7-8 August 2015
7 august
Delhi Government reconstituted Urdu Academy
Delhi Government on 6 August 2015 reconstituted the Urdu Academy which will comprise of renowned academicians, performers and poets and announced a threefold increase in artistes' pay.
Dr. Majid Deobandi was appointed as the Vice-Chairperson of the Academy. Deobandi is a very well known and popular figure in the Urdu Circle.
The Urdu Academy will pay its artistes 15000 rupees from the previous amount of 5000 rupees for their recitals and poetry.
The action is government's bid to promote art and culture in regional languages in Delhi.
Amitava Ghosh appointed as Vice President-engineering of Snapdeal
Amitava Ghosh was on 6 August 2015 appointed as Vice President-engineering of Domestic e-commerce portal Snapdeal. As a Vice President-engineering, Ghosh will head company’s technology innovation centre in Bengaluru and lead the company’s future development of intuitive technology solutions.
Prior to this appointment, he was the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at TaxiForSure. Earlier, he was serving as the Head of Indian engineering team of Tribune Digital Ventures.
Ghosh has rich experience of over 17 years in building web-based platforms and products. For almost a decade, he was associated with Yahoo Inc, where he was responsible for building user experiences and platforms for media verticals, listings, communities and social products.
He holds Masters of Technology (MTech) degree in Biochemical engineering and Biotechnology from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi.
India and Myanmar inked agreement to set up CESDT in Myanmar
India and Myanmar on 6 August 2015 inked an agreement to set up Centre of Excellence in Software Development and Training (CESDT)in Myanmar.
The project to be set up with the financial support throughASEAN-India Cooperation fund will be implemented by C-DAC.
The project envisages setting up of a state of the art Information and Communication Technology Centre, imparting intensive teachers training, extending support for ICT curriculum development, and will be accredited as an authorized Centre of C-DAC.
The agreement was signed in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia during the visit of Minister of State for External Affairs of India Gen (Retd) VK Singh. Singh was in Malaysia to attend the ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers' Meet.
The 48th ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Foreign Ministers meet was held in Kuala Lumpur under the chairmanship of Anifah Aman, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia. The meet was held under the theme "Our People, Our Community, Our Vision". The theme wants to create an ASEAN Community which is truly people-oriented, people-centred comprising all areas of cooperation.
Southern states to set up Inter-State Coordination Council to resolve forest-related issues
Forest Ministers of southern states of India on 6 August 2015 decided to set up a Southern Forest Ministers’ Inter-state Coordination Council. Kerala Forest Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan will be the President of the council for the first year.
The Council will be formed in a bid to tackle forest-related problems in the region and improve concerted efforts for ensuring ecological, socio-economic and livelihood security of the region.
The council, which would issue standard operating procedure for actions in various forest related matters, would have a full-time secretariat in forest departments in southern states.
The decision to form the council was taken at the Southern Forest Ministers' Conference in Thiruvananthapuram, which was attended by the forest ministers of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Pudducherry. The issues discussed during the meet included issue of elephant poaching and smuggling of forest wealth in the region.
The meeting of the forests ministers will again be held in November 2015 in Hyderabad and in January 2016 in Bengaluru.
Besides, a regional wildlife crime control bureau will be established in the line of the national wildlife crime control bureau.
48th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meet held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The 48th ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Foreign Ministers’ meet was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia between 4 August and 6 August 2015. The meet was chaired by Anifah Aman, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia.
The meet was held under the theme "Our People, Our Community, Our Vision", to create an ASEAN Community which is truly people-oriented, people-centred comprising all areas of cooperation.
The foreign ministers of ASEAN had a productive discussion revolving round the theme of the meet.
They also discussed regional and international issues as well as their ongoing efforts to maintain peace, stability and prosperity in the region.
ASEAN is a political and economic organisation of ten Southeast Asian countries. It was formed on 8 August 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. Since then, membership has expanded to include Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), and Vietnam.
The group aims to accelerating economic growth, social progress, and socio-cultural evolution among its members, protection of regional peace and stability, and opportunities for member countries to resolve differences peacefully.
Besides, the ASEAN foreign ministers meet was participated by India’s Minister of State for External Affairs of India Gen (Retd) VK Singh. On the sidelines of the of ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers' meet, Singh held talks with the foreign ministers of ASEAN countries.
SBI Life Insurance launched Smart Humsafar Plan
Private insurer SBI Life Insurance on 6 August 2015 launched Smart Humsafar, a unique plan which offers multiple benefits of savings and insurance cover for husband and wife under a single policy.
