15-16 july 2015

15 july

India won 3-match ODI series against Zimbabwe 3-0

India on 14 July 2015 won the three-match One Day International (ODI) Series against Zimbabwe 3-0 played in Harare.

India batting first in the third match of series scored 276 runs at a loss of five and in reply to the target Zimbabwe was bowled out at the score of 193 in 42.4 over.

The highlight of the Indian innings was a fine unbeaten 105 by Kedar Jadhav off just 87 balls. It was his maiden international century. Manish Pandey contributed 71 runs.

Series Report
1st Match: Played at Harare Sports Club, Harare on 10 July 2015, India won the match by 4 runs.

2nd Match:Played at Harare Sports Club, Harare on 12 July 2015, India won the match by 62 runs.

3rd Match: Played at Harare Sports Club, Harare on 14 July 2015, India won the match by 83 runs.

• Man of the Match:Kedar Jadhav for his 87-ball 105
• Man of the Series:Ambati Rayudu

In the series, Indian side was captained by Ajinkya Rahane, while the Zimbabwean side was captained by Elton Chigumbura.

Now, the two teams will play two T20 international matches on 17 July and 19 July 2015.

Union Ministry of Urban Development launched nationwide HRIDAY scheme from Amritsar

Union Ministry of Urban Development on 14 July 2015 launched the National Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) for 12 cities in the country from Amritsar in Punjab.

The scheme seeks to preserve and rejuvenate the rich cultural heritage of the country in the selected 12 cities in the country, including Amritsar.

The scheme was launched by Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs and Information & Broadcasting Arun Jaitley in the presence of Union Minister of Urban Development Venkaiah Naidu and Chief Minister of Punjab Singh Badal among others.

Features of HRIDAY

• It seeks to promote an integrated, inclusive and sustainable development of heritage sites, focusing on maintenance of monuments and on advancement of the entire ecosystem.
• In the initial phase of HRIDAY, 12 heritage cities have been identified which will be rejuvenated and developed. Union Government will provide 500 crore rupees to these 12 cities.
• Physical, institutional, economic and social infrastructure developed as part of the scheme in the identified cities.
• It will be completely funded by the Union Government to create infrastructure and provide facilities around the heritage sites to attract more tourists.

List of 12 cities and amount allocated:

Cities	Amount
Varanasi (Uttar Prdesh)	89.31 crore rupees
Amritsar (Punjab)	69.31 crore rupees
Warangal (Telangana)	40.54 crore rupees
Ajmer Ajmer (Rajasthan)	40.04 crore rupees
Gaya (Bihar)	40.04 crore rupees
Mathura (Uttar Pradesh	40.04 crore rupees
Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu)	23.04 crore rupees
Vellankini (Tamil Nadu)	22.26 crore rupees
Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh)	22.26 crore rupees
Badami (Karnataka)	22.26 crore rupees
Dwaraka (Gujarat)	22.26 crore rupees
Puri (Orissa)	22.54 crore rupees

NASA’s New Horizons made closest approach to Pluto

National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) New Horizons space probe on 14 July 2015 made closest approach to Pluto when it flew 12600 km from the surface of the dwarf planet at an average speed of 49750 kph.

The successful completion of the operation is very significant as the interplanetary probe could send the images of Pluto taken from the nearest point till date after travelling 4.88 billion km from the earth.

About New Horizons

• Its purpose is to study Pluto, its moons and the Kuiper Belt, performing flybys of the Pluto system and one or more Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs).
• It was launched on 19 January 2006 as part of NASA's New Frontiers program.
• It was directly launched into an Earth-and-solar-escape trajectory with an Earth-relative speed of about 16.26 kilometers per second or 58536 km/h, thus, setting the record for the highest launch speed of a human-made object from Earth.
• In 2007, it made closest approach to Jupiter in February 2007.
• With its successful flyby, Pluto became the first Kuiper Belt object visited by a mission from Earth. Kuiper Belt extends from the orbit of Neptune to approximately 50 Astronomical Units from the Sun.

Union Government, Facebook launched #100Women Initiative to recognize 100 women achievers of India

The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development on 14 July 2015 launched the #100Women Initiative in collaboration with Facebook to select 100 women achievers of India.

The initiative is aimed at recognizing and acknowledging women who are making a difference in their communities across the country.

Process of selection

• To select 100 women achievers, a contest will be held through public nominations via social media.
• Nominations are accepted between 15 July 2015 and 30 September 2015 on the Facebook page of the Ministry.
• Voting will begin on 27 November 2015 on the top 200 entries as determined by an esteemed jury.
• Winners will be announced in December 2015 and invited to join a reception organized by the Ministry around the Republic Day.

Professor Kamal Bawa, an Indian-origin scientist, elected to Royal Society of London

Prominent Indian-origin scientist Professor Kamal Bawa was in news in the first week of July 2015 as he was elected, along with other two Indian-origin scientists, to the Royal Society of London on 30 April 2015. Other two scientists were- Ajay Sood and John Kuriayn.

The three scientists were elected for life to the society through a peer review process on the basis of excellence in science.

Professor Kamal Bawa: He is an evolutionary ecologist and India's most prominent conservation biologist. His pioneering contributions to understanding the population biology of tropical forest trees led to new strategies for their conservation, and also for the sustainable use of non-timber forest products.

At present he is the Distinguished Professor of Biology, University of Massachusetts-Boston, and Founder President, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Bangalore.

Professor Ajay Sood: He is one of the best Indian experimental physicists working in condensed matter. He is most noted for his seminal contributions to soft matter such as discovery of rheochaos, namely of spatio-temporal chaotic dynamics under shear flow and validation of non-equilibrium fluctuation theorem among others.

At present he is a Professor in the Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru.

Professor John Kuriyan: He has made fundamental discoveries concerning the structure and mechanism of the enzymes and molecular switches responsible for cellular signal transduction and DNA replication. Much of our current understanding of how high speed DNA polymerases achieve very high processivity also emanates from Kuriyan's laboratory.

At present, he is a Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology and of Chemistry, Howard Hughes Medical Institute in the University of California, the USA.

Union Government decided to cap kerosene subsidy at Rs 12 per litre

Union Government on 13 July 2015 decided to cap the subsidy payout on kerosene at 12 rupees per litre.

At present, kerosene is sold through public distribution system at 14.96 rupees per litre against the actual cost of 33.47 rupees. The difference of 18.51 rupees per litre is termed as under-recovery or revenue loss.

Now, the government has finalised the formula for meeting this under-recovery, under which the Union Finance Ministry will pay 12 rupees per litre in cash to state-owned fuel retailers from the Budget and any unbridged gap between the retail selling price and the cost of production will be borne by upstream companies.

