5-6 june 2015
5 june
Delhi Metro got its first driver-less train
Delhi Metro on 4 June 2015 received its first driver-less train from Korea-based manufacturer. The train is equipped with several advanced features and will be operational on sections of Phase-III of the network, set to be operational by December 2016.
Features of these trains
• Manufactured at Changwan in South Korea, the new train has undergone significant technological as well as eco-friendly upgrades. Many additional features have been added to increase passenger comfort.
• The train will be more energy efficient because of improved design features such as better regeneration of energy during braking, energy efficient sub systems like LED lighting and air conditioning systems.
• The train is are designed for a maximum speed of 95 kmph and operational speed of 85 kmph
• Due to the absence of cabin for the operator, these train will be able to accommodate 2280 passengers, which is 240 more than the regular six-coach Metro train
This six-coach train was ferried to India by sea to Gujarat’s Mundhra port and then was brought to Delhi by road on specially made trailers.
These trains would run on the over 58 km-long Majlish Park-Shiv Vihar and the over 38 km-long Janakpuri (West)-Botanical Garden corridors of the Phase-III.
According to DMRC, a total of 20 such train sets of Hyundai Rotem will be manufactured in South Korea’s Changwan by the end of 2015 while the remaining 61 are being manufactured at the Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) plant in Bengaluru.
Sundaram Ravi inducted into Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires for 2015-16
Eminent Indian umpire Sundaram Ravi, along with Chris Gaffaney of New Zealand, was on 4 June 2015 inducted into the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires for 2015-16.
Both of them were promoted from the Emirates International Panel of ICC Umpires and replaced New Zealand veteran Billy Bowden and Steve Davis of Australia.
The decision was taken in this regard by the International Cricket Council (ICC) Umpires Selection Panel consisting of Chairman Geoff Allardice and others members including S Venkataraghavan, the former India captain and an international umpire, following an annual review and selection process.
The Elite Panel of Umpires for 2015-2016 will be: Aleem Dar, Kumar Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker and Bruce Oxenford.
With the present appointment, Sundaram Ravi has become the first Indian after S Venkataraghavan who was inducted into the elite panel in 2004.
Ravi has umpired in six Tests, 24 ODIs and 12 T20Is, since making his international debut in Visakhapatnam in December 2011 in an ODI between India and the West Indies.
He also umpired in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 earlier this year in Australia and New Zealand.
World Environment Day observed globally
5 June: World Environment Day
World Environment Day (WED) was observed globally on 5 June 2015 with theme Seven Billion Dreams. One Planet. Consume with Care.
The host country for the WED 2015 is Italy and the celebrations will be organized by Expo Milano 2015 that will run from 1 May to 31 October 2015 and will see the participation of 140 plus countries.
The day is observed to raise global awareness to take positive environmental action to protect nature and the planet Earth. It is run by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
What does theme highlights?
The theme focuses on the need to respect the carrying capacity of the planet and to manage natural resources efficiently to ensure prosperity and wellbeing globally.
As per an estimate, if current consumption and production patterns remain the same then by 2050 to sustain the same we will need three planets, as the population is expected to rise to reach 9.6 billion.
Further, the last part of the theme, Consuming with Care highlights the need to live within planetary boundaries to ensure a healthy future where our dreams can be realized. Human prosperity need not cost the earth.
WED 2015 celebrations in India
On this day to create awareness for environment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate a tree plantation campaign across India. Apart from this, several other renowned personalities of the nation will also plant saplings at different places across India.
Background
The day was established by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on the day when Stockholm’s United Nations Conference on the Human Environment 1972 began. The first World Environment Day was hosted in 1973 and since then it is being held every year with a different theme in different cities.
The theme for 2014 World Environment Day celebrations was Raise Your Voice Not the Sea Level and the host country was Barbados.
AB De Villiers conferred with South Africa Cricketer of the Year Award for 2015
AB De Villiers was on 3 June 2015 conferred with the South Africa (SA) Cricketer of the Year Award for 2015.
The award was presented to him at the 2015 Cricket South Africa Awards presentation ceremony held at Midrand in South Africa.
Having received the annual award for 2014 also, he joined Makhaya Ntini who received the award in successive years- 2005 and 2006.
Till now, only eight players have received the most prestigious award of Cricket South Africa (CSA) including Jacques Kallis (2004 and 2011) and Hashim Amla (2010 and 2013) who received the award twice.