The plan complements the couple's efforts to achieve prosperity along with protection to fulfill their dream of leading a better life.
In case of death of one of the spouses, a payment of sum assured is made to the surviving spouse, in addition to waiver of future premiums. And, in the event of death of surviving spouse during the reminder of the policy term, the nominee gets the sum assured along with all the accrued bonuses.
The basic sum assured with all accrued bonuses will be paid upon survival of any or both lives on maturity.
Smart Humsafar Plan Highlights:
• A Joint life insurance cum savings plan wherein you can take insurance cover for yourself and your spouse under a single policy.
• Guaranteed (Conditions apply#) minimum bonus for first 3 years @ 2.50 percent of the Basic Sum Assured.
• Provides financial protection in the event of death of either or both the lives assured.
• Pays a maturity amount on survival of one or both the lives assured at the end of the policy term.
• Benefits also include premium waiver in case of death of any one of the lives assured for in force policies.
• Additional rider benefit at an affordable cost
• Tax benefits as per prevailing norms under the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Indian-American Atul Keshap appointed as the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives
Indian-American Atul Keshap was on 6 August 2015 appointed as the United States (US) Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives. Earlier, Keshap had been an official at the US Embassy in India.
He is currently working as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau of State Department. He joined the Foreign Service in 1994. He was the deputy political counsellor at the US Embassy in New Delhi from 2005 to 2008.
Keshap also served as special assistant for the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia for the under secretary of state for political affairs.
In 2003, he moved to the White House where he served as Director for North African and Middle Eastern regional affairs on the staff of the National Security Council. He was also the director for UN Human Rights in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs from 2008 to 2010.
Keshap was born in Nigeria to Keshap Chander Sen, a UN development economist and Zoe Calvert, who was with the US foreign service.
70th Hiroshima Day observed to commemorate dropping of Atomic bomb on Hiroshima
6 August: Hiroshima Day
70th Hiroshima Day was observed on 6 August 2015. The day was marked by adding of names of survivors of the explosion called the hibakusha, who died in previous 12 months, on the cenotaph of the Peace Memorial Park. With this, total number of dead ones listed on the cenotaph reached 292325.
The day is observed to commemorate 6 August 1945, the day when an AmericanBoeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, named the Enola Gay, dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The plane Enola Gay that dropped the bomb was named after the mother of the plane’s pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets.
It was the world’s first atom bomb to be dropped any where across the world. The 16 kiloton atomic bomb that was dropped during the final stages of World War II on the city was nicknamed as Little Boy.
The incident claimed lives of approximately 80000 people and injured about 35000. At least another 60000 died by the end of the year from the effects of the fallout.
The explosion that occurred 580 meters (2000 ft) above the T-shaped Bridge at the junction of the Honkawa and Motoyasu rivers was equal to 12000 to 15000 tonnes of TNT. The explosion destroyed more than two-thirds of Hiroshima’s buildings across five sq miles.
The day, 6 August 1945, was followed by another drop on the city of Nagasaki on 9 August 1945.
RBI relaxed Branch Authorisation Policy to allow banks to merge or close branches in urban areas
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 6 August 2015 notified Section 23 of theBanking Regulation Act, 1949 -Relaxations in Branch Authorisation Policy. The notification allows banks to shift, merge or close branches, in urban areas, at their own discretion.
The decision will provide more operational freedom to banks. The central bank said that customers of the branch should be informed well in time before actual shifting, merger or closure of the office.
Some guidelines that should be followed for Merger/Closure/ Shifting of branches includes
- Banks may shift, merge or close all branches except rural branches and sole semi-urban branches at their discretion.
- Shifting, merger, or closure of any rural branch as well as a sole semi urban branch would require approval of the DCC/DLRC.
- Further, while shifting/merging/closing sole rural or semi urban branches, banks may ensure that the banking needs of the centre continue to be met through either satellite offices/mobile vans or through Business Correspondents. Thus the centre should not be left unbanked.
- Banks should, however, ensure that customers of the branch, which is being shifted/merged/closed, are informed well in time before actual shifting/merger/closure of the branch, so as to avoid inconvenience to them.
- Further, while considering shifting/merger/closure of branches, banks should ensure that they continue to fulfil the role entrusted to these branches under the Government sponsored programmes and DBT Schemes.
- It may further be ensured that branches are shifted/ within the same or to a lesser population category, i.e., semi urban branches to semi urban or rural centres and rural branches to other rural centres.
