23-24 JUNE 2016
India won three-match T20 Series against Zimbabwe, 2-1
India on 22 June 2016 won the three-match T20 series against Zimbabwe 2-1. In the third and final match played at Harare, India defeated Zimbabwe by a narrow three-run margin.
Winning the toss and electing to ball first, Zimbabwe succeeded in restricting India to 138 for six in 20 overs. In the second innings, the hosts got close to the target before ending at 135 losing six wickets.
Series Report
• 1st Match: It was played at Harare sports club, Harare, Zimbabwe on 18 June 2016. Zimbabwe defeated India by 2 runs. Elton Chigumbura was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
• 2nd Match: It was played at Harare sports club, Harare, Zimbabwe on 20 June 2016. India defeated Zimbabwe by 10 wickets. Barinder Sran was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
• 3rd Match: It was played at Harare sports club, Harare, Zimbabwe on 22 June 2016. India defeated Zimbabwe by 3 runs. Kedar Jadhav was adjudged as the Man of the Match.
Man of the series: Barinder Sran (an Indian bowler)
Olympian Anju Bobby George resigned as president of Kerala Sports Council
Olympian Anju Bobby George on 22 June 2016 resigned as President of the Kerala Sports Council.
The iconic long jumper, who in 2003 became the first Indian athlete ever to win a medal in a World Athletics Championships in Paris, resigned after being accused for corruption by the state's sports minister EP Jayarajan.
Bobby George was appointed president of the state's sports council in 2015, by the erstwhile Oommen Chandy government.
Anju Bobby George
• Born on 19 April 1977, George is an Indian athlete.
• She won the Gold medal at the IAAF World Athletics Final in 2005.
• In 2005 World Athletics Final in Monte Carlo, she was upgraded to gold status from silver following the disqualification of Tatyana Kotova of Russia by the International Association of Athletics Federations.
• She was awarded Arjuna Award in 2002.
• She won the bronze medal clearing 6.49 m at the 2002 Commonwealth Games at Manchester.
• She also won the gold medal at the Asian Games in Busan.
• In 2001, she also won gold for triple jump and long jump in the Ludhiana National games.
• In 1999 she set the national record for triple jump in the Bangalore Federation Cup and Silver medal at the South Asian Federation Games in Nepal.
World Hydrography Day 2016 observed
World Hydrography Day (WHD) 2016 was observed on 21 June 2016 across the world.
The theme for the WHD 2016 was Hydrography - the key to well-managed seas and waterways. The theme tries to focus attention on the fundamental importance of hydrography.
The World Hydrography Day also marks the 95th anniversary of the establishment of theInternational Hydrographic Organization(IHO).
The day is celebrated to increase public awareness of the vital role that hydrography plays in everyone’s life.
Background
•On 29 November 2005, the United Nations adopted Resolution A/60/30 to welcome the adoption by the International Hydrographic Organization of the World Hydrography Day to be celebrated annually on 21 June.
•The theme for the World Hydrography Day 2015 was Our seas and waterways - yet to be fully charted and explored.
What is hydrography?
•Hydrography involves measuring the depth of the water and fixing the position of all the navigational hazards that lie on the seafloor.
•Hydrography also involves measuring the tide and the currents.
•It is done mainly with specialised ships and boats operating echo sounders and sonars. Survey aircraft fitted with lasers are also used to measure the depth.
•Hydrographic information is required for the safe, competent and sustainable conduct of every human activity that takes place in, on or under the sea.
International Widows’ Day 2016 observed globally
23 June: International Widows’ Day
The International Widow's Day 2016 was celebrated across the world on 23 June 2016. The day was celebrated to raise awareness on the troubles of widowed women.
The day throws light on the situation of widows which is sometimes neglected due to absent in statistics, unnoticed by researchers and is mostly overlooked by civil society organizations.
Generally, widow women have to suffer complete social exclusion. Abuse of widows and their children constitutes one of the most serious violations of human rights and obstacles to development today.
Background
Millions of the world’s widows endure extreme poverty, ostracism, violence, homelessness, ill health and discrimination in law and custom.
To give special recognition to the situation of widows of all ages and across regions and cultures, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) declared 23 June 2011 as the first-ever International Widows’ Day to be celebrated annually.
Since 2011, International Widows Day is observed to sensitize the global population for the misery of the widows.
United Nations Public Service Day 2016 observed globally
23 June: United Nations Public Service Day
The United Nations Public Service Day was celebrated by the United Nations (UN) on 23 June 2016.The day was celebrated to mark the invaluable contributions of public servants and administrators to build a better world for all.
The 2016 United Nations Public Service Day was celebrated at the United Nations Headquarters in New York with a High-level Knowledge Sharing Panel on Leaving No One Behind: Innovative Institutional Approaches and Public Service Delivery.
This is the first time that the Day is celebrated after the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted by all United Nations Member States.
About United Nations Public Service Day
• The UN Public Service Day is intended to celebrate the value and virtue of public service to the community.