AB De Villiers won following awards for 2015
• SA Cricketer of the Year Award
• Castle Lager ODI Cricketer of the Year
• SA Players’ Player of the Year
• SA Fans’ Player of the Year
• KFC ‘So Good’ Award
Thus, he equated the performance of Hashim Amla who won five awards in 2010.
The other major awards went to Hashim Amla as Test Cricketer of the Year, Morne van Wyk as Ticketpro T20 Cricketer of the Year and Dale Steyn won the RAM Delivery of the Year Award.
AB De Villiers is considered as one of the best all-round cricketer and placed at the No. 2 spot in Test match cricket and at No. 1 in ODI cricket rankings.
He now holds the world records for the fastest 50, 100 and 150 in ODI cricket.
AIFF signed an agreement with French Football Federation
All India Football Federation (AIFF) on 2 June 2015 signed an agreement with French Football Federation (FFF) in Zurich. The agreement was signed by Praful Patel, President, AIFF in the presence of Kushal Das, General Secretary of AIFF.
Highlights of the agreement
• The parties agreed to cooperate with each other in order to develop strong ties between their respective associations for the mutual benefit of each association and for the promotion, growth and continued success of football in each country.
• It was also agreed to exchange training of technical personnel and organisational procedures;
• Availability of sports centres or installations for competition, training and camps as and where possible in accordance with availability and suitability was also been agreed upon.
• Besides, support for the preparation of the Indian U-17 World Cup Team which will be participating in the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 to be hosted by India in terms of exposure trips for matches with French teams and participation in youth tournaments in France have also been considered.
This is the third agreement AIFF had signed with other country, after Federation entered into a partnership with the German Football Association (DFB) in May 2015 and a MoU with the Japan Football Association in February 2015.
20 soldiers killed in militant ambush at Tengnoupal, Manipur
Tengnoupal, Manipur: 20 army personnel killed in militant ambush
The place Tengnoupal in Manipur was in news on 4 June 2015 as at least 20 Army personnel were killed and 16 others injured after a group of militants ambushed 6 Dogra Infantry Regiment.
Tengnoupal, a Kuki-ethnic village, falls in the Moltuk valley of Chandel district of Manipur and lie 15-km from away from Indo-Myanmar border.
The ambush took place on Tengnoupal-New Samtal road when the convoy of 46 jawans belonging to the Dogra Infantry was returning to their headquarters in Dimapur, Nagaland.
The responsibility of the attack was jointly claimed by three militant organizations, namely National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K), Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) and Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP).
The Union government has ordered an all-out counter-insurgency and combing operations against the insurgents in the surrounding areas.
Union Government filed complaint against Maggi under Section 12(1)(d) of Consumer Protection Act
Section 12(1)(d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986: Enables the government to approach Consumer Forum to protect interests of consumers.
The Section 12(1)(d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 was in news as the Union Government filed a complaint under it for the first time in nearly three decades since the enactment of the act.
The Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution on 3 June 2015 filed a complaint with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) against Maggi, the brand of instant soups and noodles owned by Nestle.
The government took this decision against the backdrop of alleged lapses related to food safety standards in Maggi noodles containing high levels of lead and Monosodium Glutamate (MSG).
The Section 12(1)(d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 says that a complaint in relation to any goods sold or delivered or agreed to be sold or delivered or any service provided or agreed to be provided may be filed with a District Forum by the Central Government or the State Government.
They may file the complaint, as the case may be, either in its individual capacity or as a representative of interests of the consumers in general.
Under the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, if the allegations are proved, a fine of up to 5 lakh rupees and imprisonment of up to 6 years in case of grievous injury to the consumer and imprisonment of minimum 7 years and fine of not less than 10 lakh rupees in case of death will be awarded to the guilty.
In the related incident, the Union Government asked the central food safety regulator Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which comes under the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to inquire into the matter.
Incidentally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) selected the theme From farm to plate, make food safe for the World Health Day (WHD) 2015 which was observed globally on 7 April 2015.
India and the Netherlands signed agreements to enhance bilateral cooperation
India and the Netherlands on 5 June 2015 signed several agreements to deepen bilateral cooperation.
The agreements were signed in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Netherland Mark Rutte in New Delhi after the two leaders held discussions on various issues related to the region and the world.
Mark Rutte is on a two day visit to India on 5-6 June 2015.
