3-4 November 2015

3 november

Former West Bengal assembly speaker Hashim Abdul Halim died

Former West Bengal assembly speaker Hashim Abdul Halim passed away on 1 November 2015 following cardiac problems in Kolkata. He was 80. Halim created a record of serving as the Assembly speaker for 29 long years from 1982 to 2011 during the Left Front rule.

A member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M), he was elected as an MLA for the first time in 1977, when the CPI(M)-led Left Front came to power. He was elected to the state assembly for seven consecutive terms till 2011.

He also served as the judicial affairs minister from 1977 to 1982 and subsequently served as the assembly speaker from 1982 to 2011.

Mana Patel, Virdhawal won best swimmers' award in 69th senior National Aquatic Championships

Mana Patel and Virdhawal Khade emerged as the best swimmers of the 69th senior National Aquatic Championships 2015 that concluded in Rajkot on 2 November 2015.

Mana from Gujarat was adjudged the best swimmer in the women's category of the competition. She broke her national record by 13 micro second in women’s 50m backstroke race. She completed the 50m backstroke event in 30.25 second. Earlier in 2014, she had set a record in the 50m backstroke event taking time of 30:38 seconds.

On the other hand, Khade from Maharashtra was declared best swimmer in men's category. He bagged three gold medals in the events 50m freestyle, 50m and 100m butterfly, with a national record in the 100m butterfly.

Swimmer from Tamil Nadu, AV Jayaveena set a national record in 100m breaststroke event, beating the previous record of 1:16.76 with a record time of 1:16.25.

As for the medals table, the Railways grabbed the top position while Karnataka and Maharashtra were at the second and third positions, respectively. Rankings of the team as per points table:
• Railways – 27 medals (14 Gold, 9 Silver and 4 Bronze)
• Karnataka – 28 medals (9 Gold, 8 Silver and 11 bronze)
• Maharashtra - 29 medals (8 Gold, 11 Silver and 10 Bronze)
• Gujarat – 14 medals (4 Gold, 5 Silver and 5 Bronze)

The Overall Team Championship in Swimming and Diving events are

Swimming	Diving
Karnataka – 233 points Maharashtra – 232 points Railways – 188 points Services: 32 points Railways: 32 points

The Team Champions of Waterpolo event

Men

Women

Railways: 13

Services: 8

Kerala: 4

Maharashtra: 2

The Karnataka team was adjudged the best team for its overall performance in the competition.

Senior National Aquatic Championships
69th Senior National Aquatic Championships 2015, held in Rajkot. The five-day-long event was participated by over 700 swimmers from across the country. It was jointly organised by the Swimming Federation of India (SFI) and Gujarat State Aquatic Association (GSAA) and was hosted by the Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) and Rajkot District Swimming Association (RDSA).

C-DOT’s GyanSetu bagged Recognition of Excellence award at ITU World Telecom Event, Budapest

The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) on 2 November 2015 bagged the Recognition of Excellence award for GyanSetuat the ITU World Telecom 2015 held at Budapest, Hungary.

GyanSetu seeks to facilitate Prime Minister’s Digital India Initiative and was selected for the award for its innovative approach and social impact.

It was showcased live at the event as a part of Digital India Pavilionby the C-DOT under the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (IT).

In addition, Terabit Router, 100G OTN Platform, GPON - Fiber to the Desk Solution and Telecom Geo-Intelligence Solutions were also demonstrated by C-DOT at the event.

What is GyanSetu?

•It is an innovative product for rural India. It aims at overcoming the limiting factors of rural masses and facilitates for connecting them to internet in local language.

•The product links rural and urban areas together by providing multi-lingual text, audio and video based solution.

•It aims at overcoming low/no-literacy levels and physical disabilities, thereby helping to achieve self-reliance, bringing the advantages of the digital world and facilitate inclusion in the mainstream society.

•Depending on the type of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs), the product is loaded with user-friendly features like audio announcements in any languages, image driven GUIs with magnified visible icons, and assistive devices for interaction with the system.

Features of GyanSetu

•GyanSetu’s Graphical User Interface (GUI) is a web based user-friendly application, which provides results in text format along with audio announcements in the language selected by the PwD user.

•The product comes with a numeric keypad with Braille stickers. Besides, it includes special keys like Help, Easy Card, OK, Cancel, Up/Down and Back.

•It supports content based audio announcements in the user-preferred language.

•It offers multi-lingual support for ease of navigation.

•Selected content already present in the third party websites/servers without modifying the same will be made available to the PwD user through the GUI in real-time. The feature is being patented by C-DOT.

•It holds power optimized and less expensive proprietary hardware.

About ITU Telecom World

ITU Telecom World is an annual Information and Communications Technology (ICT) event organized by ITU Telecom, part of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations agency responsible for ICT-related issues.

ITU Telecom World organizes global events for the governments, industry leaders and regulators that form part of the world’s ICT community.

The first ITU Telecom event was organised in 1971.

First International Film Festival for the persons with disabilities to be held in Delhi

To recognise the spirit of the persons with disabilities, first international film festival for the persons with disabilities (IFFPD) will be held in Delhi from 1 December to 3 December 2015.

The announcement with regard to the three-day event was made by Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Lov Verma on 2 November 2015.

The film festival will show case cinemas that open our world to their mind space, and sensitise on issue relating to disabilities.