- In all such cases, the license, if any was issued, of the merged/closed/shifted branch may be surrendered to the Regional Office concerned of DBS except in respect of branches in Maharashtra and Goa, which should be surrendered to DBR, CO, Mumbai.
Thus banks may shift their metropolitan, urban and semi urban branches outside the State, and their rural branches outside the block without prior approval of RBI.
Part-shifting of Branches
Banks may require shifting some activities/part shift activities of a branch in any centre due to space/rent constraints, and may do so without seeking prior approval of Reserve Bank of India.
However, it may be noted that banking activity, i.e., deposit or loan business cannot be maintained at both places, and the new location for part shifting would have to be within 1 km of the existing location. They may also spin off certain activities such as Government business into separate branches at their discretion.
Opening of Extension Counters
Presently banks can open Extension Counters in the premises of institutions where they are the principal bankers, or obtain a NOC from the principal banker. With a view to enabling customer choice and operational freedom, the requirement of being the principal banker for opening of EC is not required.
PM Narendra Modi inaugurated first National Handloom Day
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 7 August 2015 inaugurated first National Handloom Day at the Centenary Hall of Madras University in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, where he also unveiled 'India Handloom' brand.
Modi, while addressing the function, sought greater use of handloom in people's daily lives and also emphasised on innovative initiatives for making handloom as fashionable choice among consumers.
This was his first visit to the Tamil Nadu capital since he assumed office. On his arrival to the city, he was received by Governor K Rosaiah and Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.
Besides, the Prime Minster visited the exhibition of handloom products from various states kept for display at the University Auditorium. He also gave away the Sant Kabir Awards and National Awards for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014 to distinguished handloom personalities.
Each Sant Kabir award consists of one mounted gold coin, tamrapatra, one shawl and a citation and a financial assistance of up to 6 lakh rupees.
Snapdeal tied-up with department store chain Shoppers Stop Ltd
Leading e-commerce player Snapdeal on 6 August 2015 tied-up with retailer Shoppers Stop Ltd to launch a digital marketplace through a flagship Shoppers Stop store on Snapdeal. The partnership will leverage Shoppers Stop’s product range, brands and Snapdeal’s reach.
With this partnership, customers ordering from Shoppers Stop brand store on Snapdeal can now pick up the ordered products or get them delivered from the nearest Shoppers Stop store.
This facility will be launched first in North India and will later be extended to other regions over the next 12 months.
Shoppers Stop has 74 stores in 35 cities across India. Shoppers Stop currently sells its private-label brands on Amazon, Flipkart and some other e-commerce companies.
August Edition of FIFA World Rankings released
The August edition of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings was released on 6 August 2015. The rankings show change in top three places with Argentina remaining at No 1 position.
Argentina is followed by Belgium at No 2 (moved up 1) and the World Cup winner Germany at No 3 position (moved down 1).
The main highlight of the August edition of the FIFA rankings is that Chile for the first time entered top ten (ranked 10th) while the Netherlands moved out of top ten (ranked 12th, down 7).
India with 161 points retained its 156th position in FIFA World rankings.
Other highlights
- The 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup finalists have made good ground with Mexico, winner of the trophy for the ten times, moved up 14 ranks to attain 26th rank, while 2015 surprise package, Jamaica moved up 21 ranks to attain 55th rank.
- The other countries which have moved up in the rankings are: Albania (22nd), Malawi (98th), Sierra Leone (104th), Mauritania (113rd), Swaziland (132nd), Guam (146th) and Guyana (152nd).
- Teams achieving their highest-ever position: Wales (9th), Austria (14th), Slovakia (14th), Albania (22nd), Congo (43rd) and Guam (146th).
- With Cape Verde Islands and the Republic of Ireland at the joint-50th position, there are currently 51 teams in the top 50, a group that now includes Israel (47th) in place of Japan (56th) and Serbia (66th).
- Biggest move by points was made by Albania with 166 points upward.
- Biggest move by ranks made by Jamaica which saw its rank up by 21 ranks.
- Biggest drop by points was made by Germany with 185 points downward.
- Biggest drop by ranks was made by Serbia which saw its rank down by 23 ranks.
- The breakdown of teams in the top 50 per confederation: UEFA with 31 teams in top 50 still holds numero uno position; CONMEBOL and CAF have 8 teams each; CONCACAF has 3 teams and AFC has 1 team while OFC has no team in top 50.
The next FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking will be published on 3 September 2015.
