CURRENT NATIONAL AFFAIRS
EDUCATION
Sakshar Bharat Mission
Jhajjar’s (Haryana) 49-year-old neo-literate Roshni Devi emerged as the most powerful symbol of female literacy on September 8, 2009—a goal to which India re-dedicated itself under the brand new Sakshar Bharat Mission, which was launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the occasion of International Literacy Day.
The mission sets itself the goal of educating 70 million learners, 60 million of them women, by 2012 through an investment of $1billion; it replaces the old adult literacy mission that began in 1988. The final goal is to take national literacy levels from 64 per cent currently to 80 per cent by 2017, and reduce the gender gap from 21 per cent at present to 10 per cent, eventually.
The reconstituted mission will focus on women, who have 54 per cent literacy rate against 75 per cent in males. Terming the mission as UPA’s first step towards fulfilment of the promise (of female literacy) made in the President’s address in 2009, the Prime Minister said resources would not be a constraint in the urge to “educate all”.
The mission, in fact, makes a welcome departure from the past by making PRIs the fulcrum of literacy programmes. The mission seeks to put learners in touch with their surroundings, hone their life skills, tell them of their arts, crafts and culture and impart them continuing education, which was previously absent. The mammoth task would require 10 million teachers (only matriculates and above to be recruited) three million managers, 70 lakh literacy centres and 210 million books.
HEALTH
By 2020, India will have 10m dementia patients
This can come as a shocker for India, which is yet to put in place a health programme for the country’s greying population. The global burden of dementia—disorders of the brain that affect memory and language among the elderly—has been seriously under estimated. The World Alzheimer’s Report 2009, prepared by King’s College, London says that there would be 35 million people worldwide with dementia by 2010. That number is set to almost double every 20 years to 65.7 million in 2030 and 115.4 million in 2050.
What’s worse, almost 60% of people with dementia in 2010 will be from low and middle income countries like India, rising to 70.5% by 2050. This is a 10% increase over the earlier estimate made in 2005—meaning that the estimates made earlier for India will also increase.
Worldwide, the economic cost of dementia has been estimated at $315 billion annually. The total annual costs per person with dementia have been estimated as $1,521 in a low income country, rising to $4,588 in middle income countries and $17,964 in high income countries.
The report recommended that the WHO declare dementia a health priority, and that countries, including India, develop a plan for dealing with the greater numbers of dementia patients.
JUDICIARY
Gram Nyayalayas Act
The Central government has decided that the provisions of the Gram Nyayalayas Act shall come into force in the areas to which this Act extends on October 2. The Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 has been enacted to provide for the establishment of the Gram Nyayalayas at the grass roots level for the purpose of providing access to justice to the citizens at their door steps.
The salient features of the Gram Nyayalayas Act are as follows:
The Central Government has decided to meet the non-recurring expenditure on the establishment of these Gram Nyayalayas subject to a ceiling of Rs. 18.00 lakhs, out of which Rs. 10.00 lakhs is for construction of the court, Rs. 5.00 lakhs for vehicle and Rs. 3.00 lakhs for office equipment. Government has also estimated that the Gram Nyayalayas upon establishment would incur a recurring expenditure of Rs. 6.4 lakhs per annum on salaries etc. and proposes to share such recurring expenditure with the State Government for the first three years within this ceiling.
More than 5000 Gram Nyayalayas are expected to be set up under the Act for which the Central government would provide about Rs.1400 crores by way of assistance to the concerned States/Union Territories.
The setting up of Gram Nyayalayas will be an important measure to reduce arrears. The Gram Nyayalayas are likely to reduce around 50 % of the pendency of cases in subordinate courts and also to take care of the new litigations which will be disposed within six months. This measure will usher in great revolution in disposal of cases and also to take justice to the doorsteps of the common man.
LAW POINT
No new shrines on public land: SC
The Supreme Court has directed all the States and the Union Territories not to allow construction of places of worship, be it gurdwaras, temples, churches or mosques, on government land, particularly roads.
A Bench, comprising Justices Dalveer Bhandari and M.K. Sharma, passed the order, also asking all the State and UT governments to review case-by-case such structures that had already come up, encroaching upon public land.
Directing the registry to serve notices on all the States and UTs within three days of passing of the judgement, in view of the gravity of the situation which had "far-reaching consequences," the Bench said the heads of each district (collectors, magistrates or deputy commissioners) to file status reports to their respective Chief Secretaries. The Chief Secretaries, in turn, would directly appraise the apex court of the steps taken for keeping government land free from such encroachments, the Bench said.
LEGISLATION
President signs Education Bill into law
Following the Presidential assent (granted on August 26, 2009), the government has issued a gazette notification of the law, which seeks to provide free and compulsory education to all children aged from 6 to 14 years. The State governments will have three years from the date of notification of the law to implement it. During this period, they will have to put in place neighbourhood schools, minimum education infrastructure with notified pupil-teacher ratio and school management societies to ensure proper implementation of the law.
Cost, by far, remains the gravest challenge in the implementation of the law, which would require Rs 2 lakh crore over the next five years for its enforcement. The HRD Ministry has already admitted to an estimated shortfall of Rs 60,000 crore over the period, with minister Kapil Sibal saying additional allocations would have to be made.
All States, meanwhile, have put their foot down on the issue of finances, saying they will require maximum possible funding from the Centre to implement the law. At a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education, all State education ministers drove home this point, with hill States like Himachal seeking 90 per cent central share in the funding.
There are also some apprehensions over the definition of the term “free education”. The matter was raised vociferously by Archana Chitnis, Education Minister of Madhya Pradesh, who wanted the HRD Minister to clarify the meaning of term “free”. “Free education would have to be defined by States,” Sibal said, adding that it could mean free books, uniform, school bus travel or anything.
The States, however, feel leaving the definition of “free education” open could lead to confusion. The government feels the model rules under the Act, expected to be formulated soon, would clarify most of the points. Also on the cards is a new Centre-State finance sharing formula, for which National University for Education Planning and Research is developing fresh cost estimates after factoring in the inflationary trend.
PLANNING & ECONOMY
Govt okays one percent subsidy on housing loans
Keeping up with another promise made by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in his Budget speech of 2009, the government has approved one per cent interest rate subvention for housing loans up to Rs.10 lakh. The Union Cabinet has also given an approval for allocation of Rs.1,000 crore for the scheme. It will come as a major boost to the housing sector and fuel greater development. The interest subsidy would be provided through the commercial banks and housing finance companies registered with the National Housing Bank.
In another major decision the government also approved a “Rehabilitation Package” to provide additional relief to the victims of 1984 riots with a financial outlay of Rs.714.76 crore. The package was issued earlier by Ministry of Home Affairs on January 16, 2008 and was for States of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Haryana, Bihar, Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab and the NCT of Delhi. The main aim of the proposal is fulfil the assurances given by the government in both the Houses of Parliament on the Report of Justice Nanavati Commission of Inquiry into 1984 riots.
A decision has also been taken to release Interest Subvention to Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Cooperative Banks (Short Term Cooperative Credit Structure-STCCS) and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and to NABARD for refinance to RRBs and Cooperative Banks. This has been done to operationalise the announcement made in the Union Budget for ensuring that the farmer receives short term crop loan at seven per cent per annum (six per cent for prompt payers) with an upper limit of Rs.three lakh on the principal amount.
The interest subvention is available to Public Sector Banks, Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and Cooperative Credit Institutions (CCIs) on disbursements out of their own funds and to NABARD for concessional refinance to RRBs and CCIs. For the year 2009-10, the target for flow of credit to agriculture sector has been revised from Rs.2,80,000 crore in 2008-09 to Rs.3,25,000 crore, of which the total short term crop loan disbursements by all banks is likely to be around Rs.2,00,000 crore.
NREGS gets e-transparent
A unique software solution adopted by Andhra Pradesh has brought transparency and accountability in implementation of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), the flagship programme of the UPA government. Developed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the web-based software package has helped check corruption, fix loopholes in identification of beneficiaries and the works and resulted in effective implementation of the scheme, covering nearly 11 million people in the State.
From the time a job seeker enrolls with a local panchayat office, to monitoring of assigned work and final wage payment, the entire process is registered and tracked online, using the software solution. The system allows the officials to sift through entire data, including the number of job cards issued across 22 districts and identify the loopholes.
The progress of the NREGS works could be monitored through an automated system and the workers have been paid based on the amount of work they complete, independent of the number of hours they put in.
In fact, Andhra Pradesh has been the first State to introduce social audit system to effectively monitor implementation of the scheme. Social auditing involves a process where teams visit the NREGS work sites in every gram panchayat and physically crosscheck the work done with the records. Each team has been led by district resource person and consists of four to five persons drawn from civil society organisations.
Property as gift to be taxed now
The Income Tax Act has been amended with effect from October 1, 2009, to provide that any gift-in-kind—being an immovable property or any other property—the value of which exceeds Rs 50,000, will become taxable in the hands of the donee. The tax would have to paid by the recipient by including the amount in his taxable income.
Gifts received from local authorities, trusts or entities registered as charitable institutions would not attract the provisions of the new tax norms.
But, the good news is that if the immovable property or property is received from a relative or received under a will as inheritance it will not be taxed. Such a gift received on the occasion of marriage of the individual is also exempt from tax. Prior to this change in the Income Tax Act, cash gifts exceeding Rs 25,000 were subject to tax. Then the Act was amended with effect from April 1, 2006, to tax all cash gifts having aggregate value exceeding Rs 50,000. However, cash gifts continue to enjoy exemptions as is available for gifts-in-kind.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Trade, Tipaimukh dam to top Indo-Bangla talks
The entire gamut of bilateral issues, including the Tipaimukh dam issue, sharing of river waters, trade, border management and combating terrorism, were discussed in a “congenial ambience” during Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dipu Moni's four-day visit to India in September 2009. This was his first official trip to India since the installation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League to power following the December 29, 2008 general elections in Bangladesh.
The installation of the Awami League and the Congress party to power in the two countries created a congenial ambience to settle the long-standing issues through constructive negotiations because of the historic links between the two parties since the 1971 Bangladesh war.
Trade deficit is one such major issue. Business analysts said Bangladesh looked for stepping up its exports to the landlocked seven north-eastern States and close the trade imbalance if the barriers were removed.
The two countries also share over 50 common rivers and there had not been any progress in distribution of waters of the seven other rivers, including the Teesta.
The proposed Tipaimukh dam on the Barak river in Manipur dominated the centre-stage of Bangladesh-India-relations during the past several months, though New Delhi assured Dhaka nothing would be done under the project that could affect Bangladesh.
India, Mongolia ink nuke pact
On September 14, 2009, Mongolia became the fifth nation to sign a civil nuclear pact with India as New Delhi extended a 25 million US dollar soft loan to the Central Asian nation to help it mitigate the effects of the global financial meltdown. The two countries also inked agreements for cooperation in the fields of health, cultural exchanges and statistical affairs. The accords were signed after wide-ranging talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj.
In a joint press interaction after the talks, Manmohan Singh said the two countries had reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations and discussed issues of mutual concern. He said the two countries had agreed on deeper cooperation in the field of mining and agriculture. The two leaders also stressed on bilateral investment protection and considering ways to avoid double taxation.
Great significance is being attached to the MoU between the two countries on ‘development of cooperation in the field of peaceful use of radioactive minerals and nuclear energy’. Mongolia’s huge uranium reserves are expected to boost and energise India’s starving civil nuclear fuel cycle.
India has already signed nuclear deals with France, Russia, the US and Kazakhstan after it got an exemption from the nuclear suppliers’ group (NSG) in September 2008 to undertake nuclear commerce.
Mongolia, which claims to have 6 per cent of the world’s uranium reserves, is not a member of the NSG. However, it had supported India’s case for a clean waiver at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meeting prior to the NSG meet. Nuclear experts believe that the supply of uranium is more crucial for India than access to enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technology.
Mongolia’s decision could be a big surprise for Australia, which has refused to supply uranium to India as it was not a signatory to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT). India hopes Australia would also give up its reservation sooner rather than later and agree to supply uranium to India.
