Monthly RoundUp:Jan 09

Current Affaris:

CURRENT NATIONAL AFFAIRS

RBI infuses 20k crore: On January 2, 2009, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced a further easing of money supply with the reduction of key rates and ratio which it said would release Rs 20,000 crore into the banking system. While the cash reserve ratio—the amount of cash that banks need to keep in reserve—has been cut by 0.5 per cent to 5 per cent, repo and reverse repo rates—the short-term rates at which the RBI lends and borrows from banks—have been cut by 100 basis points each to 5.5 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively. Following the RBI measures, government-owned banks provided a respite from high interest rates to individuals wanting to buy a house and to the distressed owners of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

Companies can now launch IPOs 1 year after SEBI nod: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has granted greater flexibility to corporate to raise funds and outlined measures to prevent the kind of panic redemptions that brought the mutual fund industry to its knees in October 2008. SEBI has now approved a proposal to extend the validity period for an initial public offering approval from three months to a year. The new rule comes as a relief for those who were forced to defer their IPOs even though they had obtained approval. Under the new rule, the companies can go public within one year of receiving the regulator’s approval. However, SEBI has
stipulated that companies will have to update the document with fresh numbers and any other material changes whenever required.

Economy gets another booster dose: On December 7, 2008, the Union government announced major tax cuts across the board for housing sector and duty cuts for companies that provide finance to real estate companies. The move was intended to prop up sagging demand in sectors such as housing, exports, textile and infrastructure. Paying special attention to exports, the government has decided to provide an interest subvention of 2 per cent up to March 2009 for pre- and post-shipment export credit for labour-intensive exports like textiles, leather, marine products and SME sector. Items of handicrafts will be included under Vishesh Krishi and Gram Udyog Yojana among other initiatives.

30k-cr oil bonds: The government is working on a bailout package to prevent its three blue chip oil companies—Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum—from closing 2008-09 in the red. The package proposes to provide additional oil bonds of Rs 30,000 crore to the oil companies to compensate them for losses incurred on fuel sales at government-controlled prices. The total subsidy for 2008-09 is estimated at around Rs 1,06,000 crore. The government gives oil bonds to the State-run OMCs to partly compensate their losses for keeping retail prices of four fuels below market rates. The compensation was based on a ‘burden sharing formula’ approved by theCabinet on October 11, 2007 while extending fuel subsidy schemes up to April 1, 2010. Due to an unprecedented jump in crude oil price, the formula was later abandoned. The crude oil prices had peaked at $147 a barrel in mid-July 2008.

Factory output drops to negative terrain: Industrial production unexpectedly fell 0.4% in October 2008, shocking policy- makers. It slipped into negative territory for the first time in 15 years, highlighting the case for further aggressive interest rate cuts and fiscal measures to shore up a slowing economy. The drop was on the back of a 1.2% year-on-year contraction in manufacturing activity, confirming fears the economic slowdown was gathering pace amid a faster-than expected drop in demand slowdown in overseas and domestic markets. Manufacturing accounts for nearly 80% of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), which rose by a revised 5.5% in September 2008.

PMO nod to new pay panel for armed forces: The Prime Minister’s Office has approved a separate pay commission for the armed forces. The Seventh Pay Commission for soldiers would be delinked from the civilian pay panel. The decision comes after a committee, headed by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, submitted its report to review the concerns in the armed forces. The concerns were raised after the Sixth Pay Commission recommended placing lieutenant colonels and equivalent ranks in the Air Force and Navy at a lower pay band than their counterparts in the paramilitary/Group A services and IAS. The government has also agreed to accommodate lieutenant colonels in a higher pay band and increase their monthly salary by Rs 8,000. However, the government has not yet addressed the sweeping discontent in the military’s higher echelons over lieutenant generals and their equivalent being excluded from the higher pay band.

Centre accepts 70% pay hike for teachers: In line with the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations for Central government employees, the Union government has accepted the G.K. Chadha Committee report recommending a 70% hike in pay scales of teachers. Other recommendations in the report include a uniform retirement age of 65, opportunities for re-employment up to 70 years, flexibility to accommodate talent through incentives, and one-time grants for research for teachers in Central, State and deemed universities. At the early level, the recommendations aim to attract talented young people hoping to get into the teaching profession. Among other things, it includes advance increment, enhanced research grants and facilities for housing and research. To boost research and consultancy projects, the panel also encourages teachers in universities and college to accept consultancy, directing projects, registering patents, R & D products and technology transfers.

Education schemes get Cabinet nod: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved a scheme, National Mission on Education, to use the Information Communication Technology (ICT) to provide personalized and interactive knowledge modules to students. The scheme will cost Rs 4,612 crore in the 11th Plan. Over 18,000 colleges across India will get computer infrastructure and connectivity, including all departments in 419 universities, deemed universities and institutions of national importance. In another decision, the Cabinet approved the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan to increase enrolment rates in secondary education from 52.56 per cent at present to 75 per cent in 2012. Under the scheme 11,188 new schools will be built and 44,000 existing schools strengthened and 1.79 lakh additional teachers will be appointed.

