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Aspirants Times | Vol.2 May 2009

Aspirants Times

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Indias largest Online Community for IAS, Civil Services Aspirants.Vol.2 MAY 2009 | Free

IES Exam Special

Shubhra Tops UPSC CSE 2008

Interview at Website

Free MOCK Test Paper(150 Questions) for UPSC (Pre) Exam 2009

Plan and Strategy for

Indian Engineering Services

(IES) Exam 2009

Articles - G-20 Leader Summit

- North Korea Missile Program

- Hindi Article

HOT TOPICS- Swine Flu- - Current Affairs

Indian Spy Satellite

Indias First Digital Magazine for IAS Aspirants around the world.

( VISHESH ARTHIKKSHETRA AVAM KRISHI )



Thank you for the overwhelming support for Vol.1 of Aspirants Times Digital

Magazine. We are working hard to bring you the best possible...

Founder, UPSCPORTAL.COM



SECTION - 1 : Editorial A Step with Confidence ......................................................................................................... 04

SECTION - 2 : Engineering Services Exam Strategy Plan And Strategy For Indian Engineering Services (IES) ............................................... 05

SECTION - 3 : Articles G-20 Leaders Summit .............................................................................................. 10 North Korea Missile Threat .................................................................................................. 16 Hindi Article ( ) ......... 24

SECTION - 4 : HOT-Topics Swine Flu (Attack Of New Virus H1N1) ................................................................ 30 Indian Spy Satellite (RISAT-2 and ANUSAT) ........................................................ 34

SECTION - 5 : Current Relevant Facts Important Current Affairs .................................................................................................... 38

SECTION - 6 : SPORTS ................................................................................................................. 47

SECTION - 7 : AWARDS ................................................................................................... 52

SECTION - 8 : Model Test Paper MOCK Test Paper For IAS Pre Exam 2009 ...................................................................... 55

INDEX



A Step with ConfidenceWe never expected so much, but it happened. Inaugural issue of Aspirant Times got very high number ofreaders support. It has been proved by your letters, suggestions and fast increasing number of membership.We can say Veni, vidi, vici about this magazine. Our editorial board had thought to get such support incoming six months. Now this support has inspired us lot, it is cause of our happiness and inspiration. But atthe same time, it has brought greater responsibility and a challenge to prove ourselves on your parameter. Weassure that Aspirant Times has a plan to fulfill our readers need with confidence. We expect that you will haveconfidence in our team and we in you. So we must keep a step with mutual confidence to go forward.

For success in this exam, confidence is the first step. But beside this, you shall develop many other qualities inyourself- hard work, perseverance, determination, capacity to take risk etc. You can take an example from thisyears IAS topper 30-year-old Shubhra Saxena of Noida. The software engineer, and alumnus of IIT-Rourkee,Shubhra quit her well-paid IT job to become an IAS. It shows her capacity to take risk and success in the ageof thirty, proves about her perseverance. Another great example of determination is physically challengedVarinder Kumar Sharma, who got first rank among the male candidates and overall bagged the fourth posi-tion in IAS 2008. He did it in his first attempt. Work hard, yes without it; you can never taste the sweetness ofgreat success. So develop these qualities to become a winner. Still you have sufficient time to clear the IAS pre2009, read carefully, revise timely and make good practices. So dont waste the time in confusion, be deter-mined and get success.

Personal Note from Editor :In this very second issue, we are providing you many important articles on current happenings and introduc-tion of Indian Engineering Service (IES) Examination with well woven strategy for GS portion for thisprestigious examination. We have covered recently held Group-20 Summit, North Korea Missile Programme,Indian Spy Satellite, Swine Flue and many more current topics for Civil Services Main Examination 2009. Wealso made efforts to present this matter and articles in very lucid and easy way. So you can keep it in yourmind for a long time. Under these topics, you will not find only facts and information, but analysis with deepinsights. So you can prepare easily for fact based preliminary examinations and short answer type questionsand same time these writings are useful for long answer type questions, essay and interview. Beside thesetopics, regular columns have been covered for Civil Services (Pre) Examination going to be held on May 17,2009.

We wish all the best for your IAS preliminary exam 2009. Meet you in next issue

Thanks!Editor: R. K. PANDEY

and UPSCPORTAL Team

SECTION - 1 : Editorial

Published by : Kalinjar Technologies, New Delhi, India

Editor : R. K. Pandey

Editor-Technicals : UPSCPORTAL Team

Typesetting and Design : UPSCPORTAL Team



Any one can never make a comparison of GovernmentService with anything. Where ever the question aboutIndian Engineering Services, actually these have veryhigh position. Here, you play a role in a making a planand executing it not for money, for any person but yourbeloved country and their people. No matter how muchyou get in private sector. So in this way, you can playvery important role in Indias development and mak-ing its future bright.

Like Civil Servants in India, the Engineers recruitedthrough Indian Engineering Services get very highhonors in government and society. At present govern-ment is spending more than 15 percent of India's GDPin Engineering. Given the extent of tasks and func-tions managed by the public sector this extends to afairly broad segment of the economy covering the Rail-roads, Military, Public works, Power, Telecommuni-cations, etc.

Government of India recruits its coveted Engineersthrough competitive exams held each year by UnionPublic Service Commission. For this, a combined com-petitive examination is conducted by the UPSC.

The test is conducted in June every year at centresacross India, namely: Agartala, Ahmedabad, Aizwal,Allahabad, Bangalore, Bareilly, Bhopal, Chandigarh,Chennai, Cuttack, Delhi, Dharwar, Dispur (Guwahati),Gangtok, Hyderabad, Imphal, Itanagar, Jaipur, Jammu,Jorhat, Kochi, Kohima, Kolkata, Lucknow, Madurai,Mumbai, Nagpur, Panaji (Goa), Patna, Port Blair,Raipur, Sambalpur, Shillong, Simla, Srinagar,Thiruvananthapuram, Tirupati, Udaipur,Ranchi(Jharkhand) and Vishakapatnam.

There are two parts of Indian Engineering Serviceswritten exam, Objective Papers of 600 marks and Con-

PLAN AND STRATEGY FOR INDIANENGINEERING SERVICES

A PATH OF GLORIOUS FUTURE

ventional Papers of 400 marks ie total 1000 marks.

Beside it there is personality test of 200 marks. IESexam total carries 1200 marks. Objective Papers con-sist of three papers each carrying 200 marks of twohour duration. Here first paper is of General AbilityTest divided in two parts-General English and Gen-eral Studies and last two papers are from your chosenEngineering subjects.

Part two of exam is consist of two Conventional Pa-pers of each 200 marks are from Engineering subjects.Here I am telling about General Studies, which is veryimportant, because without qualifying in this paper,your other papers will not be evaluated and your allefforts will go in waste. So be careful and prepare thispaper systematically. I am giving details about thispaper and related study materials.

General Ability TestUPSC has divided General Ability Test in two parts-Part A is General English and Part B is General Stud-ies. Test of both subjects held in one session of twohours and carries 200 marks. General Ability Test ispart of Objective Papers.

The Objective Type papers, which carries 600 marksare very important, because these are evaluated firstand evaluation of the Conventional Type papers con-tained in Section-II of the Plan of Examination will bedone only of those candidates who obtain the mini-mum qualifying marks in Objective types papers, asfixed by the Commission. So candidate must give im-portance to General Ability Test. They have often facedifficulties in this paper, because their background isvery much different. I think a good strategy is impor-tant for this.

SECTION - 2 : Civil Service Exam Strategy

By : R. K. Pandey



UNDERSTANDING GENERAL ABILITY

About General English: The question paper in General English will be designed to test thecandidates understanding of English and workmanlike use of words.

About General Studies: The paper in General Studies will include knowledge of current eventsand of such matters as of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspects as may beexpected of an educated person. The paper will also include questions on History of India andGeography of a nature which candidates should be able to answer without special study.

