Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 25 November 2014

Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 25 November 2014

National

PM Modi seeks ‘results’ from Winter Session of parliament

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought the Opposition’s cooperation for a “fruitful and result-oriented” Winter Session of Parliament, but the Trinamool Congress struck discordant notes on the very first day and the Bahujan Samaj Party remained ambiguous on whether it would extend support to the government.
• While the Trinamool said it would not allow the passage of the Insurance (Laws) Amendment Bill, 2008, which raises the FDI in insurance, BSP chief Mayawati said her party might not “unnecessarily” oppose the Bill.
• Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned after obituary references. In a statement outside Parliament, Mr. Modi said, “People of the country have given us responsibility to run the government, but they have also given MPs the responsibility to run the country.”

More than 10,000 RTI appeals pending

• When the new Chief Information Commissioner is appointed, he or she will find a mammoth 10,000 Right to Information appeals already pending before him or her. The new government’s delay in appointing a new Chief has led to pendency shooting up, much of it surrounding new policy decisions taken by the government.
• The Chief Information Commissioner heads the Central Information Commission, the body which hears appeals from information-seekers who have not been satisfied by the public authority they are seeking information from, and major issues concerning the RTI Act.
• Since August 22, when Chief Information Commissioner Rajiv Mathur retired, the government has not appointed a new Chief. Instead of convening a
• meeting and promoting the seniormost commissioner, the NDA government in the last week of October advertised for a new Chief. Monday was the last day for applications.
• RTI activist Commodore (retd.) Lokesh K. Batra filed a query with the Central Information Commission, asking how many cases had been pending before the Chief as on August 23 and as on November 22. The CIC in its reply said that 10,290 cases were pending. “At this rate, people are going to lose faith in the commission and in the Act,” Mr. Batra told.
• Over a third of cases involve appeals against the Ministry of Defence alone.
• Reflecting recent news development, there has been a big rise in the number of appeals against the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Human Resource Development, the University Grants Commission, the Central Board of Secondary Education and the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan.
• The Chief Information Commissioner is to be appointed by the President on the recommendation of a three-member committee headed by the Prime Minister and including the Leader of Opposition and a Union Cabinet Minister to be nominated by the Prime Minister.
• “All that it needed was for the meeting to be called and appointment made,” Nikhil Dey of the National Campaign for the People’s Right To Information said. “The appointment was not held up by the lack of a Leader of the Opposition, because the RTI Act clearly states that the leader of the single largest opposition is also acceptable. If transparency had mattered to the government, they would have made the appointment a priority,” he said.

More firearms, petrol bombs recovered from Satlok ashram

• The recovery of firearms, petrol bombs and other lethal equipment, similar to the items used against the Haryana Police and Central Reserve Police Force personnel, by supporters of self-styled godman Rampal on November 18, continued for the fifth consecutive day from his Satlok Ashram in Hisar.
• During the search at the 12-acre ashram, the Special Investigation Team comprising a Duty Magistrate and officers drawn from the Haryana Police recovered among other things a 7.62 mm pistol and three empty magazines; and a revolver of 32 bore with 13 live cartridges.
• Inspector General of Police, Hisar Range, Anil Kumar Rao said apart from these firearms and ammunition, the police also recovered 54 mobile phones, five petrol bombs, three syringes used to throw acid, 4920 lathis or sticks, 52 helmets, 150 black dresses for the ashram security personnel who were referred to as “commandoes” and a number of catapults with about 1,000 glass balls.
• The search at the ashram is nearing its completion now as the SIT has more or less covered the entire area now. So far over 30 firearms apart from nearly 10,000 lathis and a large number of acid and petrol bombs have been recovered from the premises.
• The five-day police remand of Rampal, who has been lodged at the Civil Lines police station would also come to an end.
• He is being interrogated about his finances, investments and sources of funds. Though the police have not been able to make substantial recoveries of cash from the premises, despite a number of vaults being found there, they are confident of unravelling his financial links.
• Close associates of Rampal, who are also in police custody, are also being questioned with regard to where he parked his money. The police have learnt that Rampal was also planning purchase of two more big plots in Hisar for constructing even bigger ashrams.
• Rampal, who was nabbed by the Haryana Police on November 19, is also on a seven day judicial remand and would have to be produced before the High Court on November 28 when the court would also be apprised of the recoveries made from the ashram by SIT.