India, US ink $2.1 bn defence deal: The Union government has signed the biggest-ever defence deal with US—a $2.1 billion contract for eight Boeing P-8I Long-Range mari-time Reconnaissance (LRMR) aircraft for Navy. India will get the first P-8I towards end 2012 or early 2013, with the other seven following in a phased manner by 2015-2016. The contract also provides an option for India to order four to eight more such planes. Armed with torpedoes, depth bombs and Harpoon anti-ship missiles, the P-8I will also be capable of anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare. They will replace the eight ageing and fuel-guzzling Russian Tupolev-142M turboprops currently being operated by Navy.

India, Russia clinch civil nuclear accord: During the visit of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in December 2008, New Delhi and Moscow signed an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation. Russia is the third country to sign such an agreement with India after France and US. India also signed the $1.2 billion deal to buy 80 Mi-17 V-5 helicopters even as both countries work towards resolving “outstanding issues” over the lease of a nuclear-powered submarine and huge cost escalation in aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov’s refit. In the initial stages, Russia will help India build two additional nuclear power plants at Kundankulam. Even before the NSG waiver, Russia was helping India build two 1,000 MW nuclear power plants at the same site. The Russians, however, had to wait for the NSG waiver to India for a more focused N-cooperation. More such power plants of Russian design, according to the two sides, will come up at other places in the country.

Jammu & Kashmir elects new government: In first week of January 2009, the decks were cleared for Omar Abdullah, 38, to become the youngest and the 13th Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir after his party, the National Conference (NC), and the Congress decided to share power in the State. Former Speaker and Congressman Tara Chand has been appointed as the new Deputy Chief Minister. The NC emerged as the single biggest party in the 87-member State Assembly after winning 28 seats in the month-long elections. The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the Congress, which had an alliance government over the past six years, followed with 21 and 17 seats, respectively. The BJP sprung a major surprise by emerging victorious in 11 constituencies.

BJP secures majority in Karnataka Assembly: Karnataka’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won five out of eight seats in crucial by-elections, cementing its hold in the State’s Legislative Assembly where it had been short of an outright majority by three seats since May 2008. The BJP now has 115 out of 224 Assembly seats. The by-polls also marked the entry of Deve Gowda’s daughter-in-law Anita Kumara-swamy into Karnataka politics—the fourth member from the Gowda family to do so. She won on a
JD(S) ticket from Madhugiri constituency.

Parliament passes Bills on anti-terror apparatus, NIA: The Parliament, despite opposition from Left parties on select provisions, has approved the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment (UAPA) Bill—which analysts say is similar to the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), repealed after the Congress-party-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) assumed power. The complementary National Investigation Agency Bill, 2008, that seeks to create a federal agency to investigate terror-related incidents has also been passed. After the President’s assent the National Investigative Agency (NIA) started functioning from January 1, 2009.

Right to Education Bill: Almost six years after Parliament passed the 86th Constitutional Amendment, the government has introduced the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill in the Rajya Sabha. The 86th Amendment made free and compulsory education for children between the age of 6 and 14 years a fundamental right. The proposed legislation provides a blueprint for systemic reforms in the elementary education. It promises to counter the growing lobby for the privatization of school education. The legislation is, in fact, a step towards the common school system first proposed by the Kothari Commission.

Self-regulation guidelines for media in place: With visual media drawing the flak for coverage of the Mumbai mayhem and the government mulling an emergency protocol, India’s broadcasters association has unveiled self-regulatory guidelines. These include no live reporting of hostage crises and blocking information which may help terrorists. The guidelines, billed as first big step towards self-regulation, were formulated and unveiled by the News Broadcasters Association. Among the major guidelines are: Don’t give live coverage of hostage crises; Block information that may help terrorists; Don’t disclose details of hostages; withhold sensitive information on rescue operations; Avoid live contact with victims and with security personnel engaged in rescue operations in 26/11-like situations; Avoid unnecessary repetition of archival footage which may agitate the minds of viewers.

Cash for vote scam: A Lok Sabha panel probing allegations that Members of Parliament (MPs) were bribed to vote in favour of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the July 22, 2008 trust vote gave a clean chit to two politicians, even as committee members belonging to the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left submitted dissent notes while differing with the conclusions. The two Rajya Sabha MPs at the centre of the controversy were Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s political
secretary Ahmad Patel.

