15-16 june 2015

15 june

World Blood Donors Day observed with theme Thank you for saving my life

14 June: World Blood Donors Day
World Blood Donors Day (WBDD) was observed on 14 June 2015. The theme of the 2015 World Blood Donor Day campaign is "Thank you for saving my life”. 

The theme focuses on thanking blood donors who save lives every day through their blood donation and encourages more people across the earth to donate blood voluntarily and regularly with the slogan “Give freely, give often. Blood donation matters.”

The campaign aims to highlight stories from people whose lives have been saved through blood donation, as a way of motivating regular blood donors to continue giving blood and people in good health who have never given blood to begin doing so.

Background 
The World Blood Donors Day (WBDD) was established in 2004 to raise awareness of the need for safe bold and blood products, and to thank donors for their voluntary, life-saving gifts of blood.

WBDD is one of the eight official global public health campaigns marked by the World Health Organization (WHO) along with World Tuberculosis Day (24 March), World Health Day (7 April), World Immunization Week (last week of April), World Malaria Day (25 April), World No Tobacco Day (31 May), World Hepatitis Day (28 July), and World AIDS Day (1 December).

Union Government launched mobile app to locate nearest blood bank

Union Government on 14 June 2015 launched Mobile Blood Bank Locator App. The app was launched on the occasion of World Blood Donors Day with an aim to ease access of information regarding the nearest blood bank in the country. 

Ministry of Health said that the National Blood Transfusion Council (NBTC) has made available directory of all 2760 licensed blood banks at National Health Portal.

It also said that data of all 76 blood banks in Delhi NCR and 524 blood banks from across the country has been made available. The process of uploading data of remaining licensed blood banks in the country is under process and will be made available soon.

 

Sheila Kaul, former Governor of Himachal Pradesh, died

Former Governor of Himachal Pradesh, ex-Union Minister and Congress leader Sheila Kaul died after a brief illness on 14 June 2015. She was 100. 

She is now survived by sons Gautam Kaul, a retired IPS officer, and Vikram Kaul, an international sports administrator, besides daughter Deepa Kaul, a former Information Minister in UP.

She was married to renowned botanist Kailash Nath Kaul, who established the National Botanical Research Institute in Lucknow. Kaul, sister-in-law of Jawaharlal Nehru, was oldest surviving former Parliamentarian.

She was elected as a Member of Parliament (MP) for five times in 1971, 1980 and 1984 (from Lucknow) and in 1989, 1991 (from Rae Bareli).

• From 1980 to 84 in Indira Gandhi Government, she served as Minister of State (MoS) for culture, Education and Social Welfare (Independent Charge).
• From 1992 to 1995 in Narasimha Rao Government, she served as Union Minister for Housing and Urban Development and was accused of making out-of-turn allotment of government accommodations in return for monetary gain.
• From 1995 to 1996, she served as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh.
• Born on 7 February 1915, Kaul was an arts graduate from Lahore Women’s College and had a degree in teaching from Sir Ganga Ram Training College, Lahore.

 

World famous Buddhas of Bamiyan resurrected in Afghanistan

Buddhas of Bamiyan: Two 6th-century monumental statues of standing Buddha carved into Bamiyan valley of central Afghanistan.

The Buddhas of Bamiyan were recently in news on 7 June 2015 as they were resurrected in Bamiyan Valley, Afghanistan via 3D light projection technology. 

The project was undertaken by a Chinese couple Janson Yu and Liyan Hu, who used 3D laser light projection technology to fill the empty cavities in the cliff in the Bamiyan Valley in Hazarajat with Buddha's virtual images.

The two statues of Standing Buddhas of Bamiyan, 115 ft and 174 ft tall respectively, were carved out of sandstone cliffs and stood at one point painted and gilded. They managed to survive for more than 1500 years.

The statues represented the classic blended style of Gandhara art. The main bodies of statues were hewn directly from the sandstone cliffs, but details were modeled in mud mixed with straw, coated with stucco to enhance the expressions of the faces, hands and folds of the robes.