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International

India & Pakistan vie to host new SAARC centre

• India and Pakistan are among the five countries that are vying to host a new SAARC centre that would be created by merging four regional centres, an official from Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) said.
• Besides the two neighbours, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the Maldives have staked their claim to host the new Centre called SAARC Environment and Disaster Management Centre (SEDMC). Afghanistan, Bhutan and Nepal have not joined the fray.
• The disagreement surfaced during the meeting of the foreign secretary-level Standing Committee of SAARC in Kathmandu on Monday. The matter will now be discussed by the foreign ministers of SAARC countries.
• The centres that will be merged into SEDMC are SAARC Disaster Management Centre (SDMC) in India, SAARC Coastal Zone Management Centre (SCZMC) in the Maldives, SAARC Meteorological Research Centre (SMRC) in Bangladesh and SAARC Forestry Centre (SFC) in Bhutan.
• On the second day of the deliberations, the Standing Committee endorsed a decision by the Programming Committee to close three SAARC Regional Centres and merge the four regional centres for setting up SEDMC, according to Nepal’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).
• The centres that would be closed are SAARC Documentation Centre (SDC) in New Delhi, SAARC Human Resource Development Centre (SHRDC) in Islamabad, and SAARC Information Centre (SIC) in Kathmandu.
• The foreign secretaries also agreed to elevate the Programming Committee to the status of a charter body.

Progress on Iran nuclear talks extension: diplomat

• Elements are falling into place for an agreement to allow talks on Iran’s nuclear program to continue another seven months, a well-placed Western diplomat said.
• The diplomat told The Associated Press that according to the deal, a broad agreement should be completed by March 1, with the final details worked out by July 1.
• The diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential talks, is familiar with the discussions now taking place in Vienna on how to continue the negotiations past the original deal deadline.
• Their comments matched earlier word that negotiations had now turned two-track, with the sides still racing to reduce differences at the negotiating table but also working on how long to extend the talks.
• U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif agreed to start discussion on the extension as it became clear that it would be hard to bridge the differences between them in the time before the deadline.
• Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said negotiators were still having “consultations” on a final agreement that meets both U.S. demands for strict curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program and Iran’s push for sanctions relief, also suggesting that moves toward an immediate deal had not yet been abandoned.
• International negotiators are worried that Iran is using its nuclear development program as a cover for developing nuclear weapons, and they have imposed economic sanctions on Tehran. Iran denies that, saying it is only interested in producing power.

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Persons in news

C.K. Prasad will be next PCI chief

• The former Supreme Court judge Chandramauli Kumar Prasad has been selected to be the next Chairman of the Press Council of India. Justice Prasad retired in mid-July.
• The 65-year-old judge will succeed Markanday Katju, whose three-year term ended on October 11.

Sports

Kohli maintains second position in ICC rankings

• Top India batsman Virat Kohli has maintained his second position in the latest ICC batsmen rankings while medium pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has moved up a place to be seventh in the bowlers’ standings.
• AB de Villiers has strengthened his grip on the number-one batting ranking by extending his advantage of Kohli to 25 ratings points, with third-ranked Hashim Amla another 34 ratings points behind.
• South Africa batsman Quinton de Kock, James Faulkner and Aaron Finch (both Australia) are the big gainers in the table. de Kock’s 109 against Australia, his sixth ODI century in 36 matches has moved to a career-high seventh position, a rise of two places.
• Australian Aaron Finch, who finished as the third highest run-getter in the series behind AB de Villiers (271) and Steven Smith (254) with 250 runs that included scores of 109 and 76 in the third and fifth ODIs, has vaulted six places to 15th.
• In the bowlers’ rankings, suspended Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal holds the top spot ahead of West Indies off-spinner Sunil Narine and South Africa speedster Dale Steyn.
• The in-form Sri Lanka skipper Angelo Mathews holds a nine-point advantage at the top of the all-rounders rankings, with Indian Ravindra Jadeja maintaining his fourth place.

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Business & economy

Adani Power buys Avantha’s 600 MW plant

• Striking another major deal in less than four months, Adani Power, entered into a binding agreement with Gautam Thapar-led Avantha group to buy out its 600-MW Korba West unit for more than Rs.4,200 crore.
• This is the second acquisition by the Adani group since it bought the 1,200-MW coal-fired Udupi plant from the debt-laden Lanco Infra for Rs.6,000 crore in August.
• Korba West Power owns a completed 600-MW coal-based power plant at Korba, and an expansion phase is in progress. The deal makes Adani Power the largest private sector power utility in the country with an installed capacity of 11,040 MW, the Adani group said in a statement issued from Ahmedabad.
• While the Adanis did not reveal the deal size, the Avantha group, in a statement issued from New Delhi, said the deal is valued in excess of Rs.4,200 crore.
• With the Korba buy, the installed base of Adani Power will increase to 11,040 MW. The company has set a target of 20,000 MW capacity by 2020.
• Commenting on the deal, Adani group chairman Gautam Adani said, “This is the time for consolidation in the power sector, and Adani Power has taken the lead in acquiring power assets, which are strategic fit to group businesses and potentially at the lowest end of the cost curve.
• “This acquisition consolidates our pan-India presence, and further reaffirms our belief in the reforms processes underway in the power and coal mining sectors.
• “This Korba acquisition expands our footprint, particularly in the coal mining belt, and we are bullish of expanding our presence further. We are committed towards achieving our target of 20,000 MW by 2020,” Mr. Adani said.
• He added that his company would endeavour to expand the capacity of the Korba unit expeditiously, leveraging its project execution capabilities.
• Adani Power was also committed to seize further opportunities for capacity addition and provide the much needed energy security of India, he further said.
• Macquarie Capital was the sole advisor to the transaction. Excluding the Korba power deal, Adani Power has operational capacity of 9,240 MW, comprising 4,620 MW at Mundra in Gujarat, 3,300 MW at Tiroda in Maharashtra and 1,320 MW at Kawai in Rajasthan. It has a 660 MW plant ready for commissioning at Tiroda in Maharashtra shortly.

