PM Narendra Modi launches Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched ‘Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan’ to strengthen Panchayati Raj in villages and ensure social harmony in villages. It was launched on the occasion of 125th birth anniversary of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar at his birth place at Mhow, Madhya Pradesh.
Key facts:

The campaign aims to generate nation wide efforts to strengthen Panchayati Raj, increase social harmony across villages, promote rural development and foster farmers’ welfare & livelihoods of the poor. It is 11 days campaign (from 14th to 24th April 2016) will mainly focus on generating nationwide efforts on promoting above mentioned aim of the campaign. The campaign will be run jointly by the Union Ministries of Rural Development, Social Justice, Agriculture, Labour & Information and Broadcasting along with the States Governments.
Panchayat level programmes:

Between 14th April to 16th April 2016, a ‘Social Harmony Programme’ will be conducted in all Gram Panchayats. In this programme, villagers will resolve to strengthen social harmony. Information regarding the various schemes of the government will be provided to foster social justice. Gram Kisan Sabha: Between 17th April to 20th April, 2016 ‘Village Farmer Assemblies’ will be organized in Gram Panchayats to promote agriculture. In these assemblies, information regarding schemes regarding agriculture will be provided to farmers and their suggestions for bringing about improvements in agriculture will be solicited. Gram Sabha meetings: It will be held from 21th to 24th April, 2016 across the country. On these days, Prabhat Pheris , cultural programme as well as a sports programme will be organized in the village.
Panchayati Raj Day:

On 24th April 2016, the day will be celebrated at Jamshedpur, which will be attended by the selected Panchayat presentatives from the country. Prime Minister will address the gathering on this day.

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PM Narendra Modi launches Gram Uday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan

Akash Missile System successfully test fired

Indigenously developed surface-to-air supersonic Akash missile System was successfully test fired from complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipuri in Odisha.
Test:

• 2 rounds of Akash missiles were fired against Pilot less target aircraft (PTA) Lakshya, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Banshee and Para-barrel.


• It successfully destroyed the targets coordinated by the user, demonstrating its ‘killing’ efficiency.

About Akash Missile:

• Akash (in English it means sky) is a mid-range surface-to-air missile (SAM).


• It is medium range nuclear capable supersonic missile.


• Indigenously developed by the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) under the Integrated Guided-Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).

Akash Missile Features:

• Akash missile has supersonic speeds ranging from Mach 2.8 to 3.5. It is multi target, multi directional, all weather air-defence system consisting of surveillance and tracking radars.


• It has capability to carry warhead of 60 kg. It can engage aerial targets up to a range of approximately 25 kms. It can reach a high altitude of 18 kms and as low as 30 meters.


• It is powered by the Ramjet-rocket propulsion system (RRPS) which renders thrust for the missile to intercept the target at supersonic speed without any retardation.


• It is capable of neutralising aerial targets like cruise missiles, fighter jets, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) & air-to surface missiles. The missile was formally inducted into the IAF in July 2015.

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Akash Missile System successfully test fired

Maharashtra becomes 1st state to pass law against social boycott

Maharashtra legislature has unanimously passed the Maharashtra Prohibition of People from Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Bill, 2016 to end the menace social boycott practiced by extra judicial institutions like caste & community panchayats. With this Maharashtra became 1st state in the country to adopt a comprehensive law to root out oppression carried out by parallel justice delivery system (kangaroo court) in the name of age old traditions, caste & religion.
Key Features of Bill:

• The Bill terms social boycott as a crime and says anybody indulging in it would face imprisonment maximum upto 3 years and a fine of One lakh rupees or both.


• It disallows social boycott of any individual or groups by caste panchayats or groups of individuals or gavki or by its members or by social or economically influential persons.


• Persons involved in practice of social boycott for reasons like rituals of worship, inter-caste marriage, any connection to lifestyle, dress or vocation will face stringent punishment.


• The offence registered under the act will be congnizable and bailable. It will be tried by a judicial magistrate of the first class.


• The victim of social boycott or any member of the victim’s family can file a complaint either to police or directly to the magistrate.


• The bill has indicated speedy trial within 6 months of filing chargesheet in such cases in order to ensure time bound results.


• Government will recruit social boycott prohibition officers to ensure monitoring and to detect offences and assist the magistrate and police officers in tackling such cases.

Background:

• In recent times, Maharashtra had witnessed an increasing number of incidents of social boycott and violence at the orders of caste panchayats.


• However, existing laws were found to be inadequate in dealing with such practices. For years, number of activists and academicians in the state were demanding stringent law to root out menace of social boycotts from the state.

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Maharashtra becomes 1st state to pass law against social boycott

PM Narendtra Modi inaugurates 3rd Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the third edition of Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi to save wild tigers. India is host of this edition of conference in which more than 700 tiger experts, scientists, managers, donors and other stakeholders are participating.

Key facts:

• The conference will discus`s issues related to tiger conservation and anti-poaching s`trategies. Ministers and government officials from all 13 tiger range countries (TRCs) participating in the conference.

These 13 TRCs are:

•  Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Thailand,and Vietnam.


• In this edition of conferences participating TRCs will share their


• (i) Good practices and success stories in conserving tigers


• (ii) Success stories in conserving tigers. The conference will also bring desired momentum and cooperative will for tiger conservation at the global level.


• It will also have and have long term ramifications in the future for tiger conservation. The 1st edition of Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation was held in Hua Hin, Thailand in 2010 and second edition was held in Thimphu, Bhutan in 2013.