SCANDALS
Bofors buried as govt drops case
The Bofors case that led to Congress’s defeat in the 1989 Lok Sabha polls has been given an official burial. With the government declaring its intention to drop proceedings against the key accused, Ottavio Quattrocchi, and all other accused either dead or acquitted, the case has reached a dead end. The decision not to pursue Quattrocchi, an Italian businessman accused of taking bribes to facilitate the sale of Bofors howitzers to India in 1986, was announced in the Supreme Court.
The decision to give a burial to the Bofors case, in which the FIR was filed during the V.P. Singh regime in 1990 and the charge-sheet during NDA government’s reign in 1999, was taken by the UPA government on the basis of a fresh opinion given by attorney-general G.E. Vahanvati.
A closure of the case had looked imminent since UPA-I allowed Quattrocchi to take out his money—allegedly his share of the Bofors kickbacks—from accounts with a bank in London. It followed that up by not pressing hard for his extradition from Argentina and by, subsequently, telling Interpol that he was no longer wanted in India.
TERRORISM; LAW & ORDER
New incentives for Maoists to surrender
The Centre, which usually remains tight-lipped about the kind of weapons the Maoists have, has in its new guidelines for surrender-cum-rehabilitation of Naxalites indicated that the Red ultras’ arsenal no longer consists of only looted police weapons. They could, in fact, also have deadlier ones—sniper rifles and surface-to-air missiles—which the ultras might have procured from outside. The Union government, through the new guidelines for the Naxal-affected States, has offered different amounts as “additional” incentives to those ultras who may surrender with such weapons. Sniper rifles, rockets, missiles and light machine guns which can even target low-flying choppers and other long-distance targets attract higher incentives to Naxalites if they surrender with such weapons.
The incentive given for surrender of the arms will be deposited in the form of a fixed deposit in the joint names of the surrenderee and a State government nominee and may be given to the surrenderee at the time of completion of three years after surrender, “subject to good behaviour by the surrenderee”.
Black Widow ultras surrender arms
Responding to September 15, 2009 deadline set by the Union Home Ministry, cadres of proscribed tribal militant outfit, Dima Halam Daogah (J) or Black Widow have surrendered their weapons to set the stage for a peace process with the government of India. Total 374 cadres of Black Widow group have surrendered their weapons including some sophisticated weapons to set the stage for peace negotiation. They have deposited weapons at the headquarter of Fifth Assam Police battalion at Sontila in the hill district.
The cadres are coming over ground under the leadership of a deputy commander in chief senior leader of the outfit Daniel Dimasa, while commander in chief Niranjan Hojai, who was believed to be in foreign soil, is still being expected to join the peace process. Those who have handed over their weapons are now being kept under heavy security at a Red Cross hospital at Jatinga in the hill district. They will be shifted to designated camps once the government gives its nod for the peace process after verifying the weapons surrendered by the outfit.
The chairman of the outfit Jewel Garlosa and another senior leader Partha Warisa had been arrested by Assam Police from a Bangalore hideout on June 3, 2008, serving a severe blow to the outfit which has been running amuck in North Cachar Hill district and adjoining areas in Assam since 2004, perpetrating rampant killings and extortions.
Once their chairman fell into the hands of the police, the outfit declared unilateral truce and appealed for peace negotiation with the government of India. However, the Centre set the pre-condition that all cadres would have to surrender arms for a peace process to happen.
Rampaging Black Widow militants jeopardised works on East West Corridor project of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), as well as a gauge conversion project of Indian Railways, causing irreversible delay in implementation of these projects besides causing huge cost escalation.
The Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), the main tribal regional party in hill areas has hailed the process of surrender of weapons by Black Widow cadres.
ISI knew of 26/11 plan, say LeT men
Ten months after the attacks on Mumbai, Lashkar-e-Taiba remains largely intact, may have 1.5 lakh members and is determined to strike India again, according to current and former members of the group, and intelligence officials. Despite pledges from Pakistan to dismantle militant groups operating on its soil, and the arrest of a handful of operatives, Lashkar has persisted, even flourished, since the Mumbai carnage in November 2008.
Indian and Pakistani dossiers on the Mumbai investigations offer a detailed picture of the operations of a Lashkar network that spans Pakistan. It includes four houses and two training camps here in Karachi. Among the organizers, the Pakistani document says, was Hammad Amin Sadiq, a homeopathic pharmacist, who arranged bank accounts and secured supplies.
Indeed, Lashkar’s broader network endures, and can be mobilized quickly for elaborate attacks with relatively few resources, according to a dozen current and former Lashkar militants and intelligence officials from the US, Europe, India and Pakistan. In interviews with New York Times, they presented a troubling portrait of Lashkar’s capabilities, its popularity in Pakistan and the support it received from former officials of Pakistan’s military and intelligence establishment.
One highly placed Lashkar militant said the Mumbai attackers were part of groups trained by former Pakistani military and intelligence officials. Others had direct knowledge that retired army and ISI officials trained LeT recruits as late as 2008.
Naga rebels reject peace package
The government’s efforts for formation of a Naga Common Platform, to find a political solution to the vexed insurgency problem, have run into trouble with all the three rebel groups—NSCN-IM, NSCN-K(GPRN) and NNC(FGN)—voicing their strong opposition to it. In a joint statement issued to the local media, the groups have declared that they were strongly opposed to any form of conditional package offered to the Nagas by the Centre. The Naga Common Platform was not warranted at this juncture, they added.
Conveners of the joint working group for Naga reconciliation, V.S. Atem of the NSCN (I-M), Zhopra Vero of the NNC (FGN) and Wangtin Naga of NSCN-K (GPRN), in a joint declaration, stated their opposition to the issues was in line with the “Declaration of Commitment” signed by them during the recent reconciliation meet held at Chiangmai in Thailand. The three leaders during the meet affirmed to “work together in the spirit of love, non-violence, peace and respect to resolve outstanding issues.”
The Central government was contemplating to offer a conditional peace package to the State if the Naga rebels factions gave up their struggle. The package, which was still being worked, was to include financial largesse and greater devolution of powers to the State. However, the Centre had made it clear that any solution to the protracted Naga political issue would be within the Constitution of India. The NSCN (I-M) had earlier said such packages were “unacceptable” to it.
The reconciliation process is currently being taken care of by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR). The FNR has been holding meetings both within and outside the State with the different Naga political groups and NGOs. However, the FNR has limited its role only to the reconciliation process and has shown no apparent interest in formation of a common platform to facilitate political dialogue with all the rebel groups.
Sakshar Bharat Mission
Jhajjar’s (Haryana) 49-year-old neo-literate Roshni Devi emerged as the most powerful symbol of female literacy on September 8, 2009—a goal to which India re-dedicated itself under the brand new Sakshar Bharat Mission, which was launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the occasion of International Literacy Day.
The mission sets itself the goal of educating 70 million learners, 60 million of them women, by 2012 through an investment of $1billion; it replaces the old adult literacy mission that began in 1988. The final goal is to take national literacy levels from 64 per cent currently to 80 per cent by 2017, and reduce the gender gap from 21 per cent at present to 10 per cent, eventually.
The reconstituted mission will focus on women, who have 54 per cent literacy rate against 75 per cent in males. Terming the mission as UPA’s first step towards fulfilment of the promise (of female literacy) made in the President’s address in 2009, the Prime Minister said resources would not be a constraint in the urge to “educate all”.
The mission, in fact, makes a welcome departure from the past by making PRIs the fulcrum of literacy programmes. The mission seeks to put learners in touch with their surroundings, hone their life skills, tell them of their arts, crafts and culture and impart them continuing education, which was previously absent. The mammoth task would require 10 million teachers (only matriculates and above to be recruited) three million managers, 70 lakh literacy centres and 210 million books.
HEALTH
By 2020, India will have 10m dementia patients
This can come as a shocker for India, which is yet to put in place a health programme for the country’s greying population. The global burden of dementia—disorders of the brain that affect memory and language among the elderly—has been seriously under estimated. The World Alzheimer’s Report 2009, prepared by King’s College, London says that there would be 35 million people worldwide with dementia by 2010. That number is set to almost double every 20 years to 65.7 million in 2030 and 115.4 million in 2050.
What’s worse, almost 60% of people with dementia in 2010 will be from low and middle income countries like India, rising to 70.5% by 2050. This is a 10% increase over the earlier estimate made in 2005—meaning that the estimates made earlier for India will also increase.
Worldwide, the economic cost of dementia has been estimated at $315 billion annually. The total annual costs per person with dementia have been estimated as $1,521 in a low income country, rising to $4,588 in middle income countries and $17,964 in high income countries.
The report recommended that the WHO declare dementia a health priority, and that countries, including India, develop a plan for dealing with the greater numbers of dementia patients.
JUDICIARY
Gram Nyayalayas Act
The Central government has decided that the provisions of the Gram Nyayalayas Act shall come into force in the areas to which this Act extends on October 2. The Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 has been enacted to provide for the establishment of the Gram Nyayalayas at the grass roots level for the purpose of providing access to justice to the citizens at their door steps.
The salient features of the Gram Nyayalayas Act are as follows:
- Gram Nyayalayas are aimed at providing inexpensive justice to people in rural areas at their doorsteps;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall be court of Judicial Magistrate of the first class and its presiding officer (Nyayadhikari) shall be appointed by the State Government in consultation with the High Court.
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall be established for every Panchayat at intermediate level or a group of contiguous Panchayats at intermediate level in a district or where there is no Panchayat at intermediate level in any State, for a group of contiguous Panchayats;
- the Nyayadhikaris who will preside over these Gram Nyayalayas are strictly judicial officers and will be drawing the same salary, deriving the same powers as First Class Magistrates working under High Courts;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall be a mobile court and shall exercise the powers of both Criminal and Civil Courts;
- the seat of the Gram Nyayalaya will be located at the headquarters of the intermediate Panchayat, they will go to villages, work there and dispose of the cases;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall try criminal cases, civil suits, claims or disputes which are specified in the First Schedule and the Second Schedule to the Act;
- the Central as well as the State Governments have been given power to amend the First Schedule and the Second Schedule of the Act, as per their respective legislative competence;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall follow summary procedure in criminal trial;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall exercise the powers of a Civil Court with certain modifications and shall follow the special procedure as provided in the Act;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall try to settle the disputes as far as possible by bringing about conciliation between the parties and for this purpose, it shall make use of the conciliators to be appointed for this purpose;
- the judgement and order passed by the Gram Nyayalaya shall be deemed to be a decree and to avoid delay in its execution, the Gram Nyayalaya shall follow summary procedure for its execution;
- the Gram Nyayalaya shall not be bound by the rules of evidence provided in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 but shall be guided by the principles of natural justice and subject to any rule made by the High Court; Appeal in criminal cases shall lie to the Court of Session, which shall be heard and disposed of within a period of six months from the date of filing of such appeal; Appeal in civil cases shall lie to the District Court, which shall be heard and disposed of within a period of six months from the date of filing of the appeal; A person accused of an offence may file an application for plea bargaining.
The Central Government has decided to meet the non-recurring expenditure on the establishment of these Gram Nyayalayas subject to a ceiling of Rs. 18.00 lakhs, out of which Rs. 10.00 lakhs is for construction of the court, Rs. 5.00 lakhs for vehicle and Rs. 3.00 lakhs for office equipment. Government has also estimated that the Gram Nyayalayas upon establishment would incur a recurring expenditure of Rs. 6.4 lakhs per annum on salaries etc. and proposes to share such recurring expenditure with the State Government for the first three years within this ceiling.
More than 5000 Gram Nyayalayas are expected to be set up under the Act for which the Central government would provide about Rs.1400 crores by way of assistance to the concerned States/Union Territories.
The setting up of Gram Nyayalayas will be an important measure to reduce arrears. The Gram Nyayalayas are likely to reduce around 50 % of the pendency of cases in subordinate courts and also to take care of the new litigations which will be disposed within six months. This measure will usher in great revolution in disposal of cases and also to take justice to the doorsteps of the common man.
LAW POINT
No new shrines on public land: SC
The Supreme Court has directed all the States and the Union Territories not to allow construction of places of worship, be it gurdwaras, temples, churches or mosques, on government land, particularly roads.
A Bench, comprising Justices Dalveer Bhandari and M.K. Sharma, passed the order, also asking all the State and UT governments to review case-by-case such structures that had already come up, encroaching upon public land.