The statues were among the most famous cultural landmarks of the region, and the site was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site along with the surrounding cultural landscape and archaeological remains of the Bamiyan Valley.

These statues were destroyed in March 2001 by Taliban declaring it as false idols.

 

Bibek Debroy committee on railway restructuring submitted report to Union Ministry of Railways

The High Level Committee (HLC) on railway restructuring headed by Dr Bibek Debroy on 12 June 2015 submitted its final report to the Union Ministry of Railways.

The HLC known as the Committee for Mobilization of Resources for Major Railway Projects
and Restructuring of Railway Ministry and Railway Board was formed in September 2014.

For implementing its recommendations thecommittee has given the following timetable
Immediate–Liberalization, or the allowing of private entry; changes in the composition of the Railway Board.
0-2 years–Decentralization to zones/divisions; cleaning up finances between Union government and IR.
2 years–Reform of RPF, schools and medical services; transition to commercial accounting, reform of production and construction units.
3 years–Changes in the Railways Act and the Railway Board Act, setting up a Regulator; unified entry into the Railway services; resolution of social costs.
5 years–Bifurcation between Railway Infrastructure Corporation and rest of IR as train operators; end of the Railway Budget.
7 years–Transition of the IR that operates trains to a government-owned SPV.

Major recommendations of the HLC

• It is imperative to split the roles of policy-making, regulation, and operations. There should be clear division of responsibility between the Government of India and railway organizations. The Ministry will only be responsible for policy for the Railway sector and Parliamentary accountability and will give autonomy to the IR.

• Unbundling of Indian Railways (IR) into two independent organizations: one, responsible for the track and infrastructure and another that will operate trains.

• To enable proper decision –making, the IR needs to adopt a commercial accrual-based double entry accounting system. This will help determine the precise extent of subsidization.

• The Railway Board should become like a corporate board for IR. The Chairman of the Railway Board should thus be like a CEO. He/She is not first among equals and should therefore have the powers of final decision-making and veto (in the case of a divided view).

• A Railway Infrastructure Company should be created as a government SPV (with a possibility of disinvesting in the future) that owns the railway infrastructure, delinked from IR.

• A provision needs to be made for open access for any new operator who wishes to enter the market for operating trains with non-discriminatory access to the railway infrastructure and a level playing field.

• Amendment in the Indian Railways Act will be required to allow the levy of tariffs by private operators without administered tariff-determination and fares being left to the market, with a qualification about passenger fares with guaranteed standard of services to a particular passenger class, such as ordinary sitting class and sleeper class.

• Set up a Railway Regulatory Authority of India (RRAI) statutorily, with an independent budget, so that it is truly independent of the Ministry of Railways. It will have the powers and objectives of economic regulation, including, tariff regulation; safety regulation, service standard regulation, etc.

• RRAI should possess quasi judicial powers, with appointment and removal of members distanced from the Union Ministry of Railways.

• There should be an Appellate Tribunal which will hear appeals against the orders of RRAI and further appeals against the orders of the Appellate Tribunal can be directed to the Supreme Court.

• Separation of rail track from rolling stock and unbundling the former and separation and unbundling of non-core as well as peripheral activities.

• Delink of RPF from the IR system and bring in private security for protection of Railway property.

• Immediate integration of the existing Railway schools into the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathana set-up.

• All the existing production units should be placed under a government SPV known as the Indian Railway Manufacturing Company (IRMC) under the administrative control of the Ministry of Railways. No privatization need be contemplated, at least initially.

• An ex-cadre post of a Chief Technology Officer (CTO) needs to be created, reporting directly to the Chairman of the Board and all IT initiatives should be integrated and brought under the umbrella of this directorate exclusive of any departmental handling in Board.

• There are too many Zones and Divisions and thus a rationalization exercise is required.

• The head of the Zone (GM) must be fully empowered to take all necessary decisions without reference to Railway Board within the framework of policies.

• There is a need to shift focus to business/customer units like freight business, passenger business, suburban business, parcel business etc. which is essential for IR to be competitive, for its long term-economic viability, customer satisfaction and for being an adaptive/flexible organization.