Instructions And Detailsof UPSC About IES

The examination shall be conducted according to the following plan: Part I of IES ExaminationWritten examination will comprise two sections:-Section I consisting only of objective types of questions andSection II of conventional papers. Both Sections will cover the entire syllabus of the relevant engineeringdisciplines viz. Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Electronics & Tele-communication Engineering. The standard and syllabi prescribed for these papers are given in Schedule to theAppendix.The details of the written examination i.e. subject, duration and maximum marks allotted to each sub-ject are given below:



Note:- Candidates are advised to read carefully special instruction to candidates for conventional type tests andobjective type tests given in Appendix-IV (Part A & Part B) including the procedure regarding filling in theAnswer Sheet of objective type tests in the Examination Hall.

Conventional papers must be answered in English. Question papers will be set in English only.Candidates must write the papers in their own hand. In no circumstances will they be allowed the help of ascribe to write the answers for them.

The Commission have discretion to fix minimum qualifying marks in any or all the papers of the examination. The Objective Type papers as contained in Section-I of the Plan of the Examination will be evaluated first andevaluation of the Conventional Type papers contained in Section-II of the Plan of Examination will be doneonly of those candidates who obtain the minimum qualifying marks in Objective types papers, as fixed by theCommission. Marks will not be allotted for mere superficial knowledge.

Deduction up to 5 per cent of the maximum marks for the written papers will be made for illegible handwriting.Credit will be given for orderly, effective and exact expression combined with due economy of words in theconventional papers of the examination.In the question papers, wherever required, SI units will be used.

NOTE:- Candidates will be supplied with standard tables/charts in SI units in the Examination hall forreference purpose, wherever considered necessary.

Candidates are permitted to bring and use battery operated pocket calculators for conventional (essay) typepapers only. Loaning or inter-changing of calculators in the Examination hall is not permitted.

It is also important to note that candidates are not permitted to use calculators for answering objective typepaper (Test book lets). They should not, therefore, bring the same inside the Examination Hall.

Candidates should use only International form of Indian numerals (e.g. 1,2,3,4,5,6 etc.) while answering ques-tion papers.



Part II of IES Examination:-Personality test is second part of IES. It carries a maxi-mum of 200 marks of such of the candidates whoqualify on the basis of the written examination. In thePersonality Test special attention will be paid to as-sessing the candidates capacity for leadership, initia-tive and intellectual curiosity, tact and other socialqualities, mental and physical energy, powers of prac-tical application and integrity of character.

Standard and Syllabi:-The standard of paper in General Ability Test will besuch as may be expected of a Engineering/ScienceGraduate. The standard of papers in other subjects willapproximately be that of an Engineering Degree Ex-amination of an Indian University. There will be nopractical examination in any of the subjects.

What To Read For GS Portion:-1. Read a good newspaper,journals,yojana,mainstream2. Any competitional magazine like Aspirants Times.3. NCERT books on various topic of GS4. Must watch programmes on current affairs5. NBT books on History,India year book6. A.B.C. of science(Holy faith),Any science journalor magazine7. Indian Administration by Maheshwari,Our legisla-tion by Subhash Kashyap,Constitution of India by D.D.Basu8. Indian Economy by Dutt and Sundaram or Mishra& Puri9. Geography by khullar,Any Atlas,Any statistical yearbook.

Key to Success

Determination and positive attitude Hard work and systematic study Inner motivation Strong willpower and faith in yourself Focused and positive approach Dedication, time management Self-confidence

This Article is Available Online Alsohttp://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/tips/Plan-And-Strategy-For-Indian-Engineering-Services



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G-20 Leaders Summit

To Boost up Financial Markets and the WorldEconomy

The G-20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets andthe World Economy was held in London on 2 April 2009.

It followed thefirst G-20 Lead-ers Summit onFinancial Mar-kets and theW o r l dE c o n o m y ,which was heldin Washington,

D.C. on 1415 November 2008. Heads of governmentor heads of state from the Group of Twenty FinanceMinisters and Central Bank Governors (G-20), plus someregional and international organisations attended. Dueto the extended membership it has been referred to asthe London Summit. The policing tactics at the eventraised some controversy.G-20 leaders began gatheringin London on 1 April 2009.

Before leaving for the London Summit, French Presi-dent Nicolas Sarkozy suggested that if a meaningful dealwas not agreed France would walk out of the summitechoing the empty chair gesture of then-French Presi-dent Charles de Gaulle in 1965. Brown and Obama saidthat suggestions of a rift were exaggerated. Sarkozy at-tended a separate press conference with Merkel in whichboth repeated calls for the summit to agree on morestringent regulation of financial markets and restatedtheir firm opposition to further financial stimulus pack-ages.

Summit Declaration:After end of summit a major declaration has been pre-sented. Following points are According to declaration:

Because it is the greatest challenge to the world

economy in modern times; a crisis which has deepened,which affects the lives of women, men, and children inevery country, and which all countries must join togetherto resolve. A global crisis requires a global solution.

Prosperity is indivisible; that growth, to be sustained,has to be shared; and global plan for recovery musthave at its heart the needs and jobs of hard-workingfamilies, not just in developed countries but in emerg-ing markets and the poorest countries of the world too;and must reflect the interests, not just of todays popu-lation, but of future generations too. the only sure foun-dation for sustainable globalisation and rising prosper-ity for all is an open world economy based on marketprinciples, effective regulation, and strong global in-stitutions.

The agreements to treble resources availableto the IMF to $750 billion, to support a new SDR [IMFspecial drawing rights] allocation of $250 billion, tosupport at least $100 billion of additional lending bythe MDBs [Multilateral Development Banks], to en-sure $250 billion of support for trade finance, and touse the additional resources from agreed IMF gold salesfor concessional finance for the poorest countries, con-stitute an additional $1.1 trillion programme of sup-port to restore credit, growth and jobs in the worldeconomy. Together with the measures have each takennationally, this constitutes a global plan for recoveryon an unprecedented scale.

To establish a new Financial Stability Board (FSB)with a strengthened mandate, as a successor to the Fi-nancial Stability Forum (FSF), including all G20 coun-tries, FSF members, Spain, and the European Com-mission. The FSB should collaborate with the IMF toprovide early warning of macroeconomic and finan-cial risks and the actions needed to address them;

Members were agreed to increase the resources avail-able to the IMF through immediate financing frommembers of $250 billion, subsequently incorporatedinto an expanded and more flexible New Arrangements

Courtesy: Londonsummit.gov.uk

SECTION - 3 : Articles

By : Dr. Nageshwar Nath Mishra



to Borrow, increased by up to $500 billion, and to con-sider market borrowing if necessary

Member countries are undertaking an unprecedentedand concerted fiscal expansion, which will save or cre-ate millions of jobs which would otherwise have beendestroyed, and that will, by the end of next year, amountto $5 trillion, raise output by 4 per cent, and acceleratethe transition to a green economy. Mebers are com-mitted to deliver the scale of sustained fiscal effortnecessary to restore growth.

Central banks have also taken exceptional action.Interest rates have been cut aggressively in most coun-tries, and central banks have pledged to maintain ex-pansionary policies for as long as needed and to usethe full range of monetary policy instruments, includ-ing unconventional instruments, consistent with pricestability.

In addition to reforming international financial insti-tutions for the new challenges of globalisation mem-bers agreed on the desirability of a new global consen-sus on the key values and principles that will promotesustainable economic activity. We support discussionon such a charter for sustainable economic activity witha view to further discussion at our next meeting. Wetake note of the work started in other fora in this re-gard and look forward to further discussion of this char-ter for sustainable economic activity.

Members reaffirm their historic commitment to meet-ing the Millennium Development Goals and to achiev-ing our respective ODA [Overseas Development Agen-cies] pledges, including commitments on Aid for Trade,debt relief, and the Gleneagles commitments, especiallyto sub-Saharan Africa.

