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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 12 May 2014

Self-Rule in Ukraine

Security forces and pro-Russian separatists clashed in eastern Ukraine, after an unauthorised referendum showed overwhelming support for independence from the pro-Western government in Kiev.
Separatists in Sloviansk targeted soldiers and the television tower with grenades,.
Recent vote in the self—proclaimed “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Lugansk was organised by the separatists despite international condemnation and a call from Russian President Vladimir Putin for a postponement.
The separatists said voter turnout exceeded 80 per cent, with a “yes” vote of nearly 96 per cent in Lugansk and 90 per cent in Donetsk.
Eastern Ukraine’s pro-independence leaders said the next step would be to build government and military structures for a “New Russia” in the region.
The Ukrainian government, the European Union and United States do not recognise the vote. Washington criticized Russia for not using its influence to stop the vote. Mr. Putin meanwhile said he would study the results before commenting.

The Defence Ministry has recommended that Lt. Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag be made the next chief of the Army, after the Election Commission ruled that the UPA government can begin the appointment process.
The recommendation comes amid an ugly war among the Army’s generals, which has led to protracted litigation and unprecedented political acrimony, and objections by the BJP to naming the new Army Chief.

Rafael Nadal won his fourth title at the Madrid Mutual Open as he defeated Japan’s Kei Nishikori 2-6, 6-4, 3-0 in a match his opponent was forced to abandon due to an injury in the final set.
Maria Sharapova claimed her second consecutive title as she defeated Romania’s Simona Halep 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 in a match which saw an amazing turnaround in fortunes after losing the first set

Contracting for the fifth time in six months, factory output growth came in at (-) 0.5 per cent in March, according to official data released. Industrial production had shrunk 1.7 per cent in February.
The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) for the whole of 2013-14 contracted 0.1 per cent against a modest positive growth of 1.1 per cent in the previous year.
Signalling the investment sentiment continues to remain dampened, capital goods output contracted by 12.5 per cent in March. Consumption demand too remained subdued as consumer goods production shrank 0.9 per cent.
Manufacturing and mining production shrank 1.2 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively; electricity generation grew modestly 5.4 per cent.
Of the 22 industry groups in the manufacturing sector, 12 contracted during March compared with the corresponding month of the previous year.

The thatched pandal abutting St. Lourdes Church at Idinthakarai in Tirunelveli district, just north of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) site, has become much more than a symbolic pilgrim’s centre for the activists, largely drawn from the fishermen's community opposing the plant after the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan over three years ago.
As another milestone was crossed in this prolonged and largely non-violent struggle when their agitation, under the auspices of the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), entered the 1,000th day, the protesters seemed even more resolute, holding candles at day-fall.
After Idinthakarai became the epicentre of the protests in August 2011, the movement gathered pace with the support from various political parties and organisations, and the police’s hesitation in entering the coastal hamlet to put an end to their acts of sustained defiance.
The police registered 349 cases against the protesters, but arrests for more serious offences were not made for various reasons, though the activists were ready for any eventuality. The protest has since continued for the past 1,000 days.