5-6 july 2015
6 july
President of Tunisia declared 30-day state of emergency
President of Tunisia Beji Caid Essebsi on 4 July 2015 declared state of emergency in the country for 30 days.
The decision was taken against the backdrop of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) gun attack on 26 June 2015 on Hotel Riu Imperial Marhaba on the Mediterranian coast and calls for more such attacks by the militant organisation during the holy month of Ramadan.
In the attack, 38 foreign tourists were killed belonging to Britain, Germany, Belgium and France among others.
A state of emergency temporarily gives the government more flexibility and the army and police more authority in dealing with suspected terror incidents.
The Tunisian massacre (in Africa) is part of the trio of attacksexecuted by the ISIS across three continents that took place on the same day in France (Europe) and Kuwait (Asia).
While an attack near a chemical plant at Leon in France decapitated one individual, blast near a Shiite-affiliated mosque in Kuwait killed 25 people.
Comment
Tunisia, the cradle ofthe Arab Spring grassroots movement, last had a state of emergency in 2011 that was subsequently lifted in March 2014. It was imposed during the historic uprising against the then president Zine El-Abidine Ben Aliwho was in power since 1987.
The pro-democracy movement in Tunisia led to the resignation of Ben Ali in 2011 and triggered similar movements for enhanced individual freedom and democracy across the Arabic-speaking region in North Africa and the Middle East.
India won 2015 South Asian Basketball Championship
India on 5 July 2015 won the South Asian Basketball (SABA) Championship title. In the final played at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, Karanataka, India defeated Sri Lanka 93-44.
It was 4th edition of the championships. India was the winner of third SABA Championship.
With this win, India qualified for the FIBA Asia Championship in China. FIBA Asia Championship will be played in September 2015.
The winning team was given a cash prize of 35000 rupees as a personal gesture of Basketball Federation of India President K Govindraj.
Top three teams of the championships were India (gold), Sri Lanka (silver) and Nepal (bronze).
Corporation Bank launched first MUDRA card under Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana
Corporation Bank on 4 July 2015 launched country’s first MUDRA (Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency) card under the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) in Mangalore, Karnataka.
The card is based on theRuPay platform and facilitates thewithdrawal and use of the working capital finance by micro entrepreneurs.
Under the PMMY, the bank launched three loan schemes-Shishu, Kishore and Tarun- to entrepreneurs based on their capacity to repay.
WhileShishuscheme provides loan up 50000 rupees,an amount of up to 5 lakh rupees will be lent under the Kishore scheme. Under Tarun scheme loan up to 10 lakh rupeeswill be offered.
The Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana (PMMY) was launched by PM Narendra Modi on 8 April 2015 under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) to ensure credit facility to small entrepreneurs through Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs).
Corporation Bank is one of the oldest banks in India that was founded in 1906. At present, Sadhu Ram Bansal is the Chairman and Managing Director of the bank.
Modi’s World: Expanding India’s Sphere of Influence by C Raja Mohan
Modi’s World: Expanding India’s Sphere of Influence: C Raja Mohan
The book titled Modi’s World: Expanding India’s Sphere of Influence authored by C Raja Mohan was published on 19 June 2015 by Harper Collins.
The focus of the book is on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy.
In the book, the author presented a sharp analysis of India’s challenges in navigating a rapidly transforming regional and international landscape under Narendra Modi.
C Raja Mohan is one of India’s highly respected foreign policy analysts and commentators.
His other books include Crossing the Rubicon: The Shaping of India's Foreign Policy ( 2004), Impossible Allies: Nuclear India, United States and the Global Order (2006) and Samudra Manthan: Sino-Indian Rivalry in the Indo-Pacific (2012).
Hollywood actress Diana Douglas died
Hollywood actress Diana Douglas died on 3 July 2015 at the Motion Picture Hospital in Woodland Hills after battling with cancer. She was 92. She is survived by sons Michael and Joel and three grandchildren.