Administrative Reforms Commission: In what will be one of the biggest changes in the bureaucratically-run Indian governance system, the Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC), headed by Congressman M. Veerappa Moily, has suggested much-desired changes that aim to free the system from political meddling and also from the grip of bureaucrats hiding behind self-serving safety nets. The ARC wants a change in the profile and method of recruiting civil servants to provide for a lateral entry on earmarked posts, identify specialists and have accountability. It also rules out assured promotions, besides having a civil services authority to administer the services. These are among the dozen new path-breaking suggestions, probably the biggest since Lord Thomas Macaulay laid down the basic policy governing recruitment to civil services in India in 1854. Among the major recommendations are: Lower age profile, lateral entry; Armed forces personnel can apply for top IPS posts;
Higher accountability; No assured promotions; New civil authority to control and decide on selections; Change in exam system; No deputation for IAS for profit-making bodies.

Terror strike in Guwahati: The year 2009 began with terror striking, this time in Assam. Three serial blasts in as many hours, triggered by suspected ULFA militants, left five people dead and over 60 injured in Guwahati. The explosions took place a few hours before P. Chidambaram flew in for his maiden visit as Home Minister. Terrorists appeared to mock heavy security put in place for the New Year in the wake of the 26/11 carnage and for the Home Minister’s visit. Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi admitted that there were security lapses.

CURRENT INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Hasina wins Bangla polls: Bangladesh’s charismatic leader Sheikh Hasina, who favours strong ties with India, scripted a landslide victory on December 30, 2008, trouncing rival Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) in the country’s first polls in seven years, restoring democracy in the impove-rished nation after two years of military-led rule. Hasina’s Awami League-led alliance clinched 258 seats of the total 300 seats in Parliament leaving only 31 constituencies to her arch rival Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led four-party alliance.

Israel clobbers Gaza: In retaliation to constant rocket attacks by Hamas militants in Gaza Strip, on December 27, 2008 Israel retaliated with air strikes on suspected Hamas hideouts. More than 300 people were killed in first 24 hours of the constant strikes by Israeli forces. Israeli leaders said the campaign was a response to almost daily cross-border rocket and mortar fire that intensified after Hamas, as Islamist group in charge of the coastal enclave Israel quit in 2005, ended a six-month ceasefire.

LTTE capital Kilinochchi falls to Lankan army: The Sri Lankan army took control of the northern town of Kilinochchi on January 2, 2009, the so- called administrative capital of the LTTE from where the Tigers ran a de facto State for nearly 10 years. The fall of Kilinochchi is of great symbolic importance as for many years the LTTE had maintained that government troops would never gain control of the area.

Students riot bring Greece to a halt: In the second week of December 2008, protesters attacked Athens’ main courthouse with firebombs during a hearing for police officers whose shooting of a teenager set off rioting. The strike shut down schools, public services, hospitals and flights, increasing pressure on the fragile conservative government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis. Riot police and youths also clashed in the city center during a demonstration by more than 10,000 people to protest the conservative
government’s economic policies. The demonstrations and the strike, called by Greece’s two largest labour unions’ umbrella groups that include virtually all public sector and many private employees, were scheduled before the riots broke out. They were fuelled, however, by anger at the handling of the riots by the government, which holds a single-seat majority in the
Parliament.

Opposition leader is Thai PM: On December 15, 2008, Opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva was selected as Thailand’s third Prime Minister in as many months, taking control with a slender majority in Parliament and an economy teetering on the brink of recession. In a sign of the trouble in store for the Oxford-educated economist, at least 200 supporters of the previous administration, sacked by the courts earlier, blocked access to Parliament and smashed windows of cars carrying MPs who had backed him. Demonstrators denounced the 44-year-old as a front man for the military, which ousted elected leader Thaksin Shinawatra in 2006 and which has been accused of political meddling ever since. Born in Britain to a pair of medical professors, Abhisit was
educated at Eton college and then Oxford University, where he graduated with first class honours in Politics, Philosophy and Economics. He entered the Thai Parliament in 1992 as one of its youngest members.

Russia, Ukraine gas row: On the first day of 2009, Russia and Ukraine looked no closer to compromise over a gas row that disrupted supplies to at least four European Union (EU) countries. Poland, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria reported drops in supplies after Russian State-controlled gas export monopo-ly OAO Gazprom cut off Ukraine on New Year’s Day in a row over prices. The EU, which gets about one-fifth of its gas from pipelines that cross Ukraine, demanded that transit and supply contracts be honoured. Moscow said Kiev was stealing gas intended for Europe and playing political games. Ukraine accused Russia of using energy blackmail and of not providing enough gas for the proper functioning of the transit system. A similar dispute briefly disrupted supplies to Europe three years ago. That crisis prompted calls for the EU to diversify its energy supplies, but it has struggled to break its reliance on Russian gas. Some policy-makers see parallels with Russia’s treatment of Ukraine which, like Georgia, has angered the Kremlin by seeking to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation or NATO.