The three-day-long event will see the screening of 40 films comprising of 10 feature films, 16 short films and 14 documentaries. All these films have been selected from 541 entries from India and abroad. The film festival will conclude on 3 December, which is observed as International day of Persons with Disabilities.

Awards and Prizes at the IFFPD 2015
IFFPD 2015 will felicitate the Best Director and Best Film in each of the 3 categories of Films with cash awards with the First and Second Runner Up receiving trophies and citations from the Department. These will as follows-

Best Film (Feature)

Fiction Feature	Documentary-Feature
3 lakh rupees+Trophy+Citation	1 Lakh rupees+Trophy+Citation

• Best Film (Documentary) – 2.5 lakh rupees + Trophy + Citation
• Best Film (Short) – 1 lakh rupees + Trophy + Citation
• Best Director (Feature) – 2.5 lakh rupees + Trophy + Citation
• Best Director (Documentary) – 1.5 lakh rupees + Trophy + Citation
• Best Director (Short) – 1 lakh rupees + Trophy + Citation

The First edition of the International Film Festival for Persons with Disabilities will showcase film work in following categories
• Feature Films: Fiction features with a duration of more than 60 minutes.
• Documentary Films: With duration of less than 60 minutes and more than 20 minutes.
• Short Films: With duration of more than 5 minutes and less than 20 minutes.

Deepak Singhal appointed Executive Director of Reserve Bank of India

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 2 November 2015 appointed Deepak Singhal as the Executive Director (ED). The appointment is effective from the same date.

Singhal replaced K K Vohra who will now look after the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

After the appointment, Singhal will look after Central Security Cell, Corporate Strategy and Budget Department, Department of Corporate Services, Human Resource Management Department (including HR Operations Unit), Rajbhasha Department and Right to Information Act Division.

Prior to his appointment as ED of India's central banking institution, Singhal worked as the Regional Director in-charge of RBI, New Delhi.

Previously, he has headed Department of Banking Operations and Development, Human Resource Development Department and Premises Department at Central Office of Reserve Bank of India and Reserve Bank of India Office at Belapur, Navi Mumbai.

Singhal holds a Master degree in Management and is a Certificated Associate of Indian Institute of Bankers.

ICGS Arinjay commissioned in Kochi

An Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Arinjay was on 1 November 2015 commissioned by Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba PVSM, AVSM Flag Officer Commanding-in-chief, Southern Naval Command at a ceremony held at Naval Base in Kochi.

The ship will be based at Okha under the administrative and operational control of the commander, coast guard region (north west).

The ship is commanded by Commandant AK Mudgal and has complement of four officers and 31 enrolled personnel.

Highlights of ICGS Arinjay
• The ship is 15th in the series of 20 Fast Patrol Vessels (FPV).
• The 50-metre indigenous FPV has a displacement of 290 tonnes and can achieve a maximum speed of 33 knots with an endurance of 1500 nautical miles at economical speed of 13 knots.
• It is equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry and advanced communication and navigational equipment.
• The ship is capable of undertaking multifarious tasks such as surveillance, interdiction, search and rescue and medical evacuation.

Punjabi became third most common language in Parliament of Canada

Punjabi in the first week of November 2015 became the third most common language, after English and French, in the House of Commons of Canada after 20 Punjabi-speaking candidates were elected to the parliament in October 2015.

On 19 October 2015, 23 Members of Parliament of South Asian origin were elected to the House of Commons, Parliament of Canada during parliamentary elections, out of which 20 speak Punjabi.

Out of the 20 candidates, 18 are Liberals and 2 are Conservatives. Among the newly-elected Punjabi-speaking MPs, 14 are men and 6 are women. Twelve candidates were elected from Ontario, 4 from British Columbia, 3 from Alberta and one belongs to Quebec.

As per the Statistics Canada's 2011 National Household Survey, 430705 Canadians identified Punjabi as their mother tongue, making it the third most common language after English and French.

In addition, 430705 native Punjabi speakers make up about 1.3 percent of Canada's population and the 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs represent almost 6 percent of the House of Commons.

Nepal, US armies launched Joint Military training Balance Nail 16-01

To help strengthen bilateral defence tie, the special forces of the US and Nepalese armies on launched a month-long joint military training codenamed Balance Nail 16-01 in Nepal’s mountainous regions.

According to Nepal Army headquarters, Mahavir Battalion, a specially trained ranger of the Nepal Army and A Company 1st battalion, 1st SFG (angel) group of the Special Forces of the US Army started Balance Nail 16-01 training at Nepal Army’s training centre Chhauni and Nagarkot area.

Participants of the training will receive training on tactical combat casualty care, long range marksmanship, breaching, combat markmanship, demolition, combined culmination exercise among others, during the training.

It is expected that the training will enhance combating capacity of Nepal Army as well as exchange knowledge, practice and experiences between the two armies. It will also help in strengthening mutual cooperation and bilateral relations between the two armies.

Since 2003, the two countries have conducted about 30 Balance Nail training sessions. The Balance Nail is beneficial as the training is then passed on to the wider Nepalese army.

SC issued notice to Union Government over improper implementation of MGNREGA

The Supreme Court of India (SC) on 2 November 2015 issued a notice to the Ministry of Rural Development over improper implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005.

The notice was issued by a bench comprising Chief Justice H L Dattu and Justice Amitava Roy while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by social activists Aruna Roy, Nikhil Dey and Lalit Mathur.