The actions and decisions have taken will provide$50 billion to support social protection, boost tradeand safeguard development in low income countries,as part of the significant increase in crisis support forthese and other developing countries and emergingmarkets.

Revolutionary Step:The IMF wants to use this money to offer a new kind ofloan that would be preventative. Rather than waiting forcountries to get into financial difficulties, it would offerthem a line of credit to help them defend their curren-cies in advance. In the past, countries were reluctant toask for such money, as the financial markets got worriedthat they were in trouble. But Mexico has become thefirst country to ask for such a facility and there now seemsto be less stigma about this approach. Much of the newIMF funds would be used in this facility, which wouldmainly be directed to the middle income countries whohad relatively sound economies.

But in an even more radical step, the G20 leaders ap-pear to have agreed to increase another type of IMFfunds, the quotas owned by individual countries, byan additional $250bn. This would be done by creatingmore of its own currency, the SDR or special drawingright, which is a basket of currencies including the USdollar, the yen and the euro. This would give countriesessentially free money, which they could use as theywish without having to negotiate deals with the IMF,and would do much to boost confidence among poorercountries.

Many of them have been critical of the harsh condi-tions imposed by the IMF before they are given help.In the past, such moves have always been resisted byGermany, on the grounds that creating money is infla-tionary. But in the current deflationary climate, theyappear to have lifted their objections.

Reform Looms:The IMF is also set to have a bigger role in preventingfuture crises, by developing an early warning systemfor financial problems, and taking a larger role in look-ing at the problems of the financial sector as a whole,in conjunction with a new global regulator, the Finan-cial Services Board. But the biggest changes in the IMFwill come after 2011, when it has been agreed that therewill be a review of the voting structure.



That could lead to the US losing its veto power, while China and other emerging countries get a bigger voice. It hasalready been agreed that in future, the convention that the World Bank and IMF must be headed by an Americanand a European respectively will be abandoned.

In return, China will be asked to lend some of its reserves to the IMF - and will continue to push for the idea thatthe SDR will become a real reserve currency, ultimately replacing the dollar. The changes to the resources andthe role of the IMF are historic and perhaps the most important outcome of the G20 summit. But it must beborne in mind that providing more resources for the IMF can be only a short-term solution to the immediatecrisis now engulfing developing countries. It is no substitute for a fiscal stimulus, as the money is loaned andmust be paid back. Nor will it counter the need for additional development aid to counteract poverty. But it is amove towards a more global system of international finance.

Agenda of Summit

The British Treasury, as hosts, produced an extended agenda pamphlet proposing the issues to be covered at theLondon Summit.

1. Coordinated macro-economic actions to revive the global economy, stimulate growth and employment review measures taken and possible further steps

2. Reform and improve financial sector & systems continue to deliver progress on the Washington Summitaction plan

3. Reform international financial institutions the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Financial StabilityForum (FSF) and the World Bank

Important steps to reconstruct and boost up World Economy :- Restore confidence, growth, and jobs; Repair the financial system to restore lending; Strengthen financial regulation to rebuild trust; Fund and reform our international financial institutions to overcome this crisis and prevent futureones; Promote global trade and investment and reject protectionism, to underpin prosperity; and Build an inclusive, green, and sustainable recovery.

This Article is Available Online Alsohttp://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/artic le/G-20-Leaders-Summit-2009



G20 Agreement

FINANCIAL REGULATION

A new Financial Stability Board, with a strengthenedmandate, will replace the Financial Stability Forum

Financial regulation andoversight will be extended toall financial institutions, in-struments and markets

This includes bringing hedgefunds within the global regu-latory net for the first time

Members are committed toimplementing tough new rules on pay and bonuses ata global level

International accounting standards will be set

Credit rating agencies will be regulated in order toremove their conflicts of interest

A common approach to cleaning up banks toxic as-sets has been agreed

TAX HAVENS There will be sanctions against tax havens that donot transfer information on request

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and De-velopment has published a list of countries assessedby the Global Forum against the international standardfor exchange of tax information

IMF Resources available to the International MonetaryFund will be trebled to $750bn

This includes a new overdraft facility, or special draw-ing rights allocation, of $250bn

Additional resources of $6bn from agreed IMF goldsales will be made available for lending to the poorestcountries The G20 also supports increased lending to theworlds poorest countries of at least $100bn by the mul-tilateral development banks

GLOBAL TRADE There will be a commitmentof $250bn of support for tradefinance made over the next twoyears

This will be made availablethrough export credit and invest-ment agencies, as well asthrough multilateral develop-

ment banks

National regulators will be asked to make use of avail-able flexibility in capital requirements for trade finance

PROTECTIONISM The G20 has pledged to resist protectionism

There will be a commitment to naming and shamingcountries that breach free trade rules

The G20 will notify the World Trade Organization(WTO) of any measures that constrain worldwide capi-tal flows

The G20 has called on the WTO to monitor and re-port publicly on these undertakings on a quarterly ba-sis

FISCAL STIMULUS Although there is no new fiscal stimulus, GordonBrown said G20 countries are already implementingthe biggest macroeconomic stimulus the world hasever seen - an injection of $5tn by the end of nextyear.

Courtesy : londonsummit.gov.uk



WHAT IS G-20

The G-20 (more formally, the Group of Twenty Fi-nance Ministers and Central Bank Governors) is agroup of finance ministers and central bank governorsfrom 20 economies: 19 of the world's largest nationaleconomies, plus the European Union (EU). It also mettwice at heads-of-government level, in November 2008and again in April 2009. Collectively, the G-20 econo-mies comprise 85%of global gross national product,80% of world trade (including EU intra-trade) and two-thirds of the world population.

The G-20 is a forum for cooperation and consultationon matters pertaining to the international financial sys-tem. It studies, reviews, and promotes discussionamong key industrial and emerging market countriesof policy issues pertaining to the promotion of inter-national financial stability, and seeks to address issuesthat go beyond the responsibilities of any oneorganization.The G-20 operates without a permanentsecretariat or staff.

The chair rotates annually among the members and isselected from a different regional grouping of coun-tries. The chair is part of a revolving three-membermanagement group of past, present and future chairsreferred to as the Troika. The incumbent chair estab-lishes a temporary secretariat for the duration of itsterm, which coordinates the group's work and orga-nizes its meetings. The role of the Troika is to ensurecontinuity in the G-20's work and management acrosshost years.

Members of G-20

In 2009, there are 20 members of the G-20. These in-clude the finance ministers and central bank governorsof 19 countries and The 20th member is the EuropeanUnion, which is represented by the rotating Councilpresidency and the European Central Bank.List of 19countries are following:

In addition to these 20 members, the following forumsand institutions, as represented by their respective chiefexecutive officers, participate in meetings of the G-20.

International Monetary Fund World Bank International Monetary and Financial Committee De-velopment Committee of the IMF and World Bank

The membership of the G-20 comprises: The finance ministers and central bank governors ofthe G7, 12 other key countries, and the European UnionPresidency (if not a G7 member)

The European Central Bank The Managing Director of the International Mon-etary Fund

The Chairman of the IMFC

Japan Mexico Russia Saudi Arabia South Africa South Korea Turkey United Kingdom United States

Argentina Australia Brazil Canada China France Germany India Indonesia Italy



The President of the World Bank The Chairman of the Development Committee

Background of G-20:The G-20, which superseded the G33, which had itselfsuperseded the G22, was foreshadowed at the CologneSummit of the G7 in June 1999, but was formally es-tablished at the G7 Finance Ministers' meeting on Sep-tember 26, 1999. The inaugural meeting took place onDecember 15-16, 1999 in Berlin. In 2008 Spain andThe Netherlands were included by French invitationfor the G-20 Leaders Summit on Financial Marketsand the World Economy and then were admitted asmembers de facto by the UK.