For domestic cooking gas LPG, the government has decided to fully bear the under-recovery.

The Budget for 2015-16 has provided for 22000 crore rupees towards LPG subsidy and another 8000 crore rupees on kerosene.

India-based Comparex India Pvt Ltd won Microsoft Country Partner of the Year Award 2015

An India-based software products and technology services company Comparex India Pvt. Ltd on 14 July 2015 won the prestigious Microsoft Country Partner of the Year Award for 2015. Comparex India Pvt. Ltd is headquartered in New Delhi.

The company was awarded along with 110 awardees by Microsoft at its Worldwide Partner Conference 2015. Another India-based IT company Quadrasystems.net was the finalist in the Cloud Productivity Partner of the Year category.

As a Gold Cloud Partner of Microsoft, Comparex is the trusted advisor for its customers and has a track record of a zero compete loss to date. Comparex also demonstrated a Cloud-First vision and boasts of an 80 percent year-on-year growth, driving a deployment of over 70 percent of cloud seats and adding over 300 customers across segments.

Microsoft received over 2300 nominations from 108 different countries for the 43 different global award opportunities this year. This year, Microsoft recognised partners in 43 categories that celebrate each of the core partner competencies, including cloud technology, public sector, citizenship, sales excellence and many more.

The Country Partner of the Year Award celebrates top Microsoft partners that are demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology.

Make in India initiative of DIPP won Frost and Sullivan’s 2015 Economic Development Innovation Award

Frost and Sullivan, a US-based Growth Partnership Company, on 14 July 2015 recognised Make in India initiative of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Government of India.

In this regard, it presented the DIPP with the 2015 Asia – Pacific Economic Development Innovation: Policy and Program Implementation Excellence Award in Manufacturing.

The award was received by Amitabh Kant, Secretary, DIPP from Aroop Zutshi, Frost & Sullivan’s Global President and Managing Partner in New Delhi.

The award was given in recognition of its outstanding contribution to nurture India’s economic and industrial transformation through simplifying the regulatory framework, reinforcing connectivity and incentivising investments.

The Make in India initiative scored the highest score among the 100 countries in the GIL-100 Index: Manufacturing Index for 2015 on Manufacturing Excellencewhich was prepared by independent global experts through a detailed 10-step process.

Further, the evaluation of various manufacturing programmes across 100 countries was based on two underlying principles. These were:

Enabling Vision: Vision for Development Strategy and Vision Congruence, Role of Agency in Policy Design, Industry Focus and Funding and Innovative Programs

Implementation Excellence:Effective Channelization of Resources, Effective Program Coordination and Execution, Program Reach and Accessibility, Infrastructure Development and Implementation Success

About Economic Development Innovation Award

Economic Development Innovation (EDI) Award is given under Frost and Sullivan’s EDI programme that identifies exemplary initiatives by governments that have the potential to transform their countries into important destinations for investments and achieve rapid economic growth.

About Frost & Sullivan

Frost & Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company works in collaboration with clients to leverage visionary innovation that addresses the global challenges and related growth opportunities that will make or break today's market participants.

Indigenously developed helicopter-launched Nag missile test fired from Jaisalmer in Rajasthan

Indigenously developed helicopter-launched Nag (HeliNa) missile was on 12 July 2015 test fired at the Chandhan firing range in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. HeliNa is a variant of Nag anti-tank guided missile (ATGM).

Out of the three trials conducted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), only two were successful in hitting the target.

About Nag Missile

• It is a third generation fire-and-forget and can be fired during night and day.
• It is equipped with top attack capability to nullify the explosive reactive armour (ERA) of a battle tank.
• It weighs 42kg having 1.90m length and can be fired against both moving and fixed targets.
• Besides HeliNa, it has land, air-launched and man portable (weighing 14 kg) versions.
• To carry the land version, DRDO developed the NAMICA (Nag Missile Carrier) for the army.
• While the land version can hit targets in the range between 500m to 4km, the range of air-launched version is between 7 and 10 km. It can carry a war head weighing up to 8kg.
• It has been developed at a cost of 300 crore rupees by the DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
• Once inducted in the Armed Forces, the HeliNa missile will be integrated with the weaponised version of the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv, the light combat helicopter produced by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).

US Defense Department set up Working Group on allowing Transgender persons into Military Service

United States (US) Department of Defense (DoD) on 13 July 2015 decided to set up a working group to study the policy and readiness implications of allowing transgender persons to serve in the military of the nation.

The decision to set up the working group was announced by the Defense Secretary Ash Carter.

The working group will be headed by Brad Carson, Acting Under-Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and it will be composed of military and civilian personnel representing all the military services and the Joint Staff and will report directly to Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work.

Besides, setting up a working group, the decision authority in all administrative discharges were directed to elevate all those diagnosed with gender dysphoria or who identify themselves as transgender to Carson, who will make determinations on all potential separations.

The decision to set up a working group was taken after it was found that the current regulations regarding transgender service members were outdated and causing uncertainty that distracts commanders from DoD’s core missions.

Iconic musician Joan Sebastian passed away

Iconic Mexican musician Joan Sebastian passed away on 13 July 2015 after battling bone cancer for more than 15 years in Juliantla, Mexico. He was 64. He was also known as El Rey del Jaripeo (the King of Mexican Rodeo).

Born as Jose Manuel Figueroa, he was best known for his sentimental love songs such as Secreto de Amor and Tatuajes. He released more than 50 albums during his career mixing Mexican ranchera music and Latin pop. His career spanned for over 40 years.

On Billbord’s Regional Mexican Albums chart, he placed 10 hit albums at No 1 position, second only to Vicente Fernandez with 15 hit albums. He was also honoured by Billboard multiple times, first with Hall of Fame honors at the 2006 Billboard Latin Music Awards and then Voice Award at the 2013 Billboard Mexican Music Awards.

He won seven Latin Grammy Awards and five Grammy Awards, making him the most awarded Mexican performer in Grammy's history.

Maharashtra assembly passed Guarantee of Public Services Bill, 2015

Maharashtra legislative assembly on 14 July 2015 passed theMaharashtra Guarantee of Public Services Bill, 2015. The bill was unanimously passed by the assembly in the absence of Congress and NCP members.

Now, the Bill will be tabled in the Legislative Council of the state.