Douglas was best known for her work in television in late 1940s when she appeared in live dramas. She went on to take roles in television series such as Naked City, The Waltons, Ben Casey, The Streets of San Francisco and The Paper Chase.
Her last appearance was on a 2004 episode of The West Wing in which she had a long, biting monologue as the widow of an ex-president.
She went to boarding school in England for her education and graduated from the Upper Chine School for Girls on the Isle of Wight. Before graduating, she signed a contract with Warner Brothers and later moved to Los Angeles.
She was born as Diana Dill on 22 January 1923 in Bermuda, North America.
Renowned Urdu novelist Abdullah Hussain passed away
Renowned Urdu novelist from Pakistan Abdullah Hussain died on 4 July 2015 in Lahore after battling with blood cancer. He was 84.He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.
He authored the bestseller and critically acclaimed novel Udas Naslain, it is considered as a masterpiece of Urdu literature. His other famous novels are Baagh, Nadaar Loag and short stories Faraib and Nashaib. Hussain was also awarded with the Prime Minister's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015 for his work.
Hussai was born as Mohammad Khan on 14 August 1931 in Gujrat, Punjab Province of Pakistan. He did his schooling and graduation from Zameendar College of Pakistan.
UNESCO and UNITAR signed agreement to protect cultural heritage with geo-spatial technologies
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) on 1 July 2015 signed an agreement to protect cultural heritage sites with the latest geo-spatial technologies.
The agreement was signed at the annual meeting of the World Heritage Committee in Bonn, Germany.
Features of the Agreement
• It is part of the UNESCO’s Unite for Heritage framework under which UNESCO enters into agreements with sister UN Agencies to protect cultural heritage sites across the world.
• It will enable both the organizations to work together during conflict situations and following natural disasters by sharing their respective expertise and collaborating on prevention and capacity development.
• Under the agreement, complimentary capacities of both the organizations-satellite technology of UNITAR and ground based resources of UNESCO – will be put into best use for protection of heritage sites.
• Apart from the Geographic Information Systems (GIS), crowd-sourcing application UN-ASIGN, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and advanced web-mapping solutions will be deployed to continuously monitor the status of heritage sites.
• Both the organizations will jointly explore new and innovative solutions that can further contribute to improved management and protection of cultural heritage sites.
• The agreement will be operational through the UNITAR’s Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT).
Importance of geo-spatial technologies in protecting heritage sites
Satellite imagery is often the only source of objective information for areas affected by conflict or by natural disasters. It helps the international community to understand the situation on the ground and plan emergency measures.
For example, a recently-published report on cultural heritage sites in Syria, by UNITAR-UNOSAT revealed the extent of damage to cultural heritage, confirming information obtained through unofficial sources.
Comment
The agreement between both the UN organizations was signed against the backdrop of damage occurred to cultural heritage sites due to conflicts and natural calamities in different parts of the world in recent times.
For example, the earthquake that struck Nepal on 25 April 2015 destroyed the 19th century Dharahara (Bhimsen) tower and Monkey Temple of Swayambhunaththat happens to be UNESCO heritage sites. Similarly, damage was done to world heritage sites in Syria and Iraq by the ISIS militant group.
Greece rejected creditors' demands for more austerity in crucial referendum
People of Greece rejected the creditor’s demand for more austerity in exchange of extension of bailout package (15.5 billion Euros) in a historic referendum on 5 July 2015. The creditors include the troika of European Central Bank (ECB), European Union (EU) and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The referendum asked Greeks a simple question vote Yes or No on a proposal from Euro group leaders to extend financing to the deeply indebted country, 1.7 billion dollar (1.5 billion euro).
61.31 percent voted ‘No’ as compared to 38.69 percent ‘Yes’ for the referendum that demanded for more austerity in return for rescue loans.
The voters backed leftist Syriza government led by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who insisted the vote would give him a stronger hand to reach a better deal.