Directing the registry to serve notices on all the States and UTs within three days of passing of the judgement, in view of the gravity of the situation which had "far-reaching consequences," the Bench said the heads of each district (collectors, magistrates or deputy commissioners) to file status reports to their respective Chief Secretaries. The Chief Secretaries, in turn, would directly appraise the apex court of the steps taken for keeping government land free from such encroachments, the Bench said.
LEGISLATION
President signs Education Bill into law
Following the Presidential assent (granted on August 26, 2009), the government has issued a gazette notification of the law, which seeks to provide free and compulsory education to all children aged from 6 to 14 years. The State governments will have three years from the date of notification of the law to implement it. During this period, they will have to put in place neighbourhood schools, minimum education infrastructure with notified pupil-teacher ratio and school management societies to ensure proper implementation of the law.
Cost, by far, remains the gravest challenge in the implementation of the law, which would require Rs 2 lakh crore over the next five years for its enforcement. The HRD Ministry has already admitted to an estimated shortfall of Rs 60,000 crore over the period, with minister Kapil Sibal saying additional allocations would have to be made.
All States, meanwhile, have put their foot down on the issue of finances, saying they will require maximum possible funding from the Centre to implement the law. At a meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education, all State education ministers drove home this point, with hill States like Himachal seeking 90 per cent central share in the funding.
There are also some apprehensions over the definition of the term “free education”. The matter was raised vociferously by Archana Chitnis, Education Minister of Madhya Pradesh, who wanted the HRD Minister to clarify the meaning of term “free”. “Free education would have to be defined by States,” Sibal said, adding that it could mean free books, uniform, school bus travel or anything.
The States, however, feel leaving the definition of “free education” open could lead to confusion. The government feels the model rules under the Act, expected to be formulated soon, would clarify most of the points. Also on the cards is a new Centre-State finance sharing formula, for which National University for Education Planning and Research is developing fresh cost estimates after factoring in the inflationary trend.
PLANNING & ECONOMY
Govt okays one percent subsidy on housing loans
Keeping up with another promise made by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in his Budget speech of 2009, the government has approved one per cent interest rate subvention for housing loans up to Rs.10 lakh. The Union Cabinet has also given an approval for allocation of Rs.1,000 crore for the scheme. It will come as a major boost to the housing sector and fuel greater development. The interest subsidy would be provided through the commercial banks and housing finance companies registered with the National Housing Bank.
In another major decision the government also approved a “Rehabilitation Package” to provide additional relief to the victims of 1984 riots with a financial outlay of Rs.714.76 crore. The package was issued earlier by Ministry of Home Affairs on January 16, 2008 and was for States of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Haryana, Bihar, Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab and the NCT of Delhi. The main aim of the proposal is fulfil the assurances given by the government in both the Houses of Parliament on the Report of Justice Nanavati Commission of Inquiry into 1984 riots.
A decision has also been taken to release Interest Subvention to Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Cooperative Banks (Short Term Cooperative Credit Structure-STCCS) and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and to NABARD for refinance to RRBs and Cooperative Banks. This has been done to operationalise the announcement made in the Union Budget for ensuring that the farmer receives short term crop loan at seven per cent per annum (six per cent for prompt payers) with an upper limit of Rs.three lakh on the principal amount.
The interest subvention is available to Public Sector Banks, Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) and Cooperative Credit Institutions (CCIs) on disbursements out of their own funds and to NABARD for concessional refinance to RRBs and CCIs. For the year 2009-10, the target for flow of credit to agriculture sector has been revised from Rs.2,80,000 crore in 2008-09 to Rs.3,25,000 crore, of which the total short term crop loan disbursements by all banks is likely to be around Rs.2,00,000 crore.
NREGS gets e-transparent
A unique software solution adopted by Andhra Pradesh has brought transparency and accountability in implementation of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), the flagship programme of the UPA government. Developed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the web-based software package has helped check corruption, fix loopholes in identification of beneficiaries and the works and resulted in effective implementation of the scheme, covering nearly 11 million people in the State.
From the time a job seeker enrolls with a local panchayat office, to monitoring of assigned work and final wage payment, the entire process is registered and tracked online, using the software solution. The system allows the officials to sift through entire data, including the number of job cards issued across 22 districts and identify the loopholes.
The progress of the NREGS works could be monitored through an automated system and the workers have been paid based on the amount of work they complete, independent of the number of hours they put in.
In fact, Andhra Pradesh has been the first State to introduce social audit system to effectively monitor implementation of the scheme. Social auditing involves a process where teams visit the NREGS work sites in every gram panchayat and physically crosscheck the work done with the records. Each team has been led by district resource person and consists of four to five persons drawn from civil society organisations.
Property as gift to be taxed now
The Income Tax Act has been amended with effect from October 1, 2009, to provide that any gift-in-kind—being an immovable property or any other property—the value of which exceeds Rs 50,000, will become taxable in the hands of the donee. The tax would have to paid by the recipient by including the amount in his taxable income.
Gifts received from local authorities, trusts or entities registered as charitable institutions would not attract the provisions of the new tax norms.
But, the good news is that if the immovable property or property is received from a relative or received under a will as inheritance it will not be taxed. Such a gift received on the occasion of marriage of the individual is also exempt from tax. Prior to this change in the Income Tax Act, cash gifts exceeding Rs 25,000 were subject to tax. Then the Act was amended with effect from April 1, 2006, to tax all cash gifts having aggregate value exceeding Rs 50,000. However, cash gifts continue to enjoy exemptions as is available for gifts-in-kind.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Trade, Tipaimukh dam to top Indo-Bangla talks
The entire gamut of bilateral issues, including the Tipaimukh dam issue, sharing of river waters, trade, border management and combating terrorism, were discussed in a “congenial ambience” during Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dipu Moni's four-day visit to India in September 2009. This was his first official trip to India since the installation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League to power following the December 29, 2008 general elections in Bangladesh.
The installation of the Awami League and the Congress party to power in the two countries created a congenial ambience to settle the long-standing issues through constructive negotiations because of the historic links between the two parties since the 1971 Bangladesh war.
Trade deficit is one such major issue. Business analysts said Bangladesh looked for stepping up its exports to the landlocked seven north-eastern States and close the trade imbalance if the barriers were removed.
The two countries also share over 50 common rivers and there had not been any progress in distribution of waters of the seven other rivers, including the Teesta.
The proposed Tipaimukh dam on the Barak river in Manipur dominated the centre-stage of Bangladesh-India-relations during the past several months, though New Delhi assured Dhaka nothing would be done under the project that could affect Bangladesh.
India, Mongolia ink nuke pact
On September 14, 2009, Mongolia became the fifth nation to sign a civil nuclear pact with India as New Delhi extended a 25 million US dollar soft loan to the Central Asian nation to help it mitigate the effects of the global financial meltdown. The two countries also inked agreements for cooperation in the fields of health, cultural exchanges and statistical affairs. The accords were signed after wide-ranging talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and visiting Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj.
In a joint press interaction after the talks, Manmohan Singh said the two countries had reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral relations and discussed issues of mutual concern. He said the two countries had agreed on deeper cooperation in the field of mining and agriculture. The two leaders also stressed on bilateral investment protection and considering ways to avoid double taxation.
Great significance is being attached to the MoU between the two countries on ‘development of cooperation in the field of peaceful use of radioactive minerals and nuclear energy’. Mongolia’s huge uranium reserves are expected to boost and energise India’s starving civil nuclear fuel cycle.
India has already signed nuclear deals with France, Russia, the US and Kazakhstan after it got an exemption from the nuclear suppliers’ group (NSG) in September 2008 to undertake nuclear commerce.
Mongolia, which claims to have 6 per cent of the world’s uranium reserves, is not a member of the NSG. However, it had supported India’s case for a clean waiver at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meeting prior to the NSG meet. Nuclear experts believe that the supply of uranium is more crucial for India than access to enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technology.
Mongolia’s decision could be a big surprise for Australia, which has refused to supply uranium to India as it was not a signatory to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT). India hopes Australia would also give up its reservation sooner rather than later and agree to supply uranium to India.
SCANDALS
Bofors buried as govt drops case
The Bofors case that led to Congress’s defeat in the 1989 Lok Sabha polls has been given an official burial. With the government declaring its intention to drop proceedings against the key accused, Ottavio Quattrocchi, and all other accused either dead or acquitted, the case has reached a dead end. The decision not to pursue Quattrocchi, an Italian businessman accused of taking bribes to facilitate the sale of Bofors howitzers to India in 1986, was announced in the Supreme Court.
The decision to give a burial to the Bofors case, in which the FIR was filed during the V.P. Singh regime in 1990 and the charge-sheet during NDA government’s reign in 1999, was taken by the UPA government on the basis of a fresh opinion given by attorney-general G.E. Vahanvati.
A closure of the case had looked imminent since UPA-I allowed Quattrocchi to take out his money—allegedly his share of the Bofors kickbacks—from accounts with a bank in London. It followed that up by not pressing hard for his extradition from Argentina and by, subsequently, telling Interpol that he was no longer wanted in India.
TERRORISM; LAW & ORDER
New incentives for Maoists to surrender
The Centre, which usually remains tight-lipped about the kind of weapons the Maoists have, has in its new guidelines for surrender-cum-rehabilitation of Naxalites indicated that the Red ultras’ arsenal no longer consists of only looted police weapons. They could, in fact, also have deadlier ones—sniper rifles and surface-to-air missiles—which the ultras might have procured from outside. The Union government, through the new guidelines for the Naxal-affected States, has offered different amounts as “additional” incentives to those ultras who may surrender with such weapons. Sniper rifles, rockets, missiles and light machine guns which can even target low-flying choppers and other long-distance targets attract higher incentives to Naxalites if they surrender with such weapons.
The incentive given for surrender of the arms will be deposited in the form of a fixed deposit in the joint names of the surrenderee and a State government nominee and may be given to the surrenderee at the time of completion of three years after surrender, “subject to good behaviour by the surrenderee”.
Black Widow ultras surrender arms
Responding to September 15, 2009 deadline set by the Union Home Ministry, cadres of proscribed tribal militant outfit, Dima Halam Daogah (J) or Black Widow have surrendered their weapons to set the stage for a peace process with the government of India. Total 374 cadres of Black Widow group have surrendered their weapons including some sophisticated weapons to set the stage for peace negotiation. They have deposited weapons at the headquarter of Fifth Assam Police battalion at Sontila in the hill district.
The cadres are coming over ground under the leadership of a deputy commander in chief senior leader of the outfit Daniel Dimasa, while commander in chief Niranjan Hojai, who was believed to be in foreign soil, is still being expected to join the peace process. Those who have handed over their weapons are now being kept under heavy security at a Red Cross hospital at Jatinga in the hill district. They will be shifted to designated camps once the government gives its nod for the peace process after verifying the weapons surrendered by the outfit.
The chairman of the outfit Jewel Garlosa and another senior leader Partha Warisa had been arrested by Assam Police from a Bangalore hideout on June 3, 2008, serving a severe blow to the outfit which has been running amuck in North Cachar Hill district and adjoining areas in Assam since 2004, perpetrating rampant killings and extortions.
Once their chairman fell into the hands of the police, the outfit declared unilateral truce and appealed for peace negotiation with the government of India. However, the Centre set the pre-condition that all cadres would have to surrender arms for a peace process to happen.
Rampaging Black Widow militants jeopardised works on East West Corridor project of National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), as well as a gauge conversion project of Indian Railways, causing irreversible delay in implementation of these projects besides causing huge cost escalation.
The Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), the main tribal regional party in hill areas has hailed the process of surrender of weapons by Black Widow cadres.
ISI knew of 26/11 plan, say LeT men
Ten months after the attacks on Mumbai, Lashkar-e-Taiba remains largely intact, may have 1.5 lakh members and is determined to strike India again, according to current and former members of the group, and intelligence officials. Despite pledges from Pakistan to dismantle militant groups operating on its soil, and the arrest of a handful of operatives, Lashkar has persisted, even flourished, since the Mumbai carnage in November 2008.
Indian and Pakistani dossiers on the Mumbai investigations offer a detailed picture of the operations of a Lashkar network that spans Pakistan. It includes four houses and two training camps here in Karachi. Among the organizers, the Pakistani document says, was Hammad Amin Sadiq, a homeopathic pharmacist, who arranged bank accounts and secured supplies.
