Panchayat Service Cadre

• Article 243 G of the Constitution provides that, legislature of a State may, by law, endow the Panchayats with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institutions of self-Government.
• Availability of minimum core staff at Gram Panchayats (GPs) is essential to carry out their mandated functions including implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
• Responsibility of providing necessary staff to the Panchayats vests with the concerned State Governments. Since, many States/UTs have not provided adequate manpower at the GP level, it is proposed to utilise the administrative cost under MGNREGS for providing core professional staff to GPs.
• To begin with, selected GPs including those in Left Wing Extremism affected districts are proposed to be covered. To avail of this, State Governments/UT administrations will need to ensure that either a functional office building for GP is already in place or taken up or a Bharat Nirman Rajiv Gandhi Seva Kendra has been taken up. Detailed proposals in this regard have been invited from State Governments/UT administrations.

Index of Six Core Industries (Base: 1993-94=100) October 2010

The Index of Six core industries having a combined weight of 26.7 per cent in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) with base 1993-94 stood at 274.8 (provisional) in October 2010 and registered a growth of 7.0% (provisional) compared to 3.9% registered in October 2009. During April-October 2010-11, six core industries registered a growth of 4.5% (provisional) as against 4.5% during the corresponding period of the previous year.

Crude Oil

Crude Oil production (weight of 4.17% in the IIP) registered a growth of 13.7% (provisional) in October 2010 compared to a growth rate of (-) 2.1% in October 2009. The Crude Oil production registered a growth of 10.7% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to (-) 1.3% during the same period of 2009-10.

Petroleum Refinery Products

Petroleum refinery production (weight of 2.00% in the IIP) registered a growth of (-) 4.8% (provisional) in October 2010 compared to growth of 7.2% in October 2009. The Petroleum refinery production registered a growth of 1.4% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to (-) 2.0% during the same period of 2009-10.

Coal

Coal production (weight of 3.2% in the IIP) registered a growth of 0.8% (provisional) in October 2010 compared to growth rate of 6.8% in October 2009. Coal production grew by (-) 0.1% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to an increase of 11.4% during the same period of 2009-10.

Electricity

Electricity generation (weight of 10.17% in the IIP) registered a growth of 8.4 % (provisional) in October 2010 compared to growth rate of 4.4% in October 2009. Electricity generation grew by 4.7% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to 6.1% during the same period of 2009-10.

Cement

Cement production (weight of 1.99% in the IIP) registered a growth of 16.8% (provisional) in October 2010 compared to 5.3% in October 2009. Cement Production grew by 6.3% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to an increase of 11.3% during the same period of 2009-10.

Finished (carbon) steel

Finished (carbon) Steel production (weight of 5.13% in the IIP) registered a growth of 6.2% (provisional) in October 2010 compared to 2.5% (estimated) in October 2009. Finished (carbon) Steel production grew by 4.2% (provisional) during April-October 2010-11 compared to an increase of 1.8% during the same period of 2009-10

A. P. Singh appointed new CBI Director

• IPS officer Amar Pratap Singh was on Tuesday appointed the new Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation for two years succeeding Ashwani Kumar.

• Mr. Singh was serving as Special Director of the agency. He has also held post of Additional Director General in BSF and is a recipient of Indian Police Medal and President's Police Medal.
• Ashwani Kumar, whose term comes to an end today, took over as the Director on August 2, 2008. He held the position for a period of two years and four months.

Community based Water Purifier Plants

•  The Minister for Rural Development today informed the Lok Sabha that under the National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP), it is envisaged that every rural person is provided with adequate safe water for drinking, cooking and other domestic basic needs on a sustainable basis.
  
• This basic requirement should meet minimum water quality standards and be readily and conveniently accessible at all times and in all situations. In this regard, Government of India supplements the efforts of the State Governments by providing financial and technical assistance under NRDWP for implementation of water supply schemes in rural areas.
• India has achieved Goal 7 of UN Millenium Development Goal to halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015, since 84% of the rural population used improved drinking sources in 2008 as against the goal of 83% by 2015.
  

Coal Resources in the Country

As per the latest National Inventory on Indian Coal Resources by GSI, as on 1.4.2010, the total coal resources assessed are about 276.81041 billion tones of which about 110 billion tones or 40% are proved reserves. The extractable reserves are estimated to be around 55 billion tones. At the current level of production of about 550 million tones per annum, the extractable reserves of coal in the country would last for about 100 years. However, the extractable reserves will increase as more coal reserves come into proved category.

Besides this coal is also imported, the import of coal in 2009-10 increased from 59.003 mts. In 2008-09 to 73.255 mts. i.e. an increase of 14.252 mts. The extent of increase in import of coal during 2008-09 over the previous year was 9.209 mts.

To encourage production of coal, captive mining is now permissible by private companies engaged in the generation of power, production of iron and steel, production of cement, coal gasification and coal liquefaction and other end uses, to be notified by the Government from time to time. In this regard 208 coal blocks with 48.82 billion tones reserves have been allocated so far to the government companies and approved captive end users for captive mining. As far as foreign direct investment (FDI) in coal sector is concerned, 100% FDI under the automatic route is allowed by the Government. Besides, the Coal Mines (Nationalization) Amendment Bill 2000 was introduced in Rajya Sabha in April, 2000, which seeks to permit private participation in coal mining, without the existing restriction of captive use, in order to augment coal production in the country.

