Current Affairs 4/7/13 to 10/7/13
Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2013 8:55 am
1.Trade and industry ministers of Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IORARC) member nations agreed to promote trade within the grouping to encourage economic cooperation and development in the strategic Indian Ocean region. India (Gurgaon) and Mauritius co-hosted the first economic and business conference under the theme of “Deepening Economic Linkages for Balanced, Inclusive & Sustainable Growth”.
They decided to encourage “open regionalism” and reconcile trade practices in line with international norms and lower trade barriers. The group also agreed to build on the complementarities and identify key growth sectors.
2.As per a notification by the Reserve Bank of India which reviewed the External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) policy, Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFCs) categorized as Asset Financing Companies (AFCs) by the RBI have been allowed to access the ECB market.
3.The first IVF baby named Connor Levy was born in the US who has undergone an embryo selection using Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technique, which was developed to read whole genomes quickly and cheaply to select healthy embryos having no chromosomal abnormalities.
Though on this occasion scientists only looked at chromosomes — the structures that hold genes — the falling cost of whole-genome sequencing means doctors could soon read all the DNA of IVF embryos before choosing which to implant.
4.Government notifies Food Security Ordinance 2013
The National Food Security Ordinance, 2013, which entitles 67% of the population to receive subsidized grains from the government every month, has been notified by the Union Government.
The Ordinance has been introduced to implement the Food Security Bill which envisages providing 5 kg of rice, wheat and coarse grains at Rs 3, Rs 2, Rs 1 per kg, respectively, every month to three-fourths of rural population and half the urban population in the country.
The scheme would require more than 61 million tonnes of foodgrain and is expected to cost the government about Rs 1,25,000 crore. The plan proposes to continue the Antyodaya Anna Yojna through which government provides poor households 35 kg foodgrain per household per month at subsidized prices of Rs 1-3 per kg. The ordinance puts the responsibility of implementation and monitoring of the scheme under the Targeted Public Distribution System on the States. It gives them 6 months to set up the systems to implement the scheme.
5.IIFA Awards 2013 Winners
The winners of the 14th IIFA Awards 2013 (International Indian Film Academy) under various categories were declared at an event held at Macau. The award winners and their respective categories are as follows:
· Best Actress: Vidya Balan for Kahaani
· Best Actor: Ranbir Kapoor for Barfi.
· Best Film: Barfi and the film also bagged 9 awards in technical category- Best Cinematography (Ravi Varman I.S.C.), Best Background Score (Pritam), Best Screenplay (Anurag Basu and Tani Basu), Best Production Design (Rajat Poddar), Best Song Recording (Eric Pillai), Best Sound Design (Shajith Koyeri), Best Sound Mixing (Debajit Changmai), Best Costume Designing (Aki Narula and Shefalina) and Best Make-Up (Uday Serali).
· Best Action and Best Dialogue: Gangs of Wasseypur
Best Editing: Kahaani (Namrata Rao)
· Best Choreography: Ganesh Acharya for Agneepath.
· Best Special Effects : Ek Tha Tiger
6.Mohamed ElBaradei is the interim PM of Egypt
Former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei who is also the liberal opposition leader in Egypt has been named as Egypt’s new Prime Minister to head a caretaker government. ElBaradei leads an alliance of liberal and left-wing parties, the National Salvation Front.
The recently elected Islamist President of Egypt Mohamed Morsy has been removed from power in a military coup staged under the leadership of General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, head of Egypt’s armed forces who issued a declaration suspending the Constitution and appointing the head of the constitutional court as interim head of state.
Then theChief Justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour has taken over as the interim President of the nation’s hours after the military ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsy and launched a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, the group from which Mr. Morsy belongs.
7.Andy Murray becomes the first Briton in 77 Years to clinch Wimbledon Men’s Single title
Andy Murray of Britain created history when he defeated Serbian star player Novak Djokovic at Center Court of London to become the first Briton in 77 years to win the Men’s Singles Title at Wimbledon 2013. Earlier he was Fred Perry, who won his last Championship in 1936.