Indeed, Lashkar’s broader network endures, and can be mobilized quickly for elaborate attacks with relatively few resources, according to a dozen current and former Lashkar militants and intelligence officials from the US, Europe, India and Pakistan. In interviews with New York Times, they presented a troubling portrait of Lashkar’s capabilities, its popularity in Pakistan and the support it received from former officials of Pakistan’s military and intelligence establishment.
One highly placed Lashkar militant said the Mumbai attackers were part of groups trained by former Pakistani military and intelligence officials. Others had direct knowledge that retired army and ISI officials trained LeT recruits as late as 2008.
Naga rebels reject peace package
The government’s efforts for formation of a Naga Common Platform, to find a political solution to the vexed insurgency problem, have run into trouble with all the three rebel groups—NSCN-IM, NSCN-K(GPRN) and NNC(FGN)—voicing their strong opposition to it. In a joint statement issued to the local media, the groups have declared that they were strongly opposed to any form of conditional package offered to the Nagas by the Centre. The Naga Common Platform was not warranted at this juncture, they added.
Conveners of the joint working group for Naga reconciliation, V.S. Atem of the NSCN (I-M), Zhopra Vero of the NNC (FGN) and Wangtin Naga of NSCN-K (GPRN), in a joint declaration, stated their opposition to the issues was in line with the “Declaration of Commitment” signed by them during the recent reconciliation meet held at Chiangmai in Thailand. The three leaders during the meet affirmed to “work together in the spirit of love, non-violence, peace and respect to resolve outstanding issues.”
The Central government was contemplating to offer a conditional peace package to the State if the Naga rebels factions gave up their struggle. The package, which was still being worked, was to include financial largesse and greater devolution of powers to the State. However, the Centre had made it clear that any solution to the protracted Naga political issue would be within the Constitution of India. The NSCN (I-M) had earlier said such packages were “unacceptable” to it.
The reconciliation process is currently being taken care of by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation (FNR). The FNR has been holding meetings both within and outside the State with the different Naga political groups and NGOs. However, the FNR has limited its role only to the reconciliation process and has shown no apparent interest in formation of a common platform to facilitate political dialogue with all the rebel groups.
CURRENT INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
ARMS RACE
US scraps missile-defence shield plan
President Barack Obama, in a major policy shift, has scrapped a controversial missile-defence shield favoured by his predecessor, removing a thorn in U.S.-Russia relations but earning criticism from some who accuse him of abandoning US allies in Europe. Obama announced that he would be abandoning plans to base US interceptor missiles in Poland and radar in the Czech Republic to protect Europe from Iranian missiles. Instead, Obama has proposed deploying a system aimed at intercepting short- and medium-range missiles. The President justified his decision by citing new intelligence that shows Iran's long-range missile programme to be far less developed than previously thought. Russia, which had vehemently opposed former President George W. Bush's plan to place US military hardware on its border, said Obama's decision would go a long way in resetting the relationship between the two countries.
GERMANY
Tough task at hand for Merkel after sweeping win
Angela Merkel set to work on September 28, 2009 on a new centre-right coalition after clinching a second term, but warned Germans of a hard road ahead to revive the sickly economy and rescue vanishing jobs. The conservative Chancellor secured another four-year mandate with enough votes to dump an awkward “grand coalition” with the Social Democrats (SPD) for an alliance with the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP). Voters rewarded the 55-year-old leader, dubbed most powerful woman on Earth by Forbes magazine for four years running, for shepherding Europe’s biggest economy through its worst post-war downturn. Merkel’s bloc and the FDP have a comfortable 332 seats in the 622-member Parliament.
WORLD ECONOMY
Global recession ending, says OECD
The global recession is coming to an end faster than thought just a few months ago and may already be over, according to forecasts published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The recovery may even prove a little stronger than previously predicted, OECD chief economist Jorgen Elmeskov said.
The OECD forecasts show a third-quarter return to expansion of economic output, as measured by gross domestic product, in the United States and the 16-country Euro zone, led by its two largest economies, Germany and France. The forecasts showed an annualised expansion of 1.6% in the United States in the third quarter, 0.3% in the Euro zone and 1.1% in Japan.
The pickup that started with a “quite dramatic turnaround” in China and other Asian emerging market economies in the second quarter remained heavily dependent on government stimulus and ultra-low interest rates across the world, Elmeskov said.
The OECD’s 30-member countries do not include rising powers such as China, but do include the long-industrialised ones where the trouble began in 2007 as the credit and housing boom in the United States turned to bust, triggering a crisis in banking and financial markets that infected the real economy.
The OECD is still predicting GDP contractions for 2009 as a whole across the G-7 group, primarily because of a particularly bad first half, despite the improvement now in the pipeline. But it sees annualised GDP rises of 1.2 and 1.4% in the third and fourth quarters for the G-7 as a whole, also signalling an exit from recession at that level.
World requires a new currency: UN report
The dollars role in international trade should be reduced by establishing a new currency to protect emerging markets from the confidence game of financial speculation, the United Nations said. UN countries should agree on the creation of a global reserve bank to issue the currency and to monitor the national exchange rates of its members, UN Conference on Trade and Development said in a report.
China, India, Brazil and Russia, in 2009, called for a replacement to the dollar as the main reserve currency after the financial crisis sparked by the collapse of the US mortgage market led to the worst global recession since World War II. China, the world's largest holder of dollar reserves, said a supranational currency such as IMF's special drawing rights, or SDRs, may add stability.
There's a much better chance of achieving a stable pattern of exchange rates in multilaterally-agreed framework for exchange-rate management, Heiner Flassbeck, co-author of the report said. An initiative equivalent to Bretton Woods or the European Monetary System is needed.
While it would be desirable to strengthen SDRs, a unit of account based on a basket of currencies, it wouldn't be enough to aid emerging markets most in need of liquidity, said Flassbeck, a former German deputy FM who worked in 1997-1998 with then US Deputy Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers to contain Asian crisis.
Switzerland out of ‘grey’ list of tax havens
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has taken Switzerland off from the list of non-cooperative tax havens, following the country signing 12 taxation agreements with different nations, and most of them are significant economic partners like the US and the UK. In April 2009, OECD, a grouping of rich nations, had named many countries, including Switzerland, in a grey list of those which are not fully-compliant with global tax standards. As per OECD norms, a country would be removed from the grey list after it has signed at least a dozen double taxation agreements.
Known for its banking secrecy practices, Switzerland has come under international pressure in the wake of the global crackdown on tax havens. Switzerland has signed treaties with Qatar, Denmark, Luxembourg, France, Norway, Austria, the UK, Mexico, Finland, the Faroe Islands, USA and Spain.
ENVIRONMENT
EU summit targets India, China on G-20 climate financing
The European Union (EU) has challenged rising powers India and China to brake their soaring greenhouse gas emissions in return for Western financial support. “We need to make a credible financial commitment to the developing world. The equation is straightforward: no money, no deal, but if there are no actions, no money,” European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said.
According to estimates from the Commission, the EU’s executive, it will cost around 100 billion euros ($147 billion) per year by 2020 to fight climate change in developing countries. But in a clear challenge to rising powers such as Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa, EU leaders stated that “this estimate pre-supposes appropriate mitigating actions by developing countries, especially those that are economically more advanced”.
The high-level EU and G-20 meetings came in the countdown to a critical United Nations summit in Copenhagen, which is intended to seal a new global deal on fighting climate change. EU leaders were at pains to point out the urgency of finding a deal in December. “The climate is changing much faster than expected. ... This underlines the urgent need to reach a global, ambitious and comprehensive agreement in Copenhagen,” the joint statement said.
UN backs India’s stand on emissions
For the first time, a UN agency has endorsed India and developing countries on the climate change front. In its World Economic and Social Survey Report 2009, the UN said rich countries had consumed more than fair share of their carbon space and needed to take deep emission cuts if the new climate agreement was to be equitable. The survey said investments in energy infrastructure would have to be doubled from the existing $500 billion per year to $1 trillion and there was a need to spend approximately $20 trillion by 2030 to move the world to a low carbon growth path.
The report has warned that industrialized countries had already emitted 209 giga-tonnes of carbon. If the rise in global temperatures was to be kept below 2 degree centigrade, industrialised countries would have to reduce their emissions by more than 100% below 1990 levels by 2050. At present, industrialized countries have not agreed to reduce their emissions by even 40% below 1990 levels by 2030 and 80% by 2050.
The UN survey pointed out that in a fair deal, industrialized countries should only occupy 21% of the global carbon budget. But it recorded that even under the most ambitious proposal from the rich nations, they would end up consuming 48% of the budget, at the cost of the poorer nations.
From the present emission stock of 209 giga-tonnes of carbon from the rich nations, they would need to alter the lifestyles of their citizens to come down to 137 giga-tonnes by 2050 and leave the rest of the space for poorer nations to develop economically.
The authors of the report have recommended a global clean energy fund and a global feed in tariff regime, besides a better carbon trading mechanism and forest-related financing mechanism to ensure that needed funds are transferred from the rich to the developing countries as part of the new deal.
NUCLEAR PROLIFERATION
A.Q. Khan nails Pak’s N-lies
An angry, humiliated, and wounded A.Q. Khan has finally made public what has long been suspected: his nuclear proliferation activities, that included exchanging and passing blueprints and equipment to China, Iran, North Korea, and Libya, were done at the behest of the Pakistani government and military, and he was forced to take the rap for it. “The bastards first used us and are now playing dirty games with us,” Khan writes about the Pakistani leadership in a December 2003 letter to his wife Henny that has been made public by an interlocutor. “Darling, if the government plays any mischief with me, take a tough stand... They might try to get rid of me to cover up all the things they got done by me.” Khan had also sent copies of the letter to his daughter Dina in London, and to his niece Kausar Khan in Amsterdam through his brother, a Pakistan Airlines executive. Pakistani intelligence agencies got wind of it and threatened his family’s well-being, forcing him to recant and publicly take the blame for the proliferation activities.
Pak ups number and capability of nukes
Pakistan’s rapidly ramped up nuclear arsenal is now 70-90 strong with increasingly sophisticated bomb designs and smart delivery systems aimed primarily at India, two US researchers have said, even as Islamabad is running from pillar to post seeking international aid.
In a paper written for the Bulletin for Atomic Scientists, Robert Norris of the Natural Resources Defence Council and Hans Kristensen of the Federation of American Scientists say Pakistan is ‘‘busily enhancing its capabilities across the board,’’ with new nuclear-capable ballistic missiles being readied for deployment, and two nuclear capable cruise missiles under development. Two new plutonium production reactors and a second chemical separation facility are also under construction, they said.
Al-Qaida seeking nuclear secrets from Pakistan
Al-Qaida is trying desperately to get its hands on nuclear secrets from Pakistan, according to US Special Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, Richard Holbrooke. He told a congressional reception, “Al-Qaida is still there in the region, ever dangerous and publicly asking people to attack the US and publicly asking nuclear engineers to give them nuclear secrets from Pakistan.” This alarming accusation is being taken seriously in light of Pakistan’s history of leaking nuclear secrets and comes on the heels of similar claims made in a report to US lawmakers.
According to the Congressional Research Service (CRS) report—“Pakistan’s Nuclear Weapons: Proliferation and Security Issues”—Al-Qaida has also sought assistance from the Khan network. Former Director of Central Intelligence George Tenet said the United States “received fragmentary information from an intelligence service” that in 1998 Osama bin Laden had “sent emissaries to establish contact” with the network. Other Pakistani sources could also provide nuclear material to terrorist organisations.
According to a 2005 report by the commission on the Intelligence Capabilities of the United States regarding weapons of mass destruction, Al-Qaida “had established contact with Pakistani scientists who discussed development of nuclear devices that would require hard-to-obtain materials like uranium to create a nuclear explosion.” Tenet explains that these scientists were affiliated with a different organisation than the Khan network. Congressional Research Service, a bipartisan independent research wing of the US Congress, prepares reports for lawmakers.
UN united on nuke-free world
In the years and decades to come, he may well be celebrated as Barack “No Bomb” Obama. In a historic moment in time, the UN Security Council unanimously approved a US-drafted, Obama-authored resolution in New York on September 24, 2009, committing to work towards a world without nuclear weapons.