• IR should consolidate and merge the existing eight organized Group ‘A’ services into two services i.e. the Indian Railway Technical Service (IRTechS) and the Indian Railway Logistics Service (IRLogS), comprising the three non-technical services (IRAS, IRPS and IRTS).

• Subsidies should be targeted towards those who need them. Link Aadhaar numbers for passenger when tickets are purchased. Subsidies on passenger fares to be reimbursed directly into bank accounts, for those who are targeted BPL. Such subsidies must be borne by the Union government.

• IR must encourage on-board catering through large food chains and local restaurants on the payment of a modest license fee. This can be enabled simply through web booking and thus offer customers a wide choice of local cuisine, delivered at his/her choice of station by the restaurant.

• For raising resources for investments, an Investment Advisory Committee may be set up, consisting of experts, investment bankers and representatives of SEBI, RBI, IDFC and other institutions.

 

Aequs Pvt Ltd acquired Paris-based T&K Machine Inc

Aequs Pvt Ltd, a Karnataka-based aerospace component manufacturer, on 14 June 2015 acquired Paris-based aerospace component maker T&K Machine Inc for an undisclosed amount.

T&K acquisition will help Aequs to expand its footprint in North American market. Aequs will now offer its global aerospace machining platform of over one million hours to Boeing and its tier-1 suppliers across the world.

About T&K Machine Inc
• T & K Machine was founded in 1968 by Tom and Frances Westbrooks. Beginning in the 1970’s, the company began production of major programs with Bell Helicopter, Boeing, and Vought. 
• T&K is a US export control approved facility with 65 employees. It has been supplying machined parts and assemblies to the aerospace industry since 1968 and has a wide range of manufacturing capabilities.

About Aequs Pvt Ltd
• Aequs was founded in 1997 as an engineering services firm called QuEST Global Manufacturing based out of the US.
• It started manufacturing aerospace and defence components in 2006. It has a presence in the aero structures (wings, air frames, etc.), aero systems (hydraulic valve actuators, etc.) and landing-gear segments of aerospace manufacturing, and supplies to all major aerospace and aviation companies.

Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) launched India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP)

The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) on 12 June 2015 launched the India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP).

The INIP has become the 27th such insurance pool in the world as countries such as France, Russia, South Africa and the U.S. have put in place such similar risk transfer mechanisms.

Features of India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP)

• It will cover the risks of liability of nuclear operators and suppliers under Section 6(2) and Section 17 of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damages (CLND) Act, 2010 respectively.
• It provides three types of policies viz., tier 1 policy for operators, tier 2 policy for turn key suppliers and tier 3 policy for suppliers other than turn key suppliers.
• The pricing of premiums will depend on factors such as risk probability, possible severity of damage and exposure to people and property around nuclear installations.

• It will be administered by the General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re), the sole reinsurance company in the Indian insurance market.
• Out of the total fund amount of 1500 crore rupees the GIC Re and other four Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) including New India, Oriental Insurance, National Insurance and United India Insurance  invested 750 crore rupees. The British Nuclear Insurance Pool has also invested 500 crore rupees in the pool.
• The amount is in accordance with the act that prescribes that the operator’s maximum liability shall be 1500 crore rupees.
• It will provide insurance cover for both hot zones (radiation and nuclear reactors) and cold zones (outside the reactor areas). At present, nuclear plants in India only have insurance cover for zones that are outside the area of radiation and reactors.

Comment

The creation of the Pool has become necessary due to the reluctance of the foreign nuclear equipment suppliers to participate in the nuclear trade with India as the CNLD Act, 2010 has provided for Right to Recourse for nuclear plant operators which allows them to sue suppliers in case of nuclear accidents.

 

Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicle Agreement signed in Thimpu

India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal on 15 June 2015 signed the BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal) Motor Vehicle Agreement in the Bhutanese capital Thimphu.

The transport ministers of four countries including the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari signed the agreement.