Winners of other formats at Wimbledon:
· Mixed Doubles – Final: Daniel Nestor of Canada and Kristina Mladenovic of France.
· Girls’ Doubles – Championship – Final : Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic
Marion Bartoli clinches Wimbledon 2013Women’s Singles title
French tennis player Marion Bartoli defeated German Sabine Lasicki to win the women’s Singles category of Wimbledon tournament played in London.
Marion Bartoli is a top-10 French professional tennis player. She has won one singles major; seven other Women’s Tennis Association singles titles and three doubles titles.
8.Saudi Arabia extends ‘Nitaqat’ deadline to November 3, 2013
Giving some relief to Indians in Saudi Arabia who are facing trouble in adjusting to the changes in the employment opportunities introduced by the ongoing “Nitaqat” (naturalisation) legislation being implemented by the Labour Ministry of the Kingdom, King Abdullah has extended the deadline for implementing the legislation from July 3 to November 3, 2013. This decision would give some more time to Indian expatriates to either find a new employment or return home.
The extension of time limit would help the Indian workers — most of them who would become jobless as employers now have to compulsorily implement 10% reservation in jobs for locals — return to their homeland hassle-free without getting arrested or penalized.
9.“Joint Sea-2013”: China-Russia’s largest-ever naval drill
China and Russia are together conducting their largest-ever joint naval exercise named “Joint Sea-2013” in the Sea of Japan, a further sign of the broad-based progress in relations b/w the former Cold War era rivals. Those participating in the drill include eighteen surface ships, one submarine, three airplanes, five ship-launched helicopters and two commando units. The drills will cover anti-submarine warfare, close manoeuvring, and the simulated take-over of an enemy ship.
10.Edward Snowden gets asylum offer from Venezuela, Nicaragua
Defying the US warnings to countries to not extend asylum to Snowden arguing that he is wanted on charges of espionage and leaking classified information, two Latin American countries – Venezuela and Nicaragua – offered asylum to Edward Snowden who disclosed the US clandestine electronic surveillance programme.
Snowden, who first fled to Hong Kong, is currently stranded at the Moscow airport transit. The CIA whistleblower Snowden had applied for asylum in more than two dozen countries, including India. The request was denied by India and majority of the countries.
11.R. Chandrasekhar appointed as NASSCOM President
The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), has appointed R. Chandrasekhar (60), the former Secretary Department of Telecommunications (DoT), as its president. Chandrashekhar will take over current Nasscom President Som Mittal, whose tenure ends in January 2014. Mr. Chandrasekhar is a 1975 batch IAS officer from Andhra Pradesh and as the Secretary of DoT drew policies around licensing, spectrum management, National Broadband Plan and the National Telecom Policy 2012, among others.
12.Parveez Rasool is the first J&K cricketer in Team India
Parveez Rasool (24) created history by becoming the first cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to be named in the Indian team as the selectors chose to rest captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and four other key players for the upcoming ODI tour of Zimbabwe. The all-rounder has got the nod in the 15-member squad for the five-match ODI series to be held from July 24 to August 3 at Harare and Bulawayo.
13.Himachal Pradesh becomes country’s first ‘smoke-free’ State
Himachal Pradesh has been declared the first “smoke-free” State in the country in compliance with Section 4 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003. The State has achieved 85.45% compliance with the relevant parameters. The State government intends to eliminate tobacco products and has hiked taxes on bidis and cigarettes from 11 and 18% to 22 and 36%, respectively in the 2013-14 Budget
14.India establishes IPv6 Test Lab
Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC) which is the technical arm of Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & IT has set up an Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) Lab which has been approved by the IPv6 Ready Logo Committee under IPv6 Forum, an International body. By doing this, India has entered the club of select group of nations which include Europe, USA, Japan, China and Taiwan having IPv6 Ready Logo test lab facilities.
14.Father of Mouse: Douglas Engelbart passed
Douglas C. Engelbart, a technologist who ideated the computer mouse and laid out a vision of an Internet decades before others brought those ideas to the mass market, passed away.