Trade with Commonwealth Nations

India has entered into Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) / Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) with the objective of promoting trade with many countries and regional groupings of which Commonwealth countries are a member.
Following is a list of FTAs/PTAs that India has signed or is negotiating with commonwealth countries:

A-FTAs / PTAs already concluded

S. No.	FTA/PTA	Partner Commonwealth countries
1.	South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA)	Bangladesh, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
2.	South Asia Preferential Trade Agreement (SAPTA)	Bangladesh, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
3.	India-ASEAN FTA	Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore
4.	Global System of Trade Preferences (GSTP)	Bangladesh, Cameroon, Ghana, Guyana, Malaysia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago
5.	India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA)	Singapore
6.	India – Sri Lanka FTA	Sri Lanka
7.	Asia Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA)	Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
8.	India-Afghanistan PTA	Afghanistan

B-FTAs / PTAs under negotiation

S. No.	FTA/PTA	Partner Commonwealth countries
1.	India-EU Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA)	Cyprus, Malta and UK
2.	Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation(BIMSTEC)	Bangladesh and Sri Lanka
3.	Southern African Customs Union (SACU)	Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa
4.	India – Malaysia	Malaysia
5.	India – Mauritius	Mauritius
6.	India – Canada	Canada
7.	India-New Zealand	New Zealand

During 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10, India's trade with Commonwealth Nations was US D 79.45 billion, US D 89.60 billion and US D 81.96 billion respectively. During the same period India's trade with SAARC countries was US D 11.76 billion, US D 10.39 billion and US D 10.05 billion respectively.

Climate change conference begins in Cancun

India-China border talks 14th Round starts

• India and China will begin on Monday the 14th round of talks between their special representatives on the border dispute. During the talks, the two sides will also lay the groundwork for Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to India next month.

Long-running talks

• The long-running talks have made limited progress, though the two countries have committed themselves to maintaining peace and stability in border areas. With a stalemate in negotiations, talks in recent years have increasingly focused on issues beyond the boundary dispute, from trade to regional and global issues.
• Indian officials and analysts say the process is likely to remain long, drawn-out, particularly with China's claims to Arunachal Pradesh appearing to have hardened in recent years.
  
• Last year, the Chinese government voiced strong opposition to a routine visit by the Prime Minister to the State during the Assembly elections, and accused India of "stirring up trouble" in border areas.

National Security Adviser Mr. Menon is expected to raise Indian concerns at China's Kashmir policy. Defence exchanges between the two sides have remained suspended since July, after China objected to the visit of Lieutenant General B.S. Jaswal, chief of the Army's Northern Command, saying he represented a "sensitive" region. India has also objected to China issuing stapled visas for Indian citizens from Jammu and Kashmir, and to Chinese investments in infrastructure projects in the disputed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Talks on both issues have so far made little progress.

Obama administration orders review of classified data procedures‎

• The Obama administration has ordered government agencies to immediately review procedures for safeguarding classified information in the wake of the disclosure of thousands of secret State Department documents.
• According to a memo obtained by The Associated Press, the Office of Management and Budget,OMB told agencies to establish security assessment teams to ensure that employees do not have broader access to classified information than what is needed to do their jobs.OMB director Jacob Lew said the failure of agencies to safeguard classified information was unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
• The administration's order came a day after the online whistle-blower group WikiLeaks released thousands of State Department documents that disclosed candid impressions from diplomats and other world leaders about America's allies and foes.
• The White House condemned WikiLeaks' decision to release the documents, saying that the website defied US demands that it not publish the files, which the government considers to be stolen.The agency review process will be led by OMB, along with the Information Security Oversight Office and the Office of Director of National Intelligence.

Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS)

• Is a plan scheme conceived in the light of experience of a non-plan scheme namely - Common Integrated Police Application (CIPA).
  
• CCTNS is a Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Pan of Govt of India.
  
• CCTNS aims at creating a comprehensive and integrated system for enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of policing through adopting of principle of e-Governance and creation of a nationwide networking infrastructure for evolution of IT-enabled-state-of-the-art tracking system around 'Investigation of crime and detection of criminals'.
  
• An allocation of Rs. 2000 crores has been made for CCTNS Project.
  

Objectives of 'CCTNS'
The objectives of the Scheme can broadly be listed as follows:
1. Make the Police functioning citizen friendly and more transparent by automating the functioning of Police Stations.
2. Improve delivery of citizen-centric services through effective usage of ICT.
3. Provide the Investigating Officers of the Civil Police with tools, technology and information to facilitate investigation of crime and detection of criminals.
4. Improve Police functioning in various other areas such as Law and Order, Traffic Management etc.
5. Facilitate Interaction and sharing of Information among Police Stations, Districts, State/UT headquarters and other Police Agencies.
6. Assist senior Police Officers in better management of Police Force
7. Keep track of the progress of Cases, including in Courts
8. Reduce manual and redundant Records keeping

http://ncrb.nic.in/cctns.htm

Jaitapur nuclear power project gets green nod

• The 9,900-mw Jaitapur nuclear power project on Sunday received clearance from the Environment Ministry, which prescribed 35 conditions and safeguards.
• Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said he considered various issues like economic growth, diversification of fuel mix for power generation and environment protection before giving nod to the proposed project on Konkan coast, which had faced opposition from locals and green groups.
• Will be jointly developed by state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC) and French giant Areva.
• An agreement between Areva and the NPC is expected to be signed during French President Nicholas Sarkozy's India visit next month.
• The project would help energy deficient States like Maharashtra, which face compulsory power cuts and the NPC expects the first unit of the project to be commissioned by 2017-18.
• The project had been opposed by groups like the Konkan Bachao Samiti which expressed concern about the radiological safety of the nuclear plant and its impact on the environment.
• They also pointed "faults" in the environmental impact assessment report prepared by the National Environment Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) alleging that it is based on generic and incomplete inputs on radioactive threats.

Pakistan president's Sri Lanka visit

• Sri Lanka and Pakistan on Sunday agreed to expand their relations from "defence cooperation to an overall comprehensive engagement" involving trade, communications and culture.
• The meeting was followed by delegation-level talks after the two Presidents witnessed the signing of three agreements and a Memorandum of Understanding on waiving off visas for officials and diplomats, cooperation on customs, agriculture development and cultural exchange.
• The state run Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) in a report quoted Mr. Zardari as telling Mr. Rajapaksa that Pakistan always supported the unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Sri Lanka.
• He said despite its own economic difficulties, Pakistan would continue to contribute towards the socio-economic development of Sri Lanka.

China calls for emergency 6-party meet to resolve Korean crisis

• China on Sunday proposed "emergency consultations" among representatives of the Six Party Talks – which involve the North and South Korea, Japan, China, Russia and the United States – to help resolve the escalating crisis on the Korean Peninsula.
• China has stepped up its diplomatic efforts in recent days in a bid to address the crisis on the Korean Peninsula. Tuesday's exchange of fire, which marked the most serious escalation in tensions since the end of the Korean War in 1953, left at least four dead and 18 injured on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong, which was shelled by the North. Both sides have accused the other of starting the hostilities.
• Beijing reiterated its concerns over the on-going military exercises being conducted by the U.S. and South Korea in the Yellow Sea. The North has warned that the four-day exercises would bring the region to the "brink of war."
• The U.S., too, has been reluctant to resume the Six-Party Talks unless the North took concrete steps towards abandoning its nuclear programme. Following last week's revelation that the North had recently unveiled a new uranium enrichment facility, U.S. special envoy Stephen Bosworth appeared to rule out any likelihood in dialogue resuming, during a visit to Beijing.
• The talks were set up by the six nations in 2003 with the aim of moving towards denuclearisation on the peninsula, proposing that North Korea abandon its nuclear programme in return for aid.

Agni-II + launch before December 10

• The Agni-II + is a surface-to-surface missile that can carry nuclear warheads. It can strike targets 2,500 km to 3,000 km away. It is an intermediary between Agni-II and Agni-III. While Agni-II has a range of 2,500 km, Agni-III can home in on targets 3,500 km way.

• Agni-II + will add teeth to the country's nuclear deterrence. It has two stages and both are powered by solid propellants. It can be transported by both rail and road.

Agni -V work going on

• DRDO are working on Agni-V for its maiden launch in 2011. The missile will have a range of 5,000 km. Agni-III will form the building block for Agni-V."
• With the addition of a third upper stage and some minor modifications, the two-stage Agni-III would transform into an awesome three-stage Agni-V. All the three stages would use solid propellants as fuel.

K-15 production

Sources in the DRDO said the production of submarine-launched K-15 missile was in full swing. The missile had been renamed B-05. After the launch, the missile would go up to an altitude of 20 km in a parabola and then travel 700 km to attack enemy assets. India's nuclear-powered submarine named "Arihant" would be armed with these missiles.

Montek among probables for next IMF chief

• Top Indian policy planner Montek Singh Ahluwalia figures among the probables to succeed Dominique Strauss-Kahn as the next chief of International Monetary Fund, a report has said.

• Prior to taking over as the Planning Commission's Deputy Chairman in July 2004, he was the Director (Independent Evaluation Office) at the IMF in Washington for three years.
• He had also worked as an economist at the World Bank from 1968 to 1971

FDI inflows drop 26 % in January-September

• Even as global recovery continues to be fragile, foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into India stood at just $15.97 billion during the January-September period, down 26 per cent as compared to the same period last year.

• According to the official data of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), in January-September, 2009, the country attracted FDI worth $21.44 billion. The countries that pumped the maximum foreign capital into the Indian economy during the nine-month period were Mauritius, Singapore, the U.S., the Netherlands, Cyprus, Japan, Germany and France.
• The sectors that attracted the maximum foreign inflows include services (financial and non-financial), computer software and hardware, telecommunications, housing, real estate, power and automobiles.
• According to the data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest bulletin, FDI flows shrunk by over 23 per cent during the first-half of the current financial year to $13.50 billion from $17.55 billion a year ago. However, the pace of decline has come down during September when inflows increased by over 40 per cent mainly due to acquisition of shares in Indian companies worth $1.5 billion getting completed.
• In contrast to FDI, FII (foreign institutional investment) inflows have surged due to better returns that are on offer in emerging markets such as India. During the first-half of the financial year, FII's had invested $22.3 billion in Indian stocks and bonds as compared to $15.27 billion during April-September 2009, an increase of over 46 per cent.

Bionic eye to help the blind 'see'

• Researchers at Australia's National ICT Centre for Excellence (NICTA) have developed a bionic eye in collaboration with Bionic Vision Australia and University of New South Wales.
• The microchip will help restore sight to people with retinal dystrophy - a condition where photoreceptors, the light-sensitive cells in the retina, degenerate, leading to blindness, reports New Scientist.
• When implanted at the back of the eye, light bypasses the damaged photoreceptors and the device directly stimulates retinal ganglion cells. Images are then projected through the optic nerve, eventually reaching the visual cortex where they are interpreted.
• The team will start patient trials with the first model in 2013. At this time, the second generation of the chip will begin biocompatibility tests.

ISRO's communication satellite HYLAS launched successfully

• An advanced communication satellite HYLAS (Highly Adaptable Satellite), built by ISRO on a commercial basis in partnership with EADS-Astrium of Europe, was successfully launched today (November 27, 2010) at 00.09 hours Indian Standard Time (IST) by the European Ariane-5 V198 launch vehicle.
• The launch took place from the Guyana Space Centre at Kourou in French Guyana.
• The contract for building of satellite was won in the year 2006 after competing along other leading manufacturers of USA and Europe through the strategic alliance worked out between Antrix/ISRO and M/s. EADS Astrium of France. The alliance was formed to jointly develop communication satellites with ISRO platforms and Astrium payloads and market them internationally.
• Astrium had the responsibility for overall program management and delivery of the communications payload and Antrix/ISRO provided the satellite bus and also performed the satellite integration and testing at ISRO's facility in Bangalore. HYLAS satellite weighing 2541 kg at lift-off is the heaviest satellite built by ISRO for I-2K bus capable of operating for over 15 years mission life as demanded by the customer. The satellite's solar panels generate a maximum of about 3200 Watts of power.
• Antrix/ISRO is also responsible for the post launch operations of HYLAS, which are being conducted from the Master Control Facility, Hassan. The operations include firing of the satellite's Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) in three phases to place the satellite in geostationary orbit. The first firing of LAM is scheduled for the early hours of November 28, 2010.

Gorkha Land Hill Council

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darjeeling_Gorkha_Hill_Council

Punchhi Commission on Center State Relations report

• Suggests amending Articles 355 and 356 to enable the Centre to bring specific trouble-torn areas under its rule for a limited period
• Creation of an overriding structure to maintain internal security along the lines of the US Homeland Security department
• Giving more teeth to the National Integration Council
• Amending the communal violence Bill to allow deployment of Central forces without the state's consent for a short period.

• The panel has advised critical changes in the role of the governor — including a fixed five-year tenure as well as their removal only through impeachment by the state Assembly. It has also recommended that the state chief minister have a say in the appointment of governor.
• The panel also feels that governors should have the right to sanction prosecution of a minister against the advice of the council of ministers. However, it wants the convention of making them chancellors of universities done away with.

In finalising the 1,456-page report, in seven volumes, the Punchhi Commission took extensive help from the Justice Sarkaria Commission report, the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) and the Administrative Reforms Commission report. However, in a number of areas, the Puncchi Commission report differs from the Sarkaria Commission recommendations.

• suggestion for laying down of clear guidelines for the appointment of chief ministers. Upholding the view that a pre-poll alliance should be treated as one political party, it lays down the order of precedence that ought to be followed by the governor in case of a hung house: a) Call the group with the largest pre-poll alliance commanding the largest number; b) the single largest party with support of others; c) the post-electoral coalition with all parties joining the government; and last d) the post-electoral alliance with some parties joining the government and remaining including Independents supporting from outside.

• The commission has proposed "localising emergency provisions" under Articles 355 and 356, contending that localised areas — either a district or parts of a district — be brought under Governor's rule instead of the whole state. Such an emergency provision should however not be of a duration of more than three months, it says.

• For the National Integration Council (NIC), the commission has proposed that it should meet at least once a year. In case of any communal incident, it has said that a delegation of five members of the Council, who would be eminent persons, should visit the affected area within two days and submit a fact-finding report.
• The commission, however, rejects a suggestion from some stakeholders as well as the Liberhan Commission that the NIC be accorded constitutional status.
• It has proposed that state consent should not become a hurdle in deployment of central forces in a communal conflagration. However, such deployment should only be for a week and post-facto consent should be taken from the state.

• As for qualifications for a governor, the Punchhi commission suggests that the nominee not have participated in active politics at even local level for at least a couple of years before his appointment. It also agrees with the Sarkaria recommendation that a governor be an eminent person and not belong to the state where he is to be posted.

• Underlining that removal of a governor be for a reason related to his discharge of functions, it has proposed provisions for impeachment by the state legislature along the same lines as that of President by Parliament. This, significantly, goes against the doctrine of pleasure upheld by the recent Supreme Court judgment.
• Endorsing an NCRWC recommendation, it says appointment of governor should be entrusted to a committee comprising the Prime Minister, Home Minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha and chief minister of the concerned state. The Vice-President can also be involved in the process.
• Unlike the Sarkaria report, the Punchhi report is categorical that a governor be given a fixed five-year tenure. The Punchhi Commission report also recommends that a constitutional amendment be brought about to limit the scope of discretionary powers of the governor under Article 163 (2). Governors should not sit on decisions and must decide matters within a four-month period, it says.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/panel-for-centre-stepping-in-to-check-riots/616641/0

Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana

The scheme shall provide coverage for meeting of expenses of hospitalization and surgical procedures of beneficiary members up to Rs.30, 000 per family per year subject to limits, in any of the. network hospitals along with enlisted hospitals of the insurers in various parts of the country . The benefit will be on floater basis, i.e., the total reimbursement of Rs.30,000 can be availed of individually or collectively by members of the family per year.

Both Public, State Government Hospitals, ESI Hospitals and Private(outside the State) Health Service providers (including hospitals owned or run by non-profit organizations ), which provide hospitalization and/or day-care services would be eligible for inclusion under the insurance scheme

http://www.rsby.gov.in/about_rsby.html

National Knowledge Network

National Knowledge Network (NKN), which would bring together all the stakeholders in Science, Technology, Higher Education, Research and Development etc would also play a great role in facilitating e-Learning. All these institutions could exchange content/data/information with speeds of the order of gigabits per second coupled with extremely low latencies; through PoPs in the respective institution/organization. NKN will interconnect all institutions engaged in research, higher education and scientific development in the country. The final phase of NKN is at an advanced stage of planning. The NKN platform could also be used for e-Learning applications.

The objective of the National Knowledge Network is to bring together all the stakeholders in Science, Technology, Higher Education, Research & Development, and Governance with speeds of the order of gigabits per second coupled with extremely low latencies; through PoPs in the respective institutions/ organisation.

NKN will interconnect all institutions engaged in research, higher education and scientific development in the country, over a period of time.

The output of the project will be a high capacity countrywide Infrastructure at education & research Institute level, which will be available 24x7 to support education and research application, and other application as envisaged by these institution which require very high bandwidth.

The outcome of the project be difficult to quantify. The NKN will facilitate the knowledge sharing, collaborative research, countrywide classrooms (CWCR) etc. and help the country to evolve as Knowledge Society. This will also contribute in socio-economic activities of the country indirectly.

Kaiga atomic plant becomes operational

• India's 20th nuclear power plant today became operational here taking the total installed atomic power capacity in the country to 4780 MW.
• The indigenously-developed 220 MW capacity Unit 4 of the Kaiga Atomic Power Station attained criticality at 8.07.22 a.m. making India the sixth country in the world to have 20 or more nuclear power plants in operation.
• The Kaiga-4 was built a few years ago but was unable to start power production for want of fuel.
• India's exemption from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group guidelines in 2008 that facilitated its return to global nuclear trade made the access to fuel possible.
• Presently, India produces 568 billion units of electricity and of that 23 per cent is from hydro—power, 64 per cent from thermal power, 10 per cent by non-conventional methods and only three per cent by the nuclear power.

GIS

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geographic_information_system

President in Syria, to focus on economic ties and investment

• After concluding a five-day goodwill tour of the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, President Pratibha Patil touched down at the historic city of Damascus on Friday morning.
• The Syria visit, first by an Indian President, will focus on bilateral issues — political, economic and cultural — and exploration of investment opportunities in both countries, government sources said. On the regional and international fronts, the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP) and Syria's relations with its neighbours will figure in the President's discussions.
• The sources said there was a strong possibility of a cultural agreement being signed between the two countries, as well as between Doordarshan and the Syrian national broadcaster, and one between the Press Trust of India and the official Syrian news agency. The India-Syria Business Council, which will be launched during Ms. Patil's visit, is expected to boost economic relations.
• Unlike with the UAE, the two-way trade level with Syria stands at a modest $530 million. The Indo-Syrian Joint Commission, which met in June this year, has decided to work towards doubling trade shortly. The President's visit is expected to boost economic relations, identify areas of mutually beneficial cooperation and register Indian interest in sourcing phosphates, which will help in achieving food security.
• Ms. Patil's meeting with President Assad will be followed by delegation-level talks which are expected to cover bilateral relations, regional issues such as the MEPP and international issues.
  

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA)

• The PWDVA is a Civil law meant to protect and provide support to victims of domestic violence. Under the Act, the aggrieved woman can seek various reliefs such as protection order, residence order, custody order, compensation order, monetary reliefs, shelter and medical facilities.
• The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA) is implemented by the States/Union Territories.
•  The State Governments are required to appoint Protection Officers, register Service Providers and notify shelter homes and medical facilities for implementation of the Act.

Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY)

The RKVY (National Agriculture Development Programme) aims at achieving 4% annual growth in the agriculture sector during the XI Plan period, by ensuring a holistic development of Agriculture and allied sectors.

http://www.indg.in/agriculture/rural-employment-schemes/rashtriya-krishi-vikas-yojana-rkvy

Janani Suraksha Yojana

• In 2005, with the goal of reducing the numbers of maternal and neonatal deaths, the Government of India launched Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY), a conditional cash transfer scheme, to incentivise women to give birth in a health facility.
• This is funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Centre for Innovations in Public System

• A Centre for Innovations in Public Systems (CIPS) has been set up in May 2010 at the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad.
  
• The vision of CIPS is to help create a climate and nurture a culture for accelerating and diffusing innovations in public systems.
•  Its objectives are to identify, recognize and promote innovations in public systems, catalyze and trigger lateral learning for initiating action research projects, macro level changes and innovations in the policies and practices across states, provide a range of learning opportunities and services to various stakeholders, facilitate sharing of international experiences and exposure to best practices in governance of public systems etc.

Ban on Exit Polls

• Government has amended the Representation of People's Act to prohibit of conduct of exist polls till the last phase of polling is over.
• The provision of sections 126A and 126B, as inserted in the Representation of the People Act, 1951, vide the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 2009 (41 of 2009) which was brought into force w.e.f. 01.02.2010 prohibits the conduct of exit polls during elections.
• The Minister further informed the House that the above amendment does not include 'opinion polls'.
  

Agreements with Neighbouring Countries on Rivers

The names of the rivers on which treaties/ agreements have been signed with neighbouring countries and the nature of the treaty/ agreement are as under:

River for which treaty/ agreement has been signed	Neighbouring country with which signed	Nature of the Treaty / Agreement
Sharda (Mahakali)	Nepal	Mahakali Treaty of 1996 which includes Pancheshwar Multi-purpose project
Kosi	Nepal	Agreement of 1954 (revised in 1966) regarding construction of Kosi Barrage in Nepal.
Gandak	Nepal	Agreement of 1959 regarding construction of Gandak Barrage in Nepal
Ganga	Bangladesh	Indo-Bangladesh Treaty of 1996 regarding sharing of Ganga waters at Farakka
Indus system of rivers comprising the rivers Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej and their tributaries	Pakistan	Indus Waters Treaty 1960 for the most complete and satisfactory utilization of the waters of the Indus system of rivers

Pakistan has raised dispute on the construction of Kishenganga HE Project on river Kishenganga, a tributary of river Jhelum, in Gurez valley in Bandipora District of Jammu & Kashmir. India has taken action as per the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty 1960. After Pakistan intimated the appointment of its two arbitrators initiating the proceedings for a Court of Arbitration, India has also appointed two arbitrators. Both the countries have also requested the persons concerned as specified in the Treaty to select three umpires for the Court of Arbitration. One of the persons requested namely the Secretary General of the United Nations has appointed one of the umpires namely the Chairman of the Court of Arbitration. The Mahakali Treaty of 1996 is valid for 75 years. It shall be reviewed by both the parties at 10 year interval or earlier as required by either party and make amendments, thereto, if necessary. The Indo-Bangladesh Treaty of 1996 is valid for 30 years. There is a provision to review the Treaty after five years. The provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty 1960 can be modified or terminated by another duly ratified treaty concluded for that purpose between the two Governments.

NTPC Signs JV Agreement for Renewable Energy

•  NTPC Limited (NTPC), Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Kyuden International Corporation (Kyushu) signed a Joint Venture Agreement today to form a JV Company (JVC) in NCT of Delhi, to develop projects and establish over a period of three years, a portfolio of about 500 MW of Renewable Power Generation in India.
• JVC shall presently develop wind power and small hydroelectric power projects and in future may also develop other renewable power generation resources. The JVC may develop projects outside India in Developing Member Countries only as well. 
• NTPC, ADB and Kyushu shall contribute in the ratio of 50:25:25 in the equity share capital of the Company. The initial authorised share capital of the Company would be Rs. 6.5 crore and the paid-up share capital would be Rs. 1 crore.
  

Delay in Joint Defence Projects with Russia

•  The induction of aircraft carrier – Gorshkov/Vikramaditya has been delayed due to requirement of additional works and change in the scope of trials. The additional works will increase the service life of the aircraft carrier significantly. The delivery of the aircraft carrier has been rescheduled for December, 2012.
• The procurement of modern weapon systems is undertaken as per the approved requirements of the Armed Forces in terms of capabilities sought and time frame prescribed, from various indigenous as well as foreign sources, including Russia, in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure.
  

Formation of FSDC

•  The Financial Stability Development Council (FSDC) is expected to come into force in the month of December, 2010. The Ministry of Finance has consulted all the financial sector regulators on the formation of the Council.
• The objectives of FSDC would be to deal with issues relating to:
  

1.  Financial stability
2.  Financial sector development 
3. Inter-regulatory coordination
4.  Financial literacy  
5. Financial inclusion
6. Macro prudential supervision of the economy including the functioning of large financial conglomerates. 
7. Coordinating India's international interface with financial sector bodies such as the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and Financial Stability Board (FSB).
   

Regulation of Interest Rates Charged by MFIs

•  The Small Industrial Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has reported that SKS Microfinance Ltd. (SKS), the only Micro Finance Institution (MFI) in India to be listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange/National Stock Exchange (BSE/NSE) had gone for an initial Public Offering (IPO) in August 2010. Subsequent to the IPO, the Board of SKS had taken a decision to terminate the services of Shri Suresh Gurumai, CEO.
• While Reserve Bank of India (RBI) does not regulate the interest rates charged by Micro Finance Institutions, it has issued instructions on a Fair Practice Code to be adhered to by all Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) in terms of which the NBFCs should not charge exorbitant rates of interest and resort to undue harassment viz., persistently bothering the borrowers at odd hours, use of muscle power for recovery of loans, etc. The Boards of NBFCs were advised to lay out appropriate principles and procedures and determine interest rates, processing and other charges. 
• The Government of India had in September, 2010 written to all Chief Executive Public Sector Banks advising them to ensure that the rates of interest charged by the MFIs to the eventual beneficiaries are reasonable. The Banks were also advised to ensure that MFIs do not resort Officers of to ever greening of the loans. 
• The Reserve Bank of India has since constituted a Sub-Committee of the Central Board of Directors to look into various issues in this sector, including ways and means of making interest rates charged by them reasonable. Shri Y.H. Malegam, a senior member on the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India will chair the Sub-Committee. The Sub-Committee will submit its report in three months.
  

Review and Strengthening of PRIs

• Union Minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Dr. C.P. Joshi today informed the Rajya Sabha that Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) implements the schemes of Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) – Capacity Building (CB) component and Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Yojana (RGSY) for supporting and strengthening the Panchayati Raj Institutions.
• BRGF (CB) component is under implementation in all States except Goa whereas the RGSY scheme is under implementation in all States that are covered under Part IX of the Constitution. 
• All eligible States have availed grants under the BRGF (CB) component. RGSY is demand driven scheme and grants under the scheme have been availed by all eligible States. State Governments have evolved different mechanisms to review the working of the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). MoPR carries out a review of the working of PRIs on annual basis and publishes the findings as State of Panchayat Report.
  

3 Levels of Indemnity for Crops Insured under NAIS

•  The Government has adopted three levels of indemnity for crops insured under the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS). These levels are 90%, 80% and 60% corresponding to low risk, medium risk and high risk areas, for all the corps based on Coefficient of Variation, which reflects the variability in the yield data of past 10 years of a crop in a notified area.
• During the course of implementation of the scheme some implementing States/UTs including Karnataka have suggested for improvement in the levels of indemnity at 80 & 90 per cent under the scheme. 
• Keeping in view the recommendations of the Joint Group constituted by the Government to study the improvements required in the existing crop insurance schemes and views/comments received from various stakeholders, proposal of Modified NAIS has been approved by the Government for implementation on pilot basis in 50 districts from Rabi 2010-11. Modified NAIS envisages more efficient basis for calculation of threshold yield; and minimum indemnity level has been raised from 60% to 70%.
  

Cyber Networking of Police Stations

• A Common Integrated Police Application (CIPA) programme had been initiated in the year 2004-05 as a component of the "Modernisation of State Police Forces (MPF)" scheme of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
  
• The aim of the CIPA was to bring about computerization and automation in the functioning at the police station. So far, 2,760 police stations, out of a total of around 14,000 police stations across the country, have been covered under the Scheme. No police station was connected on any network under any previous central scheme. Networking of Police Stations was envisaged in CIPA but before it could be implemented, the planned project CCTNS came into existence and CIPA programme was subsumed under CCTNS.

Don't screen children, schools told as per RTE

• Guidelines for admission into schools, issued under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, prohibit screening of children and interviewing their parents.
• Admissions to class 1 (or pre-primary class as the case may be) under Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act in unaided and 'specified category' schools shall be through a system of random selection out of the applications received from children belonging to disadvantaged groups and weaker sections for filling the pre-determined number of seats in that class, which should be not less than 25 per cent of the strength of the class.
• For admission to the remaining 75 per cent of the seats (or a lesser percentage depending upon the number of seats fixed by the school) each school should formulate a policy under which admissions will take place.
• This policy should include criteria for categorisation of applicants in terms of the objectives of the school on a rational, reasonable and just basis. There shall be no profiling of the child based on parental educational qualifications. The policy should be placed by the school in the public domain and given wide publicity.

NAC to discuss draft of Food Security Bill

• The National Advisory Council (NAC) will discuss the working group's draft of the National Food Security Bill.
• The draft suggests the setting up of an autonomous body for grievance redress and enforcement of penalties. The authority could function along the lines of the national and State-level commissions set up under the Right to Information Act.
• The draft Bill defines the penalties for violations of the Act, and what/who would be the enforcing agency. Violations would include, for instance, a closed ration shop, denial of ration card or supplies, improper implementation of mid-day meal, the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) and other schemes, and instances of starvation and hunger.
• Broadly, the draft Bill lays out PDS entitlements as approved by the council. It spells out the "non-PDS" entitlements — for vulnerable groups, mid-day meals, ICDS, community kitchens and destitute feeding. A significant component is the reforms made in the PDS for better delivery and implementation.
• The NAC, chaired by Sonia Gandhi, decided last month that the new law should provide a legal entitlement to subsidised foodgrains for at least 75 per cent of the population, which includes 90 per cent of the rural and 50 per cent of the urban populations. Those in the 75 per cent category are divided into "priority households," who should have a monthly entitlement of 35 kg of subsidised foodgrains (wheat, rice, millets) and "general households," who should have a monthly entitlement of 20 kg at rates not exceeding 50 per cent of the current minimum support price of wheat, rice and millets.
• However, activists of the Right to Food Campaign, who staged a demonstration in front of the Agriculture and Food Ministry here, "rejected" the NAC proposals saying they did not talk about universalisation of PDS, agricultural reforms, decentralised production, procurement and distribution, or malnutrition.

CAPART

The voluntary sector in India has played a major role in rural development,through mobilising communities and catalysing people's initiatives for change,as well as through direct implementation of interventions around specific issues.

Formal recognition of the role of voluntary organisations in the Seventh Plan documentled to the formation of the Council for Advancement of People's Action and Rural Technology (CAPART) in 1986, as a nodal agency for catalysing and coordinating the emerging partnership between voluntary organisations and the Government for sustainable development of rural areas.

CAPART was formed by amalgamating two agencies the 'Council for Advancementof Rural Technology' (CART) and People's Action for Development India (PADI). CAPART is an autonomous body registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860,and is functioning under the aegis of the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India. Today, this agency is a major promoter of rural development in India, assisting over 12,000 voluntary organizations across the country in implementing a wide range of development initiatives.

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/article913296.ece

http://capart.nic.in/orgn/index.html

DRDO plans five missile tests

• BALASORE (ODISHA): In a step forward to attain the minimum credible nuclear deterrence, India's defence scientists are going to show more fire power at the country's best test facilities at Chandipur and Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast in the coming days.
• According to the sources at the integrated test range (ITR), the DRDO has planned to test-fire at least five sophisticated long range missiles within next two months. The launching complexes at both the places have been readied for the first ever synchronized test in the recent times. 
• While on Thursday, an advanced version of the Agni-I missile has been scheduled to be fired, in December two missiles – BrahMos and Agni-II - will fly in the sky. In January scientists will fire the newly developed Agni-II + missile and an interceptor missile, which last time didn't take off due to a technical snag in the target missile. 
• On September 5 last India created history by flight testing Brahmos cruise missile, for the first time in the world, at a supersonic speed in a steep-dive mode. The 8.4-meter long missile can hit a target at a distance up to 290 km. The missile can travel at thrice the speed of sound and carry a conventional warhead weighing 200 kg to 300 kg.
• "BrahMos has become the only supersonic cruise missile possessing this advanced capability in the world. After the scheduled test this version will be ready for induction," said the scientist. 
• Similarly, the two-stage solid-propelled Agni-II is one of the key weapon systems of the country's nuclear deterrence doctrine and had been inducted into the armed forces. Having about 1.3-meter diameter, it is 21 metres tall and capable of carrying a payload of one tonne. It has strike range of nearly 2000 km. The missile, which had failed to deliver desired results consecutively twice last year, was successfully tested in May this year.
  
• "Meanwhile, we have developed Agni-II+ missile which is completely a new missile having a strike range between 2750 km and 3000 km. It has several advanced technologies in comparison to its previous missile. This missile, a part of the Agni series, will bridge the gap between its long-range missiles Agni-II (2000 km) and Agni-III (3500 km)," informed the scientist. 
• In the final step, the DRDO will test the Advanced Air Defence (AAD) missile to shoot down an incoming "enemy missile" as part of its efforts to build a credible ballistic missile defence shield. Of the four interceptor missile tests so far, the first three were successful. The last one in March this year was a failure.
  

LCA Faces Huge Cost Escalation

• According to sources, the first 40  TEJAS LCA to be inducted in the Indian Armed Forces will cost roughly $33.3 million excluding its development cost.
• As for the development cost of the LCA, the overall figure is to the tune of $3.8 billion which is a 3000 per cent hike from the cost during the conception of the project over two decades ago. The sanctioned cost includes the fighter's naval variant, which will run till December 2018.
• The LCA has carried out around 1,420 flights with 10 prototypes till date. The full-scale engineering development (FSED) Phase-I till March 2004 cost Rs 2,188 crore. The Phase-II, to be completed by December 2012, will cost another $1.28 billion.
  
• In addition, there is the fabrication of two Tejas Mark-II, with alternate engines, to be completed by Dec 2018 for $540 million, along with development of indigenous technologies for $88 million. The Naval Tejas FSED Phase-I, in turn, is to be completed by Dec 2014 for $38.1 million, with Phase-II slated for completion by December 2018 for another $426.8 million.
• LCA is to be powered by General Electric engines and India recently finalised a $822-million deal for 99 GE F-414 engines. While the first 20 Tejas for the IAF will be powered by GE-404 engines, the next six Mark-II squadrons will have the more powerful GE F-414 engines.
  
• The choice of GE engines for  LCA has also rendered a loss of $630.8 million which was spent on the development of the indigenous Kaveri engine since 1990. 
• The program has encountered several delays that have extended the development effort by over two decades. The LCA first ran into rough waters as the design was being finalised in 1990 when a government commission found several deficiencies in critical technology areas. This resulted in the decision to build two technology demonstrator aircraft to ensure these issues could be resolved.
  
• The first of these aircraft rolled out in 1995, but difficulties with the flight control system and manufacturing of composite structural components kept the plane grounded. Another major setback occurred in 1998 when India's nuclear tests prompted the US to place sanctions on the sale of General Electric F404 turbofans for the LCA.
• LCA will replace the MiG aircraft and Sea Harriers with the IAF and Indian Navy respectively.

Drip Irrigation

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drip_irrigation

--
Ashish Meena

Govt. issues notification for NRI voting rights

• Parliament had in the monsoon session passed the Representation of People (Amendment) Bill, 2010 to allow NRIs to vote in Indian elections and now government has issued a gazette notification in this regard.
• An estimated 11 million NRIs are living in various countries across the world.
• However, the person will be able to exercise the franchise only if he or she is present in the constituency on the polling day.
• Election Commission is likely to soon finalise the rules and regulations prescribing modalities for entry of names of NRIs in electoral rolls.
• As per the existing rules, an NRI's name gets deleted from the voters' list if he or she stays outside the country for more than six months at a stretch.
• Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, addressing the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas earlier this year, had indicated that Indian passport holders living abroad could get voting rights by the time of next Lok Sabha elections in 2014.

Omar's rehabilitation policy may hit a roadblock

• The rehabilitation policy for the former militants who are in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) may hit a roadblock, with the Congress, the key ally in the coalition government of Jammu and Kashmir, expressing reservations following a scathing attack by the Bharatiya Janata Party in Jammu that the policy was aimed at appeasing the anti-national elements.

Rehabilitation of youth

The policy envisages rehabilitation of the youth who crossed over to the PoK in 1989 for training in arms and ammunition. A government notification said the policy is intended to facilitate the return of ex-militants who belong to Jammu and Kashmir, and had crossed over to PoK/Pakistan for training in insurgency but had given up insurgent activities due to change of heart and are willing to return to the State.

Anti-national decision

BJP says  "It is an irony that 1.75 lakh west Pakistan refugees have not been given citizenship in J&K even after 63 years of Independence. And you are appeasing traitors. With such a policy, you are sending a message that those who take up arms will be rewarded."

Indian Workers Resource Center launched in UAE

• The Union Ministry of Overseas Affairs has now initiated as a pilot project, a free, walk-in resource centre providing Indian workers, especially semi-skilled and unskilled labourers, direct access to welfare services in the United Arab Emirates, located in Dubai.
  
• The Indian Workers Resource Centre (IWRC) was inaugurated by President Pratibha Patil, who is on a goodwill tour of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Syria.
• He added that while the UAE centre was the first, the government hoped to create such facilities in other countries with a large NRI population.
• Of the 25 million overseas Indians, 10 million are NRIs, Indian passport-holders, and of these 5.5 million are in the Gulf. The United Arab Emirates accounts for 1.7 million, of which close to 70 per cent are blue collar workers, many working in appalling conditions.
• Now, workers in distress can call a toll-free number, 800 46342 (800-India), from anywhere in the UAE to seek counselling, information or advice relating to legal issues such as contracts and financial matters.

Mobile Number portability launched in India

• The service was inaugurated on Thursday at Rohtak in Haryana for the entire state circle and will be extended to the rest of the country in a phased manner.
• Facility that will allow a subscriber to retain his cellphone number when he moves from one access or service provider to another, irrespective of the mobile technology, or from one cellular mobile technology to another of the same service provider. 
• Apart from regular SIM cards, MNP would also be available on SIM cards purchased to be used as Internet data cards.
  
• However, numbers can be ported only within the same service areas as licences are issued to operators for specific circles.
• The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has fixed a ceiling of Rs.19 as porting charges that the new service provider may collect from the subscriber. The money will go to the clearing house for facilitating the service.

Public Enterprises Selection Board

Public Enterprises Selection Board

The P.E.S.B has been set up with the objective of evolving a sound managerial policy for the Central Public Sector Enterprises and, in particular, to advise Government on appointments to their top management posts.

The policy of Government is to appoint through a fair and objective selection procedure outstanding professional managers to Level-I and Level-II posts and posts at any other level, as may be decided by the Government from time to time. Government have also recognized the need to develop a cadre of professional managers within the public sector. Hence unless markedly better candidates are available from outside, internal candidates, employed in the PSE, will be preferred for appointment to Board level posts. However, if internal candidates are not available, preference will be given to candidates working in other PSEs, either in the same area of business or in other areas. Mobility of managerial personnel among PSEs within the same sector or group, failing which mobility within the public sector as a whole will be encouraged, subject to certain limitations.

Functions of P.E.S.B

Specific functions assigned to the P.E.S.B include the following :

1. To be responsible for the selection and placement of personnel in the posts of Chairman, Managing Director or Chairman-cum-Managing Director (Level-I), and Functional Director (Level-II) in PSEs as well as in posts at any other level as may be specified by the Government;

2. To advise the Government on matters relating to appointments, confirmation or extension of tenure and termination of services of the personnel of the above mentioned levels;

3. To advise the Government on the desired structure at the Board level, and, for senior management personnel, for each PSE or group of PSEs;

4. To advise the Government on a suitable performance appraisal system for both the PSEs and the managerial personnel in such enterprises;

5. To build a data bank containing data relating to the performance of PSEs and its officers;

6. To advise the Government on formulation and enforcement of a code of conduct and ethics for managerial personnel in PSEs;

7. To advise the Government on evolving suitable training and development programs for management personnel in PSEs.