Features of the Bill
• It empowers citizens to avail their rights in stipulated time with less efforts and cost.
• It will pave way for curbing corruption, bringing transparency and empowering citizens.
• It ensures essential services are delivered in a time-bound manner and at nominal charges.
• In case of failure in delivery in the stipulated time, the government employee will be penalized for default, which ranges between 500 rupees to 5000 rupees.
• Various leading departments will have to notify key essential services to be offered to the common man under the Act.
• It provides for three-tier Appellate Authoritieswith first two being Government Officials or Designated Officers and third will be aRight to Service Commission.
• No civil court shall have jurisdiction in respect of any matter which the Appellate Authorities are empowered by or under this Act to determine.
• Right to Service Commission will be headed by a retired civil servant or a prominent personality from sectors other than politics.
• The commission will be an autonomous body comprising chief commissioner and divisional-level commissioners appointed by the governor similar to information commissioners.
• It provides for constitution of State Public Services Delivery Committee to be headed by Chief Secretary to recommend steps to be taken by Public Authorities for efficient delivery of notified services.

Besides, the Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also announced that services will be provided electronically and will be brought on e-Platform. He informed that initially 110 services will be notified.

India’s first railway-line built under PPP model inaugurated in Gujarat

Minister of Railways Suresh Prabhu on 14 July 2015 inaugurated the broad-gauge railway-line between Gandhidham and Tuna-Tekra Portin Gujarat by flagging off a goods train.

The rail line is India’s first railway-line built with private sector participation under Non-Government Railway (NGR) Policy 2012 of Indian Railways.

The rail line has been built at a cost of approx 185 crore rupees for M/s Kandla Port Trust (KPT) to bring about better and faster rail connectivity to Port of Tuna & Tekra.

The rail-line between Gandhidham, a town in Kutch district of Gujarat, and Tuna-Tekra Port, a port 20-km west of Kandla in Gulf of Kutch, was funded by M/s Kandla Port Trust (KPT) and Western Railway Zone of Indian Railways coordinated and pioneered it.

The project, approved by the Railway Board in October 2013, was completed in a record time of 12 months in May 2015 and was executed in two parts. The first part, viz., 11-km Gandhidham- Tuna Rail line was executed by Western Railway Zone as deposite work while the second part, viz.,6-km Tuna-Tekra line was executed by M/s Kandla Port Trust.

The major traffic on this line will be coal and fertilizer with an expected commodity traffic of average 4 rakes daily resulting in an approximate revenue of 500 crore rupees for Indian Railways.

Non-Government Railway (NGR) Policy 2012

Indian Railways unveiled the private line/Non-Government Railway (NGR) Model of Participative Model Policy in 2012 for undertaking rail connectivity and capacity augmentation projects.

Under this, Indian Railways has undertaken connectivity to 4 ports namely Dhamra Port, Tuna Port, Jaigarh Port, Dighi Port. These four projects will generate investment of approx. 2400 crore rupees with no financial commitment to equity from Ministry of Railways.

Further, in-principle clearance has been granted for another five port connectivity projects under the NGR Policy 2012. These five projects will generate investment of approx. 2800 crore rupees with no financial commitment to equity from Ministry of Railways.

Earlier, between 2002 and 2012 seven port connectivity projects were implemented. These projects have added approximately 950 km of railway line bringing an investment of approximately 3000 crore rupees

Defence Acquisition Council approved defence proposals worth 30000 crore rupees

Defence Acquisition Council on 14 July 2015 approved defence proposals worth over 30000 crore rupees for buying four more P81 long-range maritime patrol aircraft for the Indian Navy and to replace Indian Army’s vintage air defence guns of 60s.

The Council was chaired by Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.

Detailed Proposals
• Acceptance of necessity (AON) to replace L70 and Zu 23mm guns for Indian Army’s air defence under Buy-and-Make category. Now, army will buy 428 guns at a total cost of 16900 crore rupees. It will now pave the way for issuance of a Request for Proposal (RFP).
• Acquisition of 4 more P81 aircraft at a cost of 4380 crore rupees. These aircrafts are based on the Boeing next-generation 737 commercial airplane. It is a variant of the P-8A Poseidon used by the US Navy.
• Upgradation of weapon and sensor suite of the Delhi and Talwar class ships at a cost of 2900 crore rupees.
• Moreover, Six ships will see new surface-to-air missile system that would be bought from Russia, besides new radars.

Union Government approved Transit Oriented Development policy for Delhi

Union Ministry of Urban Development on 14 July 2015 approved the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Policy for Delhi. The policy was approved as part of review of Master Plan for Delhi – 2021.

The policy aims to address the growing problems of pollution, congestion and shortage of homes for the poor and middle class in the state.

An official release issued by Urban Development Ministry in New Delhi said that the TOD is a key policy initiative for low-carbon, high-density and compact living spaces. The TOD zone would comprise approximately 20 percent of Delhi’s overall area.

Features of the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Policy
• The Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for constructions around Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) has been almost doubled to 400. This will help to address the issues of traffic congestion and shortage of housing in Delhi by allowing more vertical constructions required to address to address the land availability shortage.
• These higher FAR can be availed only for plots of area of 1 hectare (Ha) or more for which a comprehensive integrated scheme has to be prepared. In contrast, the minimum scheme area for undertaking redevelopment outside TOD zone is 4 Ha.
• The development under the TOD policy can be taken up in phases for minimum plot size of 3000 square meter at a time.
• Minimum scheme area for development by Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) agencies such as DMRC, Rapid Rail Transit System (RRTS) and Railways will be 3000 square meter.
• It allows mixed land use and sustainable inhabitation with minimised travel time for citizens and easy availability of public transport.
• The influence zone in the TOD policy will be 500 metre on both side of metro corridor.
• Entire approved layout plan of a scheme will be included in influence zone if more than 50 percent of the plan area falls inside the influence zone.
• It will be mandatory to use a minimum of 30 percent of overall FAR for residential use, a minimum of 10 percent of FAR for commercial use and a minimum of 10 percent of FAR for community facilities.
• Utilization of remaining 50 percent FAR shall be as per the land use category designated in the Zonal Plan.
• 20 percent of land shall be used for roads/circulation areas; 20percent area for green open space shall be kept open for general public use at all times; while another 10percent area of green area may be for exclusive use.
• MRTS agencies exempted from providing the mandatory 30 percent residential component which is part of the TOD norms applicable to all other Developer Entities (DEs).
• Increase in safety especially for women and children using public transport or walking at night shall be facilitated through changes in key Development Code aspects
• In a significant pro-poor and pro middle class measure which will further the objectives of ‘Housing For All’ Mission, the size of EWS units under TOD policy has been kept between 32-40 square meter.
• Out of 1 Ha area that is to be developed under TOD norms, 45 percent (18000 square meters) of built up area has to be used for providing housing units for the poor and middle class.