G20 Leaders Summit on Financial Markets and theWorld Economy was held in Washington on Novem-ber 2009.In 2006 the theme of the G-20 meeting wasBuilding and Sustaining Prosperity. The issues dis-cussed included domestic reforms to achieve sustainedgrowth, global energy and resource commodity mar-kets, reform of the World Bank and IMF, and theimpact of demographic changes due to an aging popu-lation.

Trevor A. Manuel, MP, Minister of Finance, Republicof South Africa, was the chairperson of the G-20 whenSouth Africa hosted the Secretariat in 2007. GuidoMantega, Minister of Finance, Brazil, was the chair-person of the G-20 in 2008; Brazil proposed dialogueon competition in financial markets, clean energy andeconomic development and fiscal elements of growthand development. In a statement following a meetingof G7 finance ministers on October 11, 2008, U.S.President George W. Bush stated that the next meetingof the G-20 would be important in finding solutions tothe (then called) economic crisis of 2008.

An initiative by French President Nicolas Sarkozy andBritish Prime Minister Gordon Brown led to a specialmeeting of the G-20, a G-20 Leaders Summit on Fi-nancial Markets and the World Economy, on Novem-ber 15, 2008. G20 leaders met again in London on 2

April 2009. Another G20 summit is scheduled to beheld in New York City in September 2009.

G-20 Vs G20 Developing Nations:The G-20 (more formally, the Group of Twenty Fi-nance Ministers and Central Bank Governors) is agroup of finance ministers and central bank governorsfrom 20 large economies while the G20 (Group of 20,also variously G21, G22 and G20+) is a bloc of devel-oping nations established on 20 August 2003. Thegroup emerged at the 5th Ministerial WTO conference,held in Cancun, Mexico from 10 September to 14 Sep-tember 2003. The G-20 accounts for 60% of the world'spopulation, 70% of its farmers and 26% of worldsagricultural exports.

Its origins date back to June 2003, when foreign min-isters from Brazil, India and South Africa signed a dec-laration known as the Brasilia Declaration in whichthey stated that major trading partners are still movedby protectionist concerns in their countries less com-petitive sectors and emphasized how important it isthat the results of the current round of trade negotia-tions provide especially for the reversal of protection-ist policies and trade-distorting practices. Furthermore,Brazil, India and South Africa decided to articulate theirinitiatives of trade liberalization.

Nonetheless, the official appearance of the G-20occurred as a response to a text released on 13 August2003 by the European Communities (EC) and theUnited States with a common proposal on agriculturefor the Cancun Ministerial. On 20 August 2003 a docu-ment signed by twenty countries and re-issued as aCancun Ministerial document on 4 September pro-posed an alternative framework to that of the EC andthe United States on agriculture for the Cancn Meet-ing. This document marked the establishment of theG-20.The original group of signatories of the 20 August 2003document went through many changes, being knownas such different names as the G-21 or the G-22. Thetitle G-20 was finally chosen, in honor of the date of



the group's establishment. Since its creation, the grouphas had a fluctuating membership.

Previous members have included: Colombia, CostaRica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Peru, and Turkey. As ofOctober 2008, the group had 23 members. The coreleadership of the G-20, known as the G4 bloc, consistsof Brazil, China, India and South Africa.

This Article is Available Online Alsohttp://upscportal.com/civilservices/mag/vol-2/article/G20-Agreement-Financial-Regulation

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*The Author is Professor And Head of theDepartment For History



NORTH KOREA MISSILETHREAT

SIGN OF FAILING TO ACCOMPLISH ANINTENDED RESULT OF SIX PARTY TALK

North Korea carried out a provocative rocket launchUnha-2 on April 5,2009, but the rocket is better knownto the outside world as the Taepodong-2, a long-rangemissile that can be mounted with a satellite or nucleararmament.U.S., Japan and other nations suspect was acover for a test of its long-range missiletechnology.Liftoff took place from the coastalMusudan-ri launch pad in northeastern North Korea.The multistage rocket hurtled toward the Pacific, reach-ing Japanese airspace within seven minutes, but nodebris appeared to hit its territory.

The U.N. Security Council approved an emergencysession for in New York, following a request from Ja-pan that came minutes after the launch. The SouthKoreans called it ``reckless,'' the Americans ``provoca-tive,' ' and Japan said it strongly protested thelaunch.According to Japan The first stage of the rocketdropped about 175 miles (280 kilometers) off the west-ern coast of Akita into the waters between Japan andthe Korean peninsula. The second stage was to land inthe Pacific at a spot about 790 miles (1,270 kilome-ters) off Japan's northeastern coast.

The launch was a bold act of defiance against Presi-dent Barack Obama, Japanese leader Taro Aso, HuJintao of China and others who pressed Pyongyang inthe days leading up to liftoff to call off a launch whichwould threaten peace and stability in Northeast Asia.South Korea's said the launch poses a ``serious threat''to stability on the Korean peninsula and that it wouldrespond to the provocation ``sternly and resolutely.''North Korea claims its aim is to send an experimentalcommunications satellite into orbit in a peaceful bidto develop its space program. While the U.S., SouthKorea, Japan and others suspect the launch is a guise

for testing the regime's long-range missile technology- one step toward eventually mounting a nuclearweapon on a missile capable of reaching Alaska andbeyond. They contend the launch violates a 2006 reso-lution barring the regime from ballistic missile activ-ity. According to America ,the launch a clear violationof U.N. Security Council Resolution 1718, adopted fivedays after North Korea carried out a nuclear weaponstest in 2006. Earlier this North Korea shocked Japanin 1998 when it launched a missile over Japan's mainisland. Japan has since spent billions of dollars on de-veloping a missile shield with the United States andhas launched a series of spy satellites primarily to watchdevelopments in North Korea.

MOVE OF JAPAN AND US AGAINST NORTHKOREA :

Japan and the US have submitted to the UNthe names of North Korean companies they believe tobe associated with the country's weapons programme.The list of companies has been sent to the UN's Secu-rity Council's sanctions committee for consideration.The move to enforce sanctions against North Koreafollows the country's long-range rocket launch on 5April. According todiplomats China, which has a lotof trade with North Korea, will want to study the listbefore agreeing to it. The Council has started the pro-cess of tightening the existing sanctions against NorthKorea.

These sanctions were agreed in 2006 after North Ko-rea tested a nuclear device, but they were never ap-plied. North Korean companies suspected of being in-volved in the government's weapons programme canhave their financial assets, like bank accounts, seizedif they are held abroad. North Korea reacted aggres-sively to the Council's condemnation of its launch andsaid it would throw out inspectors from the Interna-tional Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and restart itsnuclear programme.

NORTH KOREAs MISSILE PROGRAMME:North Korea is believed to have more than 800 ballis-

SECTION - 4 : Articles



tic missiles, including long-range missiles which couldone day strike the US.. North Korea first obtained tac-tical missiles from the Soviet Union as early as 1969,but its first Scuds reportedly came via Egypt in 1976.Egypt is believed to have supplied North Korea withScud-B missiles and designs in return for its supportagainst Israel in the Yom Kippur War. By 1984, NorthKorea was building its own Scud-Bs and developedtwo new versions, the Scud-C and Scud-D. It has sincedeveloped a medium-range missile, the Nodong, anda long-range missile based on Scud technology, theTaepodong. In July 2006 it test-fired a modification tothe Taepodong, called the Taepodong-2, which expertssay could have a range of up to 6,000km (3,500 miles).The missile failed shortly after launch.

SHORT-RANGE MISSILES: North Korea has a va-riety of short-range missiles. The KN-02 is thought tobe the most accurate, but its range - around 100 km - isthe shortest. The Scud-B and C have ranges of 300and 500 km respectively, while the Scud-D is believedto have a range of 700 km. It is thought that these mis-siles could deliver conventional warheads. The Scud-B, C and D have all been tested and deployed. Thesemissiles would enable North Korea to strike any areain South Korea. The KN-02 missile, currently in thetesting stage, could be aimed at key targets in SouthKorea such as military installations south of the bor-der.

NODONG MISSILE : The Nodong missile is thoughtto have a range of around 1,000 km and could poten-tially carry a nuclear warhead. But it is not accurate. AMarch 2006 report by the US Center for Non-prolif-eration Studies said it had a circular error probable of2-4 km, meaning that half of the missiles fired wouldfall outside a circle of that radius. The Nodong couldstrike most of Japan but not with any accuracy. If itwere fired on a military target, its inaccuracy couldlead to high levels of civilian casualties. The missilewas test fired in May 1993.

TAEPODONG-1 MISSILE : The Taepodong-1 is a

two-stage missile comprising Nodong and Scud partsand can reach a distance of 2,200km, but it is said tobe even less accurate than the Nodong. North Koreatested a Taepodong-1 in August 1998, firing a missileover northern Japan. It brings US bases on Okinawawithin North Korea's reach. But the missile must befired from a fixed location and has a long preparationtime, meaning that potential launches could be de-tected. A land-based missile, the Taepodong-X, is alsosaid to be under development but has not yet beentested. Based on a Soviet submarine-launched ballis-tic missile, it is thought to have a range of up to 4,000km, reaching US bases on Guam. Unlike theTaepodong-1, it could be fired from mobile launchsystems hidden from view.

TAEPODONG-2 MISSILE : The Taepodong-2 long-range missile is estimated to have a range of between5,000 and 6,000 km, putting Alaska, Hawaii and partsof the west coast of the US within range. But the firstlaunch of the missile, in July 2006, appeared to be afailure after it crashed within seconds of launch - ac-cording to US sources. If the missile was successfullylaunched, it is not thought to be particularly accurateor to be able to carry a large warhead. Like theTaepodong-1, it requires a fixed launch site. TheTaepodong-2 test took place from the Musudan-ri com-plex on the East coast of the Korean peninsula. Analy-sis of satellite images of the area appear to show a rangeof missile fabrication, fuelling, testing and control fa-cilities.

NORTH KOREAN BACKGROUND : For decadesNorth Korea has been one of the world's most secre-tive societies. It is one of the few countries still undercommunist rule. North Korea's nuclear ambitions haveexacerbated its rigidly maintained isolation from therest of the world. The country emerged in 1948 amidthe chaos following the end of World War II. Its his-tory is dominated by its Great Leader, Kim Il-sung,who shaped political affairs for almost half a century.After the Korean War, Kim Il-sung introduced the per-sonal philosophy of Juche, or self-reliance, which be-



came a guiding light for North Korea's development. Kim Il-sung's son, Kim Jong-il, is now head of state, butthe post of president has been assigned "eternally" to his late father. Decades of this rigid state-controlledsystem have led to stagnation and a leadership dependent on the cult of personality. Aid agencies have esti-mated that up to two million people have died since the mid-1990s because of acute food shortages caused bynatural disasters and economic mismanagement. The country relies on foreign aid to feed millions of its people.

The totalitarian state also stands accused of systematic human rights abuses. Reports of torture, public execu-tions, slave labour, and forced abortions and infanticides in prison camps have emerged. A US-based rightsgroup has estimated that there are up to 200,000 political prisoners in North Korea. Pyongyang has accusedsuccessive South Korean governments of being US "puppets", but South Korean President Kim Dae-jung'svisit in 2000 signalled a thaw in relations. Seoul's "sunshine policy" towards the north aimed to encouragechange through dialogue and aid.

But this tentative reaching-out to the world was dealt a blow in 2002 by Pyongyang's decision to reactivate anuclear reactor and to expel international inspectors. In October 2006 North Korea said it had successfullytested a nuclear weapon, spreading alarm around the region. Since then, intensive diplomatic efforts haveaimed to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions. After years of on-and-off talks, a deal was thrashed out inFebruary 2007 under which Pyongyang agreed to shut down its main nuclear reactor in return for fuel and aid.

North Korea admitted International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors, who verified the shutdown of theYongbyon reactor in July,2007. However, the denuclearisation process stalled yet again when Pyongyang failedto meet an end-of-year deadline to make a full declaration of its nuclear programmes. It eventually handed overa list of the country's nuclear assets in June 2008, and in October agreed to give international inspectors fullaccess to its nuclear sites. The US responded by dropping North Korea from its list of states sponsoring terror-ism. However, in December 2008 Pyongyang said it would slow down work to dismantle its nuclear programmein response to a US decision to suspend some aid.

The process hit a new snag in 2009, when North Korea walked out of international talks aimed at ending itsnuclear activities, in protest at UN criticism of a rocket launch by Pyongyang. North Korea maintains one of theworld's largest standing armies and militarism pervades everyday life. But standards of training, discipline andequipment in the force are said to be low. In 2002 US President George W Bush named the country as part of an"axis of evil".

FACTS

Full name: The Democratic People's Republic of KoreaPopulation: 23.9 million (UN, 2008)Capital: PyongyangArea: 122,762 sq km (47,399 sq miles)Major language: KoreanMajor religions: Mainly atheist or non-religious, traditional beliefsLife expectancy: 65 years (men), 69 years (women) (UN)Monetary unit: 1 won = 100 chonMain exports: Minerals and metals, cement, agricultural productsEternal president: Kim Il-sung (deceased)Chairman, National Defence Commission: Kim Jong-il



NUCLEAR DEVELOPMENTNorth Korea's missile development, which began inthe early 1960s, benefited greatly from Soviet andChinese assistance.In 2005 the United States DefenceIntelligence Agency (DIA) suggested that North Ko-rea could attach a nuclear warhead to an Inter-Conti-nental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) capable of reachingthe U.S. DIA testified that North Korea's ICBM underdevelopment, Taepodong-2, with a "guesstimated rangeof 5000 km" could deliver a "nuclear warhead to partsof the United States in a two-stage variant and targetall of North America with a three-stage variant". Atthe same the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) testi-fied that the North Korean missile was capable of reach-ing the U.S. with a "nuclear-weapon-sized payload".This assessment came at a time when North Korea hadnot tested a nuclear device, a necessary step for devel-oping a reliable warhead system that can be deliveredwith long-range ballistic missiles. However, in March2005 Pyongyang claimed that it had become "a full-fledged nuclear-weapon state". Notwithstanding theDIA's statement, the U.S., according to National Se-curity Adviser Stephen Hadley, had no clear evidencewhether Pyongyang had a missile-capable warhead ornot.

These perception was based on an August 2003 CIAreport, which said that North Korea had "validated"designs for "simple fission" nuclear weapons withoutconducting explosive tests. The U.S. Department ofDefence defines "a simple fission weapon" as one that"could be delivered by aircraft or tactical missile" andnot an ICBM. "In the near term", a 1999 DIA reportsaid, North Korea would not be able to develop anuclear warhead lighter than 650-700 kg but it addedthat Taepodong-2 could deliver a 650 kg warhead toAlaska, Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. Only witha much lighter warhead most of the U. S. would comeunder an ICBM threat. A 1999 National IntelligenceEstimate (NIE), too, said that Taepodong-2 could de-liver a "several hundred kg" payload. According toanalysts, 650 kg is about the maximum payload weightthat Taepodong-2 can deliver to parts of the U.S.

Taepodong-2, which is also known as Paektusan-2, isyet to be flight-tested. The latest round of North Korea'sseven missile tests on July 5, breaking the moratoriumit had committed itself to with the U.S. in 1999 andwith Japan in 2002, included Taepodong-2. But it failed40 seconds after lift-off at Masudan-ri in NorthHamyong province and crashed into the sea 1.5 kmaway.