Egypt unveiled New Suez Canal expansion
Egypt on 6 August 2015 unveiled a major expansion of the new Suez Canal. It was inaugurated by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in a ceremony held at port city of Ismailiya, located on west bank of canal.
This new waterway is expected to boost the traffic that passes through the canal. The project got completed in one year span with an estimated cost of 8 billion US dollars.
About Suez Canal expansion
• The project was started in August 2014 for the expansion of the Ballah Bypass from 61 metres to 312 metres. This expansion was named as the New Suez Canal.
• Expansion will ensure smooth handling of traffic that passes by the canal in order to boost Egypt’s economy and global standing by turning the Suez Canal zone into a global logistics and trade center.
• It allows ships especially larger vessels to transit the canal in both directions simultaneously, thus increasing canal traffic and revenue.
• The expansion is expected to double the ship capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day by 2023.
About Suez Canal
Suez Canal was opened in 1869 after ten years of construction. It is an artificial waterway in Egypt that connects Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea. The canal allows traders and ships to navigate between Europe without passing through Africa. It is owned and maintained by Suez Canal Authority of Egypt.
Suez Canal is an important source of revenue for the country. Egypt earns about 5 billion US dollar every year through Suez Canal.
Hollywood Actor George Cole passed away
The actor George Cole, best known for playing the role of Arthur Daley in the TV series Minder, died on 5 August 2015 following a brief illness. He was 90.
In a TV and film career spanning seven decades, he became a household name playing cockney wideboys in the Flash Harry in the early St Trinian’s films to the role of a crooked car dealer Daley in Minder.
Cole attributed his success to his mentor, the actor Alastair Sim, who guided his early career and was a lifelong influence. He stayed with the Sims until he was 27, and eventually he got an oppurtunity to star in a succession of stage shows and films including 1951’s A Christmas Carol.
Cole was a familiar face on screen in many British comedies, including Too Many Crooks (1959). He played Flavius in the 1963 epic play Cleopatra, opposite Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison.
Cole began acting in the early 1940s, appearing with Lawrence Olivier in The Demi-Paradise. He joined the war effort in 1944 by joining the Royal Air Force, before resuming his acting career.
Lok Sabha passed Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2015
Lok Sabha on 6 August 2015 passed the Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2015. The Bill provides for filing of cheque bounce cases at the place where a cheque is presented for clearance and not the place of issue.
The Bill seeks to amend the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. It will have implications for over 18 lakh cheque bounce cases pending in various courts.
The Act defines promissory notes, bills of exchange, cheques and creates penalties for issues such as bouncing of cheques. The Bill amends the Act to state that cases of bouncing of cheques can be filed only in a court in whose jurisdiction the bank branch of the payee (person who receives the cheque) lies.
Provisions of the Bill
If a complaint against a person issuing a cheque has been filed in the court with the appropriate jurisdiction, then all subsequent complaints against that person will be filed in the same court, irrespective of the relevant jurisdiction area.
If more than one case is filed against the same person before different courts, the case will be transferred to the court with the appropriate jurisdiction.
The Bills also amends the definition of cheque in the electronic form. The definition has been amended to mean a cheque drawn in electronic medium using any computer resource and which is signed in a secure system with a digital signature, or electronic system.
8 august
India decided to boycott 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference to be held in Islamabad
India on 7 August 2015 decided to boycott the 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference which is slated to be held in Islamabad, Pakistan from 30 September to 8 October 2015.
The unanimous decision to boycott the meeting was taken after the conclusion of the meeting of the Speakers of all State Legislative Assemblies that was called in New Delhi.
The meeting was called to discuss the Pakistan's deliberate decision to not invite the Speaker of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Kavinder Gupta.
India protested the unilateral decision of Pakistan saying that by not inviting J&K speaker, it is violating the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) constitution and was against the guiding principles of the Commonwealth of promotion of international understanding, world peace and democratic governance.
Further, a statement issued from the Lok Sabha secretariat after the meeting said that "Article 8 of the CPA constitution states that each branch shall be entitled to send a prescribed number of delegates and officials to each plenary conference and, accordingly, the J&K branch is entitled to send one delegate to the conference."
Moreover, when the 3rd Asia and India Regional CPA Conference was held in Islamabad in March 2007, the J&K branch was invited by the Pakistan CPA branch and three delegates from J&K had participated in the conference.
About Commonwealth Parliamentary Association
The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) with its Secretariat in London was founded in 1911 as the Empire Parliamentary Association. The original member Branches were Australia, Canada, Newfoundland, New Zealand, South Africa and the United Kingdom.