List of Agreements signed between India and Netherlands
• Agreement on setting up Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism , which will hold its first meeting on 19 June 2015.
• Agreement on manufacturing of dredgers at the Cochin Shipyard.
• Agreement on manufacturing of Measles, and Rubella Vaccine in India, with transfer of technology from Netherlands.
• Agreement on developing coastal roads and metro lines in India.
• Agreement on setting up a Joint Working Group on Skill Development.
• Agreement on developing joint pilot projects for an electric vehicle ecosystem in India.
• Agreement on setting up centres of excellence in areas like horticulture and animal husbandry in India.
Comment
The Netherlands is a key partner in India’s economic development as it hosts the second largest Indian community in Europe and several Dutch companies have a long presence in India.
Today, the Netherlands is the fifth largest source of investments in India and in turn India is also the fifth largest source of investments in the Netherlands.
Union Government signed 400 million US dollars loan agreement with World Bank for TNSUDP
The Union Government on 4 June 2015 signed Loan and Project Agreements with the World Bank for assistance of 400 million US dollars for Tamil Nadu Sustainable Urban Development Project (TNSUDP).
The objective of the project is to improve urban services in participating Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in a financially sustainable manner and to pilot improved urban management practices in selected cities. The total project size is 600 million US dollars
Three main components of the Project
Investment in Urban Services:The project will support improvement in range of urban services including water, sewerage, municipal solid waste, urban transportation, sewerage management and storm water drainage. The project includes creation of a reserve fund to provide credit enhancements for municipal bonds and other market based Loan instruments issued by ULBs.
Result Based Grants for Urban Governance: The project will provide results-based grants to eligible ULBs to implement new urban-management models that strengthen governance and financial sustainability.
Urban Sector Technical Assistance: The project will support strengthening the capacity of ULBs and urban sector officials.
Nobel Prize Winner in Chemistry Irwin Rose passed away
Irwin Rose, a biochemist who won the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, died on 2 June 2015 in his sleep in Deerfield, Massachusetts. He was 88.
Rose won the Nobel Prize for discovering a way that cells destroy unwanted proteins for developing new therapies for diseases such as cervical cancer and cystic fibrosis.
He was a distinguished professor-in-residence in the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of California, Irvine School of Medicine at the time his Nobel Prize was announced in 2004.
He served on the faculty of Yale School of Medicine's department of biochemistry from 1954 to 1963 after doing his Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1952 from the University of Chicago.
Later, he joined the Fox Chase Cancer Center in 1963 and stayed there until he retired in 1995.
Rose was born in Brooklyn, New York on 16 July 1926. He spent much of his career as a researcher at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. His Nobel-winning work was done there in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
IREDA awarded Miniratna (Category-1) status by Department of Public Enterprises
Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA) was on 2 June 2015 awarded the Miniratna (Cateogry -1) statusby the Department of Public Enterprises under the Union Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises.
The proposal for conferring Miniratna status for IREDA was recommended by the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Grant of status allows IREDA to make capital expenditure on new projects, modernization, purchase of equipment, etc. without Government approval up to 500 crores rupees, or equal to their net worth, whichever is lower.
For IREDA, now the ceiling on equity investment to establish joint ventures and subsidiaries in India will be 15% of its net worth in one project limited to 500 crore rupees. The overall ceiling on such investment in all projects put together shall be 30% of the net worth IREDA.
The Scheme of Maharatna/Navratna/Miniratna
The scheme of awarding Navratna, Miniratna (Category-1 and 2) status to public sector undertakings (PSUs) was started by the Union Government vide a notification dated 22 July 1997 so as to grant greater autonomy to PSUs to become global giants.
Later on 4 February 2010, the scheme of Maharatna for PSUs was started.
At present, there are 55 Public Limited Companies in Mini Ratna (Cateogry -1) and 17 are in Mini Ratna (Cateogry-2). Besides, there are 7 Maharatna Companies and 17 Navratnas companies.
Eligibility for Miniratna Category-I PSEs
They should have made profit in the last three years continuously, the pre-tax profit should have been 30 crores rupees or more in at least one of the three years and should have a positive net worth.
About IREDA
IREDA was established as Public Limited Government Company in 1987 to promote, develop and extend financial assistance for renewable energy and energy efficiency /conservation projects with the Motto Energy for Ever.
It was created as Non-Banking Financial Institution (NBFI) in Schedule C of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and was upgraded as Schedule B in 2010.
The Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of IREDA is KS Popli.
Volvo India appointed Tom von Bonsdorff as Managing Director
Volvo Auto India on 1 June 2015 appointed Tom von Bonsdorff as Managing Director. He will take over with immediate effect. He succeeded Tomas Ernberg. Tomas Ernberg is moving back to Sweden in a new role.
Bonsdorff has been working with Volvo Cars for 17 years in various operational and managerial positions.
Earlier, Bonsdorff has worked in the US, Sweden, Finland, while in his current position as a Market Area Director of Asia. He is already based in Delhi.
The Volvo Group is a Swedish multinational manufacturing company headquartered in Gothenburg. Its core activity is the production, distribution and sale of trucks, buses and construction equipment.
Delhi Government introduced mechanical road sweepers
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on 4 June 2015 inaugurated six mechanical road sweepers on Kalibari Marg, Delhi to effectively control air pollution and keep the city clean.
The mechanical sweeping machines are the initiative of the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC). These are aimed at effectively cleaning the roads of the city and reduce the exposure of dust and dirt particles to manual sweepers.
Currently, the NDMC has deployed four road sweepers for major and colony roads stretching across 10920 km and two road sweepers for lanes and cross-colony roads of 3900 km.
The machines’ speed is 5-10 km per hour and can cover 30 km a day. The machines will mostly operate in night shifts.
The machines are equipped with water sprinklers which effectively remove the soil and dirt from the roads, ensuring that the minute particulate matter do not spread in the air.
As the level of pollution is high in the city, the introduction of mechanised sweepers is being looked upon as a big step to reduce the level of dust in Delhi.
If the project turns out to be success in NDMC area, then the Delhi government may introduce mechanical road sweepers in the PWD roads, which is a stretch of 1260 km.
Fortune released 61st edition of list of top 500 companies
Fortune on 4 June 2015 released the 61st edition of list of top 500 companies. These Fortune 500 companies account for 12.5 trillion US dollar in revenues, 945 billion US dollar in profits, 17 trillion US dollar in market value and employ 26.8 million people worldwide.
The list was topped by retail behemoth Walmart with revenue of 485.6 billion US dollar. It was followed by Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Berkshire Hathaway and Apple at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th position respectively. The top five of 2015 list remains unchanged as compared to the 2014 list.
Further, Apple was the most profitable company with profit of 39.5 billion US dollars followed by Exxon Mobil (32.5 billion US dollars).
Facebook saw the biggest jump in rankings from 341 to 242 while new entrants to the list included emerging tech heavyweights Salesforce.com, Netflix and Expedia.
Microsoft, Google, IBM, Intel and Oracle are all placed in the top 20 in terms of profit; however, they are placed outside the top 20 in terms of revenue. The revenue of the Fortune 500 companies in 2015 increased by 2.6 percent from 2014 but the total profits were down 12.6 per cent to 945 billion US dollar.
WTO’s Dispute Settlement Board ruled against India’s ban on poultry imports from the US
The Dispute Settlement Board of World Trade Organisation (WTO) on 4 June 2015 ruled against the India’s ban on import of meats from the United States (US). The ban on imports of meat covered poultry meat, eggs and live pigs.
The appellate body upheld the October 2014 ruling of three-member dispute settlement panel of WTO, which ruled that India’s avian influenza-related measures were inconsistent with the international norms.
It further ruled that India’s measures were arbitrary and unjustifiably discriminated between members where identical or similar conditions prevailed. In essence, these measures constituted trade-restrictive measures.
Further, India’s measures violated Article 3.1, 6.1 and 6.2 of the Sanitary and Phyto-sanitary Agreement of WTO as they were not based on international standards.
Now, India will have 12 to 18 months time to implement the ruling after which US will be able to export its product to India.
6 june
Prominent scientist Ameenah Gurib-Fakim sworn-in as President of Mauritius
Prominent scientist Ameenah Gurib-Fakim was on 5 June 2015 sworn in as President of Mauritius. With this, Gurib-Fakim became the first female president of Mauritius, which gained independence from Britain in 1968 and replaced Britain's Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state in 1992.
Ameenah, an internationally-renowned scientist and biologist, succeeded Kailash Purryag who stepped down from his post on 29 May 2015.
