Current Affairs 04/11/12 to 10/11/12

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1.‘Spy Princess’ Noor Inayat Khan honored by UK:UK honored and remembered the sacrifice of Ms Noor Inayat Khan by unveiling a bronze bust of hers at the central London Gordon Square Gardens near the house where she lived. It is said to be the first such memorial in Britain dedicated to a Muslim and the first in honour of an Asian woman.
Noor’s biography: “Spy Princess: The Life of Noor Inayat Khan” by Shrabani Basu.

2.India, Britain to step up cooperation in cyber security:India and Britain decided to step up cooperation in cyber security during their Foreign Minister-level talks.
SHARED CORE PRINCIPLES
India and Britain went on to define the core principles under which this cooperation would take place.
A joint statement issued at the end of the interaction held that “Both India and the United Kingdom share the core principles of liberty, transparency, freedom of expression and the rule of law which apply in cyberspace”.

3.The system for transport of Canadian Uranium to India finalized b/w Indian and Canada
India and Canada developed a mechanism for transport of the Canadian Uranium to India. Thus, India succeeded in clearing the mistrust generated on the Canadian side after the nuclear explosion from India in 1974.

4.Sachin Tendulkar conferred with the membership of the “Order of Australia”
Sachin Tendulkar conferred with the membership of the “Order of Australia”

5.The ‘Iron Lady of Manipur’ Irom Chanu Sharmila.Ms Sharmila has been on a hunger strike since 2000. She completed 12 years of her fast. She has been demanding repeal of Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) which the human rights activists hold as a draconian law.

6.Odisha Govt slaps a fine of Rs 6,000 crore on Tata Steel for illegal and excess mining.The Odisha government is believed to have slapped a fine of about Rs 6,000 crore on Tata Steel for its alleged involvement in ‘illegal and excess mining’ at its captive mines. Deputy Director of Mines (DDM) of Joda mining circle has slapped the fine.at present a Centre-appointed Justice M B Shah Commission is probing the cases of illegal mining in Odisha.

7.Government to digitize cable TV network in 38 more cities:Phase-2 of the campaign to digitize the cable TV network in India has been started by The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. In the phase0-2, 38 cities in 15 states will be covered by March 31, 2013.

8.Lalganj (Rae Bareli) Rail coach factory opens.
Rail Coach Factory was inaugurated by Congress president Sonia Gandhi at Lalganj in Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency.
Rae Bareli (Lalganj) factory is the 3rd of its kind, after the Integral Coach Factory, Perambur, Tamil Nadu, and the Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, Punjab. The total cost of the project is Rs. 2,500 crore, and Rs. 800 crore has already been invested.

9.India walks out in protest, Pakistan wins Asian Kabaddi Championship.Finals of the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 held in Lahore Pakistan.In the final match the Indian team walked out of the field in protest against the referee’s decision to penalize their coach Goormel Singh. The Indians decided to not continue play after which the crown was awarded to the hosts (Pakistan).

10.‘Ramanujan 125’ in Florida
3-day international conference, ‘Ramanujan 125,’ to mark the 125th birth anniversary celebration of Srinivasa Ramanujan, at the University of Florida in the U.S.
Over the last two decades, the University of Florida has become a premier centre for research on Ramanujan’s work.
The conference is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the National Security Agency, and Pennsylvania State University.

11.S.K. Khaitan passes away. Shree Krishna Khaitan, chairman of Khaitan group of companies, passed away. In 1975, S.K. Khaitan incorporated the Khaitan group of companies which is one of the leading fan manufacturers in the country with interests in home appliances and lightings business.

12.SARAL to boost remote sensing ability of India
SARAL (Satellite with ARgos and ALtiKa)
With the launch of SARAL satellite carrying AltiKa and an Argos-3 instrument2 is scheduled to be launched on December 2012 and with this the remote sensing ability of the country will get a boost up.
The SARAL Mission:
The SARAL-Altika mission is a combined effort of ISRO and the French Space Agency (CLS).
CLS, a subsidiary of CNES (French Space Agency ‘Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales’).
The satellite will map the variability of the sea level.
It will also provide data to support operational research in marine meteorology and sea state forecast as well as seasonal forecast.
The satellite will be carrying the ARGOS system for CLS and that will help in the transmission of data from Argo floats.
The mission is complementary to the Jason-2 mission of NASA/NOAA and CNES/EUMETSAT.
It will fill the gap b/w Envisat and the Sentinel 3 mission of the European GMES program.

13.Obama wins a second term as US President
Barack Obama has won a second 4-year Presidential term in the US. He defeated his main challenger Republican Mitt Romney. Mr. Obama, America’s first African-American President, bagged more than the 270 electoral votes required for victory.