• It highlights the contribution of public service in the development process and recognizes the work of public servants.
• It also encouraged young people to pursue careers in the public sector.
• On this day, the United Nations awards the public servants with the United Nations Public Service Award, the most prestigious international recognition of excellence in public service.
• The award Ceremony was established in 2003.
President Pranab Mukherjee returned 3 bills for reconsideration of Manipur Legislative Assembly
President Pranab Mukherjee in June 2016 returned 3 bills to Manipur Legislative Assembly for reconsideration.
The 3 bills that returned were –
i. The Manipur Land Reforms and Land Revenue (7th Amendment) Bill, 2015
ii. The Manipur Shops and Establishment (2nd Amendment) Bill, 2015
iii. The Manipur Protection of Peoples Bill, 2015
These bills, which were passed by the State Legislative Assembly in September 2015, had triggered violence leading to the death of nine people in the State. Their bodies are still being preserved by their families in protest.
Why the bills were sent for reconsideration?
The Manipur Protection of Peoples Bill, 2015 was returned on the following 2 grounds –
i. The definition of a “Manipuri” was based on the census conducted in 1951
ii. The Bill was passed by the Assembly as a Money Bill
Provisions:The bill proposed that - Manipur people means persons of Manipur whose names are in the National Register of Citizens 1951, Census Report 1951 and Village Directory of 1951 and their descendants who have contributed to the collective social, cultural and economic life of Manipur.
Further, the Bill also proposed to appoint a Director to register “non-Manipur” people and “owners who provide accommodation to the tenants (non-Manipur).”
Criticism: It has been argued that 1951 as the cut-off date is unfair as the State has seen a surge in migrant population from the neighbouring States in recent decades. The criterion was also questiond on the ground that the census exercise in 1951 did not cover the entire State, especially hilly areas that cover 90 percent of area, due to not availability of infrastructure and human resources.
And, had the criteria been approved, around half of the indigenous tribes, including the Kukis and Nagas of the hilly areas, would have been declared as non-Manipuri.
Secondly,the bill was passed as Money Bill in the unicameral legislature. It has been alleged that the bill was approved as Money Bill in orderto bypass the scrutiny of the Hill Areas Committee of the Legislative Assembly.
The Hill Areas Committee was set up as per the provisions of the Manipur Legislative Assembly (Hill Areas Committee) Order, 1972. It was promulgated by the President of India under the provisions of the Article 371-C of Constitution.
As per the provision 4 (2) of the order, every bill, other than a money bill, affecting wholly or partly the hill areas and containing mainly provisions dealing with any of the scheduled matters shall, after introduction in the Assembly, be referred to the Hill Areas Committee of the Assembly for consideration and report to the Assembly.
PayPal appoints Anupam Pahuja as India Country Manager and MD
World’s leading payments platform PayPal on 22 June 2016 announced the appointment of Anupam Pahuja as the Managing Director (MD) and Country Manager for its India operations.
Pahuja will be responsible for all aspects of PayPal's business in India. He will also be responsible for further strengthening of the company's operations in the country.
Prior to joining PayPal, Pahuja worked as the India MD for SumTotal Systems.
About PayPal
•PayPal operates a worldwide online payments system.
•It is headquartered in California, United States.
•It is one of the world's largest Internet payment companies.
•The company operates as an acquirer. It performs payment processing for online vendors, auction sites and other commercial users, for which it charges a fee.
•The company was established in 1998.
•In 2014, PayPal moved 228 billion US dollar in 26 currencies across more than 190 nations, generating total revenue of 7.9 billion US dollar.
Aveek Sarkar resigns as Chief Editor of ABP Group of Publications
Aveek Sarkar on 22 June 2016 resigned as the Editor-in-Chief of Ananda Bazaar Patrika (ABP) and The Telegraph. However, he would continue as the chairman of the group. He is succeeded by Arup Sarkar.
Moreover, Anirban Bhattacharya was appointed as the Editor of the Ananda Bazaar Patrika and R Rajagopalan was named as the Editor of The Telegraph.
Aveek Sarkar will now play an advisory role as Editor (Emeritus) and Vice Chairman of the company.
About Aveek Sarkar
• Aveek Sarkar, one of the most prominent personalities in the Indian publishing scene, was tutored by the legendary Harold Evans, then the editor of The Sunday Times.
• Aveek Sarkar assumed the post of Editor of the Ananda Bazar Patrika in 1983 after death of his father Ashok Sarkar.
• He was the moving force behind the transformation of the ABP Group from a regional house into a prominent national group and also led the group's entry into television.
• He played vital roles during the formation of Penguin India, the Indian counterpart of Penguin Books and during the acquisition of STAR News in 2003.
Amjad Sabri, a famed Pakistani Qawwal, shot dead in Karachi
Renowned Qawwal Amjad Sabri, who was known for More Haji Piya, was shot dead by unidentified motorcycle-borne gunmen in Karachi, Pakistan on 22 June 2016.