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PM Narendtra Modi inaugurates 3rd Asia Ministerial Conference on Tiger Conservation

Dogri Poetess Padma Sachdev selected for 2015 Saraswati Samman

Dogri Poetess and novelist Padma Sachdev (76) has been chosen for the prestigious Saraswati Samman for the year 2015. Samman has been chosen for her autobiography ‘Chitt-Chete’ written in Dogri language and published in 2007. In her 662-page autobiography, Ms. Sachdev has included some historic photographs with dignitaries from her state, nation and the world. Her work was selected by the jury presided by former Chief Justice AS Anand from 22 works in as many languages published between the years 2005-2014.

About Padma Sachdev:  Padma Sachdev is 1st modern woman poet of Dogri language. She also writes in Hindi. She has published her several poetry collection and has 60 books to her credit. Some of her famous books are Tavi Te Chanhan (1976), Nheriyan Galiyan (1982), Pota Pota Nimbal (1987), Uttar Vahini (1992) and Tainthian (1992). Awards & Honours: Her poetry collection Meri Kavita Mere Geet (My Poems, My Songs) has won the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1971. She also has been awarded Padma Shri (2001), India’s Fourth highest civilian award and the Kabir Samman for poetry (2007-08) by the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
About Saraswati Samman:

• Saraswati Samman is an annual award bestowed upon Indian citizen for his outstanding literary work written in any Indian language mentioned in Schedule VIII of Constitution & published during last Ten years.


• It has been named after an Indian goddess of learning and is considered to be among the highest literary awards in India.

Established:

1991 by the K. K. Birla Foundation. Award Carries: Monetary award of 15 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque. Eminent Hindi author Harivansh Rai Bachchan was the 1st recipient of this award for his autobiography in 4 volumes

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Dogri Poetess Padma Sachdev selected for 2015 Saraswati Samman

SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches inflatable room to ISS

Private SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket contracted by the NASA has successfully launched the 1st inflatable habitat room that will attach to the International Space Station (ISS). The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off on schedule from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, US. In another major success for SpaceX, the reusable main stage booster of Falcon 9 rocket for the 1st time successfully landed on an ocean (floating) platform, known as a drone ship, off the coast of Florida.
Key facts:

• The inflatable room has been named as Bigelow Expandable Actitvity Module (BEAM) and has been built by Nevada Company Bigelow Aerospace.


• It will be attached to the ISS for a 2 year test and is the first such habitat to hold humans in orbit. It is made up of aluminium & soft fabric.


• It expands in space and is light weight and also takes minimal space. It creates place for astronauts to live & work.


• Its test is intended to pave the way towards the use of such rooms for long space trips, including to Mars and this technology could also help to create homes on the Mars.


• It should be noted that this was also the 1st NASA cargo run for SpaceX since its June 2015 mishap, when an unmanned cargo rocket exploded soon after take off.

About SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket:

• Falcon 9 rocket is a 2 stage rocket designed & manufactured by Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX), a private space transport services company.


• It is basically used for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. It is powered by the liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellants.


• In 2008, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 And Dragon capsule combination had won a Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract from NASA to resupply the ISS under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program.

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SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches inflatable room to ISS

The Union Government constitutes B B Tandon Committee to monitor Government Advertisements

The Union Information & Broadcasting Ministry has constituted a 3 member Committee to see that guidelines set for government advertisements by the Supreme Court are followed. The committee will be headed by the former Chief Election Commissioner B B Tandon. TV journalist Rajat Sharma and ad-man Piyush Pandey will be the other 2 members of the committee.
Background:

• The committee was constituted by I&B Ministry based on the recommendation of the 3 member selection committee comprising Press Council Chairman Justice (retd) C K Prasad, I&B Secretary Sunil Arora and advertising professional Prasoon Joshi..


• Supreme Court order on Govt Advertisements In May 2015, Supreme Court in its order had issued Guidelines on Regulating Government Advertisements based on recommendations of Prof NR Madhava Menon Committee.


• in its order, SC had barred publication of photos of leaders in government advertisements except those of the President, Prime Minister and the Chief Justice of India.


• SC had also directed the Union Government to constitute a 3 member committee to regulate the issue of public advertisements.


• It had clearly mentioned that member of this committee should be consisting of persons with unimpeachable neutrality and impartiality.


• However, in March 2016 SC modified its earlier May 2015 order and allowed photographs of Chief Ministers, Governors & ministers to be carried in public advertisements.

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The Union Government constitutes B B Tandon Committee to monitor Government Advertisements

World Bank launches ambitious Climate Change Action Plan

World Bank has unveiled an ambitious Climate Change Action plan (CCP) to accelerate efforts to tackle climate change over the next 5 years i.e. by 2020. It seeks to help developing countries to deliver their targets set in the national climate plan submitted for the historic climate agreement reached at COP21 in Paris in December 2015. The Action Plan mainly seeks to help developing countries make major transitions to increase sources of renewable energy, develop green transport systems, decrease high carbon energy sources and build sustainable, livable cities for growing urban populations.
Key highlights :

• Help in developing countries add 30 GWs of renewable energy.The World Bank would focus on expanding universal access to early warning systems in the case of disasters to 100 million people by the year 2020.


• World Bank will develop climate smart agriculture investment plans for at least 40 nations. Design sustainable forest strategies for 50 countries and promote climate-informed fisheries management by 2020.