In the PIL, the petitioners contended that the government failed to pay wages and compensation to rural workers in a timely manner and at present, dues payable amounted to around 3100 crore rupees.

Hence, to correct the anomalies, they requested the court to direct the government to set up an independent Social Audit Units (SAUs) for effective monitoring of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Further, they also requested the court to provide for linking wage rates with the prevailing prices indices in view of persistent inflation.

Meghalaya HC asked Union Government to enforce AFSPA 1958 in Garo Hills region

The Meghalaya High Court on 2 November 2015 asked the Union government to enforce the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, (AFSPA) 1958 in Garo Hills region in western part of the state.

The order was issued by the full bench comprising Chief Justice Uma Nath Singh, Justice TNK Singh and Justice SR Sen following a hearing related to the pending case of militants calling bandhs in the state.

The Court further said that the Union Government can enforce AFSPA for the purpose of deployment of armed forces in the aid of civil administration in order to restore public order and maintain the law and order.

The ruling is significant following the series of kidnappings and killings in Garo Hills with specific reference to the abduction of Chokpot Block Development Officer Jude Rangku T Sangma by Garo National Liberation Army militants.

Sangma is the brother-in-law of Superintendent of Police in-charge High Court security, Bobby Momin. Garo National Liberation Army militants also kidnapped and killed an Intelligence Bureau officer Bikash Singh.

Militant outfits have abducted 87 persons for ransom including 27 businessmen, 25 civilians, 25 employees of private firms, five government employees and five teachers.

In their order, the full bench also observed that even the Chief Justice and Judges of the High Court are also getting veiled threats that they would have to face the consequence after their retirement.

International Indigenous Terra Madre 2015 started in Shillong

The five day-long unique event, International Indigenous Terra Madre-2015, which brings over a 100 tribes from 58 countries, kicked off on 3 November 2015 in Shillong, Meghalaya. The event will run till 7 November 2015.

The theme of the event is The Future We Want: Indigenous Perspectives and Actions.

International representatives from 14 African countries, 17 Asian countries, 8 European countries, 12 American countries and 7 Oceania countries will take part in the event.

The five-day long food fiesta is the result of collaboration between:

• Slow Food
•Indigenous Partnership for Agro biodiversity and Food Sovereignty
•North East Slow Food and Agro Biodiversity Society (NESFAS)

To offer their tribute to ethnic tribes, the organisers re-christened the event as International Mei-Ramew, which means Mother Earthin Khasi language.

The international event will celebrate the cultural and biological diversity of indigenous communities as expressed in their songs, dance, dress, folklores and food systems that have evolved through generations of close interaction with nature.

The event will also see a series of taste workshops that will thematically focus on wild honey, edible insects, fermented foods.

Odisha government banned fishing to protect Olive Ridley turtles

Odisha Government on 2 November 2015 imposed a seven-month ban on fishing along the coast. The ban will be in force from 1 November 2015 to 31 May 2016.

The forest department of the state imposed the ban with an aim to protect the endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles that nests along the coast during winters.

The restriction has been imposed as per Orissa Marine Fishing Regulation Act (OMFRA), 1982 and provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

For this purpose of securing the turtles, the trawlers and fishermen have been directed
• Not to fish within 20 kilometer off the coastline in the turtle nesting sites.
• Use of motor boats and mechanised trawlers for fishing within 5 km from the coast between Astarang and Baliharchandi in Puri district has also been prohibited.
• The violators of the order will be punished under the OMFRA.

The over half a million endangered Olive Ridley turtles annually arrive during winters for mass nesting in three nesting sites, namely
• Rushikulya river mouth in Ganjam district
• Devi river mouth in Puri district
• Gahirmatha marine sanctuary in Kendrapada district

The Gahirmatha turtle sanctuary is one of the world’s largest turtle nesting sites.

These turtles arrive and congregate in the shallow coastal water of the Bay of Bengal in November and climb ashore for nesting between December and March. Most hatchlings emerge by May.

Captain Krishna Swaminathan took over command of aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya

Captain Krishna Swaminathan on 2 November 2015 assumed the charge as the second Commanding Officer of INS Vikramaditya at Karwar.

INS Vikramaditya is Indian Navy's new and formidable aircraft carrier which was commissioned at Severodvinsk in Russia on 16 November 2013 and was being commanded by Captain Suraj Berry, NM. The ship is capable of operating MiG 29K/KuB fighters, Sea Harrier, Kamov 31, Kamov 28, Sea King, Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) and Chetak Helicopters from its deck.

Captain Swaminathan completed his schooling from Bishop Cottons Boy's School, Bengaluru and Sainik School, Bijapur. He obtained his bachelor’s degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He received a Post Graduate Diploma in Personnel Management from the Xavier Institute of Management, Mumbai. He completed his MA in Defence Studies from King's College, London. He completed MPhil in Defence and Strategic Studies from Mumbai University. Later, he submitted his thesis on international relations to the Mumbai University and obtained a PhD degree.

Swaminathan has been on the staff of the Western Fleet, an instructor at the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and Director and Principal Director Naval Signals at Naval Headquarters. He also served as the Naval Assistant to the Chief of the Naval Staff. He commanded missile vessels INS Vidyut and Vinash, missile corvette INS Kulish and guided missile destroyer INS Mysore.

The Legatum Prosperity Index 2015 released

The Legatum Prosperity Index 2015 was released on 2 November 2015 by the Legatum Institute in London. The index offers insight into how prosperity is forming and changing across the world.

