PD/February/2011/1336

EDITOR

Mahendra Jain

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WHERE EXCELLENCE GUIDES THE SUCCESS

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Year 5 Issue 56 February 2011

Dear Readers,

It is with a sense of great pleasure and satisfaction thatwe are presenting to you the February issue of your favouritemagazine ‘Pratiyogita Darpan’. We have made all efforts tomake this issue examination-oriented and also useful forgeneral reading. Your consistent interest in the magazine isgiving us impetus to make it more and more useful to serveyour needs. If you read it intelligently and with properunderstanding, we are sure that it will go a long way inenhancing your knowledge to face any competitive examina-tion and come out successful with flying colours.

It has become a tradition with us to reach our readersdirectly to know their needs in view of ever changing patternsof their examinations and set our magazine accordingly. Thishas made our magazine so useful and has endeared to ourreaders.

This issue of the magazine contains a number of corearticles on important world events contributed by our wellinformed authors. Some of the important and representativearticles are : Barack Obama’s Visit to India—Hope and Hypes,Reconfiguration of India-Russia Relations, India-Japan Ties—A Strategic Partnership etc.

The most important section of the magazine contains anumber of question papers selected from various competitiveexaminations. These are fully solved with relevant hintsand explanations. We make all efforts for giving their error-free solutions. We are glad that we are maintaining thisunique speciality of our magazine. This has made itunparalleled and has endeared to all its readers. The column‘Compendium’ in the magazine has been widely acclaimedas a trusted tool for help of the readers. An intelligent studyand understanding of its contents is sure to be useful insolving question papers of any future examination.

We have been reminding you, again and again, thatplanned hardwork, strong self-conf idence and right guidanceare all indispensable for success in an y examination. You canwish for but cannot achieve success with out any one ofthese. If you are determined, Pratiyogita Darpan is ready togive the best guidance. It will surely sublime your career.

Read Pratiyogita Darpan regularly and intelligently. Itgives you the power to master your career and shape yourdestiny.

We take this opportunity to send our warmest new yeargreetings. May it be a peaceful, prosperous and very success-ful year to you.

Sincerely yours,

MAHENDRA JAIN

(Editor)

PD/February/2011/1337

International Diplomacy Article

1414 Geopolitics and Superpowers Concerning Conflictand Crisis in Major of Asia

Vividha

1417 CompendiumCountries of the World : At a Glance

1420 Japan

Annual Report 2009-10

1422 Present Scenario and New Initiatives in IndianLabour and Employment Sector : Highlights

Profile : International Organisation

1424 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC)

1425 Current Questionnaire

1427 Trade and Industry

Question Papers

Optional Paper

1428 M.P. PSC (Pre.) Exam., 2009 : Geography

Other Papers

1472 United India Insurance A.A.O. Exam., 2010 :General Awareness

1473 Punjab and Sind Bank P.O. Exam., 2010 : GeneralAwareness

1477 Bank of India P.O. Exam., 2010 : General Awareness1480 I.D.B.I. Assistant Manager Exam., 2010 : General and

Financial Awareness

1483 Forthcoming Civil Services (Pre.) Exam., 2011 : CSATMock Test

1495 Hotel Management, Aurangabad Exam., 2010 : LogicAbility

1500 Syndicate Bank P.O. Exam., 2010 : Reasoning1505 Bank of India P.O. Exam., 2010 : Quantitative

Aptitude1509 Punjab and Sind Bank P.O. Exam., 2010 : Computer

Knowledge

Your Pages

1512 Essay Contest1514 Concentric Quiz1517 Test Your Knowledge1518 Results

1519 Semi-Annual Current Affairs Special-I

Regulars

1336 To our Readers1339 Editorial

News and Events

1340 Nation this Month1352 World this Month1358 Regional News1360 National and International Updates

Career News

1370 Employment and Career News1372 Forthcoming Competitive Examinations

Current Affairs

1374 Sports World1379 Memorable Points1381 Economic Scenario

World Panorama

1389 (i) NATO : New Strategic Concept1392 (ii) Reconfiguration of India-Russia Relations

Personality Development

1395 Coping with Hurdles that Hamper Success

Inspiring Youth : Interviews

1397 Suman Rawat Topper—Civil Services 2009 (44th Rank)

1400 Komal Kiran Selected in Bank P.O. Exam., 2010

Articles

Tourism Article

1402 Village Tourism : An Agent for Rural EconomicGrowth

International Relations Articles

1404 India-Japan Ties : A Strategic Partnership1406 Barack Obama’s Visit to India : Hopes and

HypesPolitical Science Article

1410 Human Rights Through the Ages

Career Article

1412 The Proposed Changes in the Civil ServicesExam. : Are they Biased Against the RuralAspirants ?

Year 5

Issue 56

February 2011

PD/February/2011/1338

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photograph must be sent by mail or courier.● The selection committee will decide best entries and they will

be awarded.● The winners in Essay Contest will also receive an award

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PD/February/2011/1339 “Lots of people talk to animals…Not very many listen, though…That’s the problem.”

At the present juncture, Indiaand the whole world are keyed up forfighting the menace of terrorism. It isextremely important in such a situa-tion that sanity must prevail. Whiletaking all measures to strike at theroot of terrorism, care has to be takento ensure that one type of terrorism isnot replaced by another type of terro-rism. A blend of firmness and civi-lised behaviour is required to tacklethe problem. If the terrorists do notget the support which they normallyget from misguided people andgrievances which provide fuel toterrorism are suitably addressed,terrorism will dry up. The concernedgovernments will take legitimateaction for containing terrorism. Wewish our young men and womenshould strive on their part toencourage sanity and create an atmos-phere of non-violence, peace andlove. To contain and control terrorismis a gigantic task. This can be accom-plished only by persons with a cleanheart and a thoughtful mind. Let ushope that our young men and womenwill come forward to develop facul-ties of inner peace and love, lovemeaning the good of all—universalwelfare.

Let our young men and womenprepare themselves for this great taskwhich is seemingly so difficult,almost impossible. At the same time,it is also true that sooner or later, thishas to be done by the young men andwomen, as real potential is the childof the new blood. It is also to beremembered that such persons aswould bring about peace on earth,will be of this earthly earth and not becreatures of some other world.

Prejudice in the human mind isthe source of all the divisions, whichresult in war, poverty and exploita-

tion, and delusion makes peoplepursue false aims. It is, therefore,important for progress that men andwomen—more so of the youngergeneration, should increasingly learnto uncondition themselves and makerightful thinking a supreme object oftheir lives. The future of the humansociety depends on our young menand women who have right under-standing of things and people. Thisquality can be developed not byreading huge volumes or deliveringinspiring talks. The quality ofinfluencing people can be developedonly by doing what we think orpreach. Let us remember that actionsspeak louder than words, and silencein doing a right type of work is moreeloquent than speech. It is extremelynecessary to understand that theinner must be strong enough to bevisible in the outer. Our intentionsmust manifest as actions. Ourthoughts must be powerful enough togenerate forces of transformation.This is possible only if we live whatwe say or ask others to do. In fact, thetruth of the matter is that the realservice can be done only if we try tolive like the saint of the story inwhich a woman takes her child to thesaint to make the child give up thehabit of eating too much sugar orsweets. The saint asked the woman tocome after three weeks. His inner wasstrong enough to come out as outerand influence the child, who got ridof the habit of taking too much ofsugar. The woman out of curiosityasked the saint as to why he hadasked her to wait for three weeks.The saint smilingly replied—Madam,when you came to me for the firsttime, I myself used to take enough ofsugar in the form of sharbat. Duringthe three weeks’ time, for which I

asked you to keep in waiting, I triedto give up the habit, and fortunatelygot rid of it. In case I had not doneso, I could have never been able toprevail upon your child to leavetaking sugar. The outer can be effec-tive only if the inner is pure andstrong.

In the light of what has beenstated and outlined above, none ofyou should have any difficulty inworking out his/her individual rolein propagating the doctrine of peace-ful living and generating forceswhich will change the pervadingmatrix to facilitate real transforma-tion. Let us take this opportunity toimpress that peaceful living andpeaceful co-existence are twodifferent things. Co-existence means astate of strangeness. This does notbring people together and create anatmosphere conducive to peace andupliftment. A note of warning may bestruck; sufficiently long time may betaken before your efforts bear fruits.Never care for that. Even if he/shetakes one step forward, i.e., in theright direction, that would be highlymeaningful, for, the step takendenotes the direction of the move-ment as well as displays the commit-ment to act. Each such step will alsothrow light on the next step to betaken. This is the process of unfold-ment of one’s potential. Let us notforget that one’s potential is limit-less. Gandhian doctrine of truth andnon-violence lays down more thanclearly that one step is enough for me,and also that a Satyagrahi—a manpledged to tread the path of truth–isnever defeated, because he does notfight for himself, but for the good ofthe society, so every step taken byhim takes the humanity a step nearerto the good and the beautiful. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1340 “I am chained to the earth to pay for the freedom of my eyes.”

Supreme Court to Monitor Investigation of 2G Spectrum Scam

The 2G spectrum allotment scam that rocked thewinter session of Parliament and created a logjam ofvehement protests by the opposition demanding theConstitution of a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probethe scam in its entirety is now to be investigated by theCBI, with the Supreme Court of India monitoring theprobe.

What CBI will ProbeSupreme Court has directed the CBI to look into the

following aspects of the case—● How ineligible companies got 2G spectrum licence in

2008 and why no action was taken against those telecomoperators who failed in their rollout obligations.

● Why the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India did nottake action against the grant of licence to ineligiblecompanies and those that failed in their rollout obli-gations.

● The conduct of officials of the department of telecommu-nications who signed on the loan applications of telecomcompanies for securing loans from public sector banks.

The Supreme Court on December 16, 2010 decided tomonitor the CBI investigation into the 2G spectrum scamand said that prima facie, there was evidence of wrongdoing in the grant of 2G spectrum licences in 2008 and ofdual-use technology to some telecom operators prior toOctober 19, 2007.

Allowing a plea filed by the Centre for Public InterestLitigation for court monitoring of the probe, the two-judge bench said that the allegations of wrong doings inspectrum allocation made in the plea were supported bythe reports of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC)and the Comptroller and Auditor General.

It said the CBI would conduct a comprehensive probecovering the period 2001-07 in coordination with theEnforcement Directorate and income tax department. Itdirected the CBI to submit its first status report onFebruary 10, 2011.

The court also said there was no need to set up aspecial investigation team to probe the scam, adding thatthe CBI would conduct the probe without being influ-enced by any person or authority.

The bench said the director general of income taxwould provide transcripts of the tapped conversationsbetween corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and severalpoliticians, industrialists and journalists to the CBI.

The court also said the CBI could register a firstinformation report with respect to the officials and people

who caused a loss estimated by the CAG at 1·76 lakhcrore to the exchequer.

