sent ence have been j umbled
up. You are r equired t o rearrange t hese
part s which are labelled P, Q, R and S t o
produce t he correct sent ence. Choose t he
proper sequence and mark on your answer
sheet accordingly. Example Z has been
solved for you.
Z. I t is well- known t hat
t he effect is very bad
( P) (Q)
on chi ldren of cinema
( R) ( S)
The proper sequence should be
( a) P S R Q (b) S P Q R
(b) S R P Q (d) Q S R P
Ex pl anat i on
The pr oper way of wr i t i n g t h e
sent ence is I t i s well known t hat t he
eff ect of cinema on chi ldren is very
bad. This is indicat ed by t he sequence
PSRQ and so ( a) is t he correct answer.
51. Al exander was a di sciple of Arist ot le
( P)
who was a great conqueror
(Q)
whom t he world acknowledges t he
great est philosopher
( R)
t he world has ever known
(S)
The proper sequence should be:
( a) P Q S R (b) Q P R S
( c) R P Q S (d) S P Q R
52. Jawaharlal Nehru
under t he Cabinet Mission Scheme
( P)
was t he first t o ar t icul at e
(Q)
long before such an assembly was set up
(R)
t he idea of a Const it uent Assembly
(S)
( a) P Q S R (b) Q S R P
( c) R P Q S (d) S R P Q
53. The man is general ly t he one
( P)
who can work very hard
(Q)
when he must work
(R)
who can play most hear t ily when he
has t he chance of playing
(S)
( a) P S Q R (b) Q R P S
( c) Q R SP (d) S P Q R
54. The report er of t he newspaper informs
us t hat Lal a Laj pat Rai spent
( P)
lect uring widely and at t r act ing many
American leaders
(Q)
t o sy mpat h i se wi t h t h e I n di an
nat ionalist posit ion
( R)
almost five years in America
(S)
( a) PSQR (b) PSRQ
( c) RPSQ (d) SPQR a
55. The pract ice of t aking per formance
boost ing drugs among at hlet es
but checking it is not going t o be easy
( P)
is gener ally conceded t o be unf air
(Q)
of t he det ect i on t echnol ogy
(R)
for t he user is generally one j ump
ahead
( S)
( a) Q P R S (b) Q P S R
( c) R Q P S (d) R Q S P
56. As light ningaccompanies t hunder
was mingled wit h
( P)
so in my charact er
( Q)
t he mut t erings of my wrat h
(R)
a flash of humour
( S)
( a) P R S Q (b) Q P R S
( c) Q R P S (d) Q S P R
57. During hibernat ion
t hey have lost a great deal of wei ght
( P)
of course t he animals consume
(Q)
and when t hey awake again
(R)
t he fat s accumulat ed in t he summer
(S)
( a) P Q R S (b) Q S R P
( c) R Q S P (d) S Q P R
58. The house
As light ningaccompanies t hunder
( P)
t hat st ands i n front of us
(Q)
was bui lt of st ones
(R)
whi ch were dug out of it s own sit e
(S)
( a) Q P R S (b) Q R P S
( c) Q R S P (d) Q S P R
59. The administ erat ion will soon launch
t o educat e t he people about t hei r
right s
( P)
a consumer prot ect ion drive
(Q)
against using fraudulent means
(R)
and t o warn t raders
(S)
( a) P Q S R (b) P S Q R
( c) Q P S R (d) S P Q R
60. Some of our social sciences
t hat cannot be at t acked by modem
societ y
( P)
such as psychology and sociol ogy
(Q)
seem t o have become
(R)
sacred cows
( S)
( a) P Q R S (b) Q R S P
( c) R S P Q (d) R S Q P
Di r ect i ons: The following it ems consist of
t wo st at emen t s one l abel l ed as t he
Assert ion (A) and t he ot her as Reason ( R) .
You are t o examine t hese t wo st at ement s
carefully and select t he answer of t hese
it ems using t he codes given below
Codes :
(A) Bot h A and R are individually t rue and
R i s t he cor rect explanat i on of A.
(B) Bot h A and R are individually t rue but
R i s not t hecorr ect explanat ion of A.
(C) A i s t rue but R i s fal se.
(D) A i s fal se but R is fr ue.
61. Asser t i on ( A) : Subash Chandra Bose
resigned from t he president ship of t he
I ndian Nat ional Congress in his second
term.
Reason ( R) : He opposed t o t he
Gandhian Movement based on non-
violence.
( a) A (b) B ( c) C (d) D
62. Rice is t he pr oduct of
( a) t ropical region
(b) subt ropical region
( c) t emperat e region
(d) none of t he above
63. Where is Pir Panj al range of mount ains
sit uat ed ?
( a) Ut t ar Pradesh
(b) Assam
( c) Jammu and Kashmir
(d) West Bengal
64. Mat ch t he following
Li st - I Li st - I I
A. World driest place1. 65.33
B. Lit erat es in I ndia 2. Calama,
( As of desert At acama
populat ion) percent age
of desert
C. Bhilai 3. I ron and
st eel
indust ry
D. Kanchipuram 4. Silk indust ry
Codes:
A B C D
( a) 2 1 3 4
(b) 3 1 2 4
( c) 4 1 2 3
(d) 2 3 4 1
65. What is a cloud ?
( a) I t is a kind of mist
(b) I t is a kind of frost
( c) I t is a kind of condensed form of
dew
(d) I t is a kind of fog lift ed above t he
eart h surface
66. About 85% of t he raw silk produced
in I ndia comes from :
( a) Kerala (b) M.P.
( c) Maharasht ra (d) Karnataka
67. The t er m secular was added in t he
preamble t o t he I ndian Const it ut ion
by
( a) 41st Amendment
(b) 42nd Amendment
( c) 43rd Amendment
(d) 44t h Amendment
68. Who finally approves t he draft of five
Year Plan ?
( a) Union Cabinet
(b) President
( c) Nat ional Development Council
(d) Parliament and St at e Legislat ures
69. Whi ch count ry is t he l at est t o j oin
t he U.N. as a member ?
( a) Swit zerland
(b) Hong Kong
( c) Taiwan
(d) E. Timor
70. I n whi ch mode of expr ession, t he
concent r at ion of a sol ut ion remains
independent of t emperat ure ?
( a) Molalit y (b) Normality
( c) Formalit y (d) Molarit y
71. Oxidat ion number of Fe in Fe3O4 is
( a) 1/ 2 (b) 2/ 6
( c) 8/ 3 (d) 3/ 2
72. The mol ecule of ort ho hydr ogen is
dist inguished from para hydrogen by
( a) t wo elect rons moving in opposit e
direct ions
(b) t wo elect rons moving in t he same
direct ions
( c) t wo pr ot ons r ev ol vi ng i n t he
opposit e direct ions
(d) t wo prot ons revolving in t he same
direct ions
73. Sodium cannot exhibit + 2 oxidat ion
st at e because it s
( a) I E
2
valuee is less t han I E
1
value
(b) I E
2
value is higher t han I E
1
value
( c) I E
2
value and I E
1
value are equal
(d) I E
2
value is zero
74. The conj ugat e base of a st r ong acid
is
( a) st rong base (b) st rong acid
( c) weak acid (d) weak base
75. An element wit h at omic number 84
and mass number 218 loses one a-
part icle and t wo b-part icle in t he t hree
successi ve st ages. The r esul t i ng
element will have
( a) At . no. 84 and mass no. 214
(b) At . no. 82 and mass no. 218
( c) At . no. 84 and mass no. 218
(d) At . no. 82 and mass no. 214
76. What is t he percent age ( %) of H
2
O in
Fe( CNS)
3
3H
2
O ?
( a) 45 (b) 30
( c) 19 (d) 25
77. The Saka era commencing from AD
78 was founded by
( a) Kanishka
(b) Asoka
( c) Chandragupt a
(d) Vikramadit ya
78. Whi ch sufi- saint dargah is sit uat ed
at Aj mer ?
( a) Baba Farid
(b) Qut ub-din-Bakht iyar Kaka
( c) Moinuddin Chist i
(d) Khwaj a Bahuddin
79. Who was t he archi t ect who designed
Taj Mahal ?
( a) Mohammad Hussain
(b) Ust ad I sa
( c) Shah Abbas
(d) Ismail
80. Which of t he following St at es has t he
largest concent rat ion of t ea plant at ion
in I ndia ?
( a) Assam
(b) Bihar
( c) Meghalaya
(d) Arunachal Pradesh
81. Among t he following rivers which river
known was as Ar un r i ver i n t he
beginning?
( a) Sone (b) Kossi
( c) Chambal (d) Gomti
82. Whi ch pl ace i s cal led as Sangam of
Bhagirat hi and Alaknada ?
( a) Dev Prayag (b) Rudra Prayag
( c) Chambal (d) Vishnu Prayag
83. Din-i-illahi of Akbar was not a success
because:
( a) Aft er Akbar it was not pat ronised
(b) t he musl im found it di ff icult t o
accept ot her religions
( c) it was not suit ably proj ect ed t o
t he masses
(d) all of t he above reasons
84. St udy t he followi ng map and mat ch
t he l i st - I ( R, S, T U, V show t he
mount ain) list -I I (t heir names)
INDIA
A. R 1. Raj mahal Hill
B. S 2. Vindhya Parvat
C. T 3. Maikal Hill
D. U 4. Sat puda Mount ain
E. V 5. Nilgiri
Codes:
A B C D E
( a) 3 5 1 2 4
(b) 1 5 3 4 2
( c) 4 3 2 1 5
(d) 5 1 4 3 2
85. I n t his map 1, 2, 3 and 4 indicat e
t hat t he corr ect sequence of I ndian
rivers