The new measure, formally titled UNSC Resolution 1887, expresses the Council’s grave concern about the threat of nuclear proliferation and the need for international action to prevent it. It reaffirms that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of delivery are threats to international peace and security and agrees on a broad range of actions to address nuclear proliferation and disarmament and the threat of nuclear terrorism.
Broadly, the resolution supports:
- A revitalized commitment to work toward a world without nuclear weapons, and calls for further progress on nuclear arms reductions, urging all States to work towards the establishment of effective measures of nuclear arms reduction and disarmament.
- A strengthened Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a Review Conference in 2010 that achieves realistic and achievable goals in all three pillars: nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
- “Universality” of the NPT, calling on all Sstates to adhere to its terms—an oblique reference to hold-outs such as India and Pakistan—and makes clear the Council’s intent to immediately address any notice of intent to withdraw from the Treaty.
The Obama resolution was backed by Russia and China among other countries in what is only the fifth meeting of the Security Council involving heads of government of its member States, and the first time the US President has chaired such as meeting.
But, aside from presenting a time-table of agenda-packed conferences, the US President did not present any specific numbers, metrics, or dates on the road to eliminating nuclear weapons. He said the US will move forward with the ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and open the door to deeper cuts in its own arsenal.
The pressure on India to sign the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT) is all set to increase sharply with US President Barack Obama rsday leading the UN Security Council to insist that all countries must sign the treaty that New Delhi has called discriminatory. India made its resolve not to fall in line plain. The position was conveyed by H.S. Puri, India’s permanent representative to the UN, to his US counterpart as well as the Security Council. The US is the current UNSC head.
Stressing that India cannot accept obligations arising out of a treaty which it hasn’t signed, the letter said nuclear weapons were vital for the country’s security. ‘‘This position is consistent with the fundamental principles of international law and the Law of Treaties. India cannot accept calls for universalisation of the NPT. As India’s Prime Minister stated in Parliament on July 29, 2009, there is no question of India joining the NPT as a non-nuclear weapon State. Nuclear weapons are an integral part of India’s national security and will remain so, pending non-discriminatory and global nuclear disarmament,’’ stated the letter.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
US aid to Pak comes with ‘accountability’ rider
A new US Legislation triples US aid to Pakistan authorises military assistance to help the country in its fight against Al-Qaida and other terrorists, but it also includes new and painstakingly negotiated accountability measures to ensure that this aid is not misused. India had expressed concern that Pakistan would divert US military aid toward bolstering its defences against a perceived threat from India.
The so-called Friends of Democratic Pakistan got something to applaud when the US Senate passed the compromise legislation in a voice vote. A statement from the sponsor of an identical Bill in the House of Representatives said the legislation required that military assistance be focused “principally on helping Pakistan with its critical counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism efforts”. The bill addresses India's concerns, which Congressional sources and South Asia analysts in Washington say are valid.
Congressional aides laboured hard to reach a compromise between the earlier Senate and House versions of the Bill. The sticking points at the time had been language governing oversight of funds to Pakistan's military. The House Bill had linked the release of these funds to the President’s certification that the Pakistani government “demonstrated a sustained commitment to and made progress towards combating terrorist groups.”
The new version states that the President has to certify that Pakistan is “making significant efforts towards combating terrorist groups ... including taking into account the extent to which the government of Pakistan has made progress on matters” related to counter-terrorism. The new version also doesn’t specify a dollar amount for military aid, only saying “such sums as are necessary.”
Senator John Kerry, who along with Senator Richard Lugar co-sponsored the Bill in the Senate, said: “The clear, tough-minded accountability standards and metrics contained in the original Bill are carried through in this version.”
SUMMITS
G-20 Summit
The G-20 Summit was held at Pittsburgh, USA in September-end 2009. The G-20 leaders’ statement from Pittsburgh has a tough message for the finance community. They have to raise far more capital, say bye-bye to bonuses that soar even if medium term profits of the institutions they worked for do not, and face tough regulation, starting with full compliance with the enhanced Basel II Capital Framework by 2011, including a limit on borrowing. The leaders’ statement is unequivocal and tough: “Where reckless behaviour and a lack of responsibility led to crisis, we will not allow a return to banking as normal.”
With this bare-knuckled preface, the communiqué goes on to identify changes needed in regulation, coordination among regulators across nations, increasing capital adequacy, reforming compensation to remove incentives for risky short-term behaviour, bringing compensation under the purview of regulators, fixing a ceiling on remunerations as a proportion of net revenues, raising the capital requirement of banks that fail to implement sound compensation policies and practices improving over the counter (OTC) derivatives markets, tightening accounting norms and harmonising them globally. The G-20 also wants commodity exchanges to become more transparent, collect data on large trader positions on oil futures and derivatives markets and to comply with the recommendations of the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). There are timelines for achieving each one of these changes.
On reform of compensation the Summit statement said: “Excessive compensation in the financial sector has both reflected and encouraged excessive risk taking. Reforming compensation policies and practices is an essential part of our effort to increase financial stability. We fully endorse the implementation standards of the FSB aimed at aligning compensation with long-term value creation, not excessive risk-taking, including by (i) avoiding multi-year guaranteed bonuses; (ii) requiring a significant portion of variable compensation to be deferred, tied to performance and subject to appropriate claw back and to be vested in the form of stock or stock-like instruments, as long as these create incentives aligned with long-term value creation and the time horizon of risk; (iii) ensuring that compensation for senior executives and other employees having a material impact on the firm’s risk exposure align with performance and risk; (iv) making firms’ compensation policies and structures transparent through disclosure requirements; (v) limiting variable compensation as a percentage of total net revenues when it is inconsistent with the maintenance of a sound capital base; and (vi) ensuring that compensation committees overseeing compensation policies are able to act independently.”
The G-20 has large ambitions on energy security and climate change and its Pittsburgh communiqué binds members to phase out subsidies on fossil fuels over the medium term. It also recognises that the poor might need subsidies to consume at least a minimal amount of energy and calls for cash transfers to target beneficiaries, while abandoning the policy of subsidising fuels in general. This would bring pressure on India to abandon its present policy of subsidising kerosene and cooking gas and even diesel and petrol when their prices rise above what the government thinks is above the level of political tolerance.
Studies have shown that 40% of subsidised kerosene gets diverted for adulteration of diesel. This not only foils the goal of offering subsidy on the fuel but also reduces engine life across our transport fleets and adds to pollution and diesel consumption through reduced fuel efficiency.
The Group of 20 (G-20), which includes developing nations like India, Brazil, and South Africa, will replace the Group of 7 (G-7), the mostly-western club of rich industrial nations, as a global forum for economic policy, it was announced during the Summit. “Dramatic changes in the world economy have not always been reflected in the global architecture for economic cooperation. This all started to change today,” the White House said of the makeover, “The G-20 leaders reached a historic agreement to put the G-20 at the centre of their efforts to work together to build a durable recovery while avoiding the financial fragilities that led to the crisis.”
For India, this means a regular, perhaps annual or twice-yearly pow-wows beyond the bi-laterals and clubby tri-laterals (IBSA—India, Brazil, South Africa) and quadri-laterals (BRIC—Brazil, Russia, India, China) that it was fostering.
Collectively, the G-20 economies account for 85% of global gross national product, 80% of world trade, and two-thirds of world population.
The new G20 will not have a permanent secretariat, and its chairmanship will be rotated annually, with South Korea running the body next year and France in 2011 A final agreement on a revamped representation structure will be completed in negotiations at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), set to conclude by January 2011. Under the proposal, the G-20 leaders will annually outline objectives for growth and then ask the IMF to carry out a form of assessment or peer review to ensure member states are following the plan’s objectives
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh returned from the G-20 Summit at Pittsburgh with some major gains at hand that are making the rich nations now look at the developing world in a new light. It was evident from the final communiqué issued by the G-20 leaders at the end of the summit that it reflected a lot of what Manmohan Singh had been pointing out prior to the summit.
In some of the other aspects of global financial structure, too, India’s stand was reflected in equal measure—notably greater voting rights for developing countries in the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In fact, the developing countries, mainly India, China and Brazil, also managed to secure what was rather unthinkable even a decade ago—a peer review of the economic policy framework of rich countries.
WORLD TRADE
Doha round impasse resolved
The informal meeting of the trade and commerce ministers of key World Trade Organisation (WTO) member countries in Bew Delhi, in the month of September 2009, agreed to resume negotiations in Geneva. A visibly pleased Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma at the conclusion of the two-day meet said, “The Delhi meeting has managed to break the impasse of the Doha round.”
The global trade talks had been stalled since July 2008. This was an important step for Anand Sharma, who as a new minister has been able to restart the stalled trade-talks process. India has always been seen as a spoiler in the talks. However, this meeting re-established India’s leadership role in the multilateral talks.
In July 2008, the talks had collapsed after India and other developing countries opposed the agriculture subsidies offered by developed nations to their farmers. The developing countries argued that the new subsidy would distort trade by making the produce of their countries costly. India had insisted that developing countries should have the right to impose steep tariffs to protect their farmers if there was an increase in import of farm products under a new trading deal.
At the end of the two-day talks, it is very clear that there has been no change in the position of these countries on the matter. The important issue that still remains is about the position of the developed world—the US and EU—towards the developing world like Africa, India, Brazil etc.
Lauding India’s initiative to revive the stalled WTO negotiations, US Trade Representative Ron Kirk said: “The US Administration is committed to the completion of the Doha Talks by 2010.” However, Brazil said the developing countries had already made enough concessions and new demands should not be made on them.
The talks could produce a deal that boosts the global economy by $300-700 billion a year, according to one recent study, although other estimates of the benefits have been lower.
P.S:
Oscar-winning musician A.R. Rahman has won the ‘Grassroot Grammy’ for the soundtrack in the Tamil film “Godfather” in the Best Indian Album category at the ‘Just Plain Folks 2009 Music Awards’. Bangla band ‘Krosswindz’ and Ilayaraja were among others nominated in the category. With over 50,000 members worldwide, the Just Plain Folks 2009 Music Awards is aimed at supporting grass-root songwriters and musicians through networking, education and promotional support. The awards received responses from over 163 countries.
Marathi film ‘Harishchandrachi Factory’ by theatre-veteran Paresh Mokashi has been selected as India’s official entry to 2009 Oscars.
Vibrant financial markets and a sound banking sector has helped Indian economy move up a notch to 49th place on the global competitive scale, while Switzerland has toppled the US as the top-ranked nation, as per the Global Competitiveness Index 2009-2010. The US has slipped to the second place and is followed by Singapore, Sweden and Denmark in the top five of the world's most competitive economies. Among the 133 countries featuring in the list, three nations in the BRIC grouping—India, China and Brazil—have moved up the competitiveness ladder while Russia has witnessed a sharp drop.
Duke Fashions (India) Limited has been felicitated with the national award for Outstanding Entrepreneurship, 2008.
The Union government has exempted with effect from September 1, 2009 transporting of foodgrain, fertilizers and petro-products through rail and waterways from service tax.
Trident International Holdings has awarded a $400 million contract to Arabian Construction Company (ACC) to build the world's tallest residential tower the 'Pentominium' in Dubai Marina. The 124-floor Pentominium, whose name is derived from two words: penthouse and condominium, will be one of the world’s tallest man-made structures and is projected to be the second-tallest building in the world after Burj Dubai. Each apartment in the 618 metres tower will consist of either half a floor, or an entire floor. The total built-up area will be 170,000 square metres and the construction duration is expected to take 48 months. The Pentominium will be the tallest all-residential building in the world upon completion and it currently has the highest projected height of any residential building under construction.
Sakshar Bharat Mission, launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on September 8, 2009, on the occasion was International Literacy Day, sets itself the goal of educating 70 million learners, 60 million of them women, by 2012 through an investment of $1billion; it replaces the old adult literacy mission that began in 1988. The final goal is to take national literacy levels from 64 per cent currently to 80 per cent by 2017, and reduce the gender gap from 21 per cent at present to 10 per cent, eventually.
Citizen SBI is a HR intervention project of State Bank of India that envisages multi-level cultural and attitudinal changes in the organisation over the next two years.