India-Oman Agreement on Technology Transfer

India and Oman have entered into an agreementunder which the two sides will prepare a report on nineareas of cooperation for direct investment and technologytransfer. The two sides are also eyeing contract farmingas the next area of cooperation.

Ahluwalia :Eyeing new deals

According to Oman's official newsagency, the agreement was signed byIndia's Planning Commission Vice-Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwaliaand Omani ruler Sultan Qaboss' adviserfor economic planning affairs Moham-mad bin Al Zubair.

The Supreme Committee forPromoting Economic Relations betweenIndia and Oman was established undera directive of Sultan Qaboss bin Said and Prime MinisterDr. Manmohan Singh during the latter's visit to thecountry in 2008 to promote economic cooperation bet-ween the two.

“The report shows fields upon which economic andtrade relations can be expanded not only between thegovernments of the two countries, but also between theprivate sector in the Sultanate and the Republic of India”,Zubair said.

Oman could strengthen the domestic availability offoodgrains by entering into “contract farming with Indianfarmers,” Mr. Ahluwalia said. The Indian law does notallow foreign companies to buy land there and therefore,Omani companies can enter into a contract farmingrelationship for producing the type of crop they want.

“We have identified from our side a couple of firmsthat have shown interest in tying up with Omani inves-tors to get into contract farming arrangements,” Mr.Ahluwalia stated.

New RTI Rules : Ask But Only in 250 Words

The government on December 12, 2010 proposednew rules that require a Right to Information (RTI)application to be restricted to 250 words and only on onesubject. Currently there is no word limit and applicantscan seek information on any number of subjects in asingle application.

PD/February/2011/1342 “I guess I’ve spent my life listening to what wasn’t being said.”

Conditions Apply250-word ceiling for applications.Only one subject per application.Postage above Rs. 10 for government's reply to be paid

by applicant.Appeals only in a fixed format, with several documents

attached on its website and has invited comments from thepublic by December 27, which is a procedural.

The proposed new rules require the applicant to paypostal charges in excess of Rs. 10 incurred by authoritiesin replying to the application. Currently, applicants arenot required to pay postal charges. They pay only Rs. 10while filling the application.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT)has uploaded a 10-page draft of the Right to InformationRules, 2010 on its website.

RTI activists criticize the new rules saying that theydilute the landmark legislation. A noted RTI activist saidthat the Act is meant even for illiterates, how can youexpect people to follow such a tight word limit. AnotherRTI activist said that the proposal was a clear attempt tocreate grey areas in a transparent law and allows scopefor harassment of applicants.

According to new Rules, applicants dissatisfied witha reply have to appeal to the First Appelate Authority ina given format, attaching a list of documents. This condi-tion was not in force earlier.

PD/February/2011/1343 “No one is listening until you fart.”

India Enters US-Backed $ 10 billion Gas Pipeline Project

[The Channel will bring in fuel from Turkmenistan to India Via Afghanistan and India]

India on December 11, 2010 put its stamp on anenergy lifeline that could reshape regional bonds andtrigger a new economic dynamics through a natural gaspipeline all the way from Turkmenistan in Central Asiato India via Afghanistan and Pakistan.

New Beginnings : (From left) Petro-leum Minister Murli Deora, PakistaniPresident Asif Ali Zardari, TurkmanPresident Gurbanguli Berdymukhame-dov and Afghan President HamidKarzai during a meeting in Turkme-nistan on Dec. 11, 2010.

India's oil Mini-ster Murli Deorarepresenting PrimeMinister ManmohanSingh at the Summitof leaders of con-cerned countriesjoined Presidents ofAfghanistan, Paki-stan and Turkmeni-stan at Turkmancapital Ashgabat tosign the Inter-Gov-ernmental Agree-ment to formally join the US-backed project that couldcost over $ 10 billion. It may be recalled that the USA isvery much against such a project in a group of countrieswhich include Iran, its arch enemy which dosen't head itsdictate on stopping its nuclear programme.

● “It will be the harbinger of economic growth andprosperity to us all.”

● Manmohan Singh had described it as the peace pipeline,says Petroleum Minister.

Deora also utilised the presence of top Pakistani andAfghan leaders to remind that they need to addressIndia's concerns over physical security of the pipelineand uninterrupted gas supplies to make the project work.“There are issues that need to be addressed. We have tocome to a decision regarding the price of gas, security ofthe pipeline, certainty of gas supply, transit fee and thesetting up of the consortium for laying and operating thepipeline,” Mr. Deora told the summit. For good measureDeora added, “As a buyer, and being at the tail-end of theproject, we have concerns that relate to the realities thatsurround us. Quite obviously, our goal is not merely theconstruction of the pipeline, but also continuous anduninterrupted flow of Turkman natural gas over severaldecades.”

India has agreed to accept gas at the Turkman-Afghanistan border and will bank on the internationalcomposition of the consortium building the pipeline toensure supply security through Afghanistan and Pakistan.

MEA officials attribute this to India's commitment tothe reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan. But there isno denying that the softer security stand is being takenin deference to the US backing for the project, whichWashington wants as an alternative route for CentralAsian gas bypassing the Russian pipelines network.

For, in case of the Iran pipeline project, which ischeaper and easier to build, India has been playinghardball over similar issues and insisting Teheran deli-vers gas at New Delhi's doorstep.

India also appears to be playing along Turkmeni-stan's unwillingness to make up for any shortfall or dis-ruption in gas supplies.

New Silk RouteTerming the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-

India (TAPI) pipeline project as the new Silk Routebetween Central Asia and South Asia, said Mr. Deoraadded that this will aid in rapid growth of not only Indiabut also other participating countries.

Govt. Nod for 4 More Stealth Destroyers

The Union Government has approved a majordefence programme known as ‘Project-15 B’ to indi-genously construct four guided missile stealth destroyersfor around Rs. 30,000 crore at Mazagaon Docks Limited(MDL).

In its quest to become a powerful three-dimensionalblue water force and maintain a fleet of around 140surface and sub-surface combatants, the Navy alreadyhas 30 warships and six sub-marines on order in variousIndian shipyards.

Moreover, it hasan aircraft carrier,Admiral Gorshkovor INS Vikrama-ditya, three addi-tional Talwar-classstealth frigates inRussia, as also twofleet tankers in Italyunder construction.

Project-15 Bwhich is set to beundertaken at MDLafter the threeKolkata-class 6,700tonne destroyersalready being cons-tructed there undera long-delayedRs. 11,662 croreproject are finallydelivered in 2012-2014 was cleared bythe Cabinet Com-mittee on Security(CCS) on December8. It was earliercleared by theDefence Acquisi-tions Council,chaired by DefenceMinister A. K.Antony in July 2010.

PD/February/2011/1344 “Women like silent men. They think they’re listening.”

Another big project in the offing is the around Rs.45,000 crore construction of seven more stealth frigates atMDL in Mumbai and GRSE in Kolkata.

Increasing Firepower

The biggest pro-gramme, of course,will be Project - 75(India), where theNavy is to acquire sixnew generation stealthsubmarines, equippedwith tube-launchedmissiles and air-in-dependent propulsion,but it is still aroundtwo years away frombeing finalized.

The biggest war-ships currently onorder are the 44,570-tonne Admiral Gorshkov under-going a refit in Russia and the 40,000-tonne indigenousaircraft carrier (IAC) being built at Cochin Shipyard. WithGorshkov and IAC to be inducted by early 2013 and 2015,respectively, India hopes to deploy two potent carrierbattle-groups by the middle of this decade.

Agni-II Prime Launch Fails

The maiden launch of the Agni-II Prime Missile fromthe Wheeler Island, off the Orissa coast on December 10,2010 failed.

Within moments of take off from a specially desi-gned truck, the missile plunged into the Bay of Bengalfollowing a deviation in its trajectory. The failurenaturally cast a gloom on the missile technologists ofthe Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO).

The two-stage, surface-to-surface missile has a rangeof about 2,500 km. The 17-tonne missile is 20 metres long,capable of carrying nuclear warheads of one tonne.

The DRDO had built Agni-II Prime, earlier calledAgni-II+, to fill the gap in the range between Agni-II andAgni-III. While Agni-II has a range of more than 2,000km, Agni-III can target places more than 3,000 km away.All the three were strategic missiles, capable of carryingnuclear warheads.

Agni-II Prime was an improved version of Agni-II,boasting several new technologies. While both stages ofAgni-II were made of metal casing, the second stage ofAgni-II Prime was made of fibre reinforced plastic (FRP),or composite casing. The FRP reduced the missile'sstructural weight, enabling it to carry more propellants,and to have a better range than Agni-II's.

Agni-II Prime also had a better stage separationsystem, efficient propulsion, high-energy propellants,more efficient batteries to provide better power supplyand sophisticated retro rockets. It had a good con-figuration which meant the user (the Army) could moveit around easily, both on rail and road.

DRDO technologists said it would take a few days tofigure out the exact reason for the failure.

XIth India-EU Summit in Brussels

The India-EU Summit 2010 was held in the secondweek of December 2010 at Brussels in Belgium. Wideningand deepening their strategic partnership, India and the27-member European Union on December 10, 2010 agreedto strengthen cooperation on a wide range of issues,including counter-terrorism, a new initiative to improvecultural ties, on legal agreements on extradition, andabove all, to redouble efforts to ensure that early in 2011 afree trade agreement was ready for signature.

Deepening Partnership : EuropeanCouncil President Herman VanRompuy (left) greets Prime MinisterManmohan Singh as European UnionCommission President Jose ManuelBarroso looks on, prior to the EU-IndiaSummit on Dec. 10 at the EU head-quarters in Brussels.

Even as itlooked that anagreement on move-ment of profes-sionals was verymuch on the cards,despite earlier resis-tance by the EU,Prime Minister Man-mohan Singh calledfor “taking the leadin avoiding pro-tectionist trends,keeping marketsopen and encour-aging the free flow and movement of people by the twosides.

He made this observation at a joint press conferencealso addressed by Presidents of the European Counciland EU Commission Herman Van Rompuy and J. M.Barroso respectively.

Joint DeclarationIn the two-page joint declaration released at Brussels

on December 10, it was said that an ambitious andbalanced broad-based trade and investment agreementwould bring significant economic benefits to both Indiaand the EU. It was noted that significant progress wasrecorded during recent negotiations and there wasagreement on the contours of a final package which couldbe concluded by the spring of 2011.

It was also agreed—as reflected in the joint state-ment—that in the field of easy movement of professionalsand other people, an important issue for India, the twosides should have regular, structured and comprehensivedialogue.