Key Features of BBIN Motor Vehicle Pact

• The regional motor vehicle pact is aimed at regulation of passenger, personal and cargo vehicular traffic amongst four SAARC member countries.
• It would promote safe, economical, efficient and environmentally sound road transport in the region.
• It would help each country in creating an institutional mechanism for regional integration.
• Each party will bear its own costs arising from implementation of this agreement. 
• It is similar to the SAARC Motor Vehicle Agreement (MVA) draft with minor changes.

Comment

The Union Cabinet had approved a proposal to sign the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) MVA during the SAARC Summit in Kathmandu in November 2014. However, it could not be signed due to reservations of Pakistan.

The SAARC declaration at the Kathmandu Summit in November 2014 also encouraged Member States to initiate regional and sub-regional measures to enhance connectivity. Accordingly, it was considered appropriate that a sub-regional Motor Vehicle Agreement among Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) may be pursued.

 

Railway Ministry decided to run Suvidha Trains

Ministry of Railways on 12 June 2015 decided to run Suvidha trains with dynamic fares from July 2015. The decision to run Suvidha trains was taken to address the rush during peak travel seasons. 

These trains will have dynamic fare system and there will not be any downward movement of the fare. Also, these trains may be run during peak seasons like winter rush, summer rush, Dussehra rush, Holi rush and on other occasions.

Some facts about Suvidha Trains
• Only confirmed and RAC tickets will be issued for these trains and there will be no waiting list. No concession like free passes/complimentary passes/warrant/concessional voucher will be available on these trains.
• The maximum advance reservation period will be 30 days while the minimum advance reservation period will be of 10 days. 
• Full adult fare shall be changed for all passengers irrespective of their age. 
• These tickets can be availed from e-ticketing as well as through PRS counters, but the traveler will have to carry his prescribed Identity Card during the journey for verification purpose
• Modification or duplicate ticket or cluster bookings or BPT will not be allowed.
• Only General quota bookings will be applicable.
• Upgradation option shall not be applicable in these trains.
• There shall be no First AC or Fist Class or Executive class or general class or 2nd sitting coach in the train composition of Suvidha Trains.
Three types of trains to be run under the Suvidha Trains services 
• Fully air-conditioned services with or without stoppages: Base Price: (Rajdhani base fare + Tatkal charges).
• Mixed services having no enroute commercial stoppages on mixed Duronto pattern: Base price: (Mixed Duronto base fare + Tatkal charges).
• For mixed services having some stoppages enroute and running as Mail/Express: Base price: (Mail/Express base fare + Tatkal charges).

 

Spain passed law awarding citizenship to descendants of expelled Jews

Spain’s Lower House of Parliament (Congreso) on 11 June 2015 approved a law that eases the path to citizenship for descendants of Jews who were forced to flee the country five centuries ago. Several Jews flee away from the country during the Spanish Inquisition.

Tens of thousands of Jews were expelled in 1492 during the Spanish Inquisition, who were forced to convert them to Catholicism or were burnt at the stake.

The new law will allow holding dual citizenship rights for Jews with Spanish ancestry those whose can trace their roots to the expelled Jewish community, also known as Sephardic Jews. This means that such Jews with Spanish ancestry can apply for a Spanish passport from October 2015. 

The new law that will grant a right to hold dual citizenship to Sephardic Jews is presently granted to people from its former colonies and neighbouring Portugal and Andorra. 

Spanish Inquisition
The Inquisition was a Roman Catholic tribunal for discovery and punishment of heresy, which was marked by the severity of questioning and punishment and lack of rights afforded to the accused.

Spanish Inquisition started in 1481 after Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand wrote a petition to the Pope asking permission to start the process in the country as they felt that Jews are influencing the Spanish peoples. During the inquisition Conversos (Secret Jews) and New Christians were targeted because of their close relations to the Jewish community, many of whom were Jews in all but their name.

 

Comet lander Philae woke up after seven months of hibernation

Rosetta's lander Philae woke up after seven months in hibernation on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. It is the first spacecraft in the space history to land on a comet.

The signals from the spacecraft were received at the European Space Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany on 13 June 2015.