• Bring adaptive social protection social safety nets that can quickly support people affected by a disaster or an economic shock.


• Pilot a new approach in 15 cities that aims to boost urban resilience by the integrating infrastructure, land use planning & disaster risk management.


• The World Bank to quadruple funding over next Five years to make transport systems more resilient to climate change.


• It will also invest at least US 1 billion dollars to promote energy efficiency and resilient building by 2020.


• Help to green the financial sector through a coordinated approach across banking, capital & pensions markets to implement changes needed nationally & globally.

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World Bank launches ambitious Climate Change Action Plan

CP Gurnani appointed as the new Chairman of NASSCOM

National Association of Software & Services Companies (NASSCOM) has appointed CP Gurnani as its Chairman for 2016-17 and Raman Roy as vice chairman for the period. Currently, Gurnani is Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tech Mahindra. He is a chemical engineer from the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Rourkela. He has over 31 years of rich corporate experience. Previously, he had worked at Hewlett Packard Ltd, Perot Systems (India) Limited and HCL Corporation Ltd, and had led the merger of Tech Mahindra with the Satyam. Raman Roy is the MD of Quatrro Global Services. He is widely regarded as a pioneer of the bissiness processing outsourcing (BPO) industry in india. He has successfully led the BPO initiatives of American Express, GE (now Genpact) and Spectramnd. He is a Chartered Accountant with a Doctorate in Management Accountancy and has rich corporate experience of 35 years. About National Association of Software and Services Companies:

NASSCOM is a global non-profit trade association (organisation) of Indian Information Technology and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry. It facilitates business and trade in software & services and encourages the advancement of research in software technology Established: It is registered under the Indian Societies Act, 1860. 3
Headquarters:

New Delhi. It has regional offices in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune and Thiruvananthapuram.
Members:

The global trade body has over 2000 members, of which over 250 are companies from the China, EU, Japan, United State & United Kingdom. NASSCOM’s member companies are in the business of software development, software services, software products, IT-enabled/BPO services and E-commerce

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CP Gurnani appointed as the new Chairman of NASSCOM

Hashim Thaci sworn in as President of Kosovo

Hashim Thaci has sworn in as the new President of Kosovo after he was elected by the parliament in March 2016. Hashim Thaci succeeds Atifete Jahjaga. With this, he becomes 4th President of Kosovo after the European country had unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Prior getting elected as President he was serving as Deputy Prime Minister & Foreign Minister in the Government led by the Isa Mustafa.
About Hashim Thaci:

• Hashim Tachi Born on April 24, 1968 in the Drenica region of central Kosovo. From the early 1990s as a student, Hashim Thaci was involved in passive resistance to the Belgrade authorities.


• Hashim Thaci had rose to prominence as the political leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a paramilitary organisation that was acting during the Kosovo War.


• He was the 1st Prime Minister of Kosovo after it had unilaterally declared independence from Serbia in 2008. He was in office from January 2008 to December 2014.


• Kosovo It is a disputed territory and partially recognised state in South-Eastern Europe after it had unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia in February 2008.


• Its independence has been recognised by the United State and many EU countries. Since 1999, Kosovo is under UN administration after the NATO intervention had ousted Serbian forces.


• It is land-locked in the central Balkan Peninsula and is facing long-term severe ethnic tensions between Kosovo’s Albanian & Serb communities.

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Hashim Thaci sworn in as President of Kosovo

North East-ASEAN Business Summit kicks off in Imphal

The 1st ever North East-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Business Summit kicked off in Imphal, Manipur with the Focus on road connectivity, trade & tourism. The 2 day summit has been organized by the Manipur Commerce & Industries Department in collaboration with the Union Ministries of External Affairs & Development of North-Eastern Region, Indian Chamber of Commerce or Indian Chamber of Service Industries.
Key facts:

• The Summit aims at attracting investment from both domestic & foreign firms to the North-Eastern states to increase productivity & generate employment in the region.


• Delegates from the member nation of the ASEAN viz. Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Brunei and 8 North-East states of the country are participating in the Summit.


• Bangladesh in also participating.

Main highlights of the Summit:

Regional conference on Ease of Doing Business,

Agro and Food Processing:

Potential and Challenges and Session on Empowering MSME in North East.

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North East-ASEAN Business Summit kicks off in Imphal

China Successfully launched SJ-10 retrievable space science probe

On 6 April 2016 China successfully launched bullet-shaped retrievable scientific research satellite SJ-10 (Shijian-10). The satellite was launched aboard Long March 2-D rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwestern China’s Gobi desert.

The satellite was launched with an aim to help scientists in their study of microgravity and space life science.

It is the 2nd of 4 scientific satellites under a CAS space program. Unlike the other 3, SJ-10 is returnable. SJ-10 is the 25th such retrievable satellite launched by the China in the past decades.

The bullet-shaped probe will house 19 experiments in the space involving microgravity fluid physics, microgravity combustion, space material, space radiation effect, microgravity biological effect and space bio-technology, before coming back to Earth with results.
On-board experiments include:

• Study of early-stage development of mouse embryos in microgravity and this will help in shedding light on human reproduction in space, and another studying space radiation effects on genetic stability of fruit flies & rat cells.