Sabri, 45, was killed while travelling with an associate in a car in Karachi's Liquatabad area.
Popularly known as Rock Star of Qawwali due to his modern style of rendition, he was one of the best Sufi musicians and qawwals from Pakistan. Sufism is a mystical sect of Islam that is viewed as heretical by hard-line groups such as the Taliban.
He was the son of renowned Qawwal Ghulam Farid Sabri of 'Bhar Do Jholi Meri' fame. The Sabri family is famous in the subcontinent for their contribution to sufi art and mystic poetry.
Memorable Qawwalis Sung by Amjad Sabri Bhar do jholi meri: The song was first performed in 1975 by Sabri Brothers, Maqbool and Ghulam Sabri). In 2015 this song came into trouble for copyright infringement after it was sung as a qawwali by Adnan Sami in 2015 in Kabir Khan’s film Bajrangi Bhaijaan.
More Haji Piya– was performed as a qawwali in Rajkumar Santoshi’s 2008 film Halla Bol.
Tajdar-e-haram
Mera koi nahin hai tere siwa
Khwaja kI Diwani
Ali Mera Dil, Meri Hjaan Ali and many more…
Earlier in May 2014, he was served a notice by the Islamabad High Court to respond to blasphemy charges for the broadcast of a controversial song-and-dance routine that was set to a qawwali piece about the wedding of the Prophet Mohammed’s daughter to his cousin.
EU reached agreement on new border force to tackle migrant crisis
The European Union on 22 June 2016 reached agreement to set up a new Border and Coastguard Force to curb the influx of migrants.
To tackle the crisis from which the EU is suffering from, the force have the right to intervene in front-line countries like Greece and Italy.
The agreed subject that was endorsed by the negotiators for the 28 EU member states and the European Parliament was a proposal from the European Commission, the bloc's executive. It wanted to set up the force by the summer.
The parliament is expected to vote on the issue in a key committee in fourth week of June 2016.
Making of the force will represent an expansion of the size and tasks of the existing Frontex border agency, based in Warsaw.
Background
In December 2016, EU leaders set a 30 June 2016 as a deadline for agreement on the new force, for tackling the flow of the migrants.
Several countries have reintroduced border controls that were eliminated years ago as part of Schengen as the EU deals with a record flow of more than one million migrants and refugees since the start of 2015.
Under the deal member states would still manage their borders on a daily basis but could call on emergency support from a pool of at least 1500 border guards.
Tech Mahindra Ltd acquires UK-based BIO Agency Ltd
Technology services provider Tech Mahindra Ltd (TechM) on 22 June 2016 acquired UK-based digital transformation firm The BIO Agency Ltd.
The acquisition was carried out in an all-cash deal for an enterprise value of up to 45 million pounds.
Highlights of the acquisition
• The payment of 22 million pounds and the surplus cash of 5 million pounds will be made upfront and the balance will be done away as deferred payments based on company performance.
• Tech Mahindra will acquire 100 percent of shares of the company.
• The closing date of the transaction is expected to take place in the first week of July 2016.
• The move will help Tech Mahindra to strengthen its digital portfolio in providing better digital strategy, services and customer experience.
• The acquisition will also help The BIO Agency to make sizable inroads into the telecommunications and enterprise clients of Tech Mahindra.
BIO Agency specialises in digital transformation across sectors such as retail, financial and travel. It offers digital strategy, service design, digital retail, connected products, product innovation and e-commerce solutions.
Mercer's Cost of Living Survey 2016 released; Mumbai costliest in India
Mercer's Cost of Living Survey 2016 was released on 22 June 2016. Asia dominates the top 5 of 2016 Cost of Living Rankings, with Hong Kong bagging the No. 1 spot, pushing Luanda, Angola to 2nd.
As per the Mercer’s 22nd annual Cost of Living Survey, top factors contributing to cost of expatriate packages for employees on international assignments are currency fluctuations,cost inflation for goods and services, and instability of accommodation prices.
Key highlights of the survey
•The survey includes more than 375 cities throughout the world. The ranking for 2016 includes 209 cities across five continents.
•It measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
•New York City is used as the base city for all comparisons and currency movements are measured against the US dollar.
• Kinshasa, which is ranked sixth in the survey, appears for the first time in the top 10 cities.
Five Indian cities were also ranked in the list. They are:
• Mumbai – Rank 82
• New Delhi – Rank 130
• Chennai – Rank 158
• Kolkata – 194
• Bangalore – Rank 180
Top 10 countries in the list are:
Rank |
City |
Country |
|
1 |
Hong Kong |
China |
|
2 |
Luanda |
Angola |
|
3 |
Zurich |
Switzerland |
|
4 |
Singapore |
Singapore |
|
5 |
Tokyo |
Japan |
|
6 |
Kinshasa |
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
|
7 |
Shanghai |
China |
|
8 |
Geneva |
Switzerland |
|
9 |
N'Djamena |
Chad |
|
10 |
Beijing |
China |
24 June
Scientists developed KiloCore, world's first 1000-processor computer chip
The scientists in June 2016 unveiled a microchip, named KiloCore, containing 1000 independent programmable processors. The chip has been designed by a team at the University of California, Davis, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
The KiloCore was presented at the 2016 Symposium on VLSI Technology and Circuitsin Honolulu on 16 June 2016.