The referendum was called amid meetings of Eurozone leaders trying to come up with a deal to allow the country to avoid default.
The referendum was Greece's first in 41 years and it came amid severe restrictions on financial transactions in the country imposed in last week of June 2015.
Post the Greek referendum, the finance minister Yanis Varoufakis resigned from his office.
Champagne vineyards of France granted with World Heritage status by UNESCO
The Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars of France were on 5 July 2015 granted with the World Heritage Status by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The decision to grant the status was given during the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Bonn, Germany. The Committee was chaired by Maria Bohmer, Minister of State at Germany’s Federal Foreign Office
The Champagne World Heritage status covered the places where sparkling wine was developed using a second fermentation method in the bottle from the beginning of the 17th century until its early industrialisation in the 19th century.
It mentioned the historic vineyards of Hautvillers where the monk Dom Perignon invented the fermentation process that gives champagne its fizz.
Besides, another cultural site in France – The Climats, terroirs of Burgundy – was declared as World Heritage Site.
Some other cultural sites that were declared as World Heritage Sites during the 39th Session are:
• Christiansfeld, a Moravian Church Settlement (Denmark): Founded in 1773 in South Jutland, the site is an example of a planned settlement
• The Par Force Hunting Landscape in North Zealand (Denmark)
• Diyarbakir Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (Turkey): Located on an escarpment of the Upper Tigres River Basin that is part of the so-called Fertile Crescent
• Rjukan-Notodden Industrial Heritage Site (Norway)
• Speicherstadt and Kontorhaus District with Chilehaus (Germany)
• The Forth Bridge in Scotland (United Kingdom): This railway bridge spanning the estuary of the Forth River in Scotland is the world’s longest multi-span cantilever bridge.
• San Antonio Missions (USA)
• Sites Meiji Industrial Revolution: Iron and Steel, Shipbuilding and Coal Mining (Japan)
• Ephesus (Turkey): Comprises of successive Hellenistic and Roman settlements founded on new locations
• Aqueduct of Padre Tembleque Hydraulic System (Mexico)—This 16th century aqueduct
• Fray Bentos Cultural-Industrial Landscape (Uruguay)
• Necropolis of Beth She’arim—a Landmark of Jewish Revival (Israel): Primary Jewish burial place outside Jerusalem
About the status of World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a status granted to a place (such as a building, city, complex, desert, forest, island, lake, monument, or mountain) that is listed by the UNESCO as being of special cultural or physical significance.
These are annually declared during the UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee meeting which is composed of 21 UNESCO member states elected by the General Assembly.
The program was founded with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World's Cultural and Natural Heritage which was adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO on 16 November 1972
World Bank released revised classification of world’s economies based on Gross National Income
The World Bank on 1 July 2015 released the annual revised classification of the world's economies based on estimates of gross national income (GNI) per capita for 2014. The GNI calculations are based on World Bank Atlas method.
The revision in the classification was done on the basis of the 2015 edition of World Development Indicators (WDI) report released on 15 April 2015 by the bank.
Takeaways from the revised classification of world’s economies
• While, in 1994, 56.1 percent of the world’s population or 3.1 billion people lived in the 64 low-income countries, in 2014, this was down to 8.5 percent or 613 million people, living in 31 countries.
• Bangladesh, Kenya, Myanmar and Tajikistanmoved from the low income group to the lower-middle income group. While low-income economies are defined as those with a GNI per capita of 1045 US dollars or less, members of lower-middle income group have between 1045 US dollars and 4125 US dollars.
• Mongolia and Paraguay moved from the lower middle-income status to upper middle-income, a group with yearly income levels of 4126 US dollars to 12735 dollars.
• Argentina, Hungary, Seychelles and Venezuela have moved from the upper middle income category to high income, with average per capita income levels of 12736 US dollars or more.
• In contrast to the above 10 countries that improved their status,South Sudan has fallen out of the lower middle-income classification back into low-income status due to civil wars and sluggish in the oil industry.