• The Soret Coefficient in Crude Oil experiment will investigate coal combustion and pollutant formation under microgravity. The experiment will be carried out in partnership with the National Space Science Center under CAS and the European Space Agency (ESA). This experiment will be carried out to improve scientists understanding of oil reservoirs buried kilometers underground and the latter will help in enhancing energy efficiency and cut emissions.

Overall, eight of the experiments on fluid physics and microgravity combustion will be carried out in the orbital module.

The other experiments will be conducted under the re-entry capsule which is expected to land at Siziwang Banner in Inner Mongolia, the designated landing spot for China’s Shenzhou manned space missions and a 2014 test lunar orbiter.

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China Successfully launched SJ-10 retrievable space science probe

PM Narendra Modi has launched Stand up India scheme for SC/ST, women

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been launched the Stand-up India scheme aimed at providing credit to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), and women borrowers in the non-farm sector. The scheme is intended to promote entrepreneurship among SC/ST and women and further give a push to government’s financial inclusion programme. The broad features of the scheme Composite loan between Ten lakh rupees and up to One crore rupees will be provided to SC/ST and women and also inclusive of working capital component for setting up any new enterprise.

Debit Card (RuPay) for withdrawal of working capital. Credit history of borrower to be developed of these under banked sections of society. Refinance window through Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) with an initial amount of 10,000 crore rupees. Creation of a corpus of 5,000 crore rupees for credit guarantee through National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC). Handholding support for borrowers with comprehensive support for pre loan training needs, facilitating loan, factoring, marketing etc. Web Portal for online registration and support services will be provided. Under the scheme, 1.25 lakh bank branches will provide loans up to One crore rupees to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs. Thus it will help in creating 2.5 lakh entrepreneurs throughout the country.

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PM Narendra Modi has launched Stand up India scheme for SC/ST, women

India wins the Asian Nations Cup Chess tournament 2016

Indian men have won the 2016 Asian Nations Cup Chess tournament by defeating Vietnam in the final round by 3-1 score played in Abu Dhabi. In the final round match, Indian Grandmasters S P Sethuraman & K Sasikiran won on the second and Fourth boards while, B Adhiban & Vidit Santosh Gujrathi drew their respective matches on top and Third boards. With this win India gained 17 points, 2 more than World and Olympiad champions China. India drew Mongolia and beat the rest of the teams in a 22 team tournament. It was overall 3rd time, Indian men won the event earlier they had won at Esfahan, Iran in 2005 & Kolkata 2009. In the women’s section, top seed China won the title with 15 points followed by Uzbekistan (14 points) at 2nd Kazakhstan (13 points) at 3rd position respectively. Indian women finished fourth position with 12 points.

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India wins the Asian Nations Cup Chess tournament 2016

 World health day observed on 7th April

 

Every year World Health Day is being observed on 7th April to disseminate knowledge & awareness about the human health. The day focuses on increasing life expectancy by adding good health to the lives of people and promoting healthier living habits across the globe. 2016 theme: “Beat Diabetes”.

Background:

•  World Health Organisation (WHO) is marking its annual World Health Day, to celebrate Organization’s founding in 1948 on this day in the 1st World Health Assembly.


• Since then the World Health Assembly decided to celebrate 7th April of each year with effect from 1950 as the World Health Day.


• It is one of eight official global public health campaigns marked by the WHO along with World Tuberculosis Day, World Malaria Day, World No Tobacco Day, World Immunization Week, World Hepatitis Day, World AIDS Day and World Blood Donor Day.


• What is Diabetes? Diabetes is a chronic, progressive non-communicable disease (NCD) characterized by elevated levels of blood sugar (blood glucose).


• It occurs when (i) the pancreas does not produce enough of the insulin hormone, which regulates blood sugar (ii) the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces.


• According to the World Health Organization (WHO) the number of people living with diabetes has almost quadrupled since 1980 to 422 million adults over 35 years of age with most living in developing countries.


• Factors driving this dramatic rise include overweight and obesity. It now affects nearly one in every 11 people around the world.


• Measures to reduce diabetes risk factors Expanding health-promoting environments like physical inactivity and unhealthy diets and strengthening national capacities to help people with diabetes receive the treatment and care.


• Global commitments to reduce diabetes Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.4 calls for reducing premature death from NCDs, including diabetes by 30 Percent by 2030.


• Governments have also committed to achieving Four time bound national commitments set out in the 2014 UN General Assembly “Outcome Document on Noncommunicable Diseases”.


• They are also attaining the Nine global targets of World Health Orgnisation laid out in the “Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs” which include halting the rise in diabetes and obesity.

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 World health day observed on 7th April

Chess Player Vishwanathan Anand to be honoured with the Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award

5 time world chess champion Vishwanathan Anand (46) will be honoured with the Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award. Maharashtra State Governor C Vidyasagar Rao will bestow award upon him at an event to be held in Mumbai on April 12th, 2016.
About Vishwanathan Anand:

• Vishwanathan Anand Born on December 11, 1969. He is an Indian chess grandmaster and a former world champion.


• He became India’s 1st grandmaster in 1988. He held the FIDE World Chess Championship from 2000 to 2002 and became the undisputed world champion in 2007.

About Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award:

• Established in 2011 by Mumbai based socio-cultural organisation Hridayesh Art in the honour of music composer & singer Hridaynath Mangeskar.


• The award felicitates and recognises successful individuals across the country from various walks of life. It carries monetary award of Rs Two lakh and a memento.