This is the first time it came into contact after it was forced to shut down on 15 November 2014 as the spacecraft’s battery got exhausted and its location on the comet could not allow it to use sun radiation to produce power supply from the solar panels mounted on it.

About Philae

• Its aim is to understand the elemental, isotopic, molecular and mineralogical composition of the cometary material.
• It was developed and launched as part of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Rosetta mission.
• It was landed on the surface of Comet 67P/ Churyumov–Gerasimenko on 12 November 2014.
• The landing site has been named as Agilkia and is located on the head of the bizarre double-lobed object. 
• The lander name has been kept after Philae Island in the Nile, where an obelisk (a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument) that was found and used, along with the Rosetta stone, to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphics. 
• The 1 billion pound (1.58 billion US dollars) Rosetta was launched on 2 March 2004 from Kourou spaceport in French Guiana. 
• It travelled 6.4 billion kilometers through the Solar System before reaching the Comet 67P. 
• It reached the icy and dusty surface of the comet that orbits sun at speed up to 135000 km/hr on 6 August 2014.

 

Israeli government approved bill to force feed prisoners

The Israeli government on 14 June 2015 approved a bill that will allow the force-feeding of prisoners that are on hunger strike, if their lives are in danger. The Bill is called as Law to Prevent Harm Caused by Hunger Strikes.

The bill is scheduled to be presented before Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, for first and second readings before it becomes law. 

However, Israel's Medical Association opposed the bill and urged local doctors not to participate in force-feedings if the law comes into force. The association considers force-feeding as a form of torture.

Under current Israeli law, it is impossible to treat a patient against his or her own will, but an ethics committee can get involved.

Background
The bill was initially approved in June 2014 when the mass hunger strike of Palestinian prisoners was at its height during which 80 were hospitalised as well. But, it was put on hold as the Knesset was dissolved before it could start deliberating.

The majority of prisoners who go on hunger strike in Israeli jails are Palestinians in administrative detention, under which they are held for renewable six-month periods without charge. According to Israel's Prison Service, there are about 5000 Palestinian prisoners currently and out of them four refused to eat.

 

RTA of UAE included four Indian languages into its driving tests

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) of United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the second week of June 2015 decided to include four Indian languages to offer knowledge tests and lectures to aspirants who appear for driving test in the country. 

The four Indian languages included along with three other languages are Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil and Bengali. The other three are Chinese, Russian and Persian.

At present, RTA of UAE conducts tests in three languages - English, Urdu and Arabic.

While appearing for driving tests, an aspiring driver will be allowed to opt for any one of these languages for both theory tests as well as eight mandatory lectures from September 2015. 

The mandatory lectures and knowledge test are required to obtain a driving licence in UAE. To move to the practical driving classes, an aspirant also needs to pass a computer-based knowledge test.

 

Union Government launched website to connect employers, job seekers

Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Kalraj Mishra on 15 June 2015 launched a digital Employment Exchange for Industries (EEX) portal eex.dcmsme.gov.in which will connect employers and job seekers. The portal will help in linking Make in India initiative with Skilled India one.

The employers and job seekers can now register at www.eex.dcmsme.gov.in. Nearly, two lakh job seekers have already registered themselves with the EEX.

Background
There are large units in the country which are dependent on MSMEs, but the absence of skilled manpower results in non-competitiveness of MSMEs and Indian industry as a whole.  

Until and unless, the skilled hands do not find the appropriate jobs and the appropriate employer, it will lead to frustration and skepticism to the entire skilling program of this country.  

Therefore, it is utmost important that these skilled hands get a platform where they can find livelihoods for themselves.  This online portal will enable industrial units in finding suitable manpower and will help job seekers in finding suitable jobs.

 

16 june

Snapdeal.com acquired Letsgomo Labs

Online marketplace Snapdeal.com on 15 June 2015 acquired Letsgomo Labs, a mobility solutions company for an undisclosed sum. With this acquisition, Snapdeal will strengthen its position in mobile commerce as online consumers in India are increasingly choosing to shop over their phones.

After the acquisition, the 76-member team of Letsgomo will join Snapdeal and strengthen the organisation’s mobile technology capabilities.