In terms of overall prosperity, While Norway topped the table consecutively for the seventh year in a row; Central African Republic was at the bottom among the 142 countries surveyed.

Overall prosperity ranking: Norway (1), Switzerland (2), Denmark (3), New Zealand (4) and Sweden (5) topped the table, while Burundi (138), Chad (139), Haiti (140), Afghanistan (141) and Central African Republic (142) were at the bottom.
The prosperity index comprises eight sub-indices and performance of countries in key areas is as follows-
Economy: While Singapore ranked 1st in the Economy sub-index, up from 2nd last year, Liberia was at the bottom of the table.
Entrepreneurship & Opportunity: While Sweden topped the sub-index, Central African Republic was the worst performer.
Education: While Australia performed well in the world, Central African Republic had poor indices intermesh of education.

Health: USA topped in terms of health, While Central African Republic was at the bottom.

Safety & Security: While residents of Hong Kong enjoyed highest safety and security, Democratic Republic of Congo was the least safe among the surveyed countries.

Personal Freedom: While press freedom in Canada was highest during the survey period, Yemen was the worst performer in this sub-index.

Social Capital: While residents of New Zealand enjoyed highest social capital, Togo had least social capital.

Governance: While governance in Switzerland was adjudged as the best, Afghanistan was at the bottom in terms of governance.

Report with respect to India
India ranked 99 overall in terms of prosperity out of the 142 countries surveyed. India continued to improve prosperity that is evident from its ranking of 106 and 102 in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

Performance of India in eight sub-indices

Sub-Index	Rank
Economy	61
Entrepreneurship & Opportunity	94
Governance	53
Education	92
Health	107
Safety & Security	114
Personal Freedom	79
Social Capital	129

What is unique about the index?
Traditionally, a nation's prosperity has been based solely on macroeconomic indicators such as a country's income, represented either by GDP or by average income per person (GDP per capita). In contrast, the Prosperity Index takes into account both income and wellbeing.

Security officials in China launched Spy Hotline to report on foreign spies

Security officials in China's north-eastern Jilin province on 1 November 2015 launched a Counter-Espionage Public Hotline to report on suspected foreign spies.

The hotline launch came following the arrest of four Japanese who were accused of spying. The hotline targets foreign organizations and individuals who conduct espionage activities or instigate and sponsor others in conducting them.

Jilin Province of China, which has a number of military installations, is a coastal province off the coast of East China Sea facing Japan with which China has a dispute over uninhabited islands. It is an important place for safeguarding China's national security and hotline will help government combat spying in such areas.

Another Chinese Province Hainan launched a similar facility in July 2015, which has helped to crackdown on over 10 alleged espionage activities.
Espionage activities in China

Espionage activities aiming at China have increased significantly during the past few years adding that espionage has permeated not only military affairs, but also economic and political targets. Four Japanese spies were arrested in September and October 2015.

Military enthusiasts, scientific research institutes for national defence, officials and even teachers and students in colleges have been targeted by espionage groups.

AIR programme on child labour bagged top prize at ABU Prizes

All India Radio's programme on child labour on 30 October 2015 bagged the first prize under the Community Service Announcement category at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) Prizes 2015.

The prize was announced at a function held at Ankara, Turkey, on the sidelines of 52nd ABU General Assembly and Associated Meetings.

The award comprises a prize worth 2000 US dollars along with a certificate and a statuette.

The programme was aired in Malayalam language and was titledNilkkam Ivarkkoppam, which means Stand Beside Them. The programme was a part of an initiative taken up by Biju Mathew, Programme Executive at AIR Thiruvananthapuram on behalf of All India Radio.

About Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU)

The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) is a non-profit, professional association of broadcasting organisations. It was founded in 1964.

At present, the union has more than 275 member broadcasters in 68 countries spread across from Turkey in the west to Samoa in the east, and from Russia in the north to New Zealand in the south.

The ABU promotes the collective interests of television and radio broadcasters and encourages regional and international co-operation between broadcasters.

Ravikumar Sreedharan appointed as MD of Unisys Corporation India

Ravikumar Sreedharan was on 31 October 2015 appointed as Managing Director of Indian unit of Information Technology firm Unisys Corporation with effect from 31 October 2015. Sreedharan succeeds Kumar Prabhas, who served as MD of Unisys India for last eight years.

In his new role at Unisys India, Sreedharan will be responsible for leading the company's operations in India which includes more than 5000 employees working at state-of-the-art sites at Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Mumbai.

Sreedharan has been with Unisys since 2010, leading the Application Services Group (ASG) as part of the Services organisation

India, Indonesia signed MoUs on Energy, Culture Exchange

India on 2 November 2015 signed two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) with Indonesia to strengthen it ties in energy and culture exchange area. These MoUs were signed in the presence of Vice President Hamid Ansari and his counterpart Jusuf Kala in Jakarta.

The MoU on New and Renewable Energy sector was signed between Indonesian Water Resources and Mineral Minister and Indian ambassador to Indonesia Gurjit Singh. The MoU will help both nations to take steps in reducing carbon emissions by 2030 by 35 percent in India and 29 percent in Indonesia respectively.

Both the sides also signed a MoU for Cooperation in Cultural field. Indonesia also organised Sahabat India- The Festival of India on its land in 2015.