Worldwide bailouts 10 times bigger than Indian economy: In their efforts to tackle the global economic crisis, the rescue packages announced by the governments across the world have crossed 10 trillion-dollar mark (about Rs 50,00,000 crore), an amount equivalent to nearly 10 times the total size of Indian economy. The amount is believed to grow even bigger with the turmoil still being in expansion mode. A lion’s share of about three-fourth of the worldwide bailout package of about $ 10.1 trillion has come from the world’s biggest eco-nomy, the US, whose total national debt has also incidentally crossed the 10 trillion-dollar mark.

Nearly one billion hungry people worldwide: There are 963 million hungry people worldwide, or 40 million people more than in 2007, according to the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). In its latest report on hunger worldwide, FAO has said this backward step stemmed mainly from soaring food prices and warned that the situation might become worse by the international economic crisis. According to the experts, the increase in the number of hungry people worldwide means that “in three years we lost virtually all progress made in 1990-2005.”

The great Madoff rip-off: Bernard L. Madoff, the 70-year-old founder of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities was arrested on December 11, 2008, for an alleged fraud of around $50 billion. If
convicted, he faces 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $5 million. He was offering attractive returns to new investors and made it look as if he was investing in blue-chip stocks and options, but there was very little capital at the heart of the operation. He was actually running a Ponzi scheme—a pyramid scheme which uses cash from new customers or investors to pay returns to existing investors. It does little legitimate business, but just recycles money. The scheme depends on a constant stream of new investors to fund the payouts. Madoff kept few records and was clever at hiding the alleged fraud for 10 years.

P.S:

Japan, Mexico, Uganda, Austria and Turkey have joined the UN’s powerful Security Council as non-permanent members for a two-year term, replacing South Africa, Indonesia, Belgium, Italy and Panama. The 15-member Council comprises five permanent and 10 non-permanent members, five of whom retire each year and their replacements are chosen by the General Assembly. The newly elected members will join Libya, Vietnam, Burkina Faso, Costa Rica and Croatia whose two-year term expires on December 31, 2009.

The super-luxury train, Royal Rajasthan on Wheels (RROW), with spas and wi-fi system among other attractions, chuged off for the first time from the Safdarjang railway station, New Delhi, on January 11, 2009.

Mumbai-based Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), the country’s premier research organisation, has decided to set up its second campus in Hyderabad with an investment of Rs 2,500 crore.

Tamil Nadu is the best e-governed State in India, according to a study by IDC India. Apart from its high IT spends, the southern State has also scored high on parameters such as citizen and business satisfaction. The other States in the top five include: Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh.

The Atomic Energy Commission has accorded permission for setting up an atomic power plant at Kumahrian in Fatehabad district of Haryana.

The Innovation of Science Pursuit for Inspired Research (INSPIRE) programme has been designed as a national endeavour to attract young India to embrace scientific research. The philosophy of INSPIRE is to create excitement, motivation, nurturing and promotion of excellence with assured career opportunities.

Ksenya Sukhinova of Russia has been crowned Miss World 2008. The first runner-up was Parvathy Omanakuttan of India. Gabriel Walcott of Trinidad and Tobago was the second runner-up. The contest was held in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Anna University Coimbatore has achieved the distinction of becoming the first University in India to adopt and implement the radical Examination Management System (EMS) to conduct its UG and PG exams.

Parliament has approved three-fold increase in the monthly salary of the President, Vice-President and State Governors. While the President will get Rs 1.50 lakh per month, it will be Rs 1.25 lakh for the Vice-President and Rs 1.10 lakh for the Governors. The revision in salary and pension will come into effect from January 1, 2006.

The Union government has cleared an ordinance to hike salaries of Judges, making it Rs 1 lakh per month for the Chief Justice of India, Rs 90,000 per month for Supreme Court Judges and High Court Chief Justice and Rs 80,000 per month for High Court Judges.

The RBI has asked National Building Organisation (NBO), a government agency that collects statistics on the country’s housing construction activities, to launch a housing start-up index by March 2009 to help it assess the impact of fiscal and monetary stimulus offered to revive the sector. All major economies use similar indices to assess economic activity using demand and supply data on the housing sector.

Ferrari head honcho Luca di Montezemolo has made it known that Tata branding would appear for the first time on the scarlet Ferraris of Felippe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen fighting for world championship honours in 2009.

After 137 years, the government of India has recognized Kuka Namdhari Movement of 1871 and Jallianwala Bagh massacre, 1919, as part of the national freedom movement. The recognition is required for purpose of grant of pension under the Swatantra Sainik Sanman Pension Scheme 1980.

International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) number is a unique 15-digit code that can identify a mobile to a GSM network. It prevents stolen handsets from being used to make calls and allows lawful interception to prove that a particular device was used for making calls.