Earlier in May 2015, Snapdeal acquired Martmobi that enables seamless mobile connectivity with customers' existing back-end systems, in addition to a real-time analytics engine to improve conversions and user engagement.

Letsgomo Labs
• Letsgomo Labs was founded by Manav Kamboj and Vikas Banga. The company works with leading e-commerce companies to help them strengthen their mobile capabilities.
• It provides mobile technology solutions, design and strategy, besides consulting businesses in conceptualization of applications and mobile sites to implementation and hosting of the mobile platform.

 

Indian Railways rechristened Haridwar Mail as Yoga Express

Indian Railways on 15 June 2015 rechristened train No 19031/19032 Ahmedabad-Haridwar Mail Express also known as 'Haridwar Mail' as Yoga Express. The name was changed with immediate effect. 

However, there will be no change in the train timings and its composition.

Union Government is observing International Yoga Day on 21 June 2015.

 

Rafael Nadal won Stuttgart Open

Spaniard Rafael Nadal on 14 June 2015 won the singles final of the ATP’s Stuttgart Open. In the final match in Germany, Nadal defeated Serbian Viktor Troicki 7-6, 6-3. 

It was Rafael Nadal’s third Stuttgart Men’s single title; the previous two were won in 2005 and 2007 respectively. With this victory he also became first tennis player to win titles at the event on both clay and grass surface.

Stuttgart made the switch to grass starting with this edition as part of the new Wimbledon pre-season.

Apart from this, India’s tennis player Rohan Bopanna along with his Romanian partner Florin Mergea won the Stuttgart Men’s Double Open title 2015. The Indo-Romanian pair defeated Austrian-Brazilian pair of Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares 5-7, 6-2, 10-7. This was fourth title for Bopanna.

 

PM Narendra Modi launched book titled Education of Muslims by Professor JS Rajput

Education of Muslims: An Islamic Perspective of Knowledge and Education – Indian Context: Professor JS Rajput (Editor)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15 June 2015 launched a book titled Education of Muslims: An Islamic Perspective of Knowledge and Education – Indian Context edited by Professor JS Rajput.

The book is aimed at informing and educating policy-makers, scholars and readers aboutrole of Islam in pursuit of education and knowledge.

The book contains 16 articleswritten by various scholars and historians including JS Rajput on wide ranging issues related to understanding of Islam religion, role of Islam and its educational institutions (madrasas) in dissemination of knowledge and educational status of Muslim children in India among others.

JS Rajput is an accomplished educationist and historian. He is a former director of National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) and Chairman, National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE).

He was conferred with the prestigious Jan Amos Comenius Medal by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for outstanding contributions in research and innovations.

 

800-year-old Buddha statue with 1000 hands unveiled by China after 7 years of restoration

China on 12 June 2015 unveiled the 800-year-old Buddha statue (Qianshou Guanyin) famous for its 1000 hands in Dazu County in Sichun province. The statue is listed as World Heritage sites by UNESCO in 1999.

The statue was unveiled after it was restored by Chinese experts in seven years at an expense of 60 million yuan (9.8 million US dollar).

The restoration work of the statue, one integral part of the Dazu Rock Carvings, was started on 18 April 2008. 

Restoration project
During the restoration project, the workers restored 830 hands and 227 instruments of the statue by using one million gold foils. The 7.7 metres high and 12.5 metres wide statue was carved during the Southern Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD). However, the initial cravings date back to Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 AD).

Zhan Changfa, a researcher of the Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage, was the in charge of the project.

 

Britain celebrated 800th anniversary of Magna Carta

Magna Carta: Charter of Liberties intended to put a check upon arbitrary powers of the King of England

The term Magna Carta was in news on 15 June 2015 as the Queen Elizabeth II of the UK inaugurated a ceremony to mark the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta.

The ceremony took place atRunnymede near Londonwhere King John II sealed the original accord on 15 June 1215.

The most important principle that Magna Carta laid down was that Englishmen should be governed by definite laws and not by the whims or the will of a despotic ruler which had been the practice prior to the charter.

It promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons (feudal lords) from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown among others.

The Great Charter, as it is often called, was said to be the foundation stone of the rights and liberties of the English people that gradually paved way for principle of Rule of Law across the world.

 

Karbonn to set up its first mobile phone manufacturing facility in Hyderabad

Indian mobile handset maker Karbonn on 15 June 2015 announced that it is planning to set up its first mobile handset manufacturing facility in Hyderabad.

The facility will be established with an estimated cost of 450 crore rupees as part of a joint venture (JV) with a Chinese company.

It will have production capacity oftwo million phones per month that includes feature (basic) as well as smart phones, which will be the focus of the facility.

The facility which is expected to be operational by December 2016 is in addition to the already existing two assembly units located in Bengaluru and Noida.

At present, the New Delhi based company isIndia’s fourth largest smart phone player with an annual turnover of 4300 crore rupees during the financial year 2014-15.

It has 85000 retail outlets and serves its customers through 900 service centres.

 

Australia applied holding order to Maggi Noodles from India

The Department of Agriculture of Australia on 11 June 2015 applied a holding order to Maggi brand noodles imported from India.

Under the holding order, each consignment will be held in a place to be approved by an authorised officer until it has been inspected, or inspected and analysed, in accordance with the applicable requirements of the Imported Food Inspection Scheme.

The department took this measure in response to reports of levels of lead that are potentially noncompliant with the permissible levels in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

Earlier, on 5 June 2015, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) banned Maggi as it was found unsafe and hazardous for human consumption due to high levels of Monosodium glutamate and lead. Further, FSSAI has also ordered Nestle to stop its further production, processing, import, distribution and sale.

Recently, Maggi has also come on the radar of US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) which has taken samples of the instant noodles brand for testing.

Before the ban order, Nestle India used to export Maggi noodles to the US, Canada, UK, Australia, Singapore and Kenya.

 

Union Government launched Augmented Reality Application named Sakaar

The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North-Eastern Region (DoNER) Jitendra Singh on 15 June 2015 launched an Augmented Reality (AR) application named Sakaar to highlight the achievements of the Department of Space.

The application has been developed by Development and Educational Communication Unit (DECU) of ISRO for Android devices. 

Sakaar consists of 3D models of MOM, RISAT, rockets (PSLV, GSLV Mk-III); videos of INSAT 3D-predicting cyclones, GSLV D5/Cryo, Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) orbit insertion, launch video of MOM, 360 degree animated view of MOM; Anaglyph of Mars surface.  

The Multimedia content of the Sakaar app is generated with the support of multimedia & editing facilities of DECU-ISRO.

About Augmented Reality
Augmented Reality is a live direct view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements are augmented by computer-generated 3D models, animations, videos, etc. 

Augmentation is in real time and the information is overlaid on the live view of the device’s camera.  Essentially, AR requires three elements: 
• Android device with back camera
• AR application
• AR Markers.

 

Harbhajan Singh became 9th highest wicket-taker in Test Cricket

Indian off-spin cricketer Harbhajan Singh on 14 July 2015 became the ninth all-time highest Test wicket-takers by claiming 416 wickets in 102 matches. 

In this process, he surpassed Pakistani legend Wasim Akram who stood at the ninth position with 414 wickets in 104 matches. He achieved the landmark quicker than Akram. 

He achieved the feat after dismissing Imrul Kayes for 72 to reach 415 Test victims, one more than Akram.

Now, Harbhajan nicknamed as Turbanator is just 20 wickets short of equalling Kapil Dev’s 434 Test wickets record, the second highest wicket-taker in history of Indian Test Cricket after Anil Kumble’s 619 wickets. 