So, even if the nuclear test was a successful one with acompact missile-capable warhead, Pyongyang is yetto have an operational ICBM capability. U.S. intelli-gence believes this is only a matter of time. NorthKorea's missile development history perhaps makes itthe most advanced among the later breed of missile-capable nations. Some analysts feel that North Koreacould have such an operational system by 2015. NorthKorea already has an array of short- and intermediate-range missile systems that can deliver conventional,chemical and perhaps biological weapons. It has de-ployed 600 to 800 short-range (300-700 km) Hwasong(Scud) missile variants, 150 to 200 medium-range(1,000-1,300 km) Nodong missiles and maybe 10 in-termediate range (2,000-2,200 km) Taepodong-1 mis-siles. The longer-range Taepodong-2 is perhaps readyfor deployment (infographic on page 10).

SOVIET AND CHINA HELPED NORTH KO-REA: North Korea's missile development would seemto have benefited greatly from Soviet and Chinese as-sistance. It began the development of rockets and mis-siles in the early 1960s, with cooperation from theSoviet Union, which supplied surface-to-ship missilesand FROG-5/7 rockets. It is generally believed that theSoviets initially declined North Korea's requests forballistic missiles in the mid-1960s, following whichNorth Korea turned to China for ballistic missile de-velopment. By 1970, it had begun to acquire surface-to-ship missiles, surface-to-air missiles and technicalassistance from China. In September 1971, North Ko-rea and China signed an agreement for missile devel-opment. However, the cooperation got under waysometime in 1977 when North Korean engineers par-



ticipated in the joint development of DF-61, a 600-km mobile ballistic missile. After this initial training, thiscooperation seems to have ended.

Despite the earlier refusal, North Korea succeeded in acquiring a few Soviet Scud missiles in the early 1970s.It also received a few Scud-B (R-17) short-range (300 km) missiles from Egypt between 1976 and 1981. NorthKorea's reverse engineering of Scuds seems to have begun then and an indigenous version of Scud-B (Hwasong-5) was developed and flight-tested in 1984.

In 1985, Iran stepped in under a bilateral agreement to provide financial assistance for missile development inreturn for an offer of North Korean missiles. Experts believe that Iran's use of Scud-B during the Iran-Iraq warprovided Pyongyang with flight data, thus obviating extensive testing on its own territory. Serial production ofHwasong-5 seems to have started around 1987. According to unconfirmed reports, between 1985 and 1988 theSoviet Union also delivered over 200 Scud missiles. North Korea soon undertook the development of theindigenous version of Scud-C with a longer range of 500 km, called Hwasong-6. Around 1987-1989, whenserial production of Hwason-6 had started, the development of Nodong got under way. Flight tests were con-ducted successfully in May 1993.

Conti..

MAJOR EVENTS

1945 - After World War II, Japanese occupation of Korea ends with Soviet troops occupying thenorth, and US troops the south.

1946 - North Korea's Communist Party (Korean Workers' Party - KWP) inaugurated. Soviet-backedleadership installed, including Red Army-trained Kim Il-sung.

1948 - Democratic People's Republic of Korea proclaimed. Soviet troops withdraw.

1950 - South declares independence, sparking North Korean invasion.

1953 - Armistice ends Korean War, which has cost two million lives.

1992 - North Korea agreed to allow inspections by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), butover next two years refuses access to sites of suspected nuclear weapons production.

1994 - Death of Kim Il-sung. Kim Jong-il suceeded him as leader, but doesn't take presidential title.North Korea agreed to freeze nuclear programme in return for $5bn worth of free fuel and twonuclear reactors.

1995 - US formally agreed to help provide two modern nuclear reactors designed to produce lessweapons-grade plutonium.



Six-nation talks

2002 October-December - Nuclear tensions mount. In October the US said North Korea has admittedto having a secret weapons programme. The US decided to halt oil shipments to Pyongyang. In De-cember North Korea began to reactivate its Yongbyon reactor. International inspectors had thrown out.

2003 August - Six-nation talks in Beijing on North Korea's nuclear programme failed to bridge gapbetween Washington and Pyongyang. October - Pyongyang saed it has reprocessed 8,000 nuclear fuelrods, obtaining enough material to make up to six nuclear bombs.

2004 April - More than 160 killed and hundreds more injured when train carrying oil and chemicalshits power line in town of Ryongchon. June - Third round of six-nation talks on nuclear programmeends inconclusively. North Korea pulls out of scheduled September round.

2005 February - Pyongyang said it has built nuclear weapons for self-defence.

2006 July - North Korea test-fired a long-range missile, and some medium-range ones, to an interna-tional outcry. Despite reportedly having the capability to hit the US, the long-range Taepodong-2 crashesshortly after take-off, US officials say. October - North Korea claimed to test a nuclear weapon for thefirst time.

2007 February - Six-nation talks on nuclear programme resumed in Beijing. In a last-minute deal,North Korea agreed to close its main nuclear reactor in exchange for fuel aid. May - Passenger trainscrossed the North-South border for the first time in 56 years. June - International inspectors visited theYongbyon nuclear complex for the first time since being expelled from the country in 2002. July -International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors verify shutdown of the Yongbyon reactor. August -North Korea appealed for aid after devastating floods.

2008 June - North Korea maid its long-awaited declaration of nuclear assets Oct - The US removedNorth Korea from its list of countries which sponsor terrorism Dec - Pyongyang slowed work to dis-mantle its nuclear programme after a US decision to suspend energy aid

2009 Jan - The North said it is scrapping all military and political deals with the South, accusing it of"hostile intent".5 April - Pyongyang launches a rocket carrying what it says is a communications satel-lite.14 April - After criticism of the launch from the UN Security Council, North Korea vowed to walkout of six-party talks.

Conti..

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Swine Flu

Attack Of New Virus H1N1

New cases of the deadly swine flu virus have beenconfirmed in April 2009 as far afield as New Zealandand Israel, as the UN warned it can not becontained.The US, Canada, Spain and Britain con-firmed cases earlier but no deaths have been reportedoutside Mexico, where the virus was first reported.Mexico has raised the number of probable deaths to152, with 1,614 suspected sufferers under observation.UN inspectors examined reports pig farms may havespread the virus. The UN's health agency, the WorldHealth Organization (WHO), confirmed that the fluhad been transmitted between humans. Countries withsuspected cases: Brazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia,and South Korea, and seven EU states is being trans-mitted from human to human.

WHO PANDEMIC ALERT

The EU said patients were also under observation inDenmark, Sweden, Greece, the Czech Republic, Ger-many, Italy and Ireland. Tests carried out on people inBrazil, Guatemala, Peru, Australia and South Korea.A number of countries in Asia, Latin America and Eu-rope have begun screening airport passengers for symp-toms, while Germany's biggest tour operator has sus-pended trips to Mexico. The UN's Food and Agricul-ture Organisation (FAO) have send a team to Mexico

to investigate rumours that people had been falling illnear intensive pig farms.

The WHO raised its pandemic alert status to level fourtwo levels from a full pandemic - after concluding therehad been sustained transmission between humans. Lev-els five and six reserved for when there is widespreadhuman infection. WHO said there were a number ofcases in New York "which appear to be human-to-hu-man transmission".The UN body have encouragedcountries to begin intensive surveillance of possibleinfection and send as much information as possible tothe WHO. In Mexico, swine flu has been confirmed in20 of the 152 known deaths. In almost all cases out-side Mexico, people have been only mildly ill and havemade a full recovery.

Flu eins on their surface called antigens. If the immunesystem has met a particular strain of the virus before,it is likely to have some immunity; but if the antigensare new to the immune system, it will be weakened.The influenza A virus can mutate in two different ways;antigenic drift, in which existing antigens are subtlyaltered, and antigenic shift, in which two or more strainscombine. Antigenic drift causes slight flu mutationsyear on year, from which humans have partial, but notcomplete, immunity. By contrast, the new strain ofH1N1 appears to have originated via antigenic shift inMexican pigs

The name "swine flu" is a slight misnomer as it is be-lieved pigs acted as a mixing pot for several flu strains,containing genetic material from pigs, birds and hu-mans. Most humans have never been exposed to someof the antigens involved in the new strain of flu, giv-ing it the potential to cause a pandemic. The new virushas made the jump from pigs to humans and has dem-onstrated it can also pass from human to human. Thisis why it is demanding so much attention from healthauthorities. The virus passes from human to humanlike other types of flu, either through coughing, sneez-ing, or by touching infected surfaces, although little is

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SECTION - 6 : Hot-Topics



known about how the virus acts on humans.