• Hridaynath is the son of renowned musician Deena nath Mangeshkar and is younger brother of Indian music legends Lata Mangeshkar & Asha Bhosle.


• The previous recipients of the award include eminent personalities like Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Amitabh Bachchan, Hariprasad Chaurasia and A R Rahman

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Chess Player Vishwanathan Anand to be honoured with the Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award

Scientists discover the new planet with triple star system named KELT-4Ab

Scientists have discovered a rare triple-star system named KELT-4Ab with a gas giant planet similar in size to Jupiter. It was discovered by the researchers at the Harvard Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics in the US. The research was published in The Astronomical Journal.
Some Key facts:

• Known planets with 3 stars appearing in their sky are rare and the new discovery is just the 4th and the closest one yet.


• In KELT-4Ab triple-star system, the main star named KELT-A is brighter than the other stars that serve as suns for their planets.


• It has a gas giant planet, similar in size to Jupiter takes approximately 3 days to make its way around its sun KELT-A.


• The other 2 stars are named KELT-B & C. They are much farther away and orbit one another over the course of approximately 30 years.


• It takes the pair of stars approximately 4000 years to orbit KELT-A. They appear much dimmer due to their great distance.

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Scientists discover the new planet with triple star system named KELT-4Ab

DCB Bank launches India’s 1st Aadhaar based ATM

DCB Bank has been launched an India’s 1st of its kind Aadhaar-based Automatic Teller Machine usage facility. Currently, this ATM has been placed in pilot site at DCB Bank at Peninsula Bussiness park, Lower Parel, Mumbai.

Key facts:

• Under this facility, DCB customers can transact using his biometric details instead of the PIN. Thus it is a cardless and PIN less ATM.


• The ATM will dispense cash from the bank account by the accepting Aadhaar number & Aadhaar fingerprint (biometric) of the customer instead of ATM/Debit Card & PIN.


• The customer can swipe the card at an ATM and key in the 12 digit Aadhaar number to start a transaction. But at the stage of confirming the identity, it requires biometric details rather than the PIN.

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DCB Bank launches India’s 1st Aadhaar based ATM

Bihar Govt. imposes complete ban on alcohol

Bihar Govt. has taken a decision to completely ban on all types of liquor throughout the state including Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL). Decision in this regard was taken by the state cabinet chaired by the Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna. Earlier on 1st April 2016, state government had banned country made liquor in the state except IMFL in the 1st phase. Now in the 2nd phase, foreign liquor (IMFL) will also be banned with immediate effect. The production, sale & business of all types of liquor have been banned in the state. Henceforth person found indulging in manufacturing trade, transportation, sale & consumption of liquor across the state will be punished under the stringent provisions of the Bihar Excise (Amendment) Act, 2016. The Act has various stringent provisions including awarding ‘capital punishment’ for those who manufacture and sell illicit liquor that causes death. Alcohol prohibition in India is in force: Gujarat, Nagaland, Lakshadweep (UT) and parts of Manipur. Since 2014, Kerala has been implementing prohibition in a phased manner.

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Bihar Govt. imposes complete ban on alcohol

Mehbooba Mufti sworn in as 1st woman Chief Minister of J&K

Mehbooba Mufti Sayeed (56) took oath as the 1st woman Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir, bringing to an end the 3 month Governor’s Rule in the state. She was administered oath to the office by the Governor NN Vohra at Raj Bhawan in the winter capital city of Jammu. Along with her 22 member council of ministers from BJP-PDP alliance also took oath. BJP leader Nirmal Singh took oath as Deputy Chief Minister of the state. Mehbooba Mufti succeeds her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed in the role who had died in January 2016. She is also 2nd Muslim woman to become the Chief Minister of a state in India after Syeda Anwara Taimur who had served as the 1st Muslim woman CM of Assam from 1980 to 1981.
About Mehbooba Mufti Sayeed:

• Mehbooba Mufti Sayeed Born on 22 May 1959 in Akhran Nowpora, Jammu & Kashmir. She is the president of the Jammu & Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).


• She is currently a Member of Parliament, representing Anantnag constituency in the 16th Lok Sabha and shall vacate this role in light of her Chief Ministership.


• Previously, she also had represented Anantnag constituency in the 14th Lok Sabha (2004-09).

Background:

• After the death of then CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on 7th January 2016 due to ill health, the state government of Jammu and Kashmir had lapsed.


• Since then it was under the Governor’s rule. The PDP-BJP coalition has 56 MLAs in the 87-member Jammu and Kasmhir Assembly. The PDP have 27 members while BJP have 25.

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Mehbooba Mufti sworn in as 1st woman Chief Minister of J&K

IISc ranked India’s top university in 1st NIRF Survey

Indian Institute of Sciences (IISc), Bangaluru was adjudged as the best Indian university in the 1st National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). NIRF Survey was the 1st of its kind of indigenous ranking framework for higher education institutions in the country. It was launched by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) in September 2015. It outlines a methodology to rank institutions across the country based on the parameters broadly covering Teaching, Learning and Resources, Research & Professional practices, Graduation Outcomes, Outreach and inclusivity & Perception. The NIRF ranking covers 6 categories of institutions including universities, engineering, management, pharmacy, architecture and colleges.