Microfinance industry recorded 61 % jump

• The microfinance industry has recorded a 61 per cent jump in its loan portfolio in the second quarter ended September 30, 2014, by lending Rs.12,500 crore against Rs.7,500 crore in the corresponding period last year.
• The industry is represented by 48 non-banking financial companies-microfinance institutions (NBFC-MFIs), which are members of the Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN). They constitute over 90 per cent of the total microfinance industry business, except self-help groups.
• These NBFC-MFIs had disbursed loans to 7.9 million customers in the second quarter against 5.8 million customers in the corresponding period, an increase of 35 per cent. The average size of loan was Rs.15,858 per account. The total number of beneficiaries during this quarter stood at 28 million against 23 million.
• According to the 11the edition of MFIN Micrometer, the aggregate group loan portfolio of MFIs stood at Rs. 28,800 crore (Rs.25,000 crore). Interestingly, only one per cent of the portfolio was termed to be under risk.
• Top ten MFIs accounted for 77 per cent of disbursals with Bandhan leading the list, followed by SKS Microfinance, Ujjivan, Janalakshmi and others.
• This is the second time in the current year that Bandhan was in the forefront of lending among the MFIs. West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar and five other States had disbursed 58 per cent of the loan amount.
• During the period under review, MFIs received Rs.10,584 crore in debt funding, of which 72 per cent came from the banks and the balance from financial institutions.

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Science & technology

DRDO will make unmanned combat systems

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Director General Dr. Avinash Chander underscored the need for a policy to induct unmanned combat systems into the armed forces and make them an integral part.
• Many advanced countries, especially the United States, are focusing on developing unmanned security systems and the DRDO is working on different unmanned combat system projects for aerial, underwater and surface applications.
• Presently, projects on unmanned reconnaissance aircraft and combat aircraft and others are underway but there is a need to evolve a policy for inclusion of such systems into the armed forces. It is going to be the future, it will be a fight against one technology over the other, than the conventional man against man wars, said Mr. Chander.
• Sensing a potential threat through dreadful viruses, bacteria and other bio agents, the defence organisation is working on strengthening biochemical capability by developing vaccines for detection and protection.
• “We have developed a vaccine for detection of HINI flu virus and are working on detection of anthrax in association with department of food research.
• They are still under clinical evaluation and we need to get clearance. It is a long process,” said Mr. Chander, who was in the city to lay the foundation for the Centre of Excellence in Composites at V.R. Siddhartha Engineering College in Vijayawada.

Everything is set to put unmanned crew module into orbit

• There is frenetic activity at Sriharikota for the maiden lift-off of India’s newest and the biggest launch vehicle in December, which will put an unmanned crew module into orbit.
• The mission is a stepping stone to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) ultimately sending astronauts into space in the module.
• The 3.65-tonne module will get de-mated from the topmost cryogenic stage at an altitude of 125 km and return to the earth. At an altitude of 15 km, there will be an “aerial ballet,” featuring three huge parachutes which will open up one after the other to slow down the module’s descent.
• The module is expected to splash down in the sea near the Andaman archipelago and will be recovered by the Indian Coast Guard and ISRO personnel. The entire flight from the lift-off to the splash-down will last about 20 minutes. It is a passive, experimental and sub-orbital mission.
• ISRO Chairman K. Radhakrishnan said, “Everything is progressing well” for the GSLV-MkIII launch in December. The rocket weighs 630 tonnes and is 42.4 metres tall.
• “We are ready. Everything is pucca,” said M.C. Dathan, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram, which has built both the GSLV-MKIII and the unmanned crew module.
• Two gigantic strap-on motors, each of which will use 200 tonnes of solid propellants, have been strapped around the core stage in the second launch pad. The core stage will use 110 tonnes of liquid propellants. Above the core stage is the cryogenic stage. The module will be “encapsulated” with the cryogenic stage on November 26, said Mr. Dathan.

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Sources: Various News Papers & PIB

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