Key features of KiloCore
•The energy-efficient chip has a maximum computation rate of 1.78 trillion instructions per second.
•It contains 621 million transistors.
•It was fabricated by IBM using their 32 nm CMOS technology.
•Each processor core can run its own small program independently of the others. Cores operate at an average maximum clock frequency of 1.78 GHz.
•As each processor is independently clocked, it can shut itself down to further save energy when not needed.
•It can execute 115 billion instructions per second while dissipating only 0.7 Watts. Therefore, it is low enough to be powered by a single AA battery.
•The KiloCore chip executes instructions more than 100 times more efficiently than a modern laptop processor.
Artemi Panarin wins 2015-2016 Calder Memorial Trophy
Russian hockey winger Artemi Panarin, playing for the Chicago Blackhawks, on 22 June 2016 won the 2015-2016 Calder Memorial Trophy. The announcement was made by the US National Hockey League (NHL).
In the selection process, Panarin received votes on all 150 ballots and was the top choice on 88 for 1258 voting points. He was followed by Shayne Gostisbehere of the Philadelphia Flyers (955) and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers (858).
Panarin, 24, surpassed all rookies in goals 30, assists 47, points 77, power-play goals 8, power-play points 24 and game-winning goals 7 in 80 games in 2015-16.
With this, he also became the fourth rookie in franchise history to reach the 30-goal milestone and the first to do so since 1995-96 (Eric Daze). This score also included his first career hjat-trick in February, which was the first by any Blackhawks rookie since 2002-03, when the fete was achieved by Tyler Arnason.
Calder Memorial Trophy
The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League.
The winner is selected in a poll of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association at the end of the regular season and each individual voter ranks their top five candidates on a 10 -7-5-3-1 points system. Three finalists are named and the trophy is awarded at the NHL Awards ceremony after the playoffs.
BCCI appoints Anil Kumble as head coach of Indian Cricket Team
Former Spinner Anil Kumble was appointed as the head coach of Indian Cricket Team on 23 June 2016. He will hold this position for one year.
Kumble’s first assignment will be the upcoming away series in the West Indies, where India will play four Test matches.
The decision of his selection was taken in the BCCI working committee meeting in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh by the Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Saurav Ganguly and Sanjay Jagdale, the Chief Co-Coordinator.
Forty-five year old Anil Kumble was among 57 candidates who applied for the position advertised by the BCCI in May 2016.
Anil Kumble
• He is the highest wicket-taker (1136 wickets) for India till date and third in the international list, behind Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne. Wickets taken includes
a) Test cricket– 619 wickets in 132 matches
b) ODI cricket– 337 wickets in 271 matches
c) Twenty20 internationals- 57 wickets in 54 matches
• He is only the second bowler in Test cricket to take 10 wickets in an innings. He achieved the fete in a match against Pakistan in Delhi in 1999.
• The 45-year-old leg-spinner has mentored Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians.
• He has been the chairman of the National Cricket Academy and BCCI’s Technical Committee.
• His international cricket career spans 18years.
• Overall, Kumble has to his name in first class cricket.
• He was awarded Padma Shri and also received Arjuna Award.
• He was Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1996.
• He was appointed Chairman of the ICC Cricket Committee in 2012, a position he still holds.
• He was also included into the Great Hall of Fame in 2015.
Darjeeling Zoo to receive snow leopard from London’s Dudley Zoological Gardens
The Padma Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park in Darjeeling will soon receive a snow leopard from Dudley Zoological Gardens in London.
The leopard, named Makalu, is expected to make arrival at the Kolkata airport in an Emeritus Flight on the morning of 24 June 2016. Makalu will then be transported to the zoo.
Makalu, who gets his name from the world’s fifth highest peak on the south-east side of the Everest, was born at the Black Country zoo.
About snow leopards
•The snow leopard is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia.
•It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
•It is believed that there are between 4000 and 6500 snow leopards left in the world.
•Snow leopards inhabit alpine and subalpine zones at elevations from 3000 to 4500 m.
•Taxonomically, the snow leopard was classified as Uncia unciasince the early 1930s.
•Based on genotyping studies, the cat has been considered a member of the genus Pantherasince 2008.
•The snow leopard is the National Heritage Animalof Afghanistanand Pakistan.
About Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park
•Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park is a 67.56-acre zoo in the town of Darjeeling, West Bengal.
•The zoo was opened in 1958.
•At an average elevation of 7000 feet, it is the largest high altitude zoo in India.
•It specializes in breeding animals adapted to alpine conditions, and has successful captive breeding programs for the snow leopard, the critically endangered Himalayan wolf and the red panda.
