11-12 feb 2015 eng

11 feb

Union Government approved increase of authorised Share Capital of NMDFC

Union Government on 10 February 2015 approved a proposal to increase the authorised Share Capital of the National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) to 3000 crore rupees from 1500 crore rupees. NMDFC works for welfare of minorities. 

The decision was taken in a Union Cabinet meet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Aart from this, the Cabinet also gave approval to revise the shareholding pattern to 73:26:1 from 65:26:9 among the Centre, States/Union Territories and individuals/institutions, respectively. Further, approval was also given for restructuring of the NMFDC's business model.

The decision will enlarge the quantum of funds available for economic activities, better coverage and enhanced outreach.

This Enhancement of share capital would expand its ambit of coverage and increase disbursement of funds to larger sections of the economically deprived minority population. The target of NMDFC for the year 2014-15 is to cover 97000 beneficiaries.

National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC)
NMDFC is a Central Sector Public Enterprise (CPSE) in the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs. It was established on 30 September 1994 as a non-profit making company under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956. It was constituted with an aim to provide economic assistance to the poorer sections of notified Minority Communities in the country. 

NMDFC implements its schemes through 37 State Channelizing Agencies in 29 States/UTs, NMDFC will tie up with the Nodal Bank wherever required to enhance its outreach.

Japanese industrial designer Kenji Ekuan died

Japanese industrial designer Kenji Ekuan died on 8 February 2015 following the heart failure in Tokyo, Japan. He was 85.

Ekuan was famously known for crafting a tabletop bottle for Kikkoman Corporation in 1961, winning international popularity both for the handy, flask-shaped dispenser. 

Ekuan was a widely lauded designer whose work shaped products closely associated with modern Japan, including Yamaha motorcycles and a bullet train used in the country’s Shinkansen high-speed rail network.

Kenji Ekuan
• Born in Tokyo in 1929, Kenji Ekuan graduated from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1955.
• In 1957, he established the firm GK Industrial Design Associates and took the office as President of the firm.
• Kenji Ekuan crafted a red-capped and elegantly teardrop-shaped soy sauce bottle for Kikkoman Corporation in 1961.
• Other of his renowned works include the Yamaha VMAX motorcycle, the Komachi bullet train connecting Tokyo and northern Japan, the Narita Express airport liner as well as audio equipment and company logos.
• He had been honoured with various awards for his work including the Award for contributions to Design Promotion in 1992, The Order of the Rising Sun in 2000, Lifetime Achievement Award by Hong Kong Design Centre, 2010.
• In 2014, Ekuan received a prestigious Italian industrial design prize, the Golden Compass Award.

Earth's inner core has an inner core of its own: Study

A new study revealed that the Earth's inner core has an inner core of its own, which has surprising properties that can reveal information about Earth.

The findings of the study titled Equatorial anisotropy in the inner part of Earth’s inner core from autocorrelation of earthquake coda were published in the journal Nature Geoscience on 9 February 2015.

The study was conducted by a research team led by Xiaodong Song at the University of Illinois and colleagues at Nanjing University in China with the novel application of earthquake-reading technology.

Study Process
Researchers used seismic waves from earthquakes to scan the planet's surface. The team used a technology that gathers data not from the initial shock of an earthquake, but from the Seismic Waves that resonate in the earthquake's aftermath. 

The echo of seismic waves bounces around the planet after an earthquake to build up a picture of the Earth's interior.

The arrays of sensors in locations around the world including Venezuela and southeast China allowed the scientists to measure delays in the time it took for these waves to travel through the planet.

Findings of the study
• The scientists discovered that seismic waves that passed through the very centre of the planet showed interference very different from those that travelled through the rest of the core.
• Looking through the core revealed a surprise at the center of the Earth. The inner core, once thought to be a solid ball of iron, has some complex structural properties. 
• The team found a distinct inner-inner core is about half the diameter of the whole inner core. 
• The iron crystals in the outer layer of the inner core are aligned directionally, north-south. However, in the inner-inner core, the iron crystals point roughly east-west.
• Not only are the iron crystals in the inner-inner core are aligned differently, they also behave differently from their counterparts in the outer-inner core.

ICICI Bank launched India's first digital bank, Pockets

ICICI Bank on 10 February 2015 launched India’s first digital Bank on mobile phone, Pockets. This digital e-wallet can be downloaded from Google Playstore. 

Pockets, the digital e-wallet uses a virtual VISA card that enables the users to transact on any website or mobile application in India.

Features of Pockets
• Users can fund it from any bank account across India and start transacting immediately. It requires no documentation or branch visit
• Users can also choose to add a zero balance Savings Account to the wallet, which will allow them to earn interest on their idle money
• The e-wallet of Pockets is India’s most comprehensive wallet which can be used to pay on all websites and mobile apps in the country
• This e-wallet allows users to instantly send/request money to/from any e-mail id, mobile number, friends on Facebook and bank account
• This e-wallet allows a person to pay bills, recharge mobiles, book movie tickets order food, send physical & e-gifts, split and share expenses with friends by using this e-wallet

About ICICI Bank Ltd
ICICI Bank is India’s largest private sector bank and has 2.8 million mobile bank customers. The bank has consolidated total assets of 124.76 billion US dollar on 31 March 2014. ICICI Bank's presence currently spans 18 countries, including India.

Facebook, Reliance Communications Ltd tied up to provide free Internet access to people

Reliance Communications Limited (RCOM) on 10 February 2015 tied-up with social networking giant Facebook to offer free internet access to people in India through the Facebook's initiative, Internet.org.

Both the companies jointly launched Internet.org with an aim to bring the power of Internet to a billion people in India in order to increase internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online.

The Internet.org initiative will provide access to popular websites and services with zero data charge to make it easier for people to access the Internet across both the 2G and 3G platforms.

Highlights of the tie-up
• As part of this initiative, RCOM will offer free data access to 33 popular websites for all its customers under the umbrella of Internet.org. The free websites include Facebook, OLX, Cleartrip, TimesJobs, Babajob, Jagran Josh, ESPN Cricinfo, etc.
• Most of the services of 33 popular websites will be available in several Indian languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati and Marathi.
• All the subscriber of RCOM who have internet enabled mobile phones will get access to this free service.
• Android based app of Internet.org on smartphones will be also provided for accessing free internet. India will be the first country in Asia to get this app.
• In the first phase, this service will be available in RCOM’s 7 circles which include Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Chennai and Kerala. 
• In the second phase, this service will be launched in pan India by May 2015.

Sanjay Mathur resigned as VP, Global Technology Centres, Asia Pacific at Cisco Systems

Sanjay Mathur resigned as Vice-President of Global Technology Centres, Asia Pacific at Cisco Systems in the first week of February 2015.

He was leading a team of 700 engineers and managed the Cisco Technical Assistance Centres in Bengaluru and Sydney, since August 2011. He left Oracle and joined Cisco in October 2010 as VP - Technical Services, Emerging Markets and was responsible for technical support delivery to Latin America, West Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and Russia. 

Over the last six months, Cisco has seen the exit of several senior executives.

The development comes three months after Cisco suffered losses in its upper echelons with the exit of Rajesh Rege, who was Country Head of Cisco’s Data Centre & Cloud Business for India and SAARC and Aravind Sitaraman, President – Inclusive Growth, a Cisco veteran who ended his 18 year stint with the company.

While, Rege joined Red Hat India as its Managing Director, Sitaraman is working with start-ups in Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad, advising them on technology strategy.

Fragile Frontiers: The Secret History of Mumbai Terror Attacks written by SK Rath

Fragile Frontiers: The Secret History of Mumbai Terror Attacks: Saroj Kumar Rath

The book Fragile Frontiers: The Secret History of Mumbai Terror Attacks was written by SK Rath. The book was published by Routledge, London and simultaneously published in India and the United States in August 2014.

The book is about terrorism in South Asia, centering on the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

This book is a hitherto neglected, intriguing and analytical description of terrorism in South Asia, centering on the diabolic Mumbai Attacks conspiracy of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence; the duplicitous terror policy of the United States; and the lackadaisically self-inflicted capitulation of the Indian State.

The author, Saroj Kumar Rath is Assistant Professor of History, Department of History, Sri Aurobindo College (Eve), University of Delhi, India.

US closed its embassy in Yemen

The State Department of the United States on 10 February 2015 confirmed that it has closed its Embassy in Yemen and evacuated its staff due to the ongoing political instability and the uncertain security situation.

Yemen has been in crisis for months, with Houthi fighters besieging the capital Sanaa and then taking control of the state.

After years of crisis, Yemen conflicts grown into a full-blown civil war. The conflicts are of regional, political, tribal and sectarian rivals against each other. 

Yemen is home to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, one of the most active branches of the global Sunni Islamist group. Moreover, Yemen shares a long border with top global oil exporter Saudi Arabia.

The U.S. Embassy in Yemen is the third in an Arab country that has closed since the turmoil of the Arab Spring began in December 2010. The other two were in Damascus, Syria, which was closed in Feb 2012, and Tripoli, Libya, which was closed in July 2014.

The embassy in Yemen was operating with only a small portion of its usual diplomatic staff and had closed to the public for all but emergency services in January 2015. It had been operating with reduced manpower since September 2014, when the State Department ordered all nonessential personnel to leave the country.

Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards conferred by Thaawar Chand Gehlot

The Union Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment, Thaawar Chand Gehlot on 11 February 2015 distributed the Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards. The awards were given away to 84 Students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes category. 

The awards were given to Meritorious Students of Secondary and Sr. Secondary School 2014 conducted by State/Central Education Boards/Councils under Dr. Ambedkar National Merit Awards.

Ambedkar National Merit Award 
These Ambedkar National Merit awards are presented by Dr. Ambedkar Foundation, an autonomous organization under the aegis of Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment in 1992. The awards are given to recognize and encourage three meritorious students belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes who scores highest marks in the Secondary and Sr. Secondary examinations conducted by all the State Education Boards and Councils. In case none of the first three eligible students are girls, the girl students scoring the highest marks are given special award. The award carries a citation and cash award.

Delhi Legislative Assembly elections 2015 results declared

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on 10 February 2015 declared the results of Delhi Legislative Assembly Elections 2015.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) headed by Arvind Kejriwal secured absolute majority in the assembly by winning 67 seats in the house of 70 seats.

2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly elections results
• Aam Aadmi Party (AAP): Won 67 seats with vote share of 54.3 percent. With this, AAP became the first party in Delhi to win with 67 seats in the history of Delhi assembly elections.
• Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): Won 3 seats with vote share of 32.3 percent.
• Indian National Congress (INC), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP),  Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD),  Indian National Lok Dal and Independents did not win any seat with vote share of 9.7 percent, 1.3 percent, 0.5 percent, 0.6 percent, 0.5 percent respectively.
• There were 35924 people (0.4 percent voters) who went for NOTA button.

Constituency Wise Results

Constituency	MLA	Party
Adarsh Nagar	Pawan Kumar Sharma	AAP
Ambedkar Nagar	Ajay Dutt	AAP
Babarpur	Gopal Rai	AAP
Badarpur	Narayan Dutt Sharma	AAP
Badli	Ajesh Yadav	AAP
Ballimaran	Imran Hussain	AAP
Bawana	Ved Parkash	AAP
Bijwasan	Col Devinder Sehrawat	AAP
Burari	Sanjeev Jha	AAP
Chandni Chowk	Alka Lamba	AAP
Chhatarpur	Kartar Singh Tanwar	AAP
Delhi Cantt	Surender Singh	AAP
Deoli	Prakash	AAP
Dwarka	Adarsh Shastri	AAP
Gandhi Nagar	Anil Kumar Bajpai	AAP
Ghonda	Shri Dutt Sharma	AAP
Gokalpur	Fateh Singh	AAP
Greater Kailash	Saurabh Bharadwaj	AAP
Hari Nagar	Jagdeep Singh	AAP
Janakpuri	Rajesh Rishi	AAP
Jangpura	Praveen Kumar	AAP
Kalkaji	Avtar Singh Kalkaji	AAP
Karawal Nagar	Kapil Mishra	AAP
Karol Bagh	Vishesh Ravi	AAP
Kasturba Nagar	Madan Lal	AAP
Kirari	Rituraj Govind	AAP
Kondli	Manoj Kumar	AAP
Krishna Nagar	S K Bagga Advocate	AAP
Laxmi Nagar	Nitin Tyagi	AAP
Madipur	Girish Soni	AAP
Malviya Nagar	Somnath Bharti	AAP
Mangol Puri	Rakhi Birla	AAP
Matia Mahal	Asim Ahmed Khan	AAP
Matiala	Gulab Singh	AAP
Mehrauli	Naresh Yadav	AAP
Model Town	Akhilesh Pati Tripathi	AAP
Moti Nagar	Shiv Charan Goel	AAP
Mundka	Sukhvir Singh	AAP
Mustafabad	Jagdish Pradhan	BJP
Najafgarh	Kailash Gahlot	AAP
Nangloi Jat	Raghuvinder Shokeen	AAP
Nerela	Sharad Kumar	AAP
New Delhi	Arvind Kejriwal	AAP
Okhla	Amanatullah Khan	AAP
Palam	Bhavna Gaur	AAP
Patel Nagar	Hazari Lal Chauhan	AAP
Patparganj	Manish Sisodia	AAP
R.K. Puram	Parmila Tokas	AAP
Rajinder Nagar	Vijender Garg Vijay	AAP
Rajouri Garden	Jarnail Singh	AAP
Rithala	Mohinder Goyal	AAP
Rohini	Vijender Gupta	BJP
Rohtas Nagar	Sarita Singh	AAP
Sadar Bazar	Som Dutt	AAP
Sangam Vihar	Dinesh Mohaniya	AAP
Seelam Puri	Mohd Ishraque	AAP
Seemapuri	Rajendra Pal Gautam	AAP
Shahdara	Ram Niwas Goel	AAP
Shakur Basti	Satyendar Jain	AAP
Shalimar Bagh	Bandana Kumari	AAP
Sultanpur Majra	Sandeep Kumar	AAP
Tilak Nagar	Jarnail Singh	AAP
Timarpur	Pankaj Pushkar	AAP
Tri Nagar	Jitender Singh Tomar	AAP
Trilokpuri	Raju Dhingan	AAP
Tughlakabad	Sahi Ram	AAP
Uttam Nagar	Naresh Balyan	AAP
Vikaspuri	Mahinder Yadav	AAP
Vishwas Nagar	Om Prakash Sharma	BJP
Wazirpur	Rajesh Gupta	AAP

Background
2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly elections were held on 7 February 2015 to elect 70 members of the Sixth Delhi Legislative Assembly. The voter turnout for this election was recorded 67.14 percent, the highest voter turnout in history of Delhi Legislative Assembly elections.

In the elections, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Indian National Congress (INC) contested for 70 seats. While, Bharatiya Janata Party contested for 67 seats and its ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) contested for 3 seats.

Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports revised Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme

The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports on 11 February 2015 revised the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme. 

In the revised scheme, the Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar will be given in four categories, and they are
• Identification and nurturing of budding/young talent
• Encouragement of sports through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
• Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures
• Sports for Development

This revised scheme has prescribed the eligibility criteria of all the four categories. 

Now, the companies/corporate can spend on promotion and development of sports from the funds earmarked for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). For this purpose, a specific category for Encouragement of sports through Corporate Social Responsibility has been provided in the revised Scheme.

In this regard sports activities like, training to promote rural sports, nationally recognized sports, Paralympic sports and Olympic sports have been included in the Schedule VII of the Companies Act 2013.

To recognize, the contribution of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), who are working in promotion and development of sports, a separate category, Sports for Development has been provided. 

Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme
Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme was introduced in 2009 to encourage and promote involvement of corporates, sports promotion boards and others in the promotion and development of sports in the country.

Veteran journalist Diptosh Majumdar died

Senior journalist Diptosh Majumdar died on 8 February 2015 after suffering from acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) at a private hospital in Delhi. He was 55.

Born in 1958, Majumdar began his career as a city reporter at The Statesman, Kolkata. He had over 26 years of experience in journalism during which he covered news related to environment, government, administration and elections throughout the country.

Majumdar had worked as national affairs editor with CNN-IBN news channel and was part of the core team that launched the channel in 2005.

In 2010, Diptosh Majumdar was appointed as editorial director as NewsX television channel. He also worked with The Telegraph, DNA dailies, The Times of India and Indian Express.

HADR Exercise conducted by Indian Navy in the Lakshadweep Islands

Indian Navy on 9 February 2015 conducted a large scale Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise in the Lakshadweep Islands (Karavati, Aggatti, Kalpeni and Androth).

The HADR exercise was designed to validate Indian Navy’s readiness and capability to handle major cyclone striking the Lakshdweep Islands and disrupting essential services, causing widespread destruction of property, loss of life and dislocation of personnel.

The exercise saw participation of more than 20 Indian Naval Ships from the Western and Eastern Fleet along with various aircraft of the Indian Navy. The exercise was conducted in an area of about 8000 square miles in the Indian Ocean. 

The activities which were carried out during the exercise, are 
• Setting up medical relief camps
• Provision of food, water and clothing to affected populace
• Activation of airfields and setting up of helicopter landing sites
• Setting up emergency power supply for hospitals, airport and communication centres
• Setting up temporary structures and shelters
• Evacuation of critically ill/ injured personnel
• Assistance towards rehabilitation

The ships were grouped into four forces for the four islands and each had a Humanitarian Assistance and Security component, as follows:

Task Group	Island	Humanitarian Assistance Ships	Security Ships
I	Agatti	Shakti  Sahyadri Sumedha	Tarkash Karmuk
II	Kavaratti	Jalashwa Trishul Gomati Ranvir Subhadra	Trikand Kora
III	Androth	Viraat Delhi Rajput	Mumbai Talwar Kulish
IV	Kalpeni	Deepak  Betwa Kamorta	Godavari Kirpan

Star India Pvt Ltd acquired Telugu television channel Maa Television Network Ltd

Star India Pvt. Ltd on 11 February 2015 acquired the Telugu television channel network Maa Television Network Ltd (MTNL) including its brand, assets and four channels for an undisclosed amount.

With this acquisition, Star India will get access to the Telegu TV market, the second largest regional market in India in terms of revenue potential. The acquisition will come into effect once the policies and procedures in the business of Maa TV are aligned with the policies of Star India.

However, the management of Maa Television Network will remain with its owners Nimmagadda Prasad, Telugu film personalities Chiranjeevi, Akkineni Nagarjuna and Allu Arvind.

Maa Television Network Ltd
Founded by Penmetsa Murali Krishnam Raju in 2002, Maa TV is a Telugu-language television channel based in Hyderabad, India. Later, it was taken over by Nimmagadda Prasad, an entrepreneur.

MAA TV has Four channels in the Network. They are Maa TV, Maa Music, Maa Movies and Maa Gold.

Star India Pvt Ltd
Headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, STAR India is an Indian media and entertainment company owned by 21st Century Fox. 

STAR India's portfolio includes 33 channels in eight languages including STAR Plus, STAR Gold, STAR World, Jalsha Movies, etc.

12 feb

Brigade of Guards and Sikh Regiment jointly awarded Best Marching Contingents on Republic Day 2015

The Brigade of The Guards and the Sikh Regiment on 11 February 2015 were collectively awarded the Best Marching Contingents Trophy for Republic Day Parade 2015. The award was presented by Chairman Chief of Staff Committee, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha during an award ceremony held at Ministry of Defence, New Delhi.

Apart from this, cash awards were also presented to the contingents of the Brigade of the Guards and Sikh Regiment in a separate ceremony.

The trophy was jointly received by Captain Aditya Tanwar, Brigade of The Guards Contingent Commander along with Brigadier DV Singh, Centre Commandant, the Guards Regimental Centre and Lt Vikram Grewal, Sikh Regiment Contingent Commander along with Brig KBK Kesab, Centre Commandant, the Sikh Regimental Centre.

West Bengal Government launched Micro Business Credit Card to boost MSME sector

West Bengal Chief Minister (CM) Mamata Banerjee on 11 February 2015 launched the Micro Business Credit Card in association with the State Bank of India to boost the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in the state.

The Micro Business Credit Card is the first of its kind in India. These Business credit cards will even help the farmers to start businesses. 

With the help of this card, the small and medium entrepreneurs will be able to avail the cash credit or loan up to 5 lakh rupees for their business activities, even without collateral security. 

A fund of 200 crore rupees has been created for this purpose by the state government and a simplified clearance process was chalked out. The government will start the clearance centres in Bardhaman, Durgapur, Asansol and other places to expedite the clearance process.

The initiative was supported by the State Bank of India. The State Bank of India undertook the scheme as a pilot project and with its success, it will be introduced in other states as well.

India Cements Limited transferred IPL team Chennai Super Kings franchise to CSKC Limited

The India Cements Limited on 11 February 2015 transferred the Indian Premier League (IPL) team Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSK) franchise to its new subsidiary Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSKC) Limited.

The decision was taken by India Cements Vice-Chairman and Managing Director (MD) N Srinivasan led Board of Directors meeting held in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. With this, the company targets to get into a pure-play cement company.

Around 97000 shareholders of India Cements will be given free shares of Chennai Super Kings Cricket Ltd in proportion to the shares they currently hold in the company. The promoters together hold a 28.23 percent stake in the company.

This move will help shareholders of India Cements to exercise their choice to own only the cement business or the cricket franchise or both. With this decision, CSK will be first franchise team in IPL history to be owned by the shareholders of a company.

Background
Earlier in September 2014, the Board of Directors of India Cements approved the proposal to demerge Chennai Super Kings (CSK) into a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company by transferring its net assets at cost.

Under the ownership of India Cements, CSK led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni had won IPL tournament twice in IPL Season 3 (2011) and in IPL Season 4 (2012).

Four new species of Fish discovered in Kerala

Four new fish species named Puntius nelsoni, Puntius nigronotus, Systomus chryseusand and Systomus rufus were discovered in Kerala. The findings were published in the journal International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies in the last week of January 2015.

The fishes were discovered by Mathews Plamoottil, a zoology professor at Baby John Memorial Government College in Kollam.

These new fishes have been deposited in the museum of the Zoological Survey of India at Kolkata and Kozhikode.

Study Process
The freshwater fishes in the Madduvalasa Reservoir were studied from January 2014 to June 2014. The samples were collected monthly with the help of local fishermen by using fishing nets. The fishes were examined for their colour bands or spots present on the body.

A total of 22 species of fishes belonging to 5 orders were recorded during the study. These orders were Cypriniformes with 10 species, Siluriformes with 6 species, Perciformes with 4 species, Anguilliformes with 1 species and osteoglossiformes with 1 species.

The standard identification keys were used for identification of specimens up to species level.

Four new Fish species
1. Puntius Nelson: The body and fins of this fish are yellowish in colour. Its head is deeper, the snout is shorter and the mouth is wider. It was discovered at Kallumkal in Thiruvalla at the place where Pamba and Manimala rivers merge.
2. Puntius Nigronotus: It has dorsal fin and has more rays. It is black in colour. Its lateral line scales are greater than its closest relatives. It was discovered at Mananthavady in the hilly Wayanad district.
3. Systomus Chryseus: It is golden in colour and its pectoral fin is elongated one. It was discovered at Keezhvaipur near Thiruvalla.
4. Systomus Rufus: Its fins are red in colour. It was discovered at Venpala near Thiruvalla district.

All the four new species have received a Zoo bank register number from the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature, the worldwide scientific authority for naming new animals.

Microsoft acquired Sunrise for 100 million US dollars

Microsoft on 11 February 2015 acquired Sunrise for 100 million US dollars. Sunrise is the maker of one of the top calendar apps for iOS and Android.

The Sunrise app will remain in market and free after the acquisition. It will continue to support a wide range of third-party apps and calendar services.

Sunrise supports various features such as recurring appointments, alerts, birthdays, Google Maps directions, and more.

Sunrise currently supports Gmail accounts and Facebook events / birthdays from the social network. The iOS and Android calendar app also integrates well with popular services like SongKick and TripIt to map upcoming gigs and help plan trips.

35th National Games mascot Ammu named in Limca Book of Records

The mascot of India’s 35th National Games Ammu, the Great Hornbill on 11 February 2015 was included in the LIMCA Book of Records. 

The mascot found its place in the record books for its play, Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu (India Awaits Children Who Play) featuring the bird in lead role. The play was staged in 147 schools in Kerala.

LIMCA Book’s 2015 Special Literature Edition said that by 9 April 2014, the play was staged in 147 schools across seven districts of Kerala. The play was envisaged with an aim to promote sports among children and persuade them to take up sports along with academics. 

The mascot of the National Games was designed by Rakesh, while the play, Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu (India Awaits Children Who Play) was scripted and directed by theatre artist Anil Karetee. The play was enacted by a team of police officers led by Chandrakumar. 

Ammu, the Great Hornbill
Great Hornbill is the State bird of Kerala and was selected as the Mascot of the Games to reflect state’s concern for conservation of this species. The bird is facing extinction and is facing loss of its habitat, which are rain forests of Kerala. 

The Mascot was given the feminine name to pay tribute to the women of the state. At present, Kerala is the only Indian state that has more female population than male. 

As per details from Census 2011, Kerala has population of 3.34 Crores, of which male and female are 16027412 and 17378649, respectively.

Digital Magazine App Flipboard launched Web Browser Version

Popular news gathering app, Flipboard on 12 February 2015 launched a Web Browser Version of its software for PC. Users can log in to the new web version to access the same curated content as on their mobile platforms.

Flipboard's Web browser version was built over the past 18 months. It is designed to detect and automatically adjust to the different screen sizes of PCs. The largest canvas of PC screens allows Flipboard to rearrange the way the content appears on desktops so compelling pictures are showcased in bigger sizes and different layouts than on a smartphone, or even a tablet.

In January 2015, Facebook's mobile messaging service WhatsApp offered a version for Web browsers, although a user's smartphone must be on and online for the syncing to work. The trend reflects a growing realization among mobile-focused apps that they can't ignore PCs if they want to connect with users as much as possible.

About Flipboard

Flipboard is established by Flipboard Inc. It is a United-States-based software company which was founded in 2010 by Mike McCue and Evan Doll and headquartered in Palo Alto, California.

Flipboard is a social-network aggregation, magazine-format mobile app localized in more than 20 languages. The software collects content from social media and other websites, presents it in magazine format, and allows users to flip through their social-networking feeds and feeds from websites that have partnered with the company.

Web-based tool Atrocity Tracking and Monitoring System launched

A unique web-based tool, named Atrocity Tracking and Monitoring (ATM) System was launched in second week of February 2015. The tool was launched with an aim to monitor atrocities perpetrated against Dalits and Adivasis and to deliver timely and speedy justice. 

The tool was launched by National Dalit Movement for Justice (NDMJ).

The SC/ST PoA (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (NCSPOA) 1989, an Act passed by the Parliament of Act was enacted to prevent atrocities against scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. 

To strengthen SC/ST PoA (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (NCSPOA), NDMJ has started an initiative named National Coalition.

How the ATM system will work
• Person who want to access the support provided by the ATM system will have to login into website and take the helpline provided over their (it is 9898915455)
• Then, the person will have to sent a message on it after which the circle will be automatically by the website and a message will be sent 
• Further after validation, the message will be sent to the concerned authority to facilitate necessary action against the case

Beside, the NDMJ has decided to organise a two-day training workshop to promote the use of ATM amongst the concerned stakeholders. The workshop will be organised in March 2015 in New Delhi.

Report of Crimes against Persons belonging to SCs and STs 
In context of India, Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are the most vulnerable communities in terms of discrimination and violence. 22 forms of worst forms of atrocities faced by them have been officially recognised under the SC/ST (PoA) Act and some of them are murder, rape, mass attack, arson, and others. To discourage occurrence of these crimes higher penalties are attracted.

National Crime Records Bureau, 2001-11 reports that the extent of atrocities committed against SCs and STs is enormous.It highlights
• Crimes against SCs and STs: nearly 370234
• Women raped: 15917 
• Murders: 7900 
• Brutally and severely injured: 49514 
• Other forms of atrocities committed: 159691

It says that only 32 percent of crimes were registered under the SC&ST (PoA) Act and conviction rate under the Act was meager 24.8 percent.

About National Dalit Movement for Justice (NDMJ)
National Dalit Movement for Justice (NDMJ) is a democratic, secular, non-party movement of Dalit survivors, defenders, academics, organisations headed by Dalits. It was created in 1998 with an aim to initiate advocacy and involve in mass action to address the issues of caste based discrimination (CBD) and violence (primarily untouchability and atrocities) to ensure dignity, equality and justice. The organisation has its presence in 17 states across India.

Himachal Pradesh Government launched Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System Project

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on 11 February 2015 launched the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System(CCTNS) project in the state.

This 19 crore rupees project will be completely funded by the Union Government. It will help in connecting 177 sites and 114 police stations in the state besides 13 district headquarters, 26 sub-divisional police officers and three police ranges along with state crime records bureau. 

It will also connect CID crime branch, 14 control rooms, finger print bureau, forensic science laboratory and 16 CCTNS training centers in the state.

The project will also provide multiple channels to access citizen centric services from police and online access for registering petitions. The police will make available general services such as request for certificates, verifications and permissions via citizen portal.

The project was undertaken as a Mission Mode Project under the National e-governance plan which had been visualized with key objectives of reaching out to the public in quicker manner along with enhancing the working capabilities of the police department.

Krishna Chaudhary took charge as DG of ITBP

Senior IPS officer Krishna Chaudhary on 11 February 2015 took charge as the Director General (DG) of the border guarding force Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP).

He succeeded Subhas Goswami.  He is a 1979-batch Bihar cadre IPS officer.

Earlier, he was serving as the Director General (DG) of the Railway Protection Force under the Union Railway Ministry.

The Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had issued orders for appointment of the officer in January 2015.

He will retire in June 2017. This is one of the rare occasions in paramilitary forces' history that a DG can be expected to hold the top post for over two years time as usually these posts are held by senior officials for a maximum of about 1.5 years as their superannuation comes by.

The officer is a recipient of service medals given by the President to meritorious and distinguished policemen.

Uber introduced two new India-specific safety features

Mobile application-based taxi aggregator Uber on 11 February 2015 had introduced two new India-specific safety features. The features include panic buttons and in-app tracking tools.

Uber apps will now have a send status feature, where passengers can share details about the driver and the vehicle with their friends and family.