Top Five universities:

Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (Score: 91.81) Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai (87.58) Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi (86.45) University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad (85.45) Tezpur University, Tezpur, Assam (84.31)

Top Five management institutes:

Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (Score: 93.04) Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (89.1) Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta (87.45) Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (86.12) Indian Institute of Management, Udaipur (84.22)

Top Five engineering institutes:

Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (Score: 89.41) Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (87.66) Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (83.91) Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (82.02) Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (81.07)

Top Five Pharmacy Institutions:

Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manipal University Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chandigarh Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi Poona College of Pharmacy, Pune Institute of Pharmacy, Nirma University, Ahmedabad

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IISc ranked India’s top university in 1st NIRF Survey

UNIDO report: India ranks 6th in 2015 Top Ten manufacturers list

India has been ranked 6th among the world’s Top 10 largest manufacturing countries in the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) 2015 Yearbook report. In this edition of report India has jumped by 3 positions to 6th position compared to earlier ninth position in the previous report.
Key facts Top 5:

China, United States, Japan, Germany and South Korea. Indonesia was placed at the bottom at the tenth position. Indian Scenario: Manufacturing Value Added has grown by 7.6 % in 2015 compared to the year 2014. Quarterly index of industrial production (IIP) has shown 1 Percent growth of manufacturing output in the 4th quarter of 2015 compared to the same period of the year 2014.
Global Scenario:

The global growth rate of manufacturing production has slowed to 2.8 % in 2015. This slowdown could be due to reduced manufacturing growth rates recorded by major developing & emerging economies. UNIDO It is a specialized agency in the United Nations and is member of the United Nations Development Group (UNDG). It is headquartered in Vienna, Austria. Objective: Promotion & acceleration of industrial development in developing countries and countries with economies in transition and the promotion of international industrial co-operation.

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UNIDO report: India ranks 6th in 2015 Top Ten manufacturers list

West Indies wins ICC Cricket World Cup 2016

West Indies has won the ICC Cricket World Men’s T-20 Cup 2016 by defeating England by Four wickets in the final match played at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. In the final match, England batting 1st had scored 155 runs for 9 wickets. West Indies successfully chased the target by scoring 161 runs in 19.4 over at the loss of Four wickets. With this win, West Indies became the only team to win the ICC World T-20 title twice. Earlier it had won its 1st title in 2012 by defeating Captains of the 2 teams West Indies: Darren Sammy. England:

Eoin Morgan. Awards Player of the match: Marlon Samuels.

Player of the series: Virat Kohli (India).

ICC Cricket World Women’s T-20 Cup 2016 West Indies has won their maiden Women’s World T-20 title by defeating reigning champions Australia by Eight wickets at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Batting 1st Australia had score of 148 runs for Five wickets. West Indies in reply scored 149 runs in 19.3 over at the loss of Two wickets. Captains of the both teams West Indies: Stafanie Taylor. Australia: Meg Lanning.

Awards Player of the match: Hayley Matthews (West Indies).

Player of the series: Stafanie Taylor (West Indies).

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West Indies wins ICC Cricket World Cup 2016

Union Government notified Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016

The Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change on 28th March 2016 notified the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016.

The new set of Rules will replace the Bio-Medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 1998.
Highlights of the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016

• Biomedical waste was defined as human & animal anatomical waste, treatment apparatus like needles, syringes and other materials used in health care facilities in the process of treatment & research.

• This waste is generated during diagnosis, treatment and immunisation in hospitals, nursing homes, pathological laboratories, blood bank, etc.

• The objective of the new set of rules is to properly manage the 484 tons per day bio-medical waste from 168869 healthcare facilities (HCFs) across the country.

• The ambit of the rules has been expanded to include vaccination camps, blood donation camps, surgical camps and any other healthcare activity.

• Use of chlorinated plastic bags, gloves and blood bags will be phased out within 2 years.

• Pre-treatment of the laboratory waste, microbiological waste, blood samples & blood bags through disinfection or sterilisation on site in the manner as prescribed by World Health Organization (WHO) or The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO)

• All health care workers will be provided training & immunization regularly.

• A Bar Code System for bags or containers containing bio-medical waste for disposal will be established.

• Existing incinerators to achieve the standards for retention time in secondary chamber and Dioxin and Furans within 2 years.

• Bio-medical waste has been classified in to Four categories instead of the existing Ten categories to improve the segregation of waste at source.

• Procedure to get authorisation simplified. Automatic authorisation for bedded hospitals will be allowed. The validity of authorization synchronised with validity of consent orders for bedded healthcare facilities.

• The new rules prescribe more stringent standards for incinerator to reduce the emission of pollutants in environment.

• Emissions limits for Dioxin & furans were prescribed.

• State Government will provide land for setting up common bio-medical waste treatment & disposal facility.

• No occupier shall establish on-site treatment and disposal facility, if a service of `common bio-medical waste treatment facility is available at a distance of 75 KM.

• Operator of a common bio-medical waste treatment and disposal facility has to ensure the timely collection of bio-medical waste from the HCFs and assist the HCFs in conduct of training.

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Union Government notified Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016

Jailed Egyptian Novelist Ahmed Naji to receive PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award

On 31st March 2016 PEN America announced that it will confer the PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award upon imprisoned Egyptian novelist & journalist Ahmed Naji.

The award will be presented to Naji at Pen America’s annual Literary Gala on 16th May 2016 at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

PEN America’s 16th May 2016 Literary Gala will also salute Harry Potter creator
About Ahmed Naji ?

• Ahmed Naji is the author of 3 books and a journalist at the state funded Akhbar al-Adab literary magazine.