•The park is named after Padmaja Naidu, daughter of Sarojini Naidu.
•The zoo is a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
Colombia government, FARC rebels sign ceasefire
The Colombian government and the leftist FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) rebels on 23 June 2016 signed a historic ceasefire deal. This ceasefire deal helped in ending more than five decades of conflict, which is regarded as one of the oldest wars of history.
The signing ceremony held at Havana was witnessed by Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, FARC chief Timoleón Timochenko Jiménez, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, Cuban president, Raúl Castro and Venezuela’s head of state, Nicolás Maduro.
The announcement is seen as one of the last steps before a full peace deal is signed, which is expected within weeks via a referendum. The formal peace talks for the deal were started three years ago, in October 2012, in the Cuban capital.
The peace talks between the government and the rebels were hosted by the Cuban president, Raúl Castro; while Venezuela that had the observer status played an important role in encouraging FARC to the negotiating table.
The core area of discussion focused on five main areas that is land reform, the rebels' future role in political life, a definitive end of hostilities, fighting the illegal drug trade and the situation of the victims.
• The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia—People's Army (FARC-EP) is a left wing militant organization established in 1964.
• It is Colombia's largest rebel group and Latin America's oldest left-wing insurgency. It is active in Colombia, Venezuela, Panama and Ecuador.
• Like any left-wing militant organisation, its aim is to overthrow the government in power.
• It was established as a communist-inspired peasant army fighting for land reform and to reduce the gulf dividing rich and poor in the Andean country.
• It resulted in killing of an estimated 2.2 lakh people and displaced almost seven million.
|
Timeline of Columbian Conflict The 50+years of Columbian conflict between the government and leftwing guerrillas like FARC and the National Liberation Army (ELN) started in 1964 with a group of nearly 50 guerrillas. Slowly with time, the number of these guerrillas, who waged war on the state in the name of revolution, turned up to be a strong fighting force of thousands. Here follows a timeline of the their being into existence and becoming strong May 1964: This historically rooted conflict of a group of communist guerrillas and peasants is known as La Violencia, which was triggered in 1948 after assassination of populist political leader Jorge Eliécer Gaitán. In the month of May 1964, a group of guerrillas that rose under the leadership of Manuel Marulanda was attacked by the Colombian army in the tiny community of Marquetalia. This gunning down helped them those who escaped the event to turn up to be a rebel fighting force. They formed National Liberation Army (ELN) with an aim to replicate Cuba’s revolution. May 1966: Marulanda along with other guerrilla leaders created the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The aim behind creation of FARC was to call for land reforms and militant resistance. 1970s: FARC, who earlier acted in some government roles, setting up training camps, medical services and few more, began events like kidnappings for ransom, often targeting politicians and wealthy landowners. This helped them in raising funds that in return helped them to pay for its militant camps and ersatz social services. 1980s: To resist the actions of FARC rebels, rightwing paramilitary groups were created. 1982: FARC name was modified by addition of words People’s Army to its name and planned a ceasefire with an aim to reintegrate into society. 1986: FARC’s political wing, the Patriotic Union, won a series of elections at local and federal government levels. But the elected party members were attacked or killed by the rightwing forces. 1997: United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) came into existence by three brothers whose father was killed by FARC. Its formation allowed other paramilitaries under a banner. In the first year of formation, the group killed thousands of FARC guerrillas along with its sympathizers. Rebel group FARC and ELN and the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia were declared terrorists groups by the US state department. 1999: around 3000 people were kidnapped by the guerrillas during a war between the FARC and Bogotá. These kidnappings led to No Más protests in cities around the country. This war forced the government to come up with a plan of peace talks. 2000: Around 24 revel leaders were assassinated in a covert programme by the CIA and NSA. The programme was started after US president George W Bush expanded Bill Clinton’s military aid to Colombia in a 9 billion dollar package to bolster the army in its drug war. Between February 2002 to July 2008: Presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt was kidnapped by FARC, and this kidnapping ended the peace talks. This action forced president, Alvaro Uribe to began a new campaign against the group. This action that included modernized army and the US aid resulted in decrease of the number of rebels to 8000 from 16000 in 2001. Later, the FARC leader Marulanda due to heart attack after which Betancourt was freed along with other hostages. February 2012-2014: Programme of kidnappings was closed by the FARC and enters into the peace talks again with Juan Manuel Santos’s new administration. But it continued ceasefire never came into effect. June-September 2015: Unilateral ceasefire was declared by FARC and the talks continued in Cuba under President Castro regime. June 2016: The peace talks hosted by Castro resulted in signing of a bilateral ceasefire between Colombian government and FARC leaders in Havana. |
UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced resignation after Brexit vote
The Prime Minister of United Kingdom David Cameron on 24 June 2016 announced his resignation hours after the Brexit vote that favoured leaving the European Union (EU).