14.Chinese-Belgian-British Writer Han Suyin passed away:Elizabeth Comber (Han Suyin) passed away.Elizabeth Comber who was also know by her pen name “Han Suyin”, a Chinese-Belgian British author who came up as among the most influential voices that served as a link b/w China and the West in the 20th century , passed away. Han had also served an ambassador for China-India relations after her marriage to an Indian colonel, Vincent Ratnaswamy. Han wrote in English and French. She was best known for her 1952 novel “A Many-Splendored Thing”. It inspired Hollywood movie “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing”. The film won 3 Oscars at 1956 academy awards. She became widely known after shestirred up controversy with her hagiographic view of China’s Cultural Revolution.

15. Retd Paramilitary staff gets ex-servicemen status.Government has given its approval for granting retired paramilitary personnel from forces like CRPF, CISF, BSF, ITBP and SSB the status of ex-servicemen which will enable them to avail welfare benefits.

16.China invites Dr APJ Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University.China has invited Dr APJ Abdul Kalam to teach at the prestigious Peking University. The varsity also offered him a lab of his choice to work with the students. The invitation was made on Kalam’s first visit to China at the invitation of the reputed Beijing Forum, a Chinese government backed intellectual body. In reply to this invitation Dr Kalam expressed willingness to share his knowledge.

17.Cartoonist T. Samuel passed away:The pioneer of pocket cartoons in India, T. Samuel (86) passed away. Samuel belonged to Kollam in Kerala. He began his career as a cartoonist with the Civil and Military Gazette published from Lahore before independence. He came to Delhi during partition as a refugee and joined the famous Shankar’s Weekly, contributing the Silent Strip Cartoon "Kalu and Meena".
Samuel became famous as a creator of the Pocket Cartoon "Babuji" and strip cartoon "Garib".

18.India, South Korea talk about possibility of revising DTAC:At a high level meeting b/w India and South Korea, both the nations discussed the possibility of revising Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC). Discussions included expanding information sharing b/w the taxation authorities and cooperation in modernizing the customs system of both countries. Cooperation in public procurement and measures to develop co-financing infrastructure projects were also part of discussions.

19.US approves missile-defense system to UAE, Qatar:The US DSCA (Defense Security Cooperation Agency) has given approval to the possible sales of Lockheed Martin Corp missile-defense system to UAE and Qatar. The deal has come against the backdrop of heightened tensions with Iran. Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have requested the sale of up to $7.6 billion in Lockheed Martin Corp missile-defense systems. UAE and some members in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) had shown interest in the Lockheed’s THAAD (Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense) weapon systems.

20.Govt announces Minimum Supporting Price for cotton.:In a move aimed at stabilizing the cotton prices which have witnessed sharp plunge and are operating around Minimum Support Price (MSP) levels, the government announced revised minimum support price (MSP) for cotton for early commencement of minimum support price operations.The government revised MSP prices for medium staple cotton from Rs. 2800 per quintal to Rs. 3600 per quintal and for long staple cotton from Rs. 3,300 quintal to Rs. 3, 900 per quintal for cotton season 2012-13.

21.“1000 Genomes Project”: Global genomes decoded to trace disease roots. What is the “1000 Genomes Project”?Scientists working for The 1,000 Genomes Project have decoded the genomes of more than 1,000 people from 14 ethnic global groups. It is the largest and most detailed compilation of human DNA variations, to track origin of rare and common diseases.Launched in January 2008.An international research effort to establish by far the most detailed catalogue of human genetic variation.
The project has generated raw information to the tune of 180 terabytes. All of the information is freely available on internet.
The sequencing of 1092 genomes was announced in a Nature publication in October 2012.

22.Free generic drugs via public hospitals; Three fold increase in the allocation to health sector in the 12th Plan.
The allotment for the health sector during the 12th Plan had been enhanced three times over the previous Plan allocation to handle complex challenges.
The outlay in the 12th Plan had been fixed at Rs. 3-lakh crore, which was 1.95 % of the GDP. During the last Plan period, the sector had got Rs. 89,265 crore.
Free generic drugs would be provided through public hospitals to help “reduce out-of-pocket expenditure of the poor” on health.
The plan will emphasize on nutrition, safe drinking water, sanitation, housing and education, particularly education of the girl child, as they were increasingly being underlined as social determinants of health.

23.Bhupathi, Bopanna clinch ATP World Tour Masters 1000.
The duo of Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna lifted their first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title by vanquishing Pakistan’s Aisam- Ul- Haq Qureshi and Netherlands’ Jean- Julien Rojer in the final of the BNP Paribas Masters.

24.Apex court refuses to interfere with policy on FDI in retail.
Asserting that Policy making is exclusive right of the executive, the Supreme Court refused to interfere with the policy on FDI in retail.
The Centre informed the court that Reserve Bank of India had notified the amendments to the regulations permitting foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail.
Amendments in the Foreign Exchange Management (Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person, Resident outside India) Regulations, 2000, allow foreign direct investment in retail sector. It permits 100% FDI in single-brand product retail and 51% in multi-brand retail. The amended rules have been published in the Gazette of India on October 30.

25.To celebrate 12th anniversary of crews living and working aboard International Space Station (ISS) NASA launched a new SMS service that will help people on earth to spot International Space Station (ISS) without a telescope. “Spot the Station” service will send you a text message or an email as the ISS passes over your house, to help you see the object. It will tell people where to look to be able to see it easily — even without a telescope.
The International Space Station is the third brightest object in the sky after the Sun and the Moon, but people often get confused with other heavenly bodies in the sky.

26.Britain is planning to slash its £280 million a year aid to India from 2015 following increasing domestic pressure on Prime Minister David Cameron to halt funding emerging economies such as India, China and Brazil at a time when Britain itself faces a serious economic crisis.

27.Ruchir Sharma bags Tata Literature First Book Award.
Author Ruchir Sharma was honored with the Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for his book Breakout Nations: In Pursuit of the Next Economic Miracles.
The book gives a clear picture of the shifting balance of global economic power and how it will play out for emerging nations and the West.

28.India declines 4 places, ranked 40th in WEF’s financial development index.
India was ranked at 40th position in the World Economic Forum’s Financial Development Report 2012, down four spots from last year. The index ranked 62 leading financial systems and capital markets. As per the report weak institutional and business environment in India is the reason behind the fall in ranking.
As per Financial Development Report 2012, the rankings were as follows:
1.Hong Kong 2.US 3.UK 4.Singapore 5.Australia 6.Canada 7.Japan 8.Switzerland 9.Netherlands 10.Sweden

29.No resolution could be reached during the talks at the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), at Hobart in Australia. The commission is made up of 24 countries and the European Union.
What is CCAMLR?Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) was established in 1982. The Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, also Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and CCAMLR, is part of the Antarctic Treaty System.Its aim is to conserve marine life in the face of rising demands to exploit krill, a shrimp-like creature which is an important source of food for species in the Antarctic.The commission permits fishing carried out in a sustainable manner and takes account of the effects of fishing on other components of the ecosystem.Headquartered in Tasmania, Australia.

30.The Union Cabinet approved amendments made to the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 and Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996.
These amendments would be legitimized by tabling a Bill in this regard in the winter session of Parliament.These changes would benefit over 88.10 lakh construction workers.The main features of the amendments include:
Removing the clause that construction workers should have worked a minimum of 90 days to register with the labour welfare boards set up in various States
Eliminating the upper age limit of 60 years for availing benefits under the scheme.
According to National Sample Survey (2009-10), there are about 4.46 crore building and other construction workers but only less than 25% of them have registered themselves with the Welfare Boards to avail benefits.

31.Scientists have discovered that a new synthetic molecule named “DARP E2-79” could pave the way for quick-acting remedies for a number of acute allergic reactions.

32.Frauds caused Rs 6,600 cr loss to Indian Economy
As per the first edition of Ernst & Young’s Fraud Indicators in India, different types of frauds may have caused Rs 6,600 crore loss to Indian economy in the last fiscal and banks were the most common victim in scamming cases.

33.The Union Government on 8 November 2012 approved the release of funds for the establishment of 21 integrated textile parks which was sanctioned in the 11th Five Year Plan.The cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA), in a meeting held in New Delhi also had committed the government to provide for liability beyond 200 crore Rupees.

34.The United Nations declared November 10 as Malala Day in honour of Pakistani teeenage rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban in October 2012 for advocating girls’ education.The day 10 November marks the 30-day anniversary of the Taliban attack on the 15-year-old Malala Yousafzai, the education campaigner from Pakistan.United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon asserted that Malala Yousafzai is an inspiration for girls’ education the world over.

As per the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, observing Malala day is going to build on the momentum of UN's Education First initiative and show that education is a right of everyone, and not a privilege for a few.On 9 October 2012 Malala Yousafzai, was shot in the head and neck by the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) while she was returning home. She was attacked for speaking up against the Taliban and advocating girls' education. She is now on the road to recovery at a hospital in Birmngham, UK.

35.World food day 2012 is celebrated with a theme Agricultural cooperatives – key to feeding the world.World Food Day is celebrated every year across the globe on 16 October in honour of the date of the founding of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945. The aim of this World Food Day is to raise awareness on global food problems and to create a sense of solidarity in the fight against poverty, hunger and malnutrition.


36.Alvin Roth and Lloyd Shapley of America were awarded the Nobel economics prize on 15 October 2012 for their work in market design and matching theory.
The research work helps in explaining the market processes at work, say, when doctors are assigned to hospitals, students to schools and human organs for transplant to recipients.The award was cited to the economist by The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences for the theory of stable allocations and the practice of market design. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which awards the 8 million crown ($1.2 million) prize, called their work an outstanding example of economic engineering.

37.The World Development Report 2013: Jobs released by the World Bank stressed upon the role of strong private sector in creation of jobs, outlining the facts that how can the jobs encourage development and incite an honest cycle. The report in its finding also indicated that when people work, there is an intense fall in poverty as people work out from their hardship and empowerment of women through jobs ensures better investments in children. The non-productive mass turns up to be productive and increase in jobs helps in making of flourished societies proving better alternatives of conflict by fostering diversities.