Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 20 March 2014

India is against sanctions

With its major defence and nuclear interests tied up with Eurasia, India has made it clear that it will not support sanctions sought to be imposed on Russia by a select group of countries led by the U.S.

This is in line with India’s policy of implementing sanctions approved only by the United Nations. . Though India has supported sanctions against Fiji and economically blockaded Nepal twice in the past, it has spoken of late against “unilateral” sanctions.

The government’s stand emerged a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin called up Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to explain the situation that led to the annexation of Crimea. The Prime Minister dwelt on India’s position on the unity and territorial integrity of countries and suggested that “all concerned” strive for a diplomatic solution.

Nuclear reactor to yield plutonium

Iran and world powers locked horns over the future of a planned Iranian nuclear reactor that could yield plutonium for bombs as the United States warned "hard work" will be needed to overcome differences when the sides reconvene in April.
Tehran's foreign minister voiced optimism that a July 20 deadline for settling a long-running dispute about the scope of Iran's nuclear programme was within reach.
The meeting in Vienna was the second in a series that the six nations - the United States,China, Russia, Germany, France, Britain - hope will produce a verifiable settlement, ensuring Iran's nuclear programme is oriented to peaceful ends only, and put to rest the risk of a new Middle East war.
Western nations want to ensure that the Arak reactor is modified sufficiently to ensure it poses no bomb proliferation threat. Iran insists that the desert complex be free to operate under any accord as it would be designed solely to produce radio-isotopes for medical treatments.

'National icon' in 2014 Lok Sabha polls

The Election Commission has signed up leading Bollywood actor Aamir Khan as its 'national icon' in the run-up to 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
Aamir will be part of the EC's voter awareness initiatives.
His main task would be to encourage more and more people to vote in the General Elections.
Aamir joins the league of four other 'national icons' – Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, boxer MC Mary Kom, badminton ace Saina Nehwal and former president APJ Abdul Kalam.

EC approval for new gas price regime

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry is awaiting a nod from the Election Commission to go ahead with notifying a new gas price regime that will almost double the cost of natural gas to $8 to 8.5 per mmBtu from the present $4.2 per mmBtu .
Petroleum Secretary Saurabh Chandra met Chief Election Commissioner V. S. Sampath last week and submitted the necessary documents on the issue. He also sought formal approval from the EC for hiking gas prices from April 1 The Cabinet had, last December, given its nod for shifting to the new gas pricing regime under the Rangarajan Committee formula . The new pricing formula would be applicable for a period of five years from April 1, 2014.
The new rates will change every quarter based on 12-month average of global rates and LNG import price with a lag of one quarter.
The price for April to June 2014 will be calculated based on the averages for the 12 months ended 31 December 2013 and it is expected that the rate in April will be around $8 per mBtu.

Fossil India

Fossil India, a subsidiary of American luxury brand Fossil Inc, which recently opened its first single brand retail store after being cleared by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board last year, is ‘bullish on manufacturing’ in India.
Among the first four companies to be allowed to set up wholly-owned ventures, after the government allowed 100 per cent FDI in 2012, Fossil India plans to ramp up its manufacturing facility in Himachal Pradesh to produce at least five lakh watches by the end of the year (both for exports and domestic sales).

Sea anemones

Sea anemones are classified as animals, but a surprising new research has found that these water-dwelling predatory creatures are technically half plant and half animal.
It was discovered that sea anemones display a genomic landscape with a complexity of regulatory elements similar to that of fruit flies or other animal model systems.
This suggests, that this principle of gene regulation is already 600 million years old and dates back to the common ancestor of human, fly and sea anemone.
On the other hand, sea anemones are more similar to plants rather to vertebrates or insects in their regulation of gene expression by short regulatory RNAs called microRNAs.

Eighth seed at India Open

Saina Nehwal is the only Indian to have been seeded at the $250,000 India Open Super Series to be held in Delhi from April 1-6.
World No.1 Li Xuerui of China is the top seed while defending champion and world No.4 Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand has been seeded fourth.
Saina’s compatriot P.V. Sindhu will take on second seed Shixian Wang of China in the opener.
The other Indians in the women’s singles main draw are Tanvi Lad, Trupti Murgunde, P.C. Thulasi, Saili Rane and Arundhati Pantawane.