.:: April 2013 International Affairs ::.

The High Court in the northwestern city of Peshawar on 30 April 2013 imposed a lifetime ban on former President Pervez Musharraf from contesting elections . It was the first time a court in Pakistan had declared a citizen ineligible from contesting elections for life. Musharraf returned in March 2013 after nearly four years of self-imposed exile to contest May 11 general election. The court observed that Musharraf abrogated the Constitution twice. The first was when he carried out a coup to oust a democratically elected government. The second time when he declared emergency in 2007 and detained 60 judges. Bangladesh got its first woman Speaker with the election of Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury by the Jatiya Sangsad on 30 April. Dr. Chaudhury, State Minister in the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, was nominated by the ruling Awami Leagues parliamentary party. Born in 1966, Dr. Chaudhury is also the countrys youngest Speaker. She will succeed Abdul Hamid who assumed presidency last week following the death of President Md. Zillur Rahman.Women now occupy many of the top posts, with the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, Deputy Leader of Parliament, Foreign Minister and Agriculture Minister, all being women. A lawyer by profession, Dr. Chaaudhury entered Parliament for the first time as an MP from one of the reserved seats for women. She holds a Ph.D. from Essex University in the United Kingdom. The Federal Investigation Agency in Pakistan arrested former President, Pervez Musharraf in relation to the Benazir Bhutto murder case. He was arrested formally by the FIA Deputy Director from his farmhouse in Chak Shahzad. On 26 April 2013, he would be produced in the Anti Terrorism court in Rawalpindi. Musharraf is under the two-week house arrest because of his decision to sack the judges when in November 2007, he imposed emergency rule. The second case in which he has been facing allegations is in Bhutto murder case. Overall, there are three cases for which he is facing allegations, all of which date back to 1999-2008 rule of Musharraf as the Pakistani President.

Turkey on 26 April 2013 joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as its dialogue partner. Turkey and SCO signed a memorandum of understanding in the Kazakh city of Almaty. This partnership between the SCO members and Turkey with strengthen the ties between them especially in fields like transportation and Economy. This would also provide maximum opportunities to fight against the threats making a collective effort. SCO was formed in 2001 as a regional security bloc to fight against the threats posed by radical Islam and drug trafficking from Afghanistan by China, Russia and four Central Asian nations - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

The Serbian government on 22 April, approved a landmark agreement to normalise relations with breakaway Kosovo, but thousands of Kosovo Serb demonstrators rejected the deal. Up to 10,000 flag-waving protesters gathered in the divided northern Kosovo town of Mitrovica, demanding that the EU-brokered agreement be annulled and branding the Serbian officials who endorsed it traitors. The Serbian government approved the deal unanimously at an extraordinary session and ordered ministries to implement it, said government spokesman Milivoje Mihajlovic. The agreement could end years of tensions and put the Balkan rivals on a path to EU membership. The Prime Ministers of Serbia and Kosovo reached a tentative EU-mediated deal in Brussels on 18 April that would give Kosovos ethnic Albanian leadership authority over rebel Kosovo Serbs. In return, the minority Serbs would get wide autonomy within Kosovo.

Italian Centre Left Politician, Enrico Letta on 27 April 2013 formed a new coalition Government in Italy by winning the support of other parties. He will be the new Prime Minister of Italy. The newly formed Government will include former Prime Ministers Silvio Berlusconi's closest allies as deputy prime minister. The two months of political stalemate, since the general elections in Italy ended with this coalition. Enrico Letta met Giorgio Napolitano, the President of Italy to inform him about the coalition agreement reached with the leaders of the centre-right People of Freedom (PDL) party. With this agreement for coalition, the two parties Democratic Party (PD) and the People of Freedom party (PDL) came together for the formation of the Government. The new Cabinet and Prime Minister of Italy will be sworn in at the presidential Quirinal Palace in Rome.

NASA has successfully launched three smart phones into space to snap images of Earth and the handsets may prove to be the lowest-cost satellites ever flown into space. Each Smartphone is housed in a standard cubesat structure, measuring about four inches square. The Smartphone

acts as the satellites onboard computer. Its sensors are used for attitude determination and its camera for Earth observation. The smart phones destined to become low-cost satellites rode to space on 21 April, aboard the maiden flight of Orbital Science Corporations Antares rocket from NASAs Wallops Island Flight Facility in Virginia. The trio of PhoneSats is operating in orbit, and may prove to be the lowest-cost satellites ever flown in space. The goal of NASAs Pho neSat mission is to determine whether a consumer-grade Smartphone can be used as the main flight avionics of a capable, yet very inexpensive, satellite. Transmissions from all three PhoneSats have been received at multiple ground stations on Earth, indicating they are operating normally. The PhoneSat team at the Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, will continue to monitor the satellites in the coming days. The satellites are expected to remain in orbit for as long as two weeks. The spacecraft also will attempt to take pictures of Earth using their cameras. The hardware for this mission is the Google-HTC Nexus One Smartphone running the Android operating system. International experts probing Chinas deadly H7N9 bird flu virus said on 24 April, it was one of the most lethal influenza viruses seen so far as Taiwan reported the first case outside China. China has confirmed 108 cases and 22 deaths since the first infections were announced on March 31 and Taiwan on 24 April, confirmed its first infection in a man who had recently returned from working in eastern China where most cases have been reported.This is definitely one of the most lethal influenza viruses we have seen so far, said Keiji Fukuda, one of the leading flu experts for the World Health Organization, which has led a team on a week-long visit to China to study H7N9.Mr. Fukuda told a news conference that the H7N9 virus was more easily transmissible than the more common H5N1 strain of bird flu. Experts had previously remarked on the affinity of H7N9 for humans. Taiwanese health authorities said their first case, a 53-year-old man who had been working in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou, showed symptoms three days after returning to Taiwan via Shanghai. The WTO team, however, said poultry were the likely source of the H7N9 outbreak as chickens, ducks and pigeons from markets had tested positive, but nevertheless warned over the potential for human-to-human transmission. French lawmakers voted to legalize same-sex marriage on 23 April, despite vocal protests from some conservatives opposed to the step. The nation's lower house approved a marriage bill, which would also give same-sex couples the right to adopt, in a 331-to-225 final vote. They cast their votes after impassioned speeches by lawmakers for and against the legislation. President Francois Hollande, who pledged his support for same-sex marriage on the campaign trail last year, will

have to sign the bill before it becomes law. After lower house vote, a group of senators filed a legal challenge with the country's Constitutional Council, according to a statement published on the UMP conservative opposition party's senate website. The court has a month to rule on the challenge filed by conservative and centrist senators. The measure had been expected to pass on 23 April since the left, which includes Hollande's governing Socialist Party, dominates the National Assembly, or lower house. The legislation was approved in the Senate earlier this month. If the measure is enacted, France would be the ninth country in Europe to allow same-sex marriage. South-East Asian leaders were upbeat on 25 April about progress made on an ambitious plan to weld the region into a European Union-style economic community as a counterweight to Asian powerhouse China, while efforts were stalling on South China Sea disputes. Leaders attending the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Brunei had hoped China would soon agree to start talks on a nonaggression pact to prevent a major clash in the disputed territories that could smoke out their regions robust economies. But China has given no clear indication when it would agree to negotiate such a stopgap accord, known in ASEAN parlance as a code of conduct. The ASEAN leaders said in a joint statement after the summit that they have asked their foreign ministers to continue to work actively with China on the way forward for the early conclusion of a code of conduct. We all agreed to encourage continuing discussions, dialogues and consultations at all levels, especially claimant countries, and to keep the lines of communication open, said Bruneis leader, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, host of this years ASEAN summits. During the summit, ASEAN leaders also expressed concern about North Koreas lat est threats. Although overshadowed by security issues, an ambitious plan by ASEAN to transform itself into an EU-like community of more than 600 million people by the end of 2015 has sparked more optimism, with diplomats saying the bloc was on track to meet the deadline. Turkey Treasury Under secretariat on 26 April 2013 announced that it would close the debt chapter with IMF (International Monetary Fund) by refunding 422.1 million US dollars of capital as part of its 19th Stand-by. This will end Turkeys 5 2 years long indebter category from IMF. IMF was established in 1944 for economic cooperation at the UN meeting in the United States. At present IMF has 188 members registered with it. Turkey became the part of IMF in 1947 and till date has been successful in completing only two of the 19 stand-by deals. As per the new IMF regulation that was agreed in 2010, Turkeys quota was increased to 4.6 billion SDRs and will now be the 20th country in the highest quota share within IMF. At present Turkey is ranked 32nd in

the listing. Turkey will be performing as the Director within IMF from 2014 to 2016 and 2018 to 2020. Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn-in as the new President of Kenya on 9 April 2013. He is the fourth president of Kenya. Kenyatta won in a tightly fought race for Kenya's presidency on 9 March 2013 against Raila Odinga. He won with 50.07 percent votes in the election. Uhuru Kenyatta is Jomo Kenyattas son. Jomo Kenyatta was the first President of Kenya. He also served as the Deputy Prime Minister (2008 to 2013), Finance Minister (2009 to 2012) under President Mwai Kibaki as well as Minister for Trade (in April 2008). Jubilee Alliance coalition nominated Uhuru for presidential race against Raila Odinga. Uhuru Kenyatta needed over 50 percent of the national vote to avoid a run-off. He received 50.07 percent in the election and became the President of Kenya. Uhuru Kenyatta's party, The National Alliance (Kenya) (TNA) formed alliance with United Republican Party (URP) of William Ruto, National Rainbow Coalition party of Charity Ngilu and Republican Congress Party (RCP) of Najib Balala. This coalition was called Jubilee Alliance coalition. Palestinian Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad has resigned on 13 April, following a dispute with President Mahmoud Abbas over the limits of the former's authority. The president accepted Fayyad's resignation after they met in person, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa said. But Abbas has asked Fayyad, 61, to remain in his post until a new government can be formed. Fayyad has served since mid-2007 as prime minister of the Palestinian Authority, the self-rule government that administers roughly 40 percent of the Israeli-controlled West Bank.His resignation is the climax of long-running and increasingly bitter dispute between the prime minister and the president. Both have been at odds over economic policy since finance minister Nabil Kassis quit last month, and rumours about Fayyad's stepping down were rife. Fayyad had accepted Kassis's resignation. But he was subsequently overruled by Abbas, challenging his authority. 25th Joint Meeting of UNWTO Commissions for South Asia, East Asia and the Pacific was inaugurated by Union Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevi on 13 April 2013 at Hyderabad. The event will enable India to showcase the rich heritage to world. In the year 2012, Asia and the Pacific region saw the highest growth with a rate of over 7 percent. The subregion of South East Asia recorded the maximum number of arrivals within these regions with a growth of 9 percent. The Indian tourism growth of 5.4 percent in terms of foreign

tourist arrivals was higher than the world average of 4 percent. During the joint meeting, the delegates shared the market trends of the region in the year 2012 and tourism prospects for the year 2013. Various bilateral meetings took place for developing intra-regional and inter-regional strategies. Apart from this, the issue of development of UNWTO Convention for the protection of tourists and tourism service providers and implementation of Global code of ethics for Tourism was also discussed. The meeting identified Visa, Taxation and Connectivity as three important determinants for the growth of tourism. The 25th Joint Meeting of UNWTO Commissions for South Asia, East Asia and the Pacific was attended by delegates from 21 countries, eight UNWTO affiliate members, two regional organizations as well as industry organizations. The next Joint Meeting would be held in Philippines and the 21st Session of General Assembly of UNWTO will be held in Cambodia. The International Monetary Fund announced on 12 April that it is recognizing Somalia's new government after a 22-year break in relations with the once-chaotic country, part of a general push by the United States, United Nations and the West toward encouraging rehabilitation there. The US formally recognized the African nation's new government in January, ie. The first time the US had recognized a Somali government since 1991, when warlords overthrew longtime dictator Siad Barre and then turned on one another. The UN Security Council in March voted unanimously to partially suspend an arms embargo on Somalia for 12 months for military equipment intended solely to develop the country's security forces and provide security for the Somali people. Earlier this month, President Barack Obama cleared the way for the US to arm and train Somali forces. The International Monetary Fund on 12 April, announced it was recognizing the Somali government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who took office last September. The move will allow the IMF to offer Somalia technical assistance and policy advice. But the IMF said Somalia will not be able to borrow IMF funds until it repays some $352 million in arrears that it owes the agency. A relative peace has returned to Somalia's war-battered capital of Mogadishu since African Union forces ousted al-Shabab - a militant group loosely associated with al-Qaida - from the city over 18 months ago. But al-Shabab rebels are not yet defeated, and the US remains concerned about the threat the group could pose to the region's stability. Margaret Thatcher, Britains first woman Prime Minister who led the Conservative party for more than a decade through one of the most tumultuous periods in modern British history and became a deeply divisive political figure, died on 8 april