India and Indonesia already enjoy a long standing shared historical affinity and close cultural ties. Indonesia is an important partner of India among the ASEAN countries.

Suresh N Patel appointed as MD & CEO of Andhra Bank

Suresh N Patel was appointed as the managing director & chief executive officer (MD & CEO) of Andhra Bank. He took charge on 2 November 2015 in New Delhi.

He has around three decades of experience in the banking sector at various levels and most of it in Gujarat.

He succeeded CVR Rajendran who retired on 30 April 2015 and became the CEO of Association of Mutual Funds in India.

Patel was the executive director at Oriental Bank of Commerce since January 2014. Prior to that, he served as the general manager of Gujarat operations at Dena Bank.

In fact, he started his career with Dena Bank and is a certified member of the Indian Institute of Bankers.

4 november

Shoaib Malik announced retirement from Test Cricket

Former Pakistan Cricket captain Shoaib Malik on 3 November 2015 announced his decision to retire from International Test Cricket. He will retire from Test cricket after playing the third Test match against England at Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.

The 33-year-old had made a comeback in the longer format of the game after five years. In the first Test against England in Abu Dhabi, he smashed a career-best 245 and in next five innings he was successful in scoring 0, 2, 7, 38 and 0.

Shoaib Malik in Test Cricket
• Shoaib Malik made his Test debut in 2001 against Bangladesh.
• Shoaib Malik’s bowling action has come under scrutiny (particularly his doosra) but he has had elbow surgery to correct this.
• In March 2010, Malik received a one-year ban from international cricket from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB); the ban was overturned two months later
• Malik has played 35 Tests, scoring 1898 runs with three centuries and eight half-centuries.
• He has so far taken 29 wickets, with his best figures 4-33 that came on the day, when he announced his plan to retire in Sharjah.

Shekhar Kapur to head jury and Anil Kapoor to be chief guest at IFFI 2015

Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor in the first week of November 2015 was selected to be the chief guest of the 46th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) that will start in Goa from 20 November 2015.

On the other hand, film director Shekhar Kapur was selected to be the head of the jury. He has directed movies like Passage, Bandit Queen, Mr India and Masoom. The jury also includes famous names such as Michael Radford, Julia Jentsch, Suha Arraf and Jeon Kyu-Hwan.

The Man Who Knew Infinity, a British film on Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan’s life, will open the 46th edition.

Highlights of IFFI 2015

•The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting finalised Kingdom of Spainas the country of focus at IFFI 2015.

•The focus country section will also feature Spanish actress Leticia Dolera’s directorial debut Requirements to Be a Normal Person.

•North Eastern cinema will be the highlight in the category Indian Panorama.

•IFFI will feature a special section on World Cinema Restored Classicsto highlight the idea of film restoration.

•Special section will put spotlight on National Film Heritage Mission (NFHM).

•IFFI 2015 will introduce a new segment, First Cut, to recognize the young talent in the field of cinema.

•The new segment will screen some of the best directorial debuts of 2015.

•The festival will also include special award, ICFT- UNESCO Fellini Prize, in collaboration with the International Council for Film, Television and Audiovisual Communication (ICFT), Paris and UNESCO.

•A special seminar on Film and Cultural diversity will also be organised.

•A special series titled In Conversationwith eminent Indian filmmakers such as Shyam Benegal, Vettrimaran will be organized.

Maharashtra approved APJ Abdul Kalam Amrut Yojna for pregnant and lactating women

The Maharashtra Government on 3 November 2015 approved a revised scheme, named APJ Abdul Kalam Amrut Yojna, for pregnant and lactating women in the tribal areas of the state.

The scheme aims at providing at least one full hot cooked nutritious food to every pregnant lady and lactating mother.

Main Highlights of Yojna

•The meal will be provided for free.

•The hot cooked meal will take into consideration the beneficiary's food preference.

•The food will be provided for six months, beginning from third trimester of pregnancy to the three months period after delivery.

•The meal will include pulses, rice, fruits, vegetables and boiled eggs with occasional supply of milk.

•The scheme will benefit over 1.9 lakh women in the first year.

Implementation of the scheme

•The scheme will be rolled out on 15 November 2015.

•The anganwadis workers, the tribal women and the local meal committees will implement the scheme.

•The Women and Child Welfare Department will spend 10 crore rupees in stipend to anganwadi workers.

•The scheme will be executed in 16 districts having tribal population.

•A four-member meal committee will be constituted in every tribal village across 16 districts.

•A woman panchayat member will head the committee, along with two pregnant or lactating mothers and an anganwadi worker.

•The 22 rupees meal will cost the exchequer 75 crore rupees per annum.

The implementation of the Yojna will ensure that the babies benefit during the lactation period which will eventually help in curbing malnutrition among tribal children in the state.

Eight Core Industries of IIP grew by 3.2% in September 2015; Fastest in 4 months

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) on 2 November 2015 announced that the eight core industries of Index Industrial Production (IIP) grew by 3.2 percent in September 2015 as compared to 2.6 percent in September 2014.

The growth was calculated with base year 2004-05 and was the highest in four months since May 2015 that saw 4.4 percent growth.

However, the cumulative growth rate in the April-September period of FY 2015-16 was pegged at 2.3 per cent, lower than 5.1 per cent registered during the same period in FY 2014-15.

The eight core industries — coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity — comprises about 38 per cent of IIP.