At the time of her appointment as President, Gurib-Fakim was director of Centre for Phytotherapy Research (CEPHYR) in Mauritius, which carries out research on plants for use in cosmetics, nutrition and therapy.
Earlier, the Parliament on 4 June 2015 cleared her name for the ceremonial position of the Indian island nation after she was designated for the post by Government of Mauritius.
An alumni of the universities of Exeter and Surrey in Britain, she also serves as the chairman of organic chemistry at Mauritius University. She has also worked with the World Bank and other international institutions as well.
Wrestler Prem Nath passed away
Wrestler Prem Nath, a gold medallist at the 1974 Christchurch Commonwealth Games, passed away on 1 June 2015. He was 64. He is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter.
Prem Nath, a President’s Medal-winning retired Delhi Police official, was known for his efforts to popularise wrestling in Delhi.
In 1976, he took over an akhara established by Guru Baijnath in the Kamla Nagar area of New Delhi. Today, the akhara is known as the Guru Prem Nath akhara.
In 1974, he bagged the 57kg Commonwealth Games title in New Zealand. He got the Arjuna Award for the year 1972.
Hollywood actor Hiroshi Koizumi died
Actor Hiroshi Koizumi passed away on 31 May 2015 following pneumonia. He was 88.
Making debut in 1951 on silver screen, Koizumi appeared in a string of monster films including Mothra vs Godzilla, Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster and Dogara, the Space Monster. In 1955, Koizumi appeared as a pilot in movie Godzilla Raids Again.
Koizumi also acted in numerous non-monster productions, including the 47 Samurai in 1962, alongside the legendary Toshiro Mifune. During 1970s, he became the presenter of Fuji TV's popular Quiz Grand Prix.
Later, he appeared in The Return of Godzilla in 1984 and in 2003's Godzilla: Tokyo SOS.
Born in 1926, Koizumi graduated from Tokyo's Keio University, Japan's oldest, and joined public broadcaster NHK as an announcer.
HP High Court asked state government to establish separate homes for differently-abled people
The High Court of Himachal Pradesh on 5 June 2015 asked the state government to establish separate homes for differently-abled, shelter less, destitute and mentality challenged people. The state government was asked to complete the work within a year.
The court also directed the Principal Secretary (Social Justice and Empowerment) to release adequate funds for the purpose within eight weeks. In order to ascertain that people in old age homes are provided with the basic amenities or not, the court also asked the Director Welfare to visit the old age homes.
It directed that if the amenities are not being provided then, the same should be made available to them within two weeks after visiting the homes.
A division bench comprising Justice Rajiv Sharma and Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan passed these orders, taking cognizance of a letter written by Chairman, Umang Foundation, Ajai Srivastava, wherein he had raised questions on the pathetic living conditions provided to the inmates at the Old Age Home, Basantpur near Shimla.
AP Postal Circle decided to sell River Godavari water as GOD-JAL during Pushkaram festival
Andhra Pradesh (AP) circle of India Post in the first week of June 2015 decided to sell River Godavari water as GOD-JAL (Godavari Pushkaram Jal) during Pushkaram festival season between 14 July and 25 July 2015.
The GOD-JAL will be sold at post offices across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and will be available for citizens who will not be able to take a dip in the river during the Pushkaram festival.
500 ml of purified GOD-JAL will be duly bottled and purified as per ISI standards and will be delivered at door step for as low a cost as 20 rupees per bottle.
The GOD-JAL will be sold through 95 post offices, 2360 sub post offices and 13611 branch post offices of the two states.
The water can also be ordered online at www.appost/in/eshop by devotees till 14 July 2015. Even the abroad orders will be delivered through WorldNet Express, while domestic orders will be delivered through EMS Speed Post.
The decision to sell the waters of River Godavari in the two states by AP Postal circle was taken in lieu of the fact that most of the river length lies in both the states where the Pushkaram festival is taking place.
Godavari Mahapushkaram is a unique event which happens once in 144 years. It is once in a life time opportunity for believers to dip in the river and get purified.
Union Ministry of Water Resources launched nationwide Jal Kranti Abhiyan from Jaipur
Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejunivetion Uma Bharti on 5 June 2015 launched nationwide Jal Kranti Abhiyan(campaign) from Jaipur, Rajasthan.
The aim is to consolidate water conservation and management in the country through a holistic and integrated approach involving all stakeholders, making it a mass movement.