following a stroke.She was 87 and was suffering from Alzheimers. Thatcher was the Prime Minister of Britain from 1979 to 1990 from Conservative party of Britain and was the first lady to hold the post of Prime Minister. She succeeded James Callaghan from Labour Party and a Member of Parliament from Cardiff South East.She resigned from her office in 1990 after she returned from the Euro Summit in Rome, after her policies and her style of government led to the growth of rebellion inside her party. John Major succeeded her in the office of the prime Minister. Margaret Thatcher was also known as the Iron Lady of Britain. United Nations World Tourism Organization ( UNWTO) Commissions Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development and 25th Joint Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for East Asia, Pacific and South Asia will be held at Hyderabad from 12th to 14th of April. Announcing this in New Delhi on 4 April, Union Tourism Minister K. Chiranjeevi said the need of the hour is not the tourism growth alone but development of tourism in sustainable manner. He said in this meeting, International experts; delegates from the member countries of the UNWTO Commissions for South Asia and East Asia and Pacific, UNWTO, various state governments of India and tourism industry will participate. During the conference exchange of ideas will take place on the way forward to develop tourism in a sustainable manner. He said the UNWTO will be represented by Mr. Taleb Rifai, Secetary General and his team. This meeting will also be attended by the Chief Executive Officer of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA). The tourism Minister said that for the first time Ministry of Tourism will be sending an electronic invitation and itinerary in form of a short film to all delegates and invitees welcoming them to the city of Hyderabad. This film shows them in advance the venues of the meetings, dinners and tours. The film is being uploaded on the promotional website of the Ministry www.incredibleindia.org The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, in collaboration with the Government of Andhra Pradesh is hosting the joint meeting and the conference. The UNWTO is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UNWTO promotes tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development and advocates its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies. India is currently the chairperson of the UNWTO Regional Commission for South Asia. India accords great importance to the issue of Sustainable Tourism. As a commitment to Safe and Sustainable Tourism Development, India has developed a code for Safe & Honorable Tourism and Sustai nable Tourism Criteria for the

Accommodation and Tour Operators sectors. The UNWTO Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development will include a global review on sustainable tourism development and sustainable practices as well an industry and media perspective on sustainable criteria for tourism. Over 250 delegates are expected to participate in the Sustainable Tourism Conference. The Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina rejected the demands of Islamists for new anti-blasphemy law, according to which the people who defame Islam or Prophet Muhammad would be punished . Sheikh Hasina declared that the laws which were existing earlier were sufficient for punishing people who insulted the religion. In recent times, a lot of Islamists in Bangladesh rallied in Dhaka for demanding the death penalty for people who were guilty of blasphemy. The Islamists gave three-week ultimatum to Bangladeshi Government for meeting the demands which included tough punishments to the atheist bloggers too. Bangladesh was a secular state in 1971 and became the Islamist state in 1988. However, the secular penal code is used in Bangladesh since 1980. In a move that could exacerbate tensions with its neighbors, China has announced plans to allow tourist cruises to disputed islands in the South China Sea, also claimed by Vietnam. China is scheduled to let tourists visit the Xisha Islands, called by Vietnam as Parcel Islands in the South China Sea ahead of the forthcoming May Day holiday. People will be allowed to visit the islands on cruise tours. The announcement came as China's new President Xi Jinpin in a speech called for peace and stability in the Asian region. Since last year, China has been asserting its rights on the oil-rich islands which it has controlled since a short war with South Vietnam in 1974.China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea and the claims have been strongly countered by Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia. Recently, even Thailand objected to maps on the Chinese passports with a U-shaped mark claiming swathe of the sea running in counter to exclusive economic zones under UNCLOS (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) by other claimants. The Supreme Court of Pakistan on 8 April 2013 directed the authorities of the nation to not allow the former President, Pervez Musharraf to leave the country. The Court is hearing petitions against the former military ruler and President Pervez Musharraf for challenging the Constitution and declaring an emergency in 2007. The petitions against the exmilitary ruler by a two-judge bench led by Justice Jawad S Khwaja and the petitioners have challenged Musharrafs decision of obstructing access to Justice and detention of the Judges

during the Emergency. The petitions have also targeted the decision of substituting the judges, who were appointed unconstitutionally. Before the hearing was scheduled to begin, the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftikar Chaudhary withdrew his name from the bench of three-judge bench that was constituted for hearing up the petitions. Musharraf, returned back to Pakistan on 24 March 2013 after completing a self-declared exile of four years to lead his All Pakistan Muslim League Party for the elections set to be held on 11 May 2013. The third SAARC Ministerial Level Meet on Poverty concluded in Nepalon 5 April 2013. The representatives from all the eight members of SAARC attended the meet and pledged to reduce regional poverty through strategic cooperation with each other. The meet that started on 5 April 2013 was inaugurated by the chairman of the Interim Election Government of Nepal Khil Raj Regmi. Before the Ministerial level meet, fifth SAARC secretary-level meet was held on 4 April 2013. The decision had taken that the formulation of a Common Poverty Reduction Strategy following the end of UN Millennium Development Goals in 2015.

: April 2013 National Affairs ::.

Sushil Kumar Shinde, Union Home Minister on 30 April, released the Primary Census Abstract-Data Highlights of Census 2011 in a function organized by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India in New Delhi. On the occasion, Union Home Minister distributed Census Medals to G. K. Pillai, former Union Home Secretary and the officers of the Census Organization in recognition to the outstanding services rendered by them during Census 2011.

Some of the salient features of the data released are as below: o Total population of the country is 1.21 billion showing an increase of 181.96 million persons in absolute numbers of population in India during the decade 2001-2011. During this decade, population of India grew by 17.7% as against 21.5% in the previous decade.

As per Census 2011, 833.5 million persons live in rural areas and 377.1 million persons lives in urban areas. Thus, more than 2/3rd of total population of India lives in rural areas.

Density of population as per current Census is 382 persons per sq.km against 325 persons per sq.km. in 2001.

Child population in the age group 0-6 years in 2011 Census is 164.5 million as against 163.8 million showing an increase of 0.4% in the last decade.

Sex ratio in Census 2011 is 943 females per 1000 males as against 933 in 2001 Census.

Population of Scheduled Castes in this Census is 201.4 million as against 166.6 million in 2001 registering an increase of 20.8% whereas Scheduled Tribes population increased to 104.3 million in 2011 from 84.3 million in 2001.

As per Census 2011, number of literates is 763.5 million as against 560.7 million in 2001.

A sessions court in New Delhi on 30 April, acquitted senior Congress leader Sajjan Kumar of all charges in the murder of five Sikhs in the Raj Nagar area of Delhi Cantonment in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Among the five other accused, former Municipal Corporation of Delhi councilor Balwan Khokhar, Captain Bhagmal and Girdhari Lal were held guilty of murder and rioting charges, while the former MLA, Mahender Yadav, and Balwans brother, Krishan Khokhar, were held guilty of rioting charges. The conspiracy charges pressed by the CBI on all six accused failed to stick. District and Sessions Judge J.R. Aryan will hear arguments on sentence on May 6.

AP

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Census 2011, released by home minister Sushilkumar Shinde on 30 April, said India's total population as on March 1, 2011 stands at 1.21 billion, 17.7 per cent more than the previous decade. In an encouraging sign, growth of females was higher than that of males, with Andhra Pradesh at third place with 993 females for 1,000 males. The other four top performing states on female-male ratio were Kerala (1,084 females),

Tamil Nadu (996), Chhattisgarh (991) and Odisha (979). The worst performing state on female-male ratio is Haryana with just 879 females for 1,000 males. AP however has failed to replicate its sex ratio success on the literacy front, failing miserably at 67.01per cent. The state is fifth from the bottom, with Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Arunachal Pradesh and Bihar bringing up the rear. According to the census, Andhra Pradesh has a recorded population of 8,45,80,777 with a male population of 4,24,42,146 and a female population of 4,21,38,631. The figures show that 5, 63, 61,702 people stay in rural areas of the state while only 2, 82, 19,075 stay in the urban areas. The Telangana districts, including Hyderabad, have a population of 3, 51, and 70211. 5, 05, 56,760 of the total population are literate. The density of population in the country has also increased from 325 in 2001 to 382 in 2011 in per sq km. Among the major states, Bihar occupies the first position with a density of 1106, surpassing West Bengal which occupied the first position during 2001. The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh inaugurated the National conference to celebrate the National Panchayati Raj Day in New Delhi on 24 April. On the occasion, annual awards under Panchayat Empowerment and Accountability Incentive Scheme (PEAIS) and Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar (RGGSP)) were conferred upon the best performing States and Panchayats. 18 top ranking Gram Panchayats were awarded with Rashtriya Gaura v Gram Sabha Purskar. 193 Panchayats were also received awards for best performance. The Panchayat Strengthening Index Awards (PSI) were given to States this year. Under the Cumulative PSI Awards 1st Prize is won by Maharashtra, while 2nd Prize is bagged by Karnataka, 3rd Prize Kerala and 4th Prize Tripura. Under the Incremental PSI Awards 1st Prize is won by Karnataka, 2nd Prize Rajasthan, 3rd Prize Maharashtra and 4th Prize is won by Odisha. The prize money for Rashtriya Gaurav Gram Sabha Puraskar award is Rs. 10 lakhs. The Award money will be utilized by the Panchayats for public purposes such as augmentation of civic services like primary education, primary health care, safe drinking water, public utilities; provision rural infrastructure in the Panchayat jurisdiction. The Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said that there is a need to take immediate action by the non life insurance sector to increase penetration and coverage of the non life insurance in the country. He said that India is one of the most

under insured country in the world as non life insurance sector has a penetration of only 0.7 percent in the country. The Finance Minister said that there is a need to increase insurance density in the country as well. The Finance Minister was speaking at a function organized in New Delhi on 24 April, to launch mediclaim facility for the farmers holding Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) issued by Dena Bank. The Finance Minister later handed over medi claim policies and ID cards to six farmers of different States holding KCC of Dena Bank in the presence of Namo Narain Meena, Minister of State for Finance, Shri Rajiv Takru, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Shri Ashok Dutt, Executive Director Dena Bank, Shri Milind Kharat, CMD, United India Insurance Company (UIIC) and other senior officers of the Finance Ministry to mark the occasion. At the launch of the said scheme, the Union Finance Minister P.Chidambaram complimented Dena Bank and United India Insurance Company (UIIC) for introducing an innovative and noble scheme for the benefit of farmers at large. He said though it is a small step, in terms of coverage of farmers in relation to total KCC holders of the country, to provide hassle free cashless mediclaim facility to the farmers yet it is a welcome step. While wishing the scheme all the success, he mentioned that on successful implementation of the scheme, it can be considered for implementation on a larger scale. Dena Bank, celebrating its Platinum Jubilee year, has as an initiative under CSR launched a Nobel scheme for its 2, 25,000 KCC holder farmer customers covering their family members under Mediclaim with maximum cover up to Rupees Thirty Thousand. Ministry of Home Affairs, government of India and the NSCN(K) have jointly agreed to extend the current period of cease fire, which is to expire on April 28,2013 for a further of one year stated a press release issued by GoI on 25 April. The extension of the cease fire was signed in New Delhi on 22 April, between a five-member NSCN(K)team led by its kilonser Wangtin Naga, supervisor Lincoln, kilonser P.Tikhat, kilonser Hukato and member-secretary CFSB H.K.Sema and MHA representatives led by union joint secretary(MHA) Shambhu Singh. Minister of State for Civil Aviation, K. C. Venugopal informed Rajya Sabha on 25 April, that the concept of Flexible Use of Airspace (FUA) for sharing of airspace between civil and military users has been agreed in principle. The Government has

accorded approval for constituting a High Level Airspace Policy Body (HLAPB) with the Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation as its Chairperson, and also for establishing sub-committees by the HLAPB to develop modalities for implementing the concept of FUA. Salient features of the airspace sharing settlement includes establishment of three levels of airspace management, viz., ASM Level 1, the strategic level, wherein the per-determined airspace structures will be established, ASM Level 2, the pre-tactical level, wherein day-to-day allocation of airspace according to user requirements will be carried out and ASM Level 3, the tactical level, wherein real-time use of airspace allowing a safer and fuel efficient civil and military flights is effected. The airspace sharing settlement also includes establishment of an Airspace Management Cell (AMC) for conducting ASM Level 2 operations in close coordination with Central Flow Management Unit. The concept of FUA is expected to bring in significant savings in terms of fuel and air travel time. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation has proposed to launch a National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) in 12th Five Year Plan, which will replace the existing Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY). NULM would focus on the primary issues pertaining to urban poverty such as imparting skill training, enabling entrepreneurship development, providing wage employment and self-employment opportunities to the urban poor. This was stated by Ajay Maken, Union Minister of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA), in the Rajya Sabha on 25 April, in a written reply to a question by Shri Nand Kumar Sai. The Minister stated that the proposal of NULM is at approval stage. The annual targets under NULM will be fixed after final approval as per budget allocation for its implementation. The High Court of Delhi on 24 April 2013 directed the Union Government of India to respond on a plea that questioned how children below the age of 18 were allowed to open an account on social networking sites like Face book and others. The response was sought by the Supreme Court because Indian Majority Act, the Indian Contract Act and the Information and Technology Act dont permit a child below 18 years to open an account on the social networking sites.