It was in 1968 when he first showcased his idea to an audience of 1,000 leading technologists in San Francisco, Engelbart, a computer scientist at the Stanford Research Institute, demonstrated a cubic device with two rolling discs called an “X-Y position indicator for a display system.”
15.Man-made factors to blame Uttarakhand Floods: Environmentalists
The devastating floods of Uttarakhand which ravaged the region by killing thousands and leaving hundreds of other stranded has more man-made factors and less natural cause behind it. As per Environmentalists the uncontrolled development and poor disaster planning has aggravated flood damage.
16.Russia to send Olympic torch to space
Russia who will be hosting 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi has announced to send an unlit Olympic torch into space.
The Russian Federal Space Agency will take the torch to the Soyuz TMA-11M manned spaceship in early November 2013 as part of the four-month torch relay. Once it reaches space, Russian cosmonauts Sergei Ryazansky and Oleg Kotov will take the Olympic torch on a spacewalk. It will be first event of its kind.
17.Fact Box: National Cyber Security Policy (NSCP) 2013 Of India
India launches National Cyber Security Policy 2013 to secure cyber space
The government has announced a National Cyber Security Policy 2013 which aims to address the threats emanating from the cyber world. The Policy proposes to:
Set up different bodies to tackle various levels of threats, along with a national nodal agency, to coordinate all matters related to cyber security.
Create a National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC), which will act as a 24×7 centre to battle cyber security threats in strategic areas such as air control, nuclear and space. It will function under the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), a technical intelligence gathering agency controlled directly by the National Security Adviser in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The current agency, Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), will deal with all public and private infrastructure.
Create a workforce of around 500,000 trained in cyber security.
Provide fiscal benefits to businesses to adopt best security practices.
Set up testing labs to regularly check the safety of equipment being used in the country.
Create a cyber ecosystem in the country, developing effective public-private partnerships and collaborative engagements through technical and operational cooperation.
Building indigenous security technologies through research.
18.The Union Urban Development Ministry has announced that the National Capital Region has been expanded by including Bhiwani and Mahendragarh districts of Haryana and Bharatpur district of Rajasthan in the NCR. There is also a proposal to include Jind and Karnal of Haryana in the NCR.
How would the inclusion in NCR benefit?
The included regions can expect better infrastructure, improved connectivity with Delhi and other regions, and more development. The NCR Planning Board provides loans on lower rates of interest for the development of the constituents of the region. Property prices are also expected to rise with their inclusion in the NCR.
Note: The NCR region now extends to a total of 11 districts in Haryana, 6 in Uttar Pradesh and 2 in Rajasthan.
19.There is a 34% surge in the trade deficit b/w India-China that reached $ 12 billion in the first five months of 2013, portraying a grim picture for Indian exports as bilateral trade continued to decrease, discouraging hopes of attaining a trade volume of $ 100 billion by 2015.
20.As per leading travel website TripAdvisor’s 2013 Travellers Choice Attractions Awards, India’s Taj Mahal is among the top three landmarks in the world. Taj Mahal was ranked third in the list of Top 25 landmarks.
The top two ranks were bagged by Machu Picchu in Peru and Angkor Wat in Cambodia respectively. Taj Mahal, listed among the new seven-wonders of the world, is world-famous for its architecture and aesthetic beauty.
21.Brazil wins Confederations Cup 2013
Brazil vanquished world and European champions Spain by registering a 3-0 win in the Confederations Cup final. Brazil who will be hosting the next World Cup has clinched the cup for a third time in a row.
FIFA Confederations Cup
International football tournament for national teams
Held every four years by FIFA
8 Teams contest - holders of each of the 6 FIFA confederation championships (UEFA, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, CAF, AFC, OFC), along with the FIFA World Cup holder and the host nation.
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup was the 9th FIFA Confederations Cup, and was held in Brazil.
22.Treaty inked in Marrakesh (Morocco) giving blind, visually impaired better access to books
Treaty to help visually impaired get access to books signed in Marrakesh (Morocco)
A significant treaty was signed in Marrakesh, Morocco, that will make access to books for the visually impaired, blind and print disabled easier.