• Maldives and Mongolia were the highest movers in the rankings – up 13 and 8 places, respectively.
• Oman and Timor-Leste fell most from their 2013 ranking – down 15 places for both.
• People living in low-income countries continue to fall behind those in the upper per capita GNI brackets, while they earn and consume significantly less than much of the world’s population.
•Malawi has the world’s lowest reported GNI per capita at 250 US dollars, while Monaco has the highest, at more than 100000 US dollars – more than 400 times more per person on average than Malawi.
India’s position as per the revised classification
• Though India’s average per capital GNI reached 1610 US dollars or around 101430 rupees, it continues to be in the lower middle income category.
• With the addition of one trillion US dollars during the past seven years, India’s GDP reached 2 trillion US dollar mark in 2014. In 2013 it was 1.861 trillion US dollars.
Usefulness of revised classification
The World Bank as a group consists of International Development Association (IDA) and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
For the sake of determining lending eligibility of countries they are divided into IDA, IBRD, and Blend countries based on the operational policies of the World Bank including the World Development Indicators (WDI) report.
IDA countries are those with low per capita incomes that lack the financial ability to borrow from the IBRD. Blend countries are eligible for IDA loans but are also eligible for IBRD loans because they are financially creditworthy.
Chile defeated Argentina to win 2015 Copa America Cup Football tournament
Chile on 4 July 2015 won its first Copa America Cup football tournament. In the final played at the Estadio Nacional (national stadium) in Santiago, Chile defeated Argentina 4-1 through penalties shootout.
With this win, Chile ended its 99-year-long wait for a Copa America crown. It was also Chile's first ever victory over Argentina in the Copa America cup.
The penalty corner strokes were called on after the game ended 0-0 after extra time. The winning spot kick for Chile was struck by Alexis Sanchez.
Awards
Besides the Copa trophy, there were other awards to recognise both individuals and teams, and the winners in different categories are
• Santander Fair Play: Peru
• Kia Motors Golden Gloves: Claudio Bravo (Chile)
• Claro Best Young Player: Jeison Murillo (Colombia)
• Santander Top Scorer:Eduardo Vargas (Chile) and Paolo Guerrero (Peru) - tied with four goals each
In 2011, the Copa America Cup was won by Uruguay defeating Peru 3-0 in the final. The 2011 cup was hosted by Argentina.
USA defeated Japan to win Women's FIFA World Cup for the third time
United States of America (USA) on July 2015 won the FIFA Women’s World Cup. In the final played at Vancouver, Canada, US defeated Japan, 5-2.
This was third world cup title for the USA and first since 1999.
In the semi-finals, while US defeated Germany, 2-0, Japan beat England, 2-1.
The player of the match was Carli Lloyd of US.
Final tournament standings
• Winner: USA
• Runners Up:Japan
•Third: England
• Fourth: Germany
Awards
• adidas Golden Ball: Carli Lloyd (midfielder of USA)
• adidas Golden Boot:Celia Sasic (forward of Germany)
• adidas Golden Glove: Hope Solo (Goalkeeper of USA)
• Hyundai Young Player Award: Kadeisha Buchanan (Defender of Canada)
• Fair Play Award: France
SC ruled unwed mother can be child's guardian without father's consent
The Supreme Court of India on 6 July 2015 ruled that an unwed mother can be the sole legal guardian of a child without the consent of the father.
The apex court further held that it was not required of the mother to disclose the identity of the father and include him as a party to the guardianship petition in certain cases.
It said that in best interest of the child, procedural requirement of issuing a notice to the father when a guardianship petition is moved can be done away with.
The direction was given by a Supreme Court bench headed by Justice Vikramjit Sen while hearing a plea by an unwed mother who challenged the statutory necessity of involving the father of her child in guardianship petition.