In 1948, with the evolution of Commonwealth, the name was changed to CPA and the rules were changed to enable all member Branches to participate in the Association’s management, and established a separate Secretariat to manage its affairs.
The CPA in 1989 created the constitutional posts of Patron and Vice-Patron. H.M. Queen Elizabeth II as the Head of the Commonwealth consented to become Patron. The Vice-Patron is normally the Head of State or Government of the Branch hosting the coming plenary conference.
Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, the first woman Speaker of Bangladesh Parliament for the second time, is the current Chairperson of the CPA.
Tripura Legislative Assembly passed a resolution against death penalty
Tripura legislative assembly on 7 August 2015 passed a resolution against the death penalty. The resolution moved by Congress MLA Jitendra Sarkar requested the Union government to amend the Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and replace it with life sentence unto death.
The resolution passed is apparently the fallout of recent hanging of Yakub Memon, prime accused in 1993 Mumbai serial blasts.
The adopted resolution would now be sent to Union government and the Law Commission for consideration.
In India, as per Supreme Court directive, death penalty is given in "rarest of the rare case" and President under Article 72 is constitutionally empowered to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of death sentence.
In 2103, 72 new death sentences were known to have been imposed in 2013 and at least 400 people were believed to be on death row at the end of the year 2013.
Worldwide, over 2/3rd countries of the world have completely abolished death penalty. 97 countries of the world have abolished death penalty for all the crimes.
BCCI announced Ad-Hoc Committee for Cricket Administration in Bihar and Uttarakhand
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on 7 August 2015 announced the formation of Ad-Hoc Committee for cricket administration of Bihar and Uttarakhand.
The panel for Bihar will be headed by its chairman Niranjan Shah. The other members of the panel include
• Vinod Phadke, Secretary, Goa Cricket Association
• Sourav Dasgupta, Secretary, Tripura Cricket Association
• Bharat Zaveri, Executive member, Gujarat Cricket Association
• Ratnakar Shetty, General manager — Game Development, BCC
The panel for Uttarakhand will be headed by MP Pandove. The other members of the panel include
• Vishal Marwaha, Secretary, Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association
• Subir Ganguly, Joint Secretary, Cricket Association of Bengal
• Vinod Shah, Vice-President, Maharashtra Cricket Association
• KVP Rao, Manager — Game Development, BCCI
The Ad-Hoc Committee for these states will function till the affiliation issues of these states are resolved and it will help ensure participation of budding cricketers from these states in the BCCI Associate and Affiliate members tournament.
Tendong Lho Rum Faat, annual festival of ethnic Lepcha tribe of Sikkim celebrated
Tendong Lho Rum Faat (Prayer of the Tendong Mountain), an ancient and natural festival of the ethnic Lepcha tribe of Sikkim was celebrated with traditional devotion and fanfare on 9 August 2015. It is an annual festival celebrated in the month of July-August.
On this day, the tribe worships the Mount Tendong, which, according to the folklore, is the saviour for them. The Lepchas, said to be the aboriginals of the State, are worshippers of nature.
According to Lepcha belief, their ancestors went atop the Tendong Mountain to escape from 40 days and 40 nights of continuous rain. This festival commemorates that happening.
Frances Oldham Kelsey, the anti-thalidomide Canadian doctor, died
Frances Oldham Kelsey, the Canadian doctor who played a central role in preventing the drug thalidomide being distributed in the US, died in London, Ontario on 7 August 2015. She was 101.
Kelsey, born on Vancouver Island, while working for the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) refused to approve thalidomide for market in the 1960s. She refused to approve the drug because she had concerns about the drug's safety.
Later, it was found that thalidomide - prescribed to pregnant women to ease morning sickness - was causing thousands of babies to be born with missing limbs or organs and many died. She was lauded by citizens' groups and was awarded honorary degrees.
Dr Kelsey - who worked at the US drug agency - is seen as a hero by many across the US for raising concerns about the safety of thalidomide, which is also known as Kevadon.
President John F Kennedy gave her the award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service. She was appointed to the Order of Canada in July 2015
BHEL commissioned 500 MW unit of Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station
Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) on 7 August 2015 commissioned 500 MW Unit-13 of Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station (STPS), Stage-V of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC). The project is located in Vindhyanagar in Singrauli district of Madhya Pradesh.
With the commissioning of this unit, BHEL has now commissioned seven sets of 500 MW each aggregating to 3500 MW at Vindhyachal power station, which is the highest by BHEL in a power project.