The feature also lets passengers allow access to GPS tracking of their taxi to their kin, and share information like the driver’s photograph, name and vehicle licence number.

The company earlier allowed passengers to share their estimated time of arrival with others. With this new feature, passengers can also send their trip details to up to five pre-selected contacts with just two taps on a button in the Uber app.

The functions were the first market-specific safety features launched by Uber. The company also has plans to launch safety features in other countries soon.

The move comes after the driver of an Uber cab was accused of raping a passenger in New Delhi. Uber Inc. was banned in Delhi in 2014.

Aditya Birla Chemicals to merge with Grasim Industries

The Board of Directors of Grasim Industries Limited on 11 February 2015 approved the proposed merger of Aditya Birla Chemicals (India) Limited (ABCIL) with Grasim. 

Under the merger proposal, the shareholders of ABCIL will get one share of 10 rupees each of Grasim for every 16 shares of 10 rupees each, they hold in ABCIL. 14.62 lakh new shares will be issued by Grasim, which will help the company to increase its share capital to 93.31 crore rupees.

The proposed scheme is subject to approval of the high court and regulatory authorities.

About Grasim
Grasim is a leading manufacturer of caustic soda in India, with an installed capacity of 452500 tonnes per annum. Its plants are located at Nagda in Madhya Pradesh and at Vilayat in Gujarat. Caustic soda is inter-alia used as an input in the manufacturing of Viscose Staple Fibre (VSF), a major business of Grasim. Grasim is an Aditya Birla Group company.

Aditya Birla Chemicals (India) Limited (ABCIL 
Aditya Birla Chemicals is a leading manufacturer of bulk and specialty chemicals and viscose filament yarn. The business is spread across multiple manufacturing locations in four countries namely India, Thailand, Germany and China.

ABCIL is one of the leading chlor-alkali companies in India with an installed capacity of 293,000 tonnes of caustic soda per annum and 110 MW of captive power plant. Its three manufacturing plants of India are located at Rehla in Jharkhand, Renukoot in Uttar Pradesh and Karwar in Karnataka.

Process of Merger and its effect
The proposed merger which will be undertaken through a Court approved Scheme of Amalgamation under Sections 391 to 394 of the Companies Act, 1956 read with other applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 and the Companies Act, 2013. This merger will consolidate Aditya Birla Group's chlor-alkali business into Grasim and strengthen its existing portfolio of Viscose Staple Fibre, caustic soda and allied chemicals. The merger will enable the geographical diversification for Grasim through the addition of ABCIL's manufacturing facilities spread across the country.

7th round of India Kenya Joint Trade Committee meeting held in New Delhi

The 7th round of India Kenya Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meet was held in New Delhi on 12 February 2015. 

During the meet, the two sides reviewed bilateral trade between the two nations and reiterated their commitment towards strengthening mutually beneficial relationship. The two sides agreed 
• To enhance cooperation in the fields of bilateral investment, infrastructure, SMEs, agriculture, health, energy, skill development & entrepreneurship, pharmaceuticals and tourism
• To ensure enhancement of bilateral trade and mutual cooperation, the two sides also agreed to meet often.

Minister of State for Commerce & Industry (Independent Charge) Nirmala Sitharaman led the Indian delegation in the meeting, while the Kenyan delegation was led by Ambassador Amina C Mohamed, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Trade of Kenya.    

The 8th meeting of the Joint Trade Committee would be held in Nairobi.

The Joint Commission of India and Kenya was set up in 1999 and the commission’s first meet was held in July 2003 in Nairobi. The 6th Joint Trade Committee (JTC) was held in October 2010 in Nairobi.

India Kenya relation
India was among the first countries to establish an office in Kenya and Indian Diaspora in Kenya has contributed actively to Kenya’s progress. Some major events and visits of the two countries
• Vice President of India Dr. S Radhakrishnan visited Kenya in July 1956
• President of Kenya Daniel arap Moi visited India in February 1981 
• In 1981, President Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi also visited Kenya
• 2nd India-Africa Forum Summit was held in Addis Ababa on 24-25 May 2011
• India’s Minister for External Affairs and Union Minister for Water Resources and Parliamentary Affairs Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal visited Kenya in 2011
• In May 2011, the Vice President of Kenya, Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka led a business delegation to India
• In November 2011, Kenya was also a participant nation at the 11th meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) and associated meetings held in Bengaluru 
• In August 2011, Indiafrica: A Shared Future Initiativewas organised at the AIESEC Business Summit in Nairobi