“Tirupati laddoo” offered to devotees at the Lord Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh has been awarded geographical copyright that bars others from naming or marketing the sweetmeat preparation under the same name.
India is all set to recognise Vietnam as a market economy—a system where prices of goods are determined in the market and not by the government. This clears the last hurdle in the way of India’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with all ASEAN members.
The World Bank will provide $4.3 billion loan to India for four projects in order to aid the country’s finance infrastructure building and for recapitalisation of state-owned banks. The four loans include $2 billion loan to enhance banks’ capital, $1.2 billion loan to infrastructure financing company IIFCL, $1 billion to help address power deficiency, and $150 million to improve water supply in Andhra Pradesh. The loans are part of the World Bank’s $14 billion crisis-related lending to India for a period of three years till 2012.
The International Conference on peaceful uses of atomic energy, 2009 was held in September 2009 in New Delhi.
Hardeep Puri is India’s Permanent Envoy to United Nations.
Marathi film ‘Harishchandrachi Factory’ by theatre-veteran Paresh Mokashi has been selected as India’s official entry to 2009 Oscars.
Vibrant financial markets and a sound banking sector has helped Indian economy move up a notch to 49th place on the global competitive scale, while Switzerland has toppled the US as the top-ranked nation, as per the Global Competitiveness Index 2009-2010. The US has slipped to the second place and is followed by Singapore, Sweden and Denmark in the top five of the world's most competitive economies. Among the 133 countries featuring in the list, three nations in the BRIC grouping—India, China and Brazil—have moved up the competitiveness ladder while Russia has witnessed a sharp drop.
Duke Fashions (India) Limited has been felicitated with the national award for Outstanding Entrepreneurship, 2008.
The Union government has exempted with effect from September 1, 2009 transporting of foodgrain, fertilizers and petro-products through rail and waterways from service tax.
Trident International Holdings has awarded a $400 million contract to Arabian Construction Company (ACC) to build the world's tallest residential tower the 'Pentominium' in Dubai Marina. The 124-floor Pentominium, whose name is derived from two words: penthouse and condominium, will be one of the world’s tallest man-made structures and is projected to be the second-tallest building in the world after Burj Dubai. Each apartment in the 618 metres tower will consist of either half a floor, or an entire floor. The total built-up area will be 170,000 square metres and the construction duration is expected to take 48 months. The Pentominium will be the tallest all-residential building in the world upon completion and it currently has the highest projected height of any residential building under construction.
Sakshar Bharat Mission, launched by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on September 8, 2009, on the occasion was International Literacy Day, sets itself the goal of educating 70 million learners, 60 million of them women, by 2012 through an investment of $1billion; it replaces the old adult literacy mission that began in 1988. The final goal is to take national literacy levels from 64 per cent currently to 80 per cent by 2017, and reduce the gender gap from 21 per cent at present to 10 per cent, eventually.
Citizen SBI is a HR intervention project of State Bank of India that envisages multi-level cultural and attitudinal changes in the organisation over the next two years.
“Tirupati laddoo” offered to devotees at the Lord Venkateswara Temple in Andhra Pradesh has been awarded geographical copyright that bars others from naming or marketing the sweetmeat preparation under the same name.
India is all set to recognise Vietnam as a market economy—a system where prices of goods are determined in the market and not by the government. This clears the last hurdle in the way of India’s Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with all ASEAN members.
The World Bank will provide $4.3 billion loan to India for four projects in order to aid the country’s finance infrastructure building and for recapitalisation of state-owned banks. The four loans include $2 billion loan to enhance banks’ capital, $1.2 billion loan to infrastructure financing company IIFCL, $1 billion to help address power deficiency, and $150 million to improve water supply in Andhra Pradesh. The loans are part of the World Bank’s $14 billion crisis-related lending to India for a period of three years till 2012.
The International Conference on peaceful uses of atomic energy, 2009 was held in September 2009 in New Delhi.
Hardeep Puri is India’s Permanent Envoy to United Nations.
Current General Knowledge
ABBREVIATIONS
CCTNS: Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System
NCTC: National Counter Terrorism Centre.
AWARDS
National Film Awards, 55th
The annual film awards in India, 55th National Awards (for year 2007-2008) were announced on September 7, 2009. The winners are:
Best Actor: Prakash Raj (Kanchivaram)
Best Actress: Uma Shree (Kannada film Gulabi Talkies)
Best Film Award: Kanchivaram
Best Child Actor: Sharad Goyekar (Marathi film Tingya)
Best Screenplay: Gandhi My Father
Best Supporting Actor: Darshan Zariwala (Gandhi My Father)
Best Supporting Actress: Shefali Shah (The Last Lear).
Special Jury mention: Gandhi My Father
Best Wholesome Entertainment: Chake De India
Best Music Director: Ouseppachan for the movie Ore Kadal (Malayalam).
Best Family Welfare Film: Taare Zameen Par
Best Playback Singer (Male): Shankar Mahadevan for Meri Maa (Taare Zameen Par).
Best Playback Singer (Female): Shreya Ghoshal (Jab We Met).
Best Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi (Taare Zameen Par)
Indira Gandhi Award for Best First Film of a Director: Frozen (Hindi), directed by Shivajee Chandrabhushan.
Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration: Dharm (Hindi), directed by Bhavna Talwar.
Best Film on Social Issues such as Prohibition, Women and Child Welfare, Anti-dowry, Drug Abuse, Welfare of the handicapped etc.: Antardwandwa (Hindi), Directed by Sushil Rajpal.
Best Children’s Film: Foto (Hindi), Directed by Virendra Saini.
Best Animation Film: Inimey Naangathaan (Tamil), Directed by S. Venky Baboo.
Best Feature Film in Bengali: Ballygunge Court, Directed by Pinaki Chaudhuri
Best Feature Film in Hindi: 1971, Directed by Amrit Sagar
Best Feature Film in Kannada: Gulabi Talkies, Directed by Girish Kasaravalli.
Best Feature Film in Malayalam: Ore Kadal, Directed by Shyama Prasad
Best Feature Film in Marathi: Nirop, Directed by Sachin Kundalkar
Best Feature Film in Tamil: Periyar, Directed by Gnana Rajasekaran.
Best Feature Film in English: The Last Lear, Directed by Rituparno Ghosh.
Best Book on Cinema: From Raj to Swaraj: The Non-fiction Film in India (English), By B.D. Garga
Best Film Critic: V.K. Joseph (Malayalam).
Saraswati Samman, 2008
Dr Lakshminandan Bora has been honoured with the award for his Assamese novel “Kayakalpa”. The awards consists of a citation and prize money of Rs 5 lakh.
Vyas Samman, 2008
Mannu Bhandari has been honoured for her novel “Ek Kahani Yah Bhi”. The award consists of a citation and prize money of Rs 2.55 lakh.
Dada Saheb Phalke Award, 2007
Renowned playback singer Manna Dey has been nominated for the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke award for the year 2007. The 90-year-old singer is one of the greatest playback singers in Indian cinema. He ruled the playback music scene from the 1950s to the 1970s.
CSIR Award, 2009
Charusita Chakravarti of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi, Santosh G. Honavar of L.V. Prasad Eye Institute and S.K. Satheesh of the Indian Institute of Science are among the 11 scientists named for India’s top science award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 500,000, a citation and a plaque. Since its inception, 443 scientists, among them 10 women, have bagged this most prestigious award in the field of science.
While Chakravarti was selected for her work in chemical science, Honavar has made contribution in the field of medicine. Satheesh got the award for his contribution to the earth science.
The other winners are Amitabh Joshi and Bhaskar Shah (biological science), Giridhar Madras and Jayant Ramaswamy Harsita (engineering science), R. Gopakumar and A. Dhar (physical science), Narayanswamy Jayraman (chemical science), and Verapally Suresh (mathematical science).
BOOKS
India in Turmoil
Written by former Delhi police chief Ved Marwah, who also served as Governor in Manipur, Mizoram and Jharkhand, “India in Turmoil” has come out with damning revelations about political leaders from both NDA and UPA. The author also comes out with a first-hand account of the “mess-up” of the Rubaiya Sayeed kidnapping case in 1989.
DEFENCE
Navy inducts stealth destroyer INS Kochi
On September 18, 2009, INS Kochi, the Project 15-A Kolkata Class stealth destroyer built by the Mazgaon Docks Ltd was formally inducted into the Indian Navy at Mumbai, by Admiral Nirmal Kumar Verma’s wife Madulika Verma. It will formally join the naval fleet in 2011.
INS Kolkata, the first vessel, will be inducted in 2010. The third vessel of its class is likely to be launched in 2012. All three vessels will have land attack capabilities as well. Each of the Project 15-A Kolkata Class destroyer is expected to cost about Rs 3,800 crore. These ships will be fitted with the state-of-the-art weapon systems, including the Brahmos missile and the Barak-2 surface-to-air missiles with a range of 70 km.
Made-in-India ‘stealth’ frigate to add fire-power
Very soon India will add another lethal punch to its growing ‘‘blue-water’’ warfare capabilities by inducting an indigenously-designed and manufactured ‘‘stealth’’ frigate, INS Shivalik, which is armed with a deadly mix of foreign and indigenous weapon and sensor systems and is currently undergoing ‘‘advanced’’ pre-commissioning sea trials.
Apart from Russian Shtil surface-to-air missile systems, Klub anti-ship cruise missiles and other weapons, the multi-role frigate will also be armed with the Israeli ‘Barak-I’ anti-missile defence system.
INS Shivalik is the first stealth frigate to be designed and built in India. It is part of Project-17, to construct three stealth frigates, the other two being INS Satpura and INS Sahyadri, at a cost of Rs 8,101 crore, at Mazagon. The defence ministry has now approved Project-17A to construct seven more frigates, with even more stealth features, for around Rs 45,000 crore.
The stealth features incorporated in the Shivalik-class frigates, including inclined surfaces, will considerably reduce their radar cross-section. To reduce the noise signature, the designers have gone in for low-noise propellers, propulsion devices and machinery, as also ‘‘vibration damping’’.
Navy’s first dose of stealth tech came with three Talwar-class frigates from Russia in 2003-2004.
DISCOVERY
India’s Jurassic nest dug up in Tamil Nadu
Geologists in Tamil Nadu have stumbled upon a Jurassic treasure trove buried in the sands of a river bed. Sheer luck led them to hundreds of fossilized dinosaur eggs, perhaps 65 million years old, underneath a stream in a tiny village in Ariyalur district.
That dinosaurs once roamed the area was known from the fossils found there on earlier expeditions. But this is the first time that hundreds of nests embedded with hundreds of clusters of dinosaur eggs have been unearthed in the district. Located on the highway between Chennai and Tiruchi, the Ariyalur and neighbouring Perambalur geological sites nestle in the northern plains of the Cauvery river.
The Ariyalur-Perambalur region is a veritable museum of ancient organisms, dating back to 140 million years. Ever since a British couple—the Wines—collected 32 boxes of ‘‘strange stone objects’’ in 1843, the Ariyalur region has drawn geologists from across the world for its rich fossil presence and diversity. Scientists have found the tiniest marine algae or the nano fossils besides the rare shell-like bivalve, gastropoda, telecypoda and brachiopoda in the geological sites spread across 950 sq km in Ariyalur and Perambalur districts.
3,300-year-old site found in Sri Lanka
In a landmark discovery, an archaeological site believed to be over 3,330-years-old, has been found in southern Sri Lanka's Embilipitiya region by a group of local archaeologists. The discovery, perhaps the first of over three century old site ever found in Sri Lanka, has been uncovered by Professor Raj Somadeva and his team while excavating an area belonging to the Sri Jayabodharama temple in Udaranchamadama. Grinding stones, painted pots, granite tools and other items were among the findings of the excavations.
EDUCATION
Class X boards to go from 2011
There will be no Class X board examination in CBSE schools in 2011. While there will be a board exam for Class X in 2010, grading system, based on continuous and comprehensive evaluation by schools, will kick in in 2009-10 itself.
Students in schools with classes only till X will have to take an “online/offline/on demand” assessment test for seeking admission in Class XI in another school. Students of schools with classes till XII need not take such an assessment test. It will be optional for students of these schools to take the on-demand test.