The accelerated growth in September 2015 was attributed to sharp pick-up in fertiliser production and electricity generation.

Fertiliser and electricity generation sectors grew by 18.1 and 10.8 per cent in September 2015 as compared to (-)11.6 and 3.9 percent growth respectively in September 2014.

Growth in Core Sectors: Weights & Growth Chart

Core Sectors	Weight in IIP	Growth in September 2015	Cumulative Growth April-September 2015
Coal	4.38 %	1.9 %	4.2 %
Crude Oil	5.22 %	Declined by 0.1 %	0.4 %
Natural Gas	1.71 %	0.9 %	Declined by 2.1%
Refinery Products (93% of Crude Throughput)	5.94%	0.5 %	3.6 %
Fertilizers	1.25%	18.1 %	8.0 %
Steel (Alloy+Non-Alloy)	6.68%	Declined by 5.9 %	Declined by 0.03 %
Cement	2.41%	Decline by 2.5 %	Declined by 0.4 %
Electricity	10.32%	10.8 %	4.1 %

Norway reopened Consulate General in Mumbai after four decades

Norway on 3 November 2015 reopened its Consulate General in Mumbai after four decades of closure in 1973. The Consulate was reopened by Norwegian Foreign Minister Borje Brende at Bandra-Kurla Complex in suburban Mumbai just next to Sweden’s Consulate General.

This office would extend its services to cover rest of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa and it will be headed by Norwegian diplomat Torbjorn Holthe.

Norwegian Ambassador to India Nils Ragnar Kamsvag, however, said the office has not been delegated the power of granting visas. Applicants would be allowed to apply in Mumbai, but their visa forms would be processed by Delhi-based Consulate General.

Norway’s first consulate in Mumbai was established in 1857 and it was one of the oldest Foreign Service missions of Norway. It was established to serve traditional Norwegian shipping and maritime trade interests.

The Consulate General was, however, closed due to high temperature and humidity and was turned into an honorary mission in 1973. The last Consul General from the Foreign Service was FA Sandberg.

2015 Paragliding World Cup concluded

The 2015 Paragliding World Cup (PWC) was held in Bir village of Himachal Pradesh between 24 October and 31 October 2015.

It was for the first time India hosted a PWC and it is the biggest aero sport event held in India so far.

At the end of the event, while Swiss pilot Michael Kuffer topped the table in the men’s category, Yuki Sato of Japan topped the table in the women’s league.

From the Indian side, Ajay Kumar emerged as the best pilot by positioning himself at the 31st rank overall. Gurpreet Dhindsa (63) and Arvind Paul (70) were the only two other Indians figured in the top 100 list.

The 2015 PWC was organised by the Billing Paragliding Association of India and Airports Authority of India (AAI) was the title sponsor.

Interlinking of Indian Rivers authored by Radha Kant Bharati released

Interlinking of Indian Rivers: Radha Kant Bharati
Book titled Interlinking of Indian Rivers authored by Radha Kant Bharati was released on 3 November 2015 by Chairman of Central Water Commission (CWC) AB Pandya.

The book based on a comprehensive research explains the social, economic and commercial significance of linking of rivers in the country. It also discusses National Water Policy and disputes over the sub-continent of India.

The book also provides a platform for discussion regarding the prospects and problems in inter basin transfer of water in India.

Radha Kant Bharati
The author Radha Kant Bharti born at Nalanda, Bihar in 1939 has been a serious scholar of Geography. He has edited Bhagirath, a journal of Water Resources published by CWC, for several years. His documentaries on major rivers of India have been highly appreciated and won fellowship of Royal Geographical Society, London.

Colin Welland, the writer of Oscar winning Chariots of Fire, died at 81

Colin Welland, the actor and writer who won an Oscar for theChariots of Fire screenplay, died on 2 November 2015. He died at the age of 81 after suffering from Alzheimer's disease for several years.

Welland collected his Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 1982 for his script for Chariots of Fire. The film narrated the story of two athletes in the 1924 Olympics: a devout Scottish Christian who runs for the glory of God, and an English Jew who runs to overcome prejudice.

He was famous for his warning 'the British are coming!' while collecting his 1982 Academy Award.

Welland also acted in the film Kes, thriller Straw Dogs, BBC police drama Z-Cars, The Sweeney and Trial & Retribution.

Assam Government hiked daily minimum wages of workers in various sectors

Assam government on 3 November 2015 hiked the daily minimum wages of skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers in various sectors. The state government also introduced a new segment of highly-skilled workers who will be eligible for a minimum daily wage of 450 rupees.

The daily minimum wage of skilled workers has been hiked from 208 rupees to 350 rupees. The wage of semi-skilled workers has been hiked from 150 rupees to 280 rupees and that of unskilled workers from 130 rupees to 240 rupees.

The notification also entitles employees and workers to avail variable dearness allowance of 100 percent over the rise and fall of index point in All India Consumer Price Index.

The hike will be applicable for the employees and workers engaged in various employments like bakery, industry, carpentry, earth-filling, LPG distribution, petrol pumps, hotels, restaurants, etc.

Tollywood comedian Kondavalasa Lakshman Rao died

Tollywood comedian Kondavalasa Lakshman Rao passed away on 2 November 2015 following age related ailments. He was 69.

Kondavalasa belonged to the group of very few comedians in the Telugu Film Industry who strongly register in people’s mind and hearts with their excellent performance. He was born in Srikakulam.

Kondavalasa made a late debut in films in 2002 after performing about 1000 plays. He was introduced to the Telugu film audience through the role of Pottiraju in Avunu Vall Idharu Ishtapaddaru film directed by Vamsy.

He also worked in Visakhapatnam Port Trust at Visakhapatnam and took voluntary retirement in year 2000. He acted in more than 300 films.

Radha Gopalam, Pandem, Rajababu, Boss, Adhurs, Bendu Apparao RMP, Knife Babji etc. were a few of the videos introduced by Kondavalasa. His filmography contain distinguished films like Andarivadu Adhurs, Varudu, Radha Gopalam Satyam, etc.

Shiva Thapa ranked World No 2 in boxing

Shiva Thapa was on 3 November 2015 ranked number 2 in the latest international rankings in the 56 kilogram category. He moved up by 5 places compared to previous rankings.

While Shiva got 1550 points overall, the top spot was occupied by Michael Conlan of Ireland with 2150 points.

In the World Amateur Boxing Championships held in Doha in October 2015, they won the gold and bronze medal respectively.

Vikas Krishan Yadav, who lost in the quarterfinals of the Doha event, was the next best-placed Indian at sixth in the 75kg middleweight division.

Satish Kumar, who was also a quarterfinalist in Doha, took the seventh spot in the rankings for super heavyweight (plus 91kilogram) boxers.

Rajasthan Government relaxed two-child policy for government employees

The Rajasthan Government on 3 November 2015 decided to relax its two-child policy which was applicable to the state government employees.

As per the decision, the state government employees, already having two children from previous marriage, will now be allowed to have a third child in case of a remarriage. Besides, twins or triplets in such remarriages will be counted as one unit.

The decision was taken at the cabinet meeting presided by state Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

About state’s two-child policy

Rajasthan was the first state in the country to implement the two-child norm in 1992. After 1994, the government barred people with more than two children to contest panchayat and municipal elections.

The policy was extended to government employees with a cut-off date of June 2002.

In 2001, the Rajasthan Government had issued a notification that a candidate having more than two children is not eligible for government recruitment. The notification also mentioned that if an employee’s third child is born after 1 June 2002, he/she will not be given promotion for five years.

Dracula ant discovered in Western Ghats region of Kerala

A new species of the Dracula ant, likely to be of Stigmatomma group of predaceous ants, was discovered by a group of citizen scientists in the Western Ghats region of Kerala.

The ants’ first photographic record was obtained by Manoj Vembayam, Kalesh Sadasivan and Vinay Krishnan, members of the TNHS Ant Research Group, a wing of the Travancore Natural History Society.

Why the species is termed as Dracula?
Stigmatomma species are known to live a hypogaeic lifestyle as predators of chilopods. The species are known as dracula ants because they feed on their own larvae. At the times of scarcity, the species punctures the body of their larvae to drink hemolymph.

Earlier, three Dracula ant species had been discovered in the past in Kolkata, Himachal Pradesh, and Karnataka. These subterranean ants are nearly 1 cm long and have poor vision. They feed on centipedes.

The team now will work on deducing the name of the species using taxonomic keys. They will also submit the details regarding the ant’s characteristic features and other details to a peer-reviewed academic journal to establish the discovery, if further study reveals that the ant comes under no existing species.

UNGA First Committee approved draft resolution to prevent placement of nuclear arms in outer space

The First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 2 November 2015 approved a draft resolution titled No first placement of weapons in outer space.

The draft was approved by a recorded vote of 122 in favour with 47 abstentions. Four countries abstained from voting, namely Israel, Ukraine, United States and Georgia.

Key points of the draft resolution

•The resolution calls UNGA to urge an early commencement of substantive work to prevent the placement of weapons in outer space.

•It stressed that other measures might contribute to ensuring that weapons were not placed in outer space.

•It encouraged all states, especially space-faring nations, to consider upholding as appropriate a political commitment not to be the first.

•In support of undertaking practical measures in the search for agreements, it welcomed the draft treaty introduced by China and the Russian Federation at the Conference on Disarmament in 2008, and its updated version of 2014.

Besides, the First Committee also approved without vote following resolutions:

Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction: This resolution was introduced by Hungary. It calls for encouraging States parties to provide information on their implementation of the Convention’s article X.

The article stresses on protecting and encouraging the peaceful uses of biological science and technology and to offer assistance to ensure compliance.

Preventing terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction:As part of it, UNGA urged all Member States to take and strengthen national measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction.

It also called for strengthening national measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring the materials and technologies related to their manufacture, and their means of delivery.

About First Committee

The First Committee is one of the six main committees at the UNGA. The committee deals with threats to peace, disarmament, and related international security questions that affect the globe.

Michelle Payne became first female jockey to win Melbourne Cup

Michelle Payne on 3 November 2015 became the first female jockey to win 6.2 million Australian dollars Melbourne Cup.

Payne rode rank outsider Prince of Penzanceto a famous victory in Australia's richest and most prestigious horse race.

Payne, born on 29 September 1985, won in her first race at Ballarat. On 10 October 2009, she won her first Group One race, the Toorak Handicap at Caulfield Racecourse aboard Allez Wonde. Later, she emerged as the third female jockey to ride in the Caulfield Cup. In 2010, she came out as a winner in the Thousand Guineas at Caulfield aboard Yosei.