Objective of the campaign
• To strengthen grass root involvement of all stake holders including Panchyati raj institutions and local bodies in the water security and development schemes like participatory Irrigation Management (PIM).
• To encourage the adoption of traditional knowledge in water resource conservation and its management
• To utilize sector-level expertise from different levels in government, NGOs, citizen, etc
• Enhancing livelihood security through water security in rural areas
Strategies for implementation of campaign
On the broad level, the campaign envisages following strategies
• Use of modern techniques coupled with traditional wisdom for devising area/region specific innovative measures for increasing water security
• Revival of traditional knowledge and sources for water conservation and utilization
• Encouraging conjuctive use of surface and groundwater
• Rainwater harvesting for recharge to be made mandatory for residential, commercial and industrial buildings/premises
• Promotion social regulation for meeting the demand as well as for optimizing the use-efficiency of water for various purposed especially industry, agriculture and domestic
Activities under the campaign
• The scheme also provides for a Sujalam Card with the logo Water Saved, Water Produced. These cards will provide annual status and information about the quality of drinking water available for a Jal Gram, a village with acute water scarcity.
• Further, the campaign also provides for Jal Mitra, a cadre of local water professionals, which will be created by imparting them suitable training to create mass awareness about water scarcity.
• The campaign also envisages a Model Command Area(MCA) of about 1000 hectare in a State that shall be identified and selected from an ongoing irrigation project in the State. The selection of MCA will be done by Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejunivetion in consultation with State Governments.
• It also envisages Dedicated Programme for construction of Arsenic Free Wells in selected areas and capacity building of the officers of the State Water Supply Agencies and other stakeholders particularly W.U.A’s and farmers.
• Tailor made awareness campaigns designed to address problems and suggest solutions to meet the requirements of each segment of the society under the continuing scheme of Information, Education and Communication.
On the pilot basis, the project will run in one water stressed village in each 672 districts of the country. Success of the campaign will be reviewed after one or one and a half year. The project will be implemented till the objective of solving water problems in every house and farm is achieved.
R Seshasayee appointed as Non-Executive Chairman of Infosys Limited
R Seshasayee was on 5 June 2015 appointed as the Non-Executive Chairman of Infosys Limited. He succeeded KV Kamath, who resigned to head the proposed BRICS New Development Bank in China.
Seshasayee will assume his new role with immediate effect. He will lead the Infosys board for three years until 2018, when he will turn 70 and retire, as per company rules.
The post of Chairman in Infosys was lying vacant since June 2014, when its co-founder NR Narayana Murthy resigned from the post.
Seshasayee joined Infosys board in January 2011. He has been an independent director on the board since then and is the Chairperson of its audit committee. Presently, Seshasayee also serves as Non-Executive Vice-Chairman of Ashok Leyland and Chairman of IndusInd Bank.
A chartered accountant by profession, Seshasayee started his career with Hindustan Lever Ltd in 1971. Later, he joined Chennai-based auto maker Ashok Leyland in 1976, where he became executive director in 1983 and managing director in 1998.
IMA’s first Jan Aushadhi medical store launched in Delhi
Indian Medical Association’s (IMA) first-ever Jan Aushadhi Generic Drug (JAGD) Store was inaugurated on 5 June 2015 at its headquarters in IP Estate, New Delhi. The store will offer over 118 commonly used drugs at a 10 to 20 percent lesser price than market value.
The store was launched by the Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers Hansraj Gangaram Ahir.
The pharmacist at the store will not only dispense drugs at the store but also counsel patients about the drug-drug and drug-food interactions and report adverse events.
All medicines, which will be offered at the IMA’s, the country’s largest non-government organisation of doctors, JAGD store have been approved and quality controlled by the Bureau of Pharma Public Sector Undertakings of India (BPPI) under the aegis of Department of Pharmaceuticals.
Jan Aushadhi Campaign
The Jan Aushadhi Campaign was launched by Union Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers and Steel to ensure access to quality Medicines and Health Care for all.
It was launched on 23 April 2008 and the first Jan Aushadhi Store with the active participation of the CPSUs namely, IDPL, HAL, BPC was opened on 25 November 2008 at Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi.
UK Author Ali Smith won 2015 Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction
UK Author Ali Smith on 3 June 2015 won the 2015 Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction for her novel How to be Both.
Other nominees for the award were English author Laline Paull, Canadian author Rachel Cusk, Pakistani author Kamila Shamsie and Welsh author Sarah Waters.
