POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

NATURAL ECONOMIC ZONE (NEZ)

Entire Northeast region has a Natural Economic Zone (NEZ) and said that it would be his
priority to nourish the NEZ and tap its potential for the benefit of the region.
Northeast region as Indias capital of organic agriculture

HORNBILL FESTIVAL
celebration held every year in the first week of December, in Nagaland
held at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama which is about 12 km from Kohima
All the tribes of Nagaland take part
aim of the festival is to revive and protect the rich culture of Nagaland and display its
extravaganza and traditions
Festival is named after the hornbill, the globally respected bird and which is displayed in
folklore in most of the states tribes.
INITIATIVES FOR NORTHEAST REGION
modern apparel and garment manufacturing centre would be set up immediately in the State
capitals of Assam, Nagaland and Sikkim
Ishan Uday special scholarships for 10,000 students from the Northeast
Ishan Vikas scheme for facilitating exposure visits of 2000 students and 500 teachers of
colleges in the region
NATIONAL LOK ADALAT
organised by the National Legal Service Authority (NALSA)
cases settled out of court include family disputes, matrimonial cases, motor accident claims,
bank recoveries, petty criminal matters, revenue matters, disbursement of payment under
the MGNREGA and other government welfare schemes.
T.S.R SUBRAMANIAN COMMITTEE
examine six laws administered by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate
Change
six laws to be put under the scanner
o Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
o Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
o Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
o The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
o The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
o Indian Forest Act (IFA) of 1927.
GENETICALLY MODIFIED (GM) FOOD CROPS
Europe does not permit field trials and that the average Indian farm is of very small size
(which could lead to severe adverse impact on biodiversity through gene-flow).
no independent expert agencies in the country
MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE COMMITTEE
Proposed new law, the Environment Laws (Management) Act (ELMA). The application for
environmental clearances expects the applicant to be honest and truthful.
Setting up of special environment courts presided over by a sessions judge and higher
penalties.

proposes to create new agencies, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA)
at the national level and the State Environment Management Authority (SEMA) as the
pivotal authorities to process applications for a one-window composite environmental
clearance
NEMA and SEMA will replace the Central/State Pollution Control Board.
Takes away the role of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which, under the proposed
ELMA, will only be able to judicially review the decisions of the Appellate Boards.
Special environment courts shall dispose of cases expeditiously within six months. Aggrieved
parties may approach an appellate board presided over by a retired High Court judge.
for linear projects, it is recommended that FRA needs amendment to consider
removal of the condition of Gram Sabha approval
o Forest and environmental clearances should time bound and streamlined.
o Wildlife Management plans to be made mandatory;
o
The demarcation of eco sensitive zones to be enforced around all protected areas
and
o
Proposed the banning of polythene bags and plastic bottles into protected areas.
Only environmental, rehabilitation and resettlement issues are captured in the public
hearing.
"Only genuine local participation" is permitted.
creating an Environment Reconstruction Fund for facilitating research

STILLWELL ROAD
Stillwell road, as a trade route from Assam to Chinas Yunnan province.
GLOBAL FINANCIAL INTEGRITY
non-profit, research and advocacy organization located in Washington, D.C
research on national and multilateral policies, safeguards, and agreements aimed at
curtailing illicit financial flows and enhancing global development and security
ranked the country third globally
ANTI-HIJACKING (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2014
Brought by Beijing Protocol, 2010, of the UN body International Civil Aviation Organisation
(ICAO), which have been signed and ratified by India.
Stringent measures to deal with civilian aircraft being used as a weapon of mass destruction
by terrorists as 9/11.
Powers to concerned agencies and security forces to immobilise an aircraft and allow the
Indian Air Force to scramble its fighters to intercept a hijacked aircraft and force it to land.
A hostile plane could also be shot down if there was evidence that it could be used as a
missile to hit a vital installation.
INDIA BANS IS

Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) or Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is a
Sunni Islamist rebel group that controls territory in Iraq and Syria and also operates in
eastern Libya, the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt, and other areas of the Middle East, North Africa,
South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

ORDINANCE TO AMEND LAND ACT

The Cabinet has amended the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land
Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013.
Amendments have now relaxed the requirements of consent and Social Impact Assessment
survey for projects in the following areas:

Defence and defence production

Rural infrastructure (including rural electrification)
Affordable housing
Industrial corridors
Social infrastructure projects including PPPs in which ownership rests with the
government
Under the 2013 Act, compensations were hiked up to four times and twice the market
value in rural areas and urban areas
Consent from 70 per cent of the affected land owners in case of their lands being acquired
for a public private partnership (PPP) project. If the acquisition was meant for private
companies, consent from 80 per cent of the affected owners was required.
o
o
o
o
o

WHAT DOES THE ORDINANCE MEAN?

For Industries
Ordinance envisages projects in defence, rural housing and industrial corridors as exempt from
seeking
80% approval from affected persons.
Private hospitals, educational institutions and hotels will be included under definition of public
purpose, and exempt from SIA.
The Ordinance aims to make land acquisition easier for industries, as delays in approvals have
restricted growth in industry and infrastructure, according to stakeholders.
For Farmers
Farmers' compensation will remain the same four times the market rate for urban areas, and
twice for rural areas.
13 statutes that were previously exempted from the rigours of compensation have now been
included.
Multi-crop land can be acquired for five purposes without consent of affected families: national
security, defence, rural infrastructure, industrial corridors and social infrastructure.
ORDINANCE TO HIKE FDI IN INSURANCE TO 49%
Hike Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) cap in the insurance sector to 49 per cent from 26 per
cent. The 49 per cent cap would include both FDI and foreign portfolio investments.
GIC is the sole national reinsurer.
COAL MINES (SPECIAL PROVISIONS) BILL 2015
The coal bill opens the sector for commercial mining and aims to facilitate the auction of over
200 cancelled coal blocks.
There will be a concrete arrangement of computerized auction of coal and mineral blocks.
The auction of these blocks was being carried out through an e-auction process to
transparency of the process.
The main purpose of the ordinances, which are now being replaced by the bill, was to
overcome acute shortage of coal in core sectors and ensure energy security. They facilitated
allocation of coal mines to steel, cement and power utilities which are vital for
development.
Assuring states that their interests would be taken care of, Govt said upfront fees as well
as their share in royalty payment would go to the states. However, Congress found
fault with the government's plan to let states having coal blocks alone to have the lion's share
of revenue generated by the their auction and demanded other states should also be given a
slice of the cake.
Government entities including public sector units such as NTPC and State Electricity Boards,
however, will not have to go through the auction route as a pool of coal mines will be
reserved for allocations to them from the cancelled blocks.

The proceeds from the e-auction will go entirely to the state government where the coal
mines are located including Jharkhand, Orrisa, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

UNODC is a global leader in the fight against illicit drugs and international crime.
It is established in 1997 through a merger between the United Nations Drug Control
Programme and the Centre for International Crime Prevention.
UNODC operates in all regions of the world through an extensive network of field offices
MAKING MAKE IN INDI A HAPPEN
India must become a manufacturing powerhouse in order to gainfully employ its
demographic dividend.
improve the ease of doing business in India are these stop tax terrorism, improve
infrastructure, reform labour laws, invest in skills development, make it easier to acquire
land, implement Goods and Services Tax (GST) and fast track approvals.
FOR AN INDUSTRIAL POLICY
India must have a clear industrial policy that spells out priority sectors and how we will build
competitive advantage in a way that is consistent with our obligations to the World Trade
Organization (WTO).
Five priority industries:
Defence, because we are the worlds leading arms importer.
The second critical industry is electronics hardware. India imports $45 billion of mobile
phones, computers and communications hardware; by 2020, this is projected to grow to
$300 billion and exceed Our oil import bill.
The third industry is construction. India will invest a trillion dollars over the coming years
in improving infrastructure.
The fourth is health care. Indias generic pharmaceutical industry is world class.
Finally, agro-industries. We are one of the largest agricultural nations.
GOOD GOVERNANCE DAY

THE RAJASTHAN PANCHAYATI RAJ (SECOND AMENDMENT), ORDINANCE 2014

As per the provision, any individual contesting the ZilaParishad or PanchayatSamiti
polls should have a basic qualification of Class X,
while those aspiring to be elected to Panchayats as sarpanch should have passed Class
VIII and
Anyone contesting the election for sarpanch in the scheduled area should have passed
Class V.
FARM LOAN WAIVER HITS CREDIT FLOW

URBAN DEVELOPMENT- THE RIGHT TO CITY

The Right to the City campaign aims at making urban spaces more inclusive, keeping in
mind the lakhs of migrants that move here from rural India every year. Half of the countrys
population will call urban India home by 2025.

SUGAMYA BHARAT CAMPAIGN

Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan) is the nationwide campaign for
achieving universal accessibility for all citizens including Persons with Disabilities, to be able
to gain access and live independently
The Accessible India Campaign comprises of the following key components:o Create Mass Awareness
o Capacity Building
o Interventions (Technology solutions, Legal framework, Resource generation)
o Leverage corporate sector efforts including CSR resources.
o Leadership endorsements
ORDINANCE TO AMEND LAW ON ARBITRATION
The Ordinance is aimed at making it mandatory for commercial disputes to be settled within
nine months and also putting a cap on fee of arbitrator. The proposed amendments stipulate
that the presiding officer of a commercial dispute will have to clear the case within nine
months.
The arbitrator will be free to seek an extension from the High Court. But in case of further
delays, the High Court will be free to debar the arbitrator from taking up fresh cases for a
certain period.
INTELLIGENCE BUREAU REPORT 2014
A Intelligence Bureau report, Concerted efforts by select foreign-funded NGOs to take down Indian
development projects, in 2014 alleged that several foreign-funded environmental NGOs were
targeting
development projects across the country.
According to report, the following categories of developmental projects have been opposed by NGOs.
Nuclear power plants.
Uranium mines.
Coal-Fired power plants (CFPPs).

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Mega industrial projects (Posco and Vedanta).
Hydel projects (at Narmada Sagar and in Arunachal Pradesh) and
Extractive industries (oil, limestone) in the north-east.
SMART CARDS FOR UNORGANISED SECTOR WORKERS
Every worker in the unorganised sector may soon be issued a smart card with a unique
identification number for accessing social schemes and benefits. It was launched in Gujarat.
The Gujarat launch (a card, U-WIN ) was a pilot for launching the card in all States.
The proposal is all workers must get three things health insurance, pension and
disability assistance.
This card will allow workers to self-certify that they are unorganised sector workers, and get
these
benefits through a portable card
The portable benefits card will be issued under the Unorganised Workers Social
Security Act, 2008.
Unorganised Workers Social Security Act, 2008, Act provides for constitution of the National
Social Security Advisory Board at the Central level, which is to recommend social security
schemes, health and maternity benefits and pension schemes for unorganised workers
NRI VOTING
With the amendment, NRIs can exercise their voting rights, but have to fulfills two conditions.
Registered as a voter: NRIs have to be registered in electoral rolls of the constituency where
they arelisted as residents before leaving India.
Physically present: Section 20A had required NRIs to be physically present in their respective
constituencies at the time of elections.
But ,now The Union government informed the Supreme Court that it had accepted Election
Commission's recommendation to allow NRIs to vote through e-ballot system or through proxy.

MINES AND MINERALS (DEVELOPMENT & REGULATION) AMENDMENT BILL 2015

The Bill amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
The new act, once in force, will add a new 4th schedule to include mining of bauxite, iron ore,
limestone and manganese ore, now called notified minerals, under its purview
Primarily, the new bill seeks to introduce a regime of auction to grant prospecting licences, like
for coal blocks. It proposes that there will no renewal of mining concessions, unlike the original act
of 1957. But it proposes a licence for 50 years as against 30 now. The government has already
identified 199 mines for auction. The new act will call for state governments to grant mining
leases and prospecting licensecum- mining leases for notified and other minerals,
with the central government's approval, which will prescribe the terms and conditions for
selection of bidders as also the procedure for auction.
The central government may also reserve some mines exclusively for some specific purposes,
as also set the eligibility conditions for the same.
To plug another loophole that leads to arbitrariness, the central government will be permitted
to increase the area allowed for mining, instead of granting additional leases. Presently, while
10 sq km is set as maximum limit for prospecting per lessee, a leeway is given to alter this.
The proposed legislation also calls for the setting up of a District Mineral Foundation
where mining takes place that will address the grievances of the people affected by mining, with a
contribution not exceeding a third of the royalty rate.
Another body, the National Mineral Exploration Trust, shall be appointed by the central
government for regional and pan-India planning.

CITIZENSHIP (AMENDMENT) ORDINANCE, 2015

It amends the following provisions of the Indian Citizen Act, 1955:
At present one year continuous stay in India is mandatory for Indian Citizenship which is
relaxed stating that if the Central Government is satisfied that special circumstances exist, it may,
after recording such circumstances in writing, relax the period of twelve months specified upto a
maximum of thirty days which may be in different breaks.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by a minor, whose parents are
Indian
Citizens.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by a child or a grand-child or a great
grandchild of such a citizen.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by such spouse of a citizen of India
or spouse of an OCI registered under Section 7A and whose marriage has been registered and
subsisted for a continuous period of not less than two years immediately preceding the presentation
of the application under this section.
In respect of existing PIO card holders central government may, by notification in Official
Gazette,
specify a particular date from which all existing PIO card holders will be deemed to be OCI card
holders.
MERGER OF THE PIO AND OCI SCHEMES
The amendments to the Citizenship Act will benefit PIOs and will give them benefits like lifelong visa
and exemption from registering with the FRO/FRRO if their stay here exceeds six months.
The ordinance rolling PIO and OCI schemes into a single Indian Overseas Cardholder scheme
will drop
the clause requiring foreigners married to Indian citizens to continuously stay in the country for a
period
of one year before they can apply for Indian citizenship.
The amendment will allow foreigners breaks not exceeding 30 days, to travel abroad during the
mandatory one-year stay in India.
1,000 MW GRID-CONNECTED SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER PROJECTS
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), , has approved the scheme for setting
up of 1000 MW of Grid-Connected Solar PV Power Projects by Central Public Sector units
(CPSUs) and other government organisations
These projects are to be established with VGF (viability gap fund) support of Rs.1,000 crore
over a period of three years (2015-16 to 2017-18).
Organisations such as NTPC, NHPC, CIL, IREDA and Indian Railways, among others have
agreed to set up solar plants
Centre has also proposed to establish 25 Solar Parks, each with a capacity of 500 MW
and above with a target of over 20,000 MW of solar power installed capacity over a period of
5 years (2014-19).
PRESIDENTS VIEW ON ARTICLE 108

The President pointed out that he had seen since 1952 till today only four times laws were passed
by joint session. A joint session of Parliament is not a practicable solution to resolve a
legislative impasse.
ARTICLE 371(J)
The Hyderabad-Karnataka region comprises Bidar, Yadgir, Raichur, Koppal, Bellary and
Gulbarga that that are in the present state of Karnataka. The Hyderabad-Karnataka
region is the second largest arid region in India.

The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), the apex consumer
forum, has held that no complaint by a person alleging deficiency in services rendered by
the CPIO/PIO is maintainable before a Consumer Forum.

MOTOR VEHICLE (AMENDMENT) BILL 2015 PASSED BY PARLIAMENT

The bill aims at bringing e-rickshaws and e-carts under the ambit of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1957 so
that
they can ply on roads across the country.
Government will also make efforts to provide loans at three to four percent interest to people
belonging
to SCs, STs and OBC for buying e-rickshaws.
Women and the physically handicapped will be given driving licenses for these..
SHANTA KUMAR COMMITTEE
Restructure, reorient and reform the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
FOR THE NATIONAL FOOD SECURITY ACT
To cut the public distribution system beneficiaries for subsidized foodgrains to 40 from 67
per cent
under the National Food Security Act.
The rationed grains to be priced at 50 per cent of the minimum support price paid to
farmers.
Each beneficiary should be given 7 kg of grain instead of 5 kg under the Act, and cash
transfers be
introduced in a phased manner.
It is estimated that this will reduce the foodgrain requirement under TPDS from 61.4
million tonnes to
about 40 million tonnes.
FCI has not been fulfilling its three key objectives in recent years:
Providing price support to farmers,
Delivering food through the PDS, and
Reducing volatility of food prices (and addressing food security) through public stockholding
HINDU WIFES RIGHT TO MAINTENANCE
The Law Commission submitted its 252nd Report on "Right of the Hindu Wife to Maintenance: A
relook at Section 18 of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956" to the Law Ministry.

The Commission recommended that a new clause be inserted in the Act to state that in cases where
the husband is unable to provide for his wife, on account of:
Physical disability;
Mental disorder;
Disappearance;
Renunciation of the world by entering any religious order or other similar reasons, the Hindu
wife is
entitled to claim maintenance from members of the husband's joint Hindu family.
INITIATIVES TOWARDS NORTH EAST PEOPLE- BEZBARUAH COMMITTEE
The Ministry accepted recommendations made by the Committee with regard to immediate
measures,
including:
Amending the Indian Penal Code, 1860 to insert provisions criminalising:
Promoting or using criminal violence against members of a race on grounds of their race or
place of origin
Words or actions intended to insult members of a particular race
Setting up a panel of lawyers by the Delhi Legal Service Authority for providing legal assistance
to people
from the North East;
Education related measures, like a scholarship for students from the North East and Sports
related measures, like identifying talented sports persons from the North East and arranging for
their training.
Creating a computerised database of people from the North East
Establishing a North East Centre in Delhi which would be an autonomous institution
responsible for the above-mentioned database, holding cultural performances, etc
TRIBAL COMMUNITIES AND ISSUES FACED BY THEM- XAXA COM
The report details the situation of tribal communities: Scheduled Tribes, de-notified tribes and
particularly vulnerable tribal communities.
GOVERNANCE OF TRIBAL AREAS
The question of autonomy in scheduled areas has been set out in Schedules V and VI of the
Constitution.
In Schedule V areas, the Tribes Advisory Council a body with elected and community
representatives from Scheduled Tribes will advise the governor on matters of administration and
governance in scheduled areas.
The deliberations of the Tribes Advisory Councils have been found to be tokenistic, and the councils
themselves filled with bureaucrats and ministers instead of representatives of tribal communities
with
effective voice.
Even with the Autonomous Councils in the Schedule VI States, which have a more robust formal
autonomy, the committee finds that there is a huge discrepancy between the formal rules
guaranteeing autonomy and the informal workings of autonomy on the ground.
RECOMMENDATIONS OF PROFESSOR XAXA COMMITTEE REPORT
Government/policy makers must understand the tribal economy before planning any
intervention. Tribal economy is the best development model and needs to be replicated anywhere in
the country.
Protection of bio-diversity rich mountains and forests (moratorium of mining in biodiversity
rich
forest/zones)
Use of renewable energy like solar and hydro through indigenous techniques
Promote use
of

traditional transportation system for possible distance coverage

Implementation of Scheduled Area provisions (PESA) in true spirit
De-scheduling of schedule area due to decline of tribal population to be abolished. Declare all
tribal
populated areas as scheduled areas.
Language used for learning in schools not suitable for tribal children. Teachers are not familiar
with tribal language, should be take care of.
Develop curriculum in all tribal languages till Standard/Class 7.
Protect and promote traditional herbal medicines through the community ownership
Ensure ownership of community over their own herbal treatment practices.
Train traditional healers with improved technology to ensure better healthcare in remote
villages
Ensure all NT and DNT communities are included in census with dignity.
For social, economic and educational development one independent authority should be
established at national and state level.
The High Level Committee to recommend the setting up of a cell in order for the Governor to
properly carry out the duties of the post vis--vis protection of the tribes
CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS FOR SCHEDULED TRIBES
The Constitution of India, Article 366 (25) defines Schedule Tribes as such tribes or tribal
communities or part of our groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under
Article 342 to the Schedule Tribes (ST) for the purposes of this Constitution.
In Article 342, procedure to be followed for specification of Scheduled Tribes is prescribed. However,
it does not contain the criterion for the specification of any community as Schedule Tribe. A wellestablished criterion being followed is based on certain attributes such as:
Geographical isolation: They live in cloister, exclusive remote and hills and forest areas.
Backwardness: Livelihood based on primitive agriculture, low cost closed economy based on
low level of technology which leads to their poverty. They have a low level of literacy and health.
Distinctive culture, language and religion: They have developed their own distinctive
culture, language and religion, community-wise.
Shyness of contact: They have marginal degree of contact with other cultures and people
MAKE IN NORTHEAST
The initiative will seek to promote exclusive Northeast expertise in areas like tea processing,
organic farming, food processing, and wind power generation, AYUSH and wellness
therapies like spas.
Assam has the highest contribution of less than 30 per cent (2013-14) closely followed by
Sikkim, which is a leader in organic farming and tourism.
SARDAR PATEL URBAN HOUSING MISSION- HOUSING FOR ALL
Sardar Patel Urban Housing Mission will soon be launched to ensure housing for all by 2022
by building 30 million houses for the economically weaker sections and low income groups.
To be built through public-private-partnership, interest subsidy and increased flow of
resources to the housing sector, these houses are also aimed at creating slum free cities
across the country.
NITI AAYOG (Chart from the PDF directly of Jan)
PRESIDENT GIVES ASSENT TO SETTING UP OF NJAC
The bill, 124th amendment to the Constitution, grants Constitutional status to the NJAC and
its
composition which will be headed by the Chief Justice of India.
The approved bill provides for the new Article 124A of the Constitution of India, which will
define the composition of the JAC. Article 124B will identify its functions

Constitution of NJAC---Six-member Commission hadThe CJI as chairperson , ex officio ,

Two senior most Supreme Court judges as members ,next to the CJI ex officio,
The Union Minister of Law and Justice, ex-officio
Two eminent persons
(to be nominated by a committee consisting of the CJI, PM and the Leader of opposition in the
Lok Sabha or where there is no such Leader of Opposition, then, the Leader of single largest
Opposition Party in Lok Sabha), provided that of the two eminent persons, one person would be
from the S C or ST or OBC or minority communities or a woman. The eminent persons shall be
nominated for a period of three years and shall not be eligible for re-nomination.
Role of NJAC:
The NJAC is expected to usher in transparency in judicial appointments in the highest
courts and end the highest judiciarys two-decade-old grip over appointments of judges through the
collegium system.
Under the present Collegium system, the CJI would consult the four senior most judges of
the SC for Supreme Court appointments and two senior-most judges for high court appointments.
It would restore an equal role for the executive in higher judicial appointments.
Ensuring that the persons recommended are of ability and integrity
RIGHT TO VOTE FOR UNDERTRIALS
Right to vote is not a fundamental right or a constitutional right but is only a statutory right.
Being a statutory right, the legislature can determine the terms on which the right to vote is to be
enjoyed by the people of India subject to Articles 325 and 326 of the Constitution.
Section 62(5) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 governing the right to vote,
stipulates that
no person shall vote in any election if they are confined in a prison under a sentence of
imprisonment
or transportation or otherwise or are in the lawful custody of the police.
Chapter 43 of the Reference Handbook on the General Elections, 2014 also makes it clear that
undertrial prisoners are not eligible to vote, even if their names are on the electoral rolls.
India denies voting rights to not only individuals convicted of a crime and serving a sentence in
prison,
but also to undertrials and even those in police custody.
GIPC INDEX
The Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) is the principal institution of the United
States Chamber of Commerce handling all issues relating to intellectual property. The GIPC
champions intellectual property (IP) rights as vital to creating jobs, saving lives, and
advancing global economic growth.
In the 2015 GIPC Index, India ranked 29 out of the featured 30 countries
WORLD PRESS FREEDOM INDEX (WPFI)
World Press Freedom Index is produced by France based international nongovernmental
organization Reporters Without Borders (RWB).
WPFI aims to promote and defends freedom of information and freedom of the press.
The WPFI ranks the performance of countries according to index calculated based upon various
parameters. Few important parameters are given below:
media pluralism and independence
respect for the safety and freedom of journalists and
The legislative, institutional and infrastructural environment in which the media operate
India was ranked 136 out of 180 nations;

INTRA-DISTRICT DISPARITY
To measure the extent of backwardness, researchers looked at five indicators:
Agricultural workers as a proportion of all workers
Female literacy rate
Access to electricity
Access to water and sanitation and
Access to banking
RESILIENT CITY
A Resilient City is one that has developed capacities to help absorb future shocks and stresses to its
social, economic, and technical systems and infrastructures so as to still be able to maintain
essentially the same functions, structures, systems, and identity.
100 RESILIENT CITIES" (100RC) NETWORK
100RC, pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation, is dedicated to helping cities around the world
become more resilient to the physical, social and economic challenges that are a growing part of the
21st century.
100 Resilient Cities takes the view that resilience enables cities
To evaluate their exposure to specific shocks and stresses,
To develop a proactive and integrated plan to address those challenges, and
To respond to them more effectively.
Resilience is about making cities better, for both the short and long term, for everyone.
CHRONIC STRESSES Weaken the fabric of a city on a day to day or cyclical basis. Examples of
these stresses
include high unemployment; an overtaxed or inefficient public transportation system; endemic
violence; and
chronic food and water shortages.
ACUTE SHOCKS are the sudden, sharp events that threaten a city, including earthquakes, floods,
disease
outbreaks, and terrorist attacks.
Three Indian cities, Bengaluru, Chennai and Surat have made it to the 100 Resilient Cities
(100RC)
project, run by the New Yorkbased nonprofit organisation Rockefeller Foundation.
The financial commitment for the project is $100 million. The cities would get funds to recruit
the chief
resilience officer. Other than that, support would be in the form of tools, people and the network.
Two States and one Union Territory Nagaland, Mizoram and Puducherry have no
women MLAs.
Four additional States Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Punjab have women MLAs,
but no women Ministers.
SPECIAL COMMERCIAL COURTS
Recommendations of Law commission in its 253rd report:
To set up special commercial courts for the speedy disposal of high value commercial suits
and suggested substantial changes in the Civil Procedure Code.
Establishment of a commercial division in the High Courts to ensure speedy disposal of
highvalue commercial suits.
A commercial appellate division will hear appeals on the orders and decrees of the
commercial courts.
The Chief Justice will nominate judges with expertise and experience in commercial matters
to the commercial and appellate courts.
All pending commercial disputes beyond the specified value will be transferred to the
commercial division.

COMMERCIAL DIVISIONS BILL/ACT

The Commercial Divisions bill introduces a commercial division in every high court having original
jurisdiction and commercial courts in such districts, as the Central government, in consultation with
the concerned State government and Chief Justice of the concerned High Court, may establish.
The bill will define commercial disputes so as to include ordinary transactions of merchants,
bankers, financiers, joint ventures, partnerships, insurance companies and so on.
These specialised courts will resolve all commercial disputes of value of over Rs. 1 crore.
The Bill provides for a fast track mechanism with stringent timelines.
For the first time it introduces in the Indian system the concept of a case management
conference wherein a procedural order is passed prior to trial, setting out a time table
(including timebound oral arguments supplemented with written arguments) which has to
be strictly adhered to.
The court is given wide powers to ensure that strict compliance is enforced. Moreover, the
court, too, is mandated to deliver its judgment within a period of 90 days.
The Bill also makes mandatory the cost follow the event regime, whereby, as a general rule,
the party against whom the order/judgment is passed bears the entire cost of litigation,
subject to exceptions where delaying parties, even if successful, have to bear part of the cost.
MATRUBHASHA DIVAS
The Centre has asked all the schools and higher educational institutions to celebrate February 21
as
Matrubhasha Divas by organising daylong activities like group songs and essay competitions in
Indian languages, with the UNESCO recently declaring it as International Mother Tongue Day.
Currently, five states Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Himachal
Pradesh have anticonversion laws in place to prevent forced conversions. The laws do not
ban conversions so long as they are voluntary.
PHARMA JAN SAMADHAN SCHEME
The Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers launched Pharma Jan Samadhan scheme.
Features
It is a web enabled system for redressal of consumers grievances relating to pricing and
availability of
medicines.
It is created by National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA).
Pharma Jan Samadhan will provide consumers and others with an on-line facility to redress
their
complaints relating to over-pricing of medicines, non-availability or shortage of medicines, sale of
new
medicines without prior price approval of NPPA, and refusal of supply for sale of any medicine
without
good and sufficient reason.
NPPA will initiate action on any complaint within 48 hrs of its receipt.
Significance
This phama-literacy initiative would create awareness among the people and would act as a
deterrence
against black-marketing, spurious medicines, and inflated cost of drugs.
This step will empower the common man.
ATAL INNOVATION MISSION (AIM)
Finance minister announced the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), in the NITI Aayog, with an
initial fund of

Rs 150 crore for research and development.

AIM would draw upon national and international experiences to foster a culture of innovation,
research
and development and scientific research in India.
AIM will be involving academicians, entrepreneurs and researchers.
PRICE STABILISATION FUND
The Department of Agriculture & Cooperation has approved the Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF) as a
Central
Sector Scheme. The Price Stabilization Fund (500 Cr) will be managed centrally by a Price
Stabilization Fund Management Committee (PSFMC) which will approve all proposals from State.
Objective:
The objective of the PSF is to support market interventions for price control of perishable agrihorticultural
commodities during 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17.
Revolving fund: For this purpose, the States will set up a revolving fund to which Centre and State
will contribute equally (50:50).
Procurement:
Procurement of these commodities will be undertaken directly from farmers or farmers
organizations at
farm gate/mandi and made available at a more reasonable price to the consumers.
Initially the fund is proposed to be used for onion and potato only.
The Government may have three types of agricultural policies to influence price behaviour, namely
production policies (influencing production), trade policies (export/import policy influences
domestic
supplies) and direct price stabilisation policies such as buffer stocks, emergency reserves, price
controls,
and prohibition of private trade.
URJA SANGAM 2015 - INDIAS GLOBAL HYDROCARBON SUMMIT
Prime Minister inaugurated UrjaSangam 2015 at VigyanBhavan, New Delhi, which is Indias
biggest
global hydrocarbon meet, aimed at shaping Indias energy security.
UrjaSangam aims to showcase Indias potential in the hydrocarbon sector to the world and
create an
investor-friendly atmosphere, besides positioning Indias thought leadership by creating a new
Energy
Security platform. On the global level, the summit aims to firm up cooperation agreements with key
global players.
PM urged all stakeholders to increase the domestic production of Oil and Gas to reduce import
dependence from 77 % to 67% by the year 2022.
The Prime Minister appealed to well-to-do sections of Indian society to voluntarily give up LPG
subsidy,
so that the benefit of the same could be shared more widely with poorer sections of society.
CATTLE SLAUGHTER AND THE BAN ON BEEF
The bill amends Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act 1976 and bans slaughter of bulls and
bullocks in the state.
However, this Act allows slaughter of water buffaloes, which provides carabeef that is
generally considered as an inferior quality meat.
BHARAT RATNA FOR A B VAJPAYEE AND MADAN MOHAN MALVIYA
Former PM A B Vajpayee and late educationist Madan Mohan Malviya have been awarded
Bharat Ratna.

It is countrys highest civilian award given to citizens for their exceptional work in the field of
art, literature and science, and public service. In Dec 2011, govt had changed the criteria for
including sportsperson for this award thus added category for performance of highest order in
any field of human endeavour. The Prime Minister himself recommend this awrad to the
President.
The recipient receives a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion. It does not
carry any monetary grant.
So far 45 people have been honoured with the Bharat Ratna since its inception (including
Madan Mohan Malviya and A. B. Vajpayee). In February 2014, it was awarded to eminent scientist
Prof C.N.R. Rao and cricketer Sachin Tendulkar.
Madan Mohan Malviya
o Born on 25 Dec1861 and was an educationist and notable politician.
o He founded Asias largest residential university Banaras Hindu University.
o Malviya was the President of the INC in 1909, 1918, 1932 and 1933.
o A staunch proponent of Hindu nationalism. Associated with right-wing Hindu Mahasabha.
o He died in 1946.
AtalBihari Vajpayee
o Born on 25th Dec 1924.
o Elected to the LokSabha for 9 times and twice to the RajyaSabha.
o Cabinet Minister of External Affairs in Janta Government headed by Morarji Desai from 1977-79.
o First PM from outside the Congress party to serve a full five-year term.
o He is amongst the founder members of erstwhile Bharatiya Jana Sangh which later became
known as BJP in 1980.
o In 2009, he retired from active politics due to health concerns.
o Recently, Union government had announced to observe his birthday as Good Governance Day.
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana is National Mission for Financial Inclusion. Its objective is to
eradicate financial exclusion by covering all households in the country with banking facilities and
having a bank account for each household.
Key Features of the Scheme
PMJDY has been launched in mission mode and its objective is to ensure access to financial services,
namely, Banking/ Savings & Deposit Accounts, Remittance, Credit, Insurance, Pension in an
affordable manner. Several key features of the scheme include:
Interest on deposit
Accidental insurance cover of Rupee One Lakh.
No minimum balance required
Life insurance cover of Rs.30,000/Easy Transfer of money across India
Further, the beneficiaries of Government Schemes would get Direct Benefit Transfer in these
accounts; After satisfactory operation of the account for 6 months, an overdraft facility will be
permitted; Access to Pension, insurance products.; Accidental Insurance Cover, RuPay Debit Card
must be used at least once in 45 days; Overdraft facility upto Rs.5000/- is available in only one
account per household, preferably lady of the household.
Digital India Programme
Salient Features
Umbrella programme which includes the hitherto National Optical Fiber Network (NOFN) to
connect 2,50,000 gram Panchayats by providing internet connectivity to all citizens.
To be completed in phased manner by 2019.
To be monitored by a Digital India committee comprised of several ministers.

 Contemplates creation of massive infrastructure to provide high-speed internet at the gram level, eavailability of major government services like health, education, security, justice, financial inclusion
etc. thereby digitally empowering citizens.
Will also ensure public answerability via a unique ID, e-Pramaan based on standard government
applications and fully online delivery of services.
Has capacity to create huge number of jobs.
If implemented well, will be a great boost for the electronics industry in India and expectedly will
see a fall in imports of electronics.
Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana
On the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Narayan, PM Modi launched the Sansad Adarsh Gram
Yojana keeping his commitment, he made to the nation in his Independence Day speech. The
scheme is properly and religiously implemented will revolutionize the village economies and culture.
It encourages MPs or Sansads to identify and develop one village from their respective constituency
as a model village by 2016 and two more by 2019. This will ensure development of 2500 villages.
Here are some of the highlights of the Yojana:
MPs are required to pick one village with a population of 3000-4000 in plains and 1000-3000 in
hills within a month of the launch.
MPs cannot pick villages which belong to themselves or their spouses.
The scheme requires them to draft a village development plan, motivate inhabitants to participate
in growth via different activities, identify gaps in funding and mobilising MPLAD funds to create
additional resources specifically from CSR initiatives of various corporate houses, in areas of
sanitation and water supply.
The outcomes of the same should cover a wide spectrum of indicators like health, nutrition and
education through organising and monitoring immunization drives, improving standard and quality
of mid-day meal schemes, improving Aadhaar enrolment, setting up smart schools with IT-enabled
classrooms and e-libraries, Panchayat infrastructure improvement under schemes such as
MGNREGA and Backward Regions Grants Fund etc.
Social development and harmony should be encouraged through activities like identifying and
celebrating a village day, a village song and also laying stress on alternate modes of dispute
resolution.
The scheme also has provisions to plug all gaps which were hitherto a mark of every government
yojana. The implementation will be ensured by web-based monitoring and an initial 5-month review
by an independent agency. District Collectors will carry ground-level surveys along with monthly
review meetings to monitor progress . At the State-level too, Chief Secretaries will head empowered
committee on the same and the Minister for Rural Development and Secretary, Rural Development,
will chair two national-level committees to track the scheme
Ustad Scheme
USTAD stands for Upgrading the Skills and Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development
Scheme. It was recently launched by Union Minister of Minority Affairs Dr. Najma Heptullah
in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh in order to improve degrading conditions of world famous Banaras Saree
weavers who belong to minority communities.
The Scheme aims at upgrading Skills and Training of minority communities by preservation of
traditional ancestral Arts and Crafts.
It also envisages boosting the skill of craftsmen, weavers and artisans who are already engaged in
the traditional ancestral work.
Under the scheme, assistance will be provided to traditional artisans to sell their products in order
to make them more compatible with modern markets.
It is fully funded by Union Government and Union Ministry of Minority Affairs is nodal agency in
implementing it.
Namami Gange Project

Namami Gange Project or Namami Ganga Yojana is an ambitious Union Government Project which
integrates the efforts to clean and protect the Ganga river in a comprehensive manner. It its maiden
budget, the governnment announced Rs. 2037 Crore towards this mission. The project is officially
known as Integrated Ganga Conservation Mission project or 'Namami Ganga Yojana'.
This project aims at Ganga Rejuvenation by combining the existing ongoing efforts and planning
under it to create a concrete action plan for future.
Salient Project features
Over Rs. 20,000 crore has been sanctioned in 2014-2015 budget for the next 5 years.
Will cover 8 states, 47 towns & 12 rivers under the project.
Over 1,632 gram panchayats on the banks of Ganga to be made open defecation-free by 2022.
Several ministries are working with nodal Water Resources Ministry for this project includes Environment, Urban Development , Shipping, Tourism & Rural Development Ministries.
Prime focus will be on involving people living on the rivers banks in this project.
Under the aegis of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) & State Programme Management
Groups (SPMGs) States and Urban Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj institutions will be involved in
this project.
Setting river centric urban planning process to facilitate better citizen connects, through
interventions at Ghats and River fronts.
Expansion of coverage of sewerage infrastructure in 118 urban habitations on banks of Ganga.
Enforcement of Ganga specific River Regulatory Zones.
Development of rational agricultural practices & efficient irrigation methods.
Setting Ganga Knowledge Centre.
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) is a proposed scheme by the Government of
India which envisages connecting the irrigation system's three crucial components The Field
application, water sources & distribution network for optimal usage.
Specifications:
In the recent budget 2014-15 over Rs. 1000 crore were allotted to rejuvenate irrigation sector.
The new irrigation scheme aims to cover un-irrigated 65 per cent of the total 142 million hectares
of farm land.
It primly focuses on 'end-to-end solution' in irrigation supply chain by implementing the new
programme in a "project mode" with decentralised state-level planning and execution.
PMKSY projects would be scrutinised by the State Level Project Screening Committee (SLPSC)
and sanctioned by the State Level Sanctioning Committee, which is already set under Rashtriya
Krishi Vikas Yojana.
The state agriculture department would be the nodal agency for implementation of PMKSY
projects with inter-ministerial National Steering Committee (NSC) for periodic review of the same.
The funds under PMKSY will be allocated only if state government has prepared the district
irrigation plans and state irrigation plans.
PMKSY funds would be given to states as 75 per cent grant by the central government and the
remaining 25 per cent share is to be borne by the state government. But, for the northeastern region
and hilly states, the funding pattern would be 90:10.
PMKSY envisage interlinking of perennial rivers to avoid drought and floods situations.
Soli Health Card will be issues to farmers to know their soil contents for better production.
Strengthening of Krishi Vigyan Kendras or agriculture science centres in all the districts of the
country to aid the farmers with new technology up gradation for irrigation.
Linkage of this scheme with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Scheme to
channelize the available work force to productive & value added work.
Shramev Jayate (Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Shramev Jayate Karyakram)
The scheme is aimed at creating conducive environment for industrial development and doing
business with ease. At least four crore laborers are expected to benefit from this scheme. Several
initiatives were taken by the Government under the scheme.