About Melbourne Cup

The Melbourne Cup is one of Australia's most prestigious Thoroughbred horse races. The race is conducted annually by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria.

The event starts at 3 PM on the first Tuesday of November every year and the race is run for over a distance of 3200 metres.

Tata Motors signed Lionel Messi as Global Brand Ambassador for its Passenger Vehicles

Tata Motors on 2 November 2015 signed Argentina’s football player Lionel Messi as Global Brand Ambassador for its passenger vehicles.

This is for the first time the passenger vehicle business will be undertaking an overall brand association campaign with a brand ambassador for the first time.

Further, Tata Motors will be the first Indian brand endorsed by the international sports icon.

As the brand ambassador, Messi will participate in the brand’s promotion campaign globally. To start with, Tata Motors will first roll-out the association campaign, #madeofgreat, to leverage brand potential of the company and Messi.

Lionel Messi is four consecutive times Best Player of the World. At present, he is the captain of Argentina football team.

About Tata Motors

• It is India’s largest automobile company, with consolidated revenues of 42 billion dollars in 2014-15.
• It has operations in the UK, South Korea, Thailand, South Africa and Indonesia.
• It has iconic British brands-Jaguar and Land Rover under its ambit.
• Tata cars, buses and trucks are being marketed in several countries in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia, South America, Australia, CIS and Russia.

Hindi largest spoken Indian language in US: Census Bureau of US

The United States (US) Census Bureau on 3 November 2015 released a set of new tables detailing hundreds of languages that US residents speak at home. These tables, based on American Community Survey data collected from 2009 to 2013, expand the languages and language groups tabulated to 350.

As per the American Community Survey data, Hindi has emerged as the largest Indian language spoken in the US with nearly 6.5 lakh people speaking it.

Top languages spoken in US other than English include Spanish (with more than 37.4 million speakers), Chinese (about 2.9 million), French (1.3 million), Korean (1.1 million), German (1.1 million), Vietnamese (1.4 million), Arabic (924573), Tagalog (1.6 million) and Russian (879434).

5 Largest Indian Languages spoken in US
Hindi: More than 6 lakh speakers use Hindi as a mode of conversation in United states
Urdu:Around 390000 people speak Urdu in the US
Gujarati: Over 370000 people make use of Gujarati language to communicate
Bengali: 257740 people converse using Bengali Language
Panjabi:Around 2.5 lakh people converse in panjabi language in US

About the American Community Survey
• The American Community Survey is the only source of small area estimates for social and demographic characteristics of the US population.
• It gives communities the current information they need to plan investments and services.
• Retailers, homebuilders, police departments, and town and city planners are among the many private- and public-sector decision makers who count on these annual results.

Hindi largest spoken Indian language in US: Census Bureau of US

Civil communications satellite ChinaSat 2C launched by China

China on 3 November 2015 launched a civil communication satellite ChinaSat - 2C from the Xichang space center in Sichuan province.

The satellite was launched aboard the launch vehicle Long March 3B rocket which placed the satellite in its orbit successfully. This launch was 216th mission of Long March carrier rocket series.

The telecommunication satellite will serve customers in a swath of the Asia-Pacific with television broadcasting, broadband multimedia and data transmission services.

The satellite has been developed by China Academy of Space Technology and is owned by China Satellite Communications Co., which is China's primary operator of civil communications satellites. The firm is a state-owned subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

The satellite will provide television broadcasting, data transmission, digital broadband multimedia and media streaming services in China and neighboring regions.

Daughters cannot inherit ancestral property if father died before 2005: SC

The Supreme Court (SC) in the first week of November 2015 ruled that as per the provisions of the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005, a daughter’s right to ancestral property does not arise if the father died before September 2005, when the amendment came into force

The ruling was made by a SC bench comprising of Justices Anil R Dave and Adarsh K Goel. The court held that the father would have had to be alive on 9 September 2005, if the daughter were to become a co-sharer with her male siblings.

All that is required is that the daughter should be alive and her father should also be alive on the date of the amendment.
The court also held that alienation of ancestral property, including its partition, which may have taken place before 20 December 2004 would remain unaffected by the 2005 amendment, and those partitions can no longer be reopened by daughters.

Background

The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, originally did not give daughters inheritance rights in ancestral property. They could only ask for a right to sustenance from a joint Hindu family and could not ask for a share in the property.

In 2005, the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 was passed to amend the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 in order to give daughters equal inheritance rights in ancestral property along with her male siblings.

Justice MB Shah-headed SIT on Black Money submitted its third report

Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Black Money on 3 November 2015 submitted its third report to the Union Ministry of Finance. The SIT is headed by Justice MB Shah and the report dealt with shell companies and beneficial ownership.

The SIT found that over 2600 persons are directors on more than 20 companies and at least 20 companies are operating from the same address at 345 places which indicate the violation of Companies Act, 2013.

To correct the situation, the SIT recommended for has suggested proactive detection of creation of shell companies and deterrent penal action against persons involved in such activities.

The Team has also requested the Ministry of Corporate affairs to take necessary action with respect to violation of the Companies Act.

About SIT on Black Money

The SIT was constituted by the Union Cabinet in May 2014 on the directions of the Supreme Court to go deeper into the cases of black money where Indians have stashed their assets abroad and also suggest policy measures to combat the illegal activity.

While 11-member committee is headed by Justice MB Shah, Justice Arijit Pasayat is its Vice Chairman.