BHEL involvement in the project comprised of designing, engineering, manufacturing, supply and erection & commissioning of steam generator and steam turbine generator along with associated auxiliaries and state of the art controls and instrumentation.
The equipment for the project was manufactured at BHEL’s Tiruchi, Ranipet, Haridwar, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and Bhopal plants, while the company’s Power Sector - Western Region undertook erection and commissioning of the equipment.
BHEL today manufactures sets of 500 MW rating class, which form the backbone of the Indian power sector. It has already commissioned 76 sets in the country. These sets have been performing much above the national average as well as international benchmarks.
BHEL has so far successfully delivered higher rate units such as 600 MW, 660 MW, 700 MW and 800 MW thermal sets with a high degree of indigenisation. In the financial year 2015-16, BHEL has already commissioned power plants with a cumulative capacity of 2480 MW
Accenture appointed Rekha Menon as Chairperson of India's operation
Rekha M Menon on 7 August 2015 was appointed as the chairperson of Accenture India. She will take the charge of the company from 21 August 2015.
Rekha replaced Avinash Vashista who was both Chairman and Managing Director of Accenture India, since 2011.
She has been associated with the US-based global software major as Managing Director, Human Resources and was driving Accenture's human capital strategy for Asia-Pacific, West Asia, Africa, Russia, Turkey and Latin America.
Besides, the 30 billion US dollars outsourcing firm also appointed Anindya Basu as Managing Director of Accenture India who will take the charge from 21 August 2015.
He will be responsible for driving Accenture's India business and building relationships with key clients by leveraging our capabilities in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations.
The Chief Executive Officer of Accenture is Gianfranco Casati.
Typhoon Soudelor battered Taiwan leaving four people dead & a trail of devastation
Typhoon Soudelor made its landfall on the east coast of the Taiwanese city of Hualien on 8 August 2015. After the landfall, the typhoon battered Taiwan with fierce winds ranging 230km/h (142mph) and rain leaving four people dead and a trail of devastation.
After making landfall, it swept across central Taiwan ripping up trees, snapping wind turbines and triggering a landslide in one remote village in the northern region of Taoyuan. All of the villagers had been evacuated in advance.
The typhoon was pushing through central Taiwan towards the Mainland Chinese province of Fujian, where 158000 people have already been evacuated.
Global satellite named 'GlobalSat for DRR' proposed to be named after Abdul Kalam
Global satellite called GlobalSat for DRR was in news in the first week of August 2015 as it was proposed to be named after former Indian President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam who died on 27 July 2015.
The satellite to be used for earth observation and disaster risk reduction will be renamed as UN Kalam GlobalSat.
The proposal to name the satellite after Dr. Kalam was made by Milind Pimprikar, Chairman of CANEUS (CANada-Europe-US-Asia) headquartered in Montreal, Canada
The renaming of GlobalSat after Kalam will be a tribute to his vision, who in his World Space Vision-2050had envisaged space faring nations joining hands to find solutions to mankind’s major problems such as natural disasters, energy and water scarcity, health-care education issues and weather prediction.
The proposed GlobalSat will be formally adopted by more than 150 world leaders at the UN Session in New York in September 2015.
About GlobalSat for DRR
The ‘GlobalSat for DRR’ is a UN-driven global initiative on sharing space technology for disaster risk reduction and the launch of this satellite was mooted at the third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held at Sendai in Japan in March 2015.
The proposal for GlobalSat was mooted by CANEUS in cooperation with UN agencies. These include UN Office for Outer Space Affairs, the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Bank.
It was proposed in response to the need for a globally interconnected disaster and environmental management system since no single country can afford to develop a complete set of sensors and satellite systems needed for forecasting, monitoring and mitigating disasters.
CANEUS was founded in 1999 to develop a common platform for space technology solutions for natural and man-made disaster management.
Goa Tourism Minister Parulekar conferred with PATWA 2015 award
Goa Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar on 7 August 2015 received the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA) - Safari India South Asia Travel Award 2015. Parulekar is the first tourism minister of Goa to receive this prestigious award.
Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA) found in 1998 at the Pacific Area Travel Association (PATA) Conference in Colombo, Sri Lank, is a professional organization of travel writers.
PATWA is an affiliate of United Nations and World Tourism Organization (WTO). It adheres to the fundamental principles of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nations (UN), and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
Safari India is a regional tourism magazine covering India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and South East Asia.