Although much space and time was devoted tomutual help and cooperation in the areas of counterterrorism and security related issues—a joint India - EUdeclaration on international terrorism was issued—therewas not enough clarity on the EU position in relation toAfghanistan, especially after 2014 by when European andAmerican forces are expected to withdraw from thecountry. Mr. Rompuy did not respond when askeddirectly about the EU taking on board Pakistan's interestsand concerns as it was a NATO ally rather than India's.Instead, he said the EU was committed for the long-termreconstruction and stabilisation in Afghanistan.

PD/February/2011/1345 “There are truths on this side of the Pyranees, which are falsehoods on the other.”

However, in the joint statement on terrorism, therewas mention of opportunities for coordination on afinancial task force of the EU countries and India thatwould try to prevent terrorists from gaining access tofinancial resources. For this, ‘best practices’ on financialcontrols to be put into place would be shared.

A business summit was held on the sidelines of thesummit and as Dr. Manmohan Singh indicated, therewere vast opportunities for Europe to invest in India ininfrastructure areas, high technology, research, cleanenergy (solar energy was meant at the joint pressconference), skill development and vocational training.

SafeguardsResponding to questions, Dr. Singh allayed fears that

if any agreement was reached on free trade in agriculturalproducts, small and medium farmers in India would beadversely affected. He stated that adequate safeguardscould be put in place to take care of the concerns of far-mers and small businesses.

In a way the summit was by and large successful. Ofthe 12 areas, negotiations on five items—trade barriers,defence measures, trade facilitation, competition policyand rules of origin were finalised.

But no agreement has so far been reached on someareas including investment, government procurement,transparency and sustainable development, whichincludes issues such as environment and labourstandards. “We have clearly articulated our reservationson certain issues and we are going to ensure that ourdomestic policies and interests are not compromised inany way,” an official said.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's Visit to India : India, France Sign

New Power Deal

The biggest achievement of French President Mr.Sarkozy's visit to India was the signing of civil nuclear co-operation agreement. It may be recalled that FrenchPresident Nicolas Sarkozy landed at Bangalore Airporton December 4, 2010 on a four-day visit to India.

France's President Nicolas Sarkozy andFirst Lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy walkdown the steps from their plane as theyarrive in Bangalore HAL Airport onDec. 3, 2010.

Mr. Sarkozywho has come downto be one of theclosest friends ofIndian peoplereceived a warmand cordial welcomefrom Indian leaders.On December 6,2010 in New Delhithe French Presidentvigorously pitchedfor a permanent seaton the SecurityCouncil as the twoleaders Mr. Sarkozyand Indian PrimeMinister Dr. Man-

mohan Singh launched a new phase in their civil nuclearcooperation by signing the five atomic pacts for buildingtwo 1,650 MW nuclear reactors at Jaitpur in Maharashtra.

Against TerrorismFrance also underlined solidarity with India against

terrorism and asked Pakistan to act against safe havens

French President Nicolas Sarkozy (L)shakes hands with Prime MinisterManmohan Singh at Hyderabad Housein New Delhi on December 6, 2010

and sanctuaries forterrorist groups.

Prime MinisterManmohan Singhand Sarkozy heldtalks for nearly 90minutes that focus-sed on expandingcivil nuclear coope-ration and forgingcloser links in thefield of defence,space, education andresearch.

Global IssuesThe two leaders also discussed a host of global issues

including UN reforms, global terrorism, reforms ofinternational financial institutions, the G-20 forum ofmajor and emerging economies and climate change.

Other PactsBesides five atomic pacts, the two sides signed a pact

for co-production of films and another agreement forspace cooperation inthe field of earthscience and climate.

They sought todouble bilateraltrade to 12 billionEuros by 2012.

It is appropriateto emphasize thatFrance's long-termplan to build sixreactors in India forproducing 18,000MW electricity overthe next few yearsformed the centrepiece of Sarkozy'sfour-day presiden-tial visit to India thatstarted on December3, 2010.

The two sidessigned five nuclearreactor pacts, includ-ing an earlier WorksAgreement and ageneral Frameworkagreement betweenFrench nuclear giant

PD/February/2011/1346 “If you do not raise your eyes you will think that you are the highest point.”

Areva and the Nuclear Power Cooperation of IndiaLimited (NPCIL) for implementation of two EuropeanPressurized Reactors (EPRs) at Jaitpur (Maharashtra).

In the field of nuclear energy negotiation havereached an advanced stage to pave the way for thelaunching of nuclear power reactors in Jaitpur inpartnership with Indian industry, Indian Prime MinisterDr. Singh said at a joint press conference.

Call to PakistanCalling upon Pakistan to fight terrorism with

determination, Sarkozy appreciated India's efforts to‘stretch out its hand’ towards its South Asian neighbour.

“We applaud India's effort to stretch out its hand.We call upon Pakistan to fight terrorism determinedly,”Sarkozy said in reply to a query on counter-terrorism co-operation at a joint press conference with Indian PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi.

He pointed out that France had stood ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ with India in the aftermath of the 2008 Mumbaiterror attack in which two French officials also died. Theywere among the 166 victims.

“Our cooperation on counter-terrorism is withoutlimits,” said Sarkozy.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who arrived atBangalore on December 3 on a four-day visit to the country,backed India's bid for a permanent seat in the UnitedNations Security Council and its fight against terrorism.

“India deserves a permanent seat in the UNSC,” Sarkozysaid addressing over 500 scientists, captains of industry andstudents at the Indian Space Research Organisation inBangalore. Sarkozy said India, along with Brazil, Germany,Japan, Africa and Arab world should be in the UN SecurityCouncil.

Prime Minister's Message for the CorporateWorld

On December 14, 2010 the Prime Minister of India sentout a suggestive message for the corporate world in such asuccinct manner as carries a veritable conviction and serves aan eye opener for this part of the business world.

He said with anguish that the “perceived ethical deficitof corporate houses is not conducive to sustainability ofbusinesses, and the corporate sector will have to strike abalance between financial and human, social and ecologicalcapital to be viable in the long run.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (centre), corporate affairsminister Salman Khurshid (left) and secretary, corporateaffairs ministry, R. Bandyopadhyay, at the inauguralfunction of the 2nd India Corporate Week, in New Delhi onDecember 14, 2010.

For this, he said that corporates may adopt a three-pronged approach increasing the employability of populationthrough effective skill development; resettlement and reha-bilitation of project-affected families; and ethical and respon-sible behaviour.

The PM said that although the might of domesticcompanies has grown on the global stage with Indiancorporates poised to become the main engine of growth forthe economy. “I am sure business leaders are aware thatbusiness practices of some corporate houses have recentlycome under intense public scrutiny for their perceivedethical deficit.”

He said the corporates should focus on effective skilldevelopment, which will help in integrating the weakersections of the society to the mainstream economy. Thoughsome industry associations have partnered for improving ITIsand developing skills of youth, much needs to be done to havea visible impact of such efforts.

The corporates should work towards proper resettlementand rehabilitation policies for families affected by theirprojects while ensuring that there is no adverse impact onlivelihoods due to environmental degradation. Whilereiterating that growth should not suffer because of loss ofconfidence in industrialisation, the PM said the “affectedpopulations must see a stake for themselves in transiting toalternative lifestyles.”

Emphasizing on the ethical and responsible behaviour byIndia Inc, the Prime Minister said that the large companieshave to set the pace in this direction, which would soon befollowed by smaller entities. He said that although businessneeds to be profitable, yet “the manner in which they use thenatural resources and the extent to which they are sensitive tothe needs and aspirations of the common man is also critical totheir own long-term survival and growth. Just as over bearingcontrols stifle initiative, dogmatic adherence to extrememodels of non-regulation can also be disruptive to sustainablegrowth. Ours is the middle path. We believe that we musttrust corporate India as indeed you must trust us,” he said.

PD/February/2011/1347 “In the presence of eternity, the mountains are as transient as the clouds.”

Harassment Bill Tabled in the Lok Sabha

The government on December 7, 2010 introduced inthe Lok Sabha a Bill aimed at preventing sexualharassment of women at work places in various forms,including implied or overt promise of preferentialtreatment or threat or interference in her work throughintimidation.

Under Scrutiny● The legislation provides safe, secure and enabling

environment free from all forms of sexual harassment toevery woman, irrespective of her age or employmentstatus.

● The bill provides for a fine of 50,000 in case an internalinquiry is not set up by the employer.

● In the case of false or malicious complaint, the billprovides for action against the complainant in accordancewith service rules.

The Protection of Women Against Sexual Harass-ment at Workplace Bill, 2010, provides for mandatorysetting up of an internal committee by a company or anyother institute to probe a written complaint by an aggri-eved person or settle the matter through concilliation.

ObjectivesMoving the Bill, Women and Child Development

Minister Krishna Tirath said that the objective was toenact a comprehensive legislation to provide safe, secureand enabling environment free from all forms of sexualharassment to every woman, irrespective of her age oremployment status (other than domestic workers).

It fixes the responsibility on the employer as well asthe district magistrate or additional DM or the collectoror Deputy collector of every district in the state as adistrict officer and lays down a statutory redressalmechanism.

The proposed legislation makes it incumbent on theemployer to order probe into any complaint and providesfor a fine of Rs. 50,000 in case an internal inquiry is not setup by the employer or attempt is made contravene theprovisions of the new law.

Punishment for False ReportingHowever, in the case of false or malicious complaint,

the Bill provides for action against the complainant inaccordance with service rules and in any other manner incase no service rules exist.

The malicious intent or falsehood or part of thecomplainant shall be established after an inquiry in accor-dance with the procedure prescribed before any action isrecommended.

But mere inability to substantiate a complaint orprovide adequate proof need not attract action againstthe complainant, the Bill says.

The Bill has identified actions that would comeunder its purview as “implied or overt promise of pre-ferential treatment in her (any woman's) employment; orimplied or overt threat of detrimental treatment in heremployment; or implied or overt threat about her presentor future employment status.”

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’sVisit to India

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao paid a three daystate visit to India in the beginning of third week ofDecember, 2010. He arrived in the Indian capital onDecember 15 and immediately thereafter got engaged intalks with the Indian leaders. One thing that stands outpre-eminently is the warmth with which he stated thatIndia and China are not rivals but partners, partners ingiving good life to the people of the two countries. Indiaand China “are partners for cooperation and not rivals incompetition.”

PD/February/2011/1348 “The urge to save humanity is almost always only a false-face for the urge to rule.”

As if to under-score that point, Indian and Chinesecompanies and business institutions proceeded to sign

Fresh Thrust to Ties : Chinese PremierWen Jiabao waves an arrival at the AirForce Station at Palam, New Delhi, onDec. 15. To his right and left areChinese Ambassador Zhang Yan andMinister of State for Commerce andIndustry Jyotiraditya Scindia.

50 deals worth astaggering $ 16billion at a formalfunction in Wen'spresence. They sur-passed the $ 10billion worth ofagreements inkedduring the recentvisit of US PresidentBarack Obama.

At a gatheringof industrialists Mr.Wen said. “There isenough space in theworld for the deve-lopment of bothChina and India,there are enoughareas for us to co-operate.” These words were direct echo of the sentimentsof Indian Prime Minister when he met Chinese leaders atdifferent fora.

TradeIndia and China agreed to raise the bilateral trade to

$ 100 billion by 2015, step up investments and permitbanks of other countries to open branches and repre-sentative offices.

The two sides also decided to reduce the tradedeficit, which is in favour of China, said a joint com-munique issued after talks between Prime MinisterManmohan Singh and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.

“Set a new bilateral trade target of $ 100 billion by2015. The two sides agreed to take measures to promotegreater Indian exports to China with a view to reducingIndia's trade deficit.” it said.

The bilateral trade between India and China isexpected to be around $ 60 billion in 2010. The bilateraltrade imbalance was against India to the extent of $ 19billion during 2009-10.

China agreed to support Indian participation in itsnational and regional trade fairs, enhance exchange andcooperation of pharmaceutical supervision and expeditecompletion of phytosanitary negotiations on agro pro-ducts.

Earlier, Reserve Bank of India deputy governorShyamala Gopinath and vice chairman of China BankingRegulatory Commission (CBRC) signed a memorandumof understanding to enhace cooperation in the bankingand financial sectors between the two countries.

The modalities for allowing banks of other countriesto open branches and representative offices, the Com-munique said, “will be worked out by the concernedauthorities“.

In view of the potential to step up bilateral tradebetween the neighbours, the two sides decided to est-ablish a Strategic Economic Dialogue to enhance macro-

economic policy coordination and address challengesfacing economic development.

India and China have also agreed to “jointly opposeprotectionism in all forms”, besides expanding bilateralcooperation in sectors like infrastructure, environmentalprotection, information technology, telecommunications,investment and finance on a priority basis.

Hotline OperationalOn the political side, the much-awaited hotline

between the two Premiers has become operational. It wasalso decided that from now on the two Foreign Ministerswill meet annually. Mr. Wen also insisted that apart fromattending the BRIC summit in Beijing next year, Dr. Singhshould pay a standalone visit to China.

Six Pacts SignedIndia and China signed six pacts, including one in the field ofgreen technology. The pacts were signed after talks betweenPrime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese Premier WenJiabao. Besides green tech, the two sides also signed an MoUeach on exchange of hydrological data of common rivers,media an cultural exchanges. Two pacts were signed in thebanking sector. These were an MoU each between RBI andChinese Bank Regulatory Commission and EXIM Bank ofIndia and Chinese Development Bank.

Regarding India's bid for a permanent seat in the UNSecurity Council, Mr. Wen was evidently non-committalbut said that China appreciated India's aspirations to playa bigger role in the world body. He said that Chinawould pay attention to that aspect.

On the issue of dams or rivers, China changed itsposition slightly. Both sides agreed to further discussIndia's suggestion for increased cooperation on trans-border river issues over and above the expert levelmechanism for Brahmputra and Sutlej rivers.

Stapled VisaThe stapled visa issue on Pakistan occupied Kashmir

could not be unstapled during the two rounds of talksbetween the two Prime Ministers. But both countriesagreed on a mechanism to address the matter.

They also agreed to address the pause in high-leveldefence exchanges—suspended as a result of the Chinesepolicy of issuing distinctive visas to Indian citizensdomiciled in Jammu and Kashmir—by creating a basisfor them to ‘continue without constraints’.

The main ‘constraint’ is the stapled visa, which Indiasays challenges its sovereignty and territorial integrity.Pending resolution of this issue, therefore, it refused toinclude in the joint statement references to Chinesesovereignty in Tibet and ‘One China’ that have been partof the past three summit level declarations.

The two sides agreed to encourage greater mutualinvestment and project contracting cooperation betweenbusinesses of the two countries and deal appropriatelywith issues concerning economic and trade frictions.

It was resolved to constitute an India-China CEO'sForum to deliberate on business issues and makerecommendations on expansion of trade and investmentcooperation.

PD/February/2011/1349 “The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning.”

Chinese Premier Slams Indian MediaFaced with negative headlines on outcome of his talks

with the Indian leadership, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao wassharply critical of the Indian media, saying it was causing‘damage’ to bilateral ties.

Winding up his three-day visit to New Delhi, Wen tolda group of editors and scholars before emplaning forPakistan that he understood that the press in India hasfreedom but it should play a role in promoting friendship.

Citing the Indian media's coverage of the situation onthe Sino-Indian border, the Chinese leader said that “not asingle shot had been fired” nor had there been any“exchanges in border areas” between the troops.

Still, the boundary question has ‘repeatedly beensensationalised’ by the media after which leaders of the twocountries have had to ‘repair the damage and harm’, he said.His advice to the media was that it should play a more activerole in enhancing friendship.

Meanwhile, Exim Bank chairman and managingdirector T.C.A. Ranganathan and China DevelopmentBank Cooperation vice-governor Gao Jian signed a MoUto boost bilateral trade between the two countries.

In an important development China shed its earlierambivalence and agreed to back the UN resolution thatproscribes terrorist organisations like al-Qaeda and itsaffiliates like the anti-India Lashkar-e-Taiba. India alsotook up the issue of terrorism emanating from Pakistanand pressed the Chinese leader to take it up with thePakistani leadership.

However, there was no perceptible advancement ofChina's stand on India's bid for a permanent seat in theUN Security Council.

India, Mongolia Hold Joint Military Exercises

India-Mongolia defence cooperation is abundantlyreflected in the joint military exercises they held inDecember 2010. The troops of India and Mongoliaengaged in joint exercises, with the latest two-week drillin counter-insurgency ending in Belgaum on December19, 2010.

Nearly 30 officers and personnel of the Mongoliaarmed forces participated in the workout called ‘NomadicElephant’ along with 50 officers and personnel of theIndian Army in counter-terrorism environment.

This engagement tapered and ended around the timethe Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao was in India andPakistan.

Defence CooperationDefence cooperation and relations between the

militaries of the two countries has seen a steady growthover the last decade with the first joint exercise in 2004.For the last few years, the joint drills are being held everyyear.

In recent years, the exercises varied with the one in2005 being held at the Counter Insurgency and JungleWarfare School at Vairnagte, Mizoram while anotherexercise held in Mongolia in September 2008 was onpeace keeping operations.

Interaction at the Top LevelBesides exercises, there has been interaction at the

top level too. Both countries have had visits of top brasswith the former Vice-Chief of Army Staff Lt. GeneralNoble Thamburaj visiting Mongolia in 2009 on theMongolian armed forces day while its Chief of the Armystaff visited the Defence Expo in New Delhi.

Mongolian Defence Minister L. Bold was one of thedignitaries at the 2009 Aero India and also took part inthe Joint Working Group meeting.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's Visit to India

30 pacts signed from space to pharmaceutical, defenceand nuclear reactors.Indian PM stresses cooperation in intelligence sharingand anti-terror strategies.

Close on the heels of the Chinese Prime MinisterWen Jiabao's visit to India in the third week of Decembercame the visit of Russian President Dmitry Medvedevwho arrived on the night of December 20, 2010. Themeeting between Mr. Medvedev and Indian PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh materialised on December 21.This meeting was a historic one in so far as historicdecisions were taken, policy statements were made and aslew of agreements were signed. As many as 30 agree-ments were signed; the highlight of the same was theconsolidation and extension of strategic cooperation inthe civil nuclear, hydrocarbons and space sectors.

The PrimeMinister told thejournalists thatIndia's relationshipwith Russia wasspecial and privile-ged and woulddevelop indepen-dent of its ties withother countries.

India's GlobalRole : Supportfor UNSC Per-manent Seat

Russia joinedthe US and France inappreciating India'sglobal role andspeaking of Indiaand itself as statespossessing nuclearweapons. Mr.Medvedev promisedto quarterbackIndia's bid for fullmembership at theNuclear SuppliersGroup (NSG) andother multi-lateralexport control clubs.

PD/February/2011/1350 “Won’t you come into the garden ? I would like my roses to see you.”

Russia reiterated its support to India for a permanentseat on the United Nations Security Council. There wasalso public acknowledgement of India's imminent mem-bership of the Russia-China led Shanghai CooperationOrganization.

Fortifying Ties : Prime MinisterManmohan Singh greets RussianPresident Dmitry Medvedev prior totheir meeting and the signing ofagreements at Hyderabad House inNew Delhi on Dec. 22, 2010.

Besides talks onthe setting up ofmore reactors atKundankulam andHaripur, India andRussia agreed towork together at theglobal level onnuclear energy. Inthe first initiative ofits kind to be takenby either of them,the two countriesagreed to considercooperation in thepeaceful uses of nuclear energy with third countries. Bothsides also identified joint research and development inreactor technology as an area on which the two atomicenergy establishments hold discussions.

In defence, India and Russia marked the beginningof their first-ever collaboration in producing a nextgeneration fighter aircraft, with the signing of the preli-minary design contract agreement between their premierdefence also companies.

With both sides focussing greatly on improving theirtrade and economic ties, Moscow agreed to smoothentravel procedures for business people and visitors, a long-standing Indian grouse that had earlier led to an IT majorCEO abandoning plans to invest in Russia. At the sametime, both sides agreed to discourage unwanted or over-staying visitors and thereby avoid subsequent diplomaticwrinkles.

The corporate sector was also active on the sidelinesas a result of their greater involvement after the settingup of a joint CEOs forum in 2008. The agreements theysigned were joint ventures in steel production, hydelpower plants and telecom products.

The intention to collaborate in the hydrocarbonssector was given a concrete shape by an inter-govern-mental agreement that will evolve into an extensive roadmap largely modelled on the Sino-Russia partnership inthis sector. The Memorandum of Understanding betweenSistema, a telecom-petro giant with rights over twolucrative hydrocarbon fields, and ONGC Videsh progres-sed to a framework agreement on cooperation.

Expeditious Punishment to Mumbai AttackersRussian President Dmitry Medvedev in his speech

called for expeditious punishment to terrorists involvedin the Mumbai terror attacks. A modern and civilizedstate cannot hide terrorists and should extradite them if itis interested in cooperating in the fight against terrorism,the President said in response to a question at the jointpress conference with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Dr. Singh said that India and Russia were bothvictims of terrorism. “As such there is natural synergy ofinterest in working together to deal with this menace.”

India, Russia Sign Fighter Aircraft PactThe biggest defence programme in India's history—the

contract for the preliminary design of the Fifth GenerationFighter Aircraft (FGFA)—was signed on December 21, 2010between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Russia'sRosoboronexport and Sukhoi. It will involve the production of200-250 aircraft.

The FGFA will have advanced features such as stealth,super-cruise, ultra-manoeuvrability, highly integrated avionicssuite, enhanced situational awareness, internal carriage ofweapons and network centric warfare capabilities.

The aircraft would be called Perspective MultiroleFighter (PMF). It draws upon the basic structural and systemdesign of the Russian FGFA Technology Demonstrator withmodifications to meet the Indian Air Force's specifications,which are much more stringent.

Besides design and development, the project coversproduction and joint marketing of the aircraft to thirdcountries. The programme options include the design anddevelopment of a twin-seater variant and the integration of anadvanced engine with higher thrust at a later stage.

The agreement is the first in a series of such contractsthat will cover different stages of this programme.

The contract was signed by A. Isaykin, General Directorof Rosoboronexport and M. Pogosyan, General Director RACMiG and Sukhoi from the Russian side and HAL ChairmanAshok Nayak, and N.C. Agarwal, Director (D&D), HAL fromthe Indian side here.

The Russian President pointed to the need forbilateral framework agreements for extradition. He saidthat his country's anti-terrorism cooperation with Indiawas productive and quite open.

No Justification for TerrorismThe joint statement noted that both countries

“agreed that there is no justification whatsoever for anyact of terrorism, and that multi-ethnic democratic coun-tries like India and Russia were vulnerable to acts ofterrorism which are attacks against the values and free-doms enshrined in their societies.

It also “called upon Pakistan to expeditiously bringall the perpetrators, authors and accomplices of theNovember 2008 Mumbai attacks to justice.”

India expressed sympathy for the victims of theterrorist attacks in the Moscow metro stations in March in2010 and expressed support for Russia's efforts toeliminate terrorism from Russian soil.

Agreement on CECAIndia and Russia agreed to consider CECA (Compre-

hensive Economic Cooperation Agreement) to push thebilateral trade $ 20 billion by 2015.

Recognizing the huge potential between the world'stwo fastest growing economies, both the countries agreedfor mutual investment in the private sectors and viewedbilateral energy cooperation as a key component of theirstrategic partnership.

In the joint statement issued after talks between thetwo leaders, the two sides agreed to continue their effortsto achieve the strategic target of bilateral trade volume of$ 20 billion by 2015. Bilateral trade in 2009-10 stood at$ 4·54 billion and the two nations aspire to step it up

PD/February/2011/1351/2 “People who look through keyholes are apt to get the idea that most things are keyhole shaped.”

more than four-fold in the next five years. It may bementioned that India is in the process of negotiating FreeTrade Agreements (FTAs) and CECA with a dozen-oddcountries including blocs like Japan, Malaysia, Thailandand European Union. Such pacts are already underimplementation with the ASEAN, Singapore and SouthKorea.

Noting that the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China)plays an important role in promoting a multi-polar worldorder and global financial stability, India and Russiawelcomed the proposed inclusion of South Africa into theBRIC process in 2011.

Two Prithvi-II Missiles Flight-tested Successfully

Two Prithvi-II nuclear-capable ballistic missiles witha strike range of 350 km were successfully test-fired in anhour's gap on December 22, 2010 as part of user trials bythe Army from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) atChandipur off Orissa Coast.

As per defence sources,the missiles, mounted onmobile launchers andaimed at different targets,were test-fired from launchcomplex in the ITR around8·15 am and 9·15 am.

The test-firing of thesleek missiles, alreadyinducted into the armedforces, were routine trialsconducted by personnel ofStrategic Forces Command(SFC).

“The entire trajectoryof the twin trial was trackedby a battery of sophisticatedradars, electro-optic tele-metry stations and shipslaunched in the down rangeimpact-point area in Bay forpost-launch analysis,” the

Key Features350 km Maximum range500 to 1,000 kg Weight ofwarheads it can carry.Powered by liquid-propelled,twin engines, state-of-the-artguidance system, can deceiveanti-ballistic missiles

sources said.

With a maximum strike range of 350 km Prithvi-II iscapable of carrying a pay-load of 500-1000 kg warhead.

“Taken from routine production lot during earlieruser trials by Indian Army, the missile had achievedsingle digit accuracy, reaching close to zero Circular ErrorProbability (CEP),” the sources said.

The missile, having required features to deceive anyanti-ballistic missile, had demonstrated flight duration of483 seconds, reaching a peak altitude of 43·5 km duringuser's trial in 2008.

Similarly, two Prithvi-II missiles, aimed at differenttargets at 350 km were successfully launched withinminutes of each other on October 12, 2009, sources said.

India, Russia to set up N-Plants in South Asian Countries

India and Russia have decided to work together inthe field of nuclear commerce. The two countries willhelp set up smaller nuclear power plants in South Asiancountries such as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka. According tosources, this was the key outcome of Russian PresidentDmitry Medvedev's visit to India.

The two sides agreed “to consider cooperation in thepeaceful uses of nuclear energy with third countries.”Negotiators from New Delhi and Moscow said both sideswere confident of executing projects jointly. Both sidesfeel that the projects in South Asian countries will yieldeconomic and political dividends. South Asian countriesneed smaller nuclear power plants, generating 200-250MW of power.

Both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are energy starvedand India is helping them by linking their grids with itsown. In the case of Bangladesh, India is making efforts tolink its eastern grid through its border in West Bengal,while in the case of Sri Lanka, India is planning to layunderwater cables to connect the power grid in bothcountries.

China is active in most South Asian countries,building infrastructure in a big way, and hence, the India-Russia joint initiative will be an attempt to counter that aswell. For the first time, Russia has also recognized Indiaas a ‘supplier state’ in the nuclear business—both interms of equipment and fuel. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1352 “No object is mysterious. The mystery is your eye.”

Security Council Eases Sanctionson Iraq

● It permits civilian nuclear programme.● It shutters the oil-for-food programme.● It gives Iraq control over most of its oil assets.

As per New York Times, News Service, the UnitedStates, tying up loose ends as its occupation of Iraq windsdown, pushed through three Security Council resolutionson December 15 that lifted restrictions left over from theconfrontation with Saddam Hussein.

Workers on an oilfield in Basra.Iraq will have control over most ofits oil assets starting July 1, 2011.

First resolution per-mits Iraq to develop acivilian nuclear pro-gramme and importmaterials once bannedbecause they wouldpossibly be used to helpdevelop unconventionalweapons. A secondresolution formally shut-tered the dormant,widely corrupt oil-for-food programme. Andthe third gives the coun-try control over most ofits oil assets starting July1, 2011, while simultaneously lifting the protection thatshielded post invasion Iraq from countless legal claims.

“After years of being sanctioned by Security Councilresolutions due to the aggression, the belligerence ofSaddam’s regime, I think today we closed a dark chapter,”said Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s Foreign Minister. “I think thisshows that Iraq is coming back truly to its rightful placeamong the community of nations.”

Council resolutions that demand that Iraq resolvedisputes with Kuwait were left intact. Working out finalagreements on issues ranging from border demarcation toitems stolen from the Kuwaiti national archives will be apriority for the next Iraqi government, said Mr. Zebari, sothat Iraq can free itself of all Security Council restrictionsimposed since 1990.

Iraq still faces at least $ 22 billion in outstandingfinancial claims, according to UN figures, much of it owedto Kuwait. Iraq will continue to set aside five per cent ofits oil revenues in a special account to pay off reparationsfrom the war Saddam initiated in August 1990.

Foreign governments, westerners forced to serve ashuman shields and companies that lost business becauseof Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait have been among those

waiting for the UN protections to be lifted so that theycould pursue court action.

Mr. Zebari, citing hundreds of such claims, said thatIraq planned to try to place its assets with the FederalReserve, whose presidential decree might shield them,and also to try a parallel strategy in Europe. France wasthe only country to abstain on any resolution, concernedthat the one ending the oil-for-food programme did notsufficiently protect BNP Paribas which handled pay-ments, from claimants.

The resolutions have no substantial implications forAmerican policy, but to create a sense of occasion Vice-President Joe Biden presided over the vote in the SecurityCouncil. The United States held the rotating councilpresidency in December.

“Basically the United States wants to close the Iraqfile and that is what it is doing,” said Joost R. Hiltermann,the deputy West Asia programme director at the Inter-national Crisis Group. “But it does mean something forIraq; they take their sovereignty seriously.”

Cancun Conference on ClimateChange Concludes

The 16th Conference of Parties (COP) to the UnitedNations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) concluded on December 11, 2010. The delibe-rations were conducted for about a week at Cancun,Mexico. To much applause and relief the Cancun Agree-ments were adopted on December 11 with a big majority.Bolivia raised strong objections, refusing to endorse anydocument without binding emission cuts.

The mitigation provisions of the Copenhagen accordof 2009 were put into a UN framework in these agree-ments which include long pending decisions on finance,technology transfer, transparency, a Green Climate Fund,a Cancun Adaptation Framework and Reducing Emis-sions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation COPPresident Patricia Espinosa took note of Bolivia’s objec-tions and said the country had been given ampleopportunity to present its case. She called the agreementsa landmark outcome and was overwhelmed by thesupport she got from all 193 supporting countries.

The hope that Cancun would deliver a balancedpackage was expressed often enough during the UNClimate Change Conference, which started at Cancun onNovember 29. But few expected the positive responseevoked by the draft texts released on December 11. At aninformal plenary, most countries did have reservationsbut supported the texts and the role played by the host,Mexico.

PD/February/2011/1353

Both the Working Groups for the Long-term Co-operative Action (LCA) and further commitments for thedeveloped countries or Annex 1 parties under the KyotoProtocol adopted the draft texts. After the failure toachieve any binding agreement at Copenhagen in 2009,Cancun managed to deliver a package, though notperfect.

Trust Deficit Bridged

Union Minister for Environment and Forests JairamRamesh, speaking during an informal plenary, said, “Thetrust deficit has been considerably bridged.”

The agreements said there should be no gap betweenthe first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, whichexpires in December 2012, and the second phase. How-ever, the agreements merely call on the developed coun-tries to “raise the level of ambition of the emissionreductions to be achieved by them individually or jointly,with a view to reducing their aggregate level of emissionof green house gases.”

The agreements allow flexibility in choosing the baseyear for setting emission reduction targets. Emissionstrading and the project-based mechanism under theKyoto Protocol shall continue to be available to developedcountries/parties as a means to meet their quantifiedemission limitation and reduction objectives. However,the Cancun outcome could have an impact on the KyotoProtocol since there are no binding emission reduction

targets for the developed countries and it favours apledge and review system of voluntary emission reduc-tion commitments. In the context of the long-term goaland the ultimate objective of the Convention and the Baliaction plan, the idea is to work towards identifying aglobal goal for substantially reducing emissions by 2050and to consider it at the 17th session next year. But nofigures are mentioned.

Human Rights

The agreements recognise that deep cuts in globalgreenhouse gas emissions are required as documented inthe fourth assessment Report of the IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change to reduce greenhouse gas emis-sions and curb the increase in global average tempera-tures below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.In the absence of any firm target, this could be aninadequate and vague provision.

However, for the first time, the agreements emphasisethat in all climate change related action, human rightsmust be respected. They also recognise the need to engagewith a broad range of stakeholders, including youth andpersons with disability, and call for gender equality andeffective participation of women and indigenous peoplein effective action on all aspects of climate change.

Japan too was enthusiastic about the drafts and gavethem the thumbs up. While BASIC countries are on boardnow, the drafts negate the three non-negotiable aspects

PD/February/2011/1354 “I think in terms of the day’s resolutions, not the years’.”

the countries set out during the conference. The first is thenecessity of a second commitment period to the KyotoProtocol. The two other issues were the need to acceleratedisbursement under the fast start finance in the form ofnew and additional resources through a multilaterallysupervised mechanism and recognition of the importanceof continued dialogue on Intellectual Property Rights(IPR) as part of the technology development and transferissues.

The agreements propose a Cancun Adaptation Frame-work to strengthen and address implementation of action.The agreements propose to enhance transparency by thedeveloping countries and emphasize the role of marketbased mechanisms to promote mitigation action.

Green Climate FundOn finance, the agreements call for information on

the fast start finance promised in 2009 at Copenhagen bythe developed countries. They endorse the pledge by thedeveloped countries to provide $ 100 billion annually till2020 and say a significant share of this new multilateralfunding should flow through the Green Climate Fund,which is also established. This new fund will be theoperating entity of the UNFCCC financial mechanism.The fund will be designed by a transitional committee,with 15 members from the developed countries and 25from the developing nations. The technology mechanismwill facilitate technology development and transfer,through a Technology Executive Committee and a ClimateTechnology Centre and Network.

PD/February/2011/1355 “Set out from any point. They are all alike. They all lead to a point of departure.”

India Built Bridges in Cancun TalksEnvironment Minister Jairam Ramesh has been praised for

his role as a bridge-builder on contentious issues at the UNclimate conference in Cancun which ended with a deal to curbglobal warming, including a $ 100 billion fund to help deve-loping countries.

The two-week long conference closed with ‘CancunAgreement’, which marked some progress for finance, tech-nology, adaptation and transparency, but isn’t viewed as adecisive boost for combating climate change.

“The minister (Ramesh) has beeninstrumental in bridging gaps,” Moham-med Aslam, the Environment Minister ofMaldives, said.

“He has been reaching out to theAOSIS nations as well as to developedcountries,” he said.

Aslam was referring to the Alliance ofSmall Island States, which are mostvulnerable to climate change and want Jairam Ramesh

developed countries as well as emerging economies, especiallyChina and India, to take on hefty legally binding emission cuts.

The UN climate conference on early hours of December 11reached a ‘compromise’ to set up a US D 100 billion ‘GreenFund’ to fight global warming, a decision India described as an‘important step forward’, but there was no agreement onextending the landmark Kyoto Protocol on emissions cutsbeyond 2012.

“We are very happy with the text,” Ramesh earlier said,noting that the major emerging economies—Brazil, SouthAfrica , India and China (BASIC)—had welcomed the decision.

“Cancun represents an important step forward,” he said.Progress at the conference includes a broad agreement on

technology-sharing mechanism that will ensure that poor andvulnerable countries are able to access green technologieseasily and in a cost-effective manner.

A‘Green Fund’ has been set up that is expected to mobiliseUS D 100 billion per year by 2020, which will be given todeveloping countries for adaptation and mitigation purposes.

The nitty-gritty of the technology and finance mechanismstill needs to be worked out. Bolivia was the sole country tooppose the decision in Cancun, but was eventually overruled.

According to Ramesh, many of India’s contributions hadbeen incorporated in the text, including the InternationalConsultation and Analysis, which is a transparency mecha-nism to review whether developing countries are carrying outtheir domestic mitigation actions.

Myanmarese Military Junta BuildingN-Sites with North Korean Help :

An Intelligence Source

Witnesses in Myanmar claim to have seen evidenceof secret nuclear and missile sites being built in remotejungle, according to secret US diplomatic Cables releasedby WikiLeaks, heightening concerns that the militaryregime is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

A Myanmarese official quoted in a cable from the USembassy in Myanmar said he had witnessed NorthKorean technicians helping to construct an undergroundfacility in foothills more than 300 miles north-west ofYangon.

“The North Koreans, aided by Myanmarese works,are constructing a concrete reinforced undergroundfacility that is 500 feet from the top of the cave to the topof the hill above,” according to the cable. The official isquoted as saying that the North Koreans were blowingconcrete into excavation.

An expatriate businessman told the embassy inYangon, capital of Myanmar that he had seen a largebarge carrying reinforced steel bar of a diameter thatsuggested a project larger than a factory.

The reports add rare detail to rumours that havecirculated since 2002 that Myanmar is a country seeking anuclear bomb with the help of North Koreans, However,both countries have strenuously denied it and Myanmarinsists that there are no North Koreans in Myanmar.

The cables will compound existing internationalconcern over Iranian and North Korean nuclear pro-grammes, and show why Barack Obama has made nuclearnon-proliferation one of the central planks of his foreignpolicy.

The alleged nuclear site is the Irrawaddy river townof Minbu in Magwe division, west central Myanmar.

Myanmar has made no secret of wanting a civiliannuclear reactor, in part because of severe electricityshortages, and has signed a deal with Russia to build one.The project has so far failed to start because of lack offunds. A secret deal with North Korea would be in breachof international rules on nuclear proliferation.

PD/February/2011/1356 “Immorality : The morality of those who are having a better time.”

CommentIt is an irony and a sad irony indeed that double

standards in foreign policy are being tried to carryconviction with world public opinion. The USA itself isarmed to the teeth with nuclear weapons. Other SecurityCouncil permanent members, too, are in possession of agood deal of nuclear stockpiles. But all of them harangueothers to keep off the same. Israel is allowed by the USAto keep nuclear weapons and there is made no hue andcry about its nuclear plans. But countries like Iran, NorthKorea and Myanmar are criticized for enriching uranium.The latter have spoken again and again that their objectiveis to generate electricity from nuclear capability whichthey are seeking to build up. But even their genuineefforts are frowned upon on the planks of non-proli-feration regime. The ideal would be that first the nuclearpowers put a complete fullstop to their nuclear pro-gramme and destroy all existing nuclear weapons andthen seek to ensure that the same is done every where inthe world. So long as double standards are followed, thereis little possibility that new entrants in this field will bestopped from carrying out their programmes. History iswitness to the fact that it is the double standards of thebig powers which have been responsible for big catas-trophes like the two world wars. If we do not learn thelesson from the past even now, another repetition of acatastrophic eventuality may not be prevented frommaterialising if not in the near feature, but in the distantfuture.

NATO to Defend Baltic States

● NATO planned to defend the vulnerable parts of easternEurope against Russian Threats.

● The Plan entails grouping of the Baltic States with Polandin a new regional defence scheme.

The U.S.A. and its allies have for the first time sincethe end of the cold war drawn up classified military plansto defend the most vulnerable parts of eastern Europeagainst Russian threats, according to confidential USdiplomatic cables.

The US state department ordered an informationblackout when the decision was taken earlier in 2010.Since January 2010, the blue print has been refined.

Nine NATO divisions—US, British, German andPolish—have been identified for combat operations in theevent of armed aggression against Poland or three BalticStates—Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. North Polish andGerman ports have been listed for the receipt of navalassault forces and British and US warships.

The first NATO exercises under the plan are to takeplace in the Baltic in 2011, according to reliable sources.

Following years of transatlantic dispute over the newpolicy, NATO leaders are understood to have quietlyendorsed the strategy at a summit in Lisbon in November2010.

Despite President Barack Obama’s policy of “reset-ting relations with Russia, which was boosted at theNATO summit attended by Russian President, Dmitry

Medvedev, the state department fears that the majorpolicy shift could trigger unnecessary tensions withRussia.

The decision to draft contingency plans for Estonia,Latvia and Lithuania was taken secretly earlier in 2010 atthe urging of the US and Germany at NATO headquartersin Belgium, ending years of division at the heart of thewestern alliance over how to view Vladimir Putin’sRussia.

The decision, according to a secret cable signed byHillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, marks the startof a major revamp of Nato defence planning in Europe.

The strategy has not been made public, in line withNATO’s customary refusal to divulge details of its‘contingency planning’—blueprints for the defence of aNATO member state by the alliance as a whole.

According to a secret cable from the US mission toNATO in Brussels, US admiral James Stavridis, thealliance’s top commander in Europe, proposed drawingdefence plans for the former Soviet Baltic states ofLithuania, Latvia, and Estonia.

The policy was put to top military officials fromNATO’s 28 states. “On January 22 NATO’s militarycommittee agreed… under a silence procedure”, the cablenotes, referring to a decision carried by consensus unlesssomeone speaks up to object.

After his three-day visit to India, Chinese PrimeMinister Wen Jiabao reached Islamabad, Pakistan onDecember 17, 2010. Pakistan rolled the red carpet wel-come for its all weather friend China as the ChinesePremier landed at Islamabad from India without makingany reference detrimental to Islamabad as has been wontwith many a head of state/government visiting NewDelhi over the past few months.

Though China’s expanding relation-ship with Indiahas been a cause of concern in certain quarters in Pak-political circles, the fact that Mr. Wen did not concede any

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf RazaGilani speaks with his Chinesecounterpart Wen Jiabao during theinauguration ceremony of the PakistanChina Friendship Centre in Islamabad,Pakistan, on December 18, 2010

diplomatic ground toIndia vis-a-vis Pakis-tan came as a bigrelief.

In his arrivalstatement, Mr. Wensaid : “The purposeof my visit this timeis to solidify friend-ship, deepen co-operation, supportPakistan’s efforts ofpost-disaster recon-struction and ringin—together withPakistan—the 60thanniversary ofChina-Pakistan diplomatic relations in 2011.”

PD/February/2011/1357 “A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices that the system works.”

Deals Worth $ 15 billion SignedMr. Wen’s visit to Pakistan has good significance in

so far as a slew of agreements worth billions were signedby members of his delegation in a wide range of areas.

Besides agreements/memoranda of understandingworth $ 15 billion, Mr. Wen announced a $ 410 millionpackage for the ongoing flood relief.

During their one-on-one interaction Pakistan’s PrimeMinister Yousuf Raza Gilani and the Chinese PrimeMinister discussed ways and means of broadbasing anddeepening the strategic partnership between China andPakistan though Mr. Gilani maintained that their relation-ship was not directed against any country.

All through the visit of Mr. Wen Pakistani leader-ship’s endeavour was to convey to China its gratitude forbeing a steadfast friend, who chose to visit Pakistan in itshour of trial. China is the only P-5 country to send a headof state/government to Pakistan in 2010, while the otherfour permanent members of the U. N. Security Councilpaid high-level visits to India on their calendar in 2010.Even from outside P-5 such a high-level visit to Pakistanhas become a rarity.

Kashmir Issue at the BanquetPakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on

December 18, 2010 reiterated Pakistan’s desire to strive fora peaceful resolution of all issues with India including“the long standing Jammu and Kashmir dispute”. Hebrought up the K Word in his speech at the banquet hehosted for visiting Chinese premier Wen Jiabao.

Describing China as, Pakistan’s “most trusted andreliable friend” the Prime Minister articulated Islamabad’sappreciation for Beijing’s support on various regional andinternational issues. He extended Pakistan’s support toChina on all its core issues; specifically the ‘One China’policy while condemning any attempt to undermineChina’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Both countries expressed the intent to create a trans-border corridor for trade that would further deepen therelationship which will turn 60 in 2011. Both sidesdecided to commemorate 2011 as Friendship year. Apartfrom signing a number of agreements, the businesscommunities of the two countries vowed to boost bilateraltrade to $ 18 billion over the next 5 years. As for theagreements for bilateral cooperation, they span a cross-section of sectors and regions including Pakistan occupiedJammu & Kashmir where Chinese firms are alreadyengaged in over 14 development projects including hydro-electric power projects.

Iraq Gets New Government After Nine-month Delay

Iraq’s Parliament after a delay of nine monthsconfirmed in the third week of December 2010 Nouri al-Maliki as Prime Minister for a second term.

The formation of Mr. Maliki’s national unity govern-ment has been an exercise in balancing the competinginterests of Iraq’s Sunni, Shia and Kurdish power blocs.

Ayad Allawi, the leader of the Iraqiya party that won91 seats—two more than the Mr. Maliki’s State of the Law

● Nouri al-Malikiconfirmed asPrime Minister

● Newly createdpost for Iraqiyaleader AyadAllawi

coalition but was unable to form agovernment—has been appointed asthe head of the national council forstrategic studies, a newly created post.

Another prominent Iraqiya mem-ber, Rafie al-Esawi, has been appointedas the Finance Minister. The Iraqiyaparty had won heavily in Sunni-domi-nated areas and Mr. Esawi is also aSunni.

In his address to law makers, Mr.Allawi said his Iraqiya coalition wouldfully participate in the government.“We as the Iraqiya bloc declare our fullsupport for this government,” said Mr. Allawi. “Iraqiyawill play an active, productive and cooperative role.”

In his new line up, Mr. Maliki has retained as ForeignMinister, Hoshyar Zebari, a seasoned Kurdish politician.The Iraqi Presidency is also headed by Jalal Talabani, aveteran Kurdish leader.

During his address to Parliament, Mr. Malikiacknowledged that the formation of the new governmenthad been problematic. “I do not say that this government,with all its formations, satisfies its citizens’ aspiration,nor the political blocs’, nor my ambition, nor any otherperson’s ambition, because it is formed in extraordinarycircumstances,” he observed.

Continued on Page 1378

PD/February/2011/1358 “Chaos is a name for any order that produces confusion in our minds.”

ANDHRA PRADESH

AP Film Awards : Saroja Devi, Ramoji RaoAmong the Winners

Popular yesteryear actress B. Saroja Devi has beenchosen for the prestigious NTR National Award for 2009while well known film producer K. Raghava has got theRaghupathi Venkaiah Award.

The NTR Award carries a cash prize of Rs. 5 lakh,and the Raghupathi Venkaiah Award, Rs. 2 lakh.

(From left) Saroja Devi, Ramoji Raoand K. Raghavendra Rao

Media baronand producer, Ch.Ramoji Rao wasselected for the NagiReddy and Chakra-pani National FilmAward, while theB. N. Reddy National Award was given to veteran directorK. Raghavendra Rao. Both awards carry a cash prize ofRs. 2 lakh each.

The recipients were named after a five-membercommittee headed by producer G. Adiseshagiri Raoselected the nominees at a meeting on December 6, 2010.

BIHAR

Chaudhary Re-elected Speaker of the AssemblySenior Janata Dal leader Uday Narayan Chaudhary

was on December 2, 2010 unanimously elected for the

Chief Minister Nitish Kumar andDeputy Chief Minister Sushil KumarModi greet Uday Narayan Chaudharyafter he was unanimously elected asthe Speaker of the Bihar Assembly forthe second consecutive term in Patna inDecember 2010.

second term asSpeaker of the BiharLegislative Assem-bly. His name wasproposed by Mini-ster for WaterResources VijayKumar Chaudharyand seconded byRoad constructionMinister NandKishore Yadav. Theresolution was pas-sed by voice vote.

DELHI

Country's First Water Gallery InauguratedDelhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit inaugurated the

country's first ‘Water and Wastewater Gallery’ at theNational Science Centre in Delhi on December 14, 2010.

The state of the art gallery is an initiative of the DelhiJal Board and has been built in collaboration with theNSC. Through the use of over 30 displays includingillustrative panels, interactive kiosks, live models anddocumentaries on water supply, sewerage and river envi-ronment, the gallery aims at enforcing water conserva-tion.

The focus of the Gallery is on educating andentertaining the visitors and elicit a response towardswater conservation and abating pollution in the Yamuna.It portrays and explains the effects of water supplyconstraints and development of sewerage networks, maincauses of pollution of water bodies, and efforts made bythe DJB under Yamuna Action Plan-II and other majorprojects.

HARYANA

Haryana Sets up Mitti Kala BoardThe Haryana Government has constituted a Mitti

Kala Board to promote the traditional art of handicraftedearthenware. State Chief Minister Bhupinder SinghHooda announced it on December 9, 2010. The Board willbe constituted as an autonomous body with a perpetualseal. Artists involved in manufacture of earthenwarepottery and artefacts will be encouraged and promoted ina big way. Skill development faculties in manufactures ofearthenware, pottery and artefacts will be set up byengaging artists of repute across the country.

New Haryana Policy on LitigationHaryana government in December 2010 announced

the New Litigation Policy which aims at bringing about avisible, enduring, qualitative and quantitative improve-ment in the manner in which litigation is perceived,managed and conducted. The policy focusses on betterdecision-making, quick response to representations,managing litigation through IT based decision supportsystem, capacity building review and dispute settlementsand improving infrastructure, quality of menpowersystem and procedures.

As per the New Haryana Policy on Litigation asannounced by official spokesperson on December 18, 2010the State-level-Empowered Committee, department levelPolicy Implementation Committees and district-levelPolicy Implementation Committees would be set up.

The Empowered Committee would identify majorcauses of litigation and recommend suitable measures tominimise cases.

The Policy Implementation Committee wouldregularly monitor and review litigation arising in depart-ments and it would have powers to take decisions on

PD/February/2011/1359 “We judge others by their behaviour. We judge ourselves by our intentions.”

cases where the financial implication was not very high.In case it “feels the need for streamlining some policies orrules, it would make recommendations to the State-levelCommittee”.

The Home or Administration of Justice Departmentwould be the nodal agency for facilitating coordinationand interaction between these committees.

It would be mandatory for employees to seekredressal through the complaints’ redressal mechanismbefore going to courts.

HIMACHAL PRADESH

Preity Zinta will be Himachal Pradesh's BrandAmbassador

Bollywood Actress Preity Zinta who was born inHimachal Pradesh has agreed in principle to become the

Preity Zinta

State’s brand ambassador for tourismand environment. She will promotetourism in Himachal Pradesh. HimachalPradesh tourism and civil aviationdirector. Arun Sharma had recently metMs. Zinta in Mumbai for getting herconsent to lend support to the state bybecoming the brand ambassador.

NORTH-EAST/OTHER STATES

Highest HIV Infection Prevalence Found inManipur

As per the data released by National Aids ControlOrganisation (NACO) Manipur continues to top the listwith an adult prevalence of 1·40 per cent, followed byAndhra Pradesh (0·90 per cent), Mizoram (0·81 per cent)and Nagaland at (0·78 per cent). It is estimated that Indiahad approximately 1·2 lakh new HIV infections in 2009 asagainst 2·7 lakh in 2000.

While all high-prevalence States indicate a cleardeclining trend from 0·41 per cent in 2000 to 0·31 per centin 2009, HIV has notably declined in Tamil Nadu,according to the latest figures released by the NationalAids Control Organisation (NACO) to mark World AIDSDay. The total number of people living with HIVinfections in the country is close to 24 lakh, including 9·3lakh women. However, low-prevalence States such asChandigarh, Orissa, Kerala Jharkhand, Uttarakhand,Jammu and Kashmir, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalayahave shown rising trends in the past four years.

In Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa, Chandigarh,Gujarat, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, the estimated adult HIVprevalence is greater than the national average of 0·31 percent, while Delhi, Orissa, West Bengal, Chattisgarh andPuducherry have a prevalence rate ranging between 0·28to 0·30 per cent.

Of the 1·2 lakh-odd new infections in 2009, the sixhigh-prevalence States account for only 39 per cent of the

cases while Orissa, Bihar, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh,Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat account for 41per cent of new infections.

Children account for 3·5 per cent of all infectionswhile 83 per cent are in the age group of 15-49 years. Ofall HIV infections, 39 per cent (9·3 lakh) is constituted bywomen. Andhra Pradesh has 5 lakh, Maharashtra, 4·2lakh, Karnataka, 2·5 lakh and Tamil Nadu, 1·5 lakh peopleliving with HIV infections. West Bengal, Gujarat, Biharand Uttar Pradesh are to have more than one lakhinfected people while Punjab, Orissa, Rajasthan andMadhya Pradesh have between 50,000-1,00,000 infectionseach.

RAJASTHAN

Award for Jaipur BRTSThe Jaipur City Transport Service Limited established

in the Rajasthan Capital recently under the Bus RapidTransit System (BRTS) scheme has got the prestigiousJawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission(JNNURM) Urban Mobility Award 2010 for newtechnological applications and innovations. Rajasthanstate Transport Minister Braj Kishore Sharma received theaward from Union Development Minister S. Jaipal Reddyat the Urban Mobility India Conference organised in NewDelhi on December 5, 2010. Awards were given away onthe occasion to the best mass transit projects selected fromamong the JNNURM projects across the country. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1360 “All honor’s wounds are self-inflicted.”

CRSDAI—The Confederation of Real State Develo-pers’ Association of India.

The agency wants various taxes levied by thegovernment reduced so as to provide affordable housing.The association organised a two-day convention, NATCO-2010 which opened in New Delhi in the second week ofDecember 2010.

GSL—Goa Shipyard LimitedICGS—Indian Coast Guard ShipIMBL—International Maritime Boundary Line

Nasim Zaidi, New Aviation SecretaryNasim Zaidi, a 1976 batch IAS official, took charge as

the new civil aviation secretary in the first week ofDecember 2010. Aviation Secretary Praful Patel referred toZaidi as ‘brand name’ in aviation. He remembered howZaidi, secretary, had welcome him in the ministry whenhe became the civil aviation minister.

Tariq MansoorProf. Tariq Mansoor, department of Surgery, J. N.

Medical College, Aligarh Muslim University has takenover as President of Association of Surgeons of India (ISI),UP chapter at Kanpur for 2010-11. Prof. Tariq Mansoor isthe first surgeon from Aligarh to be elected as head of thebody of surgeons of UP which has 1600 members in alldistricts of Uttar Pradesh.

Satyanand MisraSatyanand Misra, currently one of the six Information

Commissioners and an IAS officer of 1973 batch has beenselected to be the next Chief Information Commissioner.

Mr. Misra will replace A. N. Tiwari who has held theposition of Chief Information Commissioner since October1, 2010.

The other five Information Commissioners areAnnapurna Dixit, Deepak Sandhu, Sushma Singh, M. L.Sharma and Shailesh Gandhi.

Mr. Misra’s name was finalised for the present post ofCIC after being recommended by a panel comprisingPrime Minister Manmohan Singh, Law Minister VeerappaMoily and Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj.

Frank RuggieroFrank Ruggiero, a career civil servant who served

under late Richard Holbrooke, has been made Acting U.S.

Special Representative to Af-Pak region and will beassisted by two deputies, one of them an IndianAmerican. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hasretained the team which the late Holbrooke created for hisAfghanistan and Pakistan agenda.

Mr. Ruggiero will lead the SRAP (Special Represen-tative for Afghanistan and Pakistan) structure that RichardHolbrooke constructed, and will really serve as one of hisfinest legacies.

The SRAP structure that will continue on in hisabsence combines individuals and experts from acrossgovernments. It incorporates international partners intothis structure.

Mr. Ruggiero joined his new assignment withimmediate effect in the beginning of the second week ofDecember 2010.

Bharat BhushanBharat Bhushan will lead the Directorate General of

Civil Aviation (DGCA)—the country’s aviation sectorregulator. His last posting was as additional secretary andfinancial adviser in the aviation ministry.

Amitabh MattooPresident Pratibha Patil in her capacity as visitor of

all Central Universities on December 20, 2010 approvedthe appointment of Amitabh Mattoo as the first Vice-Chancellor of the Central University at Jammu.

Amitabh Mattoo is currently Professor of Disarma-ment Studies at the Centre for International Politics,Organisation and Disarmament (CIPOD), School ofInternational Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.A Padma Sri winner, Professor Mattoo’s teaching andresearch interests include issues of international security,India’s foreign policy, arms control and disarmament.

M. S. ValiathanEminent cardiologist M. S. Valiathan has been

appointed National Research Professor for the secondterm.

His appointment comes into effect from January 1,2011 for a term of five years.

His first term ended on December 31, 2010.

S. K. TripathiThe government on December 26, 2010 appointed

S. K. Tripathi as the new head of the Research andAnalysis Wing (RAW) after incumbent K. C. Verma put inhis papers a month before he was scheduled to retire. Mr.Tripathi was earlier head of the Aviation Research Centre,RAW’s airwing.

Mr. Tripathi will have a fixed term of two years.

PD/February/2011/1361 “The enemy is anybody who’s going to get you killed, no matter which side he’s on.”

An old hand in RAW, Mr. Tripathi has served invarious capacities in the agency and was also in therunning for the top position in 2009. But then at that timeMr. K. C. Verma, then Secretary (Security) in the HomeMinistry had been appointed to the post.

PERSONS IN THE NEWS

Mark ZuckerbergMark Zuckerberg, founder and chief executive of the

Facebook social networking site that has more than abillion users, was named Time magazine’s Person of theYear on December 14, 2010.

Mark Zuckerberg

Time defines the Person of theYear as the person who, for better orfor worse, does the most to influencethe events of the year.

This year they passed 500 millionusers.

Mr. Zuckerberg was a 19 yearold sophomore at Harvard Univer-sity in 2004 when he started a webservice called the face book.com forhis dorm. Now, he is one of the world’s youngest billion-aires and his privately held company is projected to have2010 revenues of $ 2 billion Time said.

At 26, Mr. Zuckerberg is the youngest winner sinceCharles Lindberg was named the magazine’s first personof the year in 1927 when he became the first pilot of flyingsolo across the Atlantic Ocean.

U. S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernauke wasthe 2009 winner.

S. BangarappaFormer Karnataka Chief Minister S. Bangarappa on

December 15 quit the Congress and joined Janata Dal

JD(S) Supremo H. D. Deve Gowda welcomes former CM S.Bangarappa into the party in Bangalore on Dec. 15. Gowdadescribed Bangarappa as a ‘crown’ for his party while his sonand state unit president H. D. Kumaraswamy saw it as an‘inspiration’ for the outfit.

Secular JD(S). He is one of those persons switching partyloyalties again and again. He has the rare distinction ofmaking it the ninth time he has switched parties.

Liu XiaboLiu Xiabo is the Nobel Prize for Peace 2010 winner.

He is a Chinese dissident leader who has been jailed by

the government of China for his advocacy of democracy.The Chinese government is angry with the NorwegianNobel Committee for having awarded the Nobel PeacePrize for a man who is behind bars in China. InterestinglyChina has been able to enlist the support of 100 nations inAnti-Nobel protests and calls those responsible forawarding the honour as clowns. Since the announcementof the Prize to Liu Xiabo, his wife Liu Xia is under housearrest.

DEATHS

Walter Haeussermann[Nazi Germany’s key rocket scientist passes away at theage of 96]

Nazi Germany’s famous rocket scientist WalterHaeussermann, who was member of a team which helpedAmerica send its astronauts to the moon, died in Alabamain the US. He was 96.

Haeussermann died on December 8 at HuntsvilleHospital of complications from a fall; he is survived by hiswife Ruth, The Huntsville Times reported.

Haeussermann was with Wernher von Braun atPennemunde, the German site where he helped developV-2 rockets that were launched against London duringWorld War II, and later formed the basis of the Americanrocket programme.

PD/February/2011/1362 “There’s no such thing as bragging. You’re either lying or telling the truth.”

He joined the team of scientists and engineers whoworked on America’s space programme at Huntsvilleafter the war. He was in charge of guidance and controlsystems for rockets that landed American astronauts onthe moon in 1969.

His contributions to the space programme wererecognised with the Decoration for Exceptional CivilianService in 1959.

Haeussermann, who became a naturalised US citizenin 1954, remained an enthusiastic supporter of theAmerican space programme and attended reunions andpublic events regularly until his death.

Richard HolbrookeRichard Holbrooke, President Barack Obama’s Special

Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, died onDecember 13, 2010 in Washington at George WashingtonUniversity. He was 69.

RichardHolbrooke

Mr. Obama described Holbrooke asa true giant of American foreign policywho has made America stronger, saferand more respected.

Mr. Holbrooke had played animportant role in upgrading thePakistan-US Strategic Dialogue to theministerial level and expanding thescope of Pakistan-US relations. AsForeign Service Officer a t the time ofVietnam war he displayed acumen in the Paris Peace talksof 1968, which ultimately helped end the war.

Hridayanand AgarwalaHridayanand Agarwala, a noted film director of

Assam, died at his residence at Tejpur, Assam on Decem-ber 10, 2010. Mr. Agarwala was 93.

He was the youngest brother of the first Assamesefilm producer-director Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwala.

Mr. Agarwala engaged the eminent Assamese singerand director Bhupen Hazarika in 1976 to make the docu-mentary Rupkonwar Joyti Prasad aur Joymoti.

He had also independently directed two criticallyacclaimed Assamese movies Kesa Sun and Dhoomuha.

Till his end he was managing the state’s first cinemahall, Jonaki, established in 1939 by his brother Jyoti PrasadAgarwala.

Surendra MohanRenowned socialist thinker and activist Surendra

Mohan passed away in New Delhi December 17, 2010. Hewas 84.

Surendra Mohan

Mr. Mohan was a true socialist andconstituted a link between the new andthe old socialist movement.

Mr. Mohan was a member of theRajya Sabha from 1978 to 1984. He wasalso the former Chairman of the Khadiand Village Industries Commission. Hewas imprisoned during the Emergencyin 1975. When the Janata Party came

into power he declined the offer of a Union Minister.Besides the above Mr. Mohan was an environmental

activist, a political columnist, a human rights and civilliberty activist, and a Parliamentarian.

Former Kerala CM Karunakaran No MoreVeteran Congress leader and former

Kerala Chief Minister K. Karunakaranpassed away on December 23, 2010 after aprolonged illness. He was 93. Affec-tionately called ‘Leader’ by his admirers,the Congress stalwart was a mastertactician who remained influential inKerala politics for decades and a muchsought-after political troubleshooter at thenational level. K. Karunakaran

Papa UmanathPapa Umanath, one of the senior leaders of the

Communist Party of India (Marxist) and one of thefounders of the All India Democratic Women’s Associa-tion (AIDWA) died on December 17, 2010 after a briefillness in Tiruchi. She was 80.

Papa was the daughter of Lakshmi, the first womanto die in prison after 23 days of fasting against the jailauthorities.

Papa’s original name was Dhanalakshmi. Her entryinto politics began at a very young age as her mother wasworking closely with the Communist leaders and railwayworkers at Pommalai in Tiruchi.

Justice EradiVettath Balakrishna Eradi, a former judge of the

Supreme Court who played a leading role in severalspiritual, cultural and social organisations passed away ata private hospital in Kozhikode on December 30, 2010. Hewas 88.

Balakrishna Eradi

Justice Eradi, who had also servedas Chief Justice of the Kerala HighCourt and President of the NationalConsumer Disputes Redressal Com-mission had been ailing for some time.

The National Press of India GoldenJubilee Award, the Rajiv Gandhi Excel-lence Award, the Shiromani Award andthe National Citizenship Award are

among the honours he won during his long and eventfulcareer.

K. G. Kannabiran

Eminent civil rights activist and prominent lawyerK. G. Kannabiran passed away in Hyderabad on Decem-ber 30, 2010. He was 81.

K. G. Kannabiran

Mr. Kannabiran had been defend-ing political dissenters since the late1960s.

He was the President of AndhraPradesh Civil Liberties Committeebetween 1978 and 1994 and went on tobecome the national President ofPeople’s Union for Civil Liberties(PUCL).

He was a lover of Indian classicalmusic. He authored a book ‘The Wages of Impunity :Power, Justice and Human Rights.’

PD/February/2011/1363 “I had the blues because I had no shoes until upon the street, I met a man who had no feet.”

41st IFFI Awards : Moner Manush GetsGolden Peacock

Bengali filmmaker Gautam Ghosh’s film ‘MonerManush’ (The Quest), an Indo-Bangladesh joint produc-tion, received the coveted