Sun Pictures has bought the production rights for the costliest Indian movie to date, Robot, starring Rajnikanth and Aishwarya Rai. The Sci-fi movie is to be directed by Shankar, with a whopping Rs 100 crore plus budget.

Current General Knowledge:

ABBREVIATIONS
EIR: Equipment Identity Register (EIR).
IMEI: International Mobile Equipment Identity.
NIA: National Investigation Agency.

AWARDS
International Jurists Award, 2008: Veteran lawyer Ram Jethmalani, a former Law Minister, has been bestowed with the International Honour for Jurisprudence along with Canadian Chief Justice Beverley Mclachlin (Administration of justice), Law Society of England and Wales (Bar affairs), United Nations office on drugs and crime (Law enforcement), Dr Peter Mutha-rika (Legal education), and Rohit Kochhar (Corporate laws and Legal entrepreneurship).

PURSE Award, 2008: Panjab University has been awarded the Promotion of University Research and Scientific Excellence (PURSE) award based on its performance in research. The award includes a grant of Rs 10 crore per annum for the next three years.

BOOKS
Respected Memsahibs: A unique anthology of 19 women who lived and worked in India between World War-I and independence in 1947 has been produced at the University of Cambridge. Compiled by Mary Thatcher, the anthology draws on the letters, memoirs and narratives of the 19 women.

DEFENCE
India signs plane deal with Boeing: India has signed a $ 2.1 billion (Rs 10,164 crore) deal with US aerospace giant Boeing Co. to buy maritime surveillance aircraft for the Indian Navy. The agreement to buy eight P-81 long range reconnaissance aircraft marks India’s biggest military aircraft deal with the US. The largest buyer of armaments among emerging nations, India plans to spend $ 30 billion until 2012 to modernize its 1.23 million strong military, the world’s fourth largest.

DRDO develops stealth parachutes: The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed a new stealth-parachute, capable of para-dropping soldiers at three times the normal height at which they are presently being dropped. The parachute will help the troopers to jump from a height of 30,000 feet as compared to the current jump height of 10,000 feet and will also help to avoid detection from the enemy as the sound of aircraft at this height would be inaudible.

The new system comes equipped with lightweight oxygen cylinders to avoid suffocation, as at these heights oxygen becomes scarce. The new parachutes also sport directional gadgets that will keep the para-jumper abreast of his landing directions.

DISCOVERY
The earth’s magnetic field has got a big hole: Recent satellite observations have found the largest breach yet seen in the magnetic field that protects earth from most of the sun’s violent blasts. The discovery was made by Themis, a fleet of five small satellites from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Scientists have long known that the earth’s magnetic field, which guards against severe space weather, is similar to a drafty old house that lets in violent eruptions of charged particles from the sun. Such a breach can cause brilliant auroras or disrupt satellite and ground communications.

Observations from Themis show the earth’s magnetic field occasionally deve-lops two cracks, allowing solar wind, a stream of charged particles spewing from the sun at 1.6 million kph, to penetrate the earth’s upper atmosphere.

Scientists initially believed the greatest solar breach occurred when the earth’s and sun’s magnetic fields are pointed in opposite directions. But data from Themis found that 20 times more solar wind passed into the earth’s protective shield when the magnetic fields were aligned.

The Themis results could have bearing on how scientists predict the severity of solar storms and their effects on power grids, airline and military communications and satellite signals.

ENVIRONMENT
World’s first energy market in India: India will have the world’s first market for trading in energy savings. Under the National Action Plan on Climate Change, the power ministry has prepared the blueprint for trading in energy by industrial plants that save energy beyond the target set for them.

Under the plan, formulated by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) under the National Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency, the government will set mandatory targets to be achieved by each large industrial unit and plant in energy intensive sectors, which include cement, aluminium, steel, power, textiles, fertilizers, railways, paper and pulp industries.

Named the Perform, Achieve and Trade or PAT scheme, energy reduction targets would be set in terms of the specific energy consumption for each plant individually, to ensure that there are no blanket benchmarks that create an uneven turf for different sizes and type of players.

While the methodology for ascertaining the energy consumption in each identified sector has been finalized, it will take a year to ascertain the target for each large unit.

Once the targets are set by end of 2009, the industry will be given three years to achieve them. Those units that surpass their targets will be tradable on the existing power exchanges in the country. Companies that fail to meet the targets set for them will have to buy these certificates under an open market mechanism.

If the failed units do not meet their target either by achieving energy savings or by buying the energy certificates, they would be penalized by the government under the energy conservation act.

Under the plan, BEE will accredit private agencies to audit the actual energy consumed by the industrial units and retain the
powers to carry out random checks.

2008 is tenth warmest year, ever: A report released on behalf of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says that 2008 is the tenth warmest year ever, with the average global temperature at 14.3 degree C. The 10 warmest years on records since 1850 have occurred since 1997. Global temperatures between 2000 and 2008 have been almost 0.2 degree C warmer than the average for the decade 1990 to 1999. In 2008 global average was 0.31 degree C above the 1961-90 average. In the northern hemisphere in 2008, the mean temperature was 0.51 degree C above average (eighth warmest) and in the southern hemisphere it was 0.11 degree C above average (twentieth warmest).

N-ENERGY
First Uranium imports in three decades: India will receive its first uranium imports in three decades from countries such as France and Canada by April 2009, ending the isolation from nuclear commerce that ensued from its first atomic test.

The imports are expected to boost power capacity at the 17 reactors of India by at least 17%, or 700MW. The reactors are now operating at 46% of their capacity because of a shortage of uranium, the fuel that powers them.

The uranium imports are meant for the Rajasthan units of Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd, or NPCIL, who’s Rajasthan Atomic
Power Station (RAPS) located at Rawatbhata in Kota district has a total capacity of 740 MW.

India, which has an installed nuclear power capacity of 4,120 MW, plans to boost it by almost five times by 2020 as it tries to close the gap between galloping energy demand and deficient supply. The country’s installed power generation capacity is around 145,000 MW. But a significant portion of this capacity is idling because of scarcity of fuels such as coal, gas and uranium.

Coal-based generation accounts for 76,000 MW, while the country’s gas-based capacity is 14,600 MW, which is operating at 52% efficiency.

India’s estimated uranium reserves are sufficient to generate only 10,000 MW. The quality of the domestic uranium ore is also low (0.1% uranium content against global standards of 12-14%). Uranium mining in India is insignificant and in most parts of the country is resisted by local people on health grounds, leaving little scope for stepping up production.

PERSONS
Hasina, Sheikh: She has been elected as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh in the country’s first election since 2001. Born in 1947, Hasina is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh’s independence leader and first head of State.

She and her younger sister, Sheikh Rehana, were in Europe when Sheikh Mujibur Rehman was assassinated and survived, later taking political asylum in India. She returned to Bangladesh in 1981 and inherited the leadership of her father’s Awami League party, returning the party to power after 21 years. Since then she has traded power with Khaleda Zia in a rivalry that has been blamed for much of the corruption and mismanagement that have plagued Bangladesh.

PLACES
Burj Dubai: Iconic skyscraper Burj Dubai has become the world’s tallest structure after reaching a record height of 780 metres and crossing 160 stories in the process. The tower achieved the distinction of being the world’s tallest structure surpassing the KVLY-TV mast (628.8 metres) in North Dakota, US.

The high-rise is already taller than Taipei 101 in Taiwan, which at 508 metres and has held the tallest building in the world title since it opened in 2004.

Burj Dubai has also surpassed the 31-year-old record of CN Tower, which at 553.33 metres and has been the world’s tallest free-standing structure on land since 1976.

Gaza: The Gaza Strip is a silver of towns, villages and farmland at the southeast end of the Mediterranean, 45 km long and 10 km wide. It is wedged between Israel to the north and east, and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula to the south. Gaza city has been continuously inhabited for more than 3,000 years and was a crossroads of ancient civilizations. It is believed to be the burial place of the Prophet Mohammad’s great grandfather.

Israel captured the Gaza Strip from Egypt in the 1967 war and started settling Israelis there. It, however, pulled Jewish settlers and soldiers out of the territory in September 2005.

In June 2006 Israel conducted large-scale ground operations after militants tunnelled across the Gaza border and captured an Israeli soldier, who is still being held. A year later, Hamas Islamists took control of the Gaza Strip after routing President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah forces. Subsequently, Israel tightened the closure of its borders with Gaza, curbing fuel supplies and limiting movement of people. Under an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire, Hamas agreed to halt rocket fire in return for Israel easing the blockade. Hamas, however, declared the end of the truce on December 18, 2008 and in retaliation of rocket fire on Israeli positions by militants in Gaza, Israel again invaded Gaza on December 27, 2008. The war resulted in more than 800 people getting killed in first week itself.

PROJECTS
World’s longest causeway: The world’s longest marine causeway, a $ 3 billion project which will link Bahrain and Qatar, will come up by 2013. The over 40 km twin carriageway, running across 22 km of viaducts over the sea and 18 km of embankments, will reduce travel time by car between the Gulf countries by about four hours. Travel time from Qatar to Bahrain by car is expected to be reduced from four-and-a-half hour to around 30 minutes. The causeway will also provide a connection for future high-speed freight and passenger rail lines between the countries.

SPACE RESEARCH
NASA robots mark five years on Mars: NASA’s Mars Rovers Spirit and Opportunity marked their fifth anniversary on the red planet in January 2009, where they have endured harsh conditions and revealed a deluge of information.

The twin robots, which landed on Mars, three weeks apart in January 2004, were initially expected to have just 90-day missions, but have since sent back a quarter-million images, toured mountains and craters and survived violent storms.

The rovers have sent back to earth some 36 gigabytes of data, have greatly advanced NASA’s understanding Mars’ geology, including peeks into its wet and habitable past. Analysts say the wealth of information will keep scientists busy for years as they further unravel the vast banks of data.

Since 2004 the machines have covered 21 km of Mars’ red rock desert, driving inch by inch to avoid chasms and rocky obstacles, picking up samples and snapping images to beam back to earth.

After moon odyssey, it’s ‘mission sun’ for ISRO: Scientists at ISRO are in an advance stage of designing a spacecraft, named Aditya, to study the outermost region of the Sun, called corona. Aditya is the first space-based Solar Coronagraph intended to study corona and would be the first attempt by the Indian scientific community to unravel the mysteries associated with coronal heating, coronal mass ejections and the associated space weather processes and study of these would provide important information on the solar activity conditions.

MISCELLANEOUS
India’s first electronic waste recycling company: Ecoreco is India’s first fully compliant electronic waste recycling company. You can now dispose all your electrical and electronic waste with the help of Ecoreco. The company also offers India’s first mobile shredding facility for data destruction.

Ecoreco provides: Nationwide collection of e-waste; Safe and secure destruction of confidential data; Equipment refurbishment and resale; Disassembly and de-manufacturing; Hazardous substance disposal by designated facility.

Events, Appointments, etc..:

EVENTS

DECEMBER
11—Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurates a new era in the Indian telecom sector by launching the next generation 3G services of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL). MTNL is the first telecom operator in the country to offer 3G services on its network which has been named Jaddu.
13—Indian warship INS Mysore and its marine commandos thwart an attempt to hijack an Ethiopian merchant vessel and captured 23 pirates and a large cache of arms.
18—About 100 vehicles destined for the US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan
are set ablaze by heavily armed pro-
Taliban militants in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, in the
second such attack in as many days.
27—Israel attacks Gaza in an all-out-war against Hamas militants.
30—Sheikh Hasina Wajed, daughter of Bangladesh’s founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, wins the country’s first election since 2001 in a landslide, crushing the Khaleda Zia led Bangladesh Nationalist Party-Jamaat-e-Islami combine.
—National Conference and Congress agree to form coalition government in J&K. NC leader Omar Abdullah is elected to be the Chief Minister.

JANUARY
1—At least five people are killed and 50 injured in separate bombings in
Guwahati.
4—Israeli troops advance into Gaza under cover of heavy air, tank and artillery fire after opening a ground war against the militant group Hamas a day earlier.
5—India gives Pakistan and other key countries a dossier of incriminating “Material” from the probe into Mumbai attacks.
7—India’s fourth largest IT company, Satyam is hit by a Rs 7000 crore.
9—Two people are killed in a blast in
Maligaon area of Guwahati, Assam.
12—Composer A.R. Rahman creates history by becoming the first Indian to win the Golden Globe Award for his music in movie Slumdog Millionaire.
17—A suicide car bomb kills a US service member and four Afghan civilians in an attack outside a US military base and the German Embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul.
19—Jharkhand is placed under President’s rule following resignation of Chief
Minister Shibhu Soren after losing a by-poll. The Assembly is put under suspended animation to allow formation of a new government.
20—Barack Hussein Obama takes oath as the 44th President of USA, shattering American racial barriers as the first black leader of the nation.
23—India slaps a ban on import of toys from China for a period of six months over fears of safety of children, following bans being imposed by many countries after some Chinese toys were found to be toxic.

APPOINTED; ELECTED; Etc.

Sheikh Hasina: She has been elected as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh.

Abhisit Vejjajiva: He has been appointed as Prime Minister of Thailand.

Sheila Dikshit: She has been elected as Chief Minister of Delhi for a third consecutive term.

Omar Abdullah: He has been elected as the Chief Minister of J&K.

Ashok Gehlot: He has been elected as Chief Minister of Rajasthan.

Lalthanhawla: He has been elected as the Chief Minister of Mizoram.

Shivraj Singh Chouhan: He has been elected as Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.

Raman Singh: He has been elected as Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh.

Rajiv Mathur: He has been appointed as the Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB).

RESIGNED

Shibu Soren: Chief Minister of Jhar-khand.

DISTINGUISHED VISITORS

Gordon Brown: Prime Minister of Britain.

He Yafei: Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister.

John Kerry: US Senator and key functionary in the new Obama government.

DIED

Samuel Huntington: Political scientist, whose controversial book The Clash of Civilizations predicted conflict between the West and the Islamic world. He was 81.

Manjit Bawa: Noted artist who
revolutionized the Indian painting scene with bold use of vibrant colours. He was 67.