A dedicated Shram Suvidha Portal which would allot Labour Identification Number (LIN) to
nearly 6 lakhs units and allow them to file online compliance for 16 out of 44 labour laws.
National Ayush Mission
Government has permitted the launching of National Ayush Mission (NAM) to attend to the gaps in
health services in vulnerable and far-flung parts of the country. The judgment to launch the NAM
was taken in a meeting of the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Via the
AYUSH Mission (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy), the Govt. is
looking forward to address gaps in health services by backing the attempts of state governments for
delivering Ayush health services and education in the country, mainly in vulnerable and remote
areas. The Mission will assist in improving the Ayush education via improvement in the number of
advanced educational institutions and deliver improved access to Ayush services via growth in
number of Ayush hospitals and dispensaries. The mission will also assist sustained accessibility of
quality raw material for Ayush systems of medicine and advance accessibility of quality drugs via
growth in number of pharmacies and drug laboratories.
Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana
Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana has been launched on pilot basis in only 1 block in each of the 10 states
viz. Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Orissa, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan,
Maharashtra and Gujarat. The overall objective of the scheme is to raise the level of Tribals by
focusing on the below:
Provision of a better living standard and quality of life
Improving access to and quality of education
Generating resources for long-term and sustainable growth
Bridging infrastructural gaps
Protection of tribal culture and heritage
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana
This is a General Insurance Scheme which provides an insurance cover at a minimal annual
premium for death or disability of the person due to accidents.
The risk coverage of the scheme for accidental death or full disability is Rs. 2 lakhs and for partial
disability is Rs. 1 lakh.
Anyone who falls in the age-bracket of 18-70 years can avail the benefit of this scheme and get
enrolled.
He should have a bank account linked with his Aadhaar card. He/she has to fill a simple form
before June 1, every year and also declare the name of his nominee. The people who subscribe have
to renew it every year or give instructions of auto-debit to bank every year to avoid hassles. The
annual premium is a meagre amount of Rs. 12. This is comparatively very reasonable as similar
insurance in private sector would have a premium of Rs. 100, as per experts. The payments will be
automatically debuted from the subscribers account annually.
It will be offered by all the public-sector insurance companies like New India Assurance Company,
National Insurance Company, United India Insurance Company, The Oriental Insurance Company
etc. These will operate by tie-ups with respective banks.
Other ministries of government will also contribute to the scheme for different categories of
beneficiaries with from Public Welfare Fund created from unclaimed money or their budget. The
common publicity expenditure will be taken care of by the government.
The scheme which promises to bring affordable insurance cover to many individuals who were far
from insurance net might not bring much cheer to middle class as the cover is inadequate.
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana
This is a Life Insurance scheme which guarantees cover of Rs. 2 lakhs in case of natural or accidental
death. Anybody who has an Aadhaar number with a linked bank account and falls in the age- bracket
of 18-50 years can enrol for the same.

 The annual premium for the scheme is Rs. 330 which has to be automatically debited from the
subscribers bank account. Anyone can either renew the scheme annually or opt for the long-term
provision in which case the amount will be automatically deducted.
The scheme will be majorly implemented by Life Insurance Corporation of India. Other insurers
can also join if willing.
Atal Pension Yojana
Atal Pension Yojana would gradually replace the Swavalamban Scheme which did not cover many
people due to ambiguities in benefits after 60. Also, latter did not have minimum guaranteed
pension provision. The main attraction of Atal Pension Yojana is that it guarantees a minimum
pension amount at the age of 60, to subscribers which will vary from Rs. 1000 per month; Rs. 2000
per month; Rs. 3000 per month; Rs. 4000 per month and Rs. 5000 per month depending upon their
contributions.
The minimum age of joining APY is 18 years and maximum age is 40 years.
The minimum period of contribution by subscriber is 20 years or more.
The Central Government will contribute 50% of the subscribers contribution or Rs. 1000 per
annum for a period of 5 years. This provision is for people who are non-tax payers and join NPS
before 31stDecember, 2015.
Atal Pension Yojana will become operational from 1st June, 2015. Anybody who has attained the
desired age and has an Aadhaar number along with a linked bank account can enrol for the scheme.
Government will undertake all expenses incurred during promotional and development activities
done to incentivise people to join the scheme.
Self Employment and Talent Utilization (SETU) Scheme
SETU or Self Employment and Talent Utilization Scheme is a techno-financial, incubation and
facilitation programme to give support and encouragement to young start-ups and other
selfemployment technology-intensive ideas. An allocation of Rs. 1000 Crore has been made for SETU
Scheme. This amount will initially rest with the NITI Aayog. It will involve setting up of incubation
centres and enhance skill development. It aims to create around 100,000 jobs through start-ups.
Shramev Jayate (Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Shramev Jayate Karyakram)
Shramev Jayate program aimed at creating conducive environment for industrial development and
ease of doing business through introduction of several labour reforms. This program was launched to
support the Make in India campaign of India for encouragement of manufacturing sector, thus felt
need to bring labour reforms. This program targets to benefit at least four crore labourers. Schemes
launched under Shramev Jayate Programs are:
Shram Suvidha Portal:
Developed by Ministry Labour & Employment to create a conducive environment for industrial
development. The main features of this Portal are:
Allocation Unique labour identification number (LIN) to labour to facilitate online registration.
The compliances would be reportable in Single Harmonized Form which will make it simple and
easy for those filing such forms.
Filing of self-certified and simplified Single Online Return by the industry.
Labour inspector can upload inspection report within 72 hours.
This portal will help timely redressal of grievances.
Above features will bring ease in compliance of provisions related to labour and will be a step
forward in promoting the ease of doing business. Under this it is proposed to allot LIN to all these 67 lakh units.
Labour Inspection scheme:
A transparent Labour Inspection scheme is being developed to bring in transparency in labour
inspection. The following features of the inspection scheme are:
Inspection list will also contain serious matters regarding employee.
A computerized list of inspections will be generated randomly.

Complaints based inspections will be determined centrally after examination based on data and
evidence.
Provision of Emergency List of serious cases in specific circumstances.
AMENDMENTS TO THE PREVENTION OF CORRUPTION ACT, 1988
The Union Cabinet gave its approval to amend the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.The proposed
amendments would fill in perceived gaps in the domestic anti-corruption law and also help in
meeting the country's obligations under the United Nations Convention Against Corruption
(UNCAC) more effectively.
The proposed amendments are mainly aimed at laying down more stringent measures to tackle
corruption as follows:
Providing for more stringent punishment for the offences of bribery, both for the bribe giver and
the bribe taker.
Penal provisions being enhanced from minimum 6 months to 3 years and from maximum 5
years to 7 years (The seven year imprisonment brings corruption to the heinous crime category).
To contain gain of benefits from profits of corruption, the powers of attachment are proposed to
be conferred upon the trial Court (Special Judge) instead of the District Court.
The ambit of the existing Act will be enhanced to make commercial entities liable for
inducement of public servants. Under the present law, only individuals are liable.
The proposed amendment bill also provides for issue of guidelines to commercial organisations
to prevent persons associated with them from bribing a public servant.
The average trial period of cases under PC Act in the last 4 years has been above 8 years. It is
proposed to ensure speedy trial by providing a trial completion within 2 years.
Intentional enriching by public servants will be construed as criminal misconduct and
possession of disproportionate assets as proof of such illicit enrichment.
Non-monetary gratification has been covered within the definition of the word gratification.
By way of explanation 2 to section 7(2), the obligation of a public servant has been explicitly
delineated such that the public servant deters from violating a statutory duty or any set of rules,
government policies, executive instructions and procedures.
It is also proposed to extend the protection of prior sanction for prosecution to public servants
who cease to hold office due to retirement, resignation etc.Further, prior sanction for inquiry and
investigation shall be required from the Lokpal or Lokayukta, as the case may be, for investigation of
offences relatable to recommendations made or decision taken by a public servant in discharge of
official functions or duties.
REAL ESTATE (REGULATION AND DEVELOPMENT) BILL
SOME MAJOR POINTS OF THIS BILL
Real Estate Regulatory Authority will be formed for every state/UT which will mandate
and regulate the rules pertaining to real estate transactions.
The Bill provides for mandatory registration of all projects with the Real Estate Regulatory
Authority in each State. Real estate agents who intend to sell any plot, apartment or building should
also register themselves with this authority
It makes mandatory the disclosure of all information for registered projects like details of
promoters, layout plan, land status, schedule of execution and status of various approvals
The Bill seeks to make property brokers accountable as they have also been made punishable for
noncompliance of the orders of Regulatory Authority and Appellate Tribunals to be set
under the law.
50% of the money received from the buyer needs to be deposited in a bank; solely for the
purpose of construction alone. Any major changes to the original design and construction plan of
the project needs approval from atleast2/3rd of all allottees of the project.
It seeks to enforce the contract between the developer and buyer and act as a fast track
mechanism to settle disputes.
NATIONAL AGRICULTURE INSURANCE SCHEME(NAIS)

The Government introduced in 1999-2000, a new scheme titled National Agricultural Insurance
Scheme (NAIS) or Rashtriya Krishi Bima Yojana (RKBY).NAIS envisages coverage of all food
crops (cereals and pulses), oilseeds, horticultural and commercial crops. It covers all farmers, both
loanees and non-loanees, under the scheme.
NAIS operates on the basis of:
Area approach- defined areas for each notified crop for widespread calamities.
On individual basis- for localized calamities such as hailstorms, landslides, cyclones and floods.
GREENPRINT FOR SUSTAINABILITY AND ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION
Some critical points for action in executing the plan for Green India are discussed below:
Refocus the relevant laws
Remodel the federal structure
Restructure the Indian Forest Service (IFS).
There is the matter of financial independence
Some attention needs to be paid to wildlife and heritage towns
Developing wildlife tourism.
SECTION 499 AND 500 OF THE INDIAN PENAL CODE
Section 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, pertaining to criminal defamation.
Section 499 defines the offence defamation.
Section 500. (Punishment for defamation): Whoever defames another shall be punished with
simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.
As the law stands, defamation is both a civil wrong and a criminal offence. In a civil action, a
person may be sued for monetary compensation while a criminal wrong can invite imprisonment up
to two years.
The constitutionality of these provisions has been challenged in the Supreme Court and the
court has issued notice to the government.
The Hindu had in 2003 filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court challenging the vires of
Section 499, inter alia on grounds that it violated the freedom of press guaranteed under Article
19(1)(a).
The petitions contend that Sections 499 and 500 of the IPC travel beyond the restrictions
enshrined in Article 19(2), thus constricting free speech beyond reasonable limits.
Under Article 19(2), free speech can be curtailed only by way of reasonable restrictions. Such a
restriction must not be arbitrary or excessive, and the impairment of freedom must be as little as
possible. But criminal prosecution in India can be incredibly harassing and intimidating, and have a
chilling effect, thus being an unreasonable restriction.
WHAT IS A SMART CITY?
A city equipped with basic infrastructure to give a decent quality of life, a clean and sustainable
environment of some smart solutions.
Basic infrastructure:
Assured water and electricity supply, sanitation and solid waste management, efficient urban
mobility and public transport, robust IT connectivity, e-governance & citizen participation, safety &
security of citizens.
Smart solutions
Public information, grievance redressal, electronic service delivery, citizens' engagement, waste to
energy compost, 100% treatment of waste water, smart meters & management, monitoring water
quality, renewable source of energy, efficient energy & green building, smart parking, intelligent
traffic management system.
THE ATAL MISSION FOR REJUVENATION AND URBAN TRANSFORMATION
(AMRUT)

The Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) of 500 cities, which
replaces the
Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, with outlays of Rs. 50,000 crore.
AMRUT, which seeks to lay a foundation to enable cities and towns to eventually
grow into smart cities, will be implemented in 500 locations with a population of one
lakh and above.
Assistance from the centre for AMRUT will amount to 50 percent of project cost for cities and
towns with a population of up to a million and one-third of the project cost for those with a
population of above a million. Central assistance will be released in three instalments in the ratio of
20:40:40 based on achievements.
AMRUT will focus on ensuring basic infrastructure services such as water supply,
sewerage, storm water drains, transport and development of green spaces and parks with special
provision for meeting the needs of children.
Implementation will be linked to promotion of urban reforms such as e-governance, setting up
of professional municipal cadre, devolving funds and functions to urban local bodies, review of
building bye-laws, improvement in assessment and collection of municipal taxes, credit rating of
urban local bodies, energy and water audit and citizen-centric urban planning.
RENEWABLE ENERGY SECTOR
The Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) decision to grant special status to the renewable energy sector,
among others, under priority sector lending, is expected to accrue large benefits for the sector.
Renewable Energy has come under priority sector lending along with medium enterprises and social
infrastructure.
It will help government to achieve 100 GW of green energy target by 2022.
This will boost investments from the SME sector in renewable space as finance will be available
at a competitive rate.
The move will help SMEs to grow and expand their manufacturing capacity as they would
become competitive
Now commercial banks need to extend loans of up to a limit of Rs.15 crore to borrowers for
setting up solar based power generators, biomass based power generators, wind mills, micro-hydel
plants and for non-conventional energy based public utilities such as street lighting systems and
remote village electrification.
For individual households, the loan limit will be Rs.10 lakh per borrower.
STEM SKILLS
STEM refers to science, technology, engineering and mathematics. STEM talents are in great
demand in
workplaces today. However, according to various studies, its a demand that is not being adequately
met
by the current education system.
In its Analysis of Talent Supply and Demand report 2014, NASSCOM says, The country is
churning out a
number of engineers every year, but only 21 per cent of the total engineering graduates are
employable.
One of the reasons for poor development of STEM skills is the lack of linkage between education
and
industry. Exposure to industry would enable students to acquire these skills as part of their natural
learning process. In the Indian scenario, such opportunities are scarce for college students
It has been established the world over that 80 per cent of the fastest growing occupations
require STEM
skills
China, India and Brazil are the largest producers of STEM graduates, in that order, together
accounting
for 88 per cent of STEM graduates.

E-TOURIST VISA ( Ministry of Home Affairs)

The Tourist Visa on Arrival-Electronic Travel Authorization (TvoA-ETA) scheme, which was
launched in 2014 to
facilitate short duration visits by travellers from as many as 44 countries, has now been renamed eTourist Visa
to clarify that it is not an on-arrival scheme.
The name of the scheme [TVoA-ETA] is creating confusion among tourists, who are under the
impression that the
visa is being granted on arrival.
UNION CABINET APPROVES AMENDMENTS TO THE WHISTLE BLOWERS
PROTECTION ACT, 2011
The amendments incorporate necessary provisions aimed at strengthening safeguards against
disclosures which may prejudicially affect the sovereignty and integrity of the country,
security of the
State, scientific or economic interest of the State etc.
Safeguards have also been provided in respect of such disclosures which have been exempted
under
section 8(1) of the RTI Act, 2005.
Whistle-Blowers Act 2011
Definition: Whistle blowing is the act of disclosing information by an employee or a
stakeholder on
illegal or unethical conduct within an organisation. This mechanism was established in 2004
through a
government notification, which was issued on the direction of Supreme Court after the murder
of
SatyendraDubey, a whistleblower.
In 2007, the second ARC recommended that a law be passed to shield informants from
retribution.
India is also a signatory to the UN Convention against Corruption, which includes
provisions for
protecting whistle blowers.
Features of The Act
1. The Act provides that any public servant or any other person including an NGO may
make a public
interest disclosure to a Competent Authority(which can then conduct an inquiry and recommend
appropriate action against the guilty to head of the organization), notwithstanding anything
contained in the provisions of the Official Secrets Act, 1923 in Public interest.
2. The Competent Authority under the Act include
o The PM/CM for Ministers
o Chairman/ Speaker of legislature for MPs/MLAs
o High Court in relation to any subordinate judge
o Central/State Vigilance Commissions/other designated authority, for employees of Central &
State Government organizations
o Appropriate CA to be designated for Armed Forces/ forces charged with the maintenance of
public order/ any intelligence organisation or any person connected with the
telecommunication systems for these organisations.
3. CA may seek assistance of the CBI/ police authorities/ any other authority to carry out inquiries
under the Act. For the purpose of inquiries, CA shall have all the powers of a civil court.
4. Directions of CA are binding. Public authority to act on recommendations of CA within 3 months
(max. 6 months) or record reasons in writing for disagreement, else pay penalty up to 30,000 rupees
for non-compliance with CA directions.
5. The Special Protection Group (SPG) has been kept out of the ambit of act. The demand to include

higher judiciary (Judges of Supreme Court and High Courts) has been rejected.
6. It ensures confidentiality and penalizes any public official that reveals a complainants
identity,
without proper approval, with up to three years imprisonment and a fine of up to 50,000 rupee.
PARLIAMENT PASSES INDIA-BANGLADESH LAND BOUNDARY AGREEMENT
Background
The SC in Berubari case 1960 held that the power of Parliament to diminish the area of
state (under Art 3) does not cover cession of Indian Territory to a foreign country. Hence,
Indian Territory can be ceded to a foreign state only by amending the Constitution under
Article 368.
119th Constitutional Amendment Bill In line with the Berubari judgement, the Government of India came up with the 119th
Constitutional
Amendment Bill as it requires ceding part of Indian Territory to Bangladesh. It involves exchange of
land
in 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh and 51 Bangladeshi enclaves on Indian soil. Indian enclaves in
Bangladesh are spread over 17,149 acres, while Bangladesh enclaves in India are located in 7,110
acres
of land, implying that India will have to cecede some part of its territory.
Since it provides for exchange of territories in the States of Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya,
and
Tripura, the bill amends paragraph relating to the territories of Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya, and
Tripura in the First Schedule of the Constitution
UN PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD
Nadia, which was declared as the first open defecation freedistrict in country, has
won the United
Nations Public Service Award 2015 in the category of improving delivery of public services.
Nadia has earned praise for making available toilets for all under the programme Sabar
Shouchagar.
Other Districts -While Hooghly and Burdwan districts have bagged the second and third
positions,
Jaisalmer in Rajasthan also features in the top 10 list of open defecation free districts.
UNDERTRIAL REVIEW COMMITTEE

BLACK MONEY BILL

The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill, 2015, popularly known as black
money bill was passed by Parliament.

NEW BENAMI TRANSACTION (PROHIBITION) BILL, 2015

WHAT IS A BENAMI TRANSACTION?
A transaction is considered benami (literally nameless or without a name) when the consideration
for a property that is transferred to a person or is held by him/her is paid by another person.
OBJECTIVE OF BILL:
To curb the generation of black money inside the country
PROVISIONS
The Bill seeks to amend the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 and act as a major
avenue for
blocking generation and holding of black money in the form of benami property, especially in real
estate
The bill defined benami transaction as an arrangement where:
o The property is held by a person on behalf of another person who has paid for it
o The property has been bought in a fictitious name
o The owner of the property is not aware of or denies knowledge of such ownership.
These provisions, however, were not to apply to any transaction entered into by an individual in
the
name of his mother, father, spouse, brother or sister.
It Provides for attachment and confiscation of benami properties and imposes fine with
imprisonment.
With regards to penalties for benami transactions, the bill proposed a maximum punishment
of two
years imprisonment.
It provided for the aggrieved party to move an Appellate Tribunal for the purpose and again the
High
Court within 120 days of the tribunal's order
CURB ON GOVERNMENT ADVERTISEMENTS

The court held that the photos of only three constitutional authorities - Prime Minister,
President and Chief Justice of India - can be used in such ads. But for that too, the personal
approval of these three authorities need to be got before publication.
EUTHANASIA: RIGHT TO LIFE VS RIGHT TO DIE
MEANING OF EUTHANASIA
The word euthanasia, originated in Greece, literary means a good death but in this context it means
mercy Euthanasia encompasses various dimensions, from active (introducing something to cause
death) to passive (withholding treatment or supportive measures); voluntary (consent) to
involuntary (consent from guardian) and physician assisted (where physicians prescribe the
medicine and patient or the third party administers the medication to cause death).
Request for premature ending of life has contributed to the debate about the role of such practices in
contemporary health care. This debate cuts across complex and dynamic aspects such as legal,
ethical, human rights, religious, economic, social and cultural aspects of the civilised
society.killing.
SUPREME COURT GUIDELINES ON EUTHANASIA
Active euthanasia: Administering of lethal injection to snuff out life is illegal in India
Passive euthanasia: Withdrawing life support, treatment or nutrition that would allow a
person to live,
was legalised by way of SC guidelines in 2011.
Parents, spouse, close kin, "next friend" can decide, in best interests of the patient, to
discontinue life
support. The decision must be approved by a HC.
In dealing with such a plea,
Chief Justice of High Court must create a Bench of at least 2 judges to reach a decision.
Bench must nominate three reputed doctors.
A copy of the doctors's panel report must be provided to close kin and State govt. Only then can
verdict be reached.
DEENDAYAL UPADHYAYA GRAM JYOTI YOJANA
This scheme will enable to initiate much awaited reforms in the rural areas. The earlier
scheme for rural electrification viz. Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY)
has been subsumed in the new scheme as its rural electrification component.
COMPONENTS
The major components of the scheme are:
Feeder separation. Rural feeder segregation is the separation of technical infrastructure of
agriculture consumers from non-agriculture consumers.
Strengthening of sub-transmission and distribution network.
Metering at all levels (input points, feeders and distribution transformers).
Micro grid and off grid distribution network & Rural electrification.
BUDGETARY SUPPORT AND FUNDING MECHANISM
Grant portion of the Scheme is 60% for other than special category States (up to 75% on
achievement of prescribed milestones) and 85% for special category States (up to 90% on
achievement of prescribed
milestones).
The milestones for the additional grant are: timely completion of the scheme, reduction in AT&C
losses as per trajectory and upfront release of subsidy by State govt.
All North Eastern States including Sikkim, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and
Uttarakhand are included in special category States.
Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) is the Nodal Agency for operationalization of this
Scheme.

SCHEMES FOR WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

The Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has been implementing two special
schemes for women namely Mahila Udyam Nidhi which is an exclusive scheme for providing
equity to women entrepreneurs and the Mahila Vikas Nidhi which offers developmental
assistance for pursuit of income generating activities to women.
THREE SOCIAL SECURITY SCHEMES LAUNCHED
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched three schemes the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti
Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and the
Atal Pension Yojana (APY).
These initiatives are aimed at providing a universal social security net that will be linked
to individual
user's bank accounts.
The schemes -- two insurance products and one pension product -- are targeted
especially to the
unorganised sector and economically weaker population but others can enroll themselves as well.
PMJJBY
Renewable one year
life cover of
Rs. 2 lakh

PMSBY
Renewable one-year
accidental deathcumdisability
cover of Rs. 2
lakh for
partial/permanent
disability.

Eligibility

All savings bank

account holders
in the age group of 1850 years.

All savings bank

account
holders in the age
group of 18-70 years.

Premium

Rs. 330 per annum per

subscriber

Rs. 12 per annum per

subscriber

Administered
Through

Banks/Insurance firms

Banks/Insurance firms

Entitlements

APY
Focus on the
unorganised
sector
A fixed minimum
pension of
Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000
per
month starting at the
age of
60 years, depending on
the
contribution.
All savings bank
account
holders in the age
group of 1840 years.
From Rs 42 to Rs 210
per month
for entry at the age of
18 years
Pension Fund
Regulatory
andDevelopment
Authority (PFRDA)

RASHTRIYA RAJMARG ZILA SANJOYOKTA PARIYOJNA

After Bharat Mala and Sagar Mala aimed at improving road connectivity in border areas and
coastal
regions respectively the government has now cleared plans to connect 100 of the 676 district
headquarters in the country with world-class highways.
The Rashtriya Rajmarg Zila Sanjoyokta Pariyojna entails development of 6,600 km of highways
at an
estimated cost of about Rs 60,000 crore
NAMAMI GANGE PROGRAMME

The Union Cabinet approved the flagship Namami Gange Program which integrates the efforts to
clean and protect the Ganga river in a comprehensive manner. The program will cover 12 rivers (
not just river Ganga) in 8 States.
Mission Focus
NamamiGange will focus on pollution abatement interventions namely Interception,
diversion & treatment of wastewater flowing through the open drains through bio-remediation /
appropriate in-situ treatment / use of innovative technologies / sewage treatment plants (STPs) /
effluent treatment plant (ETPs);
Implementing Machinery
The program would be implemented by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG),
and its state counterpart organizations i.e., State Program Management Groups (SPMGs).
NMCG will also establish field offices wherever necessary. In order to improve implementation, a
three-tier mechanism has been proposed for project monitoring comprising of
o High level task force chaired by Cabinet Secretary assisted by NMCG at national level,
o State level committee chaired by Chief Secretary assisted by SPMG at state level, and
o District level committee chaired by the District Magistrate.
Namami Gange Programme stresses on improved coordination mechanisms between
the various
Ministries/Agencies of the central and state governments.
In an attempt to bolster enforcement the Centre also plans to establish a 4-battalion Ganga
Eco-Task Force, a Territorial Army unit, apart from contemplating on a legislation that aims to
check pollution and protect the river.
People-Centred
The government is focusing on involving people living on the banks of the river to attain
sustainable
results.
States and grassroots institutions such as Urban Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj institutions
will be involved by implementing agency National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and its state
counterparts, State Programme Management Groups (SPMGs)
Funding
Centre will take over 100% funding of various activities/ projects under this program.
Taking a leaf from the unsatisfactory results of earlier Ganga Action Plans, the Centre now plans
to
provide for operation & maintenance of the assets for a minimum 10 year period, and adopt a
PPP/SPV approach for pollution hotspots.
The program has a budget outlay of Rs. 20,000 crore for the next 5 years. This is a
significant fourfold increase over the expenditure in the past 30 years (GoI has incurred an overall
expenditure of
approximately Rs. 4000 crore on this task since 1985).
GLOBAL PEACE INDEX 2015
The Global Peace Index for 2015, released by nonprofit Institute for Economics and Peace,
ranked 162 nations around the globe based on 22 indicators that includes military spending,
homicide rates and deaths from conflict, civil disobedience and terrorism etc.
India ranks a lowly 143rd on a global peace index, lagging way behind the likes of Bhutan
(18), Nepal (62), Sri Lanka (114) and Bangladesh (84). Pakistan is ranked at 154, while Afghanistan
at 160.
Iceland has emerged as the most peaceful nation in the world. Six out of the top 10 most
peaceful
countries were European, with Denmark and Austria holding the second and third. US is also
ranked at a lowly 94 scoring badly in terms of militarisation, homicides and fear of
violence. China is ranked 124.

BIBEK DEBROY COMMITTEE REPORT ON RESTRUCTURING OF RAILWAYS

The Bibek Debroy committee report on the restructuring of Indian Railways lays down a five-year
roadmap to evolve a statutory rail regulator, scrap the Rail Budget and make room for more players
in an open access regime which turns the Railways into just another train-service provider in the
country.
Committee's recommendations are based on three pillars: commercial accounting,
changes in HR and an independent regulator.
The report envisages the creation of a Railway Ministry eventually with at least three
Secretary-level officers (not attached with the Railway Board) to lay down policy for the rail
sector, not just of Railways alone that should ensure competitionencourage private entry and
private investments.
The report makes the existence of an independent, quasi-judicial Railway Regulatory
Authority of India a prerequisite for reforms like un-bundling and restructuring of Railways. It
will be up to the Regulator to decide technical standards, set freight rates and resolve
disputes. The Regulator can recommend fare revisions but these will not be binding on the
Railway Ministry.
The Regulator will work under the policy framed by the Ministry, while the present Railway
Board will become a board of Indian Railways the government-run operator alone. The Board
itself might be pruned to having only five secretary-level officers from the present seven.
The Rail Budget should cease to exist after 5 years and the government should take the
entire burden of social cost borne by Railways by way of subsidy.
The first five years will see preparatory work: migration to a commercial accounting system (to
figure out the social cost burden) in two years; uniform induction system of all new Human
Resource; and devolution of powers to General Managers, Divisional Railway Managers and Station
Managers.
It recommended separation of railway track construction, train operations, and rolling-stock
production units under different entities to enable open access.
The Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation Limited (DFCCL) should be made autonomous
and separated from Indian Railways so that it gives non-discriminatory access to both Indian
Railways and private operators. The Committee does not recommend privatization of Indian
Railways. It does, however endorse private entry with the proviso of an independent
regulator. The committee recommended commercial accounting as without it is difficult to
know the rate of return on the projects.
GREENHOUSE GASES: INDIA FOURTH BIGGEST EMITTER
As the global community gears up for the crucial Paris climate summit, the World Resources
Institute (WRI) a global research organization has come out with its latest analyses of the
countrywise emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases.
Six of the top 10 emitters are developing countries.
o China ranks first, contributing 25% of global emissions, making it the top emitter.
o The US and EU are the 2nd and 3rd largest emitters.
o India despite being the 4th largest carbon emitter continues to be far behind the other three
top big emitters in terms of per capita emission.
ANDHRA GOVERNMENT TO SET UP KRISHI CABINET
Chief Minister unveiled his plan to formulate a 'Krishi cabinet' with a group of ministers headed
by him
to give more thrust on agriculture. With this, Andhra Pradesh is set to become third state
after Bihar and Madhya Pradesh to have the Krishi cabinet in the country.
The State has taken the lead in introducing a separate budget exclusively for agriculture
in 2015-16. The Krishi cabinet will meet every month and take stock of the flow of funds for
agriculture and the allied activities and implementation of the major plans pertained to

these areas on a fast track.The Krishi cabinet would also aim at mitigating rural poverty
by ensuring agriculture a profitable activity through the mission on primary sector.
INCREASING PULSE PRODUCTION IN INDIA
Pulses in India are grown on about 25 mha of land, largely rain-fed, with only 16 % under irrigation.
Production hovers between 18-20 MMT. Pulses need much less water and are nitrogen
fixing, so they do not need much chemical fertiliser. India produced 101 MMT of rice from
about 43 mha, almost 60 % of which is irrigated. The key point in the case of rice is that it needs
high doses of water for irrigation, roughly 3,000-5,000 litres per kg of rice,
depending on where it is being grown. Further, 40-50 % of irrigation water goes back to
groundwater with much higher nitrate content, polluting potable water. This percolated water
has to be lifted time and again through highly subsidised power.
Nai Roshan Scheme
*The Minister of Minority Affairs recently said that the government has been successfully
implementing the Nai Roshni Scheme for Leadership Development of Minority Women from
2012-13.
*The scheme aims to empower and instill confidence among minority women by providing
knowledge, tools and techniques for interacting with Government systems, Banks and other
institutions at all levels.
*The scheme is implemented through Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). The scheme
is implemented with the involvement of the Gram Panchayat at village level and Local Urban bodies
at the District level.
1.

Swarajya Se Surajya: Saal Ek Shuruwaat Anek

--Good Governance
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Nurturing of team India through the emphasis on co-operative and competitive federalism
Unprecedented 10% increase in the devolution of funds to states
More funds to be passed on through reforms in Auction process of coal and other minerals
NITI Aayog constituted for National development through genuine Centre-State partnership
National Judicial appointments Commission
Expenditure management Commission to rationalize Government expenses
Bio-metric attendance rolled out for Government employees; resulting in higher productivity and
responsiveness
Record Parliamentary Efficiency---Number of sittings highest in a decade and 47 bills passed (highest
in 6 years)
2.
'Sarve Santu Niramayah'
Health Assurance to All - Mission Indradhanush
Vaccination cover against 7 deadly disease;
More than 89 lakh children to be covered by 2020
35 lakh already immunized
3.
Our Daughters - Our Pride'
Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana
Under this scheme a saving account can be opened by the parent or legal guardian of a girl child of
less than 10 years of age (born on or after: 02-December-2003; For FY 2014-15) with a minimum
deposit of 1,000/- in any post office or authorised branches of commercial bank.
---For the FY 2015-16, Government of India has declared an interest rate of 9.2 per cent on SSY
scheme. It was 9.1% for FY 2014-2015; yearly compounded.this is tax exempted.
---The account will remain operative for 21 years from the date of opening of the account or till
marriage of the girl child.
---Partial withdrawal up to 50 per cent of the account balance is allowed, only once after the girl child
completes age of 18 years, for the purpose of financing her higher education.

---Per girl child only single account is allowed. Parents can open this account for maximum two girl
child. In the event of birth of twin girls in 2nd birth or birth of 3 girl child's in 1st birth itself, this
facility will be extended to third child.
---Minimum deposit amount for this account is 1,000/- and maximum is Rs.1,50,000/- per year.
And also money to be deposited for 14 years in this account
---Passbook facility is available for the Sukanya Samriddhi Account
---From the FY 2015-16, the interest earned in this account will be exempted from taxes.
43 lakh accounts opened in post offices with a total deposit of Rs 562 crore
4.

Su-Shasan' - Transparent and Corruption-free Government

Free Allotment and auction related
Spectrum AllocationMost successful ever-yielding Rs. 1.09 lakh crores
Mines Act modernized replacing the discretionary mechanism with a transparent and competitive
auction process
LED bulbs---74% reduction in the prices (rs 310 to Rs. 82) due to transparent procurement
Coal Auction and allotment---3.35 lakh crores mobilized from 67 blocks (out of 204 cancelled blocks)
over the lifespan of mines.
All proceeds in Coal auction and allocation goes to the Coal Bearing statesWest bengal; Odisha;
Jharkhand; Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh

5.

Dharti ki Dharohar--Leaving behind a better Planet (environment Sustainablity)

Rs 38, ooo crores to be transferred to states for afforestation under the CAMPA Law
CampaCompensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority
GOI has also allocated funds to protect 5- endangered species of the nation:--Dugong (sea cow),
Gangetic Dolphin,
Great Indian Bustard,
Manipur Brow Antler Deer (Sangai) and
Wild Water Buffalo
In due course, others will be taken up as well
The number of tigers increased to 2226
27% increase in the population of Asiatic Lions in Gir
30% subsidy to 2-3-4 wheeler electric commercial vehicles
All environmental clearances to be made online.
Swacch Bharat
A nation-wide people-driven movement initiated
Over 58 lakh toilets build in 2014-15
Target to build 6.6 Crore toilets by 2019---support for building individual toilets increased to Rs 12,
000 for BPL households
All schools across the country to have toilets within one year---4.2 toilets in all
In April, 2015 Nadia became the first district in India to become Defacation-free
Nadia district could achieve this feat due to its collaborative effort with the United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF) and World Bank aimed at construction of toilets across the district.
Incidentally, in order to eliminate open defecation from the rural landscape of the state, the Chief
Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee formally launched the Mission Nirmal Bangla (MNB)
on 30 April 2015 and declared the day as Nirmal Bangla Diwas to mark the occasion.
The mission is akin to the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in its objectives which was launched on 2
October 2014--- with the objective of ensuring cleanliness in all the 4041 statutory cities and towns
of the country by 2 October 2019 which marks the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Banko BikanoBikaner government Open Defecation Scheme. Bikaner builds the largest
number of toilets in 2014-15 overcoming all odds like water scarcity and size. It also took the
overall sanitation coverage to 80% in just 2 years. Bikaner also has the highest number of
Open Defecation Free (ODF) panchayats in Rajasthan. Thus out of 219 Gram Panchayats, 180 are

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

6.

now ODF. All of these were just achieved in just two years under a special sanitation programme,
Banko Bikano (brave and beautiful) supported by the Ministry of Water and Sanitation programme
of the World Bank.
---In 2011, the sanitation coverage in the district the second largest in Rajasthan and fourth largest in
the country was just 20% which has now touched to 80%.
7.

Annadata Sukhi Bhava' - Farmers' Welfare

Relief to farmers affected by natural calamities
Compensation against crop-damage increased by 50%
Eligibility for receiving support lowered from 50% to 33%
Grain quality norms relaxed for procurement
Strong Positions at Global WTO negotiations---Securing our farmers long term interests
Farm Credit target raised to rs 8.5 lakh crores ensuring convenient access to loans at concessional
rates
Use of Mobile governance in agriculture given a fillip with more than 550 crore SMS sent to about 1
crore farmers as advisories and information.
Loans restructured---and re-scheduled for the affected farmers
Actively working with States to Create a Unified National Agriculture Market for a better deal for
farmers
Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) launched to promote Organic Farming
Various steps taken to empower sugarcane farmers250% increase in the ethanol blending and
increase of Import Duty

8.

Saksham Bharat
Education and Skills Development--Dedicated ministry for the skill development created
National Skill Mission and National Skill Development Policy
Skill Certification given Academic Equivalence under School to Skill Programme
76 lakh youth provided Skill Training
Saksham or Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Boys (2014)
Aims at all-round development of Adolescent Boys and make them self-reliant, gender-sensitive and
aware citizens, when they grow up.
It cover all adolescent boys (both school going and out of school) in the age-group of 11 to 18 years
subdivided into two categories, viz. 11-14 & 1418 years.
SablaOr Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (2010)
Empowering adolescent girls (Age) of 1118 years with focus on out-of-school girls by improvement
in their nutritional and health status and upgrading various skills like home skills, life skills and
vocational skills.
Implemented in 205 districts across the country in a pilot basis
It is being implemented using the platform of Integrated Child Development Services Scheme. The
scheme has two major components namely nutrition and non-nutrition component.
Nutrition is being given in the form of Take Home Ration or Hot Cooked Meal for 11 to14 years out
of school girls and 14 to18 years to All AGs, out of school and in school girls.
In the Non Nutrition component, the out of school Adolescent Girls 11 to18 years are being provided
IFA supplementation, Health check-up and Referral services, Nutrition and Health Education,
Counselling and guidance on family welfare, Adolescent Reproductive Sexual Health (ARSH), child
care practices and Life Skill Education and vocational training. A sum of Rs. 650 crores including
Rs. 65 crore for North Eastern Areas has been allocated for Sabla for 2013-14.
Merged Nutrition Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG) and Kishori Shakti Yojana (KSY).

9.

Neeranchal
To give an added impetus to watershed development in the country, a new programme called
Neeranchal with an initial outlay of ` 2,142 crores in the current financial year.