During the campaign, Cameron-led Conserve Party advocated for remaining with the EU. In the referendum that was held on 23 June 2016, 51.89 percent of the voters preferred to leave the EU.
Among the 46.5 million people who registered to vote, only 48.11 percent voted to remain in the grouping. However, the result must still be approved by the UK Parliament to become effective.
Cameron will step down in October 2016 at the Conservative Party Conference to make way for a new Prime Minister to guide the UK in the new direction for the country.
About David Cameron
• This British politician was first elected to the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 2001. At present, he represents the Oxfordshire constituency of Witney.
• Following the election of a hung parliament in the 2010 general election, he became Prime Minister as the leader of a coalition between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.
• He was re-elected as the Prime Minister in the 2015 election, when his party won a parliamentary majority for the first time since 1992.
IIT-Kanpur professor Sanjay Mittal awarded with G D Birla Award for Scientific Research for 2015
IIT-Kanpur professor Sanjay Mittal in third week of June 2016 bagged the prestigious G D Birla Award for Scientific Research for 2015.
Mittal was instrumental in establishing the High Performance Computing (HPC) facility at IIT Kanpur and heads the National Wind Tunnel Facility.
Who is Sanjay Mittal?
•Sanjay Mittal is a Professor of computational fluid dynamics in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at IIT-Kanpur.
•He completed his BTech from IIT Kanpur in 1988.
•Thereafter, he got enrolled at University of Minnesota, Twin Cities for MS programme.
•He received his PhD and worked as a Research Associate under Professor Tayfun E. Tezduyar.
•Then, he worked at Army High Performance Computing Center for 2 years.
•He returned to India and joined IIT Kanpur in 1994 as an Assistant Professor.
•He is also a recipient of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology.
•His most significant contribution has been in the area of Bluff Body Flows(flows past blunt bodies associated with large unsteady separation and leading to large fluid forces).
About G D Birla Award for Scientific Research
•G D Birla Award for Scientific Research was instituted in 1991 by the K. K. Birla Foundation.
•It was instituted in honour of the Indian philanthropist Ghanshyam Das Birla.
•The award is given to an outstanding scientific research, mostly during the past 5 years, undertaken by an Indian scientist, who is below the age of 50, living and working in India.
•The award is given every year and is available for all branches of science including medical science, basic and applied.
•G D Birla Award for Scientific Research for 2014 was given to Sanjeev Galande.
Union Government approved setting up of District Level Advisory and Monitoring Committees
Union Ministry of Urban Development on 22 June 2016 approved the setting up of District Level Advisory and Monitoring Committees to promote people centric planning and execution of new urban development schemes.
These committees will comprise of elected representatives of the country, thus giving Members of Parliament (MP) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLA) a say in the implementation of the urban development schemes.
In a first of its kind, these Committees will oversee, review and monitor implementation of urban development, affordable housing and urban poverty alleviation programmes.
Programmes to be monitored
• Swachh Bharat Mission
• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)
• Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)
• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Housing for All (Urban) and
• Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission
Terms of Reference of Committees
• To promote effective citizen involvement
• To review improvements in service level indicators like water supply,
• Review progress of implementation of reforms with focus on e-governance and ease of sanctioning of construction permits,
• Advise state and central governments regarding bottlenecks in implementation,
• Suggest mid-course correction in implementation
• Facilitate coordination among various agencies
Chairperson and Members of Committee
Senior most Member of Parliament will be appointed by the State/UT as the Chairperson of the Committee and two more MPs, one each from Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha will be the Co-chairpersons. The members of the committee are:
• All MLAs from respective districts representing the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and Mayors
• Chairpersons of ULBs
• Chairpersons and Chief Executives of Urban Development Authorities in districts
• Commissioners and Chief Executive Officers of ULBs
• Senior most representatives of the Department of Public Health Engineering and
• Senior most officials of para-statal bodies like water board and sewerage board
District Collector or Municipal Commissioner of metropolitan cities will be the Member Secretary.
Britain votes to exit European Union in historic referendum
People of Britain in a historic referendum on 24 June 2016 voted in favour of leaving European Union (EU). The referendum ‘to leave’ or ‘to be a member’ of EU saw 51.9% votes in favour compared to 48.1% in against.
Referendum turnout was higher than at 2015 general election.
Northern Ireland, London and Scotland voted strongly to stay back with the EU while the Wales and the English shires backed Britain exit (Brexit) from the EU.
Why the people voted for Brexit
According to Brexit campaigners, concerns about the costs of continued EU membership far outweigh any worries about leaving.
Impact of Brexit
• Prime Minister David Cameron announced his resignation from his position.
READ More:IMF warned of risk from Brexit amidst gloomy global growth forecast
• The pound fell to its lowest level against the dollar since 1985 as the markets reacted to the results. It fell by 3% within moments of the first result showing a strong result for Leave in Sunderland and fell as much as 6.5% against the euro.
• The departure of the bloc's second biggest economy would weaken Europe's unity and stability which is already grappling with the Greek financial crisis and a massive influx of refugees.
• It triggered fall in major markets like Japan’s Nikkei fell by 7.5% whereas Singapore’s Strait Times fell by 2.5%. Even the stock markets of China, Taiwan and South Korea registered a fall between 2-4%.
• Internationally, prices of oil tumbled but the prices of gold rose sharply.
Impact on India
• The benchmark 30-share BSE Sensex index fell as much as 4.04 percent or 1090.9 points in early trade to a day’s low of 25,911.33 points.
• The Indian rupee fell to 68.14 against the dollar, its lowest level since February 2016, later it crawled to 67.79.
Would be Impacts include
• Productivity and GDP per person of the UK would be lower as the costs would substantially outweigh any potential benefit of leaving the EU.
• It may lead to disintegration of United Kingdom as an entity because Scotland may again ask for a referendum to be a part of EU as it had a referendum on 19 September 2014.
• Other nations of the 28 nation bloc, now 27 with exit of Britain, may call for a referendum giving rise to protectionism and ultra-nationalism which is getting hardened across the world.
• IMF said in an April report that "a U.K. exit from Europe's single market would also likely disrupt and reduce mutual trade and financial flows, curtailing key benefits from economic cooperation and integration, such as those resulting from economies of scale and efficient specialization.
• It would likely result in a massive rebalancing of currencies. Investors would likely dive out of the British pound and into cash that's perceived as safe — the Swiss franc, the Japanese yen, the U.S. dollar. The euro could also see some weakening if investors are worried about the fate of the EU.
Union Government launched India’s first pilot programme to run two wheelers on CNG
The Union Government on 23 June 2016 launched India’s first pilot programme to run two wheelers on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in New Delhi.
The first of its kind programme was launched byDharmendra Pradhan, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, and Prakash Javadekar, Minister of State for Environment, Forests & Climate Change.
Key highlights of the programme
•The programme is implemented by Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL)and GAIL (India) Limited.
•The programme is implemented under Hawa Badlomovement, which is supported by GAIL. The movement is a people’s initiative to fight air pollution.
•The programme involves 50 CNG retrofitted two wheelers.
•The scooters are being retrofitted with CNG kit manufactured by Ituk Manufacturing India Pvt. Ltd.
•The type approval of the CNG kit has been taken from Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) as well as Delhi’s Transport Department.
•The type approvals of all components, parts, assemblies in the kit have been received from Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization (PESO), International Center for Automotive Technology (ICAT) and Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI).
•The CNG kit for two wheelers comprises two CNG cylinders of 4.8 litre water capacity each, which can be filled with up to 1 kg of CNG in each cylinder.
•These CNG retrofitted two wheelers can drive up to 120 kilometres in a single fill.
•These CNG retrofitted two wheelers emit 75% lesser hydrocarbon, while the CO emissions are 20% lesser as compared to petrol driven scooters.
India-US Defence and Security Cooperation: Analysis
Defence and Security cooperation is a key component of the bilateral relationship between India and the USA. Over the two-decades, especially since the enforcement of the New Framework for India-U.S. Defense Relations in 2005, both the countries have created a wide-ranging strategic partnership.
The 2005 framework, as well as the renewed 2015 framework, resulted in intensification of relations in defence trade, joint exercises, personnel exchanges, collaboration and cooperation in maritime security and counter-piracy, and exchanges between each of the three services.
The desire for enhanced engagement is better reflected in the Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region that was unveiled during Barack Obama’s visit to India in January 2015.
The vision brings the Act East Policy of NDA Governmentand the Pivot to Asia Doctrine of Obama administration in tandem.
The‘Act East Policy’, which was articulated in August 2014,builds on the ‘Look East Policy’ of the Narsimha Rao Government and envisages accelerated across-the-board engagement between the two growth poles of a vibrant Asia, that is, India and ASEAN countries.
Under the Pivot to Asia policy, one of the most important tasks of American statecraft over the next decade will be to lock in a substantially increased investment—diplomatic, economic, strategic, and otherwise—in the Asia-Pacific region.
Why the USA needs India?
•Emergence of Asia: The 21st century is the century of Asia. As per experts, the increased prosperity in the century comes mostly from the Asia-Pacific region. Hence, it is quite logical for the world’s largest political, military and economic power to build new alliances in the region to get the bigger pie.
• Within Asia, apart from China, India is the only major country with which the USA doesn’t enjoy fulfilled military relationsdespite the USA being the second major trading partner in the world.
• Since the end of the World War II, the USA could bring the major countries in the region including Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia, etc under its ‘umbrella of friendship’.Hence, building partnership with India is the only remaining natural choice for the USA.
•Chinese challenge:Considering the present global dynamic, China is the only country that can pose challenge in the near-term to the supremacy of the USA in the present ‘unipolar’ world. To counter the so called China’s ‘Peaceful Rising’ strategy, India appears as a best ally for the USA as it shares around 3500 long land border.