The High Court bench of justices BD Ahmed and Vibhu Bakhru ordered the Union

Government to file an affidavit on the issue making its stand clear within 10 days. The Court posted the matter for further hearing to 13 May 2013. The Court also ordered Face book Inc and Google Inc, the US based firms to respond to how is the recovery of taxes from the websites on their income from operations in India is done. The Indian Railways reduced the advanced booking period of the tickets from four months duration to two months, with effect from 1 May 2013. This has been done to prevent the enormous amount of cancellations after the booking process. The Railway notification issued on 25 April 2013 declared that the advance reservation period (ARP) in order to book the reserved train tickets was being reduced from 120 days to 60 days from 1 May 2013. It was also declared that the bookings which were done up to 30 April 2013 under already-existing ARP of 120 days will not be changed. Railway officials believed that this action would help the genuine travelers and reduced touts that booked bulk tickets in advance. No change was introduced to ARP limit of 360 days for foreign tourists. Cancellation of booking which was made beyond the time duration of 60 days shall be permitted. At present, tatkal tickets are being issued when a person produces self-attested photocopy of a valid identity proof. In order to monitor the tout, Railways conduct raids on the railway stations as well. India and United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed an MoU on Air Services, following the two-day bilateral negotiation at Abu Dhabi on 24 April. The UAE had urged India to allocate additional 40,000 seats per week, grant Goa, Pune, Amritsar and Lucknow as additional points of calls, remove the maximum cap prescribed from each point of call in-term of seats/ frequency per week and allow 3rd country /domestic code share facility. India was looking at the negotiations in overall economic interest of India and Governments policy of liberalization for attracting foreign investment in India, including civil aviation sector. The Indian side had requested the UAE side to grant change of gauge facility at Abu Dhabi to Indian carriers in addition to ensuring full 5th freedom rights from UAE. India and Saudi Arabia on 28 April 2013 decided to set up a joint working group to address the concerns of expatriate Indian workers in Saudi Arabia on the Nitaqat law. The India-Saudi Arabia Joint Working Group on Labour will discuss a Memorandum of Understanding on labour co-operation and other issues. The decisions were taken

at a meeting of a high level Indian delegation led by the Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vyalar Ravi with the Saudi Labour Minister Adel Fakieh in Jeddah. The first meeting of the group will be held in Riyadh on 1 May 2013.The Joint working group led by a Saudi Deputy Minister and Indias Deputy Chief of Mission in Saudi Arabia will discuss and evolve mechanism to address all immediate problems facing the NRI community including issues related to overstaying Indian workers. The process of recruitment of Indian workers would be made more transparent. The Nitaqat law makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. The new policy will result in to denial of job opportunities for many Indians working there. The Nitaqat aims to create more jobs for Saudi citizens. It was enacted following Arab Spring, which happened mainly because of huge unemployment in countries such as Yemen and Egypt. With a view to create awareness amongst masses in general and youth in particular about the exceptional biodiversity of India, the Union Minister of Railways, Pawan Kumar Bansal, Minister of Environment & Forests, Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan and Smt. Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi flagged off Science Express Biodiversity Special (SEBS) Train from Safdarjung Railway Station in New Delhi on 9 April. It has been a collaborative initiative of the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) & Department of Science & Technology (DST),

Government of India, the Indian Railways, the Vikram Sarabhai Community Science Centre, and the Centre for Environment Education. It has also engaged a large number of knowledge partners, State Biodiversity Boards, State Education Agencies, State Nodal Agencies on NGC and NEAC, Government officials, Peoples Representatives, colleges and academia, civil society organizations and the media. Participation of school children and teachers has stood out. Under the second phase of programme, the SEBS will cover 62 stations over next 6 months. Of the 16 coaches of Science Express- Biodiversity Special, 8 are solely dedicated to showcasing the myriad biodiversity spread across all the bio-geographical zones of India through a variety of interactive exhibits, short films & videos that are shown on Plasma & LED TV screens, large format displays, kiosks, backlit panels, and so on. The rest of coaches have interesting & informative exhibits on Climate Change, Energy and Water conservation and topical issues in science. The Science Express

Biodiversity Special (SEBS), a mobile biodiversity exhibition train is a Mission to create massive awareness on Indias rich biodiversity. SEBS was showcased as Indias brand ambassador during recently concluded CBD Conference of Parties (CoP). The Science Express: Biodiversity Special- is a unique, state-of-the-art exhibition train that brings biodiversity awareness to a cross section of people, particularly children and youths, as it travels across the country. During its first phase, which ended on 22 December 2012 at Ahmadabad, it made halts of 3-4 days duration each at 51 locations and over 23 lakh people, including 6 lakh students and 32000 teachers from 7000 schools enjoyed learning in a fun filled way. The train was also stationed at Secunderabad during 9-19 October 2012 to facilitate visit of delegates to Conference of Parties (CoP-11). India hosted the CoP II meeting at Hyderabad attended by participants from more than 190 countries across the world. SEBS was the brand ambassador to showcase the rich bio diversity of India. The High Court of Delhi on 9 April 2013 recommended the Union Government of India to constitute a Statutory Regulatory Body to control Electronic Media. The High Court Bench of Delhi led by Justice Pradeep Nandarajog rejected the idea of self-regulation of the broadcasters. The Court in its judgment ruled that state intervention is necessary to promote the media environment that is characterized by pluralism and diversity. The High Court bench added that a regulatory body was required for ensuring compliance of the provisions mentioned under the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994 by the media organizations. The court in its recommendation said that a statutory regulatory body that consists of men and women of eminence from field of law, science, art and culture, literature, history and social sciences to be constituted. Security of tenure needs to be brought into practice for the members of the regulatory body to ensure non-interference from the government. The Court appointed self-regulatory body of the Indian Broadcasting Foundation

Broadcasting Consumers Complaint Committee as the regulatory body to look into the complaints of violation of program and advertising codes and other provisions by the media and give its ruling, until as statutory body is constituted by the Union Government. The court also ruled that the decisions of the Broadcasting Consumers

Complaint Committee shall be treated as the foundation stone for taking appropriate action against the offenders. The Government has approved a project to create National Optical Fiber Network (NOFN) connecting all the 2, 50,000 Gram Panchayats (GPs) in the country through Optical Cable (OFC). The Central Government, through Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF), is funding the project while the contribution of State Government would be by providing free Right of Way (RoW) for laying OFC. The project envisages signing a tripartite MoU for free Right of Way (RoW) among Central Government, State Government and Bharat Broadband Network Limited, BBNL (the SPV incorporated for execution of the project). 16 States/UTs have already signed MoUs on 26.10.2012: Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Manipur, Mizoram, Rajasthan, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and 3 Union Territories viz. Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu and Puducherry. This arrangement covers 1, 40,727 GPs to be provided with Optical Fibre Network in these States and UTs. Tripartite MoU were signed on 12 April, in the presence of Union Minister of Communications & IT, Shri Kapil Sibal with further 10 States /UTs on 12 april: Assam, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Odisha, Punjab and Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Total of 85731 GPs will get covered by Optical Fibre Network in these States and UTs. With the availability of NOFN at 2,50,000 Gram Panchayats a minimum bandwidth of 100 Mbps will be available at each of GP and will lead to proliferation of broadband services. A Delhi court on 11 April 2013 ruled that a surrogate mother and her husband cannot have any right over a child conceived and delivered through artificial means. The court ruled that definition of term surrogacy in guidelines laid down by Indian Council of Medical Research itself recognizes that the intended parents are parents genetically related to the child and not the surrogate mother or her husband. Additional Senior Civil Judge Sonu Agnihotri's remarks came while declaring a single woman from the UK as the biological mother of a boy delivered by an Indian woman acting as a surrogate mother. The court passed the

order on a suit initiated by the UK national who, after having received the custody of the child from the surrogate mother, moved the court praying for a decree declaring her as the biological mother of baby boy to put to rest her apprehension that in future, the surrogate mother or her husband might claim custody of the boy. Odisha decided to set up First Public Health University in India Odisha on 8 April 2013 decided to set up the first public health university in India. This university will be set up under Public-Private Partnership mode at Gramadiha village in Jatni tehsil on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. A MoU has been signed in this regard by State Health Department and Asian Institute of Public Health in Bhubaneshwar. In the first phase, 100 crore rupees will be invested in this University. The University will offer master and postdoctoral degree, diplomas and certificates courses in public health and public health management to both medical and nonmedical professionals. Indian Railways Carried 1009.73 Million Tones of Freight during Fiscal 2012-13 -Indian Railways carried 1009.73 million tonnes of revenue earning freight traffic during the financial year 2012-13 as per the data released by Ministry of Railways. The freight carried shows an increase of 39.95 million tonnes over the freight traffic of 969.78 million tonnes actually carried during the corresponding period last year, registering an increase of 4.12 per cent. During the month of March 2013, the revenue earning freight traffic carried by Indian Railways was 98.20 million tonnes. There is an increase of 4.35 million tonnes over the actual freight traffic of 93.85 million tonnes carried by the Indian Railways during the same period last year, showing an increase of 4.64 per cent. AP Government launched GPS-GIS based Emergency Response System Dial 100

-State Government of Andhra Pradesh on 11 April 2013 launched a GPS-GIS based Central Emergency Response System Dial 100 in Hyderabad. The emergency response system is designed to enable police reach the area of complaint within minutes of receiving the complaint. The project with state-wide network was launched by the states Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy. The project is jointly being exercised

by State Police and a Private Firm that will operate the GPS-GIS based state of the art emergency response system that will operate on a single command and control centre for complete state. The same centre of Dial 100 will coordinate in cases of other emergencies like fire, medical as well as the disaster related response. This facility will enable citizens of the state to Dial 100 and register the complaints via mobile or landline phone. AP launched Amma Hastham to Provide Food Items to Poor at Subsidized Rates

-The State Government of Andhra Pradesh on 11 April 2013 on occasion of Ugadi Festival launched a new scheme named Amma Hastham (mother's hand) to supply nine essential food items to poor at subsidized rates. The Amma Hstam scheme was named after the name of Late Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi. Chief Minister of the state Kiran Kumar Reddy has formally launched the scheme at Hyderabad. About 2 crore 20 lakh poor families will be benefitted with the launch of the scheme that is to be run on an additional annual burden of 660 crore rupees on the state exchequer. The nine essential item mentioned in the scheme includes a kilo of Wheat, Wheat Flour, Palm Oil, Salt Red Gram, half a kilo of Sugar and Tamerind, quarter kilo of Red Mirchi powder and 100 grams Termaric Powder. World Bank announced a Multi-billion Dollar Plan for Poverty Alleviation in Indian States

-The World Bank in the second week of April 2013 announced a multi-million dollar four-year plan that is to be initiated in seven low-income states of India to bring down the poverty levels. The World Banks Country Partnership Strategy for India proposed to lend 3 billion to 5 billion US dollars every year for a period of next four years. The recognized states are Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. The states have been identified depending upon the number of poors that live in these states. President PranabMukherjee has given his assent to the Anti-rape Bill which provides for life term and even death sentence for rape convicts besides stringent punishment for offences like acid attacks, stalking and voyeurism. Mukherjee accorded his assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill-

