7-8 JULY 2016
Union Cabinet approves Interest Subvention Scheme for farmers
The Union Cabinet on 5 July 2016 approved the Interest Subvention Scheme for farmers for the year 2016-17.
The Government has assigned a sum of 18276 crore rupees for the purpose. This scheme will help farmers getting short term crop loan payable within one year up to 3 lakhs rupees at only 4% per annum.
Key features of the scheme
•The Union Government will provide interest subvention of 5% per annum to all farmers for short term crop loan payable within one year. Therefore, farmers will have to effectively pay only 4% as interest.
•In case farmers do not repay the short term crop loan in time, then they will be eligible for interest subvention of 2% as against 5% available.
•The government will give approximately 18276 crores rupees as interest subvention for 2016-17.
•The Union Government has approved an interest subvention of 2% i.e an effective interest rate of 7% for loans up to 6 months to give relief to small and marginal farmers who would have to borrow at 9% for the post harvest storage of their produce.
•The interest subvention of 2% will be provided to banks for the first year on the restructured amount to provide relief to the farmers affected by natural calamities.
R Thiruppathi Venkatasamy appointed as Accountant General of Tamil Nadu
R Thiruppathi Venkatasamy was on 6 July 2016 appointed as the Accountant General of Economic and Revenue Sector Audit of Tamil Nadu with immediate effect. His appointment was approved by the Union Government.
Venkatasamy is a 2000 batch officer of Indian Audit and Accounts Service.
About R Thiruppathi Venkatasamy
• Prior to this appointment, he was serving as the Senior Deputy Accountant General in the organisation of Comptroller and Auditor General Agartala, Tripura.
• He has earlier worked in various filed offices of Indian Audit and Accounts Department in different geographical locations; worked in Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
• He has a Master of Public Affairs degree from USA and Master of Science in Agriculture degree from India and a certificate in Auditing IT controls from Norway.
• He has a rich experience in planning and policy formulation, financing and implementation of developmental schemes and general administration.
• He hails from Virudhunagar district of Tamil Nadu.
7 July
Rajasthan becomes first state to introduce minimum wages for part-time workers
Rajasthan in the first week of July 2016 became the first state in the country to introduce minimum wages for part time workers.
The Labour Department of Rajasthan has also issued a notification in this regard.
As per the notification, it becomes mandatory to pay 50% of the prescribed a day minimum wage to a person who works for less than four hours in a day.
With the notification, part time workers now come under the Minimum Wages Act 1948.
About Minimum Wages Act 1948
•The Minimum Wages Act 1948 is an Act of Parliament concerning Indian labour law that sets the minimum wages that must be paid to skilled and unskilled labours.
•During November 1948, the Central Advisory Council in its first session appointed a Tripartite Committee of Fair Wage.
•This committee came up with the concept of Minimum Wages.
•Indian Government introduced the Minimum Wages Act in 1948, giving both the Union Government and State Governments jurisdiction in fixing wages.
•The act is legally non-binding, but statutory.
Zee Learn appoints Debshankar Mukhopadhyay as CEO
Zee Learn, education branch of Essel Group, on 6 July 2016 appointed Debshankar Mukhopadhyay as Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Essel Group is among India’s most prominent business houses with a diverse portfolio of assets in media, packaging, entertainment, education etc.
Who is Debshankar Mukhopadhyay?
•Debshankar Mukhopadhyay holds over 20 years of experience in educational and financial sectors across South Asia.
•Prior to joining Zee Learn, he was the Head of Educational Sales, Financial Services and Insurance at Manipal Global Education Services.
•He has also been associated with Max Life Insurance, Western Union, Scholastic India, Zee Interactive Learning Systems and DHL Worldwide.
About Zee Learn
•Zee Learn is India’s leading company in education segment.
•It operates chain of K-12 schools, such as Mount Litera Zee Schooland Kidzee, which is Asia’s No 1 chain of pre-school network.
•Mount Litera Zee School was awarded as the K-12 School Chain of the Year at Indian Educational Congress in 2015.
TRAI launches Myspeed App to measure real time mobile internet speed
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 5 July 2016 launched MySpeed mobile application for measuring real time mobile Internet speed of consumers.
The idea behind the app is that customers should know about the experience of their as well as other networks in order to select the best mobile operator in their locality. This is the first application to be launched under the Digital India initiative which is directly trying to tackle the issue of poor data speeds.
Highlights of the portal
• The MySpeed app is a free to download, and is currently available only for Android smartphones.
• It takes up 23MB after it is installed on the phone.
• The interface is clutter-free and easy to follow.
• In terms of graphics, MySpeed looks pretty basic in comparison to the most popular speed testing app Speedtest.
• It allows users to report poor mobile network to TRAI, which will eventually help the regulator assess the service quality of an operator.
• Consumers using this app can check the speed of their 3G or 4G connection or the home broadband’s Wi-Fi speed.
• The application allows user to send coverage, data speed and network information along with device and location to a TRAI analytics portal.
• The app is a kind of crowd-sourcing initiative to check network performance of all the mobile operators.
SBI launches social media banking platform SBI Mingle
The State Bank of India (SBI) on 1 July 2016 launched SBI Mingle, a social media banking platform for Facebook and Twitter users.
The platform was launched by SBI Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya, on the occasion of 61st State Bank Day that is observed on 1 July every year.
Highlights of SBI Mingle
• It will allow SBI’s customers to access various banking services via these social platforms.
• To avail services from this platform, customers will have to register for it through a simple one time registration process using either their social account number or their ATM/Debit Card details.
• After registering they can undertake the various banking facilities available on the platform.
• Currently, SBI services such as balance enquiry, mini statement, funds transfer within SBI as well as inter-bank and beneficiary management services are available for Facebook.
• On Twitter, customers using hashtags can find out their account balance and view mini statements.
With this, the Bank will offer its millennial customers a new digital experience allowing them to do banking as part of their everyday lives, when and where they want.
US sanctions North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un for human rights abuses
The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on 6 July 2016 designated top officials of the North Korean regime along with Kim Jong-Un and for their ties to North Korea’s notorious abuses of human rights.
This is the first time that US has sanctioned North Korean leader over human rights abuses. The designated ones include ten other individuals, and five entities.
They were sanctioned under the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 on the basis of its findings in its report on Serious Human Rights Abuses or Censorship in North Korea.
OFAC has previously designated four individuals and three entities also highlighted in the State Department report.
The measures freeze any property the individuals have in the US and prevent US citizens doing business with them. North Korea is already under an extensive sanctions regime for its nuclear activities, but analysts see the latest move as an escalation of US efforts to isolate the nation.
Jagannath Rath Yatra begins in Puri, Odisha
The 139th Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath commenced on 6 July 2016 in Puri, Odisha. The nine-day-long Rath Yatra will see congregation of more than 10 lakh devotees from India and abroad.
The annual festival is celebrated on Ashadha Shukla Paksha Dwitiya(second day in bright fortnight of Ashadha month).
During the Rath Yatra, Lord Jagannath his brother Balbhadra and sister Subhadra will be brought out of the temple to be taken to Gundicha temple, the place of their aunt's house.
During the journey, the chariots on which the deities are carried will be pulled by thousands of devotees. The three deities will stay in the Gundicha temple for a week and then return. The return journey of Puri Jagannath Ratha Jatra is known as Bahuda Jatra.
Key facts related to the chariots
•The three chariots of Balabhadra, Subhadra and Jagannatha are newly constructed every year with wood of specified trees.
•They are customarily brought from the ex-princely state of Dasapalla by a specialist team of carpenters who have hereditary rights and privileges for the same.
•The three chariots are decorated as per the unique scheme prescribed and followed for centuries stand on the Bada Danda, the Grand Avenue.
•Lord Jagannatha's chariot is called Nandighosa. It is forty-five feet high and forty-five feet square at the wheel level. It has sixteen wheels, each of seven-foot diameter. It is decorated with a cover made of red and yellow cloth.
•The chariot of Lord Balarama is called as the Taladhwaja. It has fourteen wheels. It is covered with red and blue cloth.
•The chariot of Subhadra is known as Dwarpadalana. It has twelve wheels. It is covered with red and black cloth.
About Jagannath Temple
•The Jagannath Temple was built in the 12th century.
•The construction of the temple was initiated by the ruler of Kalinga, Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva.
•The temple is sacred to the Vaishnava traditions and saint Ramananda who was closely associated with the temple.
•The temple records state that the Jagannath temple at Puri has been invaded and plundered eighteen times.
India ranks 91 in Networked Readiness Index 2016
India was placed at 91st position in the Networked Readiness Index (NRI) 2016 that was released by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF) on 6 July 2016. The index was released as the part of the WEF’s Global Information Technology Report 2016.
It measures countries’ success in creating the necessary conditions for a transition to a digitised economy and society.
Highlights of the Networked Readiness Index 2016
• It finds seven countries are excelling when it comes to economically benefiting from investments in information and communications technologies
• Finland, Switzerland, Sweden, Israel, Singapore, the Netherlands and the US are leading the world when it comes to generating economic impact from investments in information and technology.
• Singapore leads the Index followed by Finland, Sweden, Norway and the United States.
• India (91st) was ranked the lowest among the BRICS countries- Russia (41st), China (59th), South Africa (65th) and Brazil (72nd).
• The upper echelons of the NRI continue to reflect a strong correlation between networked readiness and per capita income, roughly 75% of the countries show a score improvement in 2016.
• Convergence, at the global and regional level, remains elusive, with four regions – Eurasia, Emerging Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan (MENAP) group, and sub-Saharan Africa.
• Europe remains at the technology frontier; seven of the top 10 NRI countries are European.
• Several Eastern European countries, notably the Slovak Republic, Poland and the Czech Republic made big strides landing spots in the NRI top 50.
• The Eurasia region continues its upward trajectory, with the average NRI for the region increasing significantly since 2012.
• Malaysia leads the Emerging Asian economies in 2016 and moves up one spot to 31st position overall.
• The top five in the Asian region in terms of overall ICT readiness remain Malaysia, Mongolia, Thailand, China and Sri Lanka.
• The performance range by countries in the Latin America and Caribbean region remains widely dispersed with almost 100 places between Chile (38th) and Haiti (137th).
• The United Arab Emirates (26th) and Qatar (27th) continue to lead the Arab world in networked-readiness.
• The NRI also sees several sub-Saharan African countries among the top upward movers, including South Africa (65th), Ethiopia (120th) and Côte d’Ivoire (106th).
India's performance in the Networked Readiness Index 2016
• India’s position on the list has come down for the fourth consecutive year in a row in 2016 from 89th in 2015, 83rd in 2014 and 68th in 2013.
• In different parameters of Index, India has scored better in terms of political and regulatory environment (78th position).
• It ranked very high (8th) place in terms of affordability.
• It scored worse in terms of business and innovation environment (110th).
• In terms of infrastructure, it scored worse place at 114th position.
231 Projects under Namami Gange launched all over country
Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti on 7 July 2016 inaugurated 231 projects under the Namami Gange Programme.
The projects were inaugurated from Haridwar, Uttarakhand in various locations in different states namely Uttrakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Haryana and Delhi.
These projects involve modernization and redevelopment of Ghats and crematoriums, development of sewage infrastructure and treatment, afforestation, tree plantation, pilot drain project, interceptor drain project, trash skimmers and conservation of biodiversity.
Projects launched
• 47 such projects were inaugurated at various locations in Dehradun, Garhwal, Tehri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, Haridwar and Chamoli districts of Uttrakhand.
• 20 projects will be inaugurated at various locations in North 24 pargana, Nadia, South 24 pargana and Howrah districts of West Bengal.
• 26 projects were inaugurated at various locations in Buxar, Vaishali, Saran, Patna and Bhagalpur districts of Bihar.
• 112 projects under Namami Gange programme were inaugurated at various locations in Amroha, Bijnor, Hapur, Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Mathura, Allahabad, Varanasi, Farukhabad and Kanpur districts.
Key Features of Namami Gange Programme (NGP)
• It is an Integrated Ganga Conservation Mission which integrates the efforts to clean and protect the Ganga River in a comprehensive manner.
• It will result in socio-economic benefits in terms of job creation, improved livelihoods and health benefits to the vast population that is dependent on the river.
• Its focus is on pollution abatement interventions namely Interception, diversion and treatment of wastewater through bio-remediation or appropriate in-situ treatment or use of innovative technologies such as sewage treatment plants (STPs) or effluent treatment plant (ETPs).
• It has a budget outlay of 20000 crore rupees for 2015-20. This is a significant four-fold increase over the expenditure in the past 30 years as the Union Government incurred an overall expenditure of approximately 4000 crore rupees on this task since 1985.
Comment
These projects will help in boosting the Namami Gange Programme that was launched in May 2015 by Union Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
New Tarantula species named after Nobel laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Scientists has named a newly discovered species of tarantula (a big hairy spider) was named as Kankuamo Marquezi after the famed Colombian novelist and 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature winner Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
The species was discovered in large number in an isolated mountain range in Caribbean Colombia. It was named after him as homage to the country where it was found.
It was discovered by a group of Uruguayan and Colombian scientists, led by Carlos Perefan from the University of the Republic of Uruguay.
Kankuamo Marquezi
• The arachnid has a defence mechanism that includes releasing stinging hairs that dig into predators’ eyes and people’s skin.
• It carries as scary look but its non-aggressive body is three centimeters long with legs of the same length, which make its overall size to nine centimeter (3.5 inches).
• It was discovered in the upper area of a mountain, 2200 meters high, in a rainy, cold environment.
• Kankuamo is a noun in apposition and refers to the indigenous people of the Chibcha family from the Caribbean region of Colombia.
• It inhabits the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, whose language and culture are at endangered.
• Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy arachnids belonging to the Theraphosidae family of spiders, of which approximately 900 species have been identified.
Gabriel Marquez
• He was a Colombian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist, known affectionately as Gabo or Gabito throughout Latin America.
• He is an author of the classic novels One hundred Years of Solitude (for it he was awarded the 1982 Nobel Prize in Literature) and Love in the Time of Cholera.
• He was born on 6 March 1927 in Aracataca, Colombia’s northern coast and started out as a journalist in Cartagena.
• He was widely seen as the master of magical realism, which refers to literature in particular that, portrays magical or unreal elements as a natural part in an otherwise realistic or mundane environment.
• He died at the age of 87 in April 2014 in Mexico.
• He won the Nobel Prize for literature for helping put Latin America on the literary map.
The new genus and species was described by the scientists in the journal ZooKeys.
Deepak Singhal appointed as the Chief Secretary of Uttar Pradesh
1982 batch IAS officer Deepak Singhal was on 6 July 2016 appointed as the Chief Secretary of Uttar Pradesh. Singhal succeeds 1978 batch officer Alok Ranjan, who retired on 30 June 2016 after a three-month extension of service.
He will also hold additional charge of Principal Resident Commissioner of UP in New Delhi, and chairman of the Pradeshiya Industrial & Investment Corporation of UP (PICUP).
About Deepak Singhal
• Before this appointment, he was serving as the Principal Secretary to Department of Irrigation under Shivpal Yadav.
• He was overseeing the Gomti Riverfront project in Lucknow and strengthening and fortifying UP's canal networks, the river rejuvenation programme.
• He had been heading the irrigation department since the beginning of the present SP regime.
• Singhal started his career as assistant magistrate of Mathura in the undivided UP in 1983. Since then he has held key posts in Departments like Electricity and commercial tax.
• He has also served as the commissioner of Meerut, Agra and Bareilly.
• Singhal was on Central deputation between 2006 and 2011.
Union Government launched National Green Highways Mission
Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari on 1 July 2016 launched the National Green Highways Mission (NGHM) in New Delhi.
Under this initiative, plantation drive on 1500 km of National Highways was launched at a cost of about 300 crore rupees.
Besides, the minister also launched the following initiatives on this occasion.
i. Guidelines for Implementation
ii. Vision Document
iii. Knowledge Reports of the mission
iv. Adopt a Green Highway Program
v. Kisan Harit Rajmarg Yojana
vi. National Green Highways Mission Mobile App
Key features of National Green Highways Mission
• It was launched under the Green Highways Policy that was unveiled in September 2015 to actualize the vision of developing eco-friendly and green National Highways.
• The greening project has a huge potential to generate jobs and can prove to be a game-changer for agriculture and rural economy.
• Greening of one km of highway provides employment to ten people. The initial launch on the 1500 km stretch will employ 15000 people.
• The government has made it mandatory to set aside 1 per cent of the total project cost of any NH contract to a Green Fund corpus that will be used for plantation purposes.
• The afforestation is expected to help in sequestering approximately 12 lakh metric ton carbon annually.
• In future, the mission will be linked with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme.
Other initiatives
• Vision Document: It comprises strategy, mission and action plan for 2016-2026, focuses on core issues, future roadmaps and success indicators for effective implementation of the project.
• Knowledge Report: It was jointly prepared by the NGHM and Yes Bank. It puts transplantation at the centre of discussion in the mission of greening our highways.
• The report presents a compelling case for taking up transplantation as the preferred technique for plantation along the highways.
• Adopt a Green Highway Programme: It seeks to engage corporates, public sector units, Government organizations and other institutions for developing green corridor along National Highways through plantation and allied activity on avenue, median and other available nearby land patches.
• Kisan Harit Rajmarg Yojana:It is aimed at extending green belt beyond the existing ‘Right of Way’ of highways by engaging farmers and providing alternative livelihood option to the nearby communities.
• National Green Highways Mission Mobile App:It will enable the management to monitor all the projects with real time data from the fields.
• The technology will assist in identifying the bottlenecks quickly and ensure speedy and successful implementations of the projects.
Dipa Karmakar named World Class Gymnast by International Gymnastics Federation
Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar was named a ‘Gymnaste de Classe Mondaile’ (World class gymnast) by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG).
In this regard, she received the official letter confirming the distinction from the federation on 6 July 2016.
With this, she also became the first-ever Indian gymnast to receive the honour.
Who is Dipa Karmakar?
• She is an Indian artistic gymnast from Agartala, Tripura.
• She rose to recognition when she won a bronze medal at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games becoming the first Indian female gymnast to do so in the history of the games.
• She won a bronze at the Asian Gymnastics Championships and finished 5th at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.
• With this, she became the first Indian finalist at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.
• In April 2016, Karmakar became the first female Indian gymnast ever to secure an Olympic berth by garnering a total score of 52.698 points.
• She is the first woman in the gymnast history to land the Produnova, one of the most dangerous vaults.
• She won 10 gold medals at two national games. She received the Arjuna Award in August 2015.
NASSCOM unveils India’s first Centre of Excellence on Internet of Things
The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) on 7 July 2016 unveiled India’s first Centre of Excellence focused on Internet of Things (CoE- IoT) at its Startup Warehouse in Bengaluru.
The centre was launched in a bid to encourage start-ups to come up with tech solutions centred on Internet of Things (IoT).
Highlights of the Centre
• The centre is a joint initiative between the Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeITY), Education and Research Network (ERNET) and NASSCOM.
• It is also supported by Accenture, Cisco, Intel, HCL Technologies, Qualcomm, TCS and L&T Technology Services, among others.
• It will function as an enabler of funding, accelerating, and mentoring for start-ups in this area.
• The CoE laboratory, along with the Nasscom 10000 Startups Warehouse, has the capacity to incubate up to 40 start-ups.
Background
The buzz around Internet of Things is gaining momentum globally as well as in India as companies see the benefit of installing sensors embedded in their systems that can help them get better insights of their systems.
Industry estimates point out that there are 120 IoT focused companies, addressing an expected market opportunity of 15 billion US dollars by 2020.
Google acquires Paris-based startup Moodstocks
Search Giant Google on 6 July 2016 acquired Moodstocks, a startup based out of Paris that develops machine-learning based image recognition technology for smartphones.
Moodstocks' application programming interface (API) for developers are described as the Shazam for images. With this acquisition, Moodstocks’ API and SDK will be discontinued soon.
Highlights of the acquisition
• The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
• Moodstocks' on-device image recognition software for smartphones will be phased out as it joins Google.
• Moodstocks' team will also move over to Google's R&D center in Paris.
About Moodstocks
• Moodstocks was co-founded by Denis Brule and Cedric Deltheil.
• The company has developed technology that aids smartphones in identifying the objects captured by their cameras.
• In 2012, it introduced on-device image recognition and has been working on object recognition through the use of machine learning and computer vision.
Second phase of Haritha Haram programme launched in Telangana
The second phase of Haritha Haram programme of Telangana government was launched in the state on 8 July 2016.
Chief Minister Chandrasekhar Rao participated in the plantation programme at Gundrampalli near Chityal in Nalgonda district by planting a Neem sapling.
Ministers, legislators, officials besides a large number of school children and MGNREGA workers have been asked to take up similar plantations across the state.
2nd Phase of Haritha Haram programme
• The two-week long Haritha Haram programme aims at planting 46 crore plants, including 25 lakh in Hyderabad, to improve green belt in the state.
• The trees were planted over 163 kms of highway by over a lakh of people on the first day of the programme.
• As part of its five year programme to increase the forest cover in the state to 33 percent, the government has selected Hyderabad - Vijayawada highway as a pilot project to plant trees on either side of highways.
• Flowering, fruit bearing and shade providing trees are proposed to be planted.
• The state government has proposed to take up plantation on the two sides of the national highways to Mumbai, Warangal, Bengaluru and Nagpur in near future.
• About 60 crore saplings of different variety have been kept ready for the 2 week long programme while the state is receiving good amount of rainfall so far during the current season.
The state Government with the help of all departments, institutions, Non Government Organisations, school children and individuals has taken up this task as part of the second phase Harita Haram programme.
Haritha Hāram programme of Telangana
It is a flagship programme of the Telangana Government which envisages increasing the present 24% tree cover in the State to 33% of the total geographical area of the State. The thrust areas to achieve the above are two-fold; one, initiatives in notified forest areas, and the other, initiatives in areas outside the notified forest areas.
National Forest Policy of India envisages a minimum of 33% of the total geographical area under forest/tree cover to maintain environmental stability and ecological balance; that are vital for sustenance of all life-forms, human, animal and plants.
Zydus, Medicines Patent Pool inks agreement for Bristol-Myers Squibb's daclatasvir tablets
Zydus Cadila, a leading global healthcare firm, on 7 July 2016 inked a non-exclusive, royalty free agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP). Under the pact they will be manufacturing global pharma major Bristol-Myers Squibb’s daclatasvir tablets used for the treatment of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV).
Bristol-Myers Squibb’s daclatasvir is a novel direct-acting antiviral (DAA) that is proven to help cure multiple genotypes of HCV.
The agreement sub-licences Zydus to produce and sell daclatasvir in 112 low and middle income countries. Between 130 and 150 million people worldwide are estimated to have HCV.
The MPP licence allows generic manufacturers to develop fixed-dose combinations that offer the potential to treat all of the six major genotypes of HCV. Daclatasvir, in combination with other DAAs, for example sofosbuvir, produces high cure rates after 12 weeks of treatment, with recent Phase III studies demonstrating that the regimen could cure up to 100% of HCV patients depending on genotype and stage of liver disease.
About Zydus Cadila
Zydus Cadila is an innovative, global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of healthcare therapies. The group launched its own patented NCE –Lipaglyn, the world’s first drug to be approved for the treatment of diabetic dyslipidemia.
It also launched ‘Exemptia’ the world’s first biosimilar of Adalimumab for the treatment of inflammatory arthritis, Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn’s Disease in adult & paediatric patients. The group aspires to be a research-based pharmaceutical company by 2020. The group employs over 19000 people worldwide.
Russian leader Putin signs ‘Big Brother’ law
Russian President Vladimir Putin in July 2016 signed the “anti-terrorist” legislation adopted by the lower and upper houses of parliament in June 2016.
This anti-terror amendment is dubbed as Big Brother by US intelligence contractor turned privacy activist Edward Snowden.
Critics say that the measures may cost billions to the internet and telecom companies.
Highlights of the legislation
• Law enforcement agencies will be granted access to any user’s messages without any judicial oversight.
• It boosts the surveillance powers for the security services by requiring communication providers to store users’ calls, messages, photographs and videos for six months, and the Metadata for up to three years.
• They will have to provide Federal Security Service (FSB) with access to this data and any necessary encryption mechanisms necessary to use it.
• The law also criminalises several offences and lowers the age of criminal responsibility to 14 from certain crimes.
• It extends prison sentences for online crimes like abetting terrorism.
South African writer Lidudumalingani Mqombothi wins 2016 Caine Prize
South African writer, filmmaker and photographer Lidudumalingani Mqombothi on 5 July 2016 won the 17th edition of prestigious Caine Prize 2016 for his short story Memories We Lost.
With this, Lidudumalingani was awarded with 10000 Euros and a month at Georgetown University in the US as a writer-in-residence.
The winning story explores a difficult subject of tackling schizophrenia. This is a troubling piece, depicting the great love between two young siblings in a beautifully drawn Eastern Cape.
About Caine Prize
• The Caine Prize is an annual literature prize awarded to an African writer of a short story published in the English language.
• It was established in 2010 in the United Kingdom and was named in memory of Sir Michael Harris Caine, former Chairman of Booker Group plc.
• The award carrying 10000 Euros prize seeks to encourage and highlight the richness and diversity of African writing by bringing it to a wider audience internationally.
• It is famously referred as the African Booker.
India, Mozambique sign MoUs on drug trafficking, pulse trading and sports
India and Mozambique on 7 July 2016 signed three Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) in areas of drug trafficking, pulse trading and sports.
These MoUs were signed between two countries at Maputo, Mozambique during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mozambique.
MoU on long term agreement for purchase of pulses
• It will promote the production of Tur (Pigeon Peas) and other pulses in Mozambique to encourage trading of pulses.
• It will also play an important role in augmenting domestic availability of pulses in India.
• The contract will be valid for five financial years 2020-21 and pulses under it will be imported by India either through G2G or private channels nominated by two countries.
Other MoUs signed
• MoU on cooperation in the field of youth affairs and sports.
• MoU on reduction of drug trafficking and psychotropic substances and related materials.