However, TOD norms will not be applicable in Lutyens Bungalow Zone, Civil Lines Bungalows Area, Monument regulated zone Zone 'O' (around the Yamuna river) and Low Density Residential Area.

Scientist at Large Hadron Collider discovered the existence of subatomic particle Pentaquarks

A team of scientists at CERN on 14 July 2015 announced discovery of the exotic subatomic particles pentaquarks which so far had existed in theory only. The discovery amounting to new state of matter was made during Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) experiment at LHC in CERN, Geneva.

The team of scientists who have discovered the pentaquark has submitted a paper reporting these findings to the journal Physical Review Letters.

What are pentaquarks?

Pentaquark is a sub-atomic particle composed of five-quarks (four quarks and an antiquark). These are not new particles but simply aggregation of quarks, the fundamental constituents of ordinary protons and neutrons, similar to baryons wherein protons and neutrons are made up of three quarks.

How pentaquark was discovered?

To discover pentaquark, LHCb researchers examined the decay ofLambda b baryon into three other particles, J-psi meson (or psion), a proton and a charged kaon.

On studying the spectrum of masses of the J-psi and the proton, it was revealed that there exists a transition state with never-seen-before particles Pc(4450)+and Pc(4380)+.

After the study of the masses of these particles, it was concluded by researchers that it can only be explained with pentaquark states, which more precisely is formed of two up quarks, one down quark, one charm quark and one anti-charm quark.

Why the discovery is significant?

The discovery of pentaquark is a significant development as so far the search for this sub-atomic particle has been proved to be inconclusive.

Further, the LHCb experiment is different from the previous searches in the sense that it has been able to look for pentaquarks from many perspectives, with all pointing to the same conclusion.

Studying its properties may allow us to understand better how ordinary matter, the protons and neutrons from which we’re all made, is constituted.

The next step in the analysis will be to study how the quarks are bound together within the pentaquarks.

Background

The term pentaquark was coined by Harry J Lipkin in 1987 and the first evidence for pentaquark was recorded in a lab in Japan.

However, scientists have been looking for pentaquarks since 1964, when two physicists - Murray Gell Mann and George Zweig - independently proposed the existence of quarks.
Although they theorised the existence of the particles known as baryons and mesons but their model allowed the existence of other quark composite states, such as a hypothetical pentaquark.

Zweig coined the term "aces" for the three fractionally charged subatomic particles that constituted protons and neutrons, but it was Gell-Mann's name "quark" that stuck.

Gell-Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for this work in 1969.

NGT suggested variable office hours to cut pollution

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on 14 July 2015 gave an idea of variable working hours for the government and private sector in the national capital, Delhi. The plan was mooted with an aim to reduce vehicular pollution in the capital during peak hours.

The idea was mooted by an NGT bench headed by Justice Swatanter Kumar, who said that it needed to take everyone along and come up with an innovative approach to curb pollution. The bench asked the Union Government to discuss the proposal with all stakeholders.

How these variable working hours will be benefit the city?
• A gap of one or two hours in the office hours of government and business establishments in Delhi may help in reducing vehicular emissions, which is caused due to traffic problem
• It will also reduce the pressure on buses, autos and metro during peak hours

Besides, the bench also included universities in the proposal. It said that if a child can go to school at 7am, why can’t a graduate can do so?

Union Government launched National Mission for Skill Development

Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) on 15 July 2015 launched the National Mission for Skill Development (NMSD). The NMSD was launched to provide the overall institutional framework to rapidly implement and scale up skill development efforts across India.

The Mission seeks to provide the institutional capacity to train a minimum of 300 million skilled people by the year 2022.

Objectives of the Mission

Create an end-to-end implementation framework for skill development, which provides opportunities for life-long learning.
Align employer/industry demand and workforce productivity with trainees’ aspirations for sustainable livelihoods, by creating a framework for outcome-focused training.
Establish and enforce cross-sectoral, nationally and internationally acceptable standards for skill training in the country.
Build capacity for skill development in critical un-organized sectors and provide pathways for re-skilling and up-skilling workers in this sector, to enable them to transition into formal sector employment.
Ensure sufficient, high quality options for long-term skilling, benchmarked to internationally acceptable qualification standards, which will ultimately contribute to the creation of a highly skilled workforce.
Develop a network of quality instructors/trainers in the skill development ecosystem by establishing high quality teacher training institutions.
Leverage existing public infrastructure and industry facilities for scaling up skill training and capacity building efforts.
Support weaker and disadvantaged sections of society through focused outreach programmes and targeted skill development activities.
Propagate aspirational value of skilling among youth, by creating social awareness on value of skill training.
Maintain a national database, known as the Labour Market Information System (LMIS), which will act as a portal for matching the demand and supply of skilled workforce in the country.

Institutional Mechanism

The Mission at the Centre will consist of a apex Governing Council to be headed by Prime Minister, a Steering Committee to be headed by Minister of MSDE and a Mission Directorate to be chaired by Secretary, MSDE.

Mission Directorate will be supported by three other institutions, viz., National Skill Development Agency (NDSA), National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and Directorate General of Training (DGT).

At the State level, States will be encouraged to create State Skill Development Mission along the lines of National Skill Development Mission with a Steering Committee and a Mission Directorate at the State level.

Seven Sub-Missions

The Mission will have seven sub-missions under its purview. These are:

Revitalizing Institutional training
Infrastructure through undertaking sector specific skill training initiatives
Ensure convergence of existing skill development programmes
Leverage existing public infrastructure for skilling
Focus on training of trainers
Facilitate overseas employment and
Promote sustainable livelihoods

16 july

Rakesh Sahni appointed as Chairman of Narmada Valley Development Authority

Rakesh Sahni was on 14 July 2015 appointed as the Chairman of Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA). He is an IAS officer of 1972 batch.

Sahni retired as an IAS officer after serving post of chief secretary of States. However, post retirement, he served as the Chairman of MP Electricity Regulatory Commission.

About Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA)
• NVDA is a multidisciplinary organization of the Madhya Pradesh State Government headquartered at Bhopal.
• It was constituted for planning water resources development in Narmada basin and expeditious implementation of projects.
• NVDA has jurisdiction over the major water resources development projects in the Narmada River which is 5th largest river in India and largest west flowing river of Indian peninsula.

Bangladesh won 3-match ODI series against South Africa 2-1

Bangladesh on 15 July 2015 won the three-match One Day International (ODI) series against South Africa 2-1 played in Bangladesh.

This was Bangladesh’s fourth straight ODI series win at home.