The new virus has made the jump from pigs to hu-mans and has demonstrated it can also pass from hu-man to human. This is why it is demanding so muchattention from health authorities. The virus passes fromhuman to human like other types of flu, either throughcoughing, sneezing, or by touching infected surfaces,although little is known about how the virus acts onhumans.

The name "swine flu" is a slight misnomer as it is be-lieved pigs acted as a mixing pot for several flu strains,containing genetic material from pigs, birds and hu-mans. Most humans have never been exposed to someof the antigens involved in the new strain of flu, giv-ing it the potential to cause a pandemic.

The new virus has made the jump from pigs to hu-mans and has demonstrated it can also pass from hu-man to human. This is why it is demanding so muchattention from health authorities. The virus passes fromhuman to human like other types of flu, either throughcoughing, sneezing, or by touching infected surfaces,although little is known about how the virus acts onhumans.

WHAT IS SWINE FLUSwine flu is a respiratory disease, caused by influenzatype A which infects pigs. There are many types, andthe infection is constantly changing. Until now it hasnot normally infected humans, but the latest formclearly does, and can be spread from person to person- probably through coughing and sneezing. The WorldHealth Organization has confirmed that at least someof the human cases are a never-before-seen version ofthe H1N1 strain of influenza type A. H1N1 is the samestrain which causes seasonal outbreaks of flu in hu-mans on a regular basis. But this latest version of H1N1is different: it contains genetic material that is typi-cally found in strains of the virus that affect humans,birds and swine. Flu viruses have the ability to swapgenetic components with each other, and it seems likely

that the new version of H1N1 resulted from a mixingof different versions of the virus, which may usuallyaffect different species, in the same animal host. Pigsprovide an excellent 'melting pot' for these viruses tomix and match with each other.

Symptoms of swine flu in humans appear to be similarto those produced by standard, seasonal flu. These in-clude fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills andfatigue. Most cases so far reported around the worldappear to be mild, but in Mexico lives have been lost.When any new strain of flu emerges that acquires theability to pass from person to person, it is monitoredvery closely in case it has the potential to spark a glo-bal epidemic, or pandemic. The World Health Organi-zation has warned that taken together the Mexican andUS cases could potentially trigger a global pandemic,and stress that the situation is serious. However it isstill too early to accurately assess the situation fully.

Nobody knows the full potential impact of a pandemic,but experts have warned that it could cost millions oflives worldwide. The Spanish flu pandemic, whichbegan in 1918, and was also caused by an H1N1 strain,killed millions of people. The fact that all the cases inthe US and elsewhere have so far produced mild symp-toms is encouraging. It suggests that the severity ofthe Mexican outbreak may be due to an unusual geo-graphically-specific factor - possibly a second unre-lated virus circulating in the community - which wouldbe unlikely to come into play in the rest of the world.Alternatively, people infected in Mexico may havesought treatment at a much later stage than those inother countries.

It may also be the case that the form of the virus circu-lating in Mexico is subtly different to that elsewhere -although that will only be confirmed by laboratoryanalysis. There is also hope that, as humans are oftenexposed to forms of H1N1 through seasonal flu, ourimmune systems may have something of a head startin fighting infection. However, the fact that many of



the victims are young does point to something unusual.Normal, seasonal flu tends to affect the elderly dispro-portionately.

The virus appears already to have started to spreadaround the world, and most experts believe that con-tainment of the virus in the era of readily available airtravel will be extremely difficult.

According to World Health Organization that restrict-ing flights will have little effect. It argues that screen-ing of passengers is also unlikely to have much im-pact, as symptoms may not be apparent in many in-fected people.

HOW IT CAN BE HANDLEDTwo drugs commonly used to treat flu, Tamiflu andRelenza, seem to be effective at treating cases that haveoccurred there so far. However, the drugs must be ad-ministered at an early stage to be effective. Use of thesedrugs may also make it less likely that infected peoplewill pass the virus on to others. It is unclear how effec-tive currently available flu vaccines would be at offer-ing protection against the new strain, as it is geneti-cally distinct from other flu strains.

US scientists are already devel-oping a bespoke new vaccine,but it may take months to per-fect it, and manufacture enoughsupplies to meet what could behuge demand. A vaccine wasused to protect humans from a

version of swine flu in the US in 1976.However, itcaused serious side effects, including an estimated 500cases of Guillain-Barr syndrome. There were moredeaths from the vaccine than the outbreak.

PRECAUTIONSAnyone with flu-like symptoms who might have beenin contact with the swine virus - such as those livingor travelling in the areas of Mexico that have been af-

fected - should seek medical advice.

But patients are being asked not to go into GP surger-ies in order to minimise the risk of spreading the dis-ease to others. Instead, they should stay at home andcall their healthcare provider for advice. After the WHOraised its alert level over swine flu, the Foreign andCommonwealth Office began advising against all butessential travel to Mexico.

Avoid close contact with people who appear unwelland who have fever and cough. General infection con-trol practices and good hygiene can help to reduce trans-mission of all viruses, including the human swine in-fluenza. This includes covering your nose and mouthwhen coughing or sneezing, using a tissue when pos-sible and disposing of it promptly.

It is also important to wash your hands frequently withsoap and water to reduce the spread of the virus fromyour hands to face or to other people and cleaning hardsurfaces like door handles frequently using a normalcleaning product. If caring for someone with a flu-likeillness, a mask can be worn to cover the nose and mouthto reduce the risk of transmission.

The UK is looking at increasing its stockpile of masksfor healthcare workers for this reason. But experts saythere is no scientific evidence to support more generalwearing of masks to guard against infections. Althoughthere is no evidence that swine flu can be transmittedthrough eating meat from infected animals. However,it is essential to cook meat properly. A temperature of70C (158F) would be sure to kill the virus.



FLU PANDEMICS

In 1918 The Spanish flu pandemic remains the most devastating outbreak of moderntimes. Caused by a form of the H1N1 strain of flu, it is estimated that up to 40% of theworld's population were infected, and more than 50 million people died, with youngadults particularly badly affected

In 1957 Asian flu killed two million people. Caused by a human form of the virus, H2N2,combining with a mutated strain found in wild ducks. The impact of the pandemic wasminimised by rapid action by health authorities, who identified the virus, and made vac-cine available speedily. The elderly were particularly vulnerable

In 1968 An outbreak first detected in Hong Kong, and caused by a strain known as H3N2,killed up to one million people globally, with those over 65 most likely to die.

WHAT IS BIRD FLU

The strain of bird flu which has caused scores of human deaths in SouthEast Asia in recent years is a different strain to that responsible for the cur-rent outbreak of swine flu.

The latest form of swine flu is a new type of the H1N1 strain, while bird, oravian flu, is H5N1.

Experts fear H5N1 hold the potential to trigger a pandemic because of itsability to mutate rapidly. However, up until now it has remained very mucha disease of birds.

Those humans who have been infected have, without exception, workedclosely with birds, and cases of human-to-human transmission are extremelyrare - there is no suggestion that H5N1 has gained the ability to pass easilyfrom person to person.