The woman had challenged the need to involve the father of her child in a guardianship petition even though she had never married him. She also asserted her right to keep the father's name secret, arguing that he had nothing to do with her child's upbringing.
The existing law, that is, Guardians and Wards Act and the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, requires that a notice should be sent to the child's father for his consent when there is a petition for guardianship.
The woman filed her plea in the Supreme Court in 2011 after a trial court in Delhi and the High Court ruled against the woman. The bench quashed the orders by the trial court and the High Court and said that the lower courts had lost sight of the issue that was before them and decided the matter without taking into account the welfare of the child.
Japan committed $6 billion to Mekong region countries at 7th Mekong-Japan Summit in Tokyo
Japan on 4 July 2015 committed 6.1 billion US dollars (750 billion Japanese Yen) in Official Development Assistance (ODA) to Mekong Region countries for the next three years. The decision was taken by Japan during the seventh Mekong-Japan Summit held in Tokyo.
The decision to provide the development aid to Mekong countries was taken in line with the Development Cooperation Charter approved by the Japan’s Cabinet in February 2015. The Mekong region countries include Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
The aid of 6 billion US dollars was part of the New Tokyo Strategy 2015 for Mekong-Japan Cooperation (MJC2015) that was adopted as a new strategy for Mekong-Japan Cooperation in the next three years.
The new strategy for Mekong-Japan cooperation will be based on the four pillars of
• Strengthening Hard Connectivity (land/maritime/air Connectivity)
• Strengthening Soft Connectivity through advancing industrial structures and human resource development
• Sustainable Development towards the Realization of a Green Mekong, and
• Coordination with Various Stakeholders
Besides, Mekong region countries supported Japan’s proposal to designate November 5 as World Tsunami Daywith an aim to raise awareness of the importance of tsunami disaster prevention and deepening common understanding of tsunamis.
Comment
The decision to provide development aid to Mekong region countries comes at a time when China is making an all out effort to expand the membership of its initiated Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) that on 29 June 2015 saw the signing of article of agreement by 50 countries. AIIB seems to be encroaching on the regional clout of Tokyo and ally Washington.
MIT Scientists developed a Quantum Dot Spectrometer small enough to function within a smartphone
The scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) created aQuantum Dot (QD) Spectrometer which is small enough to fit inside a smartphone camera. Spectrometers are the instruments that measure the properties of light.
The development was published on 2 July 2015 in the journal Nature and the lead author of the study is Jie Bao, a former MIT postdoc.
QD spectrometer represents a new application for quantum dots, which have been used primarily for biological molecules and labeling cells, as well as in television screens and computers.
Characteristic features of the device
• It is portable and would enable the devices to diagnose diseases, especially skin conditions, or detect environmental pollutants.
• It is about the size of a US quarter and deploys hundreds of quantum dot materials that each filters a specific set of wavelengths of light.
• It is unique and advantageous in terms of flexibility, simplicity, and cost reduction.
How it was developed?
In QD spectrometer approach, the scientists created the optical structure, i.e., QD filters by printing liquid droplets into a thin film and then placed it on top of a photodetector such as the charge-coupled devices (CCDs) found in cellphone cameras.
Then, the researchers created an algorithm to analyse the percentage of photons absorbed by each filter and recombined the information from each one to calculate the intensity and wavelength of the original rays of light.
The more quantum dot materials there are, the more wavelengths can be covered and the higher resolution can be obtained.
In this case, the scientists used about 200 types of quantum dots spread over a range of about 300 nanometres. With more dots, such spectrometers could be designed to cover an even wider range of light frequencies.
What are Quantum Dots?
Quantum dots (QD) is a type of nanocrystals which was discovered in the early 1980s. These are made by combining metals such as lead or cadmium with other elements including sulfur, selenium, or arsenic.
By controlling the ratio of these starting materials, the temperature, and the reaction time, scientists can generate a nearly unlimited number of dots with differences in an electronic property known as bandgap, which determines the wavelengths of light that each dot will absorb.