• He has been a vocal critic of official corruption under the rule of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

• In 2015, he was charged with violating public modesty after a private citizen complained that an excerpt from Naji’s novel The Use of Life published in the state run literary journal Akhbar al-Adab had given the reader heart palpitations due to its sexual content.

• State prosecutors then brought a case against Naji despite the Egyptian censorship board’s previous approval of the literary text. When a trial court found him not guilty, prosecutors appealed to a higher court that in February 2016 delivered a guilty verdict and imposed the maximum sentence of 2 years in prison.

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Jailed Egyptian Novelist Ahmed Naji to receive PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award

J Geetha Reddy appointed as the New PAC Chairperson of Telangana

On 31 March 2016 Congress senior MLA J Geeta Reddy was appointed as the new Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Telangana.

J Geetha Reddy will be the 1st woman legislator to be appointed for the post in India.

Previously, Congress MLA Patolla Kista Reddy was the 1st chairman of Public Account Committee of newly formed Telangana State. After his death, the post was occupied by the Ramreddy Venkat Reddy who was a senior leader from Congress party. But the position fell vacant again after Venkat Reddy passed away on 4th March 2016 due to illness.
PAC of the State:

The Committee on Public Accounts is constituted by the Legislative Assembly each year for examination of accounts showing the appropriation of sums granted by the Legislative Assembly for expenditure of State Government.

It scrutinises the reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General , and comprises of 30 members drawn from both the Assembly & Legislative Council.

As a convention, the panel is always headed by the senior legislator from the opposition party.

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J Geetha Reddy appointed as the New PAC Chairperson of Telangana

Supreme Court approves Union Government’s guidelines to protect Good Samaritans to victims

Supreme Court has approved the Union Government’s guidelines to protect Good Samaritans, who help the road accident victims, from being unnecessarily harassed by the police or any other authority. These guidelines based on the recommendations K S Radhakrishnan committee were approved by the SC bench comprising justices V Gopala Gowda & Arun Mishra. These guidelines will be binding on all states and Union Territories untill the union government enacts a law to this effect. The bench also has asked the Union Government to give wide publicity to these guidelines so that people who help others in the time of distress are not victimised by any authority. It should be noted that SC took on record these guidelines to protect Good Samaritans placed by the Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways. The Ministry had approached the SC for issuing these guidelines on all states and Union Territories by its order as it was facing difficulty to enforce them in the absence of any statutory backing.
Background:

The Guideline of the Transport Ministry were based on the recommendations of the 3 member committee headed by the former judge K S Radhakrishnan. The committee was appointed by the SC in 2014 to monitor steps taken by the Centre and state governments to ensure the road safety. The committee had given 12 major recommendations including setting up of State Road Safety Councils, evolving a protocol for identification of black spots, their removal and monitoring to see the effectiveness of the action taken. The committee had also suggested strengthening of enforcement relating to drunken driving, red light jumping, over-speeding and helmet or seat belt laws.

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Supreme Court approves Union Government’s guidelines to protect Good Samaritans to victims

India’s 1st indigenously developed sonar dome flagged off

India’s 1st indigenous composites sonar dome, a ship’s underwater eyes & ears, was flagged off by the Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. Sonar dome was dedicated to the nation dedicated to the nation and will be delivered to Mazgaon Docks, Mumbai for use in the war-ships of Indian Navy.
Some Key facts:

• Sonar dome is dsigned and produced by Defence & Research Development Organisation’s (DRDO’s) Research & Development Establishment (Engineers) lab based in Pune.


• It is a 1st of its kind in the country to be manufactured by the Goa based composites manufacturing company Kineco.


• The sonar dome functions as the ship’s underwater eyes & ears and mostly all anti-submarine warfare (ASW) ships have a sonar array fitted to the ship structure below the waterline.


• Sonar dome is a structure is fitted over the sonar array to make it acoustically transparent in order to avoid exposure of its electronics and sensors to surrounding hostile environment.


• With successfully building indigenous sonar dome, India joins a select group of nations which have the capability of realising large composites structure with complex geometry, high structural rigidity and multi functional requirements with acoustic transparency.

Sonar: It is an acronym for Sound Navigation And Ranging. It is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater) to navigate, communicate with or detect objects on or under the surface of the water, such as other vessels.

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India’s 1st indigenously developed sonar dome flagged off

PM Narendra Modi unveils Asia’s largest optical telescope ARIES at Nainital

Asia’s largest and 1st of its kind optical telescope Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES) was unveiled at Devasthal in Nainital District, Uttrakahnd. It was remotely activated by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Belgian counterpart Charles Michel from Belgium.
Key facts:

Aries telescope was joint collaborative technological effort between Indian & Belgian scientists.

Location: It has been located at a height of 2,500 metres at Devasthal in Nainital district. The site was chosen for getting a clear view of the sky.
Features: The ARIES optical telescope has mirror of 3.6 m diameter. The telescope facility has been incorporated with high end technology which enables it to be operated with the help of remote control from anywhere in the world.
Applications: It will help in the study and exploration of planets, starts, magnetic field and astronomical debris. It will also help research of star structures and magnetic field structures of stars.
Background :The ARIES telescope has been a joint international effort between Indian, Russian & Belgian scientist. In March 2007 ARIES & Belgian company Advanced Mechanical & Optical Systems had entered a contract for design, manufacture, integration, testing, supply & installation of the telescope. Belgium also had funded 7 % of the project whose total cost is estimated to be more than 120 crore rupees.