According to new CBSE guidelines, on-demand assessment tests will be held more than once a year and students can repeat it to improve their grades. Also, for students interested in being evaluated on marks, schools will provide for these separately but not on the certificate.
There will be nine grades. The highest will be A1 (exceptional) with a grade point of 10 and a marks range of 91-100%. Second grade will be A2 (excellent) with a grade point of 9 and marks in the range of 81-90%. Third grade will be B1 (very good) with grade point of 8 and a marks range of 71-80%.
The fourth grade will be B2 (good) with a grade point of 7 and marks range of 61-70%. Fifth grade will be C1 (fair) with grade point of 6 and marks range of 51-60%. C2 (average) will be the sixth grade with grade point of 5 and marks range of 41-50%. D (below average) will be the seventh grade with 4 grade points and marks range of 33-40%. E1 (needs improvement) and E2 (unsatisfactory) are the last two grades.
Grading system based on continuous and comprehensive evaluation (CCE) will be done in two terms (April-September, October-March). In a year, the school will conduct four formative and two summative assessments. In the first term, there will be two formative assessments of 10% each and single summative assessment of 20%. In the second term also a similar format will be adopted. Formative assessment will carry 40% marks and summative assessment 60% marks.
CBSE also plans to offer an aptitude test that will be available by February 2010. By the time a student reaches Class XI, he/she would have undertaken the aptitude test twice, once at the end of Class IX and then at the end of Class X.
ENVIRONMENT
Deadlier form of El Nino to wreak more havoc on Asia
El Nino disrupts weather patterns around the world, causing drought in Indonesia, Australia, India and eastern Brazil, and unusually heavy rainfall in the US Gulf Coast and parts of South America. It also lowers sea surface temperatures in the Caribbean and Atlantic, which helps prevent the formation and intensity of hurricanes in that region.
But climate change has apparently given rise to an alternate form of El Nino that is likely to become more frequent over the coming decades, according to the new research, published in Nature. “There are two El Ninos,” said Ben Kirtman, a professor at the University of Miami and a co-author of the study. “In addition to the eastern Pacific El Nino, a second El Nino in the central Pacific is on the increase,” he said.
The two do not occur at the same time, he added. This could be bad news on at least two fronts. In Asia, it could intensify droughts that have already wreaked havoc in recent decades. And in the Atlantic, it could weaken the positive effect it has had up to now in mitigating the intensity of hurricanes that strike the Caribbean and the US east coast.
PERSONS
Borlaug, Dr Norman
American agronomist, humanitarian, and Nobel laureate who has been deemed the father of the Green Revolution, he died on September 12, 2009, at the age of 95. His high-yield crop innovations were responsible for bumper harvests in States like Punjab in the 1970s.
Borlaug was one of only six people to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal. He was also a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian honour. His discoveries have been estimated to have saved over one billion lives worldwide.
Borlaug was the great-grandchild of Norwegian immigrants to the United States. The eldest of four children, Borlaug was born to Henry Oliver and Clara (Vaala) Borlaug on his grandparents' farm in Saude in 1914. He attended the one-teacher, one-room New Oregon rural school in Howard County up through eighth grade. Today, the school building, built in 1865, is owned by the Norman Borlaug Heritage Foundation as part of “Project Borlaug Legacy”.
He attributed his decision to leave the farm and pursue further education to his grandfather, Nels Olson Borlaug, who strongly encouraged Borlaug’s learning, once saying, “You’re wiser to fill your head now if you want to fill your belly later on.”
Dey, Manna
Noted singer, he has been honoured with the Dada Saheb Phalke award, 2008. Born Prabodh Chandra Dey on May 1, 1919, Manna Dey, as he came to be known, began taking music lessons during college days. In 1942, he accompanied his uncle Krishna Chandra Dey, a musician, to Mumbai and began to work as his assistant. Followed by a stint with S.D. Burman, Dey’s playback career began in 1943 with a duet with Suraiya in ‘Tamanna’. The song became an instant hit, opening avenues in Hindi and language films.
He turned music director but kept his music lessons going, including Hindustani classical. From classical to pop to Rabindra Sangeet, Dey recorded over 3,500 songs in his career, including a rare duet with Bhimsen Joshi, “Ketki Gulab Juhi” (Basant Bahar, 1956).
Manna Dey’s top five songs have been: “Ae mere pyare watan” (Kabuliwala, 1961) “Ae meri zohra jabeen” (Waqt, 1965) “Ek chatur naar” (Padosan, 1968) “Zindagi kaisi yeh paheli hai” (Anand, 1971) “Yeh dosti hum nahin todenge” (Sholay, 1975).
In 1969 he won the National award for best male playback for “Mere Huzur”. Again in 1971, he won the National award for best male playback for Bengali film “Nishi Padma”.
Reddy, Y.S.R.
Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, died on September 3, 2009 in a helicopter crash. He was born on July 8, 1949 in Pulivendula, Rayalaseema. He completed his course in medical science from M.R. Medical College, Gulbarga, Karnataka and was elected president of students union during his college days. After completing his MBBS he took up his first job as medical officer at Jammalamadugu Mission Hospital.
He entered politics in 1978 when he contested for an Assembly seat from Pulivendula at the age of 28. He contested and won election four times to enter the Assembly from Pulivendula and four times from Kadapa to enter Lok Sabha. From 1999 to 2004, he was leader of opposition in the 11th Andhra Assembly. He was opposition leader five times.
He was sworn-in as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister for the first time on May 14, 2004. He swept 2009 polls and retained the Chief Minister’s post.
PLACES
Nyoma
This is the third such airstrip that has been activated along the LAC in Ladakh. On September 18, 2009, an AN-32 aircraft landed at Nyoma, where an advanced landing ground (ALG) has been readied for faster deployment of troops and moving supplies to troops based at forward posts. The landing strip is 23-km inside Indian Territory and is at an altitude of 13,300 feet. An ALG means: where the landing strip comprises hard compacted earth but is not paved with concrete. Earlier, in May 2008, the IAF had activated Daulat-Beg-Oldie (DBO), the highest airfield in the world situated at an altitude of 16,200 feet.
Pittsburgh
This town in USA hosted the G-20 Summit in September 2009-end. Formerly America’s much derided City of Steel, hosted the G-20 summit. There was a time when steel mills used to be the biggest employer in Pittsburgh. Today, it’s the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, which employs 50,000 people—half the city’s 100,000 healthcare jobs. Over the years, Pittsburgh has transformed itself from the city of steel to a centre for high-tech innovation, including green technology, education and training, and research and development.
The main venue of the G-20 summit, the David Lawrence Convention Centre, which sits on what was once a red-light district, is itself the world’s largest green building. Delegates had dinner at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, which were designed to use almost no outside energy or water.
RESEARCH
Indians a genetic mixture of two populations
The modern-day Indians are a genetic mixture of two distinct ancient populations, a new research has revealed. All diverse groups seen in the present day India came from two major ancient populations that are genetically divergent—Ancestral North Indians (ANI) and the Ancestral South Indians (ASI).
While the ANI group is genetically close to Middle Easterners, Central Asians, and Europeans, the ASI are not related to any group outside India, the study has said.
Claimed to be the largest-ever genome-scale analysis of diverse Indian groups, the research was jointly conducted by scientists from Hyderabad-based Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), Harvard Medical School, Harvard School of Public Health and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, USA.
“The implication of this study is that India is not one population and we are a nation of multiple populations,” Lalji Singh, a research team member and former CCMB Director, said. The study paper was published online in the journal Nature.
The study also looked for genetic variations based on caste—upper and lower caste—from two the states of Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh. Contrary to popular perception by historians that the caste system seen today is an invention of colonialism, the study found scientific evidence to show that “many current distinctions among groups are ancient.”
There were 4,635 well-defined populations in India, including 532 tribes and 72 primitive tribes. Researchers studied the genomes of 132 Indians from 25 population groups that represented all six-language families across 15 States and included traditionally “upper” and “lower” castes and tribal groups.
Analysis of 500,000 genetic markers, random mutations that serve as milestones-using extensive statistical tools, shows that diversity within India is three-four times higher than that seen within Europe. The research result indicates that many modern Indian groups have descended from a small number of “founding individuals”, whose descendants interbred among themselves to create genetically isolated populations.
This insight has important medical implications for people of Indian origin, because groups that are descended from small founding populations often have a high incidence of inherited diseases.
SPACE RESEARCH
India launches OceanSat-2
On September 23, 2009, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched seven satellites in 1,200 seconds with the help of its most trusted Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, from the Sriharikota spaceport on Andhra Pradesh coast.
India placed its second Ocean observation satellite Oceansat-2, along with six other nano satellites, including two German Rubinsat—Rubin 9.1 and Rubin 9.2—and four Cubesats—the Beesat (assembled by Technical University, Berlin), UWE-2 (University of Wuerzburg, Germany, ITU-pSat (Istanbul Technical University, Turkey) and SwissCube-1 (Ecole Polytechnique Federal de Lausanne, Switzerland.
Earlier, in April 2008, ISRO had launched 10 satellites in one go.
Oceansat-2 is carrying an Ocean Colour Monitor and a Ku-band pencil beam Scatterometer, besides a Radio Occultation Sounder for Atmospheric Studies, developed by the Italian Space Agency. The Ku-band pencil beam Scatterometer with a ground resolution cell of 50 km x 50 km is expected to provide the wind vector range of four to 24 metres per second with better than 20% accuracy in speed and 20 degree in wind direction.
The on-board Scatterometer is a very good instrument for getting surface wind on the sea. It is required for sea state forecasting. And for maritime navigation, the wave height and disturbance is also important.
The eight-band OCM is similar to the one in Oceansat-1 with appropriate spectral bandwidth modifications based on the previous experience. The OCM, with 360 metres spatial resolution and a swath of 1,420 kilometres would provide extensive communication links.
Since Oceansat-2 is a continuity mission to Oceansat-1, the same polar sun synchronous orbit of 720 kilometres has been retained. However, unlike the Oceansat-1 that could essentially look at only the colour of the ocean, the Oceansat-2 is a comprehensive system and would look at surface winds and temperature, among other things.
The satellite is intended for identification of potential fishing zones, weather forecasting and other trends of the sea, coastal zone studies and providing inputs for general meteorological observations.
NASA probe on Chandrayaan finds water on Moon’s surface
It is a giant leap for India’s space programme and the biggest scientific discovery of the 21st Century. India’s maiden moon mission, Chandrayaan-1 has found water, a discovery that scientists say will upend thinking about space and boost research. And, of course, it has helped shake off the failure tag from the Rs 386-crore Chandrayaan-I project that was aborted in August 2009.
The historic development took place just prior to the termination of the mission on August 30, 2009. Although water was spotted by the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3), a NASA probe and one of the 11 payloads on the spacecraft, glory shone on ISRO for the discovery that was made after nearly five decades of lunar exploration by western nations.
Water molecules and hydroxyl—a charged molecule consisting of one oxygen atom and one hydrogen atom—were discovered across the Moon’s surface. The M3 had covered 97% of the Moon before Chandrayaan-1 was terminated. Brown University scientists say while the abundance is not exactly known, ‘‘as much as 1,000 water molecule parts per million could be in the lunar soil: harvesting one tonne of the top layer of the Moon’s surface would yield 32 ounces of water’’.
NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper on board Chandrayaan detected water from electromagnetic radiation emanating from different minerals on and just below lunar surface
This discovery enhances the chances of humans to live on moon, They could split water into oxygen (for breathing) and hydrogen (for rocket fuel). The US, Russia and China are exploring the possibility of building human habitats on the Moon after 2020.
The M3 team found water molecules and hydroxyl at diverse areas of the sunlit region of the Moon’s surface as well as at the Moon’s higher latitudes where it seemed more definitive in presence. The M3 discovery has been confirmed by data from two NASA spacecrafts—the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) on the Cassini spacecraft and High-Resolution Infrared Imaging Spectrometer on the EPOXI spacecraft.
Water exists on many bodies in our solar system, both planets and their numerous moons. But finding it on our own moon is breathtaking, both, from a practical and theoretical point of view. It adds to our knowledge of how cosmic processes work. The mere existence of water does not lead to any strong possibility of life existing on Moon, although more study will be needed to see if in the past, some simple life-like forms could have evolved. With almost no atmosphere, constant exposure to high energy solar winds, extreme temperatures, and repeatedly a victim of cosmic hit-and-run, the likelihood is remote.