The negotiations were facilitated by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) for the ‘Marrakesh Treaty’ to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled.
How will the treaty help the visually impaired?
The treaty will provide access to books for the visually impaired by requiring its contracting parties to adopt national law provisions that permit the reproduction, distribution and making available of published works in accessible formats through limitations and exceptions to the rights of copyright right holders. The issue of copyright was playing a hindrance in providing the visually impaired access to knowledge. The treaty allows the waiver of copyright restrictions in order for books to be available in formats such as formats such as Braille, large print text and audio books.
23.Ms Sujata Singh will be next Foreign Secretary of India
Ms Sujata Singh (59), envoy to Germany, will be India’s next foreign secretary after an approval of her appointment by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Sujata Singh is a 1976 batch IFS officer who will succeed the current Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai who set to retire on July 31, 2013. She will be the third woman to head the services after Chokila Iyer and Nirupama Rao.
24.India rejects Snowden’s request seeking political asylum
India turned down USA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s request seeking political asylum. The Indian Embassy in Moscow had received a communication containing a request for asylum.
Earlier, Snowden, currently sheltered in the transit zone of Moscow airport, has sought asylum in 20 countries, including India. These asylum requests have been filed by Sarah Harrison, legal advisor of WikiLeaks in the matter of Snowden.
25.India is close to completing Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor
India’s first commercial fast breeder reactor — the 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) — is in an advanced stage of completion at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu.
Indigenously developed mixed-oxide type fuel pins for the PFBR’s first core were under manufacture and delivery. 95% of the PFBR construction had been completed and is expected to go critical by September 2014. The Nuclear Fuel Complex, Hyderabad, is manufacturing the reactor’s fuel bundles and they are being assembled in a workshop at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research at Kalpakkam.
The Centre had sanctioned Rs. 5,677 crore for building the PFBR. Electricity generated from the PFBR would be sold to the State Electricity Boards at Rs. 4.44 a unit. The responsibility of developing PFBR is with Bhartiya Nabhkiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI).
They decided to encourage “open regionalism” and reconcile trade practices in line with international norms and lower trade barriers. The group also agreed to build on the complementarities and identify key growth sectors.
2.As per a notification by the Reserve Bank of India which reviewed the External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) policy, Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFCs) categorized as Asset Financing Companies (AFCs) by the RBI have been allowed to access the ECB market.
3.The first IVF baby named Connor Levy was born in the US who has undergone an embryo selection using Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) technique, which was developed to read whole genomes quickly and cheaply to select healthy embryos having no chromosomal abnormalities.
Though on this occasion scientists only looked at chromosomes — the structures that hold genes — the falling cost of whole-genome sequencing means doctors could soon read all the DNA of IVF embryos before choosing which to implant.
4.Government notifies Food Security Ordinance 2013
The National Food Security Ordinance, 2013, which entitles 67% of the population to receive subsidized grains from the government every month, has been notified by the Union Government.
The Ordinance has been introduced to implement the Food Security Bill which envisages providing 5 kg of rice, wheat and coarse grains at Rs 3, Rs 2, Rs 1 per kg, respectively, every month to three-fourths of rural population and half the urban population in the country.
The scheme would require more than 61 million tonnes of foodgrain and is expected to cost the government about Rs 1,25,000 crore. The plan proposes to continue the Antyodaya Anna Yojna through which government provides poor households 35 kg foodgrain per household per month at subsidized prices of Rs 1-3 per kg. The ordinance puts the responsibility of implementation and monitoring of the scheme under the Targeted Public Distribution System on the States. It gives them 6 months to set up the systems to implement the scheme.
5.IIFA Awards 2013 Winners
The winners of the 14th IIFA Awards 2013 (International Indian Film Academy) under various categories were declared at an event held at Macau. The award winners and their respective categories are as follows:
· Best Actress: Vidya Balan for Kahaani
· Best Actor: Ranbir Kapoor for Barfi.