2013 on 2 April, brought against the backdrop of the country-wide outrage over Delhi gang-rape case, and it will now be called the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013.The law, passed by Lok Sabha on March 19 and by Rajya Sabha on March 21, has replaced an ordinance promulgated on February 3.It amends various sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Indian Evidence Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. With an aim of providing a strong deterrent against crimes like rapes, the new law states that an offender can be sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than 20 years, but which may extend to life, meaning imprisonment for the remainder of the convict's natural life and with a fine. It has provisions for handing out death sentence to offenders who may have been convicted earlier for such crimes. The law, for the first time, defines stalking and voyeurism as non-bailable offences if repeated for a second time. Perpetrators of acid attack will attract a 10year jail. It also defines acid attack as a crime besides granting a victim the right to self-defense. It also has provisions for imposing a minimum 10-year jail term for perpetrators of such acts. The law has fixed age for consensual sex at 18 years. Pranab Mukherjee has given his assent to the Anti-rape Bill, providing enhanced punishment for rape, making stalking and voyeurism criminal offences and fixing the age of consent for sex at 18.The Bill incorporates suggestions of the Justice JS Verma Committee, formed after the brutal Delhi gang-rape of Dec 16 last year, to make anti-rape laws stronger. It provides for rigorous imprisonment for a minimum of 20 years, extendable to life imprisonment, to those convicted for the offence of gang-rape, and also defines and prescribes punishment for stalking, voyeurism and sexual harassment. Smt. Chandresh Kumari Katoch, Minister of Culture, Government of India inaugurated the Tagore Centre for Global Thought at India Institute, Kings College, London on 2nd April, 2013. Smt. Katoch is currently on a 3- day visit to London. Set up as part of the Tagore Commemoration celebrating 150th Birth Anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, this Tagore Centre will enhance Tagore-related, academic intellectual and philosophic work globally. The underlying concept is to promote the study of liberal arts and support programmes connected with all aspects of Tagores works and showcase how the Indian thought and

intellectual capability was influenced by Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore. The Tagore Centre has been established in partnership with the India Institute of Kings College, London by signing an agreement. The Centre will take up five core activities promoting global implications and connections of Indian thought besides promoting Tagores literary and cultural legacy. The Centre is also expected to promote research in Tagores literature and artistic works in all the areas of music, art and films. Besides promoting Tagores philosophy it is also expected to promote and support research students working on the Global Intellectual history of Indian Thought. The activities will include Tagore distinguished lectures in Global Thought, Lecture series on Tagore, Doctoral Scholarships and film series based on Tagore Stories and writings. The Tagore Centre is expected to become a vibrant Centre of excellence and an intellectual hub in the field of art and culture. It will not only promote and support research studies on Tagores thought and work in art, music, education and traditional literature but also studies in Indian Philosophy and cultural tradition, for which India is known worldwide. Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh on 3 April, said that the scheme Himayat launched in Jammu and Kashmir in 2011 is progressing well to realize the goal of providing training and jobs to one lakh youth in five year period ( 2011-12 to 2016-17). Addressing a function at Zorawar Auditorium in Jammu University, where 947 youth were given job letters, he said, over 5,000 youth had been provided jobs in various companies within and outside the State since the inception of the scheme and over 15,000 would be given training and placements during the year 2013-14. Priority will be given to youth who are school drop-outs, have studied up to 10th class or 12th class and those who are college drop-outs. As of now, 45 HIMAYAT training centres have been set up across 19 districts (out of the total 22 districts in the state). Ramesh also promised one PC Tablet each to 400 youth who have completed one year of service in various companies under Himayat. He said that the stipend of Rs. 1000 per month for two months being provided to the placed youth in various companies has been enhanced to Rs. 2000 per month for six months. The Minister informed that underMahila Sahayta Samuh, Rs. 800 crores will be spent on socioeconomic welfare of women in Jammu and Kashmir and added that the scheme

Umeed has been launched keeping this in mind. The Union Government of India on 5 April 2013 sanctioned 4065.81 crore rupees for pollution abatement schemes of rivers and lakes in different states. Of all the states, Uttar Pradesh received 1385.95 crore rupees. The sanction cost of projects and expenditure includes the State Governments share under the National River Conservation Programme (NRCP) and the National Lake Conservation Programme (NLCP).National Lake Conservation Plan (NLCP) started in June 2001 with a funding scheme of 70:30 fund sharing between centre and state. The main objective of the scheme is to restore and conserve the urban and semi-urban lakes of the country degraded due to waste water discharge into the lake and other unique freshwater eco systems, through an integrated ecosystem approach. National River Conservation Programme (NRCP) is the centrally sponsored Scheme implemented by the central Government jointly with the State Government on a cost-sharing basis. The pollution abatement works under NRCP presently cover identified polluted stretches of 39 major rivers in 185 towns spread over 20 States in the country. Andhra Pradesh Government on 1 April 2013 launched the AP Industrial Infrastructure Corporations online services for entrepreneurs and

grievance redressal system. The platform is proposed to be a link between the APIIC and entrepreneurs which would make the process of application and registration of land for setting up industries a paperless one. The online services for entrepreneurs will enable them to file their request for sale endeavor, change in line of activity or change in the name of firm. Information about the status of their application will be sent through Email and SMS. The online grievance redressal system, Parishkaram, is a 24x7 service, facilitating entrepreneurs in tracking grievances, including infrastructure issues and maintenance of industrial parks. With this, the Minister also launched a Citizen Charter of APIIC, which is meant to provide a stipulated period of response for 13 different requests. The response include finalization of action on valid applications for allotment of lands (within 45 days), issue of provision allotment letter (seven days), execution and registration of Agreement of Sale (21 days) and execution, registration of sale deed on receipt of

documents (45 days). The corporation was in the process of setting up industrial parks in the 14 revenue divisions in the State that do not have this infrastructure. The Supreme Court of India on 1 April 2013 rejected the plea of Novartis, the Swiss drug maker, to patent the updated version of cancer drug called Glivec. A bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash Desai dismissed the patent plea to Novartis on the basis that there was no inventiveness or novelty in the new version of the drug. In its ruling, the Supreme Court of India declared that because the application for patent on beta-crystalline salt did not meet any inventiveness or novelty standard, therefore the companys plea for patent was dismissed. The judgement implied that patents in India would only be granted to companies that were involved in genuine inventions. Litigative patenting would be dismissed. Glivec is used for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukaemia along with certain other kinds of cancers. The cost of this drug is around 2600 US dollar per month. The generic of Glivec is equivalent to 175 US dollar in India.

April 2013 Bilateral Affairs ::.

India and Germany on 11 April, inked six key MoUs including that for putting together 7 million for next four years towards joint research in the field of Higher Education and a pact for a soft loan of 1 billion for strengthening the green energy corridor. A pact to promote German as a foreign language was also signed by the two sides following the 2nd round of intergovernmental consultations in Berlin. Under pacts signed, both Germany and India have committed to 3.5 million each towards working on joint research and innovation programmes. According to officials, under the strengthening of German language collaboration, currently 30,000 children in Kendriya Vidalia are learning German and under the pact they will try to increase the capacity. A pact regarding the establishment of green energy corridor was also signed besides one in agriculture and establishment of a working group in infrastructure,

cooperation in standardization, conformity assessment and product safety. Under the pact for the green energy corridor, the grid system in several states will be used to transmit energy produced by renewable and non-conventional means. Another pact for India-German civil security research was also signed. Minister for human resources development Pallam Raju, who is

accompanying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on three-day bilateral visit in Berlin, said the two countries knew each other's strengths and have identified some areas for the joint research. External Affairs Minister of India, Salman Khurshid visited Japan on 2627 March, 2013 to co-chair the 7th annual IndiaJapan Strategic Dialogue with the Japanese Foreign Minister. Both nations reviewed all aspects of the India-Japan Strategic & Global Partnership including bilateral, regional and international issues. India and Japan also discussed the possibility of convening the Annual Summit between the Prime Ministers of India and Japan in the coming months. India and Japan also agreed to expand cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. It was agreed during this visit that India and Japan will coordinate their actions more closely within the East Asia Summit process. The Government of India and Government of Russian Federation have signed on April 10, 2013 in Moscow a Regulation defining the structure, functions and procedure of the Joint Commission which has been established by an Agreement signed on December 21, 2010 in New Delhi in the field of Emergency Management. Sushilkumar Shinde, Union Minister of Home Affairs and Mr.Vladimir Puchkov, Minister of the Russian Federation for Civil Defense, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters have singed this agreement. The agreement will enable both the countries to help each other in the field of prevention and elimination of the consequences of emergency situations. It will further strengthen the bond of friendship between the two countries and enhance the Indo-Russian Co-operation. The Indo-Russian Commission will ensure the implementation of the Agreement which was signed on December 21, 2010 in New Delhi for catalyzing cooperation in the field of Emergency Management and contribute to the well being and safety of the people of both the

countries in the event of disasters and also to exchange mutually beneficial scientific and technical information in the area of Emergency Management. The meetings of the Joint Commission will be alternatively held in India and Russia. Minister of Information & Broadcasting, Manish Tewari on 11 april met the Bangladesh Minister for Information & Broadcasting Mr. Hasanul Haq Inu in Nerw Delhi and had extensive discussions on critical issues related to Information and Broadcasting Sector. During the discussions, both the Ministers agreed to consider a joint collaboration for production of a mega film depicting the War of Liberation. In this context, it was agreed to work towards a roadmap to finalize the proposal shortly. In this context, the Information Minister of Bangladesh also requested that the Government of India could consider providing the names of the soldiers who had laid down their lives during the War of Liberation. He reiterated that the Government of Bangladesh would like to recognize their contribution made during this historical event. During the discussions, both the Ministers also agreed to explore the possibility of setting up of a Joint Working Group on the critical sectors of the Information and Broadcasting domain. The Working Group would provide a roadmap for future collaborations between the two countries. The Bangladesh Information Minister also requested the Minister for Information and Broadcasting to facilitate the down linking of Bangladesh TV Channels through the private distribution network. Both Ministers also agreed to intensify the collaboration between Prasar Bharti and Bangladesh State Television in view of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the two entities in 2011. The MoU had focused on mutual cooperation in the broadcast of television programmes between the two broadcasters. It was also mentioned that both countries could consider exchange of programmes and also explore the possibility of executive TV co-production. During the discussions, both Ministers also agreed to facilitate the exchange of archival material between the two countries. Two MoUs were signed between India and Germany on 11 April, - a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the field of Higher Education and a Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) regarding

Promotion of German as a Foreign Language in India. The MoUs were signed by the Human Resource Development Minister, Dr. M.M. Pallam Raju at the 2nd Inter Governmantal Consultations held at Berlin. The HRM is accompanying the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh during his visit to Germany. The Chancellor of Germany, Prof. Dr. Ms. Johanna Wanka, Federal Minister for Education and Research of Germany was also present on the occasion. The MoU for cooperation in Higher Education envisages devising mechanisms of co-operation and sets the agenda for improving educational relations between the two countries. The MoU chiefly supports a new jointly funded programme entitled Indo-German Strategic Partnerships in Higher Education (IGSP) to intensify institutional linkages and to o pen up new and innovative areas of cooperation. India and Germany have committed to earmark 3.5 million Euros from each side for an initial period of four years (2013-2016) to support programmes under IGSP. India and Mauritius on 12 April, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in New Delhi, for cooperation in the field of election management and administration . The MoU was signed by the Chief Election Commissioner of India, V.S. Sampath and the Electoral Commissioner of Mauritius, Mr. Mohammad Irfan Abdool Rahman. Election Commissioners of India, H. S. Brahma and Dr. Nasim Zaidi; diplomats and senior officials of the Election Commission of India and Government of India were present at the signing ceremony. The major aims of MoU are: promotion of exchanges of knowledge and experience in electoral processes; exchange of information, materials, expertise and training of personnel; production and distribution of materials pertaining to electoral systems, voting technology, voters education and awareness, and participation of women and minorities in electoral process. Election Commission of India has so far signed seventeen MOUs with Election Management Bodies and international organizations across the world.Some of the MoU signed recently are with Egypt, Venezuela, Republic of Korea and UNDP. A Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters was signed between India and Azerbaijan on 4th April, 2013 in New Delhi. The Treaty was signed by Sushilkumar Shinde, Home Minister, on behalf of the Republic of India and by Mr.Fikrat Mammadov, Minister of Justice, on behalf of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty is one of the significant legal instruments to improve and facilitate effectiveness of the contracting states in investigation and prosecution of transnational crime including terrorism by providing the necessary legal framework for rendering/receiving legal assistance in criminal matters. Dr. Ashwani Kumar, Union Minister of Law & Justice and Fikrat Mammadov, Minister of Justice of Republic of Azerbaijan, on 4 April signed a Treaty in New Delhi, between the two nations on Legal and Judicial Cooperation in Civil and Commercial Matters . The two sides also had delegation- level talks. The two Ministers hailed the close cooperation between India and Azerbaijan and hoped that the bonds between the two countries will strengthen further. This Treaty between the two countries in Civil matters is a comprehensive agreement for reciprocal arrangement with foreign countries for service of summons, for issuing Letters of Request, for taking of evidence, for execution of civil decrees and for enforcement of arbitral awards. As per provisions of the Treaty, requests for legal assistance shall be made through the Central Authorities of the Contracting Parties. In India, the Central Authority is the Ministry of Law and Justice and in the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Central Authority is the Ministry of Justice. The Treaty aims to benefit the citizens of the respective States seeking Legal Assistance in Civil and Commercial Matters in the requested State irrespective of any gender, class or income bias. This Treaty will open the avenues of cooperation between both the countries in other sectors/spheres also. Similar Treaties on Civil and Commercial Matters have already been signed with France, U.A.E., Russia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Mongolia, Bulgaria and Kazakhstan. India and Singapore on 2 April 2013 signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral air services arrangement during the visit of Civil Aviation Minister, Ajit Singh to Singapore. It rationalizes the capacity entitlements of both countries in terms of seats per week in each direction with a route specific cap for Singapore on each route. The MoU also enhances, by 10%, the capacity entitlement with India now entitled to operate 29,400 weekly passenger seats from India to Singapore and the designated airlines of Singapore entitled to operate 28,700 weekly passenger seats from Singapore to India. No additional point

of call has been given to Singapore. India also did not agree to the demand of Singapore for additional point of calls from Pune and Madurai. Government of India and the Government of Tanzania signed a Letter of Intent(LoI) on 6 April 2013 at De res Salaam during the visit of Union Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma to the latter. The LoI aims to promote and expand bilateral relations between the two countries in the mineral sector with focus on strengthening supply chain for growth of the steel industry in both the countries. The LoI aims to encourage investment opportunities in India and Tanzania in the iron & steel related businesses, facilitates exchange of technical know-how in developing iron and steel production and other steel related raw materials, including pelletisation plants and other associated industries. LoI aims that both the Governments jointly work for developing the steel industry and exchange technically qualified manpower for sustainable growth of iron & steel industry. The LoI will not only strengthen relations between India and Tanzania. It will also give added thrust to the possibility of exploration and development of mineral assets in the country.

.:: April 2013 Economic Affairs ::.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on 30 April has launched an Islamic equity index based on the wide-measure S&P BSE 500 index, providing a new benchmark for Islamic investors in one of the world's largest stock exchanges. The new index comprises the largest 500 companies in the BSE, out of more than 5,000 listed, which fit Islamic finance principles such as bans on investing in alcohol, tobacco and gambling-related businesses. The country's first Islamic index was launched in 2010, also by the BSE, tracking the 50 largest and most liquid stocks. The Mumbai exchange had a total market capitalization of $1.32 trillion as of January 2013.In order to cater to an estimated 177 million Muslims in India, the largest

Muslim minority population in the world, the industry is hoping to develop investment products that work around this requirement, but political and legal obstacles mean progress has been slow. World Bank on 30 April scaled down India's growth forecast to 6.1 per cent for the current fiscal from 7 per cent projected six months ago. The decline in the growth forecast is largely due to the decline in agriculture sector which is expected to grow at 2 per cent during 2013-14 against the previous estimate of 2.7 per cent despite normal monsoon projection. However, the multi-lateral funding agency said that India is regaining economic momentum and growth is expected to recover gradually to its high long-term potential. As per the latest India Development Update of the World Bank, Indian economy would grow by 6.1 per cent in 2013-14 on account of robust domestic demand, strong savings and investment rate. Growth projections for 2013-14 have been arrived at by taking into account present internal and external factors. "Economic growth is likely to accelerate to over 6 per cent during the current financial year (April 2013-March 2014). Growth is expected to increase further to 6.7 per cent in 2014-2015," said Denis Medvedev, Senior Country Economist, World Bank, India. "Recent data point to some improvements in economic activity: inflation and trade deficit came down in recent months, while private consumption and investment growth had accelerated in the third quarter of 20122013," he said. According to the Update, a twice-yearly report on the Indian economy and its prospects, GDP growth during 2012-13 would be around 5 per cent, lowest in the decade. As per the International Monetary Fund (IMF) report released yesterday, India's GDP is likely to improve to 5.7 per cent during year ending December 2013 and further to 6.2 per cent a year after. The Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles, Anand Sharma launched 21 New Textile Parks approved under Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks (SITP) in New Delhi on 23 April. These new parks take the total number to 61 parks as 40 Parks were sanctioned earlier. The Scheme for Integrated Textiles Parks (SITP) has been instrumental in development of wide range of models for green field clusters from a 1000 acre FDI driven integrated cluster, to a 100 acre power loom cluster and a 20 acre handloom cluster. Under the scheme, 61 parks have been sanctioned 40

projects were started in the 11th Five Year Plan and another 21 projects are to be implemented in the 12th Five Year Plan. Out of the 40 parks sanctioned earlier, a total of 25 Parks are already operational. Most of the balance Parks are expected to be completed during this financial year. The estimated employment generation is over 10 lac persons with total estimated investment of Rs. 27, 562 crore. Out of the 21 new parks, six are in Maharashtra, four in Rajasthan, two each in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and one each in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Tripura, Karnataka, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. In this years budget speech, the Finance Minister announced an additional amount of up to Rs. 10 crores per park for setting up apparel manufacturing units for the projects under the SITP. Necessary action is being taken for implementing the announcement. The Minister of State for Petroleum & Natural Gas Smt. Panabaaka Lakshmi informed the Rajya Sabha in a written reply on 23 April, that the recommendations of the Committee constituted under Chairmanship of Dr.C. Rangarajan, Chairman, Prime Ministers Economic Advisory Council (EAC) are under consideration of the Government. The committee was set up to review among other things, the basis for determining price of domestically produced natural gas. She also said that under the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) regime, the current sale price of natural gas, including Coal Bed Methane (CBM), varies from a minimum of US$ 2.67 per Million British Thermal Unit (MMBTU) to a maximum of US$ 6.79 per MMBTU. The sale and pricing of natural gas under the PSC regime is governed by the relevant PSC provisions. Price of Administered Price Mechanism (APM) gas varies from $2.52 to $4.2 per MMBTU. While the price of non-APM gas varies from $4.2 to $ 5.25 per MMBTU. Union Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevi inaugurated the new campus of Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) at Noida on 23 April. Speaking on the occasion the Minister said India has a long lived tradition of Athiti devo bhava that has been shadowed by social tensions of modern lives. He said, We cannot promote tourism if our visitors do not trust hosts and hosts do not welcome visitors. The host community must provide the landscape for tourism. To revive the tradition of Athithi Devo Bhava; tourism students can act as the brand ambassadors and also

help the host community in realizing the importance of this industry. The new campus of IITTM is spread over 10 acres of land in Sector 62 of Noida. The campus has been constructed at a cost of Rs. 27.70 crore. Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) is an autonomous organization of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and is one of the premier institutes in South Asia offering education, training, research and consultancy in sustainable management of tourism, travel and other allied sectors. The Cabinet Committee on Investment on 22 April 2013 cleared 13 power projects that involves investment of 33000 crore rupees. The meet was headed by the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh. The projects on which the investments will be made include one hydro and two thermal project as well as ten transmission projects. 25 oil and gas blocks with investment commitment of about seven billion US dollars also got approval during the same meet. Of these 16 blocks were given conditional clearances, while nine blocks were approved without any condition. Approval of these projects was pending due to the objections raised by the Ministry of Defence over national security. During the meet of Cabinet Committee on Investment in New Delhi twenty different power projects that await clearances from the Union Environment and Forest Ministry were also reviewed. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has taken note of the misuse by certain Chit Fund Companies who have raised huge sums of money from the public at large. The State Governments are the appropriate authorities for regulation of such chit Fund companies/Schemes under the Chit Funds Act 1982. However, in view of the larger public interest involved in these cases, and concerns regarding misuse/laundering by such companies of the ill gotten wealth, and the possibility that the promoters of these companies may strip these companies, it has been decided by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to set up a Special Task Force in the Serious Fraud Investigations Office (SFIO) to investigate the affairs of such companies. Accordingly, all investigations into such companies are being entrusted to SFIO with immediate effect. The Task Force will also co-ordinate with other law enforcement agencies and regulators wherever required. Minister of State (I/C) for Power Jyotiraditya M Scindia along with Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on 26 April dedicated to the nation the Indira

Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project at Jhajjar in Haryana. The minister lauded the efforts of NTPC, Government of Haryana and Delhi Government for making this Project a success. While addressing the gathering, Scindia said with the commissioning of this project, all the three units in the first stage is commissioned and commercial operation started. Presently, 1500 MW of power is being generated through this plant. In 2007, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi laid the foundation of this Project. The project is completed with a total cost of Rs. 7900 Crore. Haryana, Delhi, and other northern region states and Union Territories will greatly benefit from this Thermal Power Project in which NTPC holds 50% share.

The Prime Ministers Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) under the Chairmanship of C Rangarajan on 23 January 2013 presented the Economic review 2012-13. Some of the highlights areo Indias economy is expected to grow 6.4 percent in the new financial year that began on 1 April 2013. o PMEAC pegged the WPI inflation at around 6 percent and food inflation, at 8 percent. o Net FDI at 18 billion dollars in FY13. FII inflows at 24 billion dollar in FY13 We expect net FDI inflow at 24 billion dollars and FII at 18 billion dollars for FY14 o The fiscal deficit of the Centre for 2012-13 is estimated to be 5.2% of GDP. It was 520924 crores Rupees in 2012-13 as per revised estimates, and is expected to be 542499 crores Rupees in 2013-14 as per budget estimates. o Current Account Deficit is estimated to be 94 billion dollars (5.1% of GDP) in 2012-13 and is projected to be 100 billion dollars (4.7% of GDP) in 2013-14. Worried over widening trade gap, the government On 27 April, has set up a sixmember inter-ministerial committee under the chairmanship of Finance Secretary R S Gujral that will suggest measures to boost MSME exports. Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector contributes about 40% in the country's total exports and over 8% to India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP)."The committee will suggest short and long term measures to enhance exports from MSME sector. It will submit its recommendations by mid-May," an official said. The official said there is an urgent

need to look at the MSME sector as exports are not doing well due to which the country's trade deficit has touched an all-time high of $190.1 billion in 201213.Although the government is taking every step including recent announcement of incentives and revamping special economic zone (SEZ) policy in order to increase shipments from the country, "more needs to be done", the official added. India's exports declined by about 2% to $300.5 billion in 2012-13, way below the $360 billion targeted at the beginning of the year, due to the global demand slowdown.The widening trade gap is adding woes on the the Current Account Deficit (CAD) front, which has emerged as a tough policy challenge for the government. CAD crossed 6.7% of the GDP in the third quarter of last fiscal.As per estimates, the share of MSME exports has fallen from 40% to 36% to the country's total exports.The sector accounts for around 45% of the manufacturing output and provides employment to about 60 million persons through 26 million enterprises. President PranabMukherjee on 8 April, has conferred the status of 'Miniratna - Category 1' on the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (Neepco).With this elevation to Miniratna - Category 1 status, Neepco will now be able to take certain investment decisions on its own without going through the Union power ministry. Neepco was earlier a schedule 'A' corporation.Neepco officials said the new status will facilitate expeditious execution of projects, including joint venture with public and private sector utilities in and outside the northeast. Neepco has been playing a pivotal role in the power sector of the region and has been contributing to almost 50 per cent of the power requirement of the northeast.Officials said Neepco is planning to add 2,300 MW of power in the next five years through hydro and thermal projects in order to meet the rising demand. Presently Neepco is executing five projects in the region with a total installed capacity of 917 MW, including the 600 MW Kameng Hydro Electric Projects in Arunachal Pradesh, which is expected to be on the national grid by 2016-17. The remaining four projects are exected to be commissioned by 2016. The Asian Development Bank (ADB), on 9 April, maintained that the Indian economy could grow at an improved rate of 6 per cent during the current fiscal, provided reforms are put in place at a faster pace to sort out the structural bottlenecks and stem the deteriorating investment situation and a strong

external demand is able to facilitate a turnaround in the worsening current account deficit (CAD).In its report Asian Development Outlook 2013 released in New Delhi, the Manila-based multilateral lending agency, however, cautioned that its India projections on improvement in the economy were subject to a number of downside risks such as another bad monsoon, a slow pace of reforms and fiscal consolidation and a continued sluggishness in the global economic environment. According to ADB Country Director Narhari Rao, supply and policy obstacles have seen Indias economic growth decelerate and investment and industrial output slump, with the statistics compounded by weak global demand. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), on 9 April, announced that it had signed definitive agreements to acquire 100 per cent equity in Alti SA, an IT services company in France. The deal, valued at 75 million euro (around Rs.530 crore), is an all-cash transaction, TCS said in a statement. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions. Alti SA has strong expertise in IT Services, including enterprise solutions, assurance and CRM solutions. It is privately held, and owned by its management and two private equity funds, CM-CIC LBO Partners and IDI. It reported revenues of 126 million euro in 2012, and its customers include top French corporations in the banking, financial services, luxury, manufacturing and utilities sectors. Alti has 1,200 employees based in France, Belgium and Switzerland. The France IT services market is estimated at 30 billion euro. TCS has been operating there since 1992. It has over 50 clients in France and has significantly strengthened its position there. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) raised 5000 crore Rupees by issuing taxable bonds backed by Government of India Guarantee in order to meet the additional working capital requirement. The issue of bonds was opened on 21 March 2013 and closed on 22 March 2013. These bonds are of two tenures- 10 years (300 crore Rupees) and 15 years (4700 crore Rupees). The coupon rate for 10 years was 8.62 percent per annum and 8.80 percent per annum for 15 years. Food Corporation of India (FCI) has the Cash Credit Limit with Consortium of 62 banks. At present, the Cash Credit Limit is 54495 crore Rupees which is secured by mortgaging entire stock of FCI and guaranteed by Government of India. At present, the interest

rate on Cash Credit Limit is 10.79 percent monthly which eventually translates into 11.34 on annual basis. Annual interest saving through issue of this bond will be 127.54 crore Rupees. The World Trade Organization (WTO) on 10 April, slashed its forecast for trade growth in 2013, saying it feared protectionism was on the increase. It cut its forecast for global trade growth in 2013 to 3.3 per cent from 4.5 per cent and said trade grew only 2 per cent in 2012 .That was the smallest annual rise since records began in 1981 and the second weakest figure on record after 2009, when trade shrank.WTO Director General Pascal Lamy warned that 2013 could turn out even weaker than expected, especially because of risks from the euro crisis, and countries might try to restrict trade further in a desperate attempt to shore up domestic growth. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on 4 April 2013 decided to de-control sugar and did away the levy on sugar mills and regulated release mechanism. This de-control will raise the subsidy burden to 5300 crore rupees from previous 2700 crore rupees. De-control on sugar will not have an impact on the sugar made available in the Public Distribution System. The de-control of sugar will abolish the rule for sugar mills that makes it mandatory for sugar millers to sell sugar to the Government at a discounted price as well as the limitation on the amount they choose to sell in the open market . A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed on 4 April, in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala between Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), and Government of Kerala PSEs, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) and Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd (KMML), for setting up a Titanium Project in Joint Venture in Kerala. The MOU was signed in the presence of the Chief Minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy and the Minister for Industries & IT, Kerala, PK Kunhalikutty and Special Secretary & Financial Advisor of Ministry of Steel, E.K. Bharat Bhushan, and SAIL Chairman, C.S. Verma. Through this MOU, possibilities of setting up of the Titanium Project in Joint Venture in Kerala will be explored by SAIL and KSIDC& KMML, in a phased manner. To begin with in Phase 1, setting up of a Titanium

Sponge and Metal Plant based on supply of Titanium Tetrachloride by KMML will be considered. In subsequent phases, backward and forward integration will be explored for ensuring long term viability of the project.This will be the another major titanium project in the state of Kerala, after the Nations first titanium sponge plant was put up at KMMLs Chavara complex in Kerala between KMML, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) and the Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory in the year 2011. Union Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevi on 3 April launched a web based Public Service Delivery System for Hotel approval and classification with a view to bring in transparency in granting approvals for hotel projects and classification status to functioning hotels. Speaking on the occasion the Minister said that with the help of this system, all applicants seeking hotel project approvals, hotel classification and approvals for other related services will be able to track the progress of their cases online on a real time basis. He said By putting this system in place, there will be a pressure on the officers of the Ministry to deliver on time and an increased accountability on their part. Now onwards, all applications will have to be examined within 15 working days from receipt for completeness. Thereafter, all hotel inspections will be scheduled within next 15 working days. The recommendations of Hotel and Restaurants Approval & Classification Committee will be communicated on the spot to the applicant and these recommendations will also be put on web with final decision within 10 days of the inspection. The Minister stated that in due course, the Tourism Ministry would move towards an e-regime and accept e-applications and proposals. The Ministry of Tourism will now erect such systems in other spheres of functioning also. Chiranjeevi urged his officers in the Ministry and industry to work in one vision one mission framework Nakul Anand, President, Hotel Association of India; Vivek Nair, President, Federation of Hotels & Restaurants Association of India and Rakesh Mathur, Executive Committee Member, Heritage Hotels Association of India also spoke on the occasion and lauded the efforts of the Ministry and stated that this is a path breaking initiative taken by the Ministry of Tourism to bring transparency in its functioning. This measure will bring in more transparency, make officials more accountable in working and enable the applicants to

access information and check status of their applications sitting at their own places. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs(CCEA) on 2 April 2013 approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs for continuation of the Scheme for Special Infrastructure (SIS) in Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected states during the 12th Plan period. The proposal includes an added objective of up gradation and critical gap filling of training infrastructure, residential infrastructure, weaponry, vehicles and any other related items pertaining to Special Forces of LWE affected states. The total cost would be 373 crore rupees comprising 280 crore rupees as central government share and 93 crore rupees as state government share on a 75 (central): 25 (state) funding pattern. The scheme will enhance the security in the region which would provide an enabling environment for development. The scheme was being implemented from the year 2008-09 with the broad objective to adequately provide for critical infrastructure requirements that are critical to the policing and security needs in the field, but are not adequately or otherwise provided for in any other scheme. During the 11th Plan period 100 percent funding was provided by the Central Government to the 9 LWE affected states for implementing various projects under the scheme. The total funds were released under the scheme by the central government to the 9 LWE affected states during the 11th Plan period is 445.82 crore rupees.

April 2013 Science & Technology ::.

The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the 14 mega watt Solar Power project and laid Foundation Stones for Pilgrim Queue Complex and Deoghar Basukinath 44 kilo meter Solar Street Light Project at Deoghar, Jharkhand on April 30, 2013. Speaking on the occasion the President said that he is hopeful of these initiatives contributing to the overall growth of Deoghar and helping in setting high standards for pilgrimage management. He also commended the government authorities and local MPs for having taken the initiative

to establish the high technology solar lighting project. An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team on 22 April, said Japan may need longer than the projected 40 years to decommission its tsunami-crippled nuclear plant and urged its operator to improve plant stability. The head of the team, Juan Carlos Lentijo, said on 22 April that damage at the Fukushima Daiichi plant is so complex that it is impossible to predict how long the cleanup may last. The government and plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. (Tepco) have predicted the cleanup would take up to 40 years. They still have to develop technology and equipment that can operate under fatally high radiation levels to locate and remove melted fuel. The reactors must be kept cool and the plant must stay safe and stable, and those efforts to ensure safety could slow the process down. Recent problems have raised concerns about whether the plant, crippled by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, can stay intact throughout a decommissioning process. They have also prompted officials to compile risk-reduction measures and review decommissioning plans. Mr. Lentijo, an expert on nuclear fuel cycles and waste technology, warned of more problems to come. The IAEA team urged the plant operator to improve the reliability of essential systems to assess the structural integrity of site facilities, and to enhance protection against external hazards and promptly replace temporary equipment with a more reliable, permanent system. Indian Coast Guard Ship H-191, the fifth of the series of twelve Air Cushion Vehicles (ACVs) was commissioned at Mumbai by Director General Indian Coast Guard Vice Admiral Anurag G Thapliyal on 10 april. The 21 metres long Air Cushion Vehicle with 31 tonnes displacement can achieve a maximum speed of 45 knots. The ACV is capable of undertaking multi-farious tasks such as surveillance, interdiction, search and rescue and rendering assistance to small boats/craft in distress at sea. The Air Cushion Vehicle H-191 will be based at Okha under the Administrative and Operational Control of the Commander Coast Guard Region (North-West). The hovercraft is commanded by Commandant IJ Singh and has a crew of two Officers and eleven Enrolled Personnel. The commissioning ceremony was witnessed by Inspector General SPS Basra, Commander Coast Guard Region (West) and other dignitaries from Central and State Government.

A plan by California and Canadian universities to build the world's largest telescope at the summit of Hawaii's Mauna Kea volcano received approval from the state Board of Land and Natural Resources on 12 April. The decision clears the way for the group managing the Thirty Meter Telescope project to negotiate a sublease for land with the University of Hawaii. The telescope would be able to observe planets that orbit stars other than the sun and enable astronomers to watch new planets and stars being formed. It should also help scientists see some 13 billion light years away for a glimpse into the early years of the universe. The telescope's segmented primary mirror, which is nearly 100 feet - or 30 meters - long, will give it nine times the collecting area of the largest optical telescopes in use today. Its images will also be three times sharper. Some Native Hawaiian groups had petitioned against the project, arguing that it would defile the mountain's sacred summit. Native Hawaiian tradition holds that high altitudes are sacred and are a gateway to heaven. In the past, only high chiefs and priests were allowed at Mauna Kea's summit. The mountain is home to one confirmed burial site and perhaps four more. Environmentalists also petitioned to stop the telescope on the grounds it would harm habitat for the rare wekiu bug. The University of California system, the Association of Canadian Universities and the California Institute of Technology for Research in Astronomy are leading the telescope project. India, China and Japan have joined the project as partners.

Indian researchers claim to have developed "world's smallest antenna Researchers on 7 April claimed to have invented the world's smallest super compact ultra-wideband (UWB) planar antenna that can find application in homes and the military among other domains. Academician Professor Srikanta Pal, who is with the Birla Institute of Technology in Mesra, and his research scholar Mrinmoy Chakraborty have developed the antenna. "Our antenna is the world's smallest at 14 mm X 11 mm, with much more than a 10:1 bandwidth," Chakraborty, a PhD student with BIT-Mesra, said. The UWB technology brings mobility of wireless communications with high data rates, they said, adding that the technology was designed for short range, wireless personal area networks (WPANs), with the objective of freeing people from wires. The antenna is cheap and their goal was to reduce the size so that it can be pasted on any curved surface."The material used for this design is fibre reinforced plastics, which is

less expensive. The fabrication process is simple wet chemical etching method," Pal, who is a Honorary Research Fellow at the Birmingham University in UK from 20102014 for his work in radio astronomy, said. Scientists designed new Adaptive Material inspired by Human Tear -A team of US scientists on 8 April 2013 designed a new adaptive material inspired by human tears. The new material was inspired by dynamic, self-restoring systems in Nature, such as the liquid film that coats our eyes. Individual tears join up to form a dynamic liquid film with an obviously significant optical function that maintains clarity, while keeping the eye moist, protecting it against dust and bacteria, and helping to transport away any wastes -- doing all of this and more in literally the blink of an eye. The bioinspired material is a continuous liquid film that coats, and is infused in, an elastic porous substrate, which is what makes it so versatile. With this design architecture in place, the team has thus far demonstrated the ability to dynamically control, with great precision, two key functions: transparency and wettability. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis have identified a new set of genetic markers for Alzheimer's that point to a second pathway through which the disease develops . Much of the genetic research on Alzheimer's centers on amyloid-beta, a key component of brain plaques that build up in the brains of people with the disease In the new study, the scientists identified several genes linked to the tau protein, which is found in the tangles that develop in the brain as Alzheimer's progresses and patients develop dementia. The findings may help provide targets for a different class of drugs that could be used for treatment. "We measured the tau protein in the cerebrospinal fluid and identified several genes that are related to high levels of tau and also affect risk for Alzheimer's disease," says senior investigator Dr Alison M Goate, the Samuel and Mae S. Ludwig Professor of Genetics in Psychiatry. US government on 3 April 2013 announced a new research initiative called Brain (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative

Neurotechnologies) which is designed to revolutionize the understanding of the human brain. Indian born Arati Prabhakar, director of the Defense

Advanced Research Projects Agency, which pioneered the Internet, is among that leading themulti- agency project. Launched with approximately 100 million US dollars in the President's Fiscal Year 2014 Budget, the BRAIN initiative ultimately aims to help researchers find new ways to treat, cure, and even prevent brain disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy, and traumatic brain injury. The BRAIN Initiative will accelerate the development and application of new technologies that will enable researchers to produce dynamic pictures of the brain that show how individual brain cells and complex neural circuits interact at the speed of thought. The scientists possess the capability to study individual neurons and figure out the main functions of certain areas of the brain, but a human brain contains almost a hundred billion neurons making trillions of connections. The medium range nuclear capable Agni-II missile was on 7 April 2013 successfully test-fired with a strike range of more than 2000 km from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. The two-stage missile equipped with advanced high accuracy navigation system, guided by a novel scheme of state of the earth command and control system was propelled by solid rocket propellant system. The 20-metre long Agni-II is a two-stage, solid-propelled ballistic missile. It has a launch weight of 17 tones and can carry a payload of 1000 kg over a distance of 2000 km. The state-of-the-art Agni-II missile was developed by Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL) and integrated by the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Hyderabad. Agni-II is part of the Agni series of missiles developed by DRDO which includes Agni-I with a 700 km range, Agni-III with a 3000 km range, Agni-IV with 4000 km range and Agni-V more than 5000 km range. A recent study conducted by Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich found out that the compounds (metabolites) which are found in the exhaled breath are as unique as the fingerprints of an individual. The metabolites have always been seen as the waste products of the chemistry of someones body, but the uniqueness of these metabolites was never shown. The study suggested that these metabolites could be very useful for the purpose of medical diagnosis, just like that found in the blood or urine. The breath test is said to be noninvasive and their results are also available instantly, which is why a breath test can be

convenient, especially for doping tests or anesthesia. The lead author of the study is Renato Zenobi. World health day was celebrated on 7 April 2013. The theme for 2013 was high blood pressure. This day marks the anniversary of the founding of WHO (World Health Organization) in 1948. Each year a theme is selected for World Health Day that highlights a priority area of public health concern in the world. High blood pressure also known as raised blood pressure or hypertension increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes and kidney failure. The ultimate goal of World Health Day 2013 is to reduce heart attacks and strokes. According to the World Health Organization, High Blood Pressure affects one in three adults worldwide and leads to more than nine million deaths globally every year. Central Medical Services Society (CMSS), a Central Procurement Agency of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has been registered under Societies Registration Act, 1860 on 22-03-2012. CMSS will be responsible for procuring health sector goods in a transparent and cost-effective manner and distributing them to the State/UT Governments by setting up IT enabled supply chain infrastructure including State warehouses in 50 locations. The main objective of CMSS will be to ensure uninterrupted supply of health sector goods to the State Governments. Rules and Regulations of CMSS have been framed. MoHFW is providing one time budgetary support of Rs.50 crores to enable establishment of CMSS.CMSS has been permitted to charge a service fee on the value of procurement to meet its operational expenses which should be well within an upper ceiling of 5% of the value of procurement. CMSS is being made operational shortly.

April 2013 Awards ::.

Jai Chandiram, the former Deputy Director-General of Doordarshan and renowned media person on 26 April 2013 was awarded with the lifetime achievement award by

the International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT). Jai Chandiram is known for the contributions that she made towards Womens Right .She was the first Asian President of the IAWRT. She was the Head of Department for television studies at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. She also was the Head of Department at Educational Media Production Center of Indira Gandhi National Open University (EMPC-IGNOU) Yash Chopra, Rajesh Khanna and Asha Bhosale are to be honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Awards 2013 to be given on 30 April 2013 at Bhaidas Auditorium in Mumbai. Asha Bhosle will be honoured with the Phalke Ratna Award for the contributions made by her in the field of music for over a period of five decades. Late Yash Chopra for his contributions to Indian Film Industry will be posthumously awarded with the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award. Pamela the wife of the iconic filmmaker Yash Chopra will receive the Saraswatibai Phalke Award. Rajesh Khanna will be honoured with the first superstar of Indian Cinema Award. Dada Saheb Phalke is known as the Father of Indian Cinema and was the first producer, director and screen-writer of India for the silver screen. His first film was Raja Harishchandra in 1913. The Dada Saheb Phalke Academy Awards are presented annually to celebrate the jayanti of Dada Saheb Phalke. On this occasion different people from Bollywood are honoured with trophies for their outstanding contribution to the Indian Film Industry. Legendary actor, Pran Krishan Sikand, 93, on 12 April 2013 was awarded with Bollywoods highest honour in Indian Cinema Dada Saheb Phalke Award 2012. He is the 44th Dada Saheb Phalke Award Winner. He gave a different and unique frame to the negative and character roles of Indian Cinema with his impressive performances. Pran served Bollywood for a career span of more than six decades in more than 350 films and is known for his brilliant performances in films like Ram Aur Shyam, Purab aur Paschim, Karz, Zanjeer and Amar Akbar Anthony and many more. In 2001 he was awarded with Indias third highest civilian award Padma Bhushan. In his career span, he received four film fare awards. In 2010 he was named among the Top 25 Asian Actors of All times by CNN. The award is conferred by the Government of India for outstanding contribution to the growth and development of

Indian Cinema. The award consists of a Swarn Kamal, a cash prize of Rs.10 lakhs and a shawl. NTPC has been awarded as Business Leader in the Power Sector at the NDTV Business Leadership Awards held in New Delhi on 9 april. The award was presented by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission of India in the presence of Dr Prannoy Roy to Arup Roy Choudhury, CMD, NTPC. Indias top business leaders were awarded on the occasion. Chairman of the Awards Jury of the ICSI (Institute of Company Secretaries of India) and former Chief Justice of India Justice M. N. Venkatachaliah in New Delhi on 5 April, presented the ICSI National Awards for Excellence in Corporate Governance -2012 to two Best Governed Companies:1) Indian Oil Corporation Limited; and 2) HCL Technologies Limited. The Awards were presented during the ongoing 2nd CSIA International Corporate Governance Conference. The Company Secretaries of the awardee companies, Raju Ranganathan, Company Secretary, Indian Oil Corporation Limited; and Manish Anand, Company Secretary, HCL Technologies Limited were also honored for their contribution in adhering to good corporate governance practices. ICSI Life Time Achievement Award for the year 2012 was presented to Deepak S. Parekh, Chairman, Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd for translating excellence in Corporate Governance into reality. In recognition of its strong fundamentals and dynamic growth model, J & K Bank won the prestigious FE (Financial Express) Indias Best Banks Award for 2012-13.It Ranked as No. 1 in Best Old Private Sector Bank category. It got 3rd in the overall banking industry in terms of Profitability and 1st in terms of Profitability in the category of Old private sector banks.

:: April 2013 Sports ::.

Haryana on 30 April 2013 defeated Railways 4-1 to win the third Hockey India Senior Women National Championship at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium in the Guru Gobind Singh Sports College, Lucknow.

However, Haryanaclinched the 3rd Hockey India Junior Women National Championshiptitle in the final match on 1 May 2013 in Astroturf Hockey Stadium in Ranchi. Haryana registered a 2-1 victory over Madhya Pradesh Hockey Academy. Jharkhand defeated Punjab 6-0 to claim the bronze medal. In a historic first, the World team badminton championship, for the Thomas Cup and Uber Cup, will be held in Delhi from May 18 to 25, 2014. The Badminton World Federation (BWF) formally entrusted the hosting of the prestigious championship to the Badminton Association of India (BAI), following the signing of an agreement between the two bodies on 25 April. Siri Fort Indoor Complex, New Delhi will be the venue for the event, to be contested every two years, to decide the worlds strongest mens and womens teams. India hosted the Thomas Cu p and Uber Cup preliminary stage matches in 1988, 2000 and 2006. It will be a big opportunity for BAI to showcase its organizing skills following the successful hosting of the 2009 World championship in Hyderabad and the annual India Open, a Super Series event on the BWF calendar, since 2011. Chris Gayle, the West Indies opener hit the fastest ever century in the history of cricket by reaching 100 in merely 30 balls during Royal Challengers Bangalore-Pune Warriors IPL match on 23 April 2013. Gayle scored a total run of 175 runs in merely 66 balls, which included 17 sixes and 13 boundaries. It is important to note that this is the most number of runs scored in any T20 innings. This was also his fourth century in the IPL career. Jamaican Chris Gayle also became the highest-ever individual scorer in a T20 game, beating Kolkata Knight Riders' Brendon McCullum who had hit 158 off 73 balls against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Pakistans Shahid Afridi holds the record of fastest century in ODI (37 balls) and Viv Richards is the record-holders for fastest century (56 balls) in the Test cricket history. At the final round of ASBC Asian Confederation Junior Boxing Championships in Kazakhstan, Prayag Chauhan defeated Azat Ilyubayev in the lightweight category (60kg) on 22 April 2013 to win a gold medal. In an overall performance, India stood at

the third position in team rankings. The Indian boxers completed Asian meet with three bronze and one gold medal. Prayag Chauhan, 16, won the match in 60 kg category. On the other hand, the sub-junior national champion Aditya Maan (66kg) grabbed bronze medal at the Asian Championships. He lost to Uzbek boxer, Merjanev Eldar. Pradeep (63 kg) finished the tournament with third position. He lost to Kazakhstans Stolbovskiy Vladislav in semi-finals. Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravichandran Ashwin are the only two Indian Cricketers to figure out among the top-10 in the latest ICC Test Rankings in batting and bowling respectively released on 21 April 2013. Pujara with 777 ranking points retained his position at number seven in the batting chart of the ICC rankings released. Ashwin was static at the sixth position in the list of top ten bowlers with 757 points. Hashim Amla, the South African batsman was listed as the top ranking batsman in the list and is followed by Shivnarine Chanderpaul of West Indies and A B de Villiers of South Africa. While in the rankings of bowlers, Dale Steyn, the South African pace spearhead was ranked as the best bowler with 905 ranking points. Dale Steyn is followed by his teammate Vernon Philander and Sri Lanka's Rangana Herath. In context of the testplaying all-rounders there was no change in the ranking. Jacques Kallis of South Africa remained at first position and is followed by Shakib. The gap between the points of these two increased by 35 points. The Captain of Zimbabwe, Brendan Taylor earned his career best 29th position in the rankings with his undefeated feat of 171 and 102 not out against Bangladesh. He jumped 49 positions to grab this position. In the 27th edition of North-East Games played at Imphal, the host stateManipur claimed the title of overall team champion on 11 April 2013. The North-East Games were played from 8 April 2013 to 11 April 2013. The North-East games included eight states. These games also include Sikkim. Manipur emerged as overall champion with the medal tally of 127. This included 74 gold, 31 silver and 22 bronze. Assam came at the second place with 101 medals which included 31 gold, 30 silver and 40 bronze. Mizoram was at the third place with 72 medals including 20 gold, 19 silver and 33 bronze. Nagaland finished at fourth position with 49 medals and Arunachal Pradesh got 45 medals. At the lowest rank were Meghalaya with 37 medals, Tripura with 36 medals and Sikkim 11 medals. North East Games

were earlier known as North East Sports Festival. The North East Games were started with an aim of promoting the sports and games in the North East region. First edition of North East Games was held in Imphal in 1986-87. Indian cricket Women made a clean sweep in the three-match One Day International Cricket Series, 2012/13 against Bangladesh on 12 April 2013 after winning the third and the final match at Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad. India defeated Bangladesh by 58 runs in the third match. Before the ODI series, the Indian women also made a clean sweep T20 international series against Bangladesh Women with 3-0 on 5 April 2013. Hockey India on 9 April 2013 announced its High Performance and Development Committee for 2013-14. The 15 member committee will be headed by Dr Narinder Batra Secretary General of Hockey India and High Performance Director, Hockey India Roelant Oltmans will be the Vice-Chairman. The committee has Ajit Pal Singh (former Captain of 1975 World Cup winning team), Col. Balbir Singh (former Olympian and National Selector), Dilip Tirkey (former Captain and Member Rajya Sabha), Sukhvir Singh Grewal, Thoiba Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Dr RP Singh, Surinder Kaur, Saba Anjum, Michael Nobbs (Chief Coach, National Senior Men Hockey Team), Neil Hawgood (Chief Coach, National Senior Women Hockey Team) and Gregg Clark (Coach, National Junior Men Hockey Team) as its members. Ms Elena Norman, CEO, Hockey India will be the Convener of this Committee. The Sports Authority of India will be the Invitee Members of this Committee. This committee will work on the high performance and development of hockey at grass root level in the country. Committee will prepare blueprints and ensures that same pattern of coaching will be followed in the country at all levels. Since the appointment of Roelant Oltmans as Director, High Performance by Hockey India it was a necessary step to form this Committee so as to ensure that the game of hockey progresses in the country at all levels. The Committee will meet quarterly to discuss the progress and share new ideas. Adam Scott of Australia won the Augusta Masters Golf championship on 14 April 2013. He beat Angel Cabrera in the play-off for the title. It was his maiden major

title. He became the first Australian to win Augusta Masters. Australian Jason Day, runner up with Scott in 2011, was third at seven under with Tiger Woods (70) and another Australian Marc Leishman (72) tied for fourth at five under.Adam Scott is 32 years old. He turned professional in 2000. His ranking at present is 7. He has 9 US PGA tour wins and an equal number of European PGA tour wins to his credit. The Indian Tennis Players Association (ITPA) Secretary, Karti P Chidambaram on 14 April 2013 announced that the tennis star player, Sania Mirza became one of the Vice-Presidents of ITPA. Sania Mirza now became one of the four Vice-Presidents of Indian Tennis Players Association, which is a newly-formed body. Other three Vice-Presidents of the body are Somdev Devvarman, Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes. Former Davis Cup captain Jaideep Mukherjea is the President of the Association. Sania Mirza is the first female player from India who won a Grand Slam. She now plays in doubles only. India won a 5-0 victory against Indonesia in the Asia-Oceania Group I Davis Cup relegation play-off tie in Bangalore on 7 April 2013 as Somdev Devvarman and Yuki Bhambri posted straight-set wins in their respective reverse singles.Somdev defeated David Agung Susant with 6-3 6-1, while Yuki Bhambari registered a thumping 6-0 6-1 victory over Wisnu Adi Nugroho. India stay in Asia Oceania Group-I and will strive to qualify for the World Group in 2014. India had already retained their place in the group, after they took a lead of 3-0 on 6 April 2013. Reigning world champion Rupesh Shah added another feather in his cap by clinching the 12th Asian Billiards championship with win over compatriot Alok Kumar in the fiercely fought final, held in Indore on 7 April. Rupesh Shah finished at 101, 95 and 100 to defeat Alok Kumar. This is India's 10th Asian Billiards title and Rupesh is new entrant in this elite club. He follows previous champions Geet Sethi, Ashok Shandilya, Devendra Joshi,Pankaj Adwani and Alok Kumar.

April 2013 Persons ::.

Dr. Christopher Briggs: Briggs was announced the Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention. He will be the fifth Secretary General to the Convention and will succeed Mr Tiga Anada who has served the Convention for the past six years. Dr Briggs appointment was approved by the Ramsar Standing Committee during its 46th meeting held in Gland, Switzerland from 8-12 April 2013. The Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), called the Ramsar Conventionis an

intergovernmental treaty that embodies the commitments of its member countries to maintain the ecological character of their Wetlands of International Importance and to plan for the wise use, or sustainable use, of all of the wetlands in their territories. 68 Years old American Journalist and feminist Mary Thom, was died on 29 April 2013 in a motorcycle accident in Yonkers in the state of New York. Mary Thom had taken her 1996 Honda Magna 750 when she Turn sharply and change direction abruptly into traffic while entering a Yonkers highway, striking a vehicle and then being struck by another. She was a former editor of Ms. Magazine. She devoted her career to giving voice to women's rights issues in books, magazine columns and through her work within the women's movement. She wrote a book about working her way from an entry-level research position to executive editor in "Inside Ms.: 25 Years of the Magazine and the Feminist Movement. Thom was an avid motorcycle enthusiast who never owned a car and had been riding for four decades. She was a top editor at the Women's Media Center at the time of her death. Takehiko Nakao (57) - Takehiko Nakao, on 27 April 2013 was appointed as the President of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) by the Board of Governors at New Delhi. He succeeded Haruhiko Kuroda, who resigned from his office in March 2013 to take up an assignment as the Governor of the Bank of Japan. Nakao is the former Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs of Japan. He will be the ninth President and will assume the charge of his office on 28 April 2013. He is appointed to complete the unexpired term of his predecessor that is supposed to end in November 2016. N. Ravi---The director of Kasturi and Sons Limited as well as the former Editor of The Hindu was unanimously elected as the president of Editors Guild of India on 23 April 2013 at the annual general meeting of the Guild in New Delhi. He succeeded T.N.

Ninan, the chairman and editorial director of Business Standard. He will be serving two-year term as the President of the Guild.He served as Editor-in-chief of The Hindu from 1991 to 2003. Editors Guild of India is the organization of the editors of various magazines and newspapers of India. Justice JS Verma (80)----- The former Chief Justice of India, died on 22 April 2013 in New Delhi after multiple organ failure. He was the 27th Chief Justice of India on 25 March 1997 and retired on 18 January 1998.Justice Verma chaired the committee that was constituted by the Government of India to frame a tougher law to combat crimes against women, in the wake of the 16 December 2012 Delhi gang rape incident in the moving bus. He served as the Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission. He served as the first Chairperson of the News Broadcasters Standards Authority. Lalgudi Jayaraman(82)---- Renowned violinist and composer, died in Chennai on 22 April 2013 because of illness. He is known for introduction of new concepts of musical ensembles using veena, flute and violin in 1960s.He was also a Padma Bhushan awardee in 2001. In 1963, he earned the title of Nada Vidya Tilaka by the Music Lovers Association of Lalgudi. He won the Padma Shri in 1972. In the year 2010, he became the fellow of the Sangeet Natak Akademi. He received the first Chowdaiah Memorial National-Level award by the Chief Minister of Karnataka. In 1994, he received the honorary citizenship of Maryland, US. He won National Film Award for Best Music Direction for film titled Sringaram in 2006. Shamshad Begum (94) -- Legendary singer, died on 23 April 2013 in Mumbai due to illness. She was one of the first few playback singers of the Hindi film industry. Some of her popular Hindi songs include Kabhi Aar Kabhi Paar, Kajra Mohabbat Wala and Mere Piya Gaye Rangoon. Shamshad Begum started her singing career in early thirties. She was among the most sought-after female playback singers of 40s. She sang in various languages such as Tamil, Punjabi, Gujarati, Marathi and Bengali apart from Hindi in multi-lingual song Ye Duniya Roop Ki Chor. She was conferred with the O P Nayyar award for contribution to Hindi film music, in the year 2009. In 2009 again, she was conferred with the third-highest civilian honour of India, Padma

Bhushan. Anil Goswamy----The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Anil Goswami, Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as Home Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs for a period of two years from the date of taking over the charge of Home Secretary, vice Raj Kumar Singh. Anil Goswami, is appointed as OSD in the Ministry of Home Affairs in the rank and pay of Secretary with immediate effect and till the date of his assumption of charge as Home Secretary. Krishnakumar Natarajan---K.Natarajan, CEO and Director of Mindtree on 8 April 2013 was appointed as the Chairman of Nasscom for the year 2013-14. He succeeded N Chandrasekaran, MD and CEO of TCS, who was the Chairman for the year 2012-13. R. Chandrasekaran, Cognizant Group Chief Executive (Technology & Operations) was appointed as the Vice Chairman of the Executive Council. NASSCOM Foundation is a non-profit organization that represents the Indian IT BPO industry and it played a leading role in developing the Indian IT-BPO industry to reach mark of 100 billion dollar industry. P.J.Kurien----Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, on 11 April 2013 was

unanimously elected as the Chairman of the prestigious Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) during the 73rd Executive Committee Meeting of AFPPD at Bangkok. He replaced Yasuo Fukuda, former Prime Minister of Japan as the Chairman of AFPPD. PJ Kurien at present is also the Chairman of the Indian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development.

AFPPD was established in 1981 is a regional non-governmental organization to serve as a coordinating body of twenty five National Committees of Parliamentarians on Population and Development. It seeks to generate cooperation and support among the Asian Parliamentarians in different areas like population and Development. Dr Hilary Koprowski(96)----A Polish researcher who developed the first successful oral vaccination for polio died on 11 April 2013 in Philadelphia.

Koprowski developed an oral vaccine using the live polio virus that was first used on humans in 1950.Hilary Koprowski remained the President of Biotechnology Foundation Laboratories, Inc. as well as the Head of the Center for Neurovirology at Thomas Jefferson University. He also served as the consultant to the World Health Organization and also Pan American Health Organization. In 1995, Hilary Koprowski was given the title of Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland by the President of Finland. In 1997, he won the Legion d'Honneur from the French government. In 1998, he won the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of Poland. Robert Edwards (87) --- The British Nobel Laureate who pioneered the development of in vitro fertilization (IVF ) that led to the birth of the worlds first test tube baby , died in London, on 9 April, after a long illness. Sir Robert, who founded the worlds first IVF clinic at Bourn Hall in Cambridge in 1980 and developed IVF with Dr. Patrick Steptoe, started work on fertilization in the 1950s. The first test tube baby, Louise Brown, was born in July 1978 at Oldham General Hospital. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine in 2010 and knighted a year later in recognition of his contribution to science. R.P. Goenka (83)---- Rama Prasad Goenka, one of the countrys biggest industrialists and the architect of RPG Enterprises, died at his Kolkata residence on 14 april. Known as Indias top takeover specialist, Goenka had served as a Rajya Sabha member, was once president of Ficci and chairman of IITKharagpur board of governors. He was twice awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure by Japans Emperor.He established RPG Enterprises in 1979, largely with inherited companies like Phillips Carbon Black, Asian Cables, Agarpara Jute Mill and Murphy India. He took up Ceat Tyres of India in 1981, then KEC in 1982, Searle India (now RPG Life Sciences) in 1983, Dunlop in 1984 and Gramophone Company of India (now Saregama India) in 1986. In 1989, Goenka took control of four new companies CESC, Harrisons Malayalam, Spencer & Co and ICIM in 1989. His last major acquisition was Calcutta Electric Supply Corp. in 1989, which has since been renamed CESC. Under a succession plan, his business empire was split between Harsh (chairman of RPG Enterprises) and Sanjiv (chairman of RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group) in 2011. But he remained chairman emeritus of both groups.

Professor Bratindra Nath Mukherjee(79) -- The renowned historian, Padma Shri Awardee, and an epigraphy expert died at his residence in Kolkata on 4 April 2013. He deciphered several ancient scripts; He authored more than 50 books and wrote about 700 articles in different national and international journals. Few of his famous books were Greek and Aramaic Edicts of Ashoka, Rise of Kushan Empire and a book on coins of the country named Indian Gold. He was among few of the scholars from India, who knew Central Asian Lanuages like Sogdian (an Eastern-Iranian language at present Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), Brahmi, Shell and Kharoshti .He was a numismatist and wrote two volumes on it named Coins of Bengal and Numismatic Art of India. He served as the Professor in the Department of Ancient Indian History and Culture, University of Calcutta.

S. Gopalakrishnan-- The co-founder and Executive Co-Chairman of Infosys, on 5 April 2013 was elected as the President of the industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for the year 2013-14. He is succeeding Adi Godrej, Chairman of the Godrej Group. S Gopalakrishnan, who is also a Padma Bhushan recipient, Gopalakrishnan was in recent times was voted as the top CEO (IT services category) in Institutional Investor's inaugural ranking of Asia's Top Executives, and was selected as one of the winners of the second Asian Corporate Director Recognition Awards by Corporate Governance Asia.

Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy --- Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy of Indian Navy, who on 6 April 2013 became the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe, solo and nonstop, in a sail boat over a 150-day voyage. This voyage of Lt Cdr Tony placed India in the list of few selected nations, whose citizens were successful in completion of such an arduous voyage. The voyage of Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy ended at the Gateway of India. He started his voyage across the oceans of the world from the same place from in his boat INSV Mhadei on 1 November 2012. The Voyage was conducted under the Sagar Parikrama Project, which was sanctioned by Pranab Mukherjee, when he was the Defence Minister of India. With this achievement Tony turned up to be the first Indian and second Asian to complete such a voyage. At present there are less than 80 people across the world in the list of people who have completed such a voyage. INSV Mhadei is a custom-built boat of Indian Navy that was designed

in the year 2009 and in a period of four years, the boat undertook its second solo circumnavigation trip. National Stock Exchange is set to have a new chief when Chitra Ramkrishna will take over as Managing Director and CEO and join the select league of women leaders at the helm of affairs of leading stock exchanges of the world. The 49-year old Ms Ramkrishna, who was part of the leadership team that helped set up the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in early 90s, would be only the third person to head the bourse in its entire history of about two decades. As MD and CEO of the NSE, Ms Ramkrishna succeeds Ravi Narain who would assume the role of nonexecutive Vice Chairman with effect from April 1, 2013, after serving in various leadership roles at the exchange since its inception. Mr Narain had served as Deputy Managing Director of NSE in its first six years and as MD and CEO thereafter. Mr Narain had succeeded R H Patil, who was the first chief of NSE. In November 2012, the board of directors of NSE decided to elevate Mr Ramkrishna, then its Joint MD, as Managing Director and CEO with effect from April 1, 2013. Narendra Kumar Verma on 4 April 2013 was appointed as the new director of the state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corps (ONGC) Exploration. 54 year old Narendra Kumar Verma would be replacing S.V. Rao, who term super-annuated on 31 March 2013.As Director-Exploration at OVL,

Responsibility of N.K. Verma is to look for development and implementation of exploration strategy and Business Development for past 15 months. Narendra Kumar Verma is an M.Sc in Geology and an M.Tech Gold Medalist in Petroleum Exploration. Narendra Kumar Verma will be the 11th Director (Exploration) in the worlds number 3 exploration and Production Company. He also holds an MBA (Finance) degree and has 30 years of experience in oil and gas industry. Prior to becoming Director (Exploration) in ONGC, Verma was Director (Exploration) in the firms overseas arm, ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL). He has published more than 20 technical papers and 40 technical reports. American film critic Roger Ebert died after a long battle with cancer in Chicago on 4 April. He was 70. He was found to be suffering from thyroid cancer in 2002, losing his jaw and his ability to speak in a subsequent surgery. But he later resumed

writing full-time and also returned to TV, the BBC reported. Ebert, known for his thumbs-up or down reviews on a TV programme with partner and friend Gene Siskel, became a film critic for the Chicago Sun-Times in 1967 and later became the first person to win the Pulitzer Prize for criticism. His columns were syndicated in hundreds of newspapers worldwide. On 2 April, Ebert had written on his popular blog that he was facing a fresh bout with cancer and was taking a "leave of presence," writing fewer reviews. He had suffered a hip fracture in December, which he said "had recently been revealed to be a cancer."He wrote that the disease was being treated with radiation, which had also made it impossible for him to attend as many movies as he used to.