List of top 10 wicket-takers in Test matches
1. Muttiah Muralitharan: 800 wickets in 133 matches 
2. Shane Warne: 708 wickets in 145 matches 
3. Anil Kumble:619 wickets 132 in matches
4.Glenn McGrath:563 wickets in 124 matches
5. Courtney Walsh: 519 wickets in 132 matches 
6. Kapil Dev: 434 wickets in 131 matches 
7. Sir Richard Hadlee: 431 wickets in 86 matches 
8. Shaun Pollock: 421 wickets in 108 matches 
9. Harbhajan Singh:416 wickets in 102 matches 
10.Wasim Akram: 414 wickets in 104 matches

 

Kapil Mishra appointed as Chairman of Delhi Jal Board

Delhi Law Minister Kapil Mishra was on 15 June 2015 appointed as the Chairman of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). He succeeded Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.

Earlier, Delhi Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung administered oath of office and secrecy to Kapil Mishra as a Law Minister in Delhi Cabinet. Mishra was inducted in the Cabinet following the resignation of Jitender Singh Tomar as Law Minister.

Tomar resignation came following his arrest by Delhi Police in connection with his fake degree case.

Mishra is an AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) MLA from Karawal Nagar who won by a margin of over 44000 votes in 2014 Delhi Elections.

 

UN elected Denmark's Mogens Lykketoft to head General Assembly

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 15 June 2015 elected Denmark's Mogens Lykketoft as its President for its upcoming 70th session in September 2015. 

He will have tenure of one year and succeeds Uganda's Sam Kutesa to preside over the 193-member body.

Lykketoft presently is the speaker of Danish Parliament since 2011 and is a member of the Social Democrats party.

Earlier from 1993 to 2001, Lykketoft served Denmark as its Foreign and Finance Ministers.

 

CSIR set up India’s first Micro Air Vehicle Aerodynamics Research Tunnel in Bengaluru

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in June 2015 set up a Micro Air Vehicle Aerodynamics Research Tunnel (MART) at the CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL) campus, Bengaluru. 

The tunnel, first of its kind in India, will be used to test the fixed-wing, flapping-wing and rotary-wing MAVs in the 500 mm wingspan category.

The tunnel was set up under the National Programme on Micro Air Vehicles (NP-MICAV). The project is jointly coordinated by CSIR, the Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) and the Department of Science & Technology. 

The state-of-the-art tunnel would address all the aerodynamic, propulsion and aero-elastic issues related to MAVs. It has also a provision for either closed test section for the study of aerofoil sections/3D wing-body models or open jet test section for the flapping and rotary wing studies.

The National Programme-Micro Air Vehicles (NP-MICAV)
Micro air vehicles (MICAV) are small and lightweight flying platforms with a maximum wingspan of 300 mm, all-up weight of 350 grams and payload capacity of 40-60 grams. Micro air vehicles (MICAV) can be deployed for numerous applications, spanning both civilian and military roles.

Research and development activity in mini and micro air vehicles was first suggested in 1998 at a seminar of The Aeronautical Society of India in Hyderabad.

In August 2010, the NP-MICAV was launched with an aim to develop Micro Air Vehicle and their related technologies. The duration of this ambitious joint project is five years and entails a cost of 1.15 crores rupees. 

Progress So Far
So far, fixed wing MAVs of Black Kite, Golden Hawk and Pushpak with a 300-450 mm span, 300 g weight, 2 km range and endurance of 30 minutes have been developed. These MAVs have been demonstrated for ITBP, CRPF, Punjab Police, NDRF, IDS, Artillery Training School and others.

Also, a high altitude mini UAV named Slybird with1.6 m wing span, 1.3 m length and 2 kg weight with an operational range of 10 km and endurance of 1 hr has been developed successfully and flight tested at Leh-Ladak (12000 ft above sea level).

 

Book titled Modi - Incredible emergence of a star in Chinese language written by Tarun Vijay

Modi - Incredible emergence of a star: Tarun Vijay

A book on Prime Minister Narendra Modi titled Modi –Incredible emergence of a star written in Chinese language by Tarun Vijay was in news on 16 June 2015 as one copy of the book was given to Vice-President M Hamid Ansari. Tarun Vijay is a BJP Member of Parliament and a journalist.

The book was published in July 2014 by Sichuan University’s South Asia Study Centre.

The book is a biography based on the life and economic vision of Narendra Modi.