Pashmina Promotion Programme (P-3) and a programme for the development of other crafts
of Jammu & Kashmir is also to be started. For this a sum of Rs. 50 crores is set aside
10. Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission
Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission will be launched to deliver integrated project based
infrastructure in the rural areas.
The scheme will also include development of economic activities and skill development.
The preferred mode of delivery would be through PPPs while using various scheme funds.
It is based on the example of Gujarat that has demonstrated successfully the Rurban development
model of urbanization of the rural areas, through which people living in the rural areas can get
efficient civic infrastructure and associate services.
11. One Rank One Pension Scheme
One pension scheme for all military personnel in the current session of the Parliament.
This is a scheme which will ensure that the soldiers of the same rank and also the same length of
service will get the same pension, irrespective of their retirement date.
In simple words, it requires equal pension for those who retired in one particular year; as those who
retires in another year at the same position, and for the same duration of services rendered. Also the
difference in pension of present and past pensioners in the same rank occurs on account of the
number of increments earned by the defence personnel in that rank.
Till now there were no such rules; While every pay commission bumps the salaries of government
servants, pensions of ex-servicemen remain the same.
Any hike in the pension scheme will thus automatically be passed to the past pensioners
Implication of such a scheme-- The launch of this scheme is expected to push up the defence
expenditure of the Centres defense payments by a record 40%; and posing fresh challenges to keep
the Centres fiscal deficit within the budgetary target of 4.1 % of the GDP.
Why it is being demanded
---Civilian employees retire at 60; while military personnel retire much earlier based on ranks when
family liability is maximum and also second option for career is impossible
--Most of the officers retire at early 50s,
---Terms and conditions of military service is much tougher than civilian employees
---Soldiers undergo hardships postings; with risk of life and restriction towards fundamental rights
---Successive pay commissions have widened the gap between veterans who have retired earlier and
those who retire late
**Till now, the scheme is yet to be rolled out.
13. Education Schemes of the GOI
(a) SwayamLeveraging Mass open online courses to enable Mass Online Education
Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds
Programme of the Ministry of Human resources, GOI
At least one crore students are expected to benefit in 2 to 3 years through this initiative
All courses would be offered free of cost under this programme however fees would be levied in
case learner requires certificate.
Professors of centrally funded institutions like IITs, IIMs, central universities will offer online
courses , with the collaboration of foreign Universities as well
Subjects offered-- engineering education, social science, energy, management, basic sciences.
(b) Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya for Teachers training programme
Launched to raise the quality of training
(c) UDAANScheme dedicated to the development of Girl Child Education
UDAAN is an initiative by CBSE to enable disadvantaged girl students to transit from school to
post-school professional education specially in Science and Mathematics
support 1000 disadvantaged girls per year and provide them free online resources in Class XI and
Class XII

Selection based on merit and economic criterion

Those selected will be provided tablets that have preloaded content, in addition to regular
tutorials, assessments and study materials, along with regular tracking, monitoring and feedback
forms to parents.
(d) National e-Library---National access to educational material
(e) GIAN---Global initiative of Academic Network
Bringing eminent faculty from across the globe to teach in India and augment teacher-student
interation
Avenues for possible collaborative research
(f)

Five New IITs and Six New IIMS to be set with a number of Institutes specialized in different
fields and Four New AIIMS in India
(g) National Scholarship Portal---Single platform for students to avail the Central government
Schemes
(h) Pradhan Manntri Vidyalaya Karyakram---Student loans will be enabled under this
programme
(i) Saksham
scholarship for differently-abled children by AICTE, Ministry of Human Resource
Development, Government of India that aims to award 1000 scholarships per annum to differently
abled students to pursue technical education based on merit in the qualifying examination to pursue
technical education
The scholarship amount under the scheme is Rs 30,000 or tuition fees and Rs 2,000 per month
for contingency allowance for 10 months.
(j) Pandit Din Dayal Upadhyay Grammen Kaushal YojanaYouth Employment scheme
TO provide on-the-job training
It was launched by on 25 September 2014 by Union Minsters Nitin Gadkari and Venkaiah
Naidu on the occasion of 98th birth anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay. It aims to target
youth, under the age group of 1835 years
To train 10 lakh rural youth in 3 years
(k) Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana
Plan outlay of rs 1500 cr
skill training of youth (flagship programme) to be implemented by the Ministry of Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship through the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
The scheme will cover 24 lakh persons.
Skill training would be done based on the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF)
and industry led standards.
Under the scheme, a monetary reward is given to trainees on assessment and certification by
third party assessment bodies. The average monetary reward would be around Rs.8000 per
trainee
Training would include soft skills, personal grooming, behavioral change for cleanliness, good
work ethics.
Skill training Development Management System (SDMS) would be put in place to verify and
record details of all training centres a certain quality of training locations and xcourses.
Biometric system and video recording of the training process
robust Grievance Redressal mechanism would be put in place to address grievances
PETITION IN SUPREME COURT ON CRIMINAL DEFAMATION
Petitioners feel that criminal defamation (sec 499 and 500 of IPC) stifled freedom of
speech and expression under Article 19 (1) of the Constitution, even if the speech made
was truthful and meant to foster public debate of matters in the public domain
The penal sections were misused by those in power to settle political scores

The state has no compelling interest in restricting free speech under Article 19(1) between or among
private persons. Free speech restrictions under Article 19(2) must necessarily originate from
compelling state interest, not private interest.
Sections 123, 125 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, ought to be considered
exhaustive of the reasonable restrictions imposed on a political speech during elections.
GOVERNMENTS ARGUMENTS IN FAVOUR OF DEFAMATION
The Centre had refuted the petitioners by denying that criminal defamation had a chilling effect
on free speech. It maintained that a person would be charged for criminal defamation only if
his speech had neither social utility nor added to the value of public discourse and
debate.
The government argued that that the law is part of the states compelling interest to
protect the dignity and reputation of citizens.
Sections 499 and 500 are constitutionally saved and they are to be read as reasonable
restrictions on an individuals right to free speech. Article 19 (2) uses the word defamation in the
context of reasonable restriction. Therefore, it is clear that the Constitution-makers have sanctified
usage of Sections 499 & 500.
The government said that since there was no mechanism to censor Internet from within,
online maligning could be countered only by continuing with defamation as a criminal offence.
The government said that in India, citizens are unlikely to have enough liquidity to pay
damages for civil defamation and hence criminal defamation is necessary.
CONCLUSION
Criminal defamation should not be allowed to be an instrument in the hands of the state,
especially when the Code of Criminal Procedure gives public servants an unfair advantage by
allowing the states prosecutors to stand in for them when they claim to have been defamed by the
media or political opponents.
GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES DIGITAL INDIA PROGRAMME
In an order to create participative, transparent and responsive government, the much
ambitious 'Digital India' programme was launched. The Digital India programme aims at
transforming the country into a digitallyempowered knowledge economy. It is an umbrella
programme that covers multiple Government Ministries and Departments, coordinated by the
Department of Electronics & Information Technology (DeitY).
NINE PILLARS OF DIGITAL INDIA
1. Broadband Highways
This covers three sub components, namely Broadband for All Rural, Broadband for All Urban
and
National Information Infrastructure.
o Under Broadband for All Rural, 250000 village Panchayats would be covered by December
2016.
o Under Broadband for All Urban, Virtual Network Operators would be leveraged for service
delivery and communication infrastructure in new urban development and buildings would be
mandated.
o National Information Infrastructure would integrate the networks like SWAN, NKN and
NOFN along with cloud enabled National and State Data Centres.
2. Universal Access to Mobile Connectivity
3. Public Internet Access Programme
The two sub components of Public Internet Access Programme are Common Service Centres
and Post Offices as multi-service centres.
oCommon Service Centres would be strengthened and its number would be increased from

approximately 135,000 operational at present to 250,000 i.e. one CSC in each Gram Panchayat.
CSCs would be made viable, multi-functional end-points for delivery of government and business
services.
O A total of 150,000 Post Offices are proposed to be converted into multi service centres.
4. e-Governance Reforming Government through Technology
The guiding principles for reforming government through technology are- Form simplification
and
field reduction; Online applications and tracking of their status ; Mandatory use of online
repositories e.g. school certificates, voter ID cards, etc.
Electronic Databases all databases and information should be electronic and not manual.
Workflow Automation Inside Government The workflow inside government agencies
should be automated to enable efficient government processes and to allow visibility of these
processes to the citizens.
Public Grievance Redressal - IT should be used to automate, respond and analyze data to
identify and resolve persistent problems. These would be largely process improvements.
5. e-Kranti (NeGP 2.0) Electronic delivery of services
There are 31 Mission Mode Projects under different stages of e-governance project lifecycle.
Further, 10 new MMPs have been added to e-Kranti by the Apex Committee on NeGP
Technology for Education e-Education: Free wifi will be provided in all secondary and
higher secondary schools (totalling around 250,000 schools). A programme on digital literacy would
be taken up at the national level. MOOCs Massive Online Open Courses shall be leveraged for eEducation.
Technology for Health e-Healthcare: E-Healthcare would cover online medical
consultation, online medical records, online medicine supply, pan-India exchange for patient
information.
Technology for Farmers: This would facilitate farmers to get real time price information,
online ordering of inputs and online cash, loan and relief payment with mobile banking.
Technology for Security: Mobile based emergency services and disaster related services
would be provided to citizens on real time basis so as to take precautionary measures well in time.
Technology for Financial Inclusion : Financial Inclusion shall be strengthened using
Mobile Banking, Micro-ATM program and CSCs/ Post Offices.
Technology for Justice: Interoperable Criminal Justice System shall be strengthened by
leveraging e- Courts, e-Police, e-Jails and e-Prosecution.
Technology for Planning: National GIS Mission Mode Project would be implemented to
facilitate GIS based decision making for project planning, conceptualization, design and
development.
Technology for Cyber Security: National Cyber Security Co-ordination Center would be set
up to ensure safe and secure cyber-space within the country.
6. Information for All
Government to pro-actively engage via social media and web based platforms to inform citizens.
o MyGov.in has already been launched as a medium to exchange ideas/ suggestions with
Government. It will facilitate 2-way communication between citizens and government.
7. Electronics Manufacturing Target NET ZERO Imports
8. IT for Jobs
1 Crore students from smaller towns & villages will be trained for IT sector jobs over 5 years.
BPOs would be set up in every north-eastern state to facilitate ICT enabled growth in these
states.
3 lakh service delivery agents would be skill trained to run viable businesses delivering IT
services.
9. Early Harvest Programmes
IT Platform for Messages: A Mass Messaging Application has been developed by DeitY that
will cover elected representatives and all Government employees.
Biometric attendance: It will cover all Central Government. Offices in Delhi.
Wi-Fi in All Universities

Public Wi-fi hotspots: Cities with population of over 1 million and tourist centres would be
provided with wi-fi hotspots to promote digital cities. The scheme would be implemented by DoT
and MoUD.
National Portal for Lost & Found children: This would facilitate real time information
gathering and sharing on the lost and found children and would go a long way to check crime and
improve timely
response. Recently the Khoya Paya Portal was launched.
Digital Locker:
Digital locker is a dedicated personal storage space for e-documents as well as Uniform
Resource Identifier (URI) of e-documents issued by government departments. The system will have
an e-sign facility, which can be used to sign stored documents. Each locker is linked to the resident's
Aadhar number.
The entire programme is designed as a top-down model. There is no idea of how it would be
implemented on the ground to be successful. For example, Broadband highways, now called
BharatNet, is supposed to connect up to gram panchayat, but laying fiber optic cables is the least of
the challenges here.
NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL MARKET E- PLATFORM
Recently, the government has approved the creation of a National Agriculture Market (NAM)
online trading portal which will allow farmers and traders to sell their produce to buyers
anywhere in the country. This virtual marketplace will allow a farmer from, say, in Madhya Pradesh
to sell his chana to a dal miller in Delhi who may be willing to pay a higher price. The miller, too,
benefits by virtue of not
having to be physically present or being forced to depend on traders in that APMC area.
Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) has been designated as the lead agency
for developing the NAM e-platform. While buyers can log into the platform from homes or offices
anywhere in India, the transactions will, however, be recorded as having been conducted through the
mandi where the seller would normally bring his produce. The APMC concerned will, therefore,
continue to earn the mandi fee on the transaction even if it does not happen in that particular
market yard.
The APMC-regulated mandis will, in fact, gain through the significant increase in turnover
volumes likely from more buyers bidding for produce.
INDIA INSTALLS ITS FIRST EARTHQUAKE EARLY WARNING SYSTEM IN
UTTARAKHAND
All sensors system that warn of earthquakes are based on the detection of P and S waves
generated during an earthquake. The P wave, which is harmless and travels faster than the S wave, is
detected by the sensors for advance warning.
Countries with such systems include Mexico, Japan, and the United States, where the most
advanced system is California's state-run Shake Alert.
WORLD BANK REPORT: MGNREGA BECOMES WORLD'S LARGEST PUBLIC WORKS
PROGRAMME
According to the recently released World Bank Group's report titled as "The State of Social Safety
Nets 2015," MGNREGA has been ranked as the world's largest public works programme.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE REPORT
1. Around 182 million beneficiaries (15 % of India's population) are provided social security by
MGNREGA (under Ministry of Rural Development).
2. The Mid-day meal scheme, under the Ministry of Human Resource Development,
reaches out to 105 million beneficiaries which make it the biggest school feeding programme.
3. The Janani Suraksha Yojna, under the National Rural Health Mission, has around 78
million beneficiaries and is the top-most social security programme in terms of conditional cash

transfers. (Conditional cash transfers involve transfer of money only when the persons meet the
certain criteria).
4. Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS), launched by the
Ministry of Rural Development, is the second largest social security progamme in the world
for unconditional cash transfer.
5. The world's top five largest social safety net programmes are all from the middle-income
countries.
Besides India, the other three countries are China, South Africa and Ethiopia.
IRDA SUGGESTIONS TO IMPROVE HEALTH INSURANCE FRAMEWORK
Understanding the pulse of insurance buyers, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority
(IRDA) has suggested some new proposals to improve the Indian health insurance framework. These
are:
1. Entry age-based pricing
2. Premiums linked to CPI
3. Wellness and prevention-based incentives
4. Long-term insurance and health savings accounts
INTEGRATED POWER DEVELOPMENT SCHEME (IPDS)
The IPDS announced in the Union Budget 2014-15 envisages strengthening of subtransmission network, Metering, Customer Care Services, provisioning of solar panels
and the completion of the ongoing works of Restructured Accelerated Power
Development and completion of the Reforms Programme (RAPDRP).
Power Finance corporation is the nodal agency for operationalisation of this scheme.
ECONOMY
TAX ADMINISTRATION AND REFORM COMMISSION (TARC) 3RD REPORT

To check black money and to broaden the taxpayer base.

Banking cash transaction tax (BCTT) - Proposed levying of banking transaction tax on
withdrawal of cash beyond a specified limit in a day to check black money. BCTT was
introduced in June, 2005, to track unaccounted money and trace its source and destination,
but was withdrawn in April, 2009.
Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) - Proposed reintroduction of fringe benefits tax. FBT was
introduced in 2005-06 as a tax paid by employers on employee benefits that do not form part
of the salary.
Taxing farmers with large land holdings- Against a tax free limit of Rs.5 lakh on
agricultural income, farmers having income above much higher threshold income, such as
Rs.50 lakh, could be taxed.
Against amnesty schemes: Taxpayers keep waiting for amnesty schemes to be announced
and take
Advantage of these schemes to build their capital.
encourage unorganised retailers to pay tax dues voluntarily
improve SMEs tax compliance
Number of income taxpayers should be doubled, from slightly more than three crore to six
crore in three years.
Wealth tax base could be increased by including intangible financial assets in the base while
considerably raising the threshold and decreasing the wealth tax rate.

TRADE RECEIVABLES DISCOUNTING SYSTEM (TREDS):

To make it easier and faster for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to get their
dues.

An exchange driven trading mechanism that could end the agony of lakhs of Small and
Medium Enterprises which face endless delays in receiving payments for their supplies to
bigger companies.
MSME sellers, corporate buyers and financiers both banks and non-bank (NBFC factors)
will be direct participants in the TReDS.
The Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) should have a minimum paid up equity
capital of Rs
25 crore and non-promoters would not hold over 10 per cent of the equity capital of TReDS.

ASHOK LAHIRI COMMITTEE

Interact with trade and industry on tax related issues on a regular basis and ascertain areas
where clarity in tax laws is required.
The committee will give recommendations to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and
the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) for issuance of appropriate clarifications by
way of circulars, instructions on tax issues, it added
CONSTRUCTION SECTOR:
The government relaxed the FDI policy for construction sector by easing exit norms and reducing
built-up area and capital needs
Provisions of new policy:
100 per cent FDI will now be permitted under the automatic route and this gives them the
liberty to invest in all real estate classes.
The new policy has done away with the three-year lock-in period for repatriation of investment
Under the new policy, the minimum floor area requirement has been reduced to 20,000 square
metres from 50,000 square metres earlier.
It also brought down the minimum capital requirement to $5 million from $10 million.
For affordable homes, the government has exempted the conditions of minimum floor area and
capital requirement if an investee/joint venture companies commit at least 30 per cent of the total
project cost for low-cost housing.
SITUATION OF AGRICULTURAL HOUSEHOLDS:
The NSSO defined an agricultural household as one in which at least one member was selfemployed in agriculture (even if part-time) and which produced at least Rs 3,000 worth of
agricultural produce in a year.
Less than two hectares of land.
farm household makes less than Rs. 6,500 a month from all sources of income
58 per cent of rural households are agricultural households
Over half of all agricultural households are in debt
Private traders dominate the procurement space
NEW GST BILL
The Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill, 2014 was introduced in LokSabha on December
19, 2014.
Power to impose GST: The Bill amends the Constitution to empower Parliament and state
legislatures to make laws with respect to goods and services tax.
Integrated GST: The Bill inserts a new Article in the Constitution to empower only the
centre to levy and collect GST on supplies in the course of inter-state trade or commerce. The
tax collected would be divided between the centre and the states.
GST Council: The Bill creates a GST Council consisting of the union finance minister, the
minister of state for revenue and finance ministers of all states. The GST Council shall make
recommendations on the goods and services that will be subjected to and exempted from
GST, the rates including floor rates with bands, model GST law, special provision to special

status states, etc. Decisions will be made by at least three fourth majority, with the centre
having one third of the vote and the states two-thirds.
Additional Tax on supply of goods: An additional tax (not to exceed 1%) on the supply
of goods in the course of inter-state trade or commerce would be levied and collected by the
centre. Such additional tax shall be assigned to the states for two years, or as recommended
by the GST Council.
Compensation to states: Parliament may, by law, provide for compensation to states for
revenue losses arising out of the implementation of the GST, on the GST Councils
recommendations. This would be for a period up to five years.
Goods exempt: Alcoholic liquor is exempted from the purview of the GST. Further, the
GST Council is to decide when GST would be levied on petroleum crude, high speed diesel,
motor spirit(petrol), natural gas, and aviation turbine fuel.

MUNICIPAL BONDS
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) proposed a new set of norms for listing and trading of
municipal bonds on stock exchanges. Such municipal bonds are also known as muni bonds.
Objectives:
To help in the Governments smart cities programme.
To help channelise household savings and provide a new investment avenue.
Bonds issued by municipalities having good financial track record would be a good alternative
investment opportunity for conservative investors
NON-COOPERATIVE BORROWER
a non-cooperative borrower is a defaulter who deliberately stonewalls legitimate efforts of the
lenders to recover their dues.
Waterways in India: There are 5 national waterways has been created by an Act of Parliament and
they areI. Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system (Allahabad-Haldia-1620 km) in National Waterway-1
II. River Brahmaputra (Dhubri-Sadiya-891 km) in National Waterway-2.
III. West Coast Canal (Kottapuram-Kollam) along with Udyogmandal and Champakara Canals-(205
km) in National Waterway-3.
IV. Kakinada-Puducherry canals along with Godavari and Krishna rivers (1078 km) in National
Waterway-4.
V. East Coast Canal integrated with Brahmani river and Mahanadi delta rivers (588 km) in National
Waterway-5.
GDR (GLOBAL DEPOSITORY RECEIPT)
GDR is a popular financial instrument used by listed companies in India, as also in many
other countries, to raise funds denominated mostly in US dollar or euros.
GDRs are typically bank certificates issued in more than one country for shares of a
company, which are held by a foreign branch of an international bank. While shares trade on
a domestic stock exchange, which happens to be in India in the present case, they can be
offered for sale globally through the empanelled bank branches.
GDR ROUTE UNDER SCANNER IN BLACK MONEY PROBE
Regulatory and other agencies suspect that GDR route is being used for bringing back
suspected illicit funds stashed abroad.
The capital markets regulator SEBI has come across quite a few cases where GDR (Global
Depository Receipt) route could have been used for round-tripping of funds in the name of
capital-raising activities of listed companies from abroad.

Rounding tripping of funds has been a major route for those laundering black money. It
typically involves an entity transferring an asset or funds, in the name of a business deal,
with an agreement to buy it back.
Besides GDRs, the regulatory and other agencies are already probing the suspected misuse of
stock markets within India to evade taxes and launder money through trading in companies
that mostly exist on paper.

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on twenty nine Jan 2015
published global Investment Trend Monitor Report. The report provides the worldwide
investments trend in 2014 and prospects of world investments in 2015.
FALL IN CRUDE OIL PRICE
REASONS FOR THE FALL OF GLOBAL OIL PRICES
The main importer of Oil such as China has cut down its oil import by a huge margin thus
bringing a huge fall in the demands of the global oil supply.
America has become the worlds largest oil producer. Though it does not export crude oil, it
now imports much less, creating a lot of spare supply.
The Saudis and their Gulf allies have decided not to sacrifice their own market share to
restore the price. They could curb production sharply, but the main benefits would go to
countries they detest such as Iran and Russia.
The inability, or unwillingness rather, of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC), which accounts for about 40 per cent of global oil output, to cut production to match
the demand is a major factor.
The central statistics office (CSO) has come out with a new series of national accounts with
2011-12 as base year for computing economic growth rate (GDP). In January 2010, the base
year had been fixed as 2004-05.
A World Bank report has challenged the conventional understanding of Indias
inequality. The report, Addressing inequality in South Asia, has found that the
probability of a poor person moving out of poverty in India in 2014 was as good as that in the
U.S.
IMPACT INVESTMENT
According to the definition of the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN): "Impact
investments are investments made into companies, organizations, and funds with the
intention to generate a measurable, beneficial social or environmental impact alongside a
financial return.
Impact investing is a subset of socially responsible investing, but while the socially
responsible investing encompasses avoidance of harm, impact investing actively seeks to
make a positive impact.
Impact investing is a global phenomenon and has recently received policy attention at the
highest level in G8 countries with the formation of the Social Impact Taskforce and setting
up of national advisory boards.
Social impact investments have been picking up pace in India, expanding from the
microfinance and financial inclusion space to other sectors such as access to renewable
energy, affordable healthcare and education, water and sanitation, lowcost housing,
agriculture and nonagriculture livelihoods, and vocational training.
With proper impact investment, it is possible to leverage a large chunk of money from private
capital, and encourage more people to take up social initiatives.
CHANGES MADE IN METHODOLOGY OF GDP CALCULATION

The Central Statistical Office will measure gross domestic product (GDP) by the gross value added
(GVA) method a way of calculating GDP at basic prices instead of at factor cost.
Definition (GDP): The monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a
country's borders in a specific time period.
CHANGES MADE IN GDP CALCULATION
Change in base year from 2004-05 to 2011-12.
Using market prices instead of factor costs to make the GDP computations.
Data for the new GDP series will now be collected from 5 lakh companies (MCA21data base).
GDPMP = GDPF C + INDIRECT TAXES SUBSIDIES
For arriving at the new gross value added (GVA) at basic prices, production taxes, such as
property tax,
are added and subsidies are subtracted from GDP at factor cost.
GDP at market prices makes adjustment for any subsidy or indirect tax to arrive at GDP at
market
price, indirect taxes are added while subsidies are subtracted from GVA at basic price.
Finally, inflation needs to be adjusted to arrive at GDP at constant market prices.
NEW CRITERIA FOR CAPITAL INFUSION INTO PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS
The centre has adopted new criterion for capital infusion in public sector banks. On the basis of new
criteria, the Centre has selected nine public sector banks (PSBs) for infusing Rs. 6,990 crore. The
new criterion rewards only efficient banks
Methodology:
Efficiency of the bank is determined based on the two parameters:
The weighted average of return on assets (ROA) for all PSBs for last three years. Banks above the
average have been selected for the equity infusion.
The second parameter used for selecting the banks for capital infusion is return on equity
(ROE)for the last financial year. Banks with above average ROE have been rewarded.
RETURN ON ASSET (ROA) - AFTER TAX
Return on Assets (ROA) is a profitability ratio which indicates the net profit (net income) generated
on total assets. It is computed by dividing net income by average total assets.
ROA = (Net Income after tax / Total assets (or Average Total assets))*100
RETURN ON EQUITY (ROE)- AFTER TAX
Return on Equity (ROE) is a ratio relating net profit (net income) to shareholders equity. Here the
equity refers to share capital reserves and surplus of the bank.
ROA = Profit after tax/(Total equity + Total equity at the end of previous year)/2}*100
14TH FINANCE COMMISSION REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS
Horizontal devolution means transfer of finance between states.
The panel has assigned 7.5 per cent weight to forest cover for interse determination of the shares of
taxes to the states, while population carries 17.5 per cent weight, demographic change 10 percent,
income distance 50 and area 15 per cent weight.
With the addition of the new criterion, Uttar Pradesh is the biggest loser followed by Bihar.
Devolution to states: States share in net proceeds from tax collections be 42% a huge jump
from 32% recommend by the 13th Finance Commission, and the largest change ever in the
percentage of devolution
Resource transfer: Tax devolution be the primary route resource transfer to states
Grants: It has recommended distribution of grants to States for local bodies using 2011
population data with weight of 90 per cent and area with weight of 10 per cent.
Grants to States are divided into twogrant to duly constituted gram panchayats and grant to duly

constituted municipal bodies

Types of grants: A basic grant and a performance grant the ratio of basic to performance grant
be 90:10, with respect to panchayats; and 80:20 in the case of municipalities
Post-devolution revenue deficit grants: The Commission assessed the revenue and
expenditure of the States for the 2015-20 period and has projected the deficit for each State after
taking into account its share in Central taxes. It has recommended a grant of over rupees 1.94 lakh
crore to meet the deficit of 11 States.
Delinking of schemes: Eight centrally sponsored schemes (CSSes) will be delinked from
support from the Centre; warious CSSes will now see a change in sharing pattern, with states sharing
a higher fiscal responsibility
Cooperative federalism: There are recommendations on cooperative federalism, GST, fiscal
consolidation road map, pricing of public utilities and PSUs, too.
Set up an independent council to undertake assessment of fiscal policy implications of Budget
proposals.
Replace existing FRBM Act with a debt ceiling & fiscal responsibility law.
Wind up National Investment Fund and maintain all disinvestment receipts in the consolidated
fund.
Amend electricity Act to provide for penalties for delay in payment of subsidies by state
governments.
Steps for states to augment revenues, such as property tax reforms and issuance of municipal
bonds suggested.
Set up autonomous and independent GST compensation fund.
NATIONAL MINORITIES DEVELOPMENT AND FINANCE CORPORATION(NMDFC)
NMDFC is Central Sector Public Enterprise (CPSE) under the aegis of Union Ministry of
Minority Affairs. It was constituted in 1994 as a nonprofit making company under Section 25
of the Companies Act, 1956.
The Union Cabinet gave its approval for increasing the Authorised Share Capital of the
National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC), from Rs. 1500 crore
to Rs. 3000 crore. Approval was also given to revise the shareholding pattern from 65:26:9 to
73:26:1 among the Centre, States/Union Territories and Individuals/Institutions
respectively. Also, approval was also given for restructuring of the NMFDCs business model.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
has revised the Base Year of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from 2010=100 to 2012=100 &
WPI Base Year is 2004-05. Negative WPI inflation reflects falling cost of production in the
economy since 65% weightage is attributed to manufactured products in WPI.
GROWTH IN EXPORT OF AGRI PRODUCTS SLIDES
REASONS
Decline in commodity prices,
glut in global markets, and
Import ban by several countries recent ban by Saudi Arabia and the EU
High production levels in other countries and domestic issues like quality
THE NEW MONETARY POLICY FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE AGREEMENTS
The following shall be the target:
The reserve Bank will aim to bring inflation 6 per cent by January 2016.
The target for financial year 2016-17 and subsequent years shall be 4 percent with a band of 2
per cent.
The Governor, in his absence the Deputy Governor in charge of monetary policy, shall determine
the Policy Rate, as well as any other monetary measures, to achieve the target.
Operating procedure of monetary policy:

The reserve bank shall publish the operating Target(s) and establish an operating procedure of
monetary
policy through which the operating target will be achieved, any change in the operating targets(s)
and the operating procedure in response to evolving macro-financial conditions shall also be
published.
Once every six months , the reserve bank shall publish a document explaining
Source of inflation
Forecasts of inflation for the period between six to eighteen months from the date of the
publication of the document
Flexible inflation target
The reserve Bank shall be seen to have failed to meet the target if inflation is
More than six per cent for three consecutive quarters for the financial year and all subsequent
years.
Less than 2 per cent for three consecutive quarters in 2016-17 and all subsequent years.
Failure to maintain target: If the reserve bank fails to meet the target it shall set out in a report
to the central government
The reasons for its failure to achieve the target.
Remedial actions proposed to be taken by the reserve bank; and
An estimate of the time period within which the target would be achieved pursuant to timely
implementation of proposed remedial actions.
Any dispute regarding the interpretation or implementation of agreement shall be resolved
through a meeting between the governor and the central government
INFLATION TARGETING
Inflation targeting is a monetary policy strategy used by central banks for maintaining prices at
a certain level or within a specific range. Using methods such as interest rate changes, this could help
guide inflation to a targeted level or range.
This policy is designed to assure price stability.
Under inflation targeting, the RBI will target a fixed rate of Consumer Price Index (CPI)
inflation
MONETARY POLICY COMMITTEE (MPC):
To give effect to the agreement, the government will amend the RBI Act. Before amending the Act,
there needs to be agreement between the government and the central bank about the composition of
the committee.
There are two competing proposals to establish a monetary policy committee, one from an external
panel appointed by the Finance Ministry and another from the RBI.
RBI panel's key proposals: Five-member committee
Chairman: RBI Governor
Vice Chairman: Deputy Governor in charge of monetary policy
Executive Director in charge of monetary policy
Two external members picked by RBI Governor and Deputy Governor
Each member has one vote
No veto power for Chairman
Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission proposals: Seven-member panel
RBI Governor
1 executive member of RBI board
3 external members picked by the government
2 external members picked by the government in consultation with RBI Governor
Government representative to attend meetings but would not vote
RBI Governor would get power to override panel but would need to issue public statement
detailing the reasons
Each member has one vote

PRIORITY SECTOR LENDING (PSL)

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has widened the scope of priority sector lending. The following
categories have been included in its ambit.
Sanitation
Health care and drinking water facilities
Renewable energy
Other recommendations of the RBIs panel
The target for lending to the redefined priority sector is retained uniformly at 40 per cent of
adjusted net bank credit (ANBC) or credit equivalent of off-balance sheet exposure (CEOBE),
whichever is higher, for all scheduled commercial banks.
All foreign banks (irrespective of number of branches they have) may be brought on a par with
domestic banks and the same target/sub-targets may be made applicable to them.
It suggested foreign banks with 20 and above branches may be given time up to March, 2018, in
terms of extant guidelines and submit their revised action plans.
Other foreign banks, that is, with less than 20 branches, may be given time up to March, 2020,
to comply with the revised targets as per action plans submitted by them and approved by the RBI.
The target for lending to agriculture has been retained at 18 per cent of ANBC. But a sub-target
of 8 per cent of ANBC has been recommended for small and marginal farmers to be achieved in a
phased manner
Priority Sector Lending -Priority Sector Lending are small value loans to farmers for agriculture
and allied activities, micro and small enterprises, poor people for housing, students for education
and other low income groups and weaker sections. Priority Sectors are those sectors of the economy
which may not get timely and adequate credit in the absence of this special dispensation.
PRIORITY SECTORS
Agriculture
Micro and Small Enterprises
Education (educational loans granted to individuals by banks)
Housing
Export Credit
State sponsored organizations for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes
Consumption loans (under the consumption credit scheme for weaker sections)
Loans to the software industry (having credit limit not exceeding Rs 1 crore from the banking
system)
Overdrafts extended by banks up to Rs.5,000 in PMJDY accounts will be eligible for
classification under priority sector advances .
PROVISIONS
Domestic banks, both the public and private sectors have to lend 40 % of their net bank
credit(NBC), to the priority sector as defined by RBI, foreign banks have to lend 32% of their NBC
to the priority sector.
Domestic banks have to lend 18 % of NBC to agriculture and 10 % of the NBC has to be to
the weaker section. However, foreign banks have to lend 10 % of NBC to the small-scale
industries and 12 % of their NBC as export credit
RUPEE 1 NOTE RELEASED
After a gap of over 20 years, Re 1 note has been released. The note was released at Shrinathji temple
in Nathdwara, Rajasthan, on March 6 by Finance Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi.
Background:
In November 1994, printing of Re 1 note was stopped mainly due to higher cost and for freeing
capacity to print currency notes of higher denomination.
Printing of Rs 2 and Rs 5 notes too were discontinued in 1995. Since then, only coins have been
issued for these denominations.

The RBI said the note will bear Ashoka Pillar symbol in the window without words SatyamevJayate,
and carry a hidden numeral in the centre while hidden word Bharat (in Hindi) will be on the right
hand side of the note.
The re-launched one rupee notes will be made up of 100 per cent cotton rag content.
It will weigh 90 grams per square metre and have thickness of 110 microns.
Additional Information:
One rupee currency notes will be printed by the Government of India.
The note will carry bilingual signature of Finance Secretary.
Other currency notes in India bear the signature of RBI governor.
The surrounding design of the new note will consist of the picture of Sagar Samart the oil
exploration
platform.
STEP ANNOUNCED IN THE BUDGET
To curb gold imports and monetise large idle stocks of the precious metal, Finance Minister
announced three schemes:
A gold monetisation scheme
A sovereign gold bond
Redeemable gold bonds which will carry a fixed rate of interest.
A gold monetisation scheme
The new scheme will allow the depositors of gold to earn interest in their metal accounts, and
jewellers to obtain loans in their metal account. Banks/other dealers would also be able to monetise
this gold.
A sovereign gold bond
The bonds will carry a fixed rate of interest and also be redeemable in cash in terms of the face value
of the gold, at the time of redemption by the holder of the bond.
Other steps
The government would commence work on developing an Indian Gold Coin, which will carry the
Ashok Chakra on its face.
The coin would help reduce the demand for coins minted outside India and also help to recycle
the gold available in the country
The government also kept the import duty on gold unchanged at 10 per cent
ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (ADB)
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank established on 22 August
1966 which is headquartered in Metro Manila, Philippines, to facilitate economic development in
Asia.
The ADB was modeled closely on the World Bank, and has a similar weighted voting system
where votes are distributed in proportion with members' capital subscriptions.
At present, Japan holds the largest proportion of shares at 15.67%. The United States holds
15.56%, China holds 6.47%, India holds 6.36%, and Australia holds 5.81%.
Objective: To facilitate economic development of countries in Asia. It also aims for an Asia and
Pacific free from poverty.
Members:
Currently, it has 67 members of which 48 are from within Asia and the Pacific and 19 outside.
ADB was modeled closely on the World Bank, and has a similar weighted voting system where
votes are distributed in proportion with members capital subscriptions.
Funding: ADB raises funds
Through bond issues on the worlds capital markets.
Members contributions
Earnings from its lending operations, and the repayment of loans.
RUPAY DEBIT CARD

The rail ministry launched a new debit card service for ticket bookings by passengers.
The RuPay pre-paid card service has been developed by Indian Railways Tourism and Catering
(IRCTC)
along with Union Bank of India (UBI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
RuPay is India's domestic card payment gateway network develop on the lines of Visa and
Master Card
and provides an alternative system for banks to provide debit card service.
Railways will not charge any transaction charge for the first five transactions on every card every
month done on IRCTC for purchase of tickets for the first six months. For every subsequent
transaction post the free usage, customer will be charged Rs 10 per transaction.
One can have the card with a loading limit of Rs.10,000 with partial KYC detail or Rs.50,000
loading limit with full KYC.
WHY ARE CRUDE OIL PRICES DECLINING SINCE JUNE 2014?
The oil price is partly determined by actual supply and demand, and partly by expectation.
OPECs decisions shape expectations; if it curbs supply sharply, it can send prices spiking.
The remarkable fall in global oil prices is continuing because of a mismatch in demand and supply.
Demand is down because of Eurozones economic stagnation, Japan slipping into
recession and Chinas slowdown. Output, on the other hand, is rising on account of the U.S.
shale boom, revival of Libyas oil production, and continuous increase in production in
Iraq and OPECs decision of not cutting down the production.

Increase in US Shale gas production

Present turmoil in Iraq and Libya
OPEC unwilling to cut the production
Fed tapering
Decrease in Demand

DOMESTIC IMPLICATIONS OF OIL

POSITIVE IMPACTS
Since the Government has seized the chance and deregulated diesel prices, the subsidy
burden will ease, helping to lower the fiscal deficit. Funds saved from reduction in subsidy
can be diverted to infrastructure creation, social welfare programs.
Improvement in macro fundamentals [inflation and the fiscal deficit and the current
account balance] will, at the margin, increase the space for macro [monetary and
fiscal] policies for RBI to boost growth.
The spare cash from fuel cost savings, howsoever small, should increase consumer
discretionary spending.
Higher consumption adds to corporate incomes. Abating input costs too will widen
profit margins for businesses. As balance sheets start improving, companies will be better
placed to start new projects or revive stalled ones, generate new jobs and growth.
Diesel prices have a direct bearing on prices of essential commodities, as it is the preferred
fuel for the transport sector. So inflation will also reduce. Also, as the cost of production
decreases, the exports will become more competitive,which will help in raising the
exports.
The direct impact of this fall will be on upstream oil companies such as ONGC and Oil
India that will now see their share of the subsidy burden going down.
Companies that use crude or crude derivatives as inputs, such as manufacturers of plastic
products, synthetic textiles, tyres and paints, will see profit margins expanding due to
lower input costs.

NEGATIVE IMPACTS
Indian investors and companies hold a lot of stakes in countries like Nigeria, Russia
and the Gulf, which are facing the downside of this oil price decrease. Indian investment in
these countries would be at risk.
Also, the inward remittances from these countries to India are adversely affected as the
Gulf countries may downsize their foreign labor force. Further investment (FDI, FII)
coming from these countries will also reduce, as there is huge fall in oil revenue earned by
these countries.
Decreasing oil prices will adversely impact the oil economies like Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar,
and Russia resulting in decreasing exports to such countries. Being the sixth largest
exporter of petroleum products, India's revenue from this sector will also
decrease. E.g. the recent decline in share prices of Bharti Airtel and Bajaj Auto.
Govt. is hoping to give new licenses for oil and gas explorations. Now, it will be increasingly
difficult to attract risk capital into oil and gas exploration. This is because most oil
companies have pared down their exploration budgets.
Environmental Impacts: Lower price of fuel shifts focus away from renewable
green technologies. Due to this, purchase of vehicles as well as use of vehicles will increase
which will create environmental, health problems such as increased pollution, environmental
degradation, global warming and wastage of resources.
Why the prices of petroleum and diesel in India have not been reduced
proportionately to that of reduced global crude prices?
In spite of decrease in crude oil price more than 50%, the prices of petroleum and diesel have
not been reduced proportionally because of following reasons.
o Indian government raised excise duty 4 times to reduce its fiscal deficit. This extra
raised money will be utilized for funding welfare schemes, infrastructure projects.
o Subsidies were reduced to zero on Diesel and Diesel is deregulated like petrol.
FOREIGN TRADE POLICY (2015-2020)
The government unveiled a five-year plan for lifting India's exports to $900 billion by 2019-20 while
giving a
boost to the Make in India initiative.
The government aims to raise India's share in world exports from 2% to 3.5% by 2020.
FTP to be aligned to Make in India, Digital India and Skills India initiatives.
Key Points
FTP2015-20 introduces two new schemes, namely Merchandise Exports from India
Scheme (MEIS) and Services Exports from India Scheme (SEIS).
There would be no conditionality attached to any scrips issued under these schemes.
The MEIS will be targeted for export of specified goods to specified markets and SEIS is meant
for export of notified services in place of a plethora of schemes earlier.
The MEIS has replaced five existing schemes: Focus Products Scheme, Market-linked Focus
Products Scheme, Focus Market Scheme, Agriculture Infrastructure Incentive Scrips and Vishesh
Krishi Grameen Udyog Yojana (VKGUY).
On the other hand, SEIS has replaced the existing Served From India Scheme (SFIS).
SEIS available to Service Providers located in India as against the existing Served Form India
Scheme available to Indian Service Providers
The rates of rewards under MEIS will now range from 2 per cent to 5 per cent, from the 2-7 per
cent range earlier. On the other hand, under SEIS these will be from 3 per cent to 5 per cent, from
the 5-10 per cent range earlier.
All scrips issued under MEIS and SEIS and the goods imported against these scrips will be fully
transferable. This means that scrips issued under export from India schemes can now be used for
payment of customs duty for import of goods, payment of excise duty on domestic procurement of
inputs or goods, and payment of service tax.