• Lucrative India’s arms market:As per a SIPRI report released in February 2016, India remains the world’s largest weapons importerbetween over a 5-year period between 2011 and 2015. This trend provides a huge opportunity for the world’s largest arms exporter that is vying for diversification of markets in the context of saturation in the existing markets (like Europe) and competition (from China).
•Geostrategic Dynamics:Military relations with India is a major necessity for the USA, as it has security interests in the region including Af-Pak, Iran, Iraq, etc. In-principle approval for the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA)in April 2016 is expected to decentralize and ease the pressure on US military on provision of logistical support, supplies and services.
• South Asia has been at the centre of global political scene since the colonial times. The region, especially India, is of considerable ‘military’ significance for the global major military power due to its strategic location, access to Indian Ocean, connectivity to the Central Asian region,etc.
• India’s track-record: India is better qualified to become the major defence ally in the region as it has cordial military-civilian relationship and functioning democracy. To this end, the USA,in June 2016, recognised India as ‘major defence partner,’ a classification that will allow India to buy more advanced and sensitive technologies from the country.
• Terrorism: Modern day terrorism is formless, borderless and Stateless. It can be emanated from any source and in any form. Hence, the partnership is essential to tackle diversified dangers originating from piracy, illegal migration, cyber threats, chemical, nuclear and biological weapons.
• Retaining the superiority in high seas: Lastly, it is because of its superior naval power the USA emerged and remained as the major global military power. Hence, it is the urge to continue its dominance over the high seas that compel the USA to forge alliance with India that has the access to Indian Ocean.
• Towards this end, the USA has kept maritime security component at the core of recent bilateral relationship as a whole. The inaugural Maritime Security Dialogue in May 2016 andthe Malabar Exercise 2016, involving Japan, near the South China Sea proves this emphasis.
How India will benefit from the cooperation?
• Thwarting ‘Nuclear-threat’: India issand witched between two nuclear armed States– China and Pakistan. Hence, it is a necessity for India to maintain the state of the art nuclear technology in order to be seen and perceived as a major deterrent force.
• For this to happen, access to nuclear materials and sensitive technologies, membership in the export control regimes like Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), Wassenaar Arrangement and Australian Group is the key.
• To gain this access and membership, the USA leadership has explicitly and openly declared its support to India on a number of occasions including in the Joint statement on India-US endurance as global partners in 21st Century that was issued during Modi’s visit to the White House in June 2016.
• Military modernization: The Ministry of Defence announced the Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan (LTIPP) in 2013 covering a period of 15-years. The focus of the LTIPP is to modernize the Indian Armed Forces at an estimated cost of 100 billion US dollars by 2027.
• To reach this goal, the USA can play a big role as it is home to major defence and aerospace companies in the world such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, etc.
• And this expectation is not unreasonable given the transformative role played by the US-India Defense Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) since its establishment in 2012 and a series of recent policy measures including the 100% FDI in defence, Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 to facilitate indigenous production.
•Countering China:China’s ‘String of Pearls’ doctrine has been posing a major challenge for India’s ambition to become a regional power. To contain this trend, association with an even bigger power like the USA will be handy for India.
• Countering Pakistan: Pakistan has been an ally of the USA since the times of cold war. Time and again, Pakistan proved as a major security threat for India as it has been a source of cross border terrorism.
• Hence, to keep Pakistan under check the military muscle of the USA is the best bet for India which was rightly proved during the Kargil Conflict. During the war in 1999, the Clinton administration successfully exerted pressure on Pakistan to withdraw its troopsand consequently averting a major war between the neighbours.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, the USA is the world’s major military power in terms of well-trained human resources, technology, research and development and production. Hence, it is imperative for India to strengthen the alliance in order to leverage the capabilities of the USA and its partners (like Israel, Germany, etc) alike.
However,the alliance is not without its hindrances, setbacks and pitfalls. The Senate’srejection of an amendment to the National Defence Authorisation Act, 2017that proposed ‘global strategic and defence partner status’ on par with NATO allies to India is indicative of lack of consensus in the Capitol Hill on the bilateral relations.
Similarly, on many occasions, the experts warned that India’s obsession to see the relations with the USA through the prism of China will threaten India’s sovereignty and detrimental to long term strategic interests of the nation.
Still, these minor setbacks and unsubstantiated apprehensions shouldn’t push India into a policy paralysis mode vis-à-vis the USA. No doubt, transformation of external policy from the ‘NAM Neutral Mode’ to ‘Alignment with the de-facto Super Power’ is itself a sign of India’s efforts to reinvent itself in accordance with global political dynamic.
The former British Prime Minister Henry John Temple of the 19th century rightly said – “In Global Politics there are no permanent friends or enemies, but only permanent interests.”
If at all India wants to be in the League of Major Powers the defence and security cooperation with the USA is the best bet (in fact the only bet) for India under the present circumstances. However, the litmus testfor the policy makers lies in the ability to ‘get most out this cooperation’ without getting caught in the trappings (if at all they exist) of Uncle Sam