Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 02 January 2015


Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 02 January 2015


:: National ::

Department of Archaeology worried about safety of heritage sites

  • While the State government is slowly and steadily preparing to build an elegant capital city, the officials of the department of archaeology and museums are a worried lot for they feel their orderly work in protecting the relics and remnants of yesteryears might go for a toss.

  • The capital city building exercise is bound to witness hectic construction activities at the designated area in days to come and in the melee; the laws protecting the archaeological sites might get diluted.

  • “We may not say what is in store in future,” says Chitti Babu, assistant director of archaeology and museums at Visakhapatnam, who played a pivotal role in identifying and protecting several Buddhist sites both in Krishna and Guntur Districts.

  • He said under the archaeological act no construction activity should take place within 100 feet from the heritage site. “How strictly the politicians and bureaucrats will follow the rules amid frenzy construction activities is something which we have to wait and watch,” he observed.

  • He said Buddhism flourished alongside river Krishna and the Amaravati area was the most-sought after destination for the followers of Buddha and pilgrims. Several Buddhists relics are situated on the banks of river Krishna.

  • “With the State government keen on having a capital city facing the river, the apprehension is palpable among the archaeological fraternity”.

  • He said soon the Bhairavakonda, a protected monument in Thullur mandal situated 10 km from Amaravati, will be declared as a heritage site.

  • He also felt foolproof measures should be formulated to prevent artefacts being razed by the bulldozers. “Already the Vizag-Kakinada petroleum chemical corridor has ignited hue and cry among Buddhists and their sympathisers as the project is likely to affect the protected sites alongside seacoast. We are already witnessing protests”.

Coast Guard ships conduct midnight operation to intercept a fishing boat (Register and Login to read Full News..)

:: Business & Economy ::

Tata Motors’ sales up 10 percent in Dec. 2014

  • Tata Motors reported 10 per cent increase in total sales at 41,734 units in December, as against 37,836 units in the same month last year.
  • Domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles grew by 8 per cent at 37,776 units as compared to 35,010 units in December 2013, Tata Motors said in a statement.
  • Sales of passenger vehicles in the domestic market in December stood at 12,040 units, up 30 per cent from 9,272 units in December 2013.
  • In the commercial vehicles segment, domestic sales remained flat at 25,736 units during the month, the company said. Exports during the month as stood at 3,958 units as against 2,826 units in the year-ago month, up 40 per cent.

BHEL will use ‘fuel flexible boiler’

  • Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) will use fuel flexible boiler developed in-house and capable of firing the entire range of coal, from 100 per cent Indian to 100 per cent imported, at projects it will set up in Telangana.

  • The central public sector enterprise, with which the Telangana State Power Generation Corporation Ltd (TSGENCO) has a MoU for thermal plants, has decided on the boiler “to overcome the current uncertainty of coal supply”.

  • The fuel flexible boiler, whose design has been developed by the BHEL, will offer operational flexibility and thereby ensure uninterrupted generation.

  • BHEL said this on Friday giving details of the Rs.3,810 crore order it has received from TSGENCO for 800 MW supercritical thermal power project at Kothagudem, Khammam district, on engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) basis.

  • The project is to be commissioned in 36 months on fast track basis with BHEL and TSGENCO setting up teams to expedite clearances and execution of the project, a release said. The key equipment for the contract will be manufactured at BHEL’s Tiruchi, Hyderabad, Haridwar, Bhopal, Ranipet, Bangalore and Jhansi plants.

  • The company’s Power Sector-Western Region will be responsible for civil works commissioning of the equipment. Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao recently handed over a cheque for Rs.350 crore to BHEL.

Need to rethink strategy for PSU banks says Hasmukh Adhia (Register and Login to read Full News..)

:: International ::

At least 12,282 Iraqi civilians killed in 2014 says UN

  • Violence in Iraq in 2014 killed at least 12,282 civilians, making it the deadliest year since the sectarian bloodshed of 2006-07, the United Nations said in a statement.
  • The majority of the deaths - nearly 8,500 - occurred during the second-half of the year following the expansion of the Islamic State insurgency in June out of Anbar province leading to widespread clashes with security forces.
  • "Yet again, the Iraqi ordinary citizen continues to suffer from violence and terrorism ... This is a very sad state of affairs," said Nickolay Mladenov, head of the U.N. political mission in Iraq, in a statement released.
  • Islamic State fighters still control roughly a third of Iraq. The army and Shi'ite and Kurdish militia continue to battle the insurgents.
  • The figures show that violence has not abated since 2013 when 7,818 civilians were killed, the U.N. said. The bloodshed remains below the levels seen in 2006 and 2007 when sectarian Shi'ite-Sunni killings reached their peak.
  • In December, the body said that a total of 1,101 Iraqis were killed in acts of violence, including 651 civilians, 29 policemen and a further 421 members of the security forces.

:: Persons in News ::

Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo passes away

  • Mario Cuomo, the three-time Democratic governor of New York who turned down several invitations to seek the U.S. presidency, has died at the age of 82.

  • The precise circumstances of his death, which came on the day that his son, Andrew Cuomo, delivered inaugural speeches in Manhattan and Buffalo for his own second term as governor, were not clear.

  • There was no immediate official statement announcing his death, but numerous news organizations reported he had died, citing family sources as having confirmed his passing, and several New York politicians issued statements of condolences.

  • He was hospitalized on Nov. 30 to treat a heart condition. Chris Cuomo, of CNN's "New Day," informed the outlet shortly that his father had died at his home, CNN reported. During that time Andrew Cuomo was delivering his second inaugural address at the Erie and Buffalo County Historical Society.

  • Officials had said earlier the elder Cuomo, a celebrated political orator who was a favourite of the Democratic Party's liberal contingent, was unable to attend the swearing-in proceedings of his son due to poor health.

  • In his inauguration address Andrew Cuomo said he had read his speech to his father the night before.

  • "He said it was good, especially for a second termer," the younger Cuomo said. "He couldn't be here physically today, my father. But my father is in this room. He is in the heart and mind of every person who is here."

  • Mario Cuomo was first elected as governor in 1982 and came to national attention two years later when he gave an electrifying keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in San Francisco.

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Sources: Various News Papers & PIB

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