INDIA
( a) Vaigai, Cauvery, Tungbhadra and
Godavari
(b) Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, and
Cavery
( c) Cauvery, Krishna, Venganga and
Damodar
(d) Cauvery, Tungbhadra, Godavar i
and Mahanadi
86. I n t his map 1, 2, 3 and 4 indicat e
t hat gr oup of cit ies is:
WORLD
( a) Washi ngt on, Par i s, St ockhol m,
Kabul
(b) New Yor k , Madr i d, Moscow,
Tehran, Basra
( c) Tehran, Washingt on, Paris, Moscow
(d) New York, Rome, Berlin, Tehran
87. The number of f loat ing ri bs i n t he
human body is
( a) 6 pairs (b) 5 pairs
( c) 3 pairs (d) 2 pairs
88. Fish eradicat e t he mosquit o larvae is:
( a) Cut t ler fish (b) Anabus
( c) Gambusia (d) Rohu
89. A pair of insect i vorous pl ant is:
( a) Venus fly t rap and Rafflesia
(b) Nepent hes and bladderwort
( c) Drosera and Rafflesia
(d) Dionaea and Viscum
90. Consider t he following organs:
1. Cerebrum 2. Diencephalon
3. Henle of loop 4. Nephron
The organs relat ed t o brain are
( a) 1 and 3 (b) l, 2 and 4
( c) 1 and 2 (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
91. The smallest bird is:
( a) humming bird (b) rhea
( c) kiwi (d) cock
92. Which of t he following diseases spread
t hr ough i nsect s ?
1. Gambian fever
2. Chaggas disease
3. Cholera 4. Orient al sore
( a) 1, 2 and 3 (b) 1, 3 and 4
( c) 2, 3 and 4 (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
93. The chi l d shown i n t he f i gur e i s
suffering from some malnut rit ion. The
name of t he disorder relat ed t o t his
( a) obesit y (b) kawashiorkar
( c) myxoedema (d) marasmus
94. Whi ch of t he foll owing hor mones is
secret ed by pit ui t ary gland ?
1. STH 2. FSH
3. Oxyt ocin 4. PTH
( a) 1 and 2 (b) 3 and 4
( c) 1, 2 and 3 (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
95. Consider t he following st at ement s:
1. Rods are more in eyes of diurnal
animals.
2. Con es ar e mor e i n ey es of
noct urnal animals.
Corr ect st at ement ( s) is/ are
( a) only 1
(b) only 2
( c) neit her 1 nor 2
(d) bot h 1 and 2
96. Fat soluble vit amin( s) is/ are
1. Pant ot henic acid
2. Tocopherol
3. Pyridoxine
4. Folic acid
( a) only 1 (b) 1, 2 and 3
( c) only 2 (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
97. Consider t he following st at ement s :
1. Lungs are found in all vert ebrat es
except birds.
2. Book lungus are respirat ory organs
in scorpion.
3. Aquat ic animals like prawns, fishes
and t adpole respire in wat er wit h
gills.
4. Cut aneous r espi r at i on i s not
present in eart hworm.
I ncorrect st at ement s are:
( a) 1 and 2 (b) 2 and 4
( c) 1 and 3 (d) 1 and 4
98. The count ries included in Plus t hree
of ASEAN, ar e :
1. Nort hern Koria
2. Bharat
3. Sout h Koria
4. China
5. Japan
Codes:
( a) 3, 4, 5 (b) 1, 2, 3
( c) 2, 4, 5 (d) 1, 4, 5
99. Whi ch of t he f ol l owi ng i s most
urbanised St at e of I ndi a ?
( a) Maharasht ra (b) Mizoram
( c) Goa (d) Tamil Nadu
100. Whi ch St at e t our ism depart ment s
mot t o is Gods own count ry ?
( a) Tamil Nadu
(b) Himachal Pradesh
( c) Assam (d) Kerala
101. Al l t he f ol l owi ng i ndi vi dual s have
somet hing common, what i s t hat ?
1. John Kennedy Jr.
2. Zia-ul- Haq
3. Dag Hammas Skj oeld
( a) All were sons of famous polit ician
(b) All died at young age
( c) All died in t he plane crash
(d) All died in war
102. Chipko Movememt
( a) is originat ed in t he Garhwal region
of West ern Himalayas
(b) is relat ed t o environment
( c) is relat ed t o mass educat ion
(d) bot h a and b are t rue
103. The line of map connect ing point s of
equal t emperat ure at a given t ime is
( a) isohyet (b) isobar
( c) isthmus (d) isotherm
104. Arrange t he following rivers from sout h
t o nort h
1. Cauvery 2. Krishna
3. Godavari 4. Mahanadi
Codes:
( a) 1 , 3, 2, 4 (b) 3, 4, 1, 2
( c) 2, 4, 3, 1 (d) 1, 2, 3, 4
105. Kuchipudi dance was originat ed by
( a) Andhra Pradesh
(b) Karnataka
( c) Punj ab (d) Raj ast han
106. No money bil l can be i nt roduced in
t he Lok Sabha wit hout t he approval
of t he
( a) Vice President
(b) President
( c) Prime Minist er
(d) Finance Minist er
107. Whi ch of t he Mughal emperors was a
wel l known poet ?
( a) Akbar
(b) Shahj ahan
( c) Humayun
(d) Bahadurshah Jafar
108. When a mango is kept in dilut e aqueous
solut ion of HCl, it
( a) swells (b) burst s
( c) shrinks (d) none of t hese
109. Arrange H
2
SO
4
( I ) , H
3
PO
4
( I I ) and
HClO
4
(I I I ) in decreasing order of acidic
st rengt h
( a) I > I I I > I I (b) I > I I > I I I
( c) I I I > I I > I (d) I I I > I > I I
110. Whi ch of t he following is a chemi cal
change?
( a) Melting of sodium in nuclear reactor
(b) Melt ing of st eel
( c) Sublimat ion of iodine
(d) Explosion of dynamit e
111. The composit ion of Duralumin is
( a) Al = 94%, Mg = 6%
(b) Cu = 56%, Zn = 24%, Ni = 20%
( c) Cu = 95%, Al = 5%
(d) Al = 95%, Cu = 4%, Mn = 0.5%,
Mg = 0.5%
112. Whi ch one of t he f ollowing pairs is
cor rect y mat ched ?
( a) Elect ron - J.J. Thomson
(b) Ch ar ge on el ect r on - James
Chadwick
( c) Nucleus - Millikan
(d) Neut ron - Rut herford
113. Whi ch one of t he f ol l owing i s t he
common glass ?
( a) K
2
SiO
3
. CaSiO
3
.4SiO
2
(b) Na
2
SiO
3
. CaSiO
3
.4SiO
2
( c) K
2
SiO
3
. PbSiO
3
.4SiO
2
(d) Na
2
SiO
3
114. Whi ch one of t he f ol l owing i s t he
anhydride of sulphurous acid ?
( a) H
2
SO
4
(b) SO
2
( c) SO
3
(d) H
2
S
115. Mat ch list - I wit h list - I I and select t he
correct answer using t he codes given
bel ow t he list s:
( Chemi cal ) ( For mul ae)
A. Washing soda1. Pb( OH)
2
. 2PbCO
3
B. Lime st one 2. Pb
3
O
4
C. Red lead 3. Na2CO
3
.10H2O
D. Whit e lead 4. CaCO
3
Codes:
A B C D
( a) 1 2 3 4
(b) 3 4 2 1
( c) 4 3 2 1
(d) 4 3 1 2
116. Which of t he following st at ement s are
t rue regarding graphit e ?
1. I t is t he cryst alline allot rope of
carbon.
2. CC bond dist ance is great er t han
diamond.
3. The hybr i di sat i on of car bon i n
graphit e is sp
3
.
4. Graphit e is t he good conduct or of
heat and elect ricit y.
Whi ch of t hese st at ement s ar e
correct ?
( a) 1 and 2 (b) 3 and 4
( c) 1 and 4 (d) 2 and 4
117. Heavy wat er i s a compound of :
( a) hydrogen and heavier isot ope of
oxygen
(b) heavier isot opes of hydrogen and
oxygen
( c) oxygen and heavi er i sot ope of
hydrogen
118. Which general was r esponsible f or
Jallianwala Bagh t ragedy ?
( a) General Dalhousie
(b) General Dyer
( c) General Mount bat t en
(d) General William Bent inck
119. Which is t he sout hrnmost place in t he
I ndian union ?
( a) Kanyakumari (b) Rameshwaram
( c) I ndira Point (d) Vivekanand
120. Who is l egal ly compet ent under t he
I ndi an Const it ut ion t o declare war or
conclude peace ?
( a) Prime Minist er
(b) The President
( c) The Parliament
(d) The Council of Minist ers
1. Whi ch of t he following st at ement is
not corr ect about vinyl chloride ?
( a) I t can be prepared by addit ion of
hydrogen chloride t o et hyne.
(b) I t can be co-polymerised wit h vinyl
acet at e t o give st rong adhesive
copol ymers sui t able for surface
coat ings.
( c) I t pol ymer i ses t o gi ve P. V.C. a
t hermoplast ic polymer.
(d) I t i s mor e r eact i v e t owar ds
nucleophiles t han et hyl chloride.
2. Whi ch one of t he f ollowing is known
as west rosol ?
( a) Acet ylene t et rachloride
(b) Acet ylene dichloride
( c) Trichloroet hylene
(d) Allyl chloride.
3. The compound wit h no dipole moment
is
( a) met hyl chloride.
(b) carbon t et rachloride.
( c) met hylene chloride.
PHYSI CAL SCI ENCE
(d) chloroform.
4. I f chlor oform is l eft open in ai r in t he
presence of sun rays,
( a) explosion t akes place.
(b) poisonous gas phosgene is formed.
( c) polymerisat ion t akes place.
(d) No react ion t akes place.
5. Whi ch of t he following st at ement s is
not corr ect about t he haloalkanes ?
( a) They are derived from alkenes by
replacement of one of it s hydrogen
at oms by halogens.
(b) They can be pr epar ed by t he
addit ion of hydr ogen hal ides t o
alkenes.
( c) They un der go nu cl eoph i l i c
subst it ut ion react ions in which t he
hal ogen at om i s r epl aced by
anot her at om or group.
(d) They can be reduced wit h lit hium
al umini um hydri de t o gi ve t he
corresponding alkanes.
incorrect about t he al kyl halides ?
( a) They belong t o t he homogolous
series of general formula
CnH
2n+ 1
X where X = Cl, Br or I
and n = 1, 2, 3 et c.
(b) They can be pr epar ed by t he
react ion of t he hydrogen halide and
t he appropriat e alcohol e.g.
ROH + HX RX + H
2
O.
( c) They show react ivit y in t he order
RCl > RBr > RI where R = alkyl
group.
(d) They form nit rit es when refluxed
wit h pot assium cyanide in et hanol.
not corr ect about chlorofor m ?
( a) I t is a highly inflammable liquid.
(b) I t is a colourless, sweet - smelling
liquid almost insoluble in wat er.
( c) I t can be used as an anaest het ic.
(d) I t can be prepared by t he haloform
react ion.
8. Freon 114 is an organic subst ance
u sed i n r ef r i ger at or s an d ai r
condit ioners. I t is chemically called 1,
2 dichloro t et raf luoro et hane. I t s
correct formula is
( a)
F F
| |
Cl C C H
| |
Cl Cl
(b)
F F
| |
H C C H
| |
Cl Cl
( c)
CI F
| |
F C C CI
| |
F F
(d)
F Cl F
| | |
F C C C F
| | |
CI H F
9. When a solut i on of sodium chlori de,
cont aining et hyl alcohol is elet rolysed,
it forms
( a) et hyl alcohol. (b) chloral.
( c) chloroform. (d) acet aldehyde.
10. When chlorobenzene is heat ed wit h
chlor al and cone. H
2
SO
4
which one of
t he following compounds is formed ?
( a) Phenol (b) Benzoic acid
( c) Polyt hene (d) D.D.T.
11. 1, 2-Dichloropropane is refluxed under
a wat er - cool ed condenser f or some
t ime wit h sodium hydroxide solut ion.
The product is
( a) propionaldehyde.
(b) propanol.
( c) propionic acid.
(d) 1- chloro-l- hydroxypropane.
12. A compound was refluxed wit h excess
KOH sol ut i on f or an hour. Af t er
acidif icat ion wi t h nit ri c acid, si lver
nit r at e was added. No precipit at e,
appear ed. Wat er compound coul d
have been
( a) CH
3
CH
2
I (b) CH
3
CH
2
CH
2
Br
( c) CH
3
COOl (d) C
6
H
5
Cl
13. When chloroform is t reat ed wit h a
primary amine and KOH we get
( a) rose odour smell.
(b) sour almond smell.
( c) bad nect ar- like smell.
(d) sour oil of wint er green like smell.
14. A sample of chloroform being used as
an anaest het ic is t est ed by
( a) Fehling solut ion.
(b) ammoniacal CuCl.
( c) AgNO
3
solut ion.
(d) AgNO
3
solut ion aft er boiling wit h
alk KOH.
15. The react ion least li kely t o occur is
( a)
+ HNO
3
NO
2
H SO
2 4
(b)
+ Cl
2
Cl
ultraviolet
light
( c)
+ H SO
2 4
SO H
2
(d)
+ Br
2
Br
Fe
16. Whi ch of t he fol lowing is t he corr ect
f or mu l a f or di ch l or odi ph en y l
t richloroet hane ?
( a) Cl CCCl
Cl
Cl
H Cl
(b)
CCCl
Cl
Cl
H Cl
( c) Cl CCCl
Cl
Cl
H Cl
(d) CCCl
Cl
Cl
Cl Cl
17. An at t empt was made t o prepare et hyl
iodide by gent ly warming met hylat ed
spi rit , pot assium iodide cryst als and
concent rat ed sulphuric acid, no et hyl
iodide was produced because
( a) t he mixt ure should not have been
warmed.
(b) t he al cohol was dehydr at ed t o
et hylene.
( c) met hyl iodide was produced since
met hylat ed spirit is mainly met hyl
alcohol.
(d) t he pot assium iodide was oxidised
t o i odine, which does not r eact
wi t h al cohol un der t h ese
condit ions.
18. When glycerol is heat ed wit h oxalic
aci d at 260C, i t gi ves
( a) formic acid.
(b) allyl alcohol.
( c) glyceryl oxalat e.
(d) alkyl alcohol.
19. When glycerol is heat ed wit h oxalic
aci d at 170C, it yields
( a) HCOOH.
(b) HCOOH and allyl alcohol.
( c) t art aric acid.
(d) allyl alcohol.
20. Which of t he following is t he st ruct ure
of cellosolve ?
( a) ClH
5
OCH
2
CH
2
OCH
2
CH
2
OH
(b) CH
3
OCH
2
CH
2
OCH
2
CH
2
OCH
3
( c) CH
3
CH
2
OCH
2
CH
2
OH
(d) None of t hese.
21. I n cold count ries glycerol is added t o
t he wat er i n t he r adi at or of car s
during wint er. This helps t o
( a) bring down t he specific heat of
wat er.
(b) lower t he freezing point .
( c) reduce t he viscosit y.
(d) make wat er a bet t er lubricant .
22. Dy nami t e i s obt ai ned by mi xi ng
nit roglycerine wit h
( a) saw dust and NH 4NO
3
.
(b) cellulose nit rat e.
( c) cellulose nit rat e and vaseline.
(d) T.N.T.
23. Diket opiperazine is obtained by heat ing
( a) met hylamine.
(b) glycine.
( c) propionic acid.
(d) ammonium acet at e.
24. When et hyl alcohol is heat ed wi t h
conc. H
2
SO
4
at 140C, t he product
obt ained is
( a) et hylene.
(b) diet hyl et her.
( c) diet hyl sulphat e.
(d) et hyl hydrogen sulphat e.
25. Et hyl alcohol can be distinguished from
met hyl alcohol by
( a) act ion of Cl
2
.
(b) act ion of NH
3
.
( c) determining their solubilities in H
2
O.
(d) iodoform t est .
incorrect about et hyl ene glycol ?
( a) I t is a colourless liquid b.p. 197C,
used as an ant ifreeze.
(b) I t is a dihydric alcohol.
( c) I t forms two series of esters, et hers
and halides.
(d) I t react s wit h sodium t o give t he
disodium salt .
27. Whi ch of t he following st at ement is
not t rue ?
( a) Oxidat ion of a primary alcohol wit h
chr omi c aci d ( Na
2
Cr
2
O
7
an d
H
2
SO
4
) yields an aldehyde as t he
first oxidat ion product .
(b) Oxidat ion of a primary alcohol wit h
pot assium permanganat e yields a
carboxylic acid.
( c) Oxidation of secondary alcohol wit h
chromic acid yields a. ket one.
(d) A secondary alcohol wit h chromic
aci ds yi el ds t he cor r espondi ng
carboxylic acid.
28. Which of t he f oll owi ng react s wi t h
Lucas reagent most readil y ?
( a) CH
3
CH
2
Cl
(b) CH
3
CH
2
CH
( c) CH
2
= CH
2
CH
3
(d)
3
3
3
CH
|
CH C OH
|
CH
29. Which of t he foll owing product s is
obt ained by heat i ng gl ycer ine wit h
Ba( OH)
2
?
( a) Methylamine
(b) Acet amide
( c) Acet ic acid
(d) Barium acet at e.
30. Whi ch pr oduct i s obt ai ned when
gl ycer ol i s heat ed wi t h pot assi um
bisulphat e ?
( a) Acrolein
(b) Allyl alcohol
( c) Acet ic acid
(d) None of t hese.
31. When a mi x t ur e of et hanol and
met hanol are heat ed in t he presence
of concent r at ed H
2
SO
4
t he or gani c
product ( s) i s ( are)
( a) CH
3
OC
2
H
5
(b) CH
3
OCH
3
and C
2
H
5
OC
2
H
5
( c) CH
3
OC
2
H
3
and CH
3
OCH
3
(d) CH
3
OC
2
H
5
, CH
3
OCH
3
, and
C
2
H
5
OC
2
H
5
32. The hydrolysis of st earin produces
st earic acid and
( a) sodium hydroxide.
(b) glycerol.
( c) hydrochloric acid.
(d) propyl alcohol.
33. Pri mary alcohols cannot be prepared
by
( a) h y dr at i on of al k enes i n t h e
presence of acid.
(b) reduct ion of ket ones wit h zinc and
hydrochloric acid.
( c) hydr ol ysis of al kyl hali des wi t h
aqueous alkali.
(d) hydrol ysis of et hers i n st rongly
acidic condit ions.
34. Rect ified spirit is a mixt ure of
( a) 95% et hyl alcohol + 5% wat er.
(b) 94% et hyl alcohol + 4.53% wat er.
( c) 94. 47% et hyl al cohol + 5. 43%
wat er.
(d) 95. 57% et hyl al cohol + 4. 43%
wat er.
35. Lucas r eagent for i dent i f icat i on of
alcohol is
( a) P
4
, I
2
and AgNO
2
(b) Alkaline KMnO
4
( c) conc. HCl and anhy. ZnCl
2
(d) hot reduced copper.
36. The boi ling point of et hanol is higher
t han t hat of met hanol . The mai n
reason for t his is t hat
( a) t he r elat i ve mol ecul ar mass of
et hanol i s hi gher t han t hat of
met hanol.
(b) t here are hydrogen bonds bet ween
et hanol molecules, but not bet ween
met hanol molecules.
( c) t he Van der Waals forces bet ween
et hanol molecules ar e st ronger
t han t hose bet ween met hanol
molecules.
(d) t he, covalent bonds in t he et hanol
molecule are st ronger t han t hose
in t he met hanol molecule.
37. An organic compound dissolved in dry
ben zen e ev ol v ed h y dr ogen on
t reat ment wit h sodium. I t is
( a) a ket one.
(b) an aldehyde.
( c) a t ert iary amine.
(d) an alcohol.
38. Tinct ure of i odine consist s of
( a) a solut ion of iodine in alcohol.
(b) a solut ion of iodine in wat er.
( c) a precipit at e of iodine in wat er.
(d) pure iodine.
39. When acet yl chlori de is reduced wit h
LiAlH
4
, t he product formed is
( a) met hyl alcohol.( b) et hyl alcohol.
( c) acet aldehyde. (d) acet one.
40. What product is obt ained by t reat ing
alcohols wit h Grignards reagent ?
( a) Alkanes (b) Alkenes
( c) Alkynes (d) Higher alcohols.
41. Et hyl et her on heat ing in t he presence
of Al
2
O
3
at 400 gi ves
( a) acet ylene. (b) et hylene.
( c) et hane. (d) et hyl alcohol.
42. Whi ch of t he following reagent s can
dist inguish aldehyde and ket one ?
( a) Fehlings solut ion
(b) H
2
SO
4
solut ion
( c) NaHSO
4
solut ion
(d) NH
3
solut ion
43. Formaldehyde react s wit h NH3 t o form
urot ropine which has t he composit ion
( a) ( CH
2
)
4
N
6
(b) ( CH
2
)
5
N
5
( c) ( CH
2
)
6
N
4
(d) ( CH
2
)
6
N
6
44. On strongly heat ing anhydrous calcium
acet at e, which compound is formed ?
( a) Acet one
(b) Ether
( c) Acet ic anhydride
(d) Carbon monoxide.
45. When di et hyl et her is heat ed wi t h
phosphorus pent achloride, it yields
( a) et hyl chloride.
(b) 1, 1' -dichloroet hyl et her.
( c) Bot h ( A) and ( B) .
(d) None of t hese.
46. When sodi um et hoxi de and et hyl
chl or i de ar e heat ed, t he pr oduct
formed is
( a) et her. (b) et hyl alcohol.
( c) acet aldehyde. (d) acet ic acid.
corr ect in case of aliphat ic aldehydes
and ket ones?
( a) Al dehydes ar e by oxi dat i on of
primary alcohols and ket ones by
t hat of secondary alcohols.
(b) Al deh y des ar e obt ai n ed by
oxidat ion of secondary alcohols
and ket ones by t hat of primary
alcohols.
( c) Aldehydes and ket ones cannot be
represent ed by t he same general
formula.
(d) Aldehydes and ket ones cannot be
oxidised furt her.
48. A compound X wit h molecular formula
C
4
H
8
O does not r eact wit h sodi um,
displaci ng hydrogen, neit her does it
react wi t h phosphorus pent achlor ide
t o give hydrogen chlori de. X reduces
an alkaline solut ion of copper ( I I ) salt
on gen t l e h eat i n g. Fr om t h i s
inf ormat ion we can say t hat X is
( a) a primary alcohol.
(b) a secondary alcohol.
( c) a t ert iary alcohol.
(d) an aldehyde.
49. When et hyl iodide is t reat ed wit h silver
oxi de, t he pr oduct obt ained is
( a) C
2
H
5
OH
(b) C
2
H
5
OC
2
H
5
( c) Bot h ( a) and ( b)
(d) None of t hese.
50. The react ion in which an alkyl hal ide
on t reat ment alkoxide yields et her is
known as
( a) Kolbes react ion.
(b) Williamsons.
( c) Wurt zs react ion.
(d) Hydrolysis.
51. Et her can be freed from per oxide by
shaking wit h
( a) ferrous salt solut ion.
(b) copper sulphat e solut ion.
( c) ferric salt solut ion.
(d) None of t hese.
52. Wi l l i amsons synt hesi s i s used t o
prepare
( a) acet one. (b) diet hyl et her.
( c) PVC. (d) Bakelit e.
53. Which of t he following is more react ive
t owards t he nucleophilic r eagent s ?
( a) HCHO
(b) CH
3
COCH
3
( c) CH
3
CHO (d) None of t hese.
54. Schif fs reagent is
( a) ammoniacal silver nit rat e.
(b) ammoniacal cuprous chloride.
( c) r eseani l i ne sol ut i on i n wat er
decolarised by SO
2
.
(d) None of t hese.
55. Schiffs reagent gives pink colour wit h
( a) alcohols.
(b) acet aldehyde.
( c) acet one.
(d) mesit ylene chloride.
56. Acet one on di st i l l at i on wi t h conc.
H
2
SO
4
gi ves
( a) m-xylene. (b) mesit ylene.
( c) cumene. (d) None of t hese.
57. When diet hyl et her is t reat ed wit h
chlorine, it yields
( a) et hane.
(b) et hyl chloride,
( c) perchlorodiet hyl et her.
(d) acet yl chloride.
58. I n cont act wi t h ai r or ozone, et hers
form
( a) acids. (b) alcohols.
( c) peroxides. (d) aldehydes.
59. Formaldehyde condenses wit h phenol
in t he presence of dil. H
2
SO
4
t o yield
( a) Bakelit e. (b) Nylon.
( c) Lewisit e. (d) Formose.
60. Which of t he foll owing compounds
woul d under go t he Canni zzar o s
react ion ?
( a) Acet aldehyde (b) Benzaldehyde
( c) Propionaldehyde
(d) Anisale.
61. A coi l of r esi st ance 20 ohms and
induct ance 0. 5 henry i s swi t ched on
t o direct current 200 volt supply. Find
t he rat e of increase of current at t he
inst ance of closing t he swit ch.
( a) 200 amp/ sec ( c) 100 amp/ sec
( c) 400 amp/ sec (d) None of t hese
62. Th e r esi st an ce of a r esi st an ce
t hermomet er at 19C is 3.50 ohm and
at 99C is 3.66 ohm. At what t emperat ure
it s resist ance wi ll be 4.30 ohm ?
( a) 217C (b) 419C
( c) 313C (d) None of t hese
63. Four resist ors are connect ed bet ween
t wo point s X and Y in an elect ric circuit
as shown below :
6 9
5
2 1
X
P
Q
Y
1
The 5W r esist ance develops 20. 00
cal ls of heat due t o current flowing
t hrough it . The heat developed in 2W
resi st ance ( in calls) is
( a) 14.2 (b) 7.1
( c) 20 (d) 15.3
64. An elect rical wire made of copper is
st ret ched t o make it 0.1% longer. The
per cent age change in resist ance i s :
( a) 0.1% (b) 0.01%
( c) 0.2% (d) 0.02%
65. Two resi st ances of 400 W and 800 W
ar e connect ed i n ser i es wi t h 6 V
bat t er y of n egl i gi bl e i n t er n al
r esi st ance. A vol t met er r esi st ance
10, 000 W i s used t o measur e t he
prot ent ial difference across 400W. The
error in t he measurement of pot ent ial
difference in volt s approximat ely is :
( a) 0.01 (b) 0.02
( c) 0.04 (d) 0.05
66. A galvanomet er, having resi st ance of
500, gives a full scale deflect ion for a
current of 0.05 A. The lengt h in met re
of a resist ance wire of ar ea of cross-
sect ion 2.97 10
2
cm
2
t hat can be
used t o convert t he galvanomet er int o
an ammet er, whi ch can r ead a
maximum of 5. A current is
( Specifi c resist ance of t he wire = 5
10
2
.Wm)
( a) 9 (b) 6
( c) 3 (d) 1.5
67. A wi r e AB car r i es a cur r ent ( as
shown) . I t consi st s of a circular arc
of radius R and cent ral angl e
2
rad,
and t wo st r ai ght sect i ons whose
ext ensions int ersect t he ; ent re C of
t he arc.
The magnetic field produced by current
at C is
A
1
I
B
2
R
C
3
( a)
0
4R
i
(b)
0
2R
i
( c)
0
R
i
(d) Zero
68. A wi r e car r y i n g cu r r en t i h as
configur at ion as shown below :
Two semi - infi nit e st rai ght sect ions,
bot h t angent t o t he same cir cle, are
connect ed by a circular arc, of cent ral
angle q, along t he cir cumference of
t he cir cle, wit h all sect ions lying in
t he same pl ane. The val ue of B
r
( magnet ic fi el d) t o be zer o at t he
cent re, t he value of 0 in radi us i s :
R
I
I
( a) 1 rad (b) 2 rad
( c) 3 rad (d) 4 rad
69. Four long wir es ar e par allel t o each
ot her, t heir cross sect ions forming t he
cor ners of a squar e wit h side x = 10
cm. A 10A current exist s in each wire
in t he direct ion shown below
The magnit ude of
B
r
at t he cent re of
t he square is
x
x = 10 cm
x
x = 10 cm
A B
C D
( a) 8 10
8
T (b) 8 10
8
T
( c) 0.80 T (d) 0
70. The gi ven f i gur e shows t he cr oss
sect ion of a long conduct ing cylinder
wit h inner radius a = 2.0 cm and out er
radius b = 4.0 cm.
The cyl inder car ries a current out of
t he page, and curr ent densi t y J is
given 06 by J = cr
2
, where c = 3
10
6
A/ m4. The value of magnet ic field
B at a point 3.0 cm f rom cent r al axis
of t he cyli nder is
a
b
( a) 20.0 10
5
T(b) 2.0 10
5
T
( c) 0.20 10
5
T(d) 0.002 10
5
T
71. Two wires, bot h of lengt h L, are formed
int o a circle and a square, each of
t hem car ries current i. The magnet ic
field produced by square at cent re is
B
1
and t hat due t o circle at cent re is
B
2
. Then which one of t he following is
t rue ?
( a) B
1
= B
2
(b) B
1
> B
2
( c) B
1
< B
2
(d) B
1
is parallel t o B
2
.
72. A magnet ic dipole is placed in t wo
perpendicular magnet ic fields
1
B
r
, and
2
B
r
and is in equil ibri um making an
angle q wit h
1
B
r
. Then which one of
t he following relat ions holds t rue ?
( a)
1
B
r
=
2
B
r
(b) B
1
cos q = B
2
sin q
( c) B
1
sin q = B
2
cos q
(d) B
1
= B
2
sec q
73. A wire i s shaped t o form a regular
hexagon of side a. I f a curr ent of 1
ampere f lows t hrough t he wi re, t hen
t he magnet ic field at t he cent re of
t he hexagon is
( a)
5
4 3 10
B T
a
(b)
7
3 5 10
B T
a
( c)
5
3 5 10
B T
a
(d)
7
4 5 10
B T
a
74. A current i passes t hrough a coil of