In the third and final match of the series, South Africa after winning the toss elected to bat first. Batting first, South Africa scored 168 runs in 40 over at a loss of 9 wickets and in reply to the target Bangladesh scored 170 runs in 26.1 over at a loss of 1 wicket.

Bangladesh defeated South Africa by 9 wickets Duckworth–Lewis method (D/L method).

Series Report
1st Match:Played at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur on 10 July 2015, South Africa won by 8 wickets (with 53 balls remaining). K Rabada of South Africa was declared as the Man of the Match.
2nd Match: Played at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur on 12 July 2015, Bangladesh won by 7 wickets (with 134 balls remaining). Soumya Sarkar of Bangladesh was declared Man of the match.
3rd Match: Played at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong on 15 July 2015, Bangladesh won by 9 wickets (with 83 balls remaining) (D/L method). Soumya Sarkar of Bangladesh was declared Man of the match.

• Man of the Series:Soumya Sarkar (Bangladesh)

Now, the two teams will play two test matches on 21 July and 30 July 2015.

AP Government formed one-member panel to probe Rajahmundry stampede during Godavari Maha Pushkaram

Rajahmundry: Major venue for the 2015 Godavari Maha Pushkaram celebrations in Andhra Pradesh.

Rajahmundry was in news in the third week of July 2015 as the Andhra Pradesh Government formed a one-member committee to probe stampede incident that killed 27 people on the first day of Godavari Maha Pushkaram celebrations on 14 July 2015.

The incident occurred on the bathing ghats of the river Godavari.

Rajahmundry is located on the banks of Godavari in East Godavari district of the Andhra Pradesh.

It was chosen as the primary venue for the once in 144 year event as the River Godavari is full in its expanse at this place.

After travelling around 100 km from Rajahmundry, the river merges with the Bay of Bengal at Antarvedi.

RBI constituted Deepak Mohanty Committee on Medium-term Path on Financial Inclusion

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 15 July 2015 constituted a committee to work out a five-year (medium-term) action plan for financial inclusion. The 14-member panel will be headed by RBI executive director Deepak Mohanty.

The Committee will work to spread the reach of financial services to unbanked population.

The terms of reference of the Committee are as under:
(i) To review the existing policy of financial inclusion including supportive payment system and customer protection framework taking into account the recommendations made by various committees set up earlier.
(ii) To study cross country experiences in financial inclusion to identify key learnings, particularly in the area of technology-based delivery models, that could inform our policies and practices.
(iii) To articulate the underlying policy and institutional framework, also covering consumer protection and financial literacy, as well as delivery mechanism of financial inclusion encompassing both households and small businesses, with particular emphasis on rural inclusion including group-based credit delivery mechanisms.
(iv) To suggest a monitorable medium-term action plan for financial inclusion in terms of its various components like payments, deposit, credit, social security transfers, pension and insurance.
(v) To examine any other related issues.

The committee was constituted in reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address on the occasion of the Reserve Bank’s 80th anniversary wherein he asked the Bank to take the lead in encouraging financial institutions and to set a medium-to-long term target for sustainable financial inclusion.

Manipur Legislative Assembly unanimously resolved to withdraw MRVTMW Bill, 2015

Manipur Legislative Assembly on 15 July 2015 unanimously resolved to withdraw the Manipur Regulation of Visitors, Tenants and Migrant Workers (MRVTMW) Bill, 2015. The one-day special session of the state legislature was called for the sole purpose of withdrawing the Bill.

It was withdrawn as people were sceptical about the effectiveness of the Bill to protect indigenous communities of the State.

The Bill was passed by the Manipur Legislative Assembly on 16 March 2015 and it was submitted to the Governor on 20 March 2015. Later on 23 June 2015, the Governor referred the Bill to the Ministry of Home Affairs for consideration with the President of India. The Bill was referred to the President on the 8 July 2015.

The MRVTMW Bill was passed to experiment the effectiveness of monitoring non-local people through the directorate of registration. If such a directorate would have been set up, it would have become mandatory for all non-locals who are staying in hotels or private houses as tenants to submit their particulars to the directorate.

This is a very rare case in the history of parliamentary democracy in India, in which the Legislative Assembly of a state held its special session and unanimously resolved to withdraw a Bill, before it received the assent of the Governor or President.

Earlier, there have been instances in which a state government passed and withdrew Bills before they were given assent by the Governor or President. This happened in West Bengal.

Moving the resolution to withdraw the Bill, State Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh announced that a new bill on the Inner Line Permit (ILP) would be introduced in Manipur Assembly within three months. The new Bill will effectively protect indigenous people of Manipur.

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister also invited the Joint Committee onInner-Line Permit System (JCILPS) in Manipur for a discussion on people’s demand and at the same time examined that it does not contravene the Constitution.

AP Government formed one-member panel to probe Rajahmundry stampede during Godavari Maha Pushkaram

Rajahmundry: Major venue for the 2015 Godavari Maha Pushkaram celebrations in Andhra Pradesh.

The incident occurred on the bathing ghats of the river Godavari.

Rajahmundry is located on the banks of Godavari in East Godavari district of the Andhra Pradesh.

It was chosen as the primary venue for the once in 144 year event as the River Godavari is full in its expanse at this place.

After travelling around 100 km from Rajahmundry, the river merges with the Bay of Bengal at Antarvedi.

RBI constituted Deepak Mohanty Committee on Medium-term Path on Financial Inclusion

Union Government launched four initiatives as part of Skill India vision

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 July 2015 formally launched four initiatives- National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015, National Skill Development Mission (NSDM), Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) and Skill Loan scheme-aimed at achieving the vision of Skill India.

They were launched in a programme held on the occasion of first-ever World Youth Skills Day in New Delhi.

The four initiatives are aimed at making India as a hub of world’s human resource capital.

National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015: It is the second such policy on skill development since independence and intended to replace the National Policy on Skill Development 2009 by adding entrepreneurship to the policy framework.

National Skill Development Mission (NSDM): The mission is intended to operationalise the National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015. It has seven sub missions under it that are monitored by a Governing Council under the chairmanship of Prime Minister.

Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY): It is a demand-driven, reward-based skill training scheme. Under the scheme, besides assessing and certifying 10 lakh youth for the skills they already possess, around 24 lakh youth will be skilled over the next year.

Skill Loan scheme: Under the scheme, loans ranging from 5000-1.5 lakhs rupees will be made available to 34 lakh youth to attend skill development programmes. It will be operational between 2015 and 2020.

World Youth Skills Day observed globally

15 July: World Youth Skills Day

The World Youth Skills Day (WYSD) was on 15 July 2015 observed globally for the first ever time. The day was observed under the theme Youth skills for work and life in the post-2015 agenda. The theme is in line with the upcoming Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for 2030.