Ali Smith, a Scottish author, has also won the 2014 Goldsmiths Prize and the Novel Award in the 2014 Costa Book Awards for the same book.
Earlier, the book was shortlisted for the 2014 Man Booker Prize and the 2015 Folio Prize.
About the book
The book is about George and Francesco del Cossa. While the former is a pedantic 16-year-old girl living in contemporary Cambridge, Francesco del Cossa is a 15th century Italian renaissance artist.
The story is about how the lives of these two persons are connected together surpassing the boundaries of time, space and gender.
Two versions of the book were published simultaneously; one in which George's story appears first, the other in which Francesco's comes first.
About Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction
Baileys Prize was set up in 1996 with an aim to celebrate and promote international fiction by women throughout the world. Earlier it was known as the Orange Prize.
This prize is awarded annually and it celebrates excellence, originality and accessibility in women’s writing.
The winner of the prize receives a cheque for 30000 pounds and a limited edition bronze known as a ‘Bessie’, created by the artist Grizel Niven.
Previous winners of the award include Eimear McBride for A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing (2014) and AM Homes for May We Be Forgiven(2013).
Industrial effluents caused fire on water of Bellandur Lake
Bellandur Lake: the largest lake of Bengaluru
Bellandur Lake, the largest lake of Bengaluru, was in the news in first week of June 2015. It was in news as a team of researchers from Indian Institute of Science (IISc) found that the fire on the water of Bellandur Lake on 16 May 2015 was caused due to industrial effluents in the water.
The findings were published in a study titled, Pathetic status of wetlands in Bengaluru: epitome of inefficient and uncoordinated governance.
The study was led by environment scientist Prof TV Ramachandra of Centre for Ecological Sciences (CES).
The group in the study found that the foam was formed due to phosphorous present in detergents.
The study conducted on Bellandur Lake along with Varthur Lake suggested that the water of these lakes were harmful for domestic and irrigation purposes and it may contaminate groundwater. It also suggested that the foam may cause an environmental problem and can be a great threat for the wetlands of Bengaluru.
What are Foams?
Foams are enriched with particulate organic and inorganic compounds like nutrients (Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Carbon) and Cations (atoms that have lost an electron to become positive, such as Sodium, Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium).
Union Government inaugurated Tier-I Oil Spill Response Centre for Mumbai and JNPT Harbour
Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari on 5 June 2015 inaugurated India’s first-of-its-kind Tier-I Oil Spill Response Centre (OSRC) for Mumbai Port Trust (MBT), Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and ONGC’s facilities at Nhava and Uran.
The objective behind setting up the centre is to develop appropriate and effective systems for the detection and reporting of oil spillage in order to ensure adequate protection to the marine environment and public health.
Highlights of the OSRC
• The OSRC is equipped with State-of-the-Art equipment in operational readiness for combating Tier-I oil spill up to 700 tones, ensuring adequate protection to the public health and welfare and to the marine environment.
• The facility is funded by Participating Oil Companies (POCs) and Mumbai Port Trust will be responsible for monitoring the centre.
• It will be monitored on 24/7 basis and is also equipped with skilled and trained personnel and wireless communication facilities for immediately responding to any oil spill.
• This centre will also ensure prompt response technique to combat and prevent oil pollution and dispose recovered waste material in an environmental friendly manner.
• It also includes various plans like Contingency Plan, Health Safety and Environment Plan.
• The Oil Spill Reponse facility will be handled by Sadhav Shipping.
• The maximum response time soon after the alert is received would be 30-40 minutes.
• The equipment has been supplied by Denmark based firm that is world leaders in this field.
• It will cover around 400 sq kilometers of water front in and around Mumbai's harbour.
Background
Though the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan (NOS-DCP) was prepared by the Indian Coast guard and approved by the Government of India on 4 November 1993 but the urgency for such a response centre was felt after MV Chitra disaster in 2011.
In the disaster, it was found that there was no such OSR facility due to which 800 metric tonnes of oil spill took place extensively damaging the beach, marine life and ecology.
Tier-1 Oil Spill
Tier-1 oil spill one of the three categorized levels of oil spills. These spills are the most mild, causing localized damage usually near the company's own facilities. In most cases, this type of spill occurs as a result of the company's own activities.
The Tier-1 Oil Spill Response Centres have pollution response equipment to respond up to 700 tons oil spills.