There are two theories on presence of water on moon. One is that comets and meteorites brought it there. About 3.9 billion years ago, the Earth and Moon both suffered a long period of heavy bombardment from meteorites and comets, giving the Moon its characteristic pock-marked features. The comets might have left water on the surface. The bulk would have been lost by now but some still remains.
The other theory is that it is created on the surface by the impact of solar winds. The sun sends out a stream of hydrogen ions or protons, which hit the moon’s surface at a speed of about 100,000 kilometres per second. The surface is made of rocks and dust roughly containing 40% oxygen. The high-speed collisions free up the oxygen, some of which joins up with hydrogen. This oxygen-hydrogen pair can attract another hydrogen ion to form water.
Images from Chandrayaan show that although the water is present mostly at the poles, it is also thinly spread over the surface till about 10 degrees south and north, using earth-like parameters. It appears that the water evaporates as the sun heats up the Moon’s surface in the day-time (one moon-day is about three weeks) and condenses back in the night. In some of the polar craters, where sunlight has not reached for the past 2-3 billion years, the water will exist as ice, since the temperatures are approximately minus 240 degrees Celsius.
MISCELANEOUS
India foils patent bid for Vitiligo cure
India has for the first time ever managed to foil a bio-piracy bid in a record three weeks time. Thanks to the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL), which has till now completed documenting over two lakh medical formulations of Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani to save them from piracy, European Patent Office (EPO) has cancelled its earlier “intent to grant patent” order to a Spanish company on use of melon extract to cure vitiligo (leucoderma)—a disease that causes skin de-pigmentation to almost 65 million people globally.
Under India’s ancient Unani system of medicine, hakeems have for hundreds of years been using melon extract to cure this disease. Michael Jackson was world’s most famous vitiligo patient.
Earlier patent related challenges made by India lasted years. Among the famous were: patent application over neem’s anti-fungal properties which took India 10 years to revoke; the patent application on the wound healing properties of turmeric which took three years; and that of Basmati rice against an US-based company which took well over a year.
Vitiligo is a pigmentation disorder in which melanocytes in the skin are destroyed. As a result, white patches appear on the skin. There is evidence that people with vitiligo inherit a group of three genes that make them susceptible to de-pigmentation. Some say vitiligo is a disease in which a person’s immune system reacts against the body’s own organs or tissues. So proteins called cytokines, which are produced within the body, alter their pigment producing cells and cause these cells to die.
Events, Appointments, etc..:
EVENTS
SEPTEMBER2—32 people are killed as a powerful earthquake hits southern Indonesia.
3—Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S.R. Reddy dies in a helicopter crash over Nalamala forest area in Kurnool district of the State.
17—A suicide car bomber kills at least 16 people, including six Italian soldiers, in an attack on a military convoy on a road in the centre of Kabul, Afghanistan.
18—At least 33 people are killed in a suicide bomb attack in north-western Pakistan. The bomber targeted the Kachcha-Pucca market of Kohat district in NWFP.
24—NASA probe on board Chandrayaan finds water on the surface of the moon.
26—At least 20 persons are killed in two back-to-back suicide bombings by Pakistani Taliban faction in Peshawar.
30—A series of tsunamis smash into the Pacific island nations of American and Western Samoa, killing more than 120 people. The tsunamis were triggered by a 8.0 magnitude earthquake south-west of American Samoa.
APPOINTED; ELECTED; Etc.
K. Rosaiah: He has taken over as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS
Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj: President of Mongolia.
Mizengo K. Pinda: Prime Minister of Tanzania.
Ms Dipu Moni: External Affairs Minister of Bangladesh.
Mohamed El Baradei: Director-General of International Atomic Energy Agency.
Mizengo K. Pinda: Prime Minister of Tanzania.
Ms Dipu Moni: External Affairs Minister of Bangladesh.
Mohamed El Baradei: Director-General of International Atomic Energy Agency.
DIED
Y.S.R. Reddy: Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. He died in a helicopter crash. He was 60.
Dr Norman Borlaug: Agricultural Scientist, also known as the father of “Green Revolution”, whose high-yield crop innovations were responsible for bumper harvests in States like Punjab in the 1970s. He was 95.
Meenakshi Mukherjee: Litterateur and Sahitya Akademi winner for her book “The Perishable Empire: Essays on Indian Writing in English”. She was a big name in English literature. She was 72.
Raj Singh Dungarpur: Former President of the Board of Control for Indian Cricket. He was 73. Born into royal family of Dungarpur, now in modern-day Rajasthan, he represented Rajasthan in the Ranji trophy from 1955 to 1971 as a medium-fast bowler.
Patrick Swayze: Hollywood actor, best-known to Indian audience for his role as the good-hearted American doctor Max Lowe in the 1992 movie ‘City of Joy’. He was 57. He came into limelight with the cult classic movie ‘Dirty Dancing’. His other known blockbuster was “Ghost”.
MILESTONES
Yugratna Srivastava: This 13-year-old girl from Lucknow spoke on behalf of the world’s three billion children during the summit on climate change. She addressed over a 100 world leaders, including US President Barack Obama.
Khagendra Thapa Magar: of Nepal, who is 20 inches tall and weighs 4.5 kg, will be declared as the world's shortest person by the Guinness Book of World Records when he turns 18 in October.
Pragya Khanna: She learnt French for two years to undertake a research project and then she came out with a startling discovery of 14 more species of chironomus, popularly called “midge fly”, that fetched her “International Educator of the Year” award. The larvae of 14 new species, very sensitive to pollutants in water, would now be applied to study pollutants in water bodies and remedial measures would be suggested to free water bodies from contamination of all sorts, be it sewerage waste, domestic refuse or industrial effluents. The seven out of 14 species have been named after 35-year-old expert as PK1 to PK7. A lecturer of zoology at the Government College for Women here, Pragya has presented 30 research papers, five monographs, 90 popular articles and two books on the subject of her expertise. She has also attended 35 conferences in the past eight years in the country.
Sports:
BILLIARDS
World Professional Crown
Pankaj Advani, the 24-year-old Bangalorean, scripted a brilliant 2030-1253 win over Mike Russell to win his maiden World Professional Billiards title at the Northern Snooker Centre in Leeds, UK. In a thrilling finale, he reduced the greatest billiards exponent of the modern era to a mere spectator in a five-hour clash.
Pankaj Advani is only the second Indian after Geet Sethi to win the World Professional Billiards title in its 139-year history. He has also won the IBSF World Snooker Championship in China and has the rare distinction of being both the World IBSF and professional champion.
He also won gold at 2006 Doha Asian Games (English Billiards singles).
BOXING
Vijender becomes first Indian boxer to be ranked No. 1
Adding to his already overflowing list of firsts in Indian boxing, Haryana lad Vijender Singh has again created history by attaining the numero uno position in the world in the 75 kg category. Now, he has become the first Indian boxer to win a medal at the Olympics, the first to win a medal at the World Championships and also the first to take the top spot.
CRICKET
India briefly become number one
India became world number one in ODIs on September 11, 2009 after a six-wicket win over New Zealand. However, they could not hold on to the number one spot for long as they lost the next match against Sri Lanka. M.S. Dhoni’s men are only the third team to hold the top slot after Australia and South Africa since the ranking system began. Indian team needed to win the two matches against Sri Lanka in the tri-series to stay on top. But they could only win the final of the series and lost the league match.
England-Australia One Day series
A devastating spell of fast bowling from Brett Lee at Lord’s helped Australia to a seven wicket win and an unassailable 4-0 lead in the seven-match One-day series against England. It was the ninth time Lee had taken five wickets in a One-dayer.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting’s superb century paved the way for the world champions to beat England by four wickets in the fifth one-day international (ODI).
Tim Paine scored his maiden international century as Australia inflicted fresh one-day misery upon England with a crushing 111-run win at Trent Bridge. Victory in this fixture left world champions Australia 6-0 up in the 7-match series.
Sri Lanka-New Zealand-India Tri-series
India defeated Sri Lanka by 46 runs to win the tri-series. India’s win was backed by a century by Sachin Tendulkar who scored 138 runs off 133 balls. This was Sachin’s 44th century. The win was India’s first in a tournament final against Sri Lanka in eight attempts. The win was also India’s first since January 2008 in a series involving more than two teams.
BCCI Corporate Trophy
Air India Red defeated Air India Blue by 93 runs to clinch the trophy.
All India J.P. Atray Tournament
Reliance-1 overhauled a massive 303 run target set by defending champions Indian Oil Corporation team to win the Pearls Trophy. The tournament was held at Mohali, Punjab.
Castrol Cricket Awards, 2008
Indian opener Gautam Gamhir pipped Virender Sehwag to become the Cricketer of the year 2008. Gambhir, who scored over 1000 runs in Tests and ODI's in 2008, also won the best bastman of the year award while off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claimed the best bowler of the year honours, worth a trophy and Rs two lakh each.
Dashing opener Sehwag and Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni were declared the Test and One-Day cricketers.
All rounder Ravindra Jadeja was named the best young cricketer of the year.
Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar and another stalwart Rahul Dravid were given special performance awards for becoming the first batsman to cross 12,000 runs in Tests and becoming the leading catcher in the traditional format of the game, respectively.
Gundappa Rangnath Viswanath, former Indian captain and the first Indian to score a Test hundred against all Test-playing nations of his time was conferred the Castrol Lifetime Achievement Award. Vishwanath joins the legendary Capt. Vijay Hazare, Polly Umrigar, B.S. Chandrasekhar, Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Prasanna who were the earlier recipients of the award. G.R. Viswanath represented India in 91 Tests from 1969 to 1983, and scored 6,080 runs, inclusive of fourteen centuries.
FOOTBALL
Durand Cup
Churchill Brothers defeated Mohun Bagan 1-0 in extra time to lift the cup.
GOLF
DLF Masters Title
Gaganjit Bhullar won the title for his fifth consecutive victory on the domestic tour.
PGTI Players Championship
Amandeep Johl clinched the rain-hit championship at Chandigarh defeating Ashok Kumar in a play-off.
BMW Championship
Tiger Woods cruised to victory in the Championship, his sixth triumph of 2009, putting him back atop the US PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup rankings.
TENNIS
India returns to elite Davis Cup group after 11 years
India No. 1 Somdev Devvarman came back from two sets down to beat South Africa’s Rik De Voest in a match that lasted nearly 5 hours. The thrilling win gave India an unbeatable 3-1 lead over South Africa and ensured a return to the elite Davis Cup World Group for the first time in 11 years.
US Open, 2009
Kim Clisjsters of Belgium won the women’s singles title for the second time, defeating Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, to complete one of the most stunning comeback in modern sports history. In doing so, she became the first mother to win a Grand Slam title since Australian Evonne Goolagong in 1980 and the first wildcard, man or woman, to win a US Open title in the history of the tournament.
Juan Martin del Porto ended Roger Federer’s run of dominance at the US Open to win the men’s singles title. This was his first Grand Slam title.
Leander Paes and his Czech partner Lukas Dlouhy won the men’s doubles title when they beat the third seeds Mahesh Bhupathi and his partner from the Bahamas Mark Knowles 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.
Serena Williams and Venus Williams beat Cara Black and Liezel Huber to win the women doubles title.
Carly Gullickson and Travis Parrott defeated Leander Paes and Cara Black to win the mixed-doubles title.
WRESTLING
Ramesh wins World Championship Bronze ending 42-year-old wait
It takes guts to go for a high-risk three-point technical move in the final seconds of a medal bout at World Championship Wrestling. But in Ramesh Kumar’s case, the all-out attack strategy paid off big time. The wrestler from Haryana ended India’s 42-year wait for a medal in the men’s segment at the World Championships by winning bronze in the 74kg freestyle category in Herning, Denmark.
Vishambar Singh was the last Indian male wrestler to win a medal at the Worlds, with a freestyle silver in 1967. In 2006, Alka Tomar had won bronze in the women’s event. India also boasts of two Olympics bronze medal-winning wrestlers—Kasaba Jadhav in 1952 and Sushil Kumar in Beijing 2008.
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