To mark the day, the United Nations organized several events at UN Headquarters in Bonn (Germany), New York (USA), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) and elsewhere.

The World Youth Skills Day was established by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on 11 November 2014. The Assembly designated 15 July as the World Youth Skills Day in order to raise awareness about the importance of investing in youth skills development.

World Youth Skills Day in India

In India, to mark this day, the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) launched the SKILL INDIA Campaign. The ministry rolled out the flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikash Yojana (PMKVY).

Moreover, PM Narendra Modi launched the National Skill Development Mission. He also unveiled the new National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015.

A Model Skill Loan Scheme was also launched where loans from 5000 rupees to 1.5 lakh rupees will be available to more than 34 lakh youth of India who seek to attend skill development programmes in the next five years.

PM unveiled National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 July 2015 unveiled National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015 in New Delhi.

The policy was unveiled in a programme held on the occasion of first-ever World Youth Skills Day.

It is the first such policy on entrepreneurship since independenceand intended to replace the National Policy on Skill Development 2009.

Highlights of National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015

Objectives

Related to Skill Development: To make quality vocational training aspirational for both youth and employers, focus on an outcome based approach towards quality skilling, increase the capacity and quality infrastructure, establish an IT base duality infrastructure for aggregating demand and supply of skilled workforce and promote increased participation of women in the workforce among others.

Related to Entrepreneurship: To promote entrepreneurship culture and make it aspirational, enhance support for potential entrepreneurs through mentorship and networks and integrate entrepreneurship education in the formal education system among others.

Policy Framework for Skill Development

The framework outlines the following eleven major paradigms and enablers to achieve the objectives of the policy.

Aspiration and Advocacy

A National Campaign will be launched within three months to create awareness and a positive proskillig environment.

National Skills Universities and institutes will be promoted in partnership with States as centres of excellence for skill development and training of trainers, either as denovo institutions or as a part of existing university landscape.

Skilling will be integrated with formal education by introducing vocational training classes linked to the local economy from class nine onwards in at least 25% of the schools, over the next five years.

To further the aspiration and respect associated with skilling, National Skill Awards will be instituted in close association with major stakeholders.

The Prime Minister’s Skill Development Fellow Scheme will be introduced to tap talented, young individuals who will work with the State and District administration to spread awareness about skill development, identify the local needs and steer skill development efforts in the region.

Capacity

By designing suitable incentive schemes, existing infrastructure both in terms of buildings and potential teachers would be optimally leveraged for skill training. They includeutilistation of over 1.55 million schools, 25000 colleges, 3200 polytechnics and 83 youth hostels, around 1.5 lakh post offices and over 1 lakh kiosks across the country.

Apprenticeship will further be incentivised in the MSME sector through appropriate schemes for sharing of stipend etc. Government will target a tenfold increase in apprenticeship opportunities in the next five years. Further, services sector will also be brought under the ambit of apprenticeship.

Quality

One Nation One Standard should become the mantra to ensure that national standards and quality for skilling are globally aligned and Indian youth can aspire to secure local, national and international job opportunities.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) will be done that includes preassessment, skill gap training and final assessment leading to certification of existing skills in an individual.

Synergy

Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), which has been set up to coordinate skill development efforts in the country will within three months, notify common norms for rationalization of Central Government Schemes on Skill Development.

A national Labour Market Information System (LMIS) will be created to generate key analysis and reports which will determine policy interventions by different government stakeholders and the industry at large.

Skilling efforts will be completely aligned with the requirements of 25 key identified sectors of Make in India.

Mobilization and Engagement

The industry should earmark at least 2 percent of its payroll bill (including for contract labour) for skill development initiatives in their respective sector. These funds can be channelized for skill development activities either through the respective SSCs or through National Skill Development Fund (NSDF).

Industry should actively participate in designing curricula and standards for skill training courses.

Global Partnerships

Institutional arrangements through joint working groups, secretariats, etc will be established for regular exchange of knowledge, experiences, research findings, teaching and learning materials, and innovations in skill development.

Foreign Governments, corporate and agencies will also be encouraged to set up skill centres and universities as well as participate in content creation, design of curricula and delivery of training.

Government would promote a skills training ecosystem that would also enable training and placement of Indian boys and girls in overseas jobs. The ageing developed world is expected to face a huge skill shortage while our country has the potential to reap its demographic advantage and export skilled labour to the world.

Outreach

KVKs will play a pivotal role in identifying local employment opportunities and providing adequate training and post¬training support according to needs of local areas such as migration support for skilled workers.

A National Skills Research Division (NSRD), will be constituted within NSDA at the national level to conduct skill surveys including aggregation of the environmental scans done by SSCs, study emerging demand trends, operate the LMIS and other skilling platforms and databases.

A National Campaign including through a dedicated TVand radio channel, and skilling camps will be initiated to promote interest and mobilize the youth for skilling.

ICT Enablement

The use of technology will be leveraged to scale up training facilities, enable access to remote areas and increase cost¬ effectiveness of delivery of vocational training.

An open platform for e¬content on skill development will be created where further curated content will be crowd sourced.

Government envisions to leverage the facility of Digital Locker for creation of Skill Cards linked to Aadhaar for the labour force trained and certified as per NSQF

Trainers and Assessors

A trainer/assessor portal will be set up as a part of the National Portal to act as a repository and registration database for all certified and interested trainers/assessors.

New institutes for training of trainers will be set up in PPP mode, at least one in each State, to increase the overall capacity of ToT in the country.

Inclusivity

Adequate focus will be given to youth from deprived households by establishing skill development centres in areas which are underserved.

Special attention needs to be given to youth residing in border, hilly and difficult areas, including North Eastern states, J&K, and the hilly forested areas of central and eastern India to address their needs for employment and employability.

Promotion of Skilling amongst Women

Special mechanisms in the delivery of training such as mobile training units, flexible afternoon batches, training based on the local needs of the area, will be introduced to ensure participation and mobilization of women.

Training in non¬traditional fields for women will be promoted through the establishment of specific training programmes that focus on life skills training modules and literacy training.

Policy Framework for Entrepreneurship

To unlock entrepreneurial potential the following nine part entrepreneurship strategy was proposed under the policy.

• Educate and equip potential and early stage entrepreneurs across India
• Connect entrepreneurs to peers, mentors and incubators
• Support entrepreneurs through Entrepreneurship Hubs (EHubs)
• Catalyse a culture shift to encourage entrepreneurship
• Encourage entrepreneurship among underrepresented groups
• Promote entrepreneurship amongst women
• Improve ease of doing business
• Improve access to finance
• Foster social entrepreneurship and grassroots innovations

Governance Structure and Financing

MSDE will be responsible for implementation of the policy.

In order to achieve the objectives enshrined in the policy the Prime Minister also launched the National Skill Development Mission (NSDM) aimed at implementing and coordinating all skilling efforts.

Financing

National Skill Development Fund (NSDF) will be utilized for implementation of skilling efforts under the policy.

To attract funds from industry, companies will be encouraged to spend at least 25 percent of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds on skill development initiatives directly or through NSDF.

All Government schemes across sectors will be encouraged to apportion a certain percentage (10%) of the scheme budget towards skilling of human resources in local regions in the required sector.

A Credit Guarantee Fund for skill development and a National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC) has been set up to support the initiative of loans for the purpose of skilling and will be used to leverage credit financing in the skill landscape.

A Policy Implementation Unit (PIU) will be set up so as to review the implementation and progress of the various initiatives under this policy. The PIU will be housed in MSDE with Secretary as the Chairperson and representation from NITI Aayog.

PetroFed Oil & Gas Industry Awards 2014 conferred

The PetroFed Oil & Gas Industry Awards 2014 were on 15 July 2015 conferred by the Petroleum Federation of India. The 12 awards were given in 11 categories for performance during the financial year 2013-14.

List of awardees:
• State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) won the Leading Oil & Gas Corporate of the Year award.
• IOC also bagged the Oil & Gas Marketing Company of the Year and the Human Resources Management Company of the Year awards.
• The Game Changer- Oil & Gas Company of the Year was conferred on IOC and LanzaTech Inc.
• The Woman Executive of the Year award was bagged by Mamoni Basumatary, Senior Manager (Technical Services) from IOC's Guwahati Refinery.
• The Innovator of the Year-Team award was bagged by the Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL).
• BPCL also won the Environmental Sustainability Company of the Year.
• Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) won the award for Exploration & Production Company of the Year.
• ONGC also won Project Management (500-2000 crore rupees)- Company of the Year award.
• The Oil & Gas Pipeline Transportation Company of the Year award was bagged by Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL).
• Innovator of the Year- Individual category was conferred on Gnana Kumaraswamy Batta, Senior Geophysicist, Oil India Limited.

While, no award was conferred for Drilling Services Company of the Year and no application was received for Project Management (above 2000 crore rupees)- Company of the Year award.

Process of choosing the awardees
The winners were selected through a rigorous process of collation by knowledge partner PricewaterhouseCoopers. The evaluation was done by the Awards Committee led by Prodipto Ghosh, former Secretary to the Union Government.

The selection of awardees was done by an eminent Jury headed by the former Chief Justice of India Justice M N Venkatachaliah. The other two members of the Jury were Anil Kakodkar, former Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and Naresh Narad, former Chairman, Public Enterprises Selection Board.

About PetroFed Oil & Gas Industry Awards
• The PetroFed Oil & Gas Annual Awards were launched in 2007 to recognise contribution by corporates and individuals in the Indian Oil & Gas Industry.
• The objective of the Awards is to celebrate and honour the leaders, innovators and pioneers of the industry for their outstanding achievements.
• There are 14 Awards in 12 categories. Each Award carries a trophy and a citation.

Union Agriculture Minister launched PGS-India, Soil Health Card and FQCS Web Portals

Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on 15 July 2015 launched 3 web portals viz. Soil Health Card portal, Fertiliser Quality Control System (FQCS) portal and Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) – India portal.

Soil Health Card Portal: The portal has been developed for registration of soil samples, recording test results of soil samples and generation of Soil Health Card (SHC) along with fertilizer recommendations. The portal is a single, generic, uniform, web based software that aims to generate and issue Soil Health Cards based on either Soil TEST-CROP Response (STCP) formulae developed by ICAR or General Fertilizer Recommendations provided by State Governments.

The System envisages building up a single national database on soil health for future use in research and planning.

Fertilizer Quality Control System Portal (FQCS):This FQCS is a web based and configurable workflow application developed by NIC for processing of sample collection, testing and generation of analysis reports. The system will lead to automation of most of the manual activities and help in online tracking the status of the sample.

In the first phase, the system will be implemented in CFQC&TI and its three RFCLs. Subsequently, the system will be extended to all the State Quality Control laboratories.

At present, there are 78 notified Fertilizer Quality Control Laboratories (FQCLs) in the country. Out of these, 4 laboratories viz. Central Fertilizer Quality Control & Training Institute (CFQC&TI) and its three Regional Fertilizer Control Laboratories (RFCLs) located at Navi Mumbai, Chennai and Kalyani.

Participatory Guarantee System – India Portal: Participatory Guarantee System is a process of certifying organic products which ensures agriculture production process in accordance with the standards laid down for organic products and that desired quality has been maintained.

In order to promote domestic organic market growth and also to enable small and marginal farmer to have easy access to organic certification, a decentralized organic farming certification system called Participatory Guarantee System –India (PGS-India) is implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. It is cost effective, farmer- friendly and hassle-free. It is outside the framework of third party system of certification, which is a pre-requisite to enter export market of organic produce

It is a quality assurance initiative that is locally relevant with active participation of stakeholders including producers/farmers, traders and consumers in certification system.

This group certification system is supported by Paramaparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) scheme.

WADA published new Guidelines for aspects of anti-doping programming

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) on 6 July 2015 released new Guidelines with recommended practices for several aspects of anti-doping programming.

These model guidelines are not mandatory, but offer technical guidance to ADOs in the implementation of programs.

WADA Guidelines includes
• Reporting & Management of Urinary Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG) and Luteinizing Hormone (LH)Findings in Male Athletes, v2.0. These Guidelines replace the current hCG Guidelines, v1.0 September 2011, and incorporate important changes in the testing methods for hCG and the reporting and management of hCG findings. This modified version of the hCG Guidelines also provides instructions and recommendations on the testing and reporting of LH findings.
• Human Growth Hormone (hGH) Biomarkers Test for Doping Control Analyses, v1.0. These new Guidelines have been developed to ensure a harmonized approach in the application of the GH-2000 Biomarkers Test for the detection of doping with human Growth Hormone (hGH) in sport. This version provides direction on the sample pre-analytical preparation procedure, the performance of the test and the interpretation of the test results.

SC termed National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy as unreasonable and irrational

Supreme Court of India (SC) on 15 July 2015 termed the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy, 2012and the Drug Price Control order (DRCO) 2013 as unreasonable and irrational.

The three-judge bench headed by Justice TS Thakur and comprising Justice V Gopala Gowda and Justice R Banumathi asked the Department of Pharmaceuticals of Union Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers to pass a reasoned order on the issue within six months after hearing all parties concerned.