· Best Film: Barfi and the film also bagged 9 awards in technical category- Best Cinematography (Ravi Varman I.S.C.), Best Background Score (Pritam), Best Screenplay (Anurag Basu and Tani Basu), Best Production Design (Rajat Poddar), Best Song Recording (Eric Pillai), Best Sound Design (Shajith Koyeri), Best Sound Mixing (Debajit Changmai), Best Costume Designing (Aki Narula and Shefalina) and Best Make-Up (Uday Serali).
· Best Action and Best Dialogue: Gangs of Wasseypur
Best Editing: Kahaani (Namrata Rao)
· Best Choreography: Ganesh Acharya for Agneepath.
· Best Special Effects : Ek Tha Tiger
6.Mohamed ElBaradei is the interim PM of Egypt
Former Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei who is also the liberal opposition leader in Egypt has been named as Egypt’s new Prime Minister to head a caretaker government. ElBaradei leads an alliance of liberal and left-wing parties, the National Salvation Front.
The recently elected Islamist President of Egypt Mohamed Morsy has been removed from power in a military coup staged under the leadership of General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, head of Egypt’s armed forces who issued a declaration suspending the Constitution and appointing the head of the constitutional court as interim head of state.
Then theChief Justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adly Mansour has taken over as the interim President of the nation’s hours after the military ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsy and launched a crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, the group from which Mr. Morsy belongs.
7.Andy Murray becomes the first Briton in 77 Years to clinch Wimbledon Men’s Single title
Andy Murray of Britain created history when he defeated Serbian star player Novak Djokovic at Center Court of London to become the first Briton in 77 years to win the Men’s Singles Title at Wimbledon 2013. Earlier he was Fred Perry, who won his last Championship in 1936.
Winners of other formats at Wimbledon:
· Mixed Doubles – Final: Daniel Nestor of Canada and Kristina Mladenovic of France.
· Girls’ Doubles – Championship – Final : Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic
Marion Bartoli clinches Wimbledon 2013Women’s Singles title
French tennis player Marion Bartoli defeated German Sabine Lasicki to win the women’s Singles category of Wimbledon tournament played in London.
Marion Bartoli is a top-10 French professional tennis player. She has won one singles major; seven other Women’s Tennis Association singles titles and three doubles titles.
8.Saudi Arabia extends ‘Nitaqat’ deadline to November 3, 2013
Giving some relief to Indians in Saudi Arabia who are facing trouble in adjusting to the changes in the employment opportunities introduced by the ongoing “Nitaqat” (naturalisation) legislation being implemented by the Labour Ministry of the Kingdom, King Abdullah has extended the deadline for implementing the legislation from July 3 to November 3, 2013. This decision would give some more time to Indian expatriates to either find a new employment or return home.
The extension of time limit would help the Indian workers — most of them who would become jobless as employers now have to compulsorily implement 10% reservation in jobs for locals — return to their homeland hassle-free without getting arrested or penalized.
9.“Joint Sea-2013”: China-Russia’s largest-ever naval drill
China and Russia are together conducting their largest-ever joint naval exercise named “Joint Sea-2013” in the Sea of Japan, a further sign of the broad-based progress in relations b/w the former Cold War era rivals. Those participating in the drill include eighteen surface ships, one submarine, three airplanes, five ship-launched helicopters and two commando units. The drills will cover anti-submarine warfare, close manoeuvring, and the simulated take-over of an enemy ship.
10.Edward Snowden gets asylum offer from Venezuela, Nicaragua
Defying the US warnings to countries to not extend asylum to Snowden arguing that he is wanted on charges of espionage and leaking classified information, two Latin American countries – Venezuela and Nicaragua – offered asylum to Edward Snowden who disclosed the US clandestine electronic surveillance programme.
Snowden, who first fled to Hong Kong, is currently stranded at the Moscow airport transit. The CIA whistleblower Snowden had applied for asylum in more than two dozen countries, including India. The request was denied by India and majority of the countries.