radius a having n t urns. I t is placed in
an ext ernal magnet ic field of induct ion
B
r
. Th e pl an e of t h e coi l i s
per pendicul ar t o B
r
and t he curr ent
in it appears clockwise when viewed
along t he di rect ion of B
r
. The work
done in rot at ing t he coil t hrough 180
is
( a) p Joule
(b) in
0
a
2
B Joule
( c) 2 in pa
2
B Joule
(d) zero
75. A domain in f erromagnet ic ir on is in
t he form of a cube of side lengt h 1
mm. The molecular mass of iron is 55
g/ mole and it s densit y is 7.9 g/ cm
3
.
Each iron at om has a dipol e moment
of 9.27 10
24
Am
2
. The maximum
possible magnet isat ion of t he domain
is
( a) 8.0 10
5
Am
1
(b) 8.0 10
5
Am
1
( c) 800 Am
1
(d) 80 Am
1
76. Two cir cular coi ls P and Q wit h t heir
cent res lying on t he same axis have
same number of t urns and carry equal
current s in t he same sense. They are
separ at ed by a di st an ce, h av e
different diamet ers but subt end same
angl e at a poi nt O l yi ng on t hei r
common axis. The coil Q lies exact ly
midway bet ween coi l P and t he point
O. The magnet ic fi eld at poi nt O due
t o coils P and Q is B
l
and B
2
. Then
( a) B
1
= B
2
(b) B
1
> B
2
( c) B
l
< B
2
(d) Dat e insufficient .
77. Assuming t he eart h t o be a spheri cal
magnet , find it s magnet ic moment .
( Radius of ear t h = 6400 km, vert i cal
int ensi t y of eart hs magnet ic f ield at
t he sout h pol e = 0.6 oerst ed.)
( a) 7.20 10
24
Am
2
(b) 6.02 10
24
Am
2
( c) 6.86 10
24
Am
2
(d) 7.86 10
22
Am
2
78. A unifor m magnet ic shell is bounded
by concent ri c ci rcles of radius a and
b. Find t he force it exert s at a point
whose dist ance is
(
2/ 3 2/ 3
1/ 2
2/ 3 2/ 3
a b
a b )
from it s cent re along it s axis.
( a) 0 (b) 2 ( c) 3 (d) 4
79. A soft iron ring of permeabilit y g has
a number of t urns of wire unifor mly
wound over i t . A curr ent flows in t he
wire. A smal l air- gap is f ormed in t he
i r on by cut t i ng out a t hi n sect or
bounded by t wo pl anes t hrough t he
axis of t he ring, making a small angle
q wit h each ot her. By what fact or is B
in the gap is reduced from t he previous
value?
( a)
0
1 1
2
+
)
(b)
0
2
+
( c)
0
1
2
+
)
(d)
0
2
1 1
+
) )
80. A sheet of a magnet ic mat eri al i s

pl aced per pendi cul ar t o a uni for m
magn et i c i nt ensi t y H. Fi nd t he
damagnet isat i on fact or of t he sheet .
( a) 2p
(b) 4p
( c) 3p
(d) 5p
81. Fi n d t h e t ot al r el u ct an ce an d
per meance bet ween t he ends of
parallel connect ed rect angular iron
blocks as shown in t he adj acent figure.
Given
1
= 500
0
and
2
= 2000
0
.
( a)
4
1
4.3 10
henery
(b)
4
1
5.3 10
henery
( c)
5
1
2.3 10
hener y
(d)
5
1
2.4 10
henery
82.
B
Figures repr esent four posit ions of a
current carrying coil in a magnet ic field
dir ect ed t owards r ight . A represent s
t he di rect ion of ar ea vect or of t he
coi l. Then correct or der of pot ent ial
energy is
( a) I > I I > I I I > I V
(b) I > I I I > I I > I V
( c) I I > I > I I I > I V
(d) I V > I I I > I > I I
83. A l ong st rai ght wire along t he z- axis
car ries a current I i n t he negat ive z
direct ion. The magnet ic field vect or B
at a point having coordinat es ( x, y)
in t he z = 0 pl ane is
( a)
(
(
0
2 2

I
2
yi xj
x y

)
(b)
(
(
0
2 2

I
2
xi yj
x y
)
)
( c)
(
(
0
2 2

I
2
xi yj
x y

)
(d)
(
(
0
2 2

I
2
xi yj
x y

)
84. Thr ee i nfini t ely long t hi n conduct ors
are j oined at t he origin of coordinat es
and lie along t he x, y and z- axes. A
current I flowing along t he conduct or
lying along t he x- axis divides equally
int o t he ot her t wo at t he origin. The
magnet ic field at t he point ( 0, a, 0)
has magnit ude
( a)
0
4
i
a
(b)
0
3
4 2
i
a
( c)
0
5
8
i
a
(d)
0
3
2
i
a
85. A ring of mean radius 15 cm has 3500

t urns of wire wound on ferromagnet ic
core of relat ive permeabilit y 800. What
is t he magnet ic f ield B in t he core for
a magnet ising current of 1.2 A ?
( a) 5.84 T (b) 4.48 T
( c) 3.48 T (d) 4.84 T
86. A small wire of mass m slides wit hout
f r i ct i on on t wo r ai l s pl aced at a
dist ance d apart . The t rack li es i n a
vert ical magnet i c fl ux of induct ion
( uniform field) B. A const ant current i
flows al ong t he rail across t he wire
and back down t he ot her rai l. The
accelerat ion of t he wire is
( a)
Bm i
d
(b) mBid
H
I
H
Block 2 B 2 2
Block B 1 1
A2
A1
5 cm
20 cm
( c)
B
m id
(d)
Bid
m
87. The scale of a galvanomet er is divided
i n t o 1 5 0 equ al di v i si on s. Th e
gal v an omet er has t h e cu r r en t
sensit ivit y of 10 divisions per mA and
t he vol t age sensit ivi t y of 2 division
per mV. How t he galvanomet er be
designed t o read 6A, per division?
( a) 8.33 10
5
W (b) 7.26 10
4
W
( c) 9.34 10
6
W (d) 2.75 10
3
W
88. A l ong solenoid of radius 2 cm has
100 t urns/ cm and i s surrounded by a
100- t urn coil of r adius 4cm having a
t ot al r esist ance of 20 W. The coil is
connect ed t o a gal vanomet er as
shown i n t he figure. I f t he cur rent in
t he solenoid is changed fr om 5A in
one, dir ect ion t o 5A in t he opposit e
direct ion, find t he charge which flows
t hrough t he galvanomet er.
( a) 700 C (b) 600 C
( c) 300 C (d) 800 C
89. A l ong st raight wi re having t he f orm
of a t hin half- ring of radius r is t aken.
Cur rent is made t o flow t hrough t his
wir e, as shown in t he figure.
What is t he induct ion of magnet ic field
at O ?
r
( a)
0
2R
i
(b)
0
R
i
( c)
0
2
R
i
(d)
0
R
2
90. I n an AC ci r cui t phase di f f er ence

bet ween current and pot ent ial is p/ 4.
The var i at i on of I and E vs t i s
r epr esent ed in t he gr aph. I f E
0
=
E
0
cos( 100t ) . Then component s of t he
cir cuit are
( a) R = 1 kW and
C = 10 F
(b) R = 100 kW and
C = 10 F
( c) R = 1W and
C = 100 PF
(d) R = 1MW and
C = 1F
91. A condenser of capacit y 1 microfarad
is connect ed wit h an i nduct ance of
10 mi l l i henr y. Fi nd t he n at ur al
frequency of t he circuit .
( a) 1550 Hz (b) 1575 Hz
( c) 1591 Hz (d) 1600 Hz
92. Usi ng an AC volt met er, t he pot ent ial
dif ference i n t he elect rical li ne i n a
house i s read t o be 234V. I f t he l ine
frequency is known t o be 50Hz, t he
equat ion of t he li ne volt age is
( a) V = 220 sin 100 pt
(b) V = 165 sin ( 100 pt )
( c) V = 440 sin ( 100 pt )
(d) V = 331 sin ( 100 pt )
93. An alt er nat i ng emf of frequency 50
Hz is applied t o a Seri es ci rcuit of
resist ance 20 ohm, an induct ance of
100 mH and a capacit or of 30 F. By
what angle does t he current lag or
lead t he appl ied emf and ?
( a) t an
1
( 3.15) (b) t an
1
( 1.08)
( c) t an
1
( 2.22) (d) None of t hese
94. A r ect angul ar coi l of
wi r e r ot at es at a
const ant speed about
one of it s sides xy. The
side xy is paral lel t o a
l ong, st r aight curr ent
carrying conduct or.
The induced emf will be
minimum when t he coil
I
E
t
is
I
x
y
I
( a) perpendicular t o t he plane of t he
conduct or.
(b) in t he plane of t he conduct or.
( c) parallel t o t he plane of conduct or.
(d) out side t he plane of t he conduct or.
95. A box P and a coil Q are connect ed in
ser ies wit h an AC source of variable
f r equency. The emf of sour ce i s
const ant at 10 V. Box P cont ains a
capacit ance of 1F in series wit h a
resist ance of 32W. Coil Q has a self-
induct ance 4.9 mH and a resist ance
of 68W in series. The frequency is
adj ust ed so t hat t he maximum current
flows in P and Q. Find t he i mpedance
of P and Q at t hi s frequency.
1F 32
4.9mH 68
P Q
E

-

1
0

s
i
n

t
E

-

1
0

s
i
n

t
( a) 79.0W, 80W (b) 28.66W, 100W

( c) 76.96, 99W (d) None of t hese
96. A cer t ai n choke coi l of negl i gi bl e
r esi st ance t ak es a cur r ent of 8
amperes when connect ed t o a supply
of 100 volt s, at 50 cycles per sec. A
cer t ai n non- i nduct i ve r esi st ance,
under t he same condit ions, carriers a
current of 10 amperes. I f t he t wo are
t ransferred t o a supply syst em working
at 150 volt s, at 40 cycles per second,
what t ot al current will t hey t ake if
j oined in parallel?
( a) 18.2 A (b) 35.3 A
( c) 28.4 A (d) 21.2 A
97. A ser i es LCR ci r cui t cont ai ni ng a
r esi st ance of 120 S has angul ar
resonance frequency 4 10
5
rad. s
1
. At resonance, t he volt ages acr oss
resist ance and induct ance are 60 V
and 40 V r espect i v el y. At what
frequency t he curr ent i n t he circuit
lags t he volt age by 45 ?
( a) 2.42 10
3
Hz (b) 3.02 10
2
Hz
( c) 1.44 10
3
Hz (d) 3.18 10
4
Hz
98. A circular coil of radius 5 cm has 500
t urns of a wire. The approximat e value
of t he coeff icient of self- induct ion of
t he coil will be
( a) 25 mH (b) 25 10
3
mH
( c) 50 10
3
mH (d) 50 10
3
H.
99. An AC source of angular frequency w
i s f ed acr oss a r esi st or R and a
capaci t or C i n ser i es. The curr ent
regist ered i s I . I f now t he fr equency
of sour ce i s changed t o
3
( but
mai nt aining t he same volt age) , t he
cur rent in t he circui t is found t o be
halved. Fi nd t he rat io of react ance t o
resist ance at t he origi nal f requency
w.
( a)
2 / 5
(b)
3 / 5
( c)
5 / 7
(d) None of t hese
100. I n an AC generat or, t he number of
t urns i n a coil is 2000 and t he area of
t he coil is 0.15 m
2
. The coil is rot at ed
at a rat e of 60 cycles per second i n a
field of 0.1 T. Find t he peak volume of
t he emf induced.
( a) 1.131 10
4
V(b) 1.15 10
4
V
( c) 1131 10
4
V (d) 0.131 10
4
V
101. I n a coil an emf of 8V is induced when
in 0.5 sec t he value of current changes
from 2A t o 4A. What will be t he value
of coeff icient of self - induct ion of t he
coil?
( a) 0.8 H. (b) 0.1 H.
( c) 0.2 H. (d) 0.4 H.
102. A si mple r adiof requency ampli fi er
ci rcuit is t aken ( as shown i n f ig. ) .
Which one of t he f ol l owing shows
cor r ect var i at i on of cur r ent and
frequency for net induct ive and net
capacit ive circui t respect ivel y ?
I
L
L
I
C
C
( a)
I
n
d
u
c
t
iv
e
C
a
p
a
c
it
iv
e
f
I
(b)
In
d
u
c
tiv
e
C
a
p
a
c
itiv
e
f
I
( c)
I
n
d
u
c
t
iv
e
C
a
p
a
c
itiv
e
f
(d)
f
I
103. The val ue of cur r ent t hr ough an
induct ance of 1H and of negl igible
resist ance when connect ed t hrough
an a.c. source of 200 V and 50 Hz is :
( a) 3.637 A (b) 0.637 A
( c) 1.637 A (d) 2.637 A
104. The ear t hs magnet ic fiel d ( say B) at
equat or i s hori zont al , unif or m and
poi nt s nor t h- sout h. A conduct i ng
square loop of side l and resist ance R
is kept in t he vert ical pl ane wit h t wo
of i t s si des poi nt i n g east - west
dir ect i on. This loop is moved in east
di r ect i on wi t h a vel oci t y v. The
cur rent induced i n t he loop is
( a)
B
R
vl
(b)
2B
R
vl
( c)
4B
R
vl
(d) 0
105. A circular coil of radius 5 cm has 500
t urns of a wire. The approximat e value
of t he coeff icient of self- induct ion of
t he coil will be
( a) 25 millihenry
(b) 25 10
3
millihenry
( c) 50 10
3
millihenry
(d) 50 10
3
henry.
106. A wire i s sit uat ed in t he east - west
dir ect ion and t he current fl owing t hrough
it i s 0. 5 ampere. The wi re i s held
perpendicular t o magnet ic field of 0.2
10
4
N ( amp.- met re) . The f orce
act ing on t he wi re wi ll be :
( a) 0.0 (b) 1 10
6
( c) 1 10
5
(d) 4 10
5
107. A uni f or m bar i s suspended i n a
hor izont al posit i on by a vert ical wire
at t ached t o it s cent re. When a t orque
of 5 N i s applied t o t he bar, t he bar is
t wist ed t hrough an angle of 12. When
t he bar is r eleased, i t oscillat es as a
t or sional pendulum wit h a period of
0.5 second. The moment of iner t ia of
t he bar is
( a) 0.05 kg m
2
(b) 0.1 kg m
2
( c) 0.15 kg m
2
(d) 0.25 kg m
2
108. When a conduct or of l engt h l met er
moves wit h a vel ocit y v m/ sec i n a
direct ion normal t o magnet ic induct ion
B, t hen t he i nduced emf is
( a) Bvl (b) Zero
( c) Bvl (d) Bvq
109. A cur r ent car r yi ng wi r e has t he
following shape. a = radius of curved
pat h. Fi nd t he magnet ic induct ion at
point P.
P
a
( a)
0
3
1
2
i
a
+
)

(b)
0
3
1
2
i +
)

( c)
0
3
1
4 2
i
a
+
)

(d) None of t hese
110. A wire carryi ng current i = 100 A is
t aken. A rod is moved parallel t o t his
wi re wit h a vel oci t y v = 5 m/ s as
shown in t he figure. Find t he value of
induced emf in t he rod.
( a) 2 10
2
volt (b) 3 10
4
volt
( c) 4 10
3
volt (d) None of t hese
111. A circuit consist ing of an ideal induct or
( L) and capacit or ( C) is connect ed t o
a source of emf ( E) as shown in f ig.
L
C
E
K K = key
The capacit or is charged for t seconds
an d t h en di sch ar ged t h r ou gh
induct ance L, by pressi ng t he key K.
This LC syst em
( a) execut es simple harmonic mot ion
wit h frequency
1
2 LC
f
+

(b) execut es simple harmonic mot ion
wit h frequency (
2 LC f
( c) execut es no oscillat ions.
(d) shows t hat frequency of current
and charge is not same.
112. A coil has 1,000 t urns and 500 cm
2
as it s area. The plane of t he coil is
placed at right angle t o a magnet ic
induct ion field of 2 10
5
web/ m
2
.
The coil is r ot at ed t hrough 180 in
0.2 seconds. The average emf induced
in t he coil in milli- volt s is
( a) 5 (b) 10
( c) 15 (d) 20
113. A solenoid 3. 14 m long and of 0. 002
m
2
cr oss- sect i onal ar ea has 700
t ur ns. Anot her small solenoid of 50
t urns is t ight ly wound over t he longer
sol en oi d. Wh at wi l l be mu t u al
induct ance of t he t wo sol enoi ds.
(
0
= 4p 10
7
Hm
1
) ?
( a) 1.8 10
4
H (b) 3.3 10
2
H
( c) 2.38 10
6
H(d) 2.8 10
5
H
114. When a wheel wit h met allic spokes
1.2 m long revolves in a magnet ic field
of 5 10
5
Wbm perpendicular t o t he
pl ane of wheel , an emf 10
2
V i s
induced across t he rim and t he axle
of t he wheel. Find t he rat e of rot at ion
of t he wheel per second.
( a) 32.2 (b) 44.2
( c) 30.2 (d) None of t hese
115. A 10 met re wi re is kept in east - west
di rect i on. I t i s f all ing down wit h a
speed of 5.0 m/ s perpendicular t o t he
hor i zont al component of ear t h s
magnet ic field of 0.30 10
4
Wb/ m
2
.
What i s t he moment ar y pot ent i al
dif ference i nduced bet ween t he end
of t he wires ?
( a) 1.2 mV (b) 1.6 mV
( c) 2.4 mV (d) 3.2 mV
116. 5.5 10
4
magnet ic fl ux li nes are
passing t hrough a coil of resist ance
10 ohm and number of t urns 1000. I f
t he number of fl ux li nes reduces t o 5
10
5
in 0.1 sec, what will be t he
charge flowi ng t hrough t he coi l ?
( a) 0.02 C (b) 0.01 C
( c) 1.02 C (d) 0.05 C
117. A coil of area 0.04m
2
having 1000
t urns is suspended perpendicular t o a
magnet ic field of 5.0 10
5
Wbm
2
.
I t i s r ot at ed t hr ough 90 i n 0. 2
second. Find t he average emf induced.
( a) 1.0 V (b) 0.03 V
( c) 0.05 V (d) 0.5 V
118. Find t he self- induct ance of an air- red
sol enoi d; 1m l ong and 0. 05 m i n
diamet er having 1400 t urns.
( a) 2.4 mH (b) 3.4 mH
( c) 4.8 mH (d) None of t hese
119. The adj oining figure shows obj ect O,
f i nal i mage I i s f or med af t er t wo
ref ract ions and one r eflect ion is also
shown in figure.
n = 4/3
I
O
3
3
.
2
5

c
m
2
5

c
m
1
5

c
m
Find t he focal lengt h of mirror ( in cm).
( a) 10 (b) 15
( c) 20 (d) 25
120. An equic-onvex lens of refract ive index
1.50 in cont act wit h a liquid l ayer on
t op of a plane mirror is kept (shown in
figure) . A small obj ect on t he principal
axi s is moved along t he axis unt il it s
invert ed image is found at t he posit ion
of t he needl e. The dist ance of t he
obj ect f rom t he lens i s measured t o
be 45.0 cm. The liquid is removed and
t he exper iment is repeat ed. The new
dist ance is measur ed t o be 30.0 cm.
The refr act ive index of t he l iquid is
( a) 1.50 (b) 1.66
( c) 1.33 (d) 1.77
1. I f A =
sin( ) cos( ) 1
sin( ) cos( ) 1
sin( ) cos( ) 1
) )
) )
) )
, t hen:
( a) A = 0 q
(b) A is an add funct ion of q
( c) A = 0 for q = a + b + g
(d) A is indepedent of q
2. I f t he line L in t he x y plane and half
t he slope and t wi ce t he y- int ercept
of t he line y =
2
4,
3
x )
t hen an equat ion for
L i s:
( a) y =
1
8
3
x )
(b) y =
4
2
3
x )
( c) y =
1
4
3
x )
(d) y =
4
4
3
x )
3. Find t he point on t he ellipse x
2
+ 2y
2
= 6 whose di st ance from t he line x +
y = 7 is least .
( a) ( 2, 1) (b) ( 1, 2)
( c) ( 3, 2) (d) ( 2, 3)
4. I f ( 1 + x)
n
= C
0
+ C
1
x + C
2
x
2
+ . .. +
C
n
C
n
, t hen C
0
C
2
+ C
1
C
3
+ C
2
C
4
+ . ..+
C
n2
C
n
is equal t o:
( a)
2
(2 )!
( !)
n
n
(b)
(2 )!
( 1)!( 1)!
n
n n )
( c)
(2 )!
( 2)!( 2)!
n
n n )
(d) none of t hese
5. The di gi t i n t he uni t pl ace of t he
number ( 183) ! + 3
183
is:
MATHEMATI CS
( a) 0 (b) 3
( c) 6 (d) 7
6. I f x, y, z are t hree consecut ive posit ive
i n t eger s, t h en
1 1 1
log log
2 2 2 1
e e
x z
xz
) )
)
3
1 1
...
3 2 1 xz
+
) )

)
is equal t o:
( a) log
e
x (b) log
e
y
( c) log
e
z (d) none of t hese
7. The equat ion of t he normal t o t he
ell ipse
2 2
2 2
1
y x
a b
) at t he end of t he
lat us rect um is:
( a) x + ey + e
3
a (b) x ey e
3
a
( c) x ey c
2
a (d) none of t hese
8. I f
6 7
sin(5 ) x x dx
=
5
k
cos ( 5x
7
) , t hen:
( a) k = 7 (b) k = 7
( c) k =
1
7
(d) k =
1
7
9. A part icle moves in a st raight line wit h
a vel oci t y by
) 1.
dx
x
dt
( x i s t he
dist ance described) . The t i me t aken
by a part icle t o t ransverse a dist ance
of 99 met res is:
( a) l og
10
e (b) 2log
10
e
( c)
10
1
log
2
e
(d) 2 log
e
10
10. Order and degree of t he diff erent ial
equat ion
2
2
d y
dx
=
1/ 4
2
dy
y
dx

+
)

<
ar e:
( a) 4 and 2 (b) 1 and 2
( c) 1 and 4 (d) 2 and 4
11. The general solut ion of t he different ial
equat ion ( 1 + t an y) ( dx dy) + 2x
d y
= 0
( a) x ( sin y + cos y) = sin y + ce
y
(b) x ( sin y + cos y) = sin y + ce
y
( c) y ( sin x + cos x) = sin x + ce
x
(d) none of t hese
12. The equat ion
)

) <
/ 4
/ 4
sin
| sin| |
1 cos
x
x v
x
dx = 0
where l, m v ar e const ant s, given a
relat ion bet ween:
( a) l, m and v (b) m and v
( c) l and v (d) l and m
13. I f A ( t ) =
| |
,
t
x
t
e dx
t hen
lim
t
A ( t ) is
equal t o:
( a) 0 (b) 2
( c) 2 (d) 4
14.
sin
sin( )
x
dx
x a
is equal t o:
( a) ( x a) cos a + sin a log sin (x a) +
c
(b) sin ( x a) + sin x + c
( c) ( x a) cos x + log sin ( x a) + c
(d) cos ( x a) + cos x + c
15.
2
sin
3 4cos
x
dx
x )
is equal t o:
( a)
1
1 2cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

(b)
1
1 2cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

( c) log ( 3 + 4 cos
2
x) + c
(d)
1
1 cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

16. Th e su bt an gen t , or di n at e an d
subnormal t o t he parabol a y
2
= 4ax
at a point ( different from t he origin)
are in:
( a) G.P (b) A.P
( c) H.P (d) none of t hese
17. The side of an equilat eral t riangle are
increasi ng at t he rat e of 2 cm/ sec.
The rat e at which t he area i ncreases,
when t he side is 10 cm is:
( a)
3
sq. unit s/ sec.
(b) 10 sq. unit s/ sec.
( c)
10 3
sq. unit s/ sec.
(d)
10 2
sq. unit s/ sec.
18. The point s on t he curve y = x
3
3x
as which t he normals ar e par allel t o
t he line 2x + 18y = 9 are:
( a) ( 2, 2) (b) ( 2, 2)
( c) ( 2, 2) , ( 2, 2) (d) (2, 2),
( 2, 2)
19. The funct ion f is diff erent iabl e wit h f
( 1) = 8 anf f ( 1) =
1
.
8
I f f is i nvert i ble
and g = f
1
, t hen:
( a) g( 1) = 8 (b) g( 1) =
1
8
( c) g( g) = 8 (d) g(g) =
1
8
20. I f sin ( x + y) = log ( x + y) , t hen
dy
dx
is
equal t o:
( a) 1 (b) 1
( c) 2 (d) 2
21. Let f and g be different iable funct ions
sat isfying g( a) = 2, g ( a) = 6 and fog
= 1 ( ident it y funct ion) . Then f ( b) is
equal t o:
( a)
1
2
(b)
2
3
( c) 2 (d) none of t hese
22.
2
lim

1 sin
cos
2

is equal t o:
( a)
1
2
(b)
1
2
( c) 1 (d) 1
dx = 0
where l, m v ar e const ant s, given a
relat ion bet ween:
( a) l, m and v (b) m and v
( c) l and v (d) l and m
13. I f A ( t ) =
| |
,
t
x
t
e dx
t hen
lim
t
A ( t ) is
equal t o:
( a) 0 (b) 2
( c) 2 (d) 4
14.
sin
sin( )
x
dx
x a
is equal t o:
( a) ( x a) cos a + sin a log sin (x a) +
c
(b) sin ( x a) + sin x + c
( c) ( x a) cos x + log sin ( x a) + c
(d) cos ( x a) + cos x + c
15.
2
sin
3 4cos
x
dx
x )
is equal t o:
( a)
1
1 2cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

(b)
1
1 2cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

( c) log (3 + 4 cos
2
x) + c
(d)
1
1 cos
tan
2 3 3
x
c
+
)

16. Th e su bt an gen t , or di n at e an d
subnormal t o t he parabol a y
2
= 4ax
at a point ( different from t he origin)
are in:
( a) G.P (b) A.P
( c) H.P (d) none of t hese
17. The side of an equilat eral t riangle are
increasi ng at t he rat e of 2 cm/ sec.
The rat e at which t he area i ncreases,
when t he side is 10 cm is:
( a)
3
sq. unit s/ sec.
(b) 10 sq. unit s/ sec.
( c)
10 3
sq. unit s/ sec.
(d)
10 2
sq. unit s/ sec.
18. The point s on t he curve y = x
3
3x
as which t he normals ar e par allel t o
t he line 2x + 18y = 9 are:
( a) ( 2, 2) (b) ( 2, 2)
( c) ( 2, 2) , ( 2, 2) (d) (2, 2),
( 2, 2)
19. The funct ion f is diff erent iabl e wit h f
( 1) = 8 anf f ( 1) =
1
.
8
I f f is i nvert i ble
and g = f
1
, t hen:
( a) g( 1) = 8 (b) g( 1) =
1
8
( c) g( g) = 8 (d) g(g) =
1
8
20. I f sin ( x + y) = log ( x + y) , t hen
dy
dx
is
equal t o:
( a) 1 (b) 1
( c) 2 (d) 2
21. Let f and g be different iable funct ions
sat isfying g( a) = 2, g ( a) = 6 and fog
= 1 ( ident it y funct ion) . Then f ( b) is
equal t o:
( a)
1
2
(b)
2
3
22.
2
lim

1 sin
cos
2

is equal t o:
( a)
1
2
(b)
1
2
( c) 1 (d) 1
( c) 2[ ] abc
r
s r
(d) 4[ ] abc
r
s r
34. I f t he unit vect ors
a
r
and
b
r
are inclined
at an angle 2q such t hat
| | 1 a b
r
r
and
0 q p, t hen q lies in t he i nt erval:
( a)
5
0, or ,
6 6

< <
(b)
,
6

<
( c) ,
6 2

<
(d)
5
,
2 3

<
35. I f A and B ar e square mat rices of t he
same order and A is not singular t hen
for a posit ive int eger n ( A
1
BA) is
equal t o:
( a) A
n
B
n
A
n
(b) A
n
B
n
A
n
( c) A
1
B
n
A (d) ( A
1
BA)
36. I f I =
1 0
,
0 1

<
I =
0 1
1 0

<
and
B =
cos sin
sin cos

<
t hen B equals:
( a) I cos q + I sin q
(b) I sin q + I cos q
( c) I cos q I sin q
(d) I cos q + I sin q
37. The val ue of l for which t he following
syst em of equat ions does not have
solut ion.
x + y + z = 0
4x + ly lz = 0
3x + 2y 4z = 8
( a) 0 (b) 1
( c) 3 (d) 3
38. I f A =
1
1 0
x

<
and A
2
= I , t hen x is
equal t o:
( a) 0 (b) 1
( c) 2 (d) 4
39.
a
C
0
+ ( a + b) C
1
+ ( a + 2b) C
2
+ . ..+
( a + nb) C
n
is equal t o:
( a) ( 2n + nb) 2
n
(b) ( 2a + nb) 2
n1
( c) ( na + 2b)2
n
(d) ( na + 2b) 2
n1
40. The first t he t erms in t he expansion
o f
( 1 + ax) ( n 0) ar e 1, 6x and 16x
2
.
Then t he v al ues of a and n ar e
respect ively.
( a) 2 and 9 (b) 3 and 2
( c)
2
3
and 9 (d)
3
2
and 6
41. Observe t he following list s:
Li st I List I I
(A) A is a mat rix (1) Nilpotent mat rix
such t hat A
2
= A
(B) A is square mat rix (2)
I nvolut ary mat rix
such t hat A
m
= 0
(C) A is a square (3) S y m m e t r i c
matrix
mat rix A
2
= 1
(D) A is a square (4) I dempot ent
matrix matrix
such t hat A
T
= A
The cor rect mat ch for List I fr om List
I I is:
A B C D
( a) 1 2 3 4
(b) 3 4 2 1
( c) 4 3 2 1
(d) 4 1 2 3
42. Observe t he following list s:
Li st I List I I
( a)
2
2
9
2/ 3
2 3
( 5) 3 5
1/ 3
4
x
x dx e
e dx
+

) )
( 1) 0
(b)
2
2
[ ] x dx
( 2) 2 p
( c)
2
3
1
1
1
tan
x
x
+
)

( 3) 2
+
)

)
1
2
tan
1
x
x
(d) The great er of ( 4) p/ 2
/ 2
0
sin
and / 2
x
dx
x
The cor rect mat ch for List I fr om List

I I is:
A B C D
( a) 1 4 2 3
(b) 1 3 4 2
( c) 1 2 3 4
(d) 1 3 2 4
I . f ( x) =
1 | |
x
x )
is different iable for
x e R.
I I . f ( x) = | x
2
5x + 6| i s not
different iable at x = 2.
Whi ch of t he above st at ement i s
correct ?
( a) only I (b) only I I
( c) bot h I and I I (d) neit her I and I I
Di r ect i o n s: The f ol l owi ng FI VE i t ems
consist s of t wo st at ement s, one label led
t he Assert ion A and t he ot her labelled t he
Reason R. You are t o examine t hese t wo
st at ement s car ef ul l y and deci de i f t he
Assert ion A and Reason R are individually
t r ue and i f so, wh et h er t h e r eason
explanat ion of t he Assert ion. Select your
answer t o t hese i t ems usi ng t he codes
given below.
Code:
( a) Bot h A and R are t ure and R is t he
correct explanat ion of A.
(b) Bot h A and R are t rue but R is NOT
a correct explanat ion of A.
( c) A is t rue but R is false
(d) A is false but R is t rue
44. Asser t i on ( A) : Let f: R R be a
funct ion such t hat f ( x) = x
3
+ x
2
+
3x + sin x. Then f is one- one.
Reaso n ( R) : f ( x) i s an st r i ct l y
increasing funct ion.
Whi ch of t he above st at ement i s
correct ?
( a) A (b) B
( c) C (d) D
45. Asser t i on ( A) : I f

a i j )
r
and

, b j k
r
t hen ( a + b, a b) = 90.
Reason ( R) : Proj ection of
a b )
r
r
on
a b
r
r
is zero.
( a) A (b) B
( c) C (d) D
46. Asser t i on ( A) : The f unct ion f ( t ) :
4
1 cos(1 cos ) t
t

i s cont i nuous ever y
where t hen f( 0) =
1
8
.
Reason ( R) : For cont inuous funct ion
f ( 0)
0
lim ( ).
t
f t
( a) A (b) B ( c) C (d) D
47. Asser t i on ( A) : The circle descri bed
on t he segment j oi ning t he point s (
2, 1) , ( 0, 3) as diamet er cut s t he
circle x
2
+ y
2
+ 5x + 4 = 0 ort hogonally.
Reason ( R) : ( 2, 1) and (0, 3) are
conj ugat e point s w.r. t o t he circl e x
2
+ y
2
+ 5x + y + 4 = 0
( a) A (b) B ( c) C (d) D
48. Asser t i on ( A) : The minimum value of
t he expr ession x
2
+ 2bx + c is c b
2
.
Reason ( R) : The first order derivat ive
of t he expression at x = b is zer o.
( a) A (b) B ( c) C (d) D
I .
sin 5
cos 7 cos 2
x
dx
x x
is equal t o
1
7
log
| sec 7x|
1
2
log | sec 2x| + c
I I . )
1 sec x dx is equal t o 2cos
1

+
)

2 sin
2
x
c
Whi ch of t he above st at ement s i s
correct ?
( c) bot h I and I I (d) neit her I nor I I
I . The area of t he t riangle formed by
1, , 2,
6 3

+ +

and
2
2
+

is
2 3
I I . The randius of t he circle
2
4 ( 3 cos sin ) 7 r r ) ) = 0
is which of t he st at ement is correct :
( c) bot h I and I I (d) neit her I nor I I
51. I f

, a i j k ) )
r
r

, b i j c i )
r r
r
and ( ) a b c
r
r r
= , a b )
r
r
t hen ( l + m) is equal t o:
( a) 0 (b) 1 ( c) 2 (d) 3
52. I f D, E, F ar e respect ively t he mid
poi nt s of AB, AC and BC in D ABC,
t hen BE AF )
uuur uuur
is equal t o:
( a)
DC
uuur
(b)
1
2
BF
uuur
( c)
2BF
uuur
(d)
3
2
BF
uuur
53. The l i ne y = mx + c t ouches t he
p a r a b o l a
x
2
= 4ay if :
( a) c = am (b) c =
a
m
( c) c = am
2
(d) c =
2
a
m
54. Maximum area of an isosceles t riangle
inscribed in t he ellipse
2 2
2 2
1
y x
a b
) wit h
t he vert ex at one end of t he maj or
axis is:
( a)
3ab
(b)
3 3
4
ab
( c)
5 3
4
ab (d) none of t hese
55. The equat ion of chord j oi ni ng t wo
poi nt s ( x
1
, y
1
) and ( x
2
, y
2
) on t he
rect angular hyperbola xy = c
2
is:
( a)
1 2 1 2
1
y x
x x y y
)
) )
(b)
)

1 2 1 2
1
y x
x x y y
( c)
1 2 1 2
1
y x
y y x x
)
) )
(d)
1 2 1 2
1
y x
y y x x
)

56. I f t he l ine j oini ng of foci subt ends an
angle of 90 at an ext erimit y of minor
axi s, t hen eccent ricit y e i s:
( a)
1
6
(b)
1
3
( c)
1
2
(d) none of t hese
57. The lengt hs of t he chor d j oi ning t he
poi nt s i n whi ch t he st r ai ght l i ne
1
3 4
y x
) cut s t he circle x
2
+ y
2
=
169
25
is:
( a) 1 (b) 2
( c) 4 (d) 8
58. Mat rix t heor y was int roduced by:
( a) Newt on (b) Calay-Hamilton
( c) Cauchy (d) Euclid
59. I f q si n
1
x + cos
1
x t an
1
x, x 0,
t hen t he smallest int erval in which q
lies is:
( a)
3
2 4

(b)
0
( c) 0
4
(d)
4 2

60. The equat ion sin x + sin y + sin z =
3 f or 0 x 2p, 0 y 2p, 0 < z <
2p, has:
( a) one solut ion
(b) t wo set s of solut ion
( c) four set s of solut ion
(d) no solut ion
61. I f a, b ( a b) , sat isfies t he equat ion
a cos q + b sin q = c, t hen the value of
tan
2
)
+

is :
( a)
b
a
(b)
c
a
( c)
a
b
(d)
c
b
62. Convert Binary number 110011011 in
decimal syst em:
( a) 402 (b) 411 ( c) 456 (d) 481
63. I f w is a complex root of unit y, t hen
t he value of
2 2
2
,
p q r p q rw
q r p r r p q
) ) ) )
)
) ) ) )
( p, q, r ar e real) is equal t o
( a) 0 (b) 1
( c) 1 (d) 2
64. Find t he area bounded by t he cur ves
y = | x 1| and y = 3 | x| i s equal
t o:
( a)
1
2
sq. unit s (b)
4
3
sq. unit s
( c) 4 sq. unit s (d) 2 sq. unit s
65. Find t he condit ion t hat t he equat ion
ax
3
+ bx
2
+ cx + d = 0 have al l root s
are equal t o:
( a) a
3
c b
3
d (b) ac
3
b
3
d
( c) ac
3
bd
3
(d) a
3
c bd
3
66. sin 47 si n 25 + sin 61 sin 11
is equal t o:
( a) cos 7 (b) sin 7
( c) 2 cos 7 (d) 2 sin 7
67. I f a, b, g are t he root s of t he equat ion
x3 + 4x + 1 = 0 t hen (a + b)
1
+ (b +
g)
1
+ (g + a)
1
is equal t o:
( a) 2 (b) 3
( c) 4 (d) 5
68. A bag C cont ains 3 whit e and 3 bl ack
bal ls and anot her bag Y cont ains 4
whi t e and 2 black ball s, one bag is
select ed at random and a ball is drawn
from it . Then t he probabi lit y for t he
bal l chosen be whit e is:
( a) 2/ 15 (b) 7/ 15
( c) 8/ 15 (d) 14/ 15
69. I f I
n
=
n
n
d
dx
( x
n
log x) , t hen I
n
n I
n 1
is equal t o:
( a) n (b) n 1
( c) n! (d) ( n 1) !
70. I f , , a b c
r
r r
are t hr ee vect ors such t hat
a
r
= b c )
s
r
and t he angle bet ween b and c
is p/ 2, t hen:
( a) a
2
= b
2
+ c
2
(b) b
2
= c
2
+ a
2
( c) c
2
= a
2
+ b
2
(d) 2a
2
b
2
= c
2
71. The great est of t he number s 1, 2
1/ 2
,
3
1/ 3
, 4
1/ 4
, 5
1/ 5
, 6
1/ 6
and 7
1/ 7
i s:
( a) 2
1/ 2
(b) 3
1/ 3
( c) 7
1/ 7
(d) all are equal
72. The st r aight line x + y 5 = 0, x = 3
and y = 3 form a t riangle. The rat io of
t he sides i s:
( a) 1 : 1 : 1 (b)
2 : 2 : 1
( c)
2 : 1: 1
(d) 1 : 2 : 3
73. Ort hocent re of t he t riangle formed by
j oini ng t he poi nt s
+ +

1 1
3, , 4,
3 4
and
+

1
5,
5
i s:
( a)
+

1
, 60
60
(b)
+

1
, 60
60
( c)
+

1
, 24
24
(d) none of t hese
74. A squar e mat r i x can al way s be
expressed as a:
( a) sum of symmet ric mat rix and a
skew symmet ric mat rix
(b) sum of a di agonal mat r i x and
symmetric mat rix
( c) skew mat rix
(d) skew symmet ric mat rix
75. The sol ut ion set of t he equat ion
2
2 3
2 1
6 7 3
x
x = 0 is:
( a) f (b) { 0, 1}
( c) ( 1, 1) (d) { 1, 3}
76. I f S
r
=
2 2
3 3
2 ( 1)
6 1 (2 3) ,
4 2 ( 1)
r x n n
r y n n
r nr z n n
)
)
)
t hen
t he val ue of
1
n
r
r
S
is independent of :
( a) x only (b) y only
( c) x, y, z, n (d) n only
77. I f in t he expansi on of ( 1 + x)
n
, co-
eff icient of 2nd, 3rd and 4t h t erms
are in A.P, t hen x i s equal t o:
( a) 5 (b) 6
( c) 4 (d) 7
78. A parallelograms is cut by t wo set s of
m l i nes par al l el t o i t s si des. The
number of parallelograms t hen formed
is:
( a) (
m
C
2
)
2
(b) (
m+ 1
C
2
)
2
( c) (
m+ 2
C
2
)
2
(d) none of t hese
79. The number of ways i n whi ch a
commi t t ee of 6 member s can be
formed from 8 gentlemen and 4 ladies so
that the committee contains at least 3
ladies is:
( a) 420 (b) 444
( c) 252 (d) 672
80. I f
, ,
1 1
a b b c
b
ab bc
) )

ar e in A.P, t hen
1
, , a c
b
are in:
( a) A.P. (b) G.P.
( c) H.P. (d) none of t hese
81. I f
1 2 1 2 3
1 ...
2 3
) ) )
) ) ) t o n t erms is S,
t hen S is equal t o:
( a)
( 3)
4
n n )
(b)
( 2)
4
n n )
( c)
( 1)( 2)
6
n n n ) )
(d) n
2
82. I f a, b are t he root s of t he equat ion
x
2
ax + b = 0 and A
n
= a
n
+ b
n
. Then
whi ch of t he following is t r ue?
( a) A
n+ 1
= aA
n
+ bA
n1
(b) A
n+ 1
= bA
n
+ aA
n1
( c) A
n+ 1
= aA
n
bA
n1
(d) A
n+ 1
= bA
n
aA
n1
83. The val ue of p f or which bot h t he
root s of t he equat ion 4x
2
20px +
( 25p
2
+ 15p 66) = 0 are less t han
2, lies in:
( a) ( 2, ) (b)
4
, 2
5
+