The apex court also asked the Union Government to review its market-based drug pricing policy within six months. The court also asked the government to file a copy of its decision on the representation of NGO which would file it in six weeks.

The court was hearing a PIL filed by NGO All India Drug Action Network alleging that the Market Based Pricing (MBP)was never used for any price regulatory purposes and this was making medicines costlier.

Points of argument in NGO’s plea
• It said that MBP was never used for any price regulatory purposes and under the new policy; simple average ceiling prices were, in many cases, higher than the market leader price.
• It sought inclusion of more life-saving medicines of diseases like diabetes and tuberculosis in the list of drugs whose prices would be regulated by the government.
• It also said that the price control must extend to various dosages, strength and combinations.
• The petition also said that under the new policy, the profit margin for drug manufacturers and dealers were in the range of 10-1300 percent
• It sought a direction from the SC to the Centre to continue withcost-based ceiling pricesof all essential drugs.
• It also contended that theNational List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) consisted of only 348 drugs and had left out many essential medicines from price control.
• It also sought directions to the government to bring medicines specially used in HIV-AIDS, cancer, mental health, chronic non-communicable diseases like asthma and rheumatoid arthritis, under price control mechanism
• It also pleaded for implementation of the Tamil Nadu model of public procurement to ensure all these essential drugs are available free of cost to those seeking treatment in public health facilities.

Under the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO) 2013, Government controls prices of 348 drugs listed in the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Churachandpur of Manipur won 18th National Youth Parliament Competition

Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) of Churachandpur in Manipur on 15 July 2015 won the 18th National Youth Parliament Competition for Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas.

It was awarded with the Running Parliamentary Shield and Trophy by the Secretary, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs at the prize distribution ceremony held in New Delhi.

JNV Churachandpur emerged winner from a list of 64 JNVs spread across 8 regions of Navodaya Vidyalaya Saimiti in the country.

Besides, merit trophies were awarded to the winners from other 7 regions namely JNV, Sahranpur (Uttar Pradesh); Mysore (Karnataka); Jamnagar (Gujarat); Theog, Shimla (HP); Sidhi (MP); Karuli (Rajasthan); and Araria (Bihar) also.

About National Youth Parliament Competition

National Youth Parliament Competition is organized by Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs for school children across the country. It is organized under the Youth Parliament Scheme with an aim to inculcate the spirit of self-discipline, tolerance of diverse opinion, righteous expression of views and other virtues of a democratic way of life.

The Youth Parliament Scheme was first introduced in the Schools in Delhi in 1966-67 and in 1997-98 it was extended to cover Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas and University/Colleges.

The competition, at present, covers 1200 schools in NCT of Delhi, 1200 Kendriya Vidyalayas, 600 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalays and 300 Universities/Colleges all over the country.

Sayed Haider Raza honoured with highest French civilian honour Legion of Honour

Modern Indian artist Sayed Haider Raza was on 14 July 2015 conferred with the highest French civilian honour, the Commandeur de la Legion d’ Honneur (the Legion of Honour). The award was presented by French Ambassador Francois Richier on the occasion of the French National Day celebrations.

Raza was conferred with the award for his superior achievements transcending all boundaries, for the lasting ties he has forged between France and India and for his continuing artistic quest straddling nations, cultures, religions and philosophies.

About Sayed Haider Raza
• Syed Haider Raza alias SH Raza is an Indian artist who has lived and worked in France since 1950, but maintains strong ties with India.
• He became India’s priciest modern artist in June 2010 when his seminal work titled Saurashtra was sold for 16.42 crore rupees at a Christie’s auction.
• Raza’s work represents the origins of life and draws on symbols that tribal painters and highly sophisticated Indian philosophers have traced, pondered and mulled over for millennia.

Awards conferred on Raza
• 1956 - Prix de la Critique, Paris (first non-French recipient)
• 1981 - Padma Shri
• 1981 - Kalidas Samman, Government of Madhya Pradesh
• 2002 - Officier des Arts et des Lettres, Government of France
• 2004 - Lalit Kala Ratna Puraskar, Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi
• 2007 - Padma Bhushan
• 2013 - Padma Vibhushan

About la Legion d’ Honneur
The la Legion d’ Honneur award was created in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte. It is the highest civilian award given by the French Republic for outstanding service to France, regardless of the nationality of the recipients.

The President of the French Republic is the Grand Master of the Order of the Legion of Honour.

Remnants of India's one of the oldest port discovered in Goa

A team of scientists from Goa based National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) on 15 July 2015 discovered the remnants of a historically important port on Goa’s Zuari river which is expected to be amongst the oldest signs of human trade on the central west coast.

The Port is supposed to be existed between 1000 to 3500 AD which makes it India’s oldest ports. The researchers are also of the opinion that they may discover a dockyard similar in structure to Lothal dockyard in Gujarat which was discovered by Archeological Survey of India (ASI) in 1954.

Findings of the discovery
• The exploration work on the site has been completed and scientists have found the steps going in the water. It is imminent that existence of such a big wall parallel to river indicates that it is remnant of a port.
• According to the scientists, there is a existence of cross walls which stands inundated in the water.
• These observations concluded that this port might be connected to Old Goa, ancient capital of Goa, through Rajvidhi (Road built and used for the King).

The NIO's scientists have been working on 1.2KM long wall along the Zuari River which is just few kms away from the capital city of Goa. This area was earlier known as Gopakapattinam.

The scientists will now conduct Radiocarbon and Thermo-luminance dating to find out the correct age of this ancient port. Also to unearth other buried structures, the scientists will do ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey in sandy beach area and seismic surveys in offshore area.

Lower House of Japan’s Parliament approved bills changing self-defence law

Lower House of Japan’s Parliament (Diet) on 16 July 2105 approved 11 security-related bills that change the self-defence law, which was followed by Japan since World War -II.

The change paves the way for the Japanese military to potentially fight abroad for the first time since World War II.

Now the bills need approval from the upper house within 60 days

The biggest change under the new bills is that it allows Japan's military to defend allies like the United States, that come under attack, under a concept known as collective self-defense.

The bills were pushed by the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe arguing that it is necessary to expand the role of the military in a doctrine called collective self-defence and are vital to meet new challenges such as from a rising China.

Japan's Constitution of post World War-II bars the government from using force to resolve conflicts except in cases of self-defence. This was done as part of its interpretation of the country's pacifist constitution.

As a result, while Japan has participated in overseas peace-keeping operations overseas for decades, assignments have been limited to offering logistical support in non-combat areas.