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PM Narendra Modi unveils Asia’s largest optical telescope ARIES at Nainital

Outcomes of 13th India-European Union Summit

13th edition of India-European Union Summit was held on in Brussels, capital of Belgium. PM Narendra Modi represented Indian side in the summit. While the European Union (EU) was represented by the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk and President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker. The 13th summit laid out concrete priority actions for the strategic bilateral partnership in areas like trade and investment, climate, energy, water & migration in the next 5 years.
Key Outcomes:

EU-India Agenda for Action 2020: Both sides endorsed the agenda to concrete the road map for the EU-India Strategic Partnership for the next 5 years. EU-India Broad-based Trade & Investment Agreement (BTIA): Both sides agreed to further the negotiations on early conclusion of the BTIA.

Terrorism: Both sides adopted a Joint Declaration on Counter terrorism to step up co-operation to counter radicalisation and violent extremism. It will also allow jointly countering the flow of sources of terrorist financing, Foreign Terrorist Fighters and arms supply.
Loan assistance to Lucknow Metro:

The European Investment Bank agreed to lend loan of 450 million Euros for the construction of the 1st metro line in Lucknow.

G20 Skills Strategy: Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to implement G20 Skills Strategy and also expressed their intention to organise a high level skills seminar.

India-EU Water Partnership: The Joint Declaration was adopted in this regard to enhance co-operation on environment issues, including on the ‘Clean Ganga’ and ‘clean india’ flagship programmes.

India-European Union Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement: Both sides agreed to extend this agreement until 2020 to boost innovation and research in India & Europe.

Common Agenda on Migration & Mobility: Both sides agreed to establish this agenda in order to enhance involvement of citizens’ in the strategic partnership.

Arbitration procedure on the Italian Marines: Both sides expressed their confidence in solving the marine case currently underway in the framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

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Outcomes of 13th India-European Union Summit

Russia approves OVL’s deal to acquire 15 Percent stake in Vankor oilfield

The Russian Government has approved a deal of ONGC Videsh limited (OVL) to acquire 15% stake in Vankor oilfield from Rosneft. The deal was signed between the OVL and Rosneft in September 2015 and is worth 1.3 billion US dollars. Vankor is Russia’s second biggest oil field with capacity of total 2.5 billion recoverable reserves barrels (or 500 million tonnes). As per the deal OVL’s stake in Vankor will raise to 26% from 15% and will give it about 3.5 million metric tonnes of oil a year Consequently, Rosneft will retain the remaining 50.1 per cent and also retain full control of infrastructure of the Vankor cluster. This deal is in addition to another deal that was signed in March 2016 between the OVL and three other oil companies. Both of these deals will help India to secure access to lucrative Russia’s oil market, while Rosneft in turn will through OVL gain access to the Indian market. Vankor oilfield was discovered in 1988 and is main source supplier to the East Siberia Pacific Ocean (ESPO) Pipeline that is key contributor to the energy needs of China.

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Russia approves OVL’s deal to acquire 15 Percent stake in Vankor oilfield

Htin Kyaw sworn in as 1st elected President of Myanmar

Htin Kyaw (69) sworn in as the 1st elected civilian (non-military) President of Myanmar after 53 years of military rule. Myanmar’s Army was in power since 1962 coup. He belongs to National League for Democracy (NLD) Party and succeeds Thein Sein, who had stepped down after end of 5 years of army backed rule. Apart from him, Military backed Myint Swe and NLD member Henry Van Thio were sworn in as 1st vice-president or 2nd vice-president of the country along 18 Cabinet ministers. Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi who is the leader of NLD party that has majority in the Parliament was sworn in as foreign affairs Minister. She also is Minister of President’s office, education, and energy and electric power. Htin Kyaw is a close aide and adviser of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. He was as the 1st civilian President of the country by the Myanmar’s Parliament on 15th March 2016. Even though NLD is having majority in Parliament, Aung San Suu Kyi was not able to become President as the military drafted 2008 constitution of country bars citizen having children of another country nationality. Her children hold British passports.

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Htin Kyaw sworn in as 1st elected President of Myanmar

China succesfully aunches 22nd BeiDou navigation satellite

China has successfully launched the 22nd new generation satellite into space as part of its domestic BeiDou Navigation System (BDS). It was launched using Long March-3A carrier rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center located in the south-western province of Sichuan. It was the 225th launch of the Long March carrier rocket.
About the BeiDou Navigation System (BNS):

BNS is second generation of the Chinese navigational system seen as rival to the US’s Global Positioning System (GPS). BeiDou is Mandarin means magnetic Compass which was one of the Chinese major invention in the history which had revolutionized the sea voyages. The system comprises total 35 satellites in 2 separate satellite constellations:

(i) Limited test system (operational since 2000)

(ii) A full-scale global navigation system which is currently under construction. The BNS became operational in China in December 2011, with the constellation of 10 satellites. In December 2012, the system began offering services to customers in the Asia-Pacific region and on its completion in 2020 it will provide services to globle customers. After completion, the project would become an equivalent of the United State Global Positioning System, Russia’s Glonass, & Europe’s Galileo.
Applications:

(i) Civilian services: navigation, messaging, transportation and weather forecasting sectors. (ii) Military applications: ensure privacy for its military communications and missile launches by reducing the dependence on US operated GPS.

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China succesfully aunches 22nd BeiDou navigation satellite