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INDIAN SPY SATELLITE

RISAT-2 and ANUSAT SUCCESSFULLYPLACED IN ORBIT

In its fifteenth mission car-ried out from SatishDhawan Space CentreSHAR (SDSC SHAR),Sriharikota on April 20,2009 ISROs Polar SatelliteLaunch Vehicle (PSLV-C12) successfully placedtwo satellites - RISAT-2and ANUSAT - in the desired orbit. RISAT-2 is a RadarImaging Satellite with the capability to take images ofthe earth during day and night as well as cloudy condi-tions. At the time of launch, RISAT-2 weighed about300 kg and was realised by ISRO in association with Is-rael Aerospace Industries. The satellite was placed in anorbit of 550 km height with an inclination of 41 deg tothe equator and an orbital period of about 90 minutes.This satellite will enhance ISROs capability for earth ob-servation, especially during floods, cyclones, landslidesand in disaster management in a more effective way.

The 44 metre tall PSLV-C12 weighing 230 ton waslaunched from the Second Launch Pad (SLP) at SDSCSHAR in the Core Alone configuration without the useof six solid strap-ons. In this mission, in addition toRISAT-2, PSLV also carried A 40 kg micro satellitenamed ANUSAT, built by Anna University, Chennai.ANUSAT is the first experimental communication sat-ellite built by an Indian University under the over allguidance of ISRO and will demonstrate the technolo-gies related to message store and forward operations.In this flight, PSLV carried the indigenously developedAdvanced Mission Computers and Advanced Telem-etry System, which guided the vehicle from lift-off till

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the injection of the two sat-ellites in the desired orbit.

The main payload, RISAT-2, was the first satellite to beseparated in orbit at 1100seconds after lift-off at analtitude of 550 km. Withthis successful launch, theversatility and the reliabilityof PSLV has been provedagain underscoring its im-portance as the workhorse launch vehicle of India. Thislaunch was the fourteenth consecutive success for PSLV.In these launches, PSLV has placed a total of sixteenIndian satellites and sixteen foreign satellites into Polar,Geosynchronous Transfer and Low Earth Orbits. It maybe recalled that during its previous mission on October22, 2008, PSLV had successfully launched Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft, which is now exploring the moon from lu-nar orbit.

FEATURES OF PSLV,RISAT-2 AND ANUSAT

PSLV is a four-stage launch vehicle employing bothsolid and liquid propulsion stages. PSLV is the trustedworkhorse launch Vehicle of ISRO. During 1993-2008period, PSLV had fourteen launches of which thirteenwere consecutively successful. PSLV has repeatedlyproved its reliability and versatility by launching 32spacecrafts (16Indian and 16 for international custom-ers) into a variety of orbits so far. It may be recalledthat during its previous mission on October 22, 2008,PSLV had successfully launched Chandrayaan-1 space-craft, which is now exploring the Moon from lunarorbit.

In its standard configuration, the 44 m tall PSLV has alift-off mass of 295 tonne. It is a four-stage launch ve-hicle with the first and the third stages as well as thesix strap-ons surrounding the first stage using HTPB

based solid propellant. PSLVs first stage is one of thelargest solid propellant boosters in the world. Its sec-ond and fourth stages use liquid propellants. PSLV-C12 was launched without the six strapons in its corealone configuration. PSLV-C12 weighs about 230tonnes at lift off.

It may be recalled that PSLV in its core alone configu-ration had launched AGILE and TECSAR during 2007and 2008 respectively. RISAT-2 is a Radar ImagingSatellite with all weather capability to take images ofthe earth. This Satellite will enhance ISROs capabil-ity for Disaster Management applications,ANUSAT(Anna University Satellite) is the first satellite built byan Indian University under the over all guidance ofISRO and will demonstrate the technologies related tomessage store and forward operations

HISTORY OF ARTIFICIAL SATELLITE

The first artificial satellite was Sputnik 1, launched bythe Soviet Union on 4 October 1957, and initiating theSoviet Sputnik program, with Sergei Korolev as chiefdesigner and Kerim Kerimov as his assistant. This inturn triggered the Space Race between the Soviet Unionand the United States.

Sputnik 1 helped to identify the density of high atmo-spheric layers through measurement of its orbitalchange and provided data on radio-signal distributionin the ionosphere. Because the satellite's body was filledwith pressurized nitrogen, Sputnik 1 also provided thefirst opportunity for meteoroid detection, as a loss ofinternal pressure due to meteoroid penetration of theouter surface would have been evident in the tempera-ture data sent back to Earth. The unanticipated an-nouncement of Sputnik 1's success precipitated theSputnik crisis in the United States and ignited the so-called Space Race within the Cold War.Sputnik 2 waslaunched on November 3, 1957 and carried the first

Courtesy : ISRO.ORG



living passenger into orbit, a dog named Laika.

In May, 1946, Project RAND had released the Prelimi-nary Design of a Experimental World-Circling Space-ship, which stated, "A satellite vehicle with appropri-ate instrumentation can be expected to be one of themost potent scientific tools of the Twentieth Century.The United States had been considering launching or-bital satellites since 1945 under the Bureau of Aero-nautics of the United States Navy.

The United States Air Force's Project RAND eventu-ally released the above report, but did not believe thatthe satellite was a potential military weapon; rather,they considered it to be a tool for science, politics, andpropaganda. In 1954, the Secretary of Defense stated,"I know of no American satellite program." On July29, 1955, the White House announced that the U.S.intended to launch satellites by the spring of 1958. Thisbecame known as Project Vanguard. On July 31, theSoviets announced that they intended to launch a sat-ellite by the fall of 1957.

Following pressure by the American Rocket Society,the National Science Foundation, and the InternationalGeophysical Year, military interest picked up and inearly 1955 the Air Force and Navy were working onProject Orbiter, which involved using a Jupiter C rocketto launch a satellite.

The project succeeded, and Explorer 1 became theUnited States' first satellite on January 31, 1958. InJune 1961, three-and-a-half years after the launch ofSputnik 1, the Air Force used resources of the UnitedStates Space Surveillance Network to catalog 115Earth-orbiting satellites. The largest artificial satellitecurrently orbiting the Earth is the International SpaceStation.

TYPES OF ARTIFICIAL SATELLITE

Anti-Satellite weapons/"Killer Satellites" are satellitesthat are armed, designed to take out enemy warheads,

satellites, other space assets. They may have particle weap-ons, energy weapons, kinetic weapons, nuclear and/orconventional missiles and/or a combination of theseweapons. Astronomical satellites are satellites used forobservation of distant planets, galaxies, and other outerspace objects.

Biosatellites are satellites designed to carry living or-ganisms, generally for scientific experimentation.Communications satellites are satellites stationed inspace for the purpose of telecommunications. Moderncommunications satellites typically use geosynchro-nous orbits, Molniya orbits or Low Earth orbits.

Miniaturized satellites are satellites of unusually lowweights and small sizes. New classifications are usedto categorize these satellites: minisatellite (500200 kg), microsatellite (below 200 kg), nanosatellite(below 10 kg).

Navigational satellites are satellites which use radiotime signals transmitted to enable mobile receivers onthe ground to determine their exact location. The rela-tively clear line of sight between the satellites and re-ceivers on the ground, combined with ever-improvingelectronics, allows satellite navigation systems to mea-sure location to accuracies on the order of a few metersin real time.

Reconnaissance satellites are Earth observation satel-lite or communications satellite deployed for militaryor intelligence applications. Little is known about thefull power of these satellites, as governments who op-erate them usually keep information pertaining to theirreconnaissance satellites classified.

Earth observation satellites are satellites intended fornon-military uses such as environmental monitoring,meteorology, map making etc.

Space stations are man-made structures that are de-signed for human beings to live on in outer space. Aspace station is distinguished from other manned space-



craft by its lack of major propulsion or landing facili-ties instead, other vehicles are used as transport toand from the station. Space stations are designed formedium-term living in orbit, for periods of weeks,months, or even years.

Tether satellites are satellites which are connected toanother satellite by a thin cable called a tether.Weather satellites are primarily used to monitor Earth'sweather and climate.

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Courtesy : Wikipedia.Org

SECTION - 7 : Current Relevant Facts



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Advocate S G Abbas Kazmi was appointed by cour

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