11.R. Chandrasekhar appointed as NASSCOM President
The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), has appointed R. Chandrasekhar (60), the former Secretary Department of Telecommunications (DoT), as its president. Chandrashekhar will take over current Nasscom President Som Mittal, whose tenure ends in January 2014. Mr. Chandrasekhar is a 1975 batch IAS officer from Andhra Pradesh and as the Secretary of DoT drew policies around licensing, spectrum management, National Broadband Plan and the National Telecom Policy 2012, among others.
12.Parveez Rasool is the first J&K cricketer in Team India
Parveez Rasool (24) created history by becoming the first cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to be named in the Indian team as the selectors chose to rest captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and four other key players for the upcoming ODI tour of Zimbabwe. The all-rounder has got the nod in the 15-member squad for the five-match ODI series to be held from July 24 to August 3 at Harare and Bulawayo.
13.Himachal Pradesh becomes country’s first ‘smoke-free’ State
Himachal Pradesh has been declared the first “smoke-free” State in the country in compliance with Section 4 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003. The State has achieved 85.45% compliance with the relevant parameters. The State government intends to eliminate tobacco products and has hiked taxes on bidis and cigarettes from 11 and 18% to 22 and 36%, respectively in the 2013-14 Budget
14.India establishes IPv6 Test Lab
Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC) which is the technical arm of Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & IT has set up an Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) Lab which has been approved by the IPv6 Ready Logo Committee under IPv6 Forum, an International body. By doing this, India has entered the club of select group of nations which include Europe, USA, Japan, China and Taiwan having IPv6 Ready Logo test lab facilities.
14.Father of Mouse: Douglas Engelbart passed
Douglas C. Engelbart, a technologist who ideated the computer mouse and laid out a vision of an Internet decades before others brought those ideas to the mass market, passed away.
It was in 1968 when he first showcased his idea to an audience of 1,000 leading technologists in San Francisco, Engelbart, a computer scientist at the Stanford Research Institute, demonstrated a cubic device with two rolling discs called an “X-Y position indicator for a display system.”
15.Man-made factors to blame Uttarakhand Floods: Environmentalists
The devastating floods of Uttarakhand which ravaged the region by killing thousands and leaving hundreds of other stranded has more man-made factors and less natural cause behind it. As per Environmentalists the uncontrolled development and poor disaster planning has aggravated flood damage.
16.Russia to send Olympic torch to space
Russia who will be hosting 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi has announced to send an unlit Olympic torch into space.
The Russian Federal Space Agency will take the torch to the Soyuz TMA-11M manned spaceship in early November 2013 as part of the four-month torch relay. Once it reaches space, Russian cosmonauts Sergei Ryazansky and Oleg Kotov will take the Olympic torch on a spacewalk. It will be first event of its kind.
17.Fact Box: National Cyber Security Policy (NSCP) 2013 Of India
India launches National Cyber Security Policy 2013 to secure cyber space
The government has announced a National Cyber Security Policy 2013 which aims to address the threats emanating from the cyber world. The Policy proposes to:
Set up different bodies to tackle various levels of threats, along with a national nodal agency, to coordinate all matters related to cyber security.
Create a National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC), which will act as a 24×7 centre to battle cyber security threats in strategic areas such as air control, nuclear and space. It will function under the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO), a technical intelligence gathering agency controlled directly by the National Security Adviser in the Prime Minister’s Office.
The current agency, Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), will deal with all public and private infrastructure.
Create a workforce of around 500,000 trained in cyber security.
Provide fiscal benefits to businesses to adopt best security practices.
Set up testing labs to regularly check the safety of equipment being used in the country.
Create a cyber ecosystem in the country, developing effective public-private partnerships and collaborative engagements through technical and operational cooperation.
Building indigenous security technologies through research.
18.The Union Urban Development Ministry has announced that the National Capital Region has been expanded by including Bhiwani and Mahendragarh districts of Haryana and Bharatpur district of Rajasthan in the NCR. There is also a proposal to include Jind and Karnal of Haryana in the NCR.