MILESTONES

Swaraj Paul: Leading NRI entrepreneur he has scripted history by becoming the first Asian Deputy Speaker of the British House of Lords. Though people of Indian origin have held ministerial berths in the British Cabinet, this is the first time an Indian has been appointed to such a high position in UK’s Parliament.

Rajo Devi: This 70-year-old from Alewa village in Jind district of Haryana has become perhaps the world’s oldest mother after she delivered a girl child on November 28, 2008 with the help of In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) treatment at a Hisar fertility centre. Adriana Iliescu, a retired university lecturer in Romania, was till date the oldest woman to have given birth. She delivered at the age of 66 in 2006.

Sports:

ATHLETICS
Indian Open Marathon: Binning Lyngkhoi of Maharashtra gave a boost to his 2010 Commonwealth Games dream winning the men’s title of the Mawana Sugars Indian Open Marathon, while Uttar Pradesh’s Shastri Devi emerged fastest among women.

BOXING
World Cup: Indian pugilists have created another piece of history. All four boxers, who went for the AIBA World Cup in Moscow came home with medals. Akhil Kumar (54 kg) fought hard but fell short of luck, losing on count-back to Olympic silver medallist Yankiel Leon Alarcon in the semifinals to settle for a bronze medal, along with Jitender Kumar (51 kg), A.L. Lakra (57 kg) and Dinesh Kumar (81 kg) who also ended winning bronze medals.

CHESS
National ‘A’ Championship: Surya Sekhar Ganguly broke Manuel Aaron’s record of five straight National ‘A’ crowns when he won the 2008 championship for the record sixth time. Kruttika Nadig of Maharashtra won the title in the women’s section.

CRICKET
Australia-South Africa Test series: South Africa ended nearly a century-old drought to register their first-ever series win in Australia when they crushed hosts Australia by nine wickets in the historic second Test. Since touring Australia for the first time in 1910-11, this was the maiden series win for South Africa, playing down under, their previous best performance being a 1-1 drawback in 1963-64. This was Australia’s first series defeat at home since they lost 2-1 to the West Indies in 1992-93. This was also Australia’s first series defeat to South Africa since they lost 4-0 in South Africa in 1969-70, and Australia’s 18th series defeat at home in 131 years.

South Africa ended the series on a 2-1 winning note. The first Test was also won by South Africa while the third Test was a consolation victory for Australia.

India-England Test series: India took the two-Test series 1-0. The first Test in Chennai was won by India by six wickets after a successful and highest-run chase on Indian soil. This was also second highest successful run chase by India, after 406/4 vs West Indies at Port of Spain (1976). Also, this was the highest total ever scored in fourth innings in India, beating 364/6 by India at Delhi to draw against Pakistan in 1979.

M.S. Dhoni became the first Indian skipper to win the first four Tests under his leadership.

The second Test at Mohali ended in a draw.

Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Test series: Bangladesh put on one of their best batting performances before suffering a 107-run defeat in the opening Test against Sri Lanka. Chasing an unlikely 521-run target, the Bangladesh batsmen were bowled out for 413.

ICC Hall of Fame: Three Indian cricketing legends, Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar and Bishan Singh Bedi figure among the 55 former players named in the ICC’s inaugural Hall of Fame list as part of its centenary celebrations.

The inductees are: Sydney Barnes, Bishan Bedi, Alec Bedser, Richie Benaud, Allan Border, Ian Botham, Geoffrey Boycott, Donald Bradman, Greg Chappell, Ian Chappell, Denis Compton, Colin Cowdrey, Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar, Lance Gibbs, Graham Gooch, David Gower, WG Grace, Tom Graveney, Gordon Greenidge, Richard Hadlee, Walter Hammond, Neil Harvey, Ron Headley, Jack Hobbs, Michael Holding, Leonard Hutton, Rohan Kanhai, Imran Khan, Alan Knott, Jim Laker, Harold Larwood, Dennis Lillee, Ray Lindwall, Clive Lloyd, Hanif Mohammad, Rodney Marsh, Malcolm Marshall, Peter May, Javed Miandad, Keith Miller, Bill O’Reilly, Graeme Pollock, Wilfred Rhodes, Barry Richards, Vivian Richards, Andy Roberts, Garfield Sobers, Brian Statham, Fred Trueman, Derek Underwood, Clyde Walcott, Everton Weekes, Frank Woolley, Frank Worrell.

GOLF
Jeev Milkha Singh wins Japan Open: Days after losing his first child, who was delivered stillborn by his wife Kudrat in a Tokyo hospital, Jeev displayed tremendous inner strength to win the Golf Nippon Series JT Cup in Tokyo. He dedicated the Tournament of Champions triumph to his wife, who had persuaded him to play despite the bereavement.