( c)
4
1,
5
+

(d) ( , 1)
84. I f t wo t owers of height s h
1
and h
2
su bt en d an gl es 6 0 an d 3 0
respect i vely at t he mi dpoint of t he
line j oi ning t hei r feet t han h
1
: h
2
is
equal t o:
( a) 1 : 2 (b) 1 : 3
( c) 2 : 1 (d) 3 : 1
85. I f cos P =
1
7
and cos Q =
13
,
14
where P
and Q bot h are acut e angles. Then
t he val ue of P Q is :
( a) 30 (b) 60
( c) 45 (d) 75
86. I f sec q t an q =
1
,
1
a
a
)
t hen cos q is
equal t o:
( a)
2
2
1
1
a
a
)
(b)
2
2
1
1
a
a
)
( c)
)
2
2
1
a
a
(d)
2
2
1
a
a
87. The lines x cos a + y si n a = p
1
and x
cos b + y si n b = p
2
wi l l be
perpendicular if:
( a) a = b (b) | a b | =
2
( c) a =
2
(d) a b =
2
88. I f for a var iable line 1,

y x
a b
) t hen
condi t i on a
2
+ b
2
= c
2
( c i s
const ant ) is sat i sfied, t hen t he locus
of foot of t he perpendicular drawn from
t he origin t o t his is:
( a) x
2
+ y
2
=
2
2
c
(b) x
2
+ y
2
= 2c
2
( c) x
2
+ y
2
= c
2
(d) x
2
y
2
= c
2
89. I f x = a + b, y = aw + bw
2
, z = aw
2
+
bw, t hen xyz equals:
( a) ( a + b)
3
(b) a
3
b
3
( c) a
3
+ b
3
(d) ( a + b)
3
3ab ( a + b)
90. I f z
1
and z
2
bot h sat isf y z +
z
= 2| z
1| and arg ( z
1
z
2
) =
,
4
t hen t he
imaginar y part of ( z
1
+ z
2
) i s:
( a) 0 (b) 1
91. I f t he cube root s of unit y are 1, w,w
2
,
t hen t he root s of t he equat ion ( x
1)
3
+ 8 = 0 ar e:
( a) 1, 1 + 2w, 1 + 2w
2
(b) 1, 1 2w, 1 2w
2
( c) 1, 1, 1
92. The aver age of n number s x
1
, x
2
, x
3
,
... x
n
is M. I f x
n
is replaced by x, t he
new aver age is:
( a) M x
n
+ x (b)
n
nM x x
n
)
( c)
( 1) n M x
n
)
(d)
n
M x x
n
)
93. The S.D. of a variat e x is s. Tnen t he
S.D. of t he variat e ,
ax b
c
)
where a,
b, c ar e const ant , is:
( a)
a
c
+

(b)
a
c

( c)
2
2
a
c
+

(d) none of t hese
94. The equat ion of t he line t hr ough t he
point s ( 1, 2, 3) parallel t o line
4
2
x
=
1
3
y )
=
10
8
z )
are:
( a)
2 1 3
2 3 8
y x z

(b)
2 1 3
1 2 3
y x z

( c)
2 1 3
1 2 3
y x z

(d) none of t hese
95. The equat ion of t he sphere concent ric
wit h t he sphere x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
4x 6y
8z = 0, and whi ch passes t hrough
( 0, 1, 0) i s:
( a) x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
4x 6y 8z + 1 = 0
(b) x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
4x 6y 8z + 5 = 0
( c) x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
4x 6y 5z + 2 = 0
(d) x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
4x 6y 5z + 3 = 0
96. I f | a + b | = | a b| , t hen:
( a) a is parallel t o b
(b) a is perpendicular t o b
( c) a =
1
2
(d) angle bet ween a and b is p / 3

97. I f
a b c ) )
r
r r
, d
r
) )
r r
r
b c d
= , a
r
and
a b c ) )
r
r r
are non- copalnar, t hen a + b + c + d
is equal t o:
( a) 0 (b) a, a
( c) bb (d) ( a + b) c
98. I f G is t he cent ri od of a t r iangl e ABC,
t hen
GA Gb GC ) )
uur uuur uuur
is equal t o:
( a) 0 (b)
3GA
uuur
( c)
3Gb
uur
(d)
GC
uuur
99. The shaded region in t he given figure
is:
( a) A ( B C) (b) ( B C) A
( c) A ( B C) (d) A ( B C)
100. I f A = { ( x, y) : x
2
+ y
2
= 25} and B =
{ ( x, y) : x
2
+ 9y
2
= 144} t hen A B
cont ains:
( a) one point (b) t hree point s
( c) t wo point s (d) four point s
ANSWERS
GENERAL ABI LI TY TEST
1. ( d) 2. ( d) 3. ( a) 4. ( b) 5. ( c) 6. ( a) 7. ( d) 8. ( b) 9. ( a) 10. ( c)
11. ( c) 12. ( d) 13. ( a) 14. ( c) 15. ( d) 16. ( a) 17. ( d) 18. ( c) 19. ( c) 20. ( c)
21. ( b) 22. ( c) 23. ( a) 24. ( b) 25. ( b) 26. ( b) 27. ( b) 28. ( b) 29. ( c) 30. ( a)
31. ( a) 32. ( d) 33. ( c) 34. ( d) 35. ( b) 36. ( d) 37. ( c) 38. ( c) 39. ( d) 40. ( a)
41. ( c) 42. ( b) 43. ( c) 44. ( c) 45. ( b) 45. ( b) 47. ( c) 48. ( c) 49. ( b) 50. ( a)
51. ( b) 52. ( b) 53. ( b) 54. ( a) 55. ( b) 56. ( d) 57. ( b) 58. ( a) 59. ( c) 60. ( b)
61. ( b) 62. ( a) 63. ( c) 64. ( a) 65. ( d) 66. ( d) 67. ( b) 68. ( a) 69. ( d) 70. ( a)
71. ( c) 72. ( d) 73. ( b) 74. ( d) 75. ( a) 76. ( c) 77. ( a) 78. ( c) 79. ( b) 80. ( a)
81. ( d) 82. ( a) 83. ( d) 84. ( a) 85. ( d) 86. ( b) 87. ( d) 88. ( c) 89. ( b) 90. ( c)
91. ( a) 92. ( d) 93. ( d) 94. ( d) 95. ( c) 96. ( c) 97. ( d) 98. ( a) 99. ( a) 100. ( d)
101. ( c) 102. ( d) 103. ( d) 104. ( a) 105. ( a) 106. ( b) 107. ( b) 108. ( c) 109. ( d) 110. ( d)
111. ( d) 112. ( a) 113. ( b) 114. ( b) 115. ( b) 116. ( c) 117. ( c) 118. ( b) 119. ( c) 120. ( b)
PHYSI CAL SCI ENCE
1. ( d) 2. ( c) 3. ( b) 4. ( b) 5. ( a) 6. ( c) 7. ( a) 8. ( c) 9. ( c) 10. ( d)
11. ( a) 12. ( d) 13. ( c) 14. ( c) 15. ( b) 16. ( b) 17. ( d) 18. ( b) 19. ( b) 20. ( c)
21. ( b) 22. ( a) 23. ( b) 24. ( b) 25. ( d) 26. ( d) 27. ( d) 28. ( d) 29. ( a) 30. ( a)
31. ( d) 32. ( b) 33. ( b) 34. ( b) 35. ( c) 36. ( c) 37. ( d) 38. ( a) 39. ( b) 40. ( a)
41. ( b) 42. ( a) 43. ( c) 44. ( a) 45. ( a) 46. ( a) 47. ( a) 48. ( d) 49. ( b) 50. ( b)
51. ( a) 52. ( b) 53. ( a) 54. ( c) 55. ( b) 56. ( b) 57. ( c) 58. ( c) 59. ( a) 60. ( b)
61. ( c) 62. ( b) 63. ( a) 64. ( c) 65. ( c) 66. ( a) 67. ( d) 68. ( b) 69. ( a) 70. ( b)
71. ( b) 72. ( c) 73. ( d) 74. ( c) 75. ( a) 76. ( c) 77. ( d) 78. ( a) 79. ( a) 80. ( b)
81. ( b) 82. ( b) 83. ( a) 84. ( c) 85. ( b) 86. ( d) 87. ( a) 88. ( d) 89. ( c) 90. ( a)
91. ( c) 92. ( d) 93. ( b) 94. ( b) 95. ( c) 96. ( d) 97. ( d) 98. ( d) 99. ( b) 100. ( a)
101. ( c) 102. ( a) 103. ( b) 104. ( d) 105. ( d) 106. ( c) 107. ( c) 108. ( a) 109. ( c) 110. ( b)
111. ( a) 112. ( a) 113. ( d) 114. ( b) 115. ( b) 116. ( d) 117. ( d) 118. ( c) 119. ( c) 120. ( c)
MATHEMATI CS
1. ( d) 2. ( a) 3. ( a) 4. ( c) 5. ( d) 6. ( b) 7. ( b) 8. ( d) 9. ( d) 10. ( d)
11. ( b) 12. ( c) 13. ( b) 14. ( a) 15. ( a) 16. ( a) 17. ( c) 18. ( d) 19. ( c) 20. ( a)
21. ( a) 22. ( b) 23. ( c) 24. ( d) 25. ( d) 26. ( a) 27. ( c) 28. ( c) 29. ( b) 30. ( d)
31. ( a) 32. ( a) 33. ( a) 34. ( a) 35. ( c) 36. ( a) 37. ( d) 38. ( a) 39. ( c) 40. ( c)
41. ( d) 42. ( a) 43. ( c) 44. ( d) 45. ( a) 46. ( a) 47. ( a) 48. ( c) 49. ( a) 50. ( a)
51. ( a) 52. ( a) 53. ( c) 54. ( b) 55. ( a) 56. ( c) 57. ( b) 58. ( b) 59. ( b) 60. ( a)
61. ( a) 62. ( b) 63. ( c) 64. ( c) 65. ( b) 66. ( a) 67. ( c) 68. ( c) 69. ( d) 70. ( a)
71. ( b) 72. ( c) 73. ( b) 74. ( a) 75. ( d) 76. ( c) 77. ( d) 78. ( c) 79. ( c) 80. ( a)
81. ( a) 82. ( c) 83. ( d) 84. ( d) 85. ( b) 86. ( b) 87. ( b) 88. ( c) 89. ( b) 90. ( c)
91. ( b) 92. ( b) 93. ( b) 94. ( a) 95. ( b) 93. ( b) 97. ( a) 98. ( a) 99. ( b) 100. ( d)

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74. A current i passes t hrough a coil of

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85. A ring of mean radius 15 cm has 3500

90. I n an AC ci r cui t phase di f f er ence

( a) 79.0W, 80W (b) 28.66W, 100W

The cor rect mat ch for List I fr om List

1 sec x dx is equal t o 2cos

88. I f for a var iable line 1,

(d) angle bet ween a and b is p / 3

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