How would the inclusion in NCR benefit?
The included regions can expect better infrastructure, improved connectivity with Delhi and other regions, and more development. The NCR Planning Board provides loans on lower rates of interest for the development of the constituents of the region. Property prices are also expected to rise with their inclusion in the NCR.
Note: The NCR region now extends to a total of 11 districts in Haryana, 6 in Uttar Pradesh and 2 in Rajasthan.
19.There is a 34% surge in the trade deficit b/w India-China that reached $ 12 billion in the first five months of 2013, portraying a grim picture for Indian exports as bilateral trade continued to decrease, discouraging hopes of attaining a trade volume of $ 100 billion by 2015.
20.As per leading travel website TripAdvisor’s 2013 Travellers Choice Attractions Awards, India’s Taj Mahal is among the top three landmarks in the world. Taj Mahal was ranked third in the list of Top 25 landmarks.
The top two ranks were bagged by Machu Picchu in Peru and Angkor Wat in Cambodia respectively. Taj Mahal, listed among the new seven-wonders of the world, is world-famous for its architecture and aesthetic beauty.
21.Brazil wins Confederations Cup 2013
Brazil vanquished world and European champions Spain by registering a 3-0 win in the Confederations Cup final. Brazil who will be hosting the next World Cup has clinched the cup for a third time in a row.
FIFA Confederations Cup
International football tournament for national teams
Held every four years by FIFA
8 Teams contest - holders of each of the 6 FIFA confederation championships (UEFA, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, CAF, AFC, OFC), along with the FIFA World Cup holder and the host nation.
2013 FIFA Confederations Cup was the 9th FIFA Confederations Cup, and was held in Brazil.
22.Treaty inked in Marrakesh (Morocco) giving blind, visually impaired better access to books
Treaty to help visually impaired get access to books signed in Marrakesh (Morocco)
A significant treaty was signed in Marrakesh, Morocco, that will make access to books for the visually impaired, blind and print disabled easier.
The negotiations were facilitated by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) for the ‘Marrakesh Treaty’ to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are Blind, Visually Impaired, or otherwise Print Disabled.
How will the treaty help the visually impaired?
The treaty will provide access to books for the visually impaired by requiring its contracting parties to adopt national law provisions that permit the reproduction, distribution and making available of published works in accessible formats through limitations and exceptions to the rights of copyright right holders. The issue of copyright was playing a hindrance in providing the visually impaired access to knowledge. The treaty allows the waiver of copyright restrictions in order for books to be available in formats such as formats such as Braille, large print text and audio books.
23.Ms Sujata Singh will be next Foreign Secretary of India
Ms Sujata Singh (59), envoy to Germany, will be India’s next foreign secretary after an approval of her appointment by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Sujata Singh is a 1976 batch IFS officer who will succeed the current Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai who set to retire on July 31, 2013. She will be the third woman to head the services after Chokila Iyer and Nirupama Rao.
24.India rejects Snowden’s request seeking political asylum
India turned down USA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s request seeking political asylum. The Indian Embassy in Moscow had received a communication containing a request for asylum.
Earlier, Snowden, currently sheltered in the transit zone of Moscow airport, has sought asylum in 20 countries, including India. These asylum requests have been filed by Sarah Harrison, legal advisor of WikiLeaks in the matter of Snowden.
25.India is close to completing Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor
India’s first commercial fast breeder reactor — the 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) — is in an advanced stage of completion at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu.
Indigenously developed mixed-oxide type fuel pins for the PFBR’s first core were under manufacture and delivery. 95% of the PFBR construction had been completed and is expected to go critical by September 2014. The Nuclear Fuel Complex, Hyderabad, is manufacturing the reactor’s fuel bundles and they are being assembled in a workshop at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research at Kalpakkam.
The Centre had sanctioned Rs. 5,677 crore for building the PFBR. Electricity generated from the PFBR would be sold to the State Electricity Boards at Rs. 4.44 a unit. The responsibility of developing PFBR is with Bhartiya Nabhkiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI).