9-10-december-2016-eng

9 December

US designates India as Major Defence Partner

India on 8 December 2016 was formally designated as a ‘Major Defence Partner’ of the United States. It was announced in the India-US joint statement on US Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter’s visit to New Delhi.

Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had invited US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter to India. It marked the seventh interaction between the two leaders.

Now what?

The designation is a status unique to India and institutionalizes the progress made to facilitate defence trade and technology sharing with India to a level at par with that of the United States’ closest allies and partners.

The designation also ensures enduring cooperation in future.

However, the two sides, in the joint statement, did not specify details of the benefits that will accrue to India under the designation.

National Defense Authorization Act, 2017

India’s Major Defense Partner status has been made a part of the India Amendment in the National Defense Authorization Act, 2017 (NDAA), approved by the US Congress to allocate funds annually to the US military. This Bill is expected to be passed shortly, which will put a official stamp on India’s status.

Under the India Amendment in the NDAA 2017, the USA will inform the review of requests to export defence articles, defence services or related technology to India under the Arms Export Control Act. It will also inform any regulatory and policy adjustments that may be appropriate.

Also, an American official will be designated to ensure the success of the Framework for the United States-India Defense Relationship, which was signed in 205. The designated associate will approve and facilitate the transfer of advanced technology, and will also strengthen the effectiveness of the US-India Defense Trade and Technology Initiative and the stability of the India Rapid Reaction Cell in Pentagon.

Background

The United States had recognised India as a Major Defense Partner during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s trip to Washington in June 2016. The joint statement issued then had acknowledged the US-India defence relationship as a possible “anchor of stability.”

Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had given a non-paper to Carter during his visit to Pentagon in August 2016. The visit was followed by negotiations between the two sides on the exact contours of this designation. There were differences between the two sides about the level of technology transfer and cooperation permissible under the Major Defense Partner status. India was seeking benefits granted to the closest allies of the US, such as Australia and the UK which the Pentagon was hesitant to concede.

CM Pinarayi Vijayan launches Haritha Keralam Mission

The Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan on 8 December 2016 launched the Haritha Keralam Mission in Thiruvananthapuram. It is a comprehensive programme to make the state clean, protect its water sources and soil.

The Mission aims at creating new development perspectives by maximum utilization of opportunities through waste management, water resources and agricultural development.

Eminent Carnatic vocalist and playback singer K J Yesudas is the Brand Ambassador of the mission.

Key highlights of the mission

The project aims to clear and remove waste from all the water bodies in the state.

It ensures disposal of solid waste and removal of waste water.

The mission also targets at increasing the area of land under cultivation.

As a part of the mission, the government will conduct a survey covering 60 lakh houses, to collect data about existing waste management systems in the state.

It is the first of the four mega missions planned by the Left Democratic Front government. The health, housing and education missions will be launched subsequently.

Among the immediate programs that will be launched include the cleaning of vacant lands which will be used for vegetable cultivation.

Also, a comprehensive waste management plan will be launched to collect, separate and recycle waste in panchayats and municipalities.

Dress code back in Kerala’s Sree Padmanabhaswami Temple

In a recent ruling, the Kerala High Court put a hold on the order relaxing dress norms at the state’s Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple.

The ruling comes just days after the temple’s CEO K N Sateesh allowed women to enter the temple wearing salwar suits. The move, which was taken in response to a petition lodged at the high court by a woman advocate Riya Raje, hadn’t gone down well with the Temple’s senior priest, Nedumpilli Tharanalloor Parameshwaran Namboodiripad.

The priest had expressed his staunch opposition to the decision, calling it a violation of the temple’s age-old traditions. While his stand definitely had an effect on the high court’s earlier decision, a writ petition filed by private parties challenging the Executive officer’s decision also played a major role in the return of the old norms.

A division of bench of the court has ordered for the old norms to continue for the time being. It comes as a huge blow to women, as like before they will be expected to wear only saris or cover their salwar and churidar with a dhoti while entering the temple.

Kerala’s Padmanabhaswamy temple relaxes dress code for women

The decision to allow women wearing salwar kameez to enter the temple was officially made by the temple CEO Sateesh on 29 November 2016. The administrative committee of the temple had, however, frozen his order but the writ petition alleged that despite this, women wearing churidar were allowed into the temple.

In July 2007, another prominent place of worship in Kerala- the Guruvayoor Shri Krishna temple had amended its strict dress code for women devotees, allowing them to enter wearing salwar kameez and traditional long skirts. The rule still continues to stand.

Union Government announces package for promotion of Digital and Cashless Economy

The Union Government on 8 December 2016 announced the package of incentives and measures for promotion of digital and cashless economy in the country.

The move came following the cancellation of the legal tender of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, as since then, there has been a surge in the digital transactions through use of credit/debit cards and mobile phone applications and e-wallets.

Highlights of the Package

The Petroleum PSUs will offer incentive by providing a discount at the rate of 0.75 percent of the sale price to consumers on purchase of petrol/diesel, if the payment is made through digital means.
To expand digital payment infrastructure in rural areas, NABARD will extend financial support to eligible banks for deployment of 2 POS devices each in 1 Lakh villages with population of less than 10000. This will benefit farmers of one lakh village covering a total population of nearly 75 crore.
NABARD will also support Rural Regional Banks and Cooperative Banks to issue Rupay Kisan Cards to around 4.32 crore Kisan Credit Card holders to enable them to make digital transactions at POS machines/Micro ATMs/ATMs.
Railways, through its sub urban railway network, will provide incentive by way of discount of up to 0.5 percent to customers for monthly or seasonal tickets from January 2017, if payment is made through digital means.
Passengers buying online ticket will be given free accidental insurance cover of up to Rs 10 lakh. With this, nearly 11 lakh passengers will be covered in a day under the accidental insurance scheme.
Railways will provide a discount of 5 percent for paid services like catering, accommodation, retiring rooms etc., if payment is made through digital means.
Public sector insurance companies will provide incentive of up to 10 percent of the premium in general insurance policies and 8 percent in new life policies of Life Insurance Corporation sold through the customer portals, if payment is made through digital means.
The Union Government Departments, State Governments and Central Public Sector Undertakings will ensure that transactions fee/MDR charges associated with payment through digital means shall not be passed on to the consumers and shall be borne by them only.
In Public sector banks, merchant should not be required to pay more than Rs 100 per month as monthly rental for PoS terminals/Micro ATMs/mobile POS in order to bring small merchant on board the digital payment eco system.
No service tax will be charged on digital transaction charges/MDR for transactions upto Rs 2000.
For the payment of toll at Toll Plazas on National Highways using RFID card/Fast Tags, a discount of 10 percent will be available to users in the year 2016-17.

Researchers discover novel route for drug discovery

Researchers from the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), Delhi in the month of December 2016 discovered a novel route to ascertain new drug targets and potential drugs.

These new drug targets route and potential drugs are particularly for the parasites such as Loa loa nematode (roundworm) and Schistosoma mansoni platyhelminths (flatworm) that cause several diseases.

These parasites are the major cause of diseases in African countries. They have limited treatment options and are also drug resistant.

Moreover, pharmaceutical companies lack the interests in developing drugs for these diseases as they do not turn out to be that beneficial commercially as expected.

The Discovery

Researchers took the Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs) of the two parasites instead of blindly screening molecules, which is expensive and takes a long time.
They picked up one of the enzymes that contribute to protein synthesis and authenticated it as a drugable target.
They then studied the crystal structure of the enzyme with cladosporin, a drug that targets these parasites.
It showed the acquaintance of the drug within the active site of the enzyme.

About Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs)

These are essential enzymes that decode the genetic information and enable protein translation.
The enzyme family of aaRSs has 20 members and each enzyme contributes to protein synthesis.
If one of 20 enzymes is missing then, the protein synthesis cannot happen.

International Anti-Corruption Day 2016 observed across the world

9 December: International Anti-Corruption Day

The International Anti-Corruption Day 2016 was observed across the world on 9 December 2016 with the theme United against corruption for development, peace and security.

The day was observed to raise public awareness about corruption and what people can do to fight it.

On the occasion of the International Anti-Corruption Day, all the Governments, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, the media and citizens around the world joined forces to fight the crime.

The 2016 joint international campaign focuses on corruption as one of the biggest road blocks to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) are the main organisations that are at the forefront of these efforts.

About International Anti-Corruption Day

On 31 October 2003, UN General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the United Nations Convention against Corruption and designated the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) as secretariat for the Convention against corruption.
The UNGA also designated 9 December as International Anti-Corruption Day. The Convention entered into force in December 2005.

World Bank cancels $100 million loan for Pakistan

The international financial institution, World Bank has cancelled a $100 million loan to Pakistan that was meant to be for a natural gas efficiency project.

The loan was cancelled, as the gas distribution company that was responsible for the project, failed to make any progress in achieving its developmental objectives and showed very less interest in the project overall.

The company in question is Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and it was supposed to initiate the project in its distribution areas located in Karachi, Balochistan, and interiors of Sindh. The main aim of the project was to increase the supply of natural gas in the designated areas by reducing gas loss in the pipeline system.

However, it failed to complete its procurement process in time due to bureaucratic processes and the management of SSGC stated that delay in the procurement process led to the failure of the project.

According to a report by the World Bank, failure of the project resulted in its closure. With it, the levels of unaccounted-for gas (UFG) increased in the country. UFG mostly arises from broken or leaking pipelines and gas theft, which happens through tampered metres and illegal connections.

So, instead of sanctioning the originally decided amount of $200 million, the World Bank just handed over $0.25 million.Apart from this, the international institution also stated that the company should have been more cautious and the country should not have initiated such a project in the first place when the company-in-charge itself showed such less interest.

Human Rights Day 2016 observed across the world

10 December: Human Rights Day

The Human Rights Day 2016 was on 10 December 2016 observed across the world.

The day aims at promoting and raising awareness of the two Covenants of Human Rights Day. They are: International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

For the year 2016, the day calls on everyone to stand up for someone's rights. To commemorate the day, a campaign "Stand up for someone's rights today” was launched to encourage, support and amplify what one does in one’s everyday life to defend human rights.

Background

Human Rights Day commemorates the day on which the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.
In 1950, the Assembly passed resolution 423 (V), inviting all States and interested organizations to observe 10 December of each year as Human Rights Day.
UNGA in December 1993 created the mandate of High Commissioner for the promotion and protection of all human rights.
The first Human Rights Day was celebrated in 1950.

President Pranab Mukherjee presents Shilp Guru Awards, National Awards to master craftspersons

President Pranab Mukherjee on 9 December 2016 presented the Shilp Guru Awards and National Awards to master craftspersons for the year 2015 at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The recipient of the award included nine Shilp Gurus and 19 National Awardees.

The awards are given in recognition of excellent craftsmanship and the major role played by them in continuing craft as a vital part of the traditional heritage.

List of Shilp Guru Awardees for the year 2015

Sl.No.	Name & Address	Craft	State	Region
1.	K Siva Prasada Reddy	Kalamkari Painting	Andhra Pradesh	Southern Region
2	Irshad Hussain Farooqi	Calligraphy in wood carving	Delhi	Northern Region
3	Rajender Parshad Bondwal	Sandal Wood Carving	Haryana	Northern Region
4.	Khatri Abdul Razak Mohmed	Ajrakh Hand Block Printing	Gujarat	Western Region
5	Abdul Raouf	Bidri Craft	Karnataka	Southern Region
6	Girish Kumar Rajsoni	Thewa Craft	Madhya Pradesh	Western Region
7	Pravakar Maharana	Stone Carving	Odisha	Eastern Region
8	Inder Singh Kudrat	Enamel of silver & Gold jewellery	Rajasthan	Northern Region
9.	Hari Charan Das	Cane & Bamboo	Tripura	North Eastern Region

List of National Awardees for the year 2015

Sl.No.	Name & Address	Craft	State	Region
1.	Punam Das	Mithila Painting	Bihar	Eastern Region
2.	Ramrati	Terracotta	Delhi	Northern Region
3.	Zameer Ahmed	Miniature Painting	Delhi	Northern Region
4.	Mohd. Yaqoob	Metal Embossing	Delhi	Northern Region
5.	Zahid Hussain Beig	Papier Machie	Jammu & Kashmir	Northern Region
6.	M Ramamurthy	Wood Carving	Karnataka	Southern Region
7.	Laxmidhar Subudhhi	Palmleaf Engraving	Odisha	Eastern Region
8	Biswanath Swain	Palm Leaf Engraving & Painting	Odisha	Eastern Region
9.	Jashobanti Meher	Natural Fiber Craft	Odisha	Eastern Region
10.	Abdul Ghani,	Block Printing	Rajasthan	Northern Region
11.	Vasudev Sharma	Miniature Painting	Rajasthan	Northern Region
12.	Jugal Kishor Chandel	Miniature Painting	Rajasthan	Northern Region
13.	Roop Kishor Soni	Silver Engraving	Rajasthan	Northern Region
14.	Akoju Venkateshwarlu	Silver Filigree	Telangana	Southern Region
15.	Munna Lal Soni	Metal Craft	Uttar Pradesh	Central Region
16.	Israr Ahmed	Bone Carving	Uttar Pradesh	Central Region
17.	Kunjbihari Singh	Gulabi Meenakari	Uttar Pradesh	Central Region
18.	Sohit Kumar Prajapati	Black Pottery	Uttar Pradesh	Central Region
19	Shri Haradhan Das	Copper Engraving	West Bengal	Eastern Region

Speaking on the occasion of the award ceremony, President Mukherjee said that proactive steps are needed to realise the full potential of Indian handicraft sector. Promotion of the same in both domestic and international markets would help in expanding the geographical reach.

As per reports, in the financial year 2015-16, the handicraft exports saw a growth of 16 percent. This growth is an indication that Indian craftsmanship is important in the International market.

The Shilp Guru Award consists of a gold coin and two lakh rupees, a Tamrapatra, an Angavastram and a certificate. On the other hand, the National Awards consist of one lakh rupees, a Tamrapatra, an Angavastram and a certificate.

The Shilp Guru Awards were instituted to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of the resurgence of Handicrafts in India on 15 November 2002. On that occasion, the then President Late Dr APJ Abdul Kalam honoured 10 masters of living traditions, responsible for the maintenance of the living cultural heritage of India.

Since then, 117 artisans responsible for maintaining craft traditions have been selected for the award.

The Shilp Guru Awards, National Awards and National Merit Certificate are awarded to a craftsperson only once in a lifetime. They are awarded to encourage master crafts persons to maintain excellence in craftsmanship and keep alive our old tradition.

Liquor banned in three Uttarakhand districts

The Uttarakhand High Court has directed the state government to impose a blanket ban on the sale and consumption of liquor in three districts of the state.

The ruling came in response to a writ petition filed by Udit Narayan Tiwari, seeking a ban on a bar serving liquor in Haridwar, stating that it violated the government order passed in February 2002.The order had prohibited the sale and consumption of liquor in Haridwar given its religious prominence.

The PIL was heard by a division bench comprising Justices Rajeev Sharma and Alok Singh who ordered a complete ban on liquor in Rudraprayag, Chamoli, and Uttarkashi districts, effective from next fiscal year.

These districts are home to the highly religious Char Dham temples. While Kedarnath and Badrinath are located in Rudraprayag and Chamoli, Gangotri and Yamunotri are located in Uttarkashi.

The bench stated that though the sale of liquor is already prohibited in the area, a complete ban is essential, especially considering the growing tendency of drinking among youngsters. Along with this, the bench of justices also directed the state government to ban public drinking and keep a check on ‘large drunken gatherings’.

The court was of the opinion that no one should create a nuisance or become violent after being drunk in both public places as well as inside private homes. It also stated there should no liquor shop within a kilometre of an educational institution or religious place of worship, starting next fiscal year.

Tobacco also took a hit, as the court ordered the state government to ban the sale of tobacco in areas that fall within the five-kilometre radius from Gurdwara Nanakmatta, Gurdwara Meetha Reetha Sahib, and Gurdwara Hemkund Sahib.

SC modifies National Anthem order exempts differently abled

The Supreme Court of India on 9 December 2016 modified its order on the National Anthem and exempted physically handicapped persons from standing before screening of a movie in cinema halls across the nation.

It also clarified that its direction to close the entry gates of cinema halls when the national anthem is played did not amount to bolting the door.

The previous order of 30 November 2016 was modified by a bench comprising of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Amitava Roy. The previous order was modified, while the bench was hearing a plea seeking a recall of its order mandating playing of the National Anthem before films.

Supreme Court directs cinema halls to play National Anthem before film screening

Highlights of the Modification of the order

A physically challenged/handicapped person need not stand up if he is incapable of standing, but he/she must show such conduct which is proportionate with respect for the national anthem.
To define the term physically-handicapped persons, the court highlighted Sections 22(i) and 2(t) of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.

The Acts Section 2(i) defines disability as low vision, blindness, hearing impairment, leprosy-cured, loco motor disability, mental illness and mental retardation. However, Section 2 (t) defines a ‘person with disability’ as somebody suffering from not less than 40 percent of any disability as certified by a medical authority.

Besides, the Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi informed the apex court that the Union Government will issue guidelines within ten days on how physically challenged persons should show respect to the National Anthem.

The court posted the application for recall of its November 30 order for detailed hearing on 14 February 2016.

Earlier on 30 November 2016, the apex court ordered that all cinema halls across the nation will have to play the National Anthem before screening of a movie. It said that everyone present at the moment will have to stand in respect of the Anthem. In its direction, it said that the practice would instil a feeling within one a sense of committed patriotism and nationalism.

Canada reaches carbon agreement with provinces

Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, on 9 December 2016 announced that his government and the majority of Canada’s provinces had agreed on a national carbon pricing plan.

PM Trudeau has been working on a national carbon pricing plan with the provinces for months. He termed the framework agreement on the carbon tax as a historic pact. However, Canada's 10 provincial leaders are not unanimous in agreeing to Trudeau's carbon tax.

Brad Wall, Saskatchewan Premier, had refused to agree to the tax, while Manitoba’s premier said he hasn’t signed on yet because it wants more money for health care. On the other hand, British Columbia Premier Christy Clark hesitated at first before reaching a compromise.

As per reports, Trudeau wants to impose a national carbon tax which would rise to Canadian dollar 50 (USD 38) by 2022.

Comment: Trudeau’s plan to come up with the national carbon pricing is being haunted with the worries that the US is heading in an opposite direction. Worries are about the incoming administration of Donald Trump who ones called global warming a hoax. Trump said that he carries plans to abandon the US commitment to reduce carbon emissions as part of the international agreement signed in Paris in 2015.

Civil nuclear cooperation agreement signed between India and Vietnam

To enhance the bilateral ties between the two nations, India and Vietnam on 9 December 2016 signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement. The agreement was signed in New Delhi in presence of Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and visiting President of Vietnam's National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

Ngan is the first woman to head the National Assembly of Vietnam.

The MoU on civil nuclear cooperation was inked by Secretary of Department of Atomic Energy Sekhar Basu and Deputy Minister of Science and Technology of Vietnam Pham Cong Tac.

India-Vietnam inked 12 agreements to bolster bilateral relation

This is the second nuclear pact signed by India within a month. Earlier in November 2016, India signed a similar civil nuclear agreement with Japan.

Vietnam is the 14th country with which India signed the civil nuclear deal.

Apart from this civil nuclear agreement, the two nations also signed three other agreements to enhance aviation links, to jointly work in the area of energy efficiency and promotion of parliamentary cooperation.

India, Japan signed 10 agreements including nuclear deal, space, agriculture

Besides, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. During the meeting, Modi welcomed increased Parliamentary interactions between the two countries and called for instituting an exchange programme for young parliamentarians.

Comment: The bilateral agreement on cooperation in peaceful uses of Atomic Energy will strengthen the Comprehensive STartegic Partnership between the two nations, namely India and Vietnam.