Doubt Classes

26th May ,2017

National

Odisha activist sets record for RTI replies

·         Odisha-based activist Akhand entered the Limca Book of Records for the highest number of replies received from a single organisation on a Right to Information (RTI) application.

·         In less than three months from February to April in 2016, he had received 333 replies from the Department of Posts.

·         According to Limca Book of Records, he had received 162 replies in February, 157 in March and 14 in April, making it the highest number of such replies received from a single organisation on an RTI petition.

President of India to receive books ‘Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio’ and ‘Marching with a Billion - Analysing Narendra Modi’s Government

·         The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will receive the first copies of books ‘Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio’ and ‘Marching with a Billion- Analysing Narendra Modi’s Government at Midterm’ from Smt. Sumitra Mahajan, Speaker Lok Sabha who will formally release it at a function to be held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on May 26, 2017 in the presence of Mohd. Hamid Ansari, Vice President of India, Shri Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance and Defence and other dignitaries. 

·         The book ‘Mann Ki Baat: A Social Revolution on Radio’ by Shri Rajesh Jain is a compilation of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s addresses to the nation on radio every month under the programme ‘Mann Ki Baat’.

·          It contains a comprehensive, qualitative and academic analysis of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ – the themes, the choice of topics, the salient features. It illustrates how ‘Mann Ki Baat’ has connected with the ‘New India’ – the youth in particular. It also presents a coherent narrative about the manner in which ‘Mann Ki Baat’ has created mass movements, be it in cleanliness, in promoting India’s tourism potential, safer roads, drugs free India etc.

Advani, Joshi called to court

• A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court summoned senior BJP leaders L.K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti to appear before it in the Babri Masjid demolition case.
• The court directed the leaders to appear before it in person on May 30.
• The court said the Bharaitya Janata Party (BJP) leaders would get no exemption and must appear before it on the given date, even as they had moved court seeking exemption from appearance.
• The CBI court is conducting daily hearing of the December 6, 1992, Babri Masjid demolition case, in which Mr. Advani, Mr. Joshi and Ms. Bharti, among others, are accused of criminal conspiracy. The Supreme Court recently upheld the conspiracy charges framed against them, overruling the Allahabad High Court judgement dropping the charges.

Bihar court awards death sentence to five Maoists

·         A court in Munger district of Bihar awarded death sentence to five Maoists for an attack in which two Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed in 2014.

·         The additional district judge (1) of Munger court, Jyoti Swaroop Shrivastava, pronounced the quantum of punishment amid tight security. He awarded capital punishment to five Maoists — Bipin Mandal, Adhiklal Pandit, Ratu Koda, Banu Koda and Manu Koda. The court also slapped a fine of Rs 25,000 on each of the five convicts.

·         According to the prosecution, about 50 Maoists had ambushed a vehicle carrying CRPF personnel on the Gangta-Lakshmipur road under the Kharagpur police station in Munger, killing two CRPF personnel and leaving 10 others injured.

International

NATO chief says allies to join anti-IS coalition

·         NATO’s chief has affirmed that the alliance will join the international coalition fighting the Islamic State group but will not wage war against the extremists, as U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to meet allied leaders.

·         Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that joining “will send a strong political message of NATO’s commitment to the fight against terrorism and also improve our coordination within the coalition.” But he underlined that “it does not mean that NATO will engage in combat operations.”

·         As part of its efforts to respond to Mr. Trump’s demand to do more to fight terrorism, NATO will also set up a counter-terrorism intelligence cell to improve information-sharing.

Net migration falls in Britain

• Net migration into Britain fell to 248,000 in 2016, led by a significant rise in the number of EU citizens leaving the U.K. and a fall in the international students arriving.
• While the fall will be welcomed by some, including the Conservative party, which in its manifesto maintains a commitment to lowering net migration to the tens of thousands, it will raise concerns among others about potential skill shortages in the U.K.

Trump administration proposes cut in aid to Pakistan

·         Pakistan will be among several countries that will be affected if cuts in military aid to partners proposed by the White House is passed by Congress.

·         The Trump administration has proposed that the military aid to Pakistan in 2018 be reduced to $100 million from $265 million in 2017.

·         The $100 million is under foreign military funding, to help Pakistan buy military hardware. With other programmes added, total assistance proposed for Pakistan next year is $344 million, which is also a substantial reduction.

·         Israel, Egypt and Jordan will not face any cuts in military grants. Israel will get $3.1 billion, Egypt $1.3 billion and Jordan $350 million. Morocco, Lebanon and Iraq will face cuts along with Pakistan, if the administration’s proposals are passed.

Merkel, Obama to attend podium discussion at Berlin event

·         Tens of thousands are gathering in Berlin to listen to former U.S. President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discuss democracy and global responsibility at a Protestant conference as the country marks the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

·         German Protestant Church members and visitors from all over the world crowded a square in front of the German capital’s iconic Brandenburg Gate landmark amid high security following the deadly attack in Manchester. Up to 100,000 visitors were expected, according to the organizers.

GOP candidate charged with assaulting reporter

·         The Republican candidate in the nationally watched election for Montana’s sole congressional seat has been charged with misdemeanor assault for allegedly grabbing a reporter by the neck and throwing him to the ground.

·         Voters decide in the special election whether Republican Greg Gianforte or Democrat Rob Quist will fill the U.S. House seat left vacant when Ryan Zinke resigned to join President Donald Trump’s Cabinet.

Philippines pushes to retake city from rebels

·         The Philippines deployed attack helicopters and Special Forces to drive out Islamic State-linked rebels holed up in a besieged southern city, Marawi City on Mindanao island, as efforts to take back control met heavy resistance.

·         Ground troops hid behind walls and armoured vehicles and exchanged volleys of gunfire with Maute group fighters, firing into elevated positions occupied by militants who have held Marawi City on Mindanao island for two days.

China says new Silk Road not about military ambitions

·         China’s ambition to build a new Silk Road is neither about seeking to expand its military role abroad nor about seeking to set up foreign bases, the Defence Ministry said.

·         The new Silk Road, formally known as the Belt and Road initiative in China, is President Xi Jinping’s signature policy to expand links between Asia, Africa and Europe underpinned by billions of dollars in infrastructure investment.

·         At a summit in Beijing this month, Mr. Xi pledged $124 billion for the plan, promising to forge a path of peace, inclusiveness and free trade.

·         But China’s ambitions have caused nervousness in some countries, particularly India and in some European capitals, which suspect Beijing of using the plan to promote Chinese influence globally, pointing to investments in ports in places such as Pakistan that could one day be used by China’s navy.

Contemporary Economic Developments

African Development Bank’s President Thanks India for success of the Annual Meeting of the Bank held in Gandhinagar

·         The President of the African Development Bank Shri Akinwumi Adesina expresses happiness at the outcome of the annual meeting of the bank held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Addressing a press conference at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar.

·         He said all these meetings are expected to substantially contribute to the bank’s new transformation agenda encapsulated in the high 5s – related to the fields of power, agriculture(food security), connectivity (transportation), industrialization(skill development) and health.

Proposed GST Tax rates would be lesser than the prevailing taxes in case of Sugar, Tea and Coffee (other than instant coffee) and Milk Powder

• Proposed GST Tax rates would be lesser than the prevailing taxes in case of Sugar, Tea and Coffee (other than instant coffee) and Milk Powder; Present incidence of taxes on sugar is 8% while proposed GST rate on Sugar is only 5% i.e. 3% less; 
  
  Similarly, present incidence of taxes on Milk Powder, Tea and Coffee (other than instant coffee) is 7% while proposed GST rate on these items is only 5%.
• Proposed GST Tax rates would be much lesser than the prevailing incidence of taxes in case of Sugar, Tea and Coffee (other than instant coffee) and Milk Powder.

Centre amends definition of a start-up

·         The Centre has amended the definition of a start-up by broadening the term to include scalability of business model with a potential for employment generation or wealth creation, according to an official statement issued.

·         The other significant changes include increasing the age of a start-up as well as doing away with the requirement of Letter of Recommendation from an incubator/industry association for recognition or tax benefits.

·         “Taking into account the long gestation period by start-ups to establish, an entity shall be considered as a start-up up to seven years from the date of its incorporation/registration (from earlier five years),” the statement said. However, in the case of start-ups in the biotechnology sector, the period shall be up to ten years from the date of incorporation/ registration, it added.

·         Startup India initiative was unveiled in January 2016 to build a strong eco-system for nurturing innovation and to help start-ups to drive economic growth and generate large scale employment opportunities.

• The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, the nodal agency for startups, has been holding extensive consultations with stakeholders. The changes are also aimed at building a nation of job creators instead of job seekers, according to the statement.

GST will help establish traceability of gold: WGC

·         The rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on July 1 will get gold out of the shadows of black money and establish traceability, Somasundaram P. R., managing director, India World Gold Council said.

·         There was a lack of clarity on the rate and on certain operational issues and the transition would be a time-consuming affair, he said.

‘Service providers must shun discriminatory phone tariffs’

·         Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) sought to prevent service providers from offering discriminatory tariffs to the same category of subscribers and told them to file their tariff within seven days of introducing the rates — a move aimed at protecting the interests of consumers.

·         “...(tariff) shall not be discriminatory between subscribers of the same class and to ensure that every tariff that is offered to a customer is invariably reported to the Authority,” TRAI said in a directive to all service providers. TRAI stated that it had received complaints that some service providers were introducing tariffs without filing it with the regulator.

Science & Technology

Cassini beams back images of Saturn’s solstice

·         Cassini, spacecraft launched by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), has beamed back images of a giant storm erupting on Saturn as the ringed planet’s solstice arrived on on 25th may 2017, marking a milestone in the mission that is approaching the end of its 20-year-long journey.

·         A planet’s solstice is the longest day of summer in the northern hemisphere and the shortest day of winter in the southern hemisphere.

·         On Saturn, it occurs about every 15 Earth years as the planet and its entourage slowly orbit the Sun, with the north and south hemispheres alternating their roles as the summer and winter poles.

·         Reaching the solstice, and observing seasonal changes in the Saturn system along the way, was a primary goal of Cassini’s Solstice Mission - the second extended mission of the spacecraft.

Mimicking nature keeps implants bacteria-free

·         By mimicking tiny features of insect wings and shark skin, a team from Bengaluru’s Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has found a way to prevent bacterial infection on orthopaedic implants without using chemicals.

·         The team led by Kaushik Chatterjee from the Department of Materials Engineering at IISc relied purely on surface nanostructure to give the titanium metal used in implants the ability to kill bacteria.

·         Encouraging results were achieved in laboratory studies by making the shiny surface of implants rough through etching. The etched titanium surface is marked by randomly spaced nanopillars of 1 micrometre height and this makes it capable of killing infection-causing bacteria that adhere to the surface. The results were published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Indian researchers use a novel route to kill TB bacteria

·         A team of Indian researchers has been able to achieve 100-fold reduction in TB bacterial load in lungs of mice after 60 days of treatment using bergenin — a phytochemical isolated from tender leaves of sakhua or shala tree (Shorea robusta).

·         Unlike the regularly used antibiotic drugs that target the TB bacteria, the bergenin compound modulates the immune system to kill the bacteria found inside the macrophages (a type of white blood cells). The results were published in the journal Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology.

·         “Our studies show that the bergenin compound can be used to clear the bacteria, and when used in combination with other TB drugs can produce good results,” says Gobardhan Das from the Special Centre for Molecular Medicine at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), a corresponding author of the paper. “Since the compound does not target the bacteria directly but modulates the immune system to kill the bacteria, it can be used in patients with drug-resistant TB too.”

Sports

Megasthenes wins Stewards Cup

• Mr M. A. M. R. Muthiah's Megasthenes (R. Vaibhav up) won the Stewards Cup, the chief event of the races held on May 25. R. Karthik trains the winner.

Saurabh clinches air pistol bronze

·         Saurabh Chaudhary shot the bronze in air pistol in the 27th Meeting of Shooting Hopes international competition.

·         In a competition in which three Indians made the junior men’s final, Arjun Singh Cheema and Anmol Jain had stumbled to the sixth and seventh places respectively, after having fared better in qualification.

Source :CL