The FTP also introduced a concept of import appraisal mechanism which will be done on a
quarterly basis by the commerce department.
In order to give a boost to exports from SEZs, government has now decided to extend benefits of
both the reward schemes (MEIS and SEIS) to units located in SEZs.
BOOST TO "MAKE IN INDIA": Reduced Export Obligation (EO) for domestic procurement
under EPCG scheme:
The normal export obligation has been reduced to 75%, in order to promote domestic capital
goods manufacturing industry.
Higher level of rewards under MEIS for export items with high domestic content and value
addition.
Status Holder
The terminology of existing status holder categories modified to One, Two, Three, Four and Five
Star Export House.
The criteria for measuring export performance meant for recognition of status holder have been
changed from Indian Rupees to US dollar earnings. Further, apart from export performance of
current year, only two previous years will be considered as against the previous three years under the
erstwhile FTP; and
Manufacturer status holders shall be entitled to self-certify Certificate of Origin.
Trade Facilitation and Ease of doing Business
Development of an online procedure to upload digitally signed documents by Chartered
Accountant/Company Secretary/Cost Accountant.
One of the major objectives of new FTP is to move towards paperless working in 24x7
environment.
Creation of importer/exporter profile to eliminate repeated submission of copies of permanent
records/documents (e.g. IEC, Manufacturing License, RCMC, PAN etc.) with each application; and
Online facility for filing of TED refunds.
Online inter-ministerial consultations.
Considering the strategic significance of small and medium scale enterprise in the
manufacturing sector and in employment generation, MSME clusters 108 have been identified for
focused interventions to boost exports. Accordingly, Niryat Bandhu Scheme has been galvanized
and repositioned to achieve the objectives of Skill India. Outreach activities will be organized in a
structured way at these clusters with the help of EPCs and other willing Industry Partners and
Knowledge Partners.
The new policy provides greater predictability because it would not be changed frequently while
the focus on building Brand India, through different sets of incentives for merchandise and
services exports, would help Indian exports become competitive in the world market. However, at
least six months of transition period should have given so that the exporters could adjust to the new
framework. Further, the interest subvention scheme has also not materialized. This will
impact adversely on the exports of engineering goods to some extent.
DENA BANK, LIC SIGN MOU
State-run lender Dena Bank signed agreement with LIC to provide insurance cover to its savings
account holders under the Prime Minister's Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana
(PMJBY) scheme.
Under the Memorandum of Understanding, LIC will give a life cover of Rs 2 lakh in case of
death of the insured person at a nominal premium of Rs 330 per annum.
Account holders in the age group of 18 to 50 years can avail of the product.
The scheme will come into effect from June 1, 2015.
The bank customers can join the scheme between June 1, 2015 to May 31, 2016.
It is a very important step towards meeting the government financial inclusion plan.
This will increase the insurance penetration.

ELECTRONIC MONEY ORDER

Electronic Money Order is an electronic format of traditional MOs, which enables payment at
doorstep, drastically cutting down physical transmission. It was introduced in October 2008.
The iMO system provides instant money order service for amounts ranging from Rs.1,000 to
Rs.50,000.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION (GI TAG)
Keralas sumptuous Nendran Banana and Karnatakas Bangalore Rose Onion have
got geographical indication (GI Tag) registrations from the Geographical Indications Registry,
Chennai.
ChengazhikodanNendran Banana, also known Chengazhikode Banana, is among the most
popular traditional fruits cultivated in Thrissur district, Kerala.
The Bangalore Rose Onion grown in Bangalore and its surrounding areas is famous for its
high pungency compared to other varieties.
Geographical indication (GI) refers to any indication that identifies the goods as originating from a
particular place, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the goods is essentially
attributable to its geographical origin.
Eighty two Weavers Co-operative Societies in Coimbatore, Tiruppur and Erode districts have
been certified as authorised dealers of KovaiKora cotton, which has been given the Geographical
Indication by the GI Registry.
KovaiKora cotton is a blend of silk and cotton and Kora another product that is found more in
the Sirumugai area. People belonging to the Devanga community are involved mostly in weaving
KovaiKora cotton saris and they are the pioneers also in making the product.
The juicy Nagpur orange, the famous tribal Warli art, Dharmavaram saris and
Keralas Kaipad rice have been cleared for inclusion in Geographical Indications (GI) registry in
the country.
Geographical indication tag for Madurai Malli: This is the first GI tag given to a flower in
Tamil Nadu. This is the second GI tag for Madurai after Madurai Sungudi and the second for
jasmine flower after Mysore Malli.
GREEN BONDS
A bond is a debt instrument with which an entity raises money from investors. The bond issuer
gets capital while the investors receive fixed income in the form of interest. When the bond matures,
the money is repaid.
A green bond is very similar. The only difference is that the issuer of a green bond publicly states
that capital is being raised to fund green projects, which typically include those relating to
renewable energy, emission reductions and so on.
Yes Bank and Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) recently tasted success launching what
are called green bonds, a relatively new way to finance renewable energy projects. In March, the
Exim Bank of India issued a five-year $500 million green bond, which is Indias first dollardenominated green bond.
MARGINAL COST-LINKED BASE RATE
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will encourage banks to move in a time-bound manner to
marginal cost of funds-based determination of their Base Rate. Base Rate is the minimum rate below
which banks are not permitted to lend.
For monetary transmission to occur, lending rates have to be sensitive to the policy rate. With the
introduction of the Base Rate on July 1, 2010, banks could set their actual lending rates on loans and
advances with reference to the Base Rate.
At present, banks are following different methodologies in computing their Base Rates on the
basis of average cost of funds, marginal cost of funds or blended cost of funds (liabilities). However,
Base Rate based on marginal cost of funds should be more sensitive to changes in the policy rates.

Hence, the RBI is pushing banks to adopt marginal cost of funds-based determination of their Base
Rate.
Bank concern: To calculate their cost of funds on the basis of marginal costs, (rather than the
present average costs), banks have pointed out that there are deficiencies in Indias financial
structure that make such calculation difficult except over the medium term.
RBI'S FOREX RESERVES CLIMB TO AN ALL-TIME HIGH
OTHER WAYS OF INCREASING FOREXFunding from the various organizations like International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development
(IBRD), Asian Development Bank (ADB) etc.
Aid receipts,
Interest receipts
HOW MUCH FOREX RESERVES IS SAID TO BE SUFFICIENT FOR INDIA?
Reserve should be able to provide import cover for at least three months.
Reserve should provide at least 50% of the external debt and 100% of short term debt.
Average reserve holding to short term debt during a year should be a minimum of one. This ratio is
also
known as Guidotti Rule.
COMPONENTS OF FOREX
The components of Indias foreign exchange reserves are foreign currency assets (FCA), gold,
special drawing Rights (SDR) and reserve tranche position (RTP) in the IMF.Foreign
Currency Assets (FCA) is the biggest component of the Forex reserves.
a. Foreign Currency Assets
Foreign currency assets expressed in US dollar terms include the effect of appreciation/depreciation
of non-US currencies (such as Euro, Sterling, Yen etc.) held in reserves.
b. Special Drawing Rights
Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) are supplementary foreign exchange reserve assets defined and
maintained by the International Monetary Fund. It was created in 1969 to supplement a shortfall of
preferred foreign exchange reserve assets, namely gold and the US dollar, the SDR's value is
defined by a weighted currency basket of four major currencies: the Euro, the US
dollar, the British pound, and the Japanese yen.
c. Reserve Tranche Position
The primary means of financing the International Monetary Fund is through members' quotas. Each
member of the IMF is assigned a quota, part of which is payable in SDRs or specified usable
currencies ("reserve assets"), and part in the member's own currency. The difference between a
member's quota and the IMF's holdings of its currency is a country's Reserve Tranche Position
(RTP).Reserve Tranche Position is accounted among a country's Foreign Exchange Reserves.
WHAT IS HYBRID ANNUITY MODEL?
The new hybrid model is a mix of the EPC (engineering, procurement and construction) and the BOT
models. In the annuity mode, the concessionaire gets a fixed and more importantly assured payment
from the government.
Assured return: This assured return frees the concessionaires dependency on the toll collected
on the highway. The government shoulders the responsibility of revenue collection.
Further, the government will pay 40 per cent of the project cost to the concessionaire
during the construction phase in five equal installments of 8 per cent each.
Land: The government will provide 90 per cent of land and the related environment and forest
clearance (earlier 80 per cent).

Operation and Maintenance: The balance of 60 per cent needs to come from the
concessionaire. Operation and maintenance of the toll road also rests with the concessionaire.
MUDRA BANK
The Prime Minister recently launched the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA (Micro Units Development
and Refinance Agency) Yojana.
Micro Finance:
Micro Finance is an economic development tool whose objective is to assist the poor to work their
way out of poverty. It covers a range of services which include, in addition to the provision of credit,
many other services such as savings, insurance, money transfers, counseling etc.
The players in the Micro Finance sector can be qualified as falling into 3 main groups:
1) The SHG-Bank linkage model started by NABARD,
2) The Non-Banking Finance companies and
3) Others including Trusts, Societies etc.
MUDRA
The government proposes to set up a Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA)
Bank through a statutory enactment.
This Bank would be responsible for regulating and refinancing all Micro-finance Institutions
(MFI) which are in the business of lending to micro/small business entities engaged in
manufacturing, trading and services activities.
The Bank would partner with state level/regional level co-ordinators to provide finance to Last
Mile Financer of small/micro business enterprises.
Budgetary Allocation:
A sum of Rs 20,000 crores would be allocated to the MUDRA Bank from the money available from
shortfalls of Priority Sector Lending for creating a Refinance Fund to provide refinance to the Last
Mill Financers.
Another Rs 3,000 crore would be provided to the MUDRA Bank from the budget to create a Credit
Guarantee corpus for guaranteeing loans being provided to the micro enterprises.
The bank will use at least 65 per cent of its funds for lending to micro enterprises run by members
of scheduled castes and tribes.
Roles:
The MUDRA Bank would primarily be responsible for:
Laying down policy guidelines for micro/small enterprise financing business.
Registration and Regulating of MFI entities.
Accreditation /rating of MFI entities.
Laying down responsible financing practices to ward off over indebtedness and ensure proper
client protection principles and methods of recovery.
Development of standardised set of covenants governing last mile lending to micro enterprises.
Promoting right technology solutions for the last mile.
Formulating and running a Credit Guarantee scheme for providing guarantees to the
loans/portfolios which are being extended to micro enterprises.
Support development & promotional activities in the sector.
Creating a good architecture of Last Mile Credit Delivery to micro businesses under the scheme of
Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana.
Implementing Agency
Since the enactment for MUDRA is likely to take some time, it is proposed to initiate MUDRA as a
unit of SIDBI (SIDBI also functions as a Nodal/ Implementing Agency to various ministries
of Government of India viz., Ministry of MSME, Ministry of Textiles, Ministry of
Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Food Processing and Industry, etc) to benefit from SIDBIs
initiatives and expertise.
Products and Offerings
The primary product of MUDRA will be refinance for lending to micro businesses / units under the
aegis of the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana.

The initial products and schemes under this umbrella have already been created and the
interventions have been named Shishu, Kishor and Tarun to signify the stage of growth /
development and funding needs of the beneficiary micro unit / entrepreneur as also
provide a reference point for the next phase of graduation / growth for the
entrepreneur to aspire for:
Shishu: covering loans upto Rs. 50,000/Kishor: covering loans above Rs. 50,000/- and upto Rs. 5 lakh
Tarun: covering loans above Rs. 5 lakh and upto Rs. 10 lakh
DOES INDIA NEED A STRATEGIC OIL STORAGE PROJECT?
The Government, through Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL), is setting up
Strategic Crude Oil Reserves with storage capacity of 5.33 Million Metric Tonnes (MMT) at three
locations viz. Visakhapatnam(2015) (storage capacity: 1.33 MMT), Manglalore(2016) (storage
capacity: 1.5 MMT) and Padur(2016) (storage capacity:2.5 MMT) to enhance the energy security of
the county
UNDERGROUND ROCK CAVERNS
Underground rock caverns are considered the safest means of storing hydrocarbons.
The crude oil storages are in underground rock caverns and are located on the east and west
coasts so that they are readily accessible to the refining sector
INTERNAL OMBUDSMAN IN BANKS
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has advised all public sector banks and some private and foreign
banks to appoint an internal ombudsman to improve their customer service and to ensure that
customer complaints in banks get resolved fast.
PROVISIONS
The internal ombudsman would be designated Chief Customer Service Officer (CCSO).
RBI has also made it clear that the CCSO should not have worked in the bank in which he/she is
appointed as CCSO
INVESTMENTS BY OVERSEAS INDIANS
Investments by non-resident Indians (NRIs), overseas citizens of India (OCIs) and
persons of Indian origin (PIOs) will now be treated as domestic investment. They will not be
allowed to repatriate the money overseas.
From now onwards, for foreign investment purposes, the definitions of OCIs and PIOs are being
merged with that of NRIs and NRI investment will be treated as domestic investment.
Till now, investments by NRIs in only the aviation industry were excluded from the FDI limit of
49%; NRIs were permitted full ownership in the sector.
IMPACT
increase foreign investments
Domestic companies can attract investments from overseas Indians
greater inflow of foreign exchange remittance
would mean permanent FDI
BRICS BANK
India named veteran banker K.V. Kamath to be the first President of the New Development Bank,
popular as the BRICS bank. The bank will be based in Shanghai. After a five-year term at the helm
by an Indian, the Presidents post would by turn go to a Brazilian and then to a Russian.
WHAT IS BRICS BANK?
In July 2014, the BRICS countries agreed to set up a development bank, whose purpose, according to
its articles, is to mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development
projects not just in BRICS countries but also in other emerging economies. It seeks to do so by
supporting public and private projects through loans, guarantees and equity.

The bank will begin with a subscribed capital of $50 billion, divided equally between its five
founders, with an initial total of $10 billion put in cash over the next seven years and $40 billion in
guarantees.
The group has also agreed to a$100 billion currency exchange reserve, which membercountries can tap during balance of payment problems.
China, the biggest foreign exchange reserve-holder amongst them, will contribute the major
portion of the currency pool. Brazil, India and Russia will contribute $18 billion each while South
Africa will chip in with $5 billion.
CAPITAL ACCOUNT CONVERTIBILITY
DEFINITION
Capital account convertibility means the freedom to convert rupees into foreign currency
and back for capital transactions.
Freedom to convert local financial assets into foreign ones at market-determined exchange
rates.
India has current account convertibility but not capital account convertibility.
BENEFITS OF CAPITAL ACCOUNT CONVERTIBILITY
The primary benefits that India is likely to reap from full capital account convertibility are
stronger capital flows into domestic projects.
Lower borrowing costs for firms
Currency diversification benefits for businesses and investors.
Leads to free exchange of currency at lower rates and an unrestricted mobility of capital.
NEGATIVE IMPACT OF CAPITAL ACCOUNT CONVERTIBILITY
It could destabilise an economy due to massive capital flows in and out of the country.
Impact of 2008-9 financial crises in Indian economy was minimum due to restriction in capital
account convertibility.
LESSON FROM ASIAN FINANCIAL CRISIS
Lessons from the Asian financial crisis of 1998 suggest three pre-requisites for a developing country
to benefit from full convertibility:
A comfortable current account balance,
Low external debt and
A strong banking system that is resilient to global contagion.
None of these conditions exist in India today
INVESTMENT VIA P-NOTES
P-Notes, mostly used by overseas HNIs (High Net Worth Individuals), hedge funds and
other foreign institutions, allow such investors to invest in Indian markets through registered
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs).
WHAT ARE PARTICIPATORY NOTES?
Participatory Notes or P-Notes are financial instruments issued by foreign institutional investors to
investors and hedge funds who wish to invest in Indian stock markets. These are also called offshore
derivative instruments.
WHO GETS P-NOTES?
P-Notes are issued to real investors on the basis of stocks purchased by the FII. The registered FII
looks after all the transactions, which appear as proprietary trades in its books.
PREDATORY PRICING
DEFINITION
Predatory pricing (also undercutting) is a pricing strategy where a product or service is set at a very
low price, intending to drive competitors out of the market, or create barriers to entry for potential
new competitors.
FDI IN INDIA

Foreign direct investment in India grew by about 40 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1.76 lakh crore in
2014-15. In 2013-14, the country had attracted Rs 1.26 lakh crore FDI. There is an increase of about
40 per cent (in FDI) over the previous year.
According to the data of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) the top 10
sectors that receive maximum foreign investment include services, automobiles,
telecommunication, computer software and hardware and pharmaceuticals.
India attracts maximum FDI from Mauritius, Singapore, the Netherlands, Japan, and
the US.
Healthy inflow of foreign investments into the country helped Indias balance of payments
(BoP) situation.
NATIONAL OPTICAL FIBRE NETWORK (NOFN) INITIATIVE(BHARAT NET)
RECOMMENDATIONS OF COMMITTEE
J Satyanarayana-led committee has recommended following points to fast-track NOFN
initiative.
The report stresses on involvement of States, besides private players, for speedier
implementation of the project that has fallen far behind its planned schedule.
Bringing in States would also increase inflow of funds into the project.
The committee has proposed to rename the project as BharatNet, which is to be completed by
December 2017 at an estimated cost of Rs 72,778 crore.
NATIONAL PHARMACEUTICAL PRICING AUTHORITY (NPPA)
Drug price regulator NPPA has fixed prices of 30 formulation packs, including drugs used to treat
various diseases such as tuberculosis, diabetes, asthma and antibiotics.
NPPA has already fixed the ceiling prices in respect of 521 formulations out of 680 till date which
comes under the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).
Related Information:
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is a government regulatory agency that
controls the prices of pharmaceutical drugs in India. Authority works under Department of
Chemicals and Petrochemicals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
The NPPA was formed in 29 August 1997.
It has been given powers to implement and enforce the Drugs Price Control Order (DPCO),
1995/2013.
It can also fund studies regarding pricing of drugs.
It also has the task to monitor drug shortages and take appropriate actions to rectify it.
It also has to collect and maintain data regarding the import and export of drugs, market shares of
pharmaceutical companies and their profits.
It also handles legal disputes that arise out of policies created by it.
It advices the Government of India in matters of drug policies and pricing.
INDIA NUCLEAR INSURANCE POOL LAUNCHED
INTRODUCTION
General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC ) and 11 other non-life insurers have formed the
India Nuclear Insurance Pool.
It will have a capacity of Rs. 1,500 crore.
New India Assurance will issue the policy and deal with management of cover to the operators and
suppliers, on behalf of all direct insurance companies participating in the pool.
This pool will be the 27thsuch market pool globally.
Difference between Harbour and Port
Harbour: A harbour is a partially enclosed area in the sea, for example, a creek, an estuary, or a
sea-inlet providing shelter to the sailing ships.

Port: A port is that place on the coast, with docks, wharves and berthing facilities, where cargo in
large quantities is received from oceanic routes and sent to the interior of the country through land
routes and vice-versa.
SPV INITIATIVE
The Ministry of Shipping has proposed to create a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), which
would focus on providing efficient evacuation systems in Major Ports and improving connectivity.
The SPV focusing on Port Connectivity will fit into the ambitious Sagarmala Programme of
the Government, which aims at promoting port-led direct and indirect development
and to provide the infrastructure to evacuate goods from ports quickly and efficiently.
SAGARMALA
INTRODUCTION
Sagar Mala is a strategic, customer-oriented initiative of Government of India to evolve a model
of port led development whereby Indias long coastline will become the gateway of Indias prosperity.
It envisages transforming the existing Ports into modern world class Ports on the one hand and
developing new world class Ports, based on the requirement, on the other hand.
Sagar Mala aims to develop Ports, hinterland and efficient evacuation systems through road, rail,
inland and coastal waterways resulting in Ports becoming the drivers of economic activity in coastal
areas.
It envisages the growth of coastal and inland shipping as a major mode of transport for carriage of
goods and people along the coastal and riverine economic centers.
As an outcome, the Sagar Mala would integrate the hinterland projects of Industrial and Freight
Corridors with the maritime developments to offer efficient and seamless transport for both EXIM
and domestic sectors thereby reducing logistics costs for the customer and making exports more
competitive.
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister has given its in-principle approval for the
concept and institutional framework of the Sagar Mala Project.
KEY COMPONENTS OF SAGAR MALA
Sagar Mala is being envisioned as an integrated infrastructure cum policy initiative that will provide
a three pronged approach for development of Indias Maritime Sector focusing on port-development,
port-led development and inland/coastal shipping supported by enabling policies, institutional
framework and funding mechanism to ensure inclusive growth. Therefore, from development
perspective, the Sagar Mala concept has three key deliverables enlisted below:
Port Modernization: Transform existing ports into world-class ports by modernization of port
infrastructure and existing systems. Also ensure inter-agency coordination for synergistic
development at both major and minor ports
Efficient Evacuation Systems: Develop efficient rail, road and coastal / IWT networks to the
hinterland and promote Inland / Coastal shipping as a most preferred mode of transportation
Coastal Economic Development: Encourage coastal economic activity in coastal regions by:
o Development of Coastal Economic Zones (CEZ), port based SEZs / FTWZs, captive ancillary
industries; and Promotion of coastal tourism
These three outcomes will in turn be supported by enabling policies, robust institutional structure
and appropriate financing & funding mechanism to ensure inclusive growth.
INITIATIVES UNDER SAGAR MALA
In order to achieve the three key deliverables, the two broad initiatives that will drive Sagar Mala are:
Development of Coastal Economic Regions (CER)
Policy initiatives to promote coastal shipping and seamless operations in Ports
NEW ROAD FINANCING MODELS:
The government has given the go-ahead to the Bharat Mala project aimed at developing 5,600
km of new roads in border areas at an estimated cost of Rs 56,000 crore. Another 4,700 km of roads

to connect religious and tourism centres and to enhance connectivity in backward areas is expected
to come up at an estimated cost of Rs 44,000 crore. Besides this, world-class highways will be
developed to connect 100 of the 676 district headquarters in the country
REGIONAL COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP (RCEP)
RCEP COMPOSITION AND OBJECTIVE
Started in May 2013, RCEP comprises the 10 economies of the ASEAN regionBrunei, Cambodia,
Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnamand six of
its free trade partnersAustralia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea.
The grouping envisages regional economic integration, leading to the creation of the largest
regional trading bloc in the world, accounting for nearly 45% of the worlds population with a
combined gross domestic product of $21.3 trillion.
The regional economic pact aims to cover trade in goods and services, investment, economic and
technical cooperation, competition and intellectual property.
WHAT IS THE ADDIS ABABA SUMMIT ALL ABOUT?
At the UNs Third Financing for Development conference, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, world leaders
will look for ways to pay for the ambitious and costly sustainable development goals (SDGs), which
include ending poverty and achieving food security in every corner of the globe by 2030.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MAIN ITEMS ON THE AGENDA?
Raising new development finance through domestic resource mobilisation, mainly by increasing
tax collection, private finance, and international public finance.
Improving international tax cooperation. Some countries are pushing for a global tax body,
arguing that it would help the poorest nations earn more through tax revenues.
Reducing illicit financial flows by 2030, with a view to eventually eliminating them. Campaigners
have long noted that such illicit flows coupled with aggressive tax avoidance, repatriation of profits
and debt repayments are depriving developing nations of much-needed resource.
Pushing to bridge the global infrastructure gap including $1trn to $1.5trn annual gap in
developing countries.
Setting out a new social compact to provide fiscally sustainable and nationally appropriate social
protection systems and measures for all.
Financing for low-carbon and climate resilient development. The draft outcome document says:
Public and private investments in innovations and clean technologies will be needed, while keeping
in mind that new technologies will not substitute for efforts to reduce waste or efficiently use natural
resources.
SEBI CONCERNS ABOUT FORWARD CONTRACTS
Difference between Forward and Futures Contracts
Under the Forward Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1952, which regulates commodity trading in India, a
forward contract is a contract for the actual delivery of goods. On the other hand, a futures contract
is one where the buyer can settle the contract in cash as well.
SEBIs concern stems from two facts:
o One, unlike futures contracts, forward contracts are not standardised;
o Two, theres greater counterparty risk associated with forward contracts.
Thus, the prime concern of SEBI is that a forward contract is not a standardized contract with
complete counterparty risk guarantee, even though it is being traded on the exchange platform. Such
an instrument is not allowed in the securities market and SEBI does not want to start regulating
commodities with such grey areas.
Forward contracts were introduced in the commodity market last year, but they are not permitted
in stock market.
Globally, the bulk of the forward contracts in commodities happen outside the exchange platform.
Only futures and options are traded on leading commodity exchanges.

Currently, the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Ltd (NCDEX) and the National
Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (NMCE) offer forward trading in various commodities.
While NMCE recently launched forward contracts in rubber, NCDEX has a basket of more than 25
commodities for forward trades. Multi-Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX) currently does not
offer forward contracts.
INDIA-US PACT ON EXCHANGE OF TAX DATA
India and US have signed an agreement to implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act
(FATCA), which will allow automatic exchange of tax information between the two countries starting
September 30.
The agreement makes it obligatory on the part of the two nations to exchange information on
offshore accounts of each others citizens in their respective territories.
nder FATCA, foreign financial institutions in the U.S. will have to provide information about
Indian account holders to the U.S. governments Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which will forward
the information to the Indian government.
The Indian government will provide similar information to the IRS. For example, the State Bank of
India will have to provide information regarding the investments by any U.S. citizen, even NRIs, to
the Indian revenue authorities in a prescribed format regularly. The Indian government will then
forward that information to the IRS.
TRADE FACILITATION COUNCIL
In a bid to follow a bottom-up approach to boost exports and rationalize non-essential imports at a
time when foreign shipments have been contracting for five months in a row, the government has
decided to constitute a trade facilitation council involving the state governments and will urge them
to frame their own trade policies.
The move is aimed at achieving the $900 billion exports target by 2019-20.
The Commerce Ministry is also working with the states to prepare a list of infrastructure projects,
which would ensure full potential of growth in exports. It is also working on other measures
including dissegregation of exports data state-wise. The foreign trade policy (2015-20) released by
the ministry in April also talked about mainstreaming trade by involving state governments.
Seeking to involve states for promoting exports, the Commerce Ministry had asked them to
appoint commissioners and prepare export strategy. As many as 21 states have appointed export
commissioners while 14 states including Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have framed strategies for
outward shipments.
The trade facilitation council will be headed by commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman and will
have representation from state industry ministers and secretaries.
The Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCI&S), under the Ministry of
Commerce, is an official organisation for collection, compilation and dissemination of Indias trade
statistics and commercial information.
REVISED DRAFT INDIAN FINANCIAL CODE
Indian Financial Code (IFC)
The IFC is intended to create a single unified and internally consistent law replacing a large part of
the existing Indian legal framework for governance of the financial sector.
Several of the over 60 laws are outdated; there have been dramatic changes in the global financial
architecture since the original laws were written, and many of the developments in finance (and the
emergence of new instruments) sometimes fall between regulators (or across them), resulting in
conflict.
The Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC) headed by retired Supreme Court
judge B.N. Srikrishna, was constituted in March 2011 to study possible reforms in the financial
sector. The commission, in its report submitted in March 2013, suggested a merger of multiple
financial regulatory agencies into one overarching authority that would have oversight over the
capital market, insurance sector, pension funds and commodities futures trading, except the RBI.

The first draft of the IFC report submitted by FSLRC proposed to give the RBI governor the right to
overrule the monetary policy committees decisions.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE FIRST AND REVISED DRAFTS
The first IFC draft proposed that in exceptional and unusual circumstances, if the central bank
governor disagrees with a decision taken at a meeting of the monetary policy committee, the
governor will have the right to supersede such a decision. However, the revised draft IFC has
withdrawn this clause. Instead, it says, in the event of a tie amongst the members of the monetary
policy committee, the Reserve Bank chairperson will have a second and casting vote.
While the old draft proposed that two members be appointed by the government in consultation
with the RBI apart from three that it can appoint, the new draft proposes that the government can
appoint four members of its own while the RBI governor can nominate an employee of the central
bank to the committee. The other member in the committee apart from the RBI governor will be an
executive member of RBI. The central government has to appoint its share of four members drawn
from candidates short-listed by a selection committee. Members of the MPCscheduled to meet
once every two monthswill serve for four years and enjoy privileges equivalent to those provided to
an executive member of the RBI board. Each member will have one vote and the decisions of the
MPC will be carried by majority. The draft says that each member will have to submit a line justifying
their vote and that the decisions of the MPC will be binding on RBI.
Also, the revised draft IFC says inflation target for each financial year will be determined in
terms of the Consumer Price Index by the central government in consultation with RBI every three
years. If the inflation target is not met, then RBI must explain and initiate remedial actions and set
out a time period within which the inflation target would be achieved. In the monetary policy
framework agreed by the government and RBI released in February, it was decided that RBI would
try to contain consumer price inflation within 6% by January 2016 and within 4% with a band of 2
percentage points for all subsequent years.
The draft also proposes to dilute the powers of the proposed FSAT that will replace the existing
Securities Appellate tribunal and hear appeals against RBI and other regulators. FSAT will not be
able to set aside any regulations but can only hear appeals filed by institutions challenging the
regulators order.
The earlier version of the draft IFC had given the tribunal powers to set aside any regulation and
instruct a regulator to issue a new order. However, the revised code retains the provision wherein
decisions taken by RBI against banks can be questioned in the tribunal. So far, only decisions taken
by the Securities and Exchange Board of India and more recently, by the Insurance Regulatory and
Development Authority of India, can be appealed against in SAT.
NATIONAL PENSION SYSTEM
HOW NPS WORKS?
NPS is a defined contribution pension plan that needs one to keep contributing till 60 years of
age.
The minimum contribution to the pension (or Tier I account) is Rs.6000.
Investments are market-linked and one can choose any of the three funds currently on offer
government securities fund, fixed-income instruments other than government securities fund and
equity fund.
Maximum equity exposure is 50% and only through the index funds.
At 60 years of age, one can have up to 60% of this money and buy an annuity product, it offers
pension, with the rest.
For early exits from NPS before 60 years of age, one will have to use 80% of the accumulated
corpus to buy an annuity.
However, one can also make a partial withdrawal up to 25% of the contributions after 10 years of
being in the scheme for specific purposes.

While the Tier I account is basic, the Tier-II account works like a savings account to offer
liquidity.
CAN NRI S INVEST IN NPS?
The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) recently sought clarification
on the eligibility of NRIs to invest in the NPS.
While NRIs were always allowed to invest in NPS but it wasnt a stated item under the Fema
(Foreign Exchange Management Act) guidelines.
However, the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) has clarified that NRIs can invest in NPS.
An NRI can invest in NPS through a rupee denominated non-resident (external) rupee (NRE)
account or non-resident ordinary rupee (NRO) account or local sources.
Given that almost all banks in India work as distributors (called points of presence or PoP) for
NPS, one can approach his bank to open an NPS account.
According to the PFRDA, know-your-customer (KYC) process done by bank will suffice to open
an NPS account.
Once the account is open one will get a permanent retirement account number and his NPS
account becomes completely portable.
1. Project Mausam by Ministry of Culture

Implemented by Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New
Delhi as the nodal coordinating agency with support of Archeological Survey of
India and National Museum as associate bodies

Showcase a Transnational Mixed Route (including Natural and Cultural Heritage)

on the World Heritage List has been well appreciated during the Project Launch by
India at the 38th World Heritage Session at Doha, Qatar on 20th June, 2014.

The endeavour of Project Mausamis to position itself at two levels:

At the macro level, it aims to re-connect and re-establish communications between
countries of the Indian Ocean world, which would lead to an enhanced understanding of
cultural values and concerns;
At the micro level, the focus is on understanding national cultures in their regional
maritime milieu.

2. PRASAD & HRIDAY Scheme

Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spirituality Augmentation Drive/PRASAD (MoTourism)
Features 12 cities have been included under the PRASAD scheme: - Amaravati (Andhra
Pradesh), - Gaya(Bihar), - Dwaraka(Gujarat), - Amritsar(Punjab), - Ajmer(Rajasthan),
- Kanchipuram(Tamil Nadu), - Vellankani(Tamil Nadu), - Puri(Odisha), Varanasi(Uttar Prasesh), - Mathura(Uttar Pradesh), - Kedarnath (Uttarakhand) and Kamakhya (Assam)
A Mission Directorate has been established to implement the PRASAD scheme in the Ministry of
Tourism . Budget provision of INR 15.60 crore has been made in Revised Estimates 2014-2015
The Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) (MoUrban Dev)

This scheme is focused on preserving and revitalising the unique character of heritage cities
in India
12 cities have been identified by the Ministry of Urban Development in the first phase: Amaravati(Andhra Pradesh); - Gaya (Bihar); - Dwarka (Gujarat), Badami(Karnataka); - Puri (Odisha), - Amritsar (Punjab); - Ajmer(Rajasthan);
Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu); - Vellankani(Tamil Nadu); - Warangal (Telangana); Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh); and - Mathura (Uttar Pradesh).
(Bold one is common in both)

Rich heritage and cultural history are the basis on which these cities have been selected.

HRIDAY aims to bring together the following elements: - Urban Planning - Economic
Growth - Heritage Conservation
Focus of HRIDAY is on: - Cleanliness - Livelihood - Skills - Safety - Security - Accessibility Faster Service Delivery
New technologies will be added such as Wi-FI and CCTV surveillance and provision for
heritage walks
The duration of the scheme is 3 years starting from December 2014, funding around 500 Cr.
Each city will prepare the heritage management plan outlining heritage resources and
develop policies for guiding conservation, restoration, future use and development
Facilities for women and senior citizens, accessibility and last mile connectivity, conservation
of areas and documentation of heritage sites are some of the focus areas of HRIDAY and
PRASAD

VARANASI-KYOTO DEAL
The Centre has identified five areas for the Kyoto-Varanasi partnership, based on which the
Japanese will extend
their expertise to help rejuvenate the holy city. These include:
Solid-liquid waste management
Transport management
Developing the Buddhist tourist circuit in and around Varanasi
Industry-university interface and
Setting up of a convention centre on public-private partnership basis for giving a fillip to the
cultural
activities in the city.
3. National Culture Fund (NCF) (MoCulture)
The Union Minister of State for Culture recently said that a large number of projects, both in the
form of tangible projects like restoration, conservation of old ASI monuments, provision of Tourist
Amenities at the historical sites; and intangible projects like capacity building of artisans, training
programmes, books publications , cultural events , etc. have been undertaken through the National
Culture Fund (NCF) of Ministry of Culture.

The National Culture Fund was established by the Government of India (Ministry of Culture)
as trust under the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890, in 1996.

The contributions to NCF are made by the corporate houses (NTPC, ONGC,SAIL , HUDCO ,
REC , Apeejay Group etc ) to undertake development of Tangible & Intangible heritage on a
project mode basis.

NCFs primary mandate is to establish & nurture Public Private Partnerships in the field of
heritage and mobilize resources for the restoration, conservation, protection and
development of Indias rich, natural , tangible and intangible heritage

Accepts private institutions and individuals as equal partners of the government in the
management of the cultural heritage of India. All contributions to NCF are given 100% tax
exemption under Section 80 G (2) of the Income Tax Act of 1961.

The NCF is accountable to each donor in respect of funds donated. The funds can be donated
either in Indian currency or any foreign convertible currency

4. Adarsh Smarak Yojana (MoCulture)

The Ministry of Culture has chosen Hampi and 24 other monuments in the country to be granted
Adarsha Smaraks tag on basis of highest number of tourists visiting.
Places included are

Virupaksha Temple @ Pattadkal in Karnataka is a temple of Lord Shiva which will be covered
in the scheme. Krishnadevaraya, one of the famous kings of the Vijayanagara Empire was a
major patron of this temple.
Sun Temple at Konark, Odhisa has been the coveted with Adarsh Monument tag by the
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). It is a 13th century temple of Odisha, built by
Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty. It is also known as Black Pagoda. Its a
World Heritage Site.

Hazarduari Palace in Murshidabad district of West Bengal

Vaishali-Kolhua in Bihar

Rang Ghar in Sibsagar (Sivasagar) district of Assam.

It includes monuments like Taj Mahal, Khajuraho, Qutab Minar and Red Fort which
have highest number of tourists visiting them.

ASI provides amenities of international standards like washrooms, drinking water, signs, cafeteria,
audiovisual centres, Wi-Fi connectivity, interpretation centres and encroachment-free areas
around these monuments
5. Buddhist Circuit (MoTourism)
Three Buddhist Circuits have been identified by the Ministry of Tourism in the country to be
developed with the help of Central Government/State Government/Private Stake Holders. These
include the following:Circuit 1: The Dharmayatra or the Sacred Circuit
This will be a 5 to 7 days circuit and will include visits to Gaya (Bodhgaya), Varanasi (Sarnath),
Kushinagar, Piparva (Kapilvastu) with a day trip to Lumbini in Nepal.
Circuit 2: Extended Dharmayatra or Extended Sacred Circuit or Retracing Buddhas
Footsteps
This will be a 10 to 15 day circuit and will include visits to Bodhgaya (Nalanda, Rajgir, Barabar caves,
Pragbodhi Hill, Gaya), Patna (Vaishali, Lauriya Nandangarh, Lauriya Areraj, Kesariya, Patna

Museum), Varanasi (Sarnath), Kushinagar, Piparva (Kapilvastu, Shravasti, Sankisa) with a day trip
to Lumbini in Nepal
Circuit 3: Buddhist Heritage Trails (State Circuits)
i. Jammu and Kashmir - Ladakh, Srinagar (Harwan, Parihaspora) and Jammu (Ambaran).
ii. Himachal Pradesh - Dharamshala, Spiti, Kinnaur and Lahaul.
iii. Punjab - Sanghon.
iv. Haryana Jind (Assan), Yamunanagar(Sugh).
v. Maharashtra -Aurangabad (Ajanta, Ellora, Pithalkora Caves), Pune (Karla Caves), Mumbai
(Kanheri Caves), Pune (Bhaja Caves) and Nashik (Pandavleni Caves).
vi. Andhra Pradesh - Amravati, Nagarjunakonda, Vizag (Borra Caves, Salihundum Caves).
vii. Madhya Pradesh - Sanchi, Satdhara, Andher, Sonari, Murulkurd.
viii. Odisha (Dhauli, Ratnagiri, Lalitgiri, Udaygiri, Langudi, Khandagiri).
ix. Chhattisgarh Sirpur.
x. West Bengal - Kolkata (Indian Museum)
xi. Sikkim - Rumtek, Enchay and other Monasteries.
xii. Arunachal Pradesh Tawang and Bomdila.
6.Swadesh Darshan and Prasad Scheme (MoTourism)

Swadesh Darshan for Integrated Development of Tourist Circuits around Specific Themes,
with budget of 600 Cr. For 2015-16.

National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD)

to beautify and improve the amenities and infrastructure at pilgrimage centres of all faiths.

Under Swadesh Darshan, the following five circuits have been identified for development:

North East Circuit (Bhalukpong Bomdila-Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh)

Buddhist Circuit (Cultural Centre, Bodhgaya)
Himalayan Circuit
Coastal Circuit (Kakinada Hope Island- Konaseema as World Coastal & Eco Tourism Circuit
(PhaseI ) in Andhra Pradesh )
Krishna Circuit

7.Rakhigari: The biggest Harappan Site

Rakhigarhi (Hisar district) is the biggest Harappan Civilization site with more
than 2000 Harappan sites exists in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Recently 2 more mounds were unearthed in Rakhigarhi, which adds to the already present 7
mounds increase the total area to over 350 Hectares, and making it the biggest Harappan
Civilization site.

Earlier order of size, the biggest Harappan sites were:

o Mohenjo-daro (around 300 Hec, in Pak),
o Harappa (Pak),
o Ganweriwala (Pak),
o Rakhigarhi (Ind),
o Dhoavira (Ind).

The excavated grave had terracotta pots as funerary objects arranged placed around
the head of the deceased, which suggest a believe in life after death; Clay toys; Mud
pots;
8.International Yoga Day

International Yoga Day, also known as Yoga Day in some places, June 21, was declared
as the International Day of Yoga by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11,
2014 with 175 Nations joining as Co-Sponsors and proposal was done within 90 days.
From the perspective of yoga, the Summer Solstice marks the transition to Dakshinayana.
The first full moon after Summer Solstice is known as Guru Poornima. Lord Shiva, the first
yoga practitioner (Adi Yogi) is said to have begun imparting the knowledge of yoga to the rest
of mankind on this day and became the first guru (Adi Guru). Dakshinayana is also
considered a time when there is natural support for those pursuing spiritual practices

Event held in 192 countries with help of Indian Mission & Yoga Centre.
Guiness World Records for Largest number of Participant in a Yoga lesson at Single Venue
(Rajpath) & Most of nationalities in Yoga as require minimum of 50, 84 countries participant
at Rajpath.

9.Gandhi Peace Prize for 2014

India's space agency -- Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has been selected for the
Gandhi Peace Prize for the year 2014. Launched Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) and at a very
cost effective price of 450 crore rupees.

10.The First National Tribal Festival VANAJ-2015

SCIENCE CONGRESS LAUDS FEATS OF ANCIENT INDIA

The Indian Science Congress made history with a symposium on Ancient Sciences through Sanskrit
that included a paper on the existence of interplanetary aircraft in India around 9,000 years ago,

references to cosmic connection and a phenomenon explained as fusion of science and spirituality
due to inter-penetration law.
In the Sulbha Sutra written in 800 BCE, Baudhayan wrote the geometric formula now famously
known as Pythagoras theorem. It was written by Baudhayan 300 years before Pythagoras.
Sulbha Sutrawas also the first to crack the pi ratio.
EXCAVATION AT HARAPPAN SITE REVEALS HOUSE PLAN
Excavation conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) at the late-Harappan site of
Chandayan in Uttar Pradesh has, for the first time, revealed the plan of a house on the GangaYamuna doab, with its mud walls, four successive floor levels and post-holes.
ROCK PAINTINGS
The rock paintings in the Marayur-Chinnar forest belt of Kerala, the second largest
concentration of cave paintings in south India, are at high risk of degeneration.
Over 50 caves, situated in the forest belt, are believed to be of the prehistoric period.
VANAJ 2015
The Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs is organising a weeklong First National Tribal Festival, Vanaj
2015, which has a host of activities lined up to showcase the culture of tribal people from across the
country.
SACRED GROOVES
Sacred Groves are patches of natural or near-natural vegetation, dedicated by local communities to
their
ancestral spirits or deities.
The states particularly, rich in abundance of groves are Kerala, West Bengal, Jharkhand,
Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu.
THE INSTALLED SACRED GROVES INCLUDES
Kaava- Kerala,
MawBukhar-Meghalaya,
Umanglai-Manipur,
Oran-Rajasthan,
Rajbanshi-West Bengal,
Sarna-Chhattisgarh,
KovilKadu-Tamil Nadu,
Devarai-Maharashtra.
PROMINENT SACRED GROOVES
SARNA: Sarna is the term used to refer to sacred groves in the Chotanagpur plateau
(Jharkhand) and
Chhattisgarh. It is the religious centre of the community within the village ecosystem, where the
village
deity resides.
RAJBHANSHIS: The Rajbanshis are from Vaishnav community and worships Lord Krishna.
They have
great respect for Bamboo, as the flute of Lord Krishna is also madeup of bamboo, thats why the
Rajbanshi sacred groves have bamboo trees. Bowl folk songs, explains the importance of bamboo in
human life.
UMANGLAI: these are the sacred groves of Manipur. Major tribal dance of Manipur includes
LaiHaraoba,
Shim lam and ThangTa dances.

BHARAT KE RANG
Bharat ke rang, a programme of cultural performances of Northeastern states in collaboration with
Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan. Artists from Manipur, Assam and Meghalaya performed folk and
tribal dances in this programme.
KABUI AND DHOL CHOLAM DANCE OF MANIPUR
The Kabuis, inhabiting the western hill ranges of Manipur. During the GangNgai festival, the
Kabuis perform a series of dances in different stylized forms, accompanied by the sound of heavy
drums and highpitched songs.
The boys wield sharp weapons (daos) in their hands and move around in circles along with girls
dressed in traditional costumes.
The Shim Lam Dance and the Kit Lam Dance are some of dances of the Kabui Nagas. The Shim
Lamdance is also known as the Fly Dance.
BIHU DANCE OF ASSAM
Performed by both young men and women,
Characterized by brisk dance steps, rapid hand movement, and a rhythmic swaying of the hips in
order to represent youthful passion.
The most important and colourful of the three Bihu festival is the spring festival "Bohag Bihu" or
Rangali Bihu celebrated in the middle of April. The three Bihus/Festivals includes Bohag (spring)
and Magh (winter) Bihu and Kati (autumn) Bihu.
BASANTA RASS (TERMED AS DANCE DRAMA OF MANIPUR)
The Basant Raas Lila, the epitome of Manipur classical dance reveals the sublime and transcendental
love of Krishna and Radha and the Gopis devotion to the lord.
GHANTU FOLK DANCE OF SIKKIM
The Ghantu dance is Sikkimese folk dance patronised by the Gurung community. This
ancient folk dance form depicts the colourful lifestyle of the people of the land and is performed by
young girls in traditional costumes & headgear and is full of fun and vigour.
The Ghantunach or dance festival takes place in the month of Magh Panchami in Magh (towards
the end of January) and ends on Baisakh Purnima which fall around in the end of April or the
beginning of May.
Hey wear typical Ghantu dress which comprises the traditional Gurung dress, jewellery and special
headgear.
INDIAS PARROT LADY
Indias Parrot Lady is to return home, after Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper handed
over to his counterpart, NarendraModi, the 800-year-old Indian sandstone sculpture of a woman
holding a parrot.
The sculpture dates back to the 12th century. It was returned in accordance with the 1970
UNESCO Convention.
The Parrot Lady is what is known as a naayika, or heroine. She is voluptuous, scantily clad,
posed in a manner that is a tad saucy, and has a parrot on her back. She is just one of many erotic
stone ladies that were created to adorn the Khajuraho temples.
SOCIAL ISSUES/HEALTH

A World Bank report Mind Society and Behaviour describes an impressive set of results
when behavioural aspects are integrated into development policies.

RIGHT TO DIE:

Silicosis is a chronic lung disease caused by breathing in tiny bits of silica dust. Silica is the
second most common mineral in the earth's crust. It is a major component of sand, rock, and
mineral ores like quartz.
October 10 marks the World and European Day against the Death Penalty

SOCIAL JUSTICE BENCH

The Supreme Court set up a special Bench, called the Social Justice Bench, comprising two
judges devoted to the delivery of speedy justice in a range of social issues related to the
downtrodden and socially marginalized groups.
The purpose behind constituting the new Bench was to streamline cases highlighting social
issues before one court and thus facilitate the Supreme Courts monitoring and review of the
governments action in such cases.
RISE IN GLOBAL INEQUALITY
The latest International Labour Organisation report on real wages notes that there is
continuing deceleration in the growth of global real wages and discriminatory pay gaps based on
gender and nationality that could sharpen household income inequalities.
AN INCREASE IN WAGES WOULD IMPACT ON
The cost of production,
Profitability
Competitiveness of firms.
At the macro-level, wage stagnation also feeds into a decrease in domestic consumption,
investment and exports.
ABOUT ILO
The ILO was founded in 1919, in the wake of a destructive war, to pursue a vision based on the
premise that universal, lasting peace can be established only if it is based on social justice.
The ILO became the first specialized agency of the UN in 1946.

The main aims of the ILO are to promote rights at work, encourage decent employment
opportunities, enhance social protection and strengthen dialogue on work-related issues.

Scientists were aware that a gene known as HLA-B*57 in a person acted as a protection
against the HIV virus. The new study finds that the virus has adapted to the gene, which
therefore no longer offers protection

Japanese encephalitis is a viral fever that affects the brain and is considered extremely
dangerous for children, and it also has a high mortality and morbidity rate. Caused by the
bite of Culex tritaeniorhynchus mosquito, symptoms of Japanese encephalitis include sudden
onset of fever, vomiting, headache, neck stiffness, and seizures.

IMR has fallen faster in rural areas than in urban areas. Among metro cities, Chennai has the
lowest IMR; Among States, Kerala has by far the best; the next best States, Delhi and
Maharashtra, have IMRs that are twice that of Kerala.

The World Health Organization guideline value for fluoride is 1.5 mg per litre, with a target of
between 0.8 and 1.2 mg per litre to maximise benefits and minimise harmful effects Fluoride
contamination affects the teeth and bones and long-term excessive exposure causes abdominal pain,
excessive saliva, nausea, vomiting, seizures and muscle spasms. National Programme for Prevention
and Control of Fluorosis in 2008-09. In 2013-14, the programme was brought under the National
Rural Health Mission, which has so far covered 111 districts.
ACTION PLAN FOR DIARRHEA AND PNEUMONIA
The Centre will soon launch an action plan against diarrhoea and pneumonia in four States.
The aim is to end preventable child deaths from these two by 2025.
The four States where the India Action Plan for Diarrhoea and Pneumonia will be rolled out
Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan account for half of under-five
mortality in the country which stands at 62 deaths per 1,000 live births nationally.
The action plan is a follow-up of the Global Action Plan for Diarrhoea and Pneumonia that
was launched by WHO and UNICEF in April 2013 which aims to reduce pneumonia
mortality to less than 3 per 1,000 live births, diarrhoea deaths to less than 1 per 1,000 live
births, reduce incidence of severe pneumonia and diarrhoea by 75 per cent compared to 2010
levels and reduce by 40 per cent the global number who are stunted as compared to 2010
levels by 2025.
MISSION INDRADHANUSH
Health and Family Welfare Minister launched Mission Indradhanush, which will aim to cover
all those children by 2020 who had not been vaccinated, or were partially vaccinated, against seven
vaccine-preventable diseases diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis,
measles and hepatitis B. The Ministry identified 201 high-focus districts in the country in the
first phase.

A fact-finding team that probed the death of 16 women at a sterilisation camp in Bilaspur,
Chhattisgarh, in November has ruled out the presence of zinc phosphide in the medicine
as the only cause of the deaths.

KERALA MODEL
In Kerala, the proportion of couples effectively protected by family planning methods is the highest
in India.
Reasons for the dramatic fall in birth rates is mainly attributed to the following,
Literacy

Womens empowerment
Access to health services
Social welfare measures
The public distribution system
Nutritional security and poverty alleviation.
A GLOBAL BURDEN OF DISEASE STUDY 2013
According to the report, ischemic heart disease was the number one cause of death in India in 2013.
The other leading causes (in descending order) were lower respiratory track infections, tuberculosis,
neonatal encephalitis, preterm birth complications, diarrhoea, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary
disease (COPD), suicide, and finally road injuries.
INDIA TO REACH REPLACEMENT LEVELS OF FERTILITY BY 2020
The Total Fertility Rate the average number of children that will be born to a woman
during her lifetime in eight States has fallen below two children per woman.
Just nine States all of them in the north and east, except for Gujarat havent yet reached
replacements levels of 2.1, below which populations begin to decline.
West Bengal now has Indias lowest fertility, with the southern States, Jammu & Kashmir,
Punjab and
Himachal Pradesh
Among backward States, Odisha too has reduced its fertility to 2.1.

Demographic transition (DT) refers to the transition from high birth and death rates to low
birth and death rates as a country develops from a pre-industrial to an industrialized
economic system

HEALTH AS FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

RAISING PUBLIC HEALTH EXPENDITURE TO 2.5% OF GDP

The draft endorses that to achieve the millennium development goals we require an increase
in public health expenditure from 4 to 5 per cent of the GDP
40% of this expenditure will be borne by the central government.
The government will raise resources by creating a health cess on the lines of the education
cess. Special commodity taxes may be imposed on tobacco, alcohol, extractive industries etc

COMPOSITION OF BLOOD:
Blood is composed of cells suspended in a liquid-like substance called plasma. Suspended in
the plasma are three types of cells:
Red blood cells carry oxygen
White blood cells fight infection
Platelets stop bleeding in injuries
Blood contains red blood cells, floating in fluid called plasma. Red blood cells carry on their
surface a set of markers with which the plasma interacts. This compatibility or cross-talk
between the cell and the plasma is what makes each blood type special. The markers on the
cell are determined by a master type called H, out of which are generated types A, B, AB and
AO.
BOMBAY BLOOD GROUP:
The h/h blood group, also known as Oh or the Bombay blood group, is a rare blood
type. This blood phenotype was first discovered in Bombay by Dr. Y. M. Bhende in 1952.The
hh type (Bombay type people) can accept only from other hh type, and also can receive only
from the hh types. This makes the Bombay Blood types a very special and rare category of
people.
SUPER MOSQUITO
Interbreeding of two malaria mosquito species in the West African country of Mali has
resulted in a super mosquito hybrid that is resistant to insecticide-treated bed nets. Its
super with respect to its ability to survive exposure to the insecticides on treated bed nets.
Anopheles gambiae, a major malaria vector, is interbreeding with isolated pockets of another
malaria mosquito, Acoluzzii.
Entomologists initially considered them as the M and S forms of Anopheles gambiae. They are
now recognised as separate species.
The research provides convincing evidence indicating that a man-made change in the
environment the introduction of insecticides has altered the evolutionary relationship
between two species
MENINGITISVACCINE
The World Health Organization has approved giving a groundbreaking meningitis vaccine,
which does not have to be stored in fridges or iceboxes, to babies across Africa. WHOs
approval means the vaccine meets international safety and quality standards and can be used
in children under a year old. It also paves the way for UN agencies to purchase the vaccine for
use in routine immunization programmes.
MenAfriVac was developed by MVP a partnership between WHO and Path, a non-profit
global health group and is manufactured by the Serum Institute of India.
MENINGITIS
Meningitis is an acute inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and
spinalcord, known as the Meningitis.
Meningitis can be life-threatening because of the inflammation's proximity to the brain
and spinal cord.
Symptoms: headache and neck stiffness associated with fever, confusion or altered
consciousness, vomiting, and an inability to tolerate light (photophobia) or loud noises
(phonophobia).
Causes: Most infections are due to viruses, with bacteria, fungi, and protozoa being the
next most common causes.
Treatments: Antibiotics are used for treatment. The type of antibiotic depends on the
bacteria which caused the infection. Vaccination is also widely used for prevention.

SWINE FLU
Swine flu (swine influenza) is a respiratory disease caused by viruses (influenza viruses) that
infect the respiratory tract of pigs, resulting in nasal secretions, a barking cough, decreased
appetite, and listless behavior. Swine flu viruses may mutate (change) so that they are easily
transmissible among humans.
The 2009 swine flu outbreak (pandemic) was due to infection with the H1N1 virus and was
first observed in Mexico
Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are the worst-hit States.
Causes/means of spread: Swine flu is contagious. When people who have it cough or sneeze,
they spray tiny drops of the virus into the air. If anyone come in contact with these drops or touch a
surface (such as a doorknob or sink) that an infected person has recently touched, one can catch
H1N1 swine flu.
Symptoms: Symptoms of swine flu in humans are similar to most influenza infections: fever (100 F
or greater), cough, nasal secretions, fatigue, and headache.
VENTURE CAPITAL FUNDS FOR SCHEDULED CASTE
The Government of India has launched this Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes with initial
capital of Rs. 200 crore.
THE OBJECTIVES OF THE VENTURE FUND ARE AS FOLLOWS:
It is a Social Sector Initiative to be implemented nationally in order to promote
entrepreneurship amongst the SCs who are oriented towards innovation and growth technologies.
To provide concessional finance to the SC entrepreneurs, who will create wealth and value for
society and at the same time will promote profitable businesses. The assets so created will also create
forward/ backward linkage. It will further create chain effect in the locality.
To increase financial inclusion for SC entrepreneurs and to motivate them for further growth of
SC communities.
To develop SC entrepreneurs economically.
To enhance direct and indirect employment generation for SC population in India
GREEN BUSINESS SCHEME
NSFDCs Green Business Scheme for providing financial assistance has been launched keeping
into the concern for the climate change.
Under this Scheme, loan for unit cost upto Rs.1 lakh at concessional rate of interest will be
provided to
Scheduled Castes for activities such as e-rickshaw, Solar Pump and Solar energy powered
implements, poly house etc.

BETI BACHAO-BETI PADHAO SCHEME & SUKANYA SAMRUDDHI ACCOUNT

MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS: INDIA'S ACHIEVEMENT

Population below the poverty line, India has already achieved the target of reducing poverty
by half.
On education indicators, the county has already achieved gender parity in primary school
enrollment and according to the report it is likely to reach parity in secondary and tertiary
education by 2015.
India is also set to achieve the goal of reducing hunger by half and reduce maternal mortality
by three quarters.
The country has successfully managed to control the spread of deadly diseases such as
HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
It has also creased the forest cover and has halved the proportion of population without
access to clean drinking water.
INDIRA GANDHI MATRITVA SAHYOG YOJANA (IGMSY)
In 2010, the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) launched the Indira Gandhi
MatritvaSahyogYojana (IGMSY) to address this critical situation. Leveraging the Integrated Child
Development
Schemes (ICDS) platform, the programme was piloted in 53 districts across the country.
Benefits from scheme:
The IGMSY provides partial wage compensation to pregnant and lactating women in order to
promote rest and healthy feeding practices, as well as increase utilisation of healthcare services.
Under the scheme, all pregnant women of 19 years and above, except those employed by the
government (Central or State) or Public Sector Undertakings, for the first two live births were
entitled to Rs. 4,000 per live birth, in three instalments.

The scheme is conditional on timely registration, complete vaccination, attending counseling

sessions and exclusive breastfeeding of the child.
In September 2013, the IGMSY cash incentive was increased from Rs. 4,000 to Rs. 6,000 to
comply with the minimum maternity entitlement provision of the National Food Security Act
(NFSA), 2013. The MWCD announced a proposed scale up of the IGMSY to 200 additional high
burden districts in 2015-16.
ROTAVIRUS VACCINE
PM launched the first indigenously developed and manufactured Rotavirus vaccine (Rotavac).
EXTENT AND IMPACT OF ROTAVIRUS IN INDIA
Each year, diarrhoea caused by rotavirus results up to 10 lakh hospitalizations and kills nearly
80 thousand children under the age of 5 years.
Besides causing emotional stress to the affected families, it also pushes many Indian families
below the poverty line and also imposes significant economic burden on the country.
HOW VACCINE DEVELOPED
Rotavacs development took 25 years. The vaccine has been developed under an innovative
public-private partnership model.
It was developed by Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech.
It involved partnership between the Ministry of Science and Technology, the institutions of the
US Government, various government institutions and NGOs in India, supported by the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation.
Rotavirus
Virus which causes severe diarrhea
Symptoms
Fever, nausea, and vomiting, watery diarrhea.
Transmission:
Rotavirus transmitted through contact with contaminated hands, surfaces and objects, and
possibly by the respiratory route.
It is highly contagious.
Treatment
According to WHO treatment should include oral rehydration and zinc supplementation as a
two-pronged treatment of acute diarrhoea.
SOCIAL SECURITY NET
There is a conscious push towards spreading the social security net, especially retirement
pension coverage, using the Jan Dhan platform.
The Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojna which will offer accident cover of Rs.2 lakh at
a premium of just Rs.12 per year and
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti BimaYojana which will offer life cover of Rs.2 lakh at a
premium of just Rs.330 per annum are commendable plans that will take social security to
the poor who need it the most.
FARM SECTOR
The govt. flagged the PradhanMantri Gram SinchaiYojna aimed at per drop more crop
and ParamparagatKrishiVikasYojna (organic farming) as the two most important progammes
in the farm sector to enhance productivity and production. It announced an allocation of Rs. 5,300
crore for microirrigation, watershed development and the sinchaiyojna and Rs. 300 crore for
organic farming.
Prime Minister Modi had recently launched the Soil Health Card Scheme from Suratgarh in
Rajasthan.
Recognising that agriculture incomes were under stress, Mr. Jaitley announced that a Unified
National

Agriculture Market would be set up to increase farmers incomes with an incidental advantage
of moderating increase in prices which has been the bane of many a government. While farmers are
no longer in the clutches of traders, his produce does not command the best national price, he
observed.
Farm credit has been raised by Rs. 50,000 crore to Rs. 8.5 lakh crore for 2015-16, which he
expects banks to surpass.
However, funding for the UPA flagship programmes of RashtriyaKrishiVikasYojna has been
reduced and the National Food Security Mission, Extension programme and crop insurance schemes
have been ignored.
'AAPKI BETI HUMARI BETI'SCHEME:
Haryana CM ManoharLalKhattar has launched a scheme for girl child- 'AapkiBeti HumariBeti'
on March 8, 2015. It has been launched with an aim to overcome the problem of decline in child sex
ratio in Haryana.
CHANGES IN JUVENILE LAW
The Union Cabinet has approved the introduction of Amendment to the Juvenile Justice (Care and
Protection of Children) Bill 2014.
The proposed new law gives the Juvenile Justice Board the power to assess whether the
perpetrator of a heinous crime aged between 16 and 18, had acted as a child or as an adult.
The board will be assisted in this process by psychologists and social experts.
Since this assessment will take place by the Board which will have psychologists and social
experts, it will ensure that the rights of the juvenile are duly protected if he has committed the crime
as a child.
The trial of the case will accordingly take place as a juvenile or as an adult on the basis of this
assessment.
The cabinet also approved introduction of a contentious new provision in the bill that debars
juveniles who have been convicted under the adult system from contesting elections and doing
government jobs.
FIGHT AGAINST LEPROSY
Leprosy is a chronic, infectious disease involving the skin and nerves of infected individuals.
Leprosy is caused by a slow-growing type of bacteria called Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae).
Leprosy is also known as Hansen's disease, after the scientist who discovered M. leprae in 1873.
The disease is characterised by long incubation period generally 5-7 years and is classified as
paucibacillary or multi-bacillary, depending on the bacillary load.
Leprosy is a leading cause of permanent physical disability.
Those affected by the disease continue to face social stigma and discrimination.
NATIONAL E-HEALTH AUTHORITY (NEHA)
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare proposes to set up a National e-Health authority
responsible for
development of an integrated health information system in India.
The authority will have one chairman and four full-time members.
It will be responsible for formulation of policies, strategies and implementation of plan blueprint
of the National e-Health Policy / Strategy.
It will be responsible for the plans implementation by both public and private service providers.
The authority will establish a network of different institutions to promote e-Health and telemedicine and lay down data management, privacy and security policies and also standards and
guidelines in accordance with statutory provisions.
INDIA RANKED 101 IN SOCIAL PROGRESS INDEX(SPI)
The SPI was launched in 2013 and is based on 52 indicators of countries social and environmental

performance. It includes no economic indicators and measures outcomes. SPI has three main
domains viz.
Basic Human Needs: Nutrition and Basic Medical Care ,Water and Sanitation, Shelter.
Foundations of Wellbeing: Ecosystem Sustainability, Access to Information and
Communications,
Health and Wellness, Access to Basic Knowledge.
Opportunity: Access to Advanced Education, Personal Rights, Tolerance(women, minorities)
and Inclusion.
ACID ATTACK: VICTIMS MUST GET FULL TREATMENT, SAYS SC
The Supreme Court made it mandatory for private hospitals across the country to provide full
and free medical treatment to the victims. The order said the term treatment included
reconstructive surgery, free medicines, bed, rehabilitation and aftercare.
The Bench was interpreting Section 357C of the Criminal Procedure Code, inserted in Feb.
2013, to deal with the issue of cost of treatment of acid-attack victims.
In 2014, there has been 300% rise in the incidents of acid attack, totaling 309 in 2014
across the country. UP tops the list of incidents of acid attack, followed by MP and Delhi.
KYASANUR FOREST DISEASE(KFD)
KFD is caused by the Kyasanur Forest Disease Virus (KFDV). The virus was identified in 1957
when it was isolated from a sick monkey from the Kyasanur Forest in Karnataka.
Rodents, shrews, and monkeys are common hosts for KFDV after being bitten by an infected
tick, KFDV can cause epizootics with high fatality in primates
Transmission to humans may occur after a tick bite or contact with an infected animal, most
importantly a sick or recently dead monkey. No person-to-person transmission has been described.
THE SYMPTOMS
After an incubation period of 3-8 days, the symptoms of KFD begin suddenly with chills, fever,
and headache. Severe muscle pain with vomiting, gastrointestinal symptoms and bleeding problems
may occur 3-4 days after initial symptom onset.
Patients may experience abnormally low blood pressure, and low platelet, red blood cell, and
white blood cell counts.
PREVENTION
There is no specific treatment for KFD, but early hospitalisation and supportive therapy is
important.
Supportive therapy includes the maintenance of hydration and the usual precautions for patients
with bleeding disorders.
APPRAISAL OF REVISED NATIONAL TUBERCULOSIS CONTROL PROGRAMME
(RNTCP):
The Joint Monitoring Mission 2015 has found many flaws with the Revised National
Tuberculosis Control Programme (RNTCP) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in
their inability to handle the Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) crisis in the country.
RECOMMENDATIONS AND WAY FORWARD
While private doctors treat patients with daily dosing, the RNTCP follows a thrice weekly
strategy, hence the need is to accelerate implementation of the transition to daily dosing.
It wants the Ministry to develop e-Nikshay, an advanced version to the existing Nikshay
system for notifying TB patients.
With the cost of treating a person with TB going up to 39% of the households annual
expenditure, the report has recommended that the Ministry of Health minimises the out-ofpocket expenditure by families by supporting the cost of TB testing and providing free drugs.
It also wants the government to exempt TB diagnostics and drugs from taxation, considering
TB as a public health emergency.
The JMM has recommended that the government should establish a state-of-art TB
surveillance

system for capturing all TB cases, public and privately-treated.

LABOUR CODES
The government has a proposal to codify the Central labour law architecture by merging all 44
Central legislations into four codes on labour laws one each on wages, industrial
relations, social security and safety & welfare.
CABINET CLEARS AMENDMENTS IN CHILD LABOUR LAW
While prohibiting employment of children below the age of 14 in all occupations and processes,
the Centre made two exceptions by letting them work in family enterprises and in the
audio-visual entertainment industry (except the circus), provided their school education is
not affected.
Amendment introduces new term adolescents for children between 14 and 18 years of age
and bars their employment in hazardous industries. Current law allows employment of children
above 14 years in hazardous occupation and processes.
STRICTER PUNISHMENT
Parents and guardians will not be penalised for the first offence but, for a second offence,
they would be fined up to Rs 20,000. This is a change from the earlier position where parents or
guardians were liable to get the same punishment as employers for permitting a child to work in
contravention of the Act.
To create a deterrent, the offence of employing any child or adolescent by an employer has
been made cognizable.
WORLD EDUCATION FORUM 2015
The World Education Forum (WEF) was held in South Korea's port city of Incheon. It adopted
Declaration for future education development goals.
Earlier forum was held in Dakar in 2000, six goals were agreed upon, the most significant
being that by 2015, each child would get access to primary education and no child would be out of
school. Fifteen years later, were still miles away from achieving those goals
IAP HEALTHPHONE PROGRAMME
The IAP HealthPhone Programme has been launched by the Indian Academy of Pediatrics
(IAP) in partnership with the Ministry of Women and Child Development, UNICEF and supported
by Vodafone India.
The IAP HealthPhone programme is the worlds largest digital mass education
programme for
addressing the malnutrition in women and children. The IAP HealthPhone is a publicpartnership initiative that leverages the increasing penetration of mobile phones in the
country to educate over 6 million girls and women between 13 and 35 years of age
and their families on better health and nutrition practices by 2018.
The programme will achieve its objectives by widely promoting and distributing four re-edited
videos from the Poshan (nutritional videos) series, jointly produced by MoWCD and UNICEF
in 18 Indian languages. The Poshan videos address issues of status of women, the care of pregnant
women and children under two, breastfeeding and the importance of balanced diet, health and
simple changes in nutritional care practices that can notably enhance nutritiona levels.
As next step, IAP HealthPhone partners will also equip ASHAs and ANMs with a HealthPhone
microSD card, containing a library of videos, to enable them to share health and nutrition
knowledge with women, families and the communities they serve.
JAL KRANTI ABHIYAN
Union Minister of State for Water Resources and River Development launched the Jal Kranti
Abhiyan 2015-2016. The Jal Kranti Abhiyan will be celebrated across the country during 2015-16

with an aim to consolidate water conservation and management using a holistic and integrated
approach.
The main thrust of Jal Kranti is to recover receding underground water table, riverbasin planning and irrigation water management, conservation and rejuvenation of
traditional resources and save water.
The chief component under the campaign is the Jal Gram Yojana, whereby one village facing
acute water scarcity would be selected from each of the 672 districts in the country. The scheme will
identify and train a cadre of local water professionals, preferably women panchayat members, to
be called Jal Mitra who will create mass awareness about water problems.
The scheme also provides for a Sujalam Card which will provide annual status/information
about the quality of drinking water available for a Jal Gram.
MAGGI ROW
MSG, is a glutamate, or salt of glutamic acid, a non-essential amino acid, which means it
is produced by the body, and thus not required in our diet. In its pure form, MSG is a white
crystalline powder. Among different varieties of glutamate, sodium glutamate is the most soluble and
the easiest to crystallize.
MSG is a naturally occurring salt in tomatoes, Parmesan cheese, potatoes, mushrooms,
soybeans and seaweed. But today, instead of extracting and crystallising MSG from seaweed broth or
other natural foods, MSG is produced by fermentation of starch, sugar beets, sugar cane or molasses
in laboratories.
MSG is a neurotransmitter transporting messages from one nerve cell to another. Because
it is said to enhance flavours, some scientists believe it excites nerve endings and exhibits neuroexcitatory properties, that is the ability to stimulate neurons. In the few cases of excessive
stimulation, this can result in killing or damaging of nerve cells. Which is why some people consider
MSG to induce headaches at best and Alzheimers at worst.
The FDA considers addition of MSG to foods to be generally recognised as safe. And yet, when
MSG is added in foods, the FDA insists it be listed on the label. This is because over the years,
specially since the 1960s, FDA has received many complaints of adverse reactions to foods
containing MSG. These reactions known as MSG Symptom Complex, or Chinese
Restaurant Syndrome include headaches, flushing, sweating, facial pressure, numbness,
tingling or burning in the face/neck, heart palpitations, chest pain, nausea and weakness.
In the 1990s, the FDA asked independent scientific group Federation of American Societies for
Experimental Biology (FASEB) to examine the safety of MSG. The report concluded that MSG is safe.
The FASEB identified some transient and mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing,
tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3
grams or more of MSG without food. However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains
less than 0.5 grams of MSG. Consuming more than 3 grams of MSG without food at one time is
unlikely, says the FDA website.
RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING (RPL) SCHEME
Across construction sites dotting five states Haryana, Telangana, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and
Delhi a novel scheme is underway to certify the skills acquired by workers in the
unorganised sectors through traditional, non-formal learning channels. Under RPL, a
target to certify an estimated 10 lakh workers has been set.
INCREASING NUMBER OF DAYS WORK UNDER MGNREGS
The rural development ministry, which oversees the MGNREGA, has moved a Cabinet note to
increase the number of promised work-days under the scheme to 150 days in areas declared to be
drought affected by the respective state governments.
The spectre of drought has led to a perceptible change, with the government coming to realise
MGNREGAs value in mitigating distress situations and providing a basic minimum
level of sustenance to the rural poor.

This fact was also acknowledged in a recent observation by the World Bank on MGNREGS as
an effective substitute for lack of crop and weather insurance in India.
The new government has also launched steps to improve the schemes implementation through:
o More regular monitoring and scientific planning of works.
o Correcting MGNREGAs biggest weakness poor quality of assets by introducing systems
for measuring outcomes of works based on defined physical and financial parameters.
o Addressing the problem of delays in wage payments via mobile monitoring systems and
SMS alerts to defaulting field personnel.
INDIAS GREATEST ARCHITECT CHARLES CORREA
With the passing away of Charles Correa, often called Indias greatest architect, the country
has lost a genius of urban planning.
He was the chief architect of Navi Mumbai, considered among the largest urban spaces in the
world housing over two million people.
He pioneered some unique concepts in urban development and affordable housing that,
if adopted widely, could change the landscape of the poorest townships of not just India but much of
the Third World.
It was Mr. Correa who founded the Urban Design Research Institute in Bombay in 1984.
In India, Mr. Correa is famous for the Gandhi Smarak in Ahmedabad, Kala Kendra
(Goa), National Crafts Museum (New Delhi), Bharat Bhavan (Bhopal), and Jawahar
Kala Kendra (Jaipur).
He is the recipient of Padmashri (1972) and Padma Vibushan(2006).
NEW MANUAL SCAVENGING LAW PROVING INADEQUATE TO END THE
MISFORTUNE
Maharashtra, with 63,713, tops the list with the largest number of manual scavenger households,
followed by MP, UP, Tripura and Karnataka, as per Census data.
Features Of The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their
Rehabilitation Act 2013
1. It also seeks to expand the definition of manual scavengers.
2. Every unsanitary latrine is to be demolished or converted into sanitary latrines within 9 months of
coming of the law.
3. Falls under residual powers under the Union list (Entry 97).
4. National Commission for Safai karmachari is the implementing authority.
5. Rehabilitation of estimated 2 lakh manual scavengers with one-time cash assistance, Rs 3,000 per
month during training for other livelihood options, concessional loans for at least one member of the
family and financial assistance for building a house.
6. It also fixes the responsibility on local governments for ensuring sanitary community toilets.
7. It seeks to more strict punishment for employing manual scavengers with a fine of Rs 50,000
or/and
imprisonment up to a year. While the practice of hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks will
attract a fine of Rs 2 lakh and up to 2 years of imprisonment.
NATIONAL SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP POLICY 2015
The policy would have four thrust areas. It addresses key obstacles to skilling, including low
aspirational value, lack of integration with formal education, lack of focus on outcomes, low quality
of training infrastructure and trainers.
It also seeks to connect entrepreneurs to mentors, incubators and credit markets;
foster innovation and entrepreneurial culture; improve ease of doing business; and
focus on social entrepreneurship.
Equity is also a focus of the Policy, which targets skilling opportunities for socially/geographically
marginalised and disadvantaged groups. Skill development and entrepreneurship programmes for
women are a specific focus of the Policy.

A MUCH NEEDED AMENDMENT TO COUNTER RACIST REMARK

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to amend the Indian Penal Code to make racial
discrimination a non-bailable criminal offence. It is in the process of finalising a
comprehensive Bill for insertion of new Sections 153C and 509A in the IPC.
Under the amended law, any word, sign or gesture insulting the race of a person will be punishable
with a three-year prison term. Any word, gesture, written statement or activity aimed at
discriminating against the race of a person or promoting violence against a particular race will
invite a prison term of five years.
GROWING INEQUALITY IN INDIA
However, one group of people says that there is nothing to be worried about Indias growing
inequality.
This is the normal progression of economic development. A set of expanding industries
located in an urban area induces further development of economic activity throughout its zone of
influence. For some years, this generates increasingly large differentials in income and development,
but after reaching a maximum level, inequality begins to decline, in the manner of an inverted U,
what we call as the Kuznets Curve. This is what we know as John F. Kennedys memorable phrase,
a rising tide lifts all boats.
PAM RAJPUT COMMITTEE ON IMPROVING STATUS OF WOMEN
It wants the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) to be repealed, gay sex decriminalized, and
at least 50 % reservation for women at all levels of legislature, right up to the Parliament.
GOVERNMENT TO INTRODUCE SC/ST ATROCITIES BILL 2014 IN MONSOON
SESSION
SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,
SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities)
1989
Amendment Bill 2014
Offences
The Bill adds that impeding certain activities
Forcing an SC or ST individual to vote or not related to voting will also be considered an
vote for a particular candidate in a manner
offence.
that is against the law is an offence under the
The Bill defines wrongful in this context,
Act.
which was not done under the Act.
Wrongfully occupying land belonging to SCs
The Bill adds that: (a) intentionally touching
or
an SC or ST woman in a sexual manner without
STs is an offence under the Act.
her consent, or (b) using words, acts or gestures
Assaulting or sexual exploiting an SC or ST
of a sexual nature, or (c) dedicating an SC or ST
woman is an offence under the Act.
women as a devadasi to a temple, or any similar
practice will also be considered an offence.
Role Of Public Servants
The Bill specifies these duties, including: (a)
The Act specifies that a non SC or ST public
registering a complaint or FIR, (b) reading out
servant
information given orally, before taking the
who neglects his duties relating to SCs or STs
signature of the informant and giving a
shall
copy of this information to the informant, etc
be punishable with imprisonment for a term of
six
months to one year.
Role Of Courts
The Bill substitutes this provision and specifies
Under the Act, a Court of Session at the
that an Exclusive Special Court must be
district
established at the district level to try offences
level is deemed a Special Court to provide
under the Bill, and ensure that cases are
speedy trials for offences.
disposed of within two months.
A Special Public Prosecutor is appointed to
Appeals of these courts shall lie with the
conduct cases in this court.
high court, and must be disposed of within three
months.

the Bill adds some new features also which are:

New offences added under the Bill include: (a) garlanding with footwear, (b) compelling
to dispose or carry human or animal carcasses, or do manual scavenging, (c) abusing SCs or STs by
caste name in public, (d) causing physical harm on the allegation of practicing witchcraft, and (e)
imposing or threatening a social or economic boycott.
The court shall presume that the accused was aware of the caste or tribal identity of
the victim if the accused had personal knowledge of the victim or his family, unless the contrary is
proved.
The Bill adds a chapter on the rights of victims and witness. It shall be the duty of the
state to make arrangements for the protection of victims, their dependents and witnesses. The state
government shall specify a scheme to ensure the implementation of rights of victims and witnesses.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY /ENVIRONMENT
VENUS MISSION:

NASAs High Altitude Venus Operational Concept (HAVOC) mission aims to

explore the atmosphere of Venus instead of exploring the surface.
NASA plans to send solar-powered airships to explore Venus atmosphere and to eventually
establish a permanent human colony in a floating cloud city above the Earths nearest
planetary neighbor.
A helium-filled, solar-powered airship would explore the planets atmosphere.

CORAL REEFS:
Major part of pollution comes from land-based run off, oil spills, nutrients and pesticides from
agriculture, wastewater, industrial effluent, untreated sewage and others.
Among the four major types of marine pollution chemical pollution, nutrient pollution,
marine debris pollution and air pollution, chemical and nutrient pollution play major role to obstruct
the role of corals.
Pesticides containing persistent organic pollutant (POPs), hydrocarbons from oil tankers and
heavy metals from industrial (mining, dredging) effluent cause major threat to corals.
Toxic chemicals like POPs and PAHs can destroy or damage reef communities by affecting
corals reproduction and growth and can be bio-magnified to a critical level for the higher level
animals of the
food chain making them vulnerable to this process.
Heavy metals such as copper and zinc have been linked to reduced fertilisation, fecundity and
growth in adult corals.
Nutrients discharged in form of fertilisers, waste feed and other materials from aquaculture and
agriculture into coastal waters which lead to the bloom of nuisance algae (eutrophication) and
subsequent oxygen depletion plays a major hindrance in coral growth.

In terms of tsunami research several models were developed in which scenarios were created
which will help in predicting the time of tsunami wave arrivals, their heights and inundation
along the east and west coast of India in case of earthquakes occurrence in the two
subduction zones in Markran, south of Pakistan in the west and Andaman and Nicobar and
Sumatra in the east, identified to be sources of tsunami generation.

RUSTUM2
Next generation unmanned aerial vehicle Rustum2, which is capable of operating at an altitude of
30,000 feet and 24-hour endurance with a payload of 350 kg.
The UAV would be used for defence operations, including reconnaissance and target identification

PANCHI
Panchi, the wheeled version of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Nishant, capable of taking
off from and landing on small airstrips. Panchi was designed and developed by the
Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), a Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) facility at Bengaluru.
Nishant, which has an underbelly airbag, is launched by a catapult, and lands with the help of
an onboard parachute. Panchi has all the surveillance capabilities of Nishant, but it can stay
in the air longer because it does not have to carry the airbag and the parachute systems of the
other. It is also a light vehicle with its body made of composites, and has a high degree of
stealth because it has a low radar cross-section signature

The Adaptation Fund set up in 2001 was to be financed by a share of money from the Clean
Development Mechanism (CDM).
Wind energy accounts for 70 per cent of the installed capacity at 22.1 GW followed by
biomass power-4.2 per cent, small hydro power-3.9 GW and solar power 2.8 GW.
The 12th five year plan has projected 33 per cent installed capacity of power in 2030 from
renewable energy sources. India has ambitious plans to scale up renewable energy to 165
MW, of this solar energy will be 100 GW by 2019-20. It has proposed 25 solar parks in India
and 100,000 solar pumps for irrigation and drinking water.

THIRTY METRE TELESCOPE (TMT) PROJECT

The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is a ground-based large segmented mirror reflecting
telescope under construction on Mauna Kea in Hawaii. The telescope is designed for
observations from near-ultraviolet to midinfrared (0.31 to 28 mwavelengths).
In addition, its adaptive optics system will help correct for image blur caused by the
atmosphere of the Earth, helping it to reach the potential of such a large mirror.
India will gain the technology to manufacture fine aspherical mirror segments from the
California Institute of Technology (Caltech). This technology will form the basis of the next
generation of spy satellites
ORION
NASAs Orion spacecraft is built to take humans farther than theyve ever gone before. Orion
will serve as the exploration vehicle that will carry the crew to space, provide emergency
abort capability, sustain the crew during the space travel, and provide safe re-entry from
deep space return velocities.
GSAT-16
The satellite with 48 transponders, the largest ever carried by a communication spacecraft
built by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), was injected into the intended
Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
GSLV MARK III
The vehicle envisages multi-mission launch capability for GTO, LEO, Polar and intermediate
circular orbits. GSLV-Mk III is designed to be a three stage vehicle, with 42.4 m tall with a lift
off weight of 630 tonnes. First stage comprises two identical S200 Large Solid Booster (LSB)
with 200 tonne solid propellant, that are strapped on to the second stage, the L110 restartable liquid stage. The third stage is the C25 LOX/LH2 cryo stage.
Also known as LVM3/CARE, the suborbital experimental mission was intended to test the
vehicles performance during the critical atmospheric phase of its flight and this carried a
passive (non-functional) cryogenic upper stage.
The payload for this maiden launch was the Crew Module Atmospheric Reentry Experiment
(CARE), which demonstrated the crew capsule which ISRO has been developing for its

manned programme. The primary objective of CAREs mission was to validate the reentry
and recovery of the prototype spacecraft.

In its Freedom on the Net 2014 report released on Thursday, Freedom House, an
independent US-based watchdog group, ranked the countries on 21 categories under three
broad heads obstacles to access, limits on content and violations of individuals rights.
India is only partly free with a rank of 30 out of 65 countries in Internet freedom.

PLUTO-BOUND SPACECRAFT ENDS HIBERNATION TO START MISSION

After nine years and a journey of 4.8 billion km, NASA's New Horizons robotic probe awoke from
hibernation to begin an unprecedented mission to study the icy dwarf planet Pluto and sibling worlds
in its Kuiper Belt home.
FIRST GREEN DIESEL-POWERED FLIGHT
Renewable Diesel, often called green diesel or second generation diesel, refers to
petrodiesel-like fuels derived from biological sources that are chemically not esters and thus
distinct from biodiesel. Renewable diesel is chemically the same as petrodiesel, but it is made
of recently living biomass.
Biodiesel is produced using a transesterification process, reacting vegetable oils or animal
fats catalytically with a short-chained aliphatic alcohol (typically methanol or ethanol).
Glycerol is a by-product of this transesterification process.
A Boeing aircraft has completed the worlds first flight using green diesel, a sustainable
biofuel made from vegetable oils, waste cooking oil and animal fats.
BIO-DIGESTER TOILETS
A recent report Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation, update 2014, by WHO and
UNICEF, estimates that about 597 million people in India resort to open defecation, the
highest in the world.
The technology, which uses bacteria to treat waste, was originally developed by the Defence
Research Development Establishment (DRDE), Gwalior, to meet the sanitation requirements
of soldiers serving in the high altitudes of Ladakh and Siachen.
The system is built to operate from minus 20 degrees to plus 50 degrees and is highly
customisable as per the requirements and local conditions. The best feature is that it totally
does away with manual scavenging and is low on maintenance and installation cost
MICROPLASTIC POLLUTION ENDANGERING MARINE LIFE
Microplastic particles, measuring less than 5mm in size, have been accumulating in the
oceans since the 1960s and are now the most abundant form of solid-waste pollution on
Earth.
Using the lugworm as an indicator species, found that worms feeding in highly contaminated
ocean sediment ate less and had lower energy levels.
First time that ingesting microplastics can transfer pollutants and additives to worms,
reducing health and biodiversity.
Lugworms are common invertebrates found widely found across the north Atlantic, living in
burrows in the sand of beaches. They eat sand particles, digesting any microorganisms and
nutrients and passing the sand as waste through their tail, leaving a distinctive trail or cast
on the beach. The worm can make up about 30 per cent of the biomass of an average sandy
beach, making it an important source of food for wading birds and flatfish.
The earthworms of the sea, lugworms provide another important ecosystem service by
turning over large volumes of sand, replenishing organic material and oxygenating the upper
layers to keep the sediment healthy for other animals and microorganisms.
TAJ: THE POLLUTANTS CAUSING DISCOLOURATION IDENTIFIED

Particulate carbon and fine dust particles that are deposited on the marble are responsible
for its browning.
Carbon is of two types black carbon and light absorbing organic carbon or brown carbon.
Both organic carbon and dust particles have the ability to preferentially absorb light in the
blue region of the spectrum. The absorption of blue light by these pollutants in turn gives the
marble surface a brown hue.
There is one group of organic carbon which absorbs light in the blue region of the spectrum
and this is called brown carbon. Discolouration is because of what is happening to
reflectance, and reflectance is in turn influenced by these particles.
It is the presence of haematite in the dust that is responsible for the brown hue. If haematite
is not present in the dust then the dust would be only scattering in nature. Haematite is the
ingredient that absorbs the blue wavelength of the spectrum.

HAINAN GIBBON
Critically endangered ape species that lives only in the rainforests of southern Chinas
Hainan Island.
Hainan is Chinas smallest and southernmost province, an island of rainforests, mountains
and sandy beaches in the South China Sea.
KEPLER MISSION
NASAs planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft, which is carrying out a new mission has made its
first exoplanet discovery a super-Earth located 180 light-years from Earth.
An exoplanet or extra solar planet is a planet that does not orbit the Sun and instead orbits a
different star, stellar remnant, or brown dwarf. More than 1800 exoplanets have been
discovered.
AGRIFOUND PARVATI-2
First new garlic variety Agrifound Parvati-2 recommended for cultivation in Jammu &
Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
It is tolerant to stemphylium blight, purple blotch and environmental stress conditions. Right
season for planting in hills is August-September.
HAYABUSA2
Japanese space explorer was launched on a six-year roundtrip journey to blow a crater in a remote
asteroid and collect samples from inside in hopes of gathering clues to the origin of earth.
The explorer is expected to reach the asteroid in 2018 and spend about 18 months studying it before
returning in 2020.
GLONASS K
The Glonass satellites designs have undergone several upgrades, with the latest version
being Glonass-K.
The Glonass-K marks a substantial improvement over the previous Glonass-M secondgeneration satellites, having a longer lifespan and better accuracy.
INTEGRATED MONITORING OF TERRORISM (I-MOT)
A software Terrorist Information System, now called Integrated Monitoring of Terrorism (iMOT), has been developed by the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) to have a
mechanism for creation and maintenance of a centralized data base on terrorist incidents
including terrorist financing cases.
IMPACTS ON MARINE LIFE DUE TO OIL SPILL

Ingestion: The ingestion of the oil by the seabirds and sea mammals causes Kidney Failure,
dehydration and other metabolic disorders.
Furs: The furs of the marine animals are affected badly.
Plumage: The most important impact of the oil spills on the sea organisms is on the plumage of
the birds
Photosynthesis: The oil floats on the top of the water and this reduces the penetration of
sunlight in the sea water.
NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL (NGT)

GREEN PHABLET

A customised low-cost combination phone and tablet computer called GreenPHABLET

powered by the GreenSIM was launched by the International Crops Research Institute for
the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
The GreenPHABLET will allow information to be precisely targeted to individual smallholder
farmers. This will help farmers purchase inputs at lower price, get a better price for their
produce, and link them to markets, thus putting them on the path to prosperity.
The GreenSIM is a special SIM card that can be used with any mobile phone. The GreenSIM
was created under partnership between ICRISAT, mobile phone service provider Airtel, and
the IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative) Kisan Sanchar Limited (IKSL).

WHITE-FI TECHNOLOGY
White-Fi technology that uses the unused spectrum in frequencies used for broadcasting of
television signals, and is likely to offer solution to tackle the problem of last mile broadband
connectivity in the country.
PLANT PROTECTION CODE
Plant Protection Code (PPC) is a set of guidelines for regulating the chemical inputs in tea
cultivation. The aim is to make Indian tea a safe and healthy drink.
CORAL BLEACHING

Coral bleaching is the loss of intracellular endosymbionts (Symbiodinium, also known as

zooxanthellae) through either expulsion or loss of algal pigmentation. When corals are
stressed by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic
algae living in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white.
A number of biotic and abiotic factors that lead to coral bleaching are listed below
Increased (most commonly), or reduced water temperatures: The warm water prompts algae
inside the coral to leave, which starves coral and turns it white.
Oxygen starvation caused by an increase in zooplankton levels as a result of overfishing.
Increased solar irradiance (Photosynthetically Active Radiation and ultraviolet band light).
Changes in water chemistry (in particular acidification).
Increased sedimentation (due to silt runoff).
Bacterial infections.
Changes in salinity.
Tropical forests absorb 1.4 billion metric tonnes of carbon dioxide out of a total global
absorption of 2.5 billion more than what is absorbed by forests in Canada, Siberia and other
northern regions, called boreal forests
INDIA-BASED NEUTRINO OBSERVATORY (INO)
Neutrinos are one of the fundamental particles which make up the universe. Neutrinos are similar to
the electron, with one crucial difference: neutrinos do not carry electric charge.
NEUTRINO
Tiny electrically neutral particles
cannot be broken into further smaller pieces
Chargeless and are almost massless
second most abundant particle in the universe after photon
The INO is set to come up on the hills near Thevaram in Theni district and will have a 50,000-tonne
magnetic detector to study neutrinos that are significant in particle physics.
SPACE PIONEER AWARD
Indias Mars Orbiter programme team has won the 2015 Space Pioneer Award in the science and
engineering category from the US based National Space Society (NSS).
IRIDS
iRIDS (Intelligent Red Light Violation Identification System), developed by the Centre for
Development of
Advanced Computing (C-DAC), is a state-of-the-art device that captures images and videos of red
light violations with the help of vehicle sensors, cameras, and controller hardware installed at busy
road intersections.
PRAKASH PATH
Prime Minister launched a scheme for Light Emitting Diode (LED) bulbs distribution under the
Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP) in Delhi.
GORUMARA NATIONAL PARK
Gorumara National Park (WB), one of the smallest national parks in India, has turned out be a safe
haven for butterflies.
Species of butterflies
1. The Bicolour Cupid -Schedule I the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972

2. The Malayan Nawab- Schedule I the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972

3. The Witch- Schedule II the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
4. The Branded Young Fly- Schedule II the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
WILDLIFE PROTECTION ACT, 1972
The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted for protection of
plants and animal species. The Act provides for the protection of wild animals, birds and plants; and
for matters connected therewith or ancillary or incidental thereto. It extends to the whole of India,
except the State of Jammu and Kashmir which has its own wildlife act.
It has six schedules which give varying degrees of protection.
Schedule I and part II of Schedule II provide absolute protection - offences under these are
prescribed the highest penalties.
Species listed in Schedule III and Schedule IV are also protected, but the penalties are much lower.
Schedule V includes the animals which may be hunted.
The plants in Schedule VI are prohibited from cultivation and planting.
GOLDILOCKS ZONE
The Goldilocks region is an area of space in which a planet is just the right distance from its home
star so that its surface is neither too hot nor too cold.
To be considered habitable, exoplanets must orbit within a distance of their stars in which liquid
water can exist on the planets surface, receiving about as much sunlight as Earth.
FOREST OWLET
Forest owlet, a critically endangered species, has been sighted in Madhya Pradeshs Betul district.
CHARACTERISTICS OF FOREST OWLET
Critically endangered species.
Small bird (23 cm - length).
Endemic to central Indian forests was said to be extinct in the wild but was rediscovered in 1997.
Distribution: Central Indian forests.
BLACK-HEADED SQUIRREL MONKEYS
The black squirrel monkey (Saimirivanzolinii), also known as the blackish squirrel monkey or blackheaded squirrel monkey, is a small New World primate, endemic to the central Amazon in Brazil.
RECENT STUDY
The black-headed squirrel monkey is a distinct species found in South America. The scientists from
the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) in the US and six other countries used genetic and
statistical analysis to find that.
This group of monkeys split from its sister group, called Saimiriustus, about 500,000 years ago.
It formed a group called Saimiriboliviensis approximately 1.3 million years ago.
BEAGLE 2
Beagle 2 is a British landing spacecraft that formed part of the European Space Agency's 2003 Mars
Express mission.
TIGER POPULATION
India now has 70 per cent of the tiger population in the world with the latest assessment estimating
2,226 big cats, up 30 per cent from 1,706 in 2010, show preliminary estimates in Status of Tigers in
India, 2014.
The largest increase is recorded in the Western Ghats Landscape complex
Kerala, Karnataka, Goa and Tamil Nadu with 776 tigers (up from 402 in 2006).
The Mudumalai-Bandipur-Nagarahole-Wayanad complex holds the worlds single largest tiger
population currently estimated at over 570 tigers (in 11,000 sq.km of habitat).
Goa now has a persistent tiger presence with three to five animals.
Uttarakhand with 340 tigers is second only to Karnataka, which has 406.

The Periyar Tiger Reserve spread over 925 sq.km. in Kerala, bagged the National Tiger Conservation
Authority (NTCA) biennial award for encouraging local public participation in managing the reserve.
SOLAR DYNAMICS OBSERVATORY (SDO)
The Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) is a NASA mission which has been observing the Sun since
2010. Launched on February 11, 2010, the observatory is part of the Living With a Star (LWS)
program.
The goal of the SDO is
To understand the influence of the Sun on the Earth and near-Earth space by studying the solar
atmosphere on small scales of space and time and in many wavelengths simultaneously.
During its fiveyear mission, it will examine the suns magnetic field and also provide a better
understanding of the role the sun plays in Earths atmospheric chemistry and climate.
PENGHU 1
Penghu 1 is a fossil jaw belonging to an extinct homin in species of the genus Homo from Taiwan
that
is Pleistocene in age. The fossil was recovered sometime before 2008 by fishermen working in the
Penghu Channel between the Penghu Islands and mainland Taiwan.
CERES
Ceres is a dwarf planet located in the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
It was originally classified as a true planet in the 1800s, then demoted to an asteroid and finally in
2006 promoted again as a dwarf planet a status it now shares with Pluto. At 950 km diameter
Ceres is the smallest known dwarf planet, but the largest object in the asteroid belt between Mars
and Jupiter.
NASAs Dawn spacecraft has sent back a picture of Ceres taken from a distance of 237,000
km.
Dawn will enter into Ceres orbit on March 6 to capture detailed images and measure variations
in reflected light to get insights into the planet's surface composition.
Dawn will be the first spacecraft to visit any dwarf planet
AGNI-V
Agni-V is an intercontinental ballistic missile developed by the Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) of India. Agni-V is capable of delivering a 1.1 nuclear warhead over a distance
of 5,000 km and the range of missile can cover most parts of China and Europe. Inter- Continental
Ballistic Missile and the first canister trial done.
CASPOL
The new compound, christened CASPOL, is a water-based, ready-to-coat, and easy-to-use
flame-proof coating.
It has flame-retardant and thermal-control properties.
It can be applied on walls, clothes, paper, thatched roofs, wood, and other materials.
The new compound contains no toxic materials and is eco-friendly.
A litre of Caspol can coat 1.5 sq meter of surface with a thickness of 500 micron, which is
practically
adequate for fire protection and thermal insulation.
It is developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to protect the fuel tanks of the
Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.
CHLOROPHYTUM PALGHATENSE:
Scientists at the Centre for Medicinal Plants Research, Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal, have reported
the discovery of a rare plant species from the Dhoni hills in Palakkad district. Named
Chlorophytumpalghatense, after the place of discovery.

NEAR FIELD COMMUNICATION

What it is: It is a technology which enables smart phones and other devices to establish radio
communication with each other by touching them together or bringing them into proximity.
NFC standards are based on existing radio-frequency identification (RFID) standards.
Distance between the objects which are communicating: 10 cm (3.9 in) or less
USES: contactless payments, social networking to share data with each other such as phone
number, images etc., Identity cards, access tokens.
KASTURIRANGAN REPORT
K. KASTURIRANGAN PANELS REPORT ON CONSERVATION OF THE WESTERN GHATS
There should be a complete ban on mining, quarrying, sand mining, thermal power
plants, big township projects in ESA (37% of Western Ghats)
All other infrastructure and development projects/schemes should be subject to
environment clearance under EIA Notification 2006.
The villages falling under ESA will be involved in decision making on the future projects. All
projects will require prior-informed consent and no objection from the Gram Sabha of the village.
To promote sustainable agriculture, it recommends a focused programme to incentivize growers
in the Western Ghats to move towards organic cultivation.
All tourism hotspots in the Ecologically Sensitive Area should be monitored for compliance
with environmental conditions and development restrictions and assessed in terms of impact.
CRITICISMS OF THE K. KASTURIRANGANPANELS REPORT
The entire report was based on satellite images, which had little resemblance to ground
realities.
The proposal to declare 37 percent of the Western Ghats as ESA has raised fears of relocation
among local communities, although the report only recommends banning activities such as mining
and thermal plants in these areas.
Critic says that Kasturirangan Committee permitted mining and quarrying in 63 per cent
area (as only 63% area is under ESA) which will open the ecologically sensitive areas of Western
Ghats to mindless exploitation which would seriously hazard ecology.
According to Madhav Gadgil, Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats replaced the pro-people
and pronature attitude of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel report with an autocratic
approach in terms of development and ecological conservation
SAFAR-AIR
Indias first air quality Mobile App, SAFARAir, was launched at the Indian Institute of Tropical
Meteorology in Pune. The application, developed by scientists at IITM, will enable citizens to check
their citys air quality in real time. The first mobile application service in India to provide a current
and advanced forecast for air quality.
CENTRE FOR SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTS (CSE) GREEN RATING PROJECT
Indias first ever environmental rating of coalbased power plants finds the sectors performance to be
way below global benchmarks.
IMPORTANT FINDINGS OF REPORT
Average CO2 emission was 1.08 kg/kWh, 14 per cent higher than Chinas.
Indias thermal power plants are estimated to withdraw around 22 billion cubic metre of water,
which is over half of Indias domestic water need.
Fly ash disposal remains a major problem. Presently, only about 50-60per cent of the 170
million odd tonne of fly ash generated by the sector is utilised; the remaining is dumped into
poorly designed and maintained ash ponds.
Ash slurry, which has toxic heavy metals, was found in river and reservoirs of 20 plants.
SINKHOLE FORMATION

A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer.
Sinkholes usually form in soils characterised by rocks of gypsum or dolomite or limestone which
melt in water available in the sub surface channels, leading to a sudden collapse.
HUMAN ACTIVITIES THAT LEADS TO SINKHOLES FORMATION
Overexploitation of groundwater: The intensity of drawing ground water through a string
of agriculture
borewells was high in the vicinity of the river, where there were a number of sweet lime orchards.
No recharge of the water table in the absence of good rains
Diverting surface water from a large area and concentrating it in a single point
Artificially creating ponds of surface water
Drilling new water wells
AN ALTERNATIVE TO SYRINGES FOR DRUG DELIVERY
Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science have successfully tested an alternative to syringes for
drug delivery. They have designed a capsule loaded with medicine that is triggered by microshock
waves.
HOW IT WORKS
The researchers designed tiny biocapsules made of a polymer (spermidinedextran sulfate or
SperDS).
The capsules are so small that 10 of the biggest ones could be placed in a length of one millimetre.
The capsules are loaded with either insulin or the antibiotic ciprofloxacin.
They are then placed on the infection site for instance, external diabetic wounds and are
triggered by microshock waves produced by a handheld machine.
Infections by bacteria such as Staphylococcus (cause of foot infections that people living with
diabetes are susceptible to) are lethal as they form a biofilm around the protein in the cell. The shock
waves tear this biofilm and aid the treatment
NEW DELHI SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT SUMMIT
The 15th Sustainable Development Summit was held at Delhi. The summit was organised by The
Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) with its theme being Sustainable Development Goals and
Dealing with Climate Change.
ISSUES DISCUSSED
The international development agenda ahead of the UN summit on Sustainable Development
Goals (SDG's) was discussed and the members formulated ideas to promote sustainable growth and
prosperity globally.
Environmental issues like climate change, global warming, environmental pollution and find
ways to prevent environmental degradation was discussed.
Issues like the mitigation in energy supply sector, generating financing for projects focusing on
sustainable and holistic growth, educating the youth about sustainable development were also raised
during the summit.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FOR ALL (SE4ALL)
Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) is a global initiative co-chaired by United Nations Secretary
General Ban Ki Moon and World Bank President Jim Kim.
SE4ALL seeks to achieve, by 2030, universal access to electricity and modern cooking fuels, a
doubling in the rate of improvement of energy efficiency and a doubling of the share of renewable
energy in the global energy mix.
Current proposals for the post2015 Sustainable Development Goals also include a goal on energy
to Ensure access to affordable, reliable and sustainable energy for all that is closely related to the
SE4ALL objectives.
INCREASE IN FOREST COVER
A study conducted by the Forest Survey of India points out the increase of 5,871 sq km forest
cover in India.

In West Bengals forest cover has increased by 3,810 sq km, followed by Odisha where
increase in forest cover has been 1,444 km and Kerala where the increase has been about 622
sq km.
REASONS FOR THE INCREASE IN COVER
The participation of the local people
Coppice growth (dense growth of small tress).
Afforestation inside the forests.
Growth of commercial plantations and shade trees in tea gardens.
THREE-PARENT BABIES
Britain became the first country to allow a threeparent IVF technique which doctors say will
prevent some inherited incurable diseases.
The treatment is known as threeparent in vitro fertilisation (IVF) because the babies, born
from genetically modified embryos, would have DNA from a mother, a father and from a female
donor.
Mitochondrial DNA (mDNA) is passed through the mother and mitochondrial diseases cause
symptoms ranging from poor vision to diabetes and muscle wasting.
WHAT ARE MITOCHONDRIA?
Mitochondria are tiny organelles found in almost every cell in the body.
They are known as the "powerhouse of the cell."
They are responsible for creating more than 90 percent of cellular energy.
They are necessary in the body to sustain life and support growth.
They are composed of tiny packages of enzymes that turn nutrients into cellular energy.
Mitochondrial failure causes cell injury that leads to cell death. When multiple organ cells die
there is organ failure.
WHAT IS MITOCHONDRIAL DISEASE?
Mitochondrial disease is a chronic, genetic disorder that occurs when the mitochondria of the
cell fail to produce enough energy for cell or organ function.
Mitochondrial diseases are sometimes (about 15% of the time) caused by mutations in the
mitochondrial DNA (mDNA) that affect mitochondrial function.
Mitochondrial DNA: Mitochondrial DNA is separate from DNA found in the cell nucleus and does
not affect human characteristics such as hair or eye colour, appearance or personality traits
SUPERIOR WATER FILTER
The membrane is produced by mixing two polymers poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and
poly(methyl
methacrylate) (PMMA) .
To improve efficiency and to kill the bacteria, they mixed silver, titanium dioxide and carbon
nanotubes to the PVDFPMMA mixture. The three nanoparticles serve two important purposes.
First, the nanoparticles promote PVDF crystallisation at a much faster rate. As a result of faster
crystallisation, defective crystals are developed.
The second advantage of silver, titanium dioxide and carbon nanotubes that are embedded on
membrane is their ability to kill E. coli bacteria. Silver leaches in water and when the ions soreleased
kill the bacteria by destroying the integrity of the cell and by damaging the cell proteins
and terminating the DNA replication.
Titanium dioxide also kills the bacteria. Though its antibacterial property is best in the presence
of
UV light, the present study did not use UV light.
Carbon nanotubes kill the bacteria through direct physical contact the roughness of the
nanotubes kills the bacteria.
SPECTRUM ALLOCATION

Spectrum means a band of frequencies of electromagnetic waves also called as radio waves.
Electromagnetic
waves range from extremely low frequency to gamma rays. This includes radio waves used for
communication and broadcasting purposes including satellite communications, visible region light,
infrared and ultraviolet rays, Xrays and gamma rays.
Radio waves are used for communication and broadcasting. For example, FM transmissions use the
frequencies from 88MHz to 108 MHz, satellite communications use 4000-6000 MHz and 1100014000 MHz generally and so on. Mobile service providers also use the radio waves normally in the
range of 900-1800
MHz.
Two operators cannot use the same frequency in the same region as there will be interference
between each other and both the services will get affected.
Same frequencies can be used at two different places separated by sufficient distance so that
there will not be any interference. This is called space diversity.
The number of voice channels that can be supported depends on the bandwidth of the frequency
spectrum allocated. Higher the bandwidth, more the number of channels that can be accommodated.
This radio frequency spectrum is a limited resource and different services are allocated different
frequencies.
NATIONAL DEWORMING INITIATIVE
Aim: To protect more than 24 crore children in the ages of 1-19 years from intestinal worms.
PARASITIC INTESTINAL WORMS (SOIL TRANSMITTED HELMINTHS) INFECTION:
There are three types of soil transmitted helminths that infect people: round worm, whip worm
and hookworms.
Parasitic worms in small children interfere with nutrient uptake. As a result they can cause
severe complications for them resulting in anemia, micronutrient deficiencies.
Infections of heavy intensity impair physical growth and cognitive development.
It may lead to poor school performance, cognitive development and absenteeism in children.
Treatment: Albendazole tablets
On National Deworming Day on 10th February 2015.
R V SAMUDRARATNAKAR
What it is:
It is a Geological Survey of India (GSI)s state of the art research ship.
It will search for gas hydrates below the seabed off the east coast and off Kanyakumari.
The ship is equipped with high-end technologically advanced instruments needed for geological,
geophysical and geochemical explorations in the offshore areas.
RV Samudra Ratnakar is fitted to perform seabed mapping, deepwater mineral exploration and
geoscientific explorations, such as multichannel seismic survey, gravity survey, magnetic survey,
deep sea imaging within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of India, as well as international waters.
How it finds gas hydrates: It sends high-energy sound waves deep into the seabed and
recording the waves that echo back through hundreds of hydro phones (which detect the echos)
laid on the surface of the sea.
GAS HYDRATES
Natural gas hydrates are solids that form from a combination of water and one or more
hydrocarbon (methane, ethane, propane, etc.) or nonhydrocarbon gases. In physical appearance, gas
hydrates resemble packed snow or ice. In a gas hydrate, the gas molecules are caged within a crystal
structure composed of water molecules.
OCCURRENCE

Marine shelf sediments.

In deep lake sediments (e.g.Lake Baikal).
In the polar permafrost regions.
The amount of methane potentially trapped in natural methane hydrate deposits may be
significant
(1015 to 1017 cubic metres), which makes them of major interest as a potential energy resource
SOIL HEALTH CARD SCHEME
PROVISIONS
Under the scheme farmers will be given Soil health cards which provide them with information
about soils and the kind of crops to be grown in various regions, amount and type of fertilizer to be
used.
100 mobile testing laboratories across India
Central Government provides assistance to State Governments for setting up Soil Testing
Laboratories for issuing Soil Health Cards to farmers.
Aim: checking unbalanced use of fertilizers and improving farm productivity.
Target: 14 crore soil health cards to be issued next in 3 years.
MRIDAPARIKSHAK
Indian Institute of Soil Science, Bhopal, a research institute of Indian Council of Agricultural
Research (ICAR), has developed Mridaparikshak, a MINILAB that can determine soil health.
CHARACTERISTICS
It has a soil test kit to provide soil testing service at farmers doorsteps.
Mridaparikshak determines all the important soil parameters i.e. soil pH, EC, organic carbon,
available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and micronutrients like zinc, boron and iron.
It also provides crop and soil specific fertilizer recommendations directly to farmers mobile
through SMS.
It is highly compatible with soil health card.
It can be operated by young educated farmers/rural youths (11-12Pass) with short training.
JAN AUSHADHI SCHEME
What it is:
It is a scheme of government of India. In this less priced quality unbranded generic
medicines will be made
available through Jan Aushadhi stores which are less priced but are of same and equivalent
quality, efficacy and safety as compared to branded generic medicines.
The Bureau of Pharma Public Sector Undertakings of India (BPPI) under Department of
Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has been selling quality generic medicines at
affordable prices in the name of Jan Aushadhi medicines since 2008. The scheme is being revisited
by expanding medicines basket.
Objective: The aim of this scheme is to make available quality medicines at affordable prices for
all, especially the poor and the disadvantaged.
EBIZ PORTAL
Features:
eBiz portal is a government to business (G2B) portal to improve Indias ranking in the ease of
doing business.
The eBiz platform, make service delivery more efficient by changing approach from being
department-centric to customer-centric as a single window portal.
eBiz is one of the integrated services projects and part of the 27 Mission Mode Projects (MMPs)
under the National EGovernance Plan (NEGP) of the Government of India.
MARS ONE

Mars One is a notforprofit organization based in the Netherlands that has put forward plans to land
the first humans onto Mars and establish a permanent human colony there by 2025
INDIA HOME TO 18% OF RAPTORS
THE PRESENCE OF RAPTORS IN THE WILD SERVES AS A
Barometer for ecological health.
Important ecological role by keeping the balance.
Controls the population of rodents and other small mammals
IUCN RED LIST
Among these raptors, the Indian Whitebacked Vulture, the Long Billed Vulture, the Slender
Billed Vulture, the Red headed Vulture and the Forest Owlet are in the critically endangered
category.
The Egyptian Vulture and the Saker are in the endangered list of the International Union for
Conservation of Natures (IUCN) Red List.
SCOPE 1, 2 AND 3 EMISSIONS TYPES
At the very basic level, carbon emissions are classified into Direct and Indirect emissions. The
Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol) defines them as follows:
Direct GHG emissions are emissions from sources that are owned or controlled by the reporting
entity.
Indirect GHG emissions are emissions that are a consequence of the activities of the reporting
entity, but occur at sources owned or controlled by another entity.
These direct and indirect emissions are further categorized into three broad scopes, based on sources
of emissions, that help establish conceivably emissions reduction goals Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions
type.
Scope 1: All direct GHG emissions.
Scope 2: Indirect GHG emissions from consumption of purchased electricity, heat or steam.
Scope 3: Other indirect emissions, such as the extraction and production of purchased
materials and fuels, transportrelated activities in vehicles not owned or controlled by the reporting
entity, electricity-related activities (e.g. T&D losses) not covered in Scope 2, outsourced activities,
waste disposal, etc.
OCEAN AS CARBON SINK
Oceans are at present CO2 sinks, and represent the largest active carbon sink on Earth, absorbing
more than a quarter of the carbon dioxide that humans put into the air. On longer timescales they
may be both sources and sinks.
The atmospheric CO2 enters the ocean through steady exchange at surface. This is a physicochemical process. The difference in partial pressure of the CO2between seawater and air facilitate
gaseous exchange. The diffusion takes place until the partial pressures across the air-water interface
are equilibrated.
Microscopic photosynthetic phytoplankton utilizes CO2 during photosynthesis. The biological
pump transfers carbon dioxide from the surface of the ocean to the deep sea.
CO2 reacts with seawater to form dissolved inorganic carbon, dissolved free Carbon dioxide
.Carbonic Acid, Bicarbonate and Carbonate.
The pH of seawater is regulated by the bicarbonate and carbonate concentrations.
Marine organisms combine calcium and carbonate ions in the calcification process and
manufacture calcareous material. As the organisms die, the skeletal material sinks and buried in
sediments.
A carbon sink is a natural or artificial reservoir that accumulates and stores some carboncontaining chemical compound for an indefinite period. The process by which carbon sinks remove
carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere is known as carbon sequestration.
THREE NEW CORALS REEFS FOUND ON THE SINDHUDURG COAST

The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has found three new records of coral reef on the
Sindhudurg coast near Malvan of Maharashtra during a recent survey.
Three new coral reefs namely Goniatsreasp, Poritessp and Turbinariasp have been found in the
survey conducted by ZSI (Zoological Survey of India).
Unlike the reefs found in other parts of the country Gulf of Mannar, Gulf of Kutch,
Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands those in Malvan are still unbleached.
This is a value-added attraction and it would boost tourism in the area and adventure tourism
would grow further in its surrounding areas.
RHINOS POPULATION IS RISING IN WEST BENGAL
West Bengal is now home to the second highest population of the one-horned rhinoceros in the
country after Assam, with the number growing to 250 in the State.
The Jaldapara National Park in the State has nearly 200 of these endangered animals and the
Gorumara National Park, 50.
Jaldapara now has the second highest population of them after the Kaziranga National Park in
Assam, which has over 2,000.
Rhino population has a skewed male-female ratio 2:1.4 in Gorumara.
Reason of Poaching: Illegal rhino horn trade has been the main problem facing managers of the
rhino-protected areas of Assam. Some other parts like nails, skins have very high value in Asian
traditional medicinal market.
EXTENT OF RHINOS IN INDIA:
Northern Uttar Pradesh, northernBihar, northern Bengal, and in the Brahmaputra Valley of
Assam.
Kaziranga National Park, Pobitora in Marigaon district and Orang National Park in Darrang
district of Assam account almost 95% of the total wild one horned rhino in the world.
NEW BUTTERFLY SPECIES
Wildlife enthusiasts have found the Malayan Green Banded Peacock (Papiliopalinurus), a
beautiful specimen found in South East Asia, for the first time in India.
The butterfly is found in southern Myanmar and peninsular Thailand south-eastward into
Borneo and the Philippines.
While there are about 600 known species of butterflies in West Bengal, India is home to about
1,500 species of butterflies.
West Bengal is probably the only State which is home to a wide variety of peacock butterflies
such as the rare Krishna Peacock, Blue Peacock, the relatively common Paris Peacock, Common
Peacock and Common Banded Peacock.
The only other Peacock butterfly found in the country is Buddha Peacock or Malabar Banded
Peacock, which is endemic to south India.
PRAGATI (PRO-ACTIVE GOVERNANCE AND TIMELY IMPLEMENTATION)
This is a platform which aimed at addressing common mans grievances, and simultaneously
monitoring and reviewing important programmes and projects of the Government of India as well as
projects flagged by State Governments.
Features
Multi-purpose and multi-modal platform
Unique integrating and interactive platform
This platform will fulfill three objectives - : Grievance Redressal, Programme Implementation
and Project Monitoring. This is an IT-based redressal and monitoring system.
It uniquely bundles three latest technologies: Digital data management, video-conferencing and
geospatial technology.
With this, the Prime Minister is able to discuss the issues with the concerned Central and State
officials with full information and latest visuals of the ground level situation.
AWACS (AIRBORNE WARNING AND CONTROL SYSTEMS)

Government approved the development of 2 indigenous Airborne Warning and Control Systems
(AWACS) (based on the A-330 aircraft) by the Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO).
Currently, the DRDO is developing two smaller Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C),
scheduled to be delivered this year.
Three AWACS already stand operationalised in the Indian Air Force (IAF).
AWACS USES
It is described as an eye-in-the-sky.
It can detect incoming fighter jets and missiles.
It can keep an eye on troops movement across the border.
It enables military commanders to take quicker decisions to counter the enemy's military
activities on time.
THREE IMMEDIATE SUPPORT VESSELS (ISVS) COMMISSIONED IN NAVY
The second batch of ISVs - IN ISV T38, IN ISV T39 and IN ISV T40 were commissioned. Now
the Eastern
Naval Command has its full complement of six ISVs.
This project of making 6 ISVs was a joint collaboration between Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation (ONGC), the ship builders and the Navy.
USES OF ISVS
The ISVs are armed with Heavy Machine Guns (HMGs) and are fitted with state-of-the-art radar
and navigation equipment.
These ships are capable of carrying out day and night surveillance.
They can be used for rapid insertions and extraction of MARCOS (Marine Commandos) for
military intervention.
ASTRA MISSILE
Features
Indigenously developed
Air-to-air missile
Supersonic speed (1.2 Mach to 1.4 Mach)
Beyond Visual Range (Up to 110 km depends on the altitude at the time of launching)
Can be launched from different altitudes
STOCKHOLM WATER PRIZE
Eminent environment activist Rajendra Singh (known as waterman of India), has been conferred the
prestigious Stockholm Water Prize.
TECHNOLOGY USED:
He uses a modern version of the ancient Indian technique of rainwater harvesting.
It involves building low-level banks of earth to hold back the flow of water in the wet season and
allow water to seep into the ground for future use.
STOCKHOLM WATER PRIZE
The Stockholm Water Prize is a global award founded in 1991 and presented annually by the
Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) to an individual, organisation or institution for
outstanding waterrelated achievements.
The Stockholm Water Prize Laureate receives USD 150,000 and a specially designed sculpture.
DIGILOCKER (launch by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology,
under the Ministry of Communications and IT)
DigiLocker, the digital locker system launched by the government to securely store documents
online, has received good response since its beta launch last month. The locker can be accessed by
individuals, using their number.
Features
It is a dedicated personal storage space, linked to each residents Aadhaar number.

DigiLocker can be used to securely store e-documents as well as store Uniform Resource
Identifier (URI) link of e-documents issued by various issuer departments.
It has an e-Sign facility which is provided as part of DigiLocker system can be used to digitally
sign edocuments.
The users can store their documents such as insurance, medical reports, PAN card, passport,
marriage certificate, school certificate and other documents in the digital format.
10MB of free space in the locker to securely store resident documents and store links (URI) of
Govt. department or agency issued e-documents. The storage space allocation will be increased to
1GB in subsequent release.
RECYCLE THE BULB
A compact fluorescent lamp (CFL) is a fluorescent lamp designed to replace an incandescent
lamp.
Compared to general-service incandescent lamps giving the same amount of visible light, CFLs
use one-fifth to one-third the electric power, and last eight to fifteen times longer.
A CFL has a higher purchase price than an incandescent lamp, but can save over five times its
purchase price in electricity costs over the lamp's lifetime.
Like all fluorescent lamps, CFLs contain toxic mercury which complicates their disposal.
SOLAR POWER STATION IN SPACE
Space Solar Power gathers energy from sunlight in space and transmits it wirelessly to Earth. Space
solar power can solve our energy and greenhouse gas emissions problems. The solar energy available
in space is literally billions of times greater than we use today.
ADVANTAGES OF SPACE SOLAR POWER
Unlike oil, gas, ethanol, and coal plants, space solar power does not emit greenhouse gases.
Unlike terrestrial solar and wind power plants, space solar power is available 24 hours a day, 7
days a week, in huge quantities. It works regardless of cloud cover, daylight, or wind speed.
Space solar power will provide true energy independence for the nations that develop it,
eliminating a major source of national competition for limited Earth-based energy resources.
Space solar power can be exported to virtually any place in the world, and its energy can be
converted for local needs such as manufacture of methanol for use in places like rural India where
there are no electric power grids. Space solar power can also be used for desalination of sea water.
CLIMATE CHANGE MATTER NOT UNDER NGTJURISDICTION
The Ministry of Environment and Forest has told National Green Tribunal that it does not have
the
jurisdiction to hear matters relating to climate change as it was covered under international
protocols.
According to Section 14 of the NGT Act, the Tribunal has the jurisdiction over all civil cases
where a substantial question relating to environment is involved. Such questions arise out of
implementation of enactments specified in Schedule 1 of the Act. The seven enactments specified in
Schedule 1 to the NGT Act are
The Water Act,
The Water Cess Act,
The Forest (Conservation) Act,
The Air (Preventon and Control of Pollution Act) ,
The Environment Protection Act,
Public Liability Insurance Act and
The Biological Diversity Act.
SENDAI FRAMEWORK FOR DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030) was an outcome of the 2015
conference held in Sendai, Japan. The Sendai Framework sets four specific priorities for action:
Understanding disaster risk;

Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk;

Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience;
Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response, and to "Build Back Better" in recovery,
rehabilitation and reconstruction.
To support the assessment of global progress in achieving the outcome and goal of the Sendai
Framework, seven global targets have been agreed:
Substantially reduce global disaster mortality by 2030, aiming to lower average per 100,000
global mortality between 2020-2030 compared to 2005-2015;
Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally by 2030, aiming to lower the
average global figure per 100,000 between 2020-2030 compared to 2005-2015;
Reduce direct disaster economic loss in relation to global gross domestic product by 2030;
Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services,
among them health and educational facilities, including through developing their resilience by 2030;
Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction
strategies by 2020;
Substantially enhance international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and
sustainable support to complement their national actions for implementation of the framework by
2030;
Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and
disaster risk information and assessments to the people by 2030.
HYOGO FRAMEWORK FOR ACTION
The Hyogo Framework for Action (20052015) was an outcome of the 2005 conference held in
Kobe, Japan. The
HFA, which ran from 2005 to 2015, set five specific priorities for action:
Making disaster risk reduction a priority;
Improving risk information and early warning;
Building a culture of safety and resilience;
Reducing the risks in key sectors;
Strengthening preparedness for response.
MARS ORBITER MISSION (MOM)
The Mars Orbiter completed half a year around the Red Planet on 24th March .The orbiter has
been designed for six months of work.
MOM will go through a 15-day blackout or eclipsed period from June 8 to 22. Communication
with earth will be snapped as sun will block the planet from Mars and MOM.
During this period, the orbiter must take its own decisions in an autonomous mode and will
consume more fuel. How much longer it will last and with how much fuel will be left will depend on
this phase.
The Indian Space Research Organisations (ISRO) Mars Orbiter Mission was extended for
another six months to further explore the Red Planet and its atmosphere.
As the 1,340 kg Mars Orbiter has sufficient fuel (37 kg) to last longer than it was intended
earlier, its mission has been extended for another six months.
MAITRI PROJECT
The Defence Acquisition Council has approved the Maitri project for the co-development of a
Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile (SR-SAM) by the Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) with MBDA of France.
The project has been in the works since 2007 to meet the requirements of the Army and the Air
Force.
KEY ISSUES WITH RENEWABLE POWER GENERATION
Regional Concentration of Renewable Energy Potential

Insufficiency and High cost of Evacuation Infrastructure

Financial Barriers
Low Penetration of Renewables for Urban and Industrial Applications
Policy Interventions to Incentivize Creation of Financeable Business Models for Off-grid
Renewable Sector

12TH PLAN STRATEGY FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY

1. Off-grid Renewable Energy for rural applications
2. Grid interaction and grid parity to be achieved.
3. National Bioenergy Mission(NBM)
Successful model in Bihar: Off grid renewable models based on biomass.
Attract investment to make the mission sustainable.
4. National Biomass Cook Stove programme(NBCSP)
Leveraging PPP in exploring a range of technology deployments, biomass processing,
and delivery models.
5. National Bioenergy Corp of India
It should be established to implement NBM and NBCSP.
6. Renewable Energy Development Fund
To address financing constraints for grid connected as well as the off-grid applications of
renewable, REDF should be set aside
BARRIERS TO HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT
Hydropower Planning:
Land Acquisition and Safeguard Issues
Finance
Technical Challenges
Lack of Enabling Infrastructure
SOLAR POWER INITIATIVES
JN National Solar Mission: A part of NAPCC, it aims to generate 20 GW solar electricity by 2022
in 3 phases. The new government at the centre has revised the target to 100 GW from 20 GW.
Ultra Mega Green Solar Power Project: Plan to install worlds largest solar plant with 4
GW capacity near Sambhar lake, Rajasthan by 2010.
Clean Energy Fund: To encourage private solar companies by reducing custom duty on solar
panels by 5% and exempting excise duty on SPV.
Renewable Energy Certificate
70% Subsidy on installation of SPV power plant in NE States and 30% in other
regions.
100% FDI allowed for renewable energy generation, distribution, and manufacturing projects.
Desert Power India
Some Examples
Durbuk, ladakh
Salijeepali in Andhra: 1st village where entire electrification was done with solar power.
Solar Pond at Bhuj in Kutchh
SMART GRID
The grid amounts to the networks that carry electricity from the plants where it is generated to
consumers.
The grid includes wires, substations, transformers, switches and much more. Much in the way that a
smart phone these days means a phone with a computer in it, smart grid means
computerizing the electric utility grid. It includes adding two-way digital
communication technology to devices associated with the grid. Each device on the network can

be given sensors to gather data (power meters, voltage sensors, fault detectors, etc.), plus two-way
digital communication between the device in the field and the utilitys network operations center. A
key feature of the smart grid is automation technology that lets the utility adjust and control
each individual device or millions of devices from a central location.
HIGH LEVEL EXPERT GROUP ON UNIVERSAL HEALTH COVERAGE
The High Level Expert Group (HLEG) was set up by the Planning Commission to define a
comprehensive strategy for health for the Twelfth Five Year Plan. The main recommendations of the
HLEG are:
Health Financing and Financial Protection:
o Government should increase public expenditure on health from the current 1.2% of GDP to at least
3% of GDP by 2022.
Expenditures on primary healthcare should account for at least 70 per cent of all healthcare
expenditure.
General taxation should be used as the principal source of healthcare financing, not levying
sector specific taxes.
Specific purpose transfers should be introduced to equalize the levels of per capita public
spending on health across different states.
Access to Medicines, Vaccines and Technology:
o Price controls and price regulation, especially on essential drugs, should be enforced.
o The Essential Drugs List should be revised and expanded, and rational use of drugs
ensured.
o Public sector should be strengthened to protect the capacity of domestic drug and vaccines
industry to meet national needs.
o Safeguards provided by Indian patents law and the TRIPS Agreement against the countrys
ability to produce essential drugs should be protected.
Human Resources for Health:
o Institutes of Family Welfare should be strengthened.
o Regional Faculty Development Centers should be selectively developed to enhance the
availability of adequately trained faculty and faculty-sharing across institutions.
o District Health Knowledge Institutes, a dedicated training system for Community Health
Workers, State Health Science Universities and a National Council for Human Resources in Health
(NCHRH) should be established.
Health Service Norms:
o A National Health Package should be developed that offers, as part of the entitlement of
every citizen, essential health services at different levels of the healthcare delivery system.
o Equitable access to health facilities in urban areas by rationalizing services and focusing
particularly on the health needs of the urban poor.
Management and Institutional Reforms:
o All India and State level Public Health Service Cadres and a specialized State level Health
Systems Management Cadre should be introduced in order to give greater attention to Public Health.
o The establishment of a National Health Regulatory and Development Authority, National
Drug Regulatory and Development Authority, and National Health Promotion and Protection Trust
(NHPPT) is also recommended.
Community Participation and Citizen Engagement:
o Existing Village Health Committees should be transformed into participatory Health
Councils.
Gender and Health:
o There is a need to improve access to health services for women, girls and other vulnerable
genders which goes beyond the maternal and child health.
NATIONAL HEALTH MISSION
After the success of the National Rural health Mission, the National Health Mission (NHM) was
announced in

2012 covering all the villages and towns in the country. The National Health mission has two submissions:
1. National Rural Health Mission
2. National Urban Health Mission
The core principles of NHM are:
Universal Coverage
Achieving Quality Standards
Continuum of Care
Decentralised Planning
RASHTRIYA SWASTHYA BIMA YOJANA (RSBY)
The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), introduced in 2007, was designed to meet the health
insurance needs of the poor.
RSBY provides for cash-less, smart card based health insurance cover of `30,000 per annum to
each enrolled family, comprising up to five individuals.
The beneficiary family pays only `30 per annum as registration/renewal fee.
The scheme covers hospitalisation expenses (Out-patient expenses are not covered), including
maternity benefit, and pre-existing diseases.
A transportation cost of `100 per visit is also paid.
RSBY was originally limited to Below Poverty Line (BPL) families but was later extended to
building and other construction workers, MGNREGA beneficiaries, street vendors, beedi workers,
and domestic workers.
Key feature of RSBY is that it provides for private health service providers to be included in the
system, if they meet certain standards and agree to provide cash-less treatment which is reimbursed
by the insurance company.
The shortcomings of RSBY noted so far include high transaction costs due to insurance
intermediaries, inability to control provider induced demand, and lack of coverage for primary
health and out-patient care.
The RSBY also does not take into account state specific variations in disease profiles and health
needs.
HIDDEN HUNGER
Hidden hunger is also known as micronutrient deficiency. It is a form of under nutrition that occurs
when intake or absorption of Vitamins, Proteins and Mineral is too low to sustain good health and
development in children & normal physical and mental functions in adults.
Food fortification and Bio-fortification
Food fortification or enrichment is the process of adding micronutrients (essential trace
elements and vitamins) to food. Addition of micronutrients to staples and condiments can prevent
large-scale deficiency diseases.
Biofortification is the idea of breeding crops to increase their nutritional value. This can be done
either through conventional selective breeding, or through genetic engineering.
Biofortification differs from ordinary fortification as it focuses on making plant foods more
nutritious as the plants are growing, rather than having nutrients added to the foods when they are
being processed.
TAX ON FAT
A fat tax is a tax or surcharge that is placed upon fattening food, beverages or on overweight
individuals. It aims to discourage unhealthy diets and offset the economic costs of obesity.
Numerous studies suggest that as the price of a food decreases, obesity of population increases
and also eating behavior may be more responsive to price increases than to nutritional education.

A European Commission report found that specific taxes on sugar, salt or fat do cause
reductions in consumption but higher taxes may also merely encourage consumers to go for cheaper
products.
However, there is also evidence that obese individuals are less responsive to changes in the price
of food than normal-weight individuals.
A lot of people argue that the government has no right in imposing a tax like this one on its
people however to tackle obesity and related diseases such taxation is required.
However this must be done with care, because a carelessly chosen food tax can have surprising
and perverse effects.
For example, In October 2011, Denmark introduced a fat tax on butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat,
oil and processed food. In November 2012, the Danish Tax Ministry abolished the fat tax stating that
it failed to change Danes' eating habits, and encouraged cross border trading, put Danish jobs at risk
and had been a bureaucratic nightmare for producers and outlets. The proposed sugar tax plans were
also scrapped.
The precise impact of "fat taxes" on the competitiveness of the agriculture and food sector still
needs to be studied in detail and the ways to tackle its negative impacts.
TO PROMOTE ECO-TOURISM
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal approved release of Gharials in Sutlej and Beas rives
in the state to promote eco-tourism.
Initially 10 Gharials would be released in the Harike Wildlife Sanctuary as a part of 'Gharial
Recovery Action Plan.
About Gharial:
Gharial (Gavialisgangeticus), once found in the Indian subcontinent in plenty, is now the most
endangered large animal.
Historical records reveal that Gharial, one of the three crocodilian species found in India, was
present in Indus River system, including Beas and Sutlej rivers, indicating healthy river system
It has been listed in Schedule I of Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and as "Critically
Endangered" in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Endangered
Species in 2007.
NATIONAL AIR QUALITY INDEX (AQI)
The government launched the National Air Quality Index (AQI) that will put out real time data
about the level of pollutants in the air and inform people about the possible impacts on
health.
Initially it will be launched for 10 cities. The aim was to eventually deploy the index in all cities
with a population of over one million.
Characteristics:
The AQI is a global standard.
The central agencies have taken into account eight pollutants: PM2.5, PM10, nitrogen
oxides, Sulphur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, ammonia and lead while calculating
and releasing the AQI.
It will have one number, one colour and one description to inform the public about air quality in a
simple and easily understandable format.
BLOOD RAIN
The red colour in the rain was caused by the presence of spores of a European species
of green microalgae, Trentepohlia annulata that was reported previously only from Austria a
Central European country.
Blood rain is nothing but a mechanism employed by this alga to disperse its spores
(similar to plant seeds) to a very large area at once, so that algae can quickly colonize a large
area.

The introduction of Alga in India happened through clouds over ocean a phenomenon of
intercontinental species dispersal previously reported for bacteria and fungi, but first time for
alga.
Blood rain in India: Since 1896, reports have been coming in of sporadic instances of red coloured
rain over parts of Kerala and Sri Lanka. The latest one was in 2013 over Kerala.
CHESTNUT-BREASTED PARTRIDGE
The chestnut-breasted partridge (Arborophilamandellii) is a species of partridge endemic
to the eastern Himalayas north of the Brahmaputra, and is known from Bhutan, West Bengal
(Darjeeling only), Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, north-east India, Nepal Himalaya and southeast
Tibet.
This bird has been classified as Vulnerable by ICUN.
THREE NEW TIGER RESERVE:
National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has given in-principle approval for creation of
reserves in Ratapani in Madhya Pradesh, Sunabeda in Odisha and Guru Ghasidas in
Chhattisgarh.
The Odisha government claimed that the number of big cats in the State would be around
60.However, NCTA report put the number of tigers 28 .The State has three tiger reserves
Similipal, Satakosia and Sunabeda.
NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY (NTCA)
The Government of India had launched Project Tiger on 1st April 1973 to promote
conservation of the tiger. Project Tiger has been the largest species conservation initiative of its kind
in the world.
Project Tiger is an ongoing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the Ministry of Environment, Forests
and Climate Change providing central assistance to the tiger States for tiger conservation in
designated tiger reserves.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority was established in December 2005 following a
recommendation of the Tiger Task Force.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is a statutory body of the Ministry, with an
overarching supervisory / coordination role, performing functions as provided in the Wildlife
(Protection) Act, 1972.
ABSCISSION
Abscission is the shedding of various parts of an organism, such as a plant dropping a leaf, fruit,
flower, or seed.In the process of leaf abscission, plants periodically shed their leaves. Leaf abscission
involves a number of biochemical and physical changes that are largely controlled by plant
hormones.
RAJAJI NATIONAL PARK
Why in news: The Union government has given the nod to a proposal to grant the Rajaji National
Park in Uttarakhand the status of a tiger reserve. This is the second tiger reserve in the State
after the Corbett Tiger Reserve.
Features:
It lies in the Shivaliks.
It will be the second tiger reserve in the State after the Corbett Tiger Reserve.
The Park is at the northwestern limit of distribution for both elephants and tigers in India, and
has the
largest population of elephants in Uttarakhand.
The new tiger reserve is expected to bring in more tourists and boost the economy of the
State.
Named after C. Rajagopalachari(Rajaji)
Uttarakhand, the State with the second highest tiger population after Karnataka.

INS VISAKHAPATNAM
Indian Navy's 1ststealth destroyer, INS Visakhapatnam, designed indigenously and fitted with
advanced features was launched, boosting the maritime force's firepower capability.
Features:
The indigenously designed stealth destroyer will have state-of-the-art weapons, sensors, an
advance
Action Information System, in Integrated Platform Management system, sophisticated Power
Distribution System and a host of other advanced features.
Supersonic surface-to-surface missile system: The system enables the ship to engage
shore- based and naval surface targets at long range, making it a lethal platform for strike against
enemy targets.
Air defence capability: This will protect it from enemy aircraft and anti-ship cruise
missiles.
Four 30mm rapid-fire guns will provide the ship with close-in-defence capability, while an MR
gun will enable her to provide effective naval gunfire support.
Anti-submarine capability: Indigenously developed twin tube torpedo launchers
and rocket launchers will enhance the ship's anti-submarine capability.
The vessel has indigenous component of over 70 per cent.
The vessel is expected to be commissioned in the Navy in 2018.
This project is in line with the 'Make in India policy' of the Government.
The vessel is follow-on of P15A Kolkata-class destroyers with enhanced features.
E-SAMIKSHA
What it is: Areal time, online monitoring system for monitoring implementation of various
ongoing projects including Rail Budget proposals.
Features:
The software is currently being used by Cabinet Secretariat, PMO and other Ministries
for monitoring progress implementation of various programmes and follow-up of meetings.
This portal will mainly focus on Budget Review, Board Meetings, Zonal Railway Review,
Infrastructure Targets and Project Implementation Review.
It can also be used for coordination by respective directorates, zonal and divisional level
officials in Indian Railways.
It has been developed by and National Informatics Centre (NIC).
The software has been developed to make it a highly interactive web-based, user-friendly and
customised system.
MAGLEV TECHNOLOGY
Maglev (derived from magnetic levitation) is a transport method that uses magnetic levitation
to move vehicles without touching the ground (10 cm above the ground).
With maglev, a vehicle travels using magnets to create both lift and propulsion, thereby
reducing friction and allowing higher speeds.
Only two commercial maglev transport systems are in operation in the world. 1. Shanghai's
Transrapid system 2. Japans relatively low-speed HSST "Linimo" line.
STATUE OF UNITY
STATUE OF UNITY (FEATURES)
Monument of Vallabhbhai Patel
Location: Sadhu Bet island on the Narmada near Vadodara
Height: 182 metres
Surrounded with a man-made lake spread across 12 km of area.
Would be the world's tallest statue.
UN REPORT ON E-WASTE (GLOBAL E-WASTE MONITOR 2014)

ndia is the fifth biggest producer of e-waste in the world (1.7 million tonnes) after U.S.,
China, Japan and Germany.
INCINERATOR TECHNOLOGY FOR PRODUCING REFUSE DERIVED FUEL (RDF)
Why in news: National Green Tribunal (NGT), New Delhi, has permitted the States,
including Karnataka, to use incinerator technology for producing Refuse Derived Fuel
(RDF), commonly known as waste-to-energy.
INCINERATION
Incineration is a waste treatment process that involves the combustion of organic
substances contained in waste materials.
Incineration of waste materials converts the waste into ash, flue gas, and heat.
Heat generated by incineration can be used to generate electric power.
The gases, flue gases are first treated for eradication of pollutants before going in to
atmosphere.
Incinerators reduce the solid mass of the original waste by 9596%.
CONCERNS/ ARGUMENTS AGAINST INCINERATION
The highly toxic fly ash, dioxin and furan emissions may cause adverse health effect for
local residents.
Incinerators emit varying levels of heavy metals such asvanadium, manganese, chromium,
nickel, arsenic, mercury, lead, and cadmium, which can be toxic at very minute levels.
The reusable, recyclable waste destroyed in this process which has adverse impact on
communities which are involved in recycling industries.
NGT ORDER TO MINIMIZE CONCERNS
No waste could be directly put into the incinerators or for power generation, except the
specifically permitted.
Only those wastes that are found unrecyclable after segregation should be put into the
incinerators.
The tribunal emphasised that it was not putting any absolute restriction on RDF being used as
power generation fuel, but first effort should be made for composting of wet waste.
The States are free to use RDF for generating fuel with due care and caution by framing
necessary guidelines.
The Central Pollution Control Board and the Ministry of Environment and Forests were directed
to prescribe specific guidelines for emissions from incinerators.
REFUSE DERIVED FUEL (RDF)
Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) or solid recovered fuel/ specified recovered fuel (SRF) is
a fuel produced by shredding and dehydrating solid waste (MSW) with a Waste converter
technology.
RDF consists largely of combustible components of municipal waste such as plastics and
biodegradable waste.
RDF is extracted from municipal solid waste using a mix of mechanical and/or biological
treatment methods.
The production of RDF may involve the following steps:
Bag splitting/Shredding
Size screening
Magnetic separation
Coarse shredding
Refining separation
APPLICATIONS OF RDF
Electricity production

Used alongside traditional sources of fuel in coal power plants

Cement kiln industry
Can also be fed into plasma arc gasification modules, pyrolysis plants and where the RDF is
capable of being combusted cleanly or in compliance with the Kyoto Protocol.
OLDENLANDIA DINESHI
A team of scientists from four research institutions in Kerala have reported the discovery of a
rare species of plant from the Palakkad gap region of the Western Ghats. Several species of the
Oldenlandia family are widely used in Ayurveda for preparation of formulations such as
Chyawanaprasam.
Based on IUCN criteria, the researchers have classified Oldenlandia dineshii as an endangered
species.
BIO-FENCES
In a bid to reduce man-animal conflict in Assam, bio-fences are proposed to be set up replacing
electric fences, to ward off straying elephants.
TELANGANA CRAB SPIDER (THOMISUS TELANGANENSIS)
Telangana now has a spider named after it Telangana crab spider (Thomisus telanganensis).
The spiders, named Thomisus telanganensis, also resemble crabs and are called "crab spiders". They
are also known as flower spiders as they lie in wait for prey on flowering plants.
They are important to the ecosystem as they act as bio-controlling agents to keep the insect
population under control. They are usually found in plants, shrubs, grasses, flowering plants, leaf
litter and sometimes under stones.
RED SANDERS
Pterocarpussantalinus, with the common names Red Sanders, is a species of Pterocarpus
endemic to the southern Eastern Ghats mountain range of South India.
Red Sanders has a highly restrictive distribution in the South Eastern portion of Indian
peninsula to which it is endemic. The Palakonda and Seshachalam hill ranges of Cuddapah-Chittoor
districts of the State of Andhra Pradesh are its principal geographical range.
Red sanders has been classified as endangered in the IUCN (International Union for
Conservation of Nature) Red List and included in Appendix-II of Convention on International trade
in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
Used mainly to make aphrodisiac drugs and musical instruments and furniture.
Red-sanders or red sandal wood has lot of demand in International market including China,
Japan and Gulf countries and there is large scale smuggling of this precious wood from AP.
GENETIC PROFILING OF INDIAN MACKEREL
The Indian Mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta is an important food fish commonly consumed
in South and Southeast Asian countries. The fish is commonly found in warm shallow waters along
the coasts of the Indian and West Pacific oceans, and their surrounding seas.
The Indian Mackerel shares the same genetic profile except those caught from Andaman waters.
The fishes collected from Andaman waters were found to be genetically distinctive from those
caught from the Indian mainland. However, there was little genetic differentiation between the fish
caught from across India.
The genetic profiling was carried out by researchers of the Central Marine Fish Research
Institute (CMFRI), Kochi and the National Bureau of Fish Genetic Research (NBFGR), Kochi
regional centre.
The genetic profiling of the species is essential to assess the stock, evolve fisheries management
methods including the preservation of genetic diversity and sustainability of the regional fisheries.
SEA CUCUMBERS
Sea cucumbers are marine animals of the class Holothuroidea. They are used in fresh or dried
form in various

cuisines. In some cultural contexts the sea cucumber is thought to have medicinal value.
Sea cucumbers, endangered species protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act,
1972.
Sea cucumbers played a vital role in the marine ecological system, as they eat nutrients from the
sea bed and bring it to the surface, thus helpingin availability of the nutrients to other organisms.
Nearly 200 species of sea cucumbers are found in the coral reef colonies in India, of which 20
species were found in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay regions in the State.
Out of the 20, two were over-exploited and were exported in large number to Singapore from
where they were distributed to Taiwan, China and Japan, where they are considered delicacies.
Normally, the sea cucumbers are found in inter-tidal regions of the coast, along the sea grass and
coral reef colonies
EMISSIONS FROM BIOMASS BURNING CROSS THE HIMALAYAS
THE CULPRIT
The organic acids present in the aerosols serve as a unique fingerprint in identifying the source
of pollution. In this case, the dicarboxylic acids served as a fingerprint.
Though dicarboxylic acids can be produced by biomass burning, vehicular exhausts and cooking
(primary source), as well as atmospheric photooxidation (secondary source), the researchers were
able to pinpoint the source as biomass burning.
Levoglucosan is a specific marker of biomass burning it is produced through the pyrolysis of
cellulose during the combustion process,. Another unique marker of biomass burning is the watersoluble potassium. Both the markers showed strong positive correlation with dicarboxylic acids
thereby confirming biomass burning as the source of pollution.
Though the pollutants were found to reach the northern slopes of the Himalayas during all the
seasons pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon and winter seasons the amount of aerosol found
peaked during pre-monsoon. This, according to them, is one more indicator of biomass burning as
the source.
Agricultural burning and forest fires along the southern Himalayan foothills and the IndoGangetic Plain reach a high during the pre-monsoon period. That probably is the reason why the
amount of biomass burning marker found peaked during the pre-monsoon time.
DHANUSH MISSILE
Dhanush is a variant of the surface-to-surface/ship-to-ship Prithvi III missile, which has been
developed for the Indian Navy.
Dhanush missile is capable of carrying conventional as well as nuclear payload of 500 to 1,000
kg and hit both land and sea-based targets s in the range of 350 km.
The single-stage, liquid-propelled Dhanush having 350 km range has already been inducted into
the armed forces and is one of the five missiles developed by Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).
GUT BACTERIA PRODUCE KEY BRAIN CHEMICAL
Production of a key chemical, deficiency of which is linked to various diseases and disorders
such as depression and anxiety, depends largely on a group of approximately 20 bacteria in the gut.
Certain bacteria in the gut are important for the production of serotonin, which is well
known as a brain neurotransmitter.
Serotonin is an important neurotransmitter and hormone that is involved in a variety of
biological processes. The finding that gut microbes modulate serotonin levels raises the interesting
prospect of using them to drive changes in biology
SAIGA ANTELOPES
The saiga is a critically endangered antelope that originally inhabited a vast area of the
Eurasian steppezone. Mostly concentrated in the steppe land of Kazakhstan, neighbouring Russia
and Mongolia.

Why in News: In May 2015 large numbers of saiga began to die from a mysterious epizootic1
illness suspected to be pasteurellosis. Herd fatality is 100% once infected, with an estimated 40% of
the species' total population already dead.
More than 120,000 carcasses had been found as of late May, while the estimated total population
was only 250,000
THE INDIAN PANGOLIN
The Indian pangolin, thick-tailed pangolin is an endangered pangolin found in the plains and
hills of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan.
It is a mammal. It is an insectivore that feeds on ants and termites. It can curl itself into a ball as
a form of self-defence against predators such as the tiger
InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat
Transport) In March 2016,
NASA will send this unique Mars lander to explore the Red Planets deep interior to find clues about
how all rocky planets, including the Earth, formed and evolved.
The lander InSight will be the first mission devoted to understand the interior
structure of the Red Planet.
LION CENSUS IN GIR
This is the only wild population of Asiatic lions in the world and IUCN has categorised the
species as endagered.
The members of the Maldhari community living next to the forest area had been of great
assistance to the Forest Department in their conservation efforts.
HEAT WAVE
Definition: A heat wave refers to a prolonged period of hot weather, which may be accompanied by
high humidity. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) defines a heat wave as five
or more consecutive days in which the average daily maximum temperature is exceeded by at
least 5C, the normal period being 1961-1990.
REASONS FOR HEAT WAVE
A heat wave occurs when a system of high atmospheric pressure moves into an area. In such a
highpressure system, air from upper levels of our atmosphere is pulled toward the ground, where it
becomes compressed and increases in temperature.
This high concentration of pressure makes it difficult for other weather systems to move into the
area, which is why a heat wave can last for several days or weeks. The longer the system stays in an
area, the hotter the area becomes.
The high-pressure inhibits winds, making them faint to nonexistent. Because the high-pressure
system also prevents clouds from entering the region, sunlight can become punishing, heating up the
system even more.
The combination of all of these factors come together to create the exceptionally hot
temperatures we call a heat wave.
NEW HORIZONS
New Horizons is a NASA space probe launched to study the dwarf planet Pluto, its moons and
one or two other Kuiper belt objects. The spacecraft is scheduled to pass through the Pluto system on
July 14, 2015 and will map the dwarf planet, its five known moon's surface and search for a ring
system.
NASA probe, New Horizons, passed Neptunes orbit, nearly 25 years after Voyager 2 spacecraft
executed the first-ever flyby of faraway Neptune and its icy moon Triton.
PLUTOS MOONS
Pluto has five known moons Charon, Hydra, Nix, Kerberos and Styx.
THE KUIPER BELT

The Kuiper belt sometimes called the EdgeworthKuiper belt, is a region of the Solar
beyond the planets, extending from the orbit of Neptune (at 30 AU) to approximately 50 AU from
the Sun.
The astronomical unit (AU) is a unit of length, roughly the distance from the Earth to the
Sun.
BUMBLEBEES
India is home to 48 of the 250 known species of bumblebees, the only pollinators of vegetation
in high-altitude regions.
Bumblebees are generally found on altitudes of 2,000-15,000 feet along the entire
Himalayas, from Jammu & Kashmir to Nagaland.
WHITLEY AWARDS (Green Oscars)
The Whitley Awards are made annually by the Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) to
recognise and
celebrate effective national and regional conservation leaders across the globe.
Dr Ananda Kumar his work using innovative communication systems to enable human-elephant
coexistence in southern India
Dr Pramod Patil his work to protect the iconic great Indian bustard in the Thar Desert
MESSENGER (MERCURY SURFACE, SPACE ENVIRONMENT, GEOCHEMISTRY, AND
RANGING) SPACECRAFT- Launched in 2011
MESSENGER (a backronym of MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry,
and Ranging, and a
reference to the mythological messenger, Mercury) was a robotic NASA spacecraft which orbited the
planet Mercury between 2011 and 2015
FINDINGS OF MISSION
Its objective was to study Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic
field.
Unexpectedly high concentrations of magnesium and calcium found on Mercury
Mercury's magnetic field is offset far to the north of the planet's center
visual evidence of past volcanic activity on the surface of Mercury
Both water ice and organic compounds in permanently shadowed craters in Mercury's
north pole
MESSENGER was able to take highly detailed close-up photographs of ice-filled craters and
other landforms at Mercury's north pole.
ASTROSAT
What it is: Astrosat is India's first dedicated astronomy satellite and is scheduled to launch on
board the PSLV in October 2015.
Features
It is a multi-wavelength astronomy mission and will scan the sky (simultaneously) in most of the
frequency spectra from ultraviolet to optical and low- and high-energy X-ray bands.
It will study distant stars, galaxies, black holes and other cosmic objects.
It will be will operate for 5 years.
It will have special focus on the following
Significance
Will provide useful data for the countrys astronomy community.
Would be of immense benefit to our scientists, who have depended on inputs from other
agencies and sources like the Hubble [US-European space telescope].
Studies of periodic and non-periodic variability of X-ray sources.
It will put India in an elite orbit with the U.S., Europe, Russia and Japan.
MULTI-OBJECT TRACKING RADAR (MOTR)

India has joined the select group of countries (US, Israel, Japan and Canada) that have rare and the
latest technologies for tracking multiple objects moving in space with the help of a highlysophisticated radar.
Features
It can track 10 different objects simultaneously with a range of nearly 1,000 km while the
existing radars have a range of 300 to 400 km.
As of now, only one object is tracked throughout the launch process with the available radars.
But now with this new technology even burnt-out debris in phase one and two of a rocket launch
can be tracked with the latest technology.
Uses and Benefits
It will help in keeping a watch on ISROs space assets on a daily basis.
The radar would be used along with the existing six small radars available at SHAR
(SatishDhawan Space Centre) for ensuring precision in rocket launches.
The equipment would be very useful during minor deviations in the trajectory of a just-launched
vehicle, as immediate remedial measures could be taken.
SCATSAT
It is a new, miniature weather-forecasting satellite which will predict the genesis of
cyclones in the oceans.
It is developed by Ahmedabad-based Space Applications Centre (SAC) an arm of ISRO.
Features
This satellite is expected to take over some of the functions of OCEANSAT-2, a satellite
that had accurately predicted the landfall of cyclone Phailin on the Orissa coast in October 2013.
It will measure the wind speed and its direction over the ocean.
It can predict the formation of cyclones, about 4-5 days in advance.
The data generated by this mini-satellite will be used by NASA, EUMETSAT (European
Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) and NOAA (National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration).
Expected Life : five years
ASTRA MISSILE
Features:
Indigenously developed (by DRDO)
Air to air
beyond visual range air-to-air
Length: 3.8-metre
capable of engaging targets at varying range and altitudes allowing for engagement of both
short-range targets (up to 20 km) and long-range targets (up to 80 km)
Its on-board electronic counter-measures jam radar signals from enemy radar, making tracking
of the missile difficult.
maximum speed is Mach 4
Expected to be inducted by 2016 after a few more tests
NELONG VALLEY
Why in news: Recently opened for tourists after 1962 Indo-China war.
It was closed after Indo-China war because of its proximity to the India-China border.
Features of Valley
Near Indo-China border.
Falls under the Gangotri National Park in Uttarkashi district.
At 11,600 feet, the valley is a cold desert.
Earlier (before 1962) it was an important trade route
Animals found: Snow leopard, Himalayan blue sheep, Musk dear.
Reasons of the Dust Storm

According to Metrological department the Dust Storm was caused by:

A movement of spiral winds over northwest Rajasthan.
A high pressure gradient and heat.
West Rajasthan becomes prone to such dust storms as it enters into the pre-monsoon
season.
AKASH
Akash is a medium-range mobile surface-to-air missile defense system. An Air Force
variant of Akash has already been inducted.
Features
Each regiment of Akash consists of six launchers with each launcher having three missiles
Capable of targeting a multitude of aerial threats up to a range of 25 km.
Can simultaneously engage multiple targets in all weather conditions.
Has a large operational envelope from a low altitude of 30 metres to a maximum of up to 20
km.
Can target Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in addition to helicopters and fighter planes.
This is designed for high mobility and can be quickly moved to any operational theatres
based on necessity.
BRAHMOS LAND-ATTACK CRUISE MISSILE
Why in news: The land-to-land configuration of BrahMos Block-III version (advanced version of
BrahMos) was test launched successfully from a Mobile Autonomous Launcher (MAL) for its
full-range of 290 km.
Features
Supersonic cruise missile: Mach 2.8 speed
Is capable of being launched from land, sea, subsea and air against sea and land targets.
The air version of the BrahMos is being readied for flight trials soon on Indian Air Forces Su-30
MKI strike fighter
Jointly developed by India and Russia.
What is cruise missile: A cruise missile is a guided missile, the major portion of whose flight
path to its target (a land-based or sea-based target) is conducted at approximately constant velocity.
It has high precision and can fly on a non-ballistic, extremely low-altitude trajectory.
INS SARDAR PATEL COMMISSIONED IN INDIAN NAVY
A strategically important new Naval base INS Sardar Patel was commissioned in Porbandar.
GRAVITATIONAL WAVES
Gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of space-time produced by violent events such as the
collision of two black holes or by cores of supernova explosions.
They are produced by accelerating masses, just the same as accelerating charged particles
produce radio waves (e.g. electrons in antennas).
Among other things, studying gravitational waves can tell us more about the nature of gravity.
LIGO(Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory)
LIGO is a large-scale physics experiment aiming to directly detect gravitational waves.
This detector recently underwent upgradation which would make it ten times more sensitive,
which, in turn, would provide a 1000-fold increase in the number of astrophysical candidates for
gravitational wave signals.
REAL-TIME IDENTIFICATION OF ALGAL BLOOMS
A group of ocean scientists from the Centre for Marine Living Resources (CMLRE), Kochi,
claimed to have perfected the algorithm for identification of the algal bloom.
How: By identification of Noctiluca scintillans in Arabian sea using a satellite-based remote
sensing technique.
NOCTILUCA SCINTILLANS

Noctiluca scintillans, commonly known as the Sea Sparkle, is a free-living non-parasiticmarinedwelling species that exhibits bioluminescence when disturbed (popularly known as mareel).
N. scintillans is a heterotroph (non-photosynthetic) that engulfs by phagocytosis food which
includes plankton, diatoms, other dinoflagellates, fish eggs and bacteria
GREAT INDIAN BUSTARD
Once widely spotted across 11 States, the Great Indian Bustard is currently listed under the category
of Critically Endangered birds, in the 2013 Threatened Bird list by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The change of land use from grassland to farmland has been a major threat since it has
shrunk the birds habitat.
The erosion of its habitat is a major threat to the birds survival.
Poaching is another key problem.
It is the State Bird of Rajasthan
THAR DESERT
Thar Desert is the only landscape in the world that provides viable breeding population to
GIBs.
Thousands of windmills around the Desert National Park are posing a serious threat to the
GIB.
Why in News: Windmills spell doom for the Great Indian Bustard
AUTOMATIC IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM (PROPRIETARY) TRANSPONDERS
The project Automatic Identification System (proprietary) Transponders will track small
fishing
vessels (below 20 metre) and up to a distance of 50 kms from the coastline.
The project will be implemented by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and
Fisheries under the Agriculture Ministry.
At present, there is a system in place for tracking vessels above 20-m in length, but there is no
such
facility for boats below that length.
Need:
o India's long coastline poses a variety of security concerns that include landing of arms and
explosives at isolated spots on the coast, infiltration/exfiltration of anti-national elements, use of
sea and offshore islands for criminal activities and smuggling of consumer and intermediate
goods through sea routes
o The absence of physical barriers on the coast and presence of vital industrial and defence
installations in such zones further enhances the vulnerability of these areas.
SAKAAR
Sakaar is Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) Augmented Reality (AR) application
designed for Andriod devices.
It consists of 3D models of MOM, RISAT, rockets (PSLV, GSLV Mk-III); videos of INSAT 3Dpredicting cyclones, GSLV D5/Cryo, Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) orbit insertion, launch video of
MOM, 360 degree animated view of MOM; Anaglyph of Mars surface.
AUGMENTED REALITY TECHNOLOGY
Augmented Reality is a live direct view of a physical, real-world environment whose elements
are augmented (or supplemented) by computer-generated 3D models, animations, videos etc.
It enhances users current perception of reality.
The AR requires three elements - Android device with back camera, AR application and AR
markers.
WORLDS THINNEST LIGHT BULB CREATED

Researchers have created the worlds thinnest light bulb using graphene (an atomically thin and
perfectly crystalline form of carbon) as a filament (In incandescent light bulb tungsten used as
filament).
FEATURES AND APPLICATIONS
After current is passed through filament it heats up to over 2,500 C and produces exceptionally
bright light.
This graphene light is low cost with a relatively simple structure.
Can also be integrated into chips which will pave the way towards the realisation of atomically
flexible, thin and transparent displays.
Can be used as broadband light emitter
The ability for the super-thin material to produce light is seen as a key step to create super-thin
computer and TV screens.
GRAPHENE
Graphene is composed of carbon atoms linked in a hexagonal lattice.
About 200 times stronger than steel
Better conductor compared to Copper
Nearly transparent.
PHILAE
What is Philae: It is a robotic European Space Agency lander that accompaniedthe Rosetta
spacecraft until it landed on comet 67P/ChuryumovGerasimenko, more than ten years after
departing Earth. On 12 November 2014, the probe achieved the first-ever soft landing on a comet
nucleus.
Why in News: On 15 November 2014, Philae entered safe mode, or hibernation, after its batteries
ran down due to reduced sunlight and an off-nominal spacecraft orientation at its unplanned landing
site. Mission controllers hoped that additional sunlight on the solar panels by August 2015 might be
sufficient to reboot the lander. On 13 June 2015, Philae began communicating with Rosetta again.
What is Rosetta: Mothership (spacecraft) orbiting Comet 67P. Philae communicates with Rosetta
which sends the received data to the earth.
GOALS OF THE MISSION
To focus on elemental, isotopic, molecular and mineralogical composition of the
cometary material
The characterization of physical properties of the surface and subsurface material
The large-scale structure and the magnetic and plasma environment of the nucleus
The mission seeks to unlock the long-held secrets of comets primordial clusters of ice
and dust that scientists believe may reveal how the Solar System was formed.
KHOYA-PAYA WEB PORTAL TO TRACK MISSING CHILDREN LAUNCHED
'Khoya-Paya', is a web portal for citizens to report children sighted as abandoned, lost or with
suspicious person. It has been developed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the
Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY).
CSIR SUCCEEDS IN WHOLE GENOME SEQUENCING OF HOLY BASIL (TULSI)
CSIR-Central Institute of Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (CSIR-CIMAP), has published whole genome
sequence of Tulsi.
Other names: Ocimum sanctum, the wonder plant Holy basil
SIGNIFICANCE OF TULSI
Worshipped for over more than 3000 years through the sacred traditions of Hindu culture
Medical benefits
o It used in several systems of traditional medicine, including Ayurveda, Greek, Roman, Siddha, and
Unani.
o It is used in the preparations to cure various diseases like bronchitis, bronchial asthma, malaria,
diarrhea, dysentery, skin diseases, arthritis, painful eye diseases, chronic fever, insect bite.

o It has also been described to possess anti-fertility, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-fungal,

antimicrobial, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, anti-emetic, anti-spasmodic, analgesic,
adaptogenic and diaphoretic actions.
SMALLTOOTH SAWFISH
Also known as the wide sawfish
It is found in shallow tropical and subtropical waters in coastal parts of the Atlantic, including
the Mediterranean.
INS VIKRANT
The maiden indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant was undocked on completion of structural
work.
Largest aircraft carrier after induction
The successful completion puts India in the elite group of four nations - the US, Russia, the UK
and France - in the world capable of designing and constructing aircraft carriers.
DANDELI ELEPHANT RESERVE
Karnataka, which boasts of the highest number of elephants in India has got a second elephant
reserve the Dandeli Elephant Reserve under Project Elephant.
MAMMALIAN FAUNA OF INDIA
Extinct mammals: Cheetah, Banteng, Sumatran Rhinoceros and Javan Rhinoceros
Critically Endangered: pygmy hog, Malabar civet, large rock rat and kondana rat etc
Endangered: Chinese Pangolin, fishing cat, Gangetic dolphin, golden langur, hispid hare etc.
WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY
World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated every year on 5 June to raise global
awareness to take positive environmental action to protect nature and the planet Earth.
It is run by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The theme for 2015 is 'Seven Billion Dreams; One Planet; Consume with Care'.
SONGBIRD TURNS VICTIM OF HUNTING
Recent studies by the U.K.s BirdLife International and its India partner, Bombay Natural
History Society (BNHS) India, have shown that one of Eurasias most abundant bird species,
yellow-breasted bunting, has declined by 90%.
A research paper recently published in the journal Conservation Biology suggests that
unsustainable
rates of hunting, principally in China, have contributed to the catastrophic loss of numbers.
Yellow-breasted bunting was once distributed over vast areas of Europe and Asia. In India, it is
reported as a winter visitor, mainly in the north-east, in West Bengal, and also in the Terai region
of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Here it is found from early October till April, in small to large flocks of
up to 200.
CYCLONE ASHOBAA
Origin: East- Central Arabian Sea
The storm continued to track northwestwards for a while, before turning westwards (towards oman)
and weakening due to moderate to high wind shear and land interaction. Thus, it havent affected
Gujarat much.
MAHARASHTRA DECLARED BLUE MORMON AS STATE BUTTERFLY
Maharashtra has become the first State in the country to have a State butterfly.
The Blue Mormon is a large, swallowtail butterfly found primarily in Sri Lanka and India,
mainly restricted to the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, South India and coastal belts. It may

occasionally be spotted in the Maharashtrian mainland between Vidarbha and Western

Maharashtra.
ARUNACHAL PRADESHS STATE SOIL HEALTH MISSION
AIM
The programme aims at proper documentation of soil health and preparation of soil map.
To make Arunachal Pradesh a hundred per cent organic state
MERCURY POLLUTION
SOURCES
Burning coal for power and heat a major source of mercury.
Mercury is contained in many products, including: batteries, measuring devices, such as
thermometers and barometers, electric switches and relays in equipment, lamps (including some
types of light bulbs), dental amalgam (for dental fillings), skin-lightening products and other
cosmetics, pharmaceuticals.
IMPACT
Mercury is considered by WHO as one of the top ten chemicals or groups of chemicals of major
public health concern.
Exposure to mercury even small amounts may cause serious health problems, and is a threat
to the development of the child in utero and early in life.
Mercury may have toxic effects on the nervous, digestive and immune systems, and on lungs,
kidneys, skin and eyes.
Skin rashes and dermatitis; mood swings; memory loss; mental disturbances; and muscle
weakness
Symptoms include these: tremors; emotional changes (e.g., mood swings, irritability,
nervousness, excessive shyness); insomnia; neuromuscular changes (such as weakness, muscle
atrophy, twitching); headaches; disturbances in sensations; changes in nerve responses;
performance deficits on tests of cognitive function. At higher exposures there may be kidney effects,
respiratory failure and death.
Ex-workers of the thermometer-manufacturing unit of Hindustan Unilever Ltd. (HUL) in
Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu have been demanding justice.
MINAMATA CONVENTION ON MERCURY
The Convention obliges government Parties to take a range of actions, including addressing mercury
emissions to air and to phasing-out certain mercury-containing products.
KALPAKKAM FAST BREEDER REACTOR TO BE COMMISSIONED SOON
The 500-MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam is getting ready to be
commissioned in September.
It will signal Indias triumphant entry into the second stage of its three-stage nuclear power
programme.
Fuel: plutonium-uranium oxide
Coolant: liquid sodium
What is FBR: A reactor, which produce more fuel than it consumes. Indias FBRs will produce
xxx while generating power.
Current status: The PFBR construction had been completed and equipment energised. The
agency is
awaiting clearance from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) for sodium charging, fuel
loading,
reactor criticality and then stepping up power generation.
Who build reactors: Bharatiya Nabikhiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI), a public sector
undertaking of the Department of Atomic Energy.

STAGE 1: PRESSURISED HEAVY WATER REACTOR

In this natural uranium fuelled pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) produce electricity while
generating plutonium-239 as by-product.
STAGE II FAST BREEDER REACTOR
In the second stage, fast breeder reactors (FBRs) would use a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel made
from plutonium-239, recovered by reprocessing spent fuel from the first stage, and natural uranium.
In the second stage, fast breeder reactors (FBRs) would use a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel made
from plutonium-239, recovered by reprocessing spent fuel from the first stage, and natural uranium.
In FBRs, plutonium-239 undergoes fission to produce energy, while the uranium-238 present in
the mixed oxide fuel transmutes to additional plutonium-239.
Thus, the Stage II FBRs are designed to "breed" more fuel than they consume.
STAGE III THORIUM BASED REACTORS
A Stage III reactor or an advanced nuclear power system involves a self-sustaining series of
thorium-232-uranium-233 fuelled reactors.
This would be a thermal breeder reactor, which in principle can be refueled after its initial fuel
charge using only naturally occurring thorium.
RASHTRIYA AVISHKAR ABHIYAN
Aim: to inculcate a spirit of inquiry, creativity and love for Science and Mathematics in school
children.
Developed by the Ministry of Human Resource Development
It seeks to Develop Scientific Temper Among School Children,
To encourage students to learn sciences beyond the classrooms.
Under Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan, government schools will be mentored by Institutes like
IITs/ IIMs/
IISERs and other Central Universities and reputed organisations through innovative programmes,
student exchanges, demonstrations, student visits, etc. to develop a natural sense of passion towards
learning of Science and Maths.
ISRO SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED 5 UK SATELLITES
Launched by 44.4 metre tall Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C28
Satellites launched
o UK's three identical optical earth observation satellites
o A Micro and a Nano satellite from UK

AKASH AIR DEFENCE MISSILE SYSTEM

FEATURES
The Akash SAM (surface to air missile ) system can employ multiple air targets while operating
in fully autonomous mode.
The Akash system protects a moving procession of vehicles using an electronic counter
countermeasures (ECCM) system.
Can be launched from static or mobile platforms
Can handle multiple targets and destroy maneuvering targets, such as unmanned aerial vehicles,
fighter aircraft, cruise missiles and missiles launched from helicopters.
The missile is capable of destroying aircraft within the range from 30km to 35km and at
altitudes up to 18,000m (medium range surface to air missile system)
The system provides air defence missile coverage for an area of 2,000 km.
Can carry conventional and nuclear warheads.
Can operate in all weather conditions.
Developed under the integrated guided-missile development programme (IGMDP).
Built by India's state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
SAARC SATELLITE EXPECTED TO BE LAUNCHED IN DECEMBER 2016
SAARC Satellite is a proposed communication-cum-meteorology satellite by Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) for the SAARC region.
FEATURES
Will have twelve 'Ku' transponders
It will have the capability to interconnect all these eight countries. Interconnection will be like
o Hot contact for the political level
o MEA interconnection
o Disaster monitoring constellation
o Meteorological data decimination
GPS-AIDED GEO AUGMENTED NAVIGATION (GAGAN) SYSTEM
Government launched the GPS-Aided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) system thereby joining a
select league comprising the US, Europe Union (EU) and Japan which have similar systems. The
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) developed the
system.
FEATURES AND SIGNIFICANCE
Gagan works by augmenting and relaying data from GPS satellites with the help of two
augmentation satellites and 15 earth-based reference stations.
GAGAN system corrects any anomalies in the position data and gives accurate routes, landing
guidance and time saving information to the pilots.
The system also bridges the gap in the coverage areas of the European Unions European
Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) and Japans Multi-functional Satellite
Augmentation System (MSAS).
The system would be available for the member states of the South Asian Association for
Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
It will be able to help pilots to navigate in the Indian airspace by an accuracy of 3 m. This will be
helpful for landing aircraft in tough weather and terrain like Mangalore and Leh airports.
Some more benefits are
o Improved efficiency,
o Direct routes,
o Increased fuel savings,
o Significant cost savings because of the withdrawal of ground aids and reduced workload of flight
crew and air traffic controllers and Accurate guidance for planning shorter routes and safer landing
patterns is expected to provide the aviation sector cost-saving options.

ATAL INNOVATION MISSION (AIM)

NITI Aayog has constituted an Expert Committee to work out the detailed contours of Atal
Innovation Mission (AIM) and Self-Employment & Talent Utilisation (SETU).
WHAT IS AIM
AIM is an Innovation Promotion Platform in the NITI Aayog, involving academics,
entrepreneurs and
researchers and draw upon national and international experiences to foster a culture of innovation,
R&D and scientific research in India.
The platform will also promote a network of world-class innovation hubs and grand challenges
for India.
It has an initial fund of 150 crore for R&D announced in this year's budget.
It will provide funds to a network of institutions to conduct research on innovations that can
improve economic growth and job creation.

It has replaced the National Innovation Council, a significant difference between the two will be
the powers to disburse funds.
WHAT IS SETU
The Government has established a mechanism to be known as SETU (Self-Employment and
Talent Utilisation) under NITI Aayog. SETU will be a Techno-Financial, Incubation and Facilitation
Programme to support all aspects of start-up businesses, and other self-employment activities,
particularly in technology-driven area
BARAK 8
Indo-Israeli surface-to-air missile
Being developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation and Israel Aerospace
Industries for the Navy over the last five years.
An Army version is being ground tested and an Air Force variant is in the works, both as
medium-range or MR-SAMs.
Designed to defend against any type of airborne threat including aircraft, helicopters, anti-ship
missiles, and UAVs as well as cruise missiles and combat jets
The radar system provides 360 degree coverage and the missiles can take down an incoming
missile as close as 500 meters away from the ship.
Maximum speed Mach 2
GREEN CLIMATE FUND
The $100-billion Green Climate Fund (GCF) will soon become operational in India and the
process of accrediting organisations, which can access the funds, is going on.
WHAT IS GCF?
The GCF is a fund within the framework of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change) founded as a mechanism to redistribute money from the developed
to the developing world, in order to assist the developing countries in adaptation and mitigation
practices to counter climate change.
It aims to make a significant and ambitious contribution to the global efforts towards
attaining the goals set by the international community to combat climate change.
It was formally established by a UNFCCC decision in Durban, South Africa in December 2011.
The groundwork for GCF was laid in the earlier, non-binding Copenhagen Accord of 2009.
OBJECTIVE OF GCF
The objective of the GCF is to raise $100 billion per year in climate financing by 2020. The
GCF will support projects, programmes, policies and other activities in developing country
Parties.
However, disputes remain as to whether the funding target will be based on public sources,
or whether leveraged private finance will be counted towards the total. Only a fraction of this
sum has been pledged so far, mostly to cover start-up costs.
It will be headquartered in Songdo (Incheon), South Korea and will have an independent
GCF secretariat. It will have a board comprising 24-members called the GCF Board, composed of
equal number of members from developing and developed countries.
KASTURIRANGAN REPORT ON WESTERN GHATS
The government has said that as per the Kasturirangan report, commercial mining and polluting
industries would be strictly banned in areas identified as eco sensitive zones.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The Kasturirangan panel has sought to balance the two concerns of development and
environment protection.
The Kasturirangan panel was set up to study the Gadgil committee report on the Western Ghats.
The Gadgil panel report had faced unanimous opposition from state governments for
recommending that almost three-fourth of the hills, including plantations, cultivated lands and large
habitations, be turned into a restricted development zone.

The Kasturirangan report seeks to bring just 37% of the Western Ghats under the Ecologically
Sensitive Area (ESA) zones down from the 64% suggested by the Gadgil report.
Recommended prohibition on development activities and commercial activities like mining,
thermal power plants, polluting industries and large housing plans in Ecologically Sensitive Area
(ESA) zones.
The villages falling under ESA will be involved in decision making on the future projects. All
projects will require prior-informed consent and no-objection from the gram sabha (village council)
of the village.
A complete ban on mining activity in this zone and current mining activities should be phased
out within five years.
It has not recommended a ban on hydroelectric projects in the zone, but put a regime of stricter
clearances for dams and other projects.
For dams, it has demanded an uninterrupted ecological flow of at least 30% level of the rivers
flow. Also, not more than 50% of the river basin should be affected affected at any time.
It has also favoured a new authority to regulate the region's development and economic growth.
INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON ANTARCTIC EARTH SCIENCES
Goa hosted the 12th International Symposium on Antarctic Earth Sciences (ISAES), from July
13 to 17.
India currently has two permanent stations, Maitri and Bharati, in Antarctica. The first
Indian station, Dakshin Gangotri, located on shelf ice is now buried and lost.
NATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY FUND

ARTIFICIAL BREEDING OF GREAT INDIAN BUSTARD

Under an integrated collaborative effort, the Union ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change
(MoEFCC) along with the state governments of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra will soon
undertake an artificial breeding programme for the Great Indian Bustard (GIB).
REASONS
To boost the population of the species as it is critically endangered species currently. Lack of
protection and rampant hunting have been the main reasons for the decline in its population.

The operations to artificially breed GIBs will commence next year and take place across the
three states.
Great Indian bustard
A large bird with a horizontal body and long bare legs giving it an ostrich like appearance.
This bird is among the heaviest of the flying birds.
As few as 250 individuals were estimated in 2011.
Now found in central India, western India and eastern Pakistan
Habitat: Arid and semi-arid grasslands, open country with thorn scrub, tall grass interspersed with
cultivation. It avoids irrigated areas.
INDIA AND WORLD / INTERNATIONAL
AL-SHABAB

Meaning "The Youth", or "The Youngsters", is an Islamist terrorist group based in

Somalia. Al-Shabaab describes itself as waging jihad against "enemies of Islam", and is
engaged in combat against the TFG (Transitional Federal Govt.) and the African Union
Mission to Somalia (AMISOM).

MALDIVES JOINS SILK ROAD PROJECT

The Maldives has joined Chinas 21st Century Maritime Silk Road project, becoming the
second nation in Indias backyard after Sri Lanka to sign up for the multi-billion
infrastructure scheme floated by Beijing to firm-up its influence in the region.
The Chinese hope to revive a maritime route that would start from its Fujian province,
cross the Malacca Straits and transit through the Indian Ocean via India, Sri
Lanka, Maldives, and Nairobi in Kenya. It would finally cross the Mediterranean via
the Suez Canal to terminate at Venice. Venice would also be end of the New Silk Route
a land corridor that would start in Xian in China and travel through Central Asia,
before entering Europe.
INDIAN OCEAN ZONE OF PEACE (IOZOP):
U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2832 (XXVI) declaring the Indian Ocean as a
zone of peace, and which has called upon the great powers not to allow an escalation and an
expansion of military presence in the Indian Ocean.
CHINA READIES SEA-BASED NUCLEAR DETERRENT AGAINST U.S.

INDIA, GERMANY INK GREEN ENERGY PACT

The Green Energy Corridor Project is an upcoming project which aims at synchronising
electricity produced from renewable sources, such as solar and wind, with conventional
power stations in the grid

Inter State: To be developed by State utilities

Intra State: To be developed by Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL)
Germany, who has expertise in making smart grids that integrate renewable energy into
national grid, will be assisting India in this project. Germany has promised provide
developmental and technical assistance of 1 billion for the project.

Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) alternatively referred to as the Pakistani Taliban, is an

umbrella organization of various Islamist militant groups based in the northwestern
Federally Administered Tribal Areas along the Afghan border in Pakistan. Most, but not all,
Pakistani Taliban groups coalesce under the TTP. On 16 December 2014, 9 members of the
Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) conducted a terrorist attack on the Army Public School in
the Pakistani city of Peshawar

Britain will broaden its military footprint in West Asia with the establishment of a permanent
military base at the Mina Salman Port in Bahrain

Indias low ranking among BRICS countries in the economic impact sub-index.
Affordability is Indias biggest concern as the cost of broadband access in the country is
greater than in countries in the neighbourhood such as Bangladesh.

INDIA- BANGLADESH LAND BOUNDARY DISPUTE

It was an agreement signed on May 16, 1974, soon after the independence of Bangladesh, to
find a solution to the complex nature of border demarcation. The borders of the Indian States
of Assam, West Bengal, Meghalaya and Tripura will be affected by this exchange of
territory. There are 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh; India has 51 Bangladeshi
enclaves
The Constitution (119th Amendment) Bill, 2013 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on
December 18, 2013. The Bill amends the First Schedule of the Constitution to give effect to
an agreement entered into by India and Bangladesh.
The India-Bangladesh Agreement was signed in 1974, but was not ratified as it involved
transfer of territory which required a Constitutional Amendment.
15TH INDIA-RUSSIA ANNUAL SUMMIT
India and Russia on 11 December 2014 signed 20 agreements during the 15th India-Russia
Annual Summit held in New Delhi. The agreements signed included eight agreements
between government entities and 12 between private enterprises.
Druzhba-Dosti vision statement
Russian oil giant ROSNEFT and Russia's state-owned Rosatom for Nuclear energy.
GOLDEN TRIANGLE
The Golden Triangle is a region in Northern Thailand, Laos and Myanmar that is
infamously known as a production region of drugs.
The Golden Crescent is the name given to Asias principal area of illicit opium production,
located at the crossroads of Central, South, and Western Asia. This space overlaps three
nations, Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan.
PALESTINE TO JOIN INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Palestine will join the International
Criminal Court (ICC) on April 1, 2015.
NEPAL TO JOIN SILK ROAD ECONOMIC BELT

Nepal formally signed a four-point document endorsing the Silk Road Economic Belt for
connecting Asia with Europe along a land corridor, with China as its hub. Nepal and China
have agreed to revive the old Silk Road that runs from Lhasa to Kathmandu to
Patna.
13THPRAVASI BHARATIYA DIWAS
PravasiBharatiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated on 9th January every year to mark the
contribution of Overseas Indian community in the development of India. External Affairs
and Overseas Indian Affairs Minister inaugurated the Youth PravasiBharatiya Divas in
Gandhinagar, as a precursor to the main Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. The minister cited the
importance of three Cs in bringing about synergy among Indians worldwide: Come,
Connect, and Contribute.
The 13th edition of PBD marked the 100th year of Mahatma Gandhis return to India from
South Africa.
The chief guest of the 13th PBD was Guyana President Donald Ramotar. The theme of
2015 PBD was Bharat kojano and Bharat komano.
VISIT OF US PRESIDENT
NUCLEAR COOPERATION:
The breakthrough on the nuclear deal 10 years after the agreement was negotiated and six
years after it was signed paves the way for American companies to set up civil nuclear
reactors, which India hopes will contribute to its energy security.
Both the leaders claimed to have broken the logjam over the Indo-US nuclear deal after
overcoming key hurdles related to the liability of suppliers of nuclear reactors in the event of
an accident and tracking of fuel supplied by the US.
A nuclear risk management fund, worth Rs 1,500 crore, will be created to cover operators
and suppliers. This will be led by five Indian public-sector insurance firms, which will
together contribute Rs 750 crore to the pool (the rest will be provided by the government).
India also won U.S. assurances of support for its membership in four nuclear regimes: the
Nuclear Suppliers Group, Wassenaar Arrangement, Australian Group and the Missile
Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
INDIA, U.S. SIGN THREE MOUS ON SMART CITIES
India and United States signed three Memoranda of Understandings (MoUs) to give a boost
to the Centre's flagship 'smart cities' scheme.
The U.S. has agreed to partner with Indian in developing three smart cities in Allahabad,
Ajmer, and Visakhapatnam.
As per the pacts, the U.S. will assist the cities in project planning, infrastructure
development, feasibility studies and capacity building.
HOUTHI REBELS
Ansar Allah ("Supporters of God"), more commonly known as the Houthis , are a Zaidi Shia
group operating in Yemen. The group takes its name from Hussein Badreddin alHouthi, who
launched an insurgency in 2004. Houthis' rebellion began in September 2014, when they
advanced on the capital and seized control of much of Yemen.
RUSSIA-INDIA-CHINA (RIC) GROUPING
The Russia India China (RIC) summit 2015 was held in Beijing. The statement calls for a security
architecture in Asia that must be open, inclusive, indivisible and transparent.
Groups claiming allegiance to IS control the coastal cities of Sirte and Darna, and have a
presence in at least three other locales, including Tripoli and Benghazi, the birthplace
of Libyas 2011 uprising

KOKANG REBELS
The Kokangpeople are an ethnic group of Burma .They are Mandarinspeaking Han Chinese living in
Kokang, administered as Kokang Special Region.
PERSONS WITH ALBINISM
Albinism is a hereditary genetic condition which causes a total absence of pigmentation in
the skin, hair and eyes. It affects one Tanzanian in 1,400, often as a result of inbreeding.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights harshly condemned the murder
and mutilation of a toddler with albinism in Tanzania.
Body parts of persons with albinism are used for witchcraft in the country.
Attacks on people with albinism, which are often motivated by the use of body parts for
witchcraft rituals, had claimed the lives of at least 75 people since 2000.
Body parts of people with albinism sell for around $600 in Tanzania, with an entire corpse
fetching $75,000, according to the UN.
SCO: RUSSIA TO PUSH FOR INDIAS FULL MEMBERSHIP
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation or SCO or Shanghai Pact is a Eurasian political,
economic and military organisation which was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of
China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
These countries, except for Uzbekistan, had been members of the Shanghai Five, founded in
1996; after the inclusion of Uzbekistan in 2001, the members renamed the organisation.
Observer States
o Afghanistan
o India
o Iran
o Mongolia
o Pakistan
Dialogue Partners
o Belarus
o Sri Lanka
o Turkey
PRIME MINISTER VISIT OF INDIA OCEAN COUNTRIES
India seeks a future for Indian Ocean that lives up to the name of SAGAR Security and
Growth for All in the Region.
Given that the Indian Ocean channels carry two-thirds of the worlds oil shipments, a third of
the bulk cargo and half of all container traffic, the regions strategic significance is
unquestionable. Also to counter chinas presence in Indian Ocean require strategic relation
with our extended neighbourhood
INDIA AND MAURITIUS RELATIONS
Mauritius celebrates its National Day on March 12 as a mark of respect to Mahatma Gandhi,
who began his Dandi march on this day in 1930.
An India-built naval patrol vessel Barracuda for Mauritius was commissioned by Prime
Minister NarendraModi who said it will make the Indian Ocean more safer and secure.
INDIA AND SEYCHELLES RELATIONS
Seychelles is a part of the Pan African e-Network project between India and the African
Union.
Apart from its strategic location on international sea lanes of communication, Seychelles is a
leader among SIDS group (Small Island Developing States) which has multifold areas of
convergence with India.

Assumption Island, which India leased from Seychelles, has been voted multiple times of
having the best beach in the world.
Dakshinayan is a step in the right direction to secure and generate confidence in Indias
extended neighbourhood and the success of the Seychelles trip spells good omen for Indian
efforts in connecting dots, with no string (of pearls) attached

INDIAN OCEAN RIM ASSOCIATION (IORA)

The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), formerly known as the Indian Ocean Rim
Initiative and Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC), is an
international organisation consisting of coastal states bordering the Indian Ocean.
It is based on the principles of Open Regionalism for strengthening Economic Cooperation
particularly on Trade Facilitation and Investment, Promotion as well as Social Development
of the region. The Coordinating Secretariat of IORA is located at Ebene, Mauritius.
The objectives of IORA are as follows:
o To promote sustainable growth and balanced development of the region and member
states
o To focus on those areas of economic cooperation which provide maximum
opportunities for development, shared interest and mutual benefits
o To promote liberalisation, remove impediments and lower barriers towards a freer
and enhanced flow of goods, services, investment, and technology within the Indian
Ocean rim.
The Association comprises 20 member states and six dialogue partners.
WHO ARE THE HOUTHIS?
The Houthis are followers of the Shia Zaidi sect, the faith of around a third of Yemens
population.
Officially known as Ansarallah (the partisans of God), the group began as a movement preaching
tolerance and peace in the Zaidi stronghold of North Yemen in the early 1990s.
The group launched an insurgency in 2004 against the then ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh that lasted
till 2010.
They participated in the 2011 Arab Spring inspired revolution in Yemen that replaced Saleh with
Abdrahbu Mansour Hadi.
Saudi Arabia, spearheaded a coalition of nine Arab states, began carrying out airstrikes in
neighbouring Yemen on 25 March 2015, heralding the start of a military intervention in
Yemen, codenamed Operation Decisive Storm. The airstrikes that followed have transformed
Yemen into another arena for the regional struggle between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
OPERATION RAHAT
Operation Rahat, a rescue operation to evacuate civilians stuck in strife-torn Yemen.
The Indian government spared no efforts in evacuating Indians from Yemen as fighting raged
between the Houthi rebels and the Yemen government supported by aerial bombardment
from the Saudi-led coalition.
IRAN, WORLD POWERS REACH NUCLEAR ACCORD
Iran and the P-5+1 grouping of Security Council members and Germany reached an important
breakthrough, as they agreed on the framework for a draft plan of action that would be ready by
June
30th this year.
The plan of action states clearly the number of enrichment plants and centrifuges Iran will have
access
to, as well as the verification needed by the UNs International Atomic Energy Agency, while
outlining in

what stages financial sanctions would be lifted from Iran.

ACCORDING TO THE DRAFT AGREEMENT, THE FOLLOWING STEPS WILL BE
TAKEN BY BOTH
SIDES
Iran will reduce the number of installed centrifuges by two-thirds
Bring uranium stocks down from 10,000 kg to 300 kg LEU (low-enriched uranium) and
Turn its nuclear facility in Fordow into an R&D facility for 15 years.
All the excess stockpile and nuclear parts will be kept at an IAEA-monitored location.
The U.N., the U.S. and the EU will withdraw all sanctions that have crippled the Iranian
economy for
years.
ASIAN INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT BANK (AIIB)
The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is an international financial institution
proposed by the
government of China.
The purpose of the multilateral development bank is to provide finance to infrastructure
projects in
the Asia region.
AIIB is regarded by some as a rival for the IMF, the World Bank and the Asian Development
Bank (ADB),
which are regarded as dominated by developed countries like the United States.
AIIB was formally inaugurated in Beijing on October 21, 2014 with 21 founding-members
including
China, India, Pakistan, Singapore and Vietnam.
India is the second largest shareholder of the bank after China.
AIIB will have a subscribed capital of $50 billion, which will eventually rise to $100 billion. In
comparison,
the subscribed capital of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are $223 billion
and
$165 billion respectively.
CHINAS ONE BELT ONE ROAD INITIATIVE
One Belt, One Road also known as the Belt and Road Initiative; is a Chinese framework
for organizing
multinational economic development through two component plans, the land-based "Silk Road
Economic Belt" (SREB) and ocean going "Maritime Silk Road" (MSR).
The belt and road have two componentsthe Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB) that would be
established along the Eurasian land corridor from the Pacific coast to the Baltic Sea, and the 21st
century Maritime Silk Road (MSR).
The SREB focuses on bringing together China, Central Asia, Russia and Europe (the Baltic); linking
China with the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea through Central Asia and West Asia; and
connecting China with Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Indian Ocean.
The 21st-Century MSR, in turn is designed to go from China's coast to Europe through the South
China Sea and the Indian Ocean in one route, and from China's coast through the South China Sea
to the South Pacific in the other.
SHAPING TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONAL NETWORK EFFICACY(STONE)
The University of Marylands Laboratory for Computational Cultural Dynamics has developed a
programme titled STONE or Shaping Terrorist Organizational Network Efficacy.
The programme uses a combination of network analysis tools, unique properties of individuals
in the
network, and big data analytics to identify the most critical nodes in a network.
It also finds out how networks adjust to the removal of a node or nodes.

STONE has so far been applied to open-source data on Hamas, Hezbollah, al-Qaeda and LeT.
Using past
instances when leaders of terrorist organisations were replaced, one of STONEs top three
predictions
has been to accurately pinpoint the successor to a removed terrorist in over 80 per cent of the cases.
INDIA AND IRAN MOU ON CHABAHAR
Chabahar port is located in Sistan-Balochistan Province on Iran's southeastern coast
and is of great strategic utility for India which will get sea-land access route to
Afghanistan bypassing Pakistan. The portis seen as aa possible counter-balance to
Gwadar port in Pakistan, which is now operated entirely by China.
From Chahbahar port using the existing Iranian road network, a link up to Zaranj in
Afghanistan and then using the Zaranj-Delaram road constructed by India in 2009,
access to Afghanistan's Garland Highway can be made.
INDIA AND MONGOLIA RELATIONS
To rediscover the shared cultural heritage, both Prime Ministers agreed to initiate a joint translation
project of "Holy Tripitaka" into Mongolian language.
INDIA AND SOUTH KOREA RELATIONS
Prime minister said South Korea is the second country (after Japan) with which India will have a
diplomatic and security dialogue in 2+2 format, referring to a bilateral dialogue process
involving the
foreign and defence ministers of the two sides.
GCC SUMMIT 2015
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf , known as the Gulf Cooperation Council
(GCC), is a regional intergovernmental political and economic union consisting of Bahrain,
Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
The GCC has been holding two summits annually since 1999. The formal summit is held
in December on a rotating basis and has a formal agenda. It lasts one or two days depending on the
discussions of the issues on the agenda.
The second summit, held in May in Saudi Arabia, is equally important, but it has no formal
agenda and discussions are open among the leaders. It usually lasts one day.
The GCC summit 2015 was held in Riyadh on 5 May.
The summit came at a crucial time for the six-nation GCC, with a Saudi-led coalition bombing
(Decisive Storm Operation) rebels in Yemen, concerns over the rise of Islamist militants and
regional worries over a potential final nuclear deal with Iran.
French President Francois Hollande was the first Western head of state to attend a
summit of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
President Barack Obama met with representatives from all six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)
countries at Camp David Summit on 14 May 2015 to assuage Gulf Arab fears about both
current nuclear negotiations between Iran and a United States-led international coalition and
Tehrans destabilizing activities in the Middle East.
INDIA AND VIETNAM: DEFENCE COOPERATION
During visit of the Vietnamese Minister for National Defence, India and Vietnam signed a Joint
Vision Statement on Defence Cooperation for the period 2015-2020.
A MoU on cooperation between the Coast Guards of the two countries was also signed.
The two sides discussed wide ranging issues concerning defence cooperation, including
cooperation in the area of maritime security.
Both sides reiterated their commitment to further enhancing the ongoing defence engagements
between the two sides for mutual benefit.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has mooted a proposal for a ground station in
Vietnam.
SIMBEX-15
Bilateral naval exercise SIMBEX-15 between India and Singapore commenced on 23 May 2015
in Singapore.
This exercise was aimed at strengthening bilateral ties and enhancing inter-operability between
navies of the two friendly nations.
Indian side participation: INS Satpura (indigenously built missile stealth frigate), INS
Kamorta (the latest and indigenous Anti Submarine Warfare Corvette) and Long Range
Maritime Reconnaissance Anti-Submarine (LRMRASW) aircraft P 8I.
PRIME MINISTERS VISIT TO CHINA
The sister-city relationships between Hyderabad and Qingdao and Aurangabad and
Dunhuang
2015 and 2016 have been designated Visit India and Visit China years respectively
Setting up consulates in Chengdu and Chennai,
Building ties between India and yoga colleges in Kunming and Yunnan.
A MoU between Doordarshan and Chinas state-run CCTV.
Memorandum of Understanding between ICCR and Fudan University for establishment of
centre for Gandhian studies
Prime Minister announced that India has decided to extend electronic tourist visas to Chinese
nationals.
INDO - FRENCH NAVAL EXERCISE VARUNA 2015
Fourteenth (14th) edition of Indo-French naval exercise (VARUNA) concluded off Goa. The
ten day long exercise commenced on 23 April 2015 and included both a harbour and sea phase.
SCO SUMMIT 2015
THE 15th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit was held in Ufa, Russia on July 2015.
India and Pakistan were accepted as full members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
(SCO).India, which has had an observer status for the past 10 years, will technically become a
member by next year after completion of certain procedures.
The SCO currently has China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan as
members.
SIGNIFICANCE OF INDIAS MEMBERSHIP
It opens up trade, energy and transit routes between Russia and China that pass through Central
Asia, that were hitherto closed to India.
Irans observer status will ensure the SCO serves as a platform for India to discuss trade through
the Iranian ports of Bandar Abbas and Chabahar, and link them to the Russian proposal for a NorthSouth Transport Corridor.
The security grouping provides a platform for India and Pakistan to discuss bilateral issues.
With Russia and China taking the lead, the SCO could even prove a guarantor for projects such
as the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) and IPI (Iran-Pakistan-India) pipelines
that India has held off on security concerns.
The SCO summit will provide a valuable interface to engage with Afghanistans neighbours
The SCO is an important counter-balance to Indias perceived tilt towards the U.S. and its allies
on security issues.
BRICS SUMMIT 2015
The 7th BRICS summit was held in Ufa, Russia on July 2015. The theme of the summit was
Partnership: A powerful factor for global development', with a firm emphasis on economic
cooperation.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposed a 10-point initiative calling it Das Kadam: Ten Steps for
the Future. The proposed initiatives for the BRICS include a trade fair, a Railway Research Centre,

cooperation among supreme audit institutions, a Digital Initiative and an Agricultural Research
Centre.
RUSSIA'S NEW NAVAL DOCTRINE
The Russians unveiled their new naval doctrine on board the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, and in the
presence of President Vladimir Putin.
Moscows naval doctrine that singles out China as its core partner in the Pacific, signaling Moscow
and Beijings push towards countering the Japan backed Asia Pivot of the United States.
OBAMAS ASIA PIVOT
Military activity in the Pacific has been accelerating following President Barack Obamas Asia Pivot
or Rebalance doctrine, which has led Washington to position 60 per cent of its forces in the Pacific.
In Beijing, the Asia Pivot doctrine is seen as a China-containment policy.
PRIME MINISTER CENTRAL ASIA VISIT:
Prime Minister visited to the five Central Asian States Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. All central Asian countries are very rich in energy resources
EURASIAN ECONOMIC UNION
The Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU or EEU) is an economic union of states located primarily
in
northern Eurasia. A treaty aiming for the establishment of the EEU was signed on 29 May 2014 by
the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, and came into force on 1 January 2015.
Member states Acceding state- Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia
Acceding state-Kyrgyzstan
PRIME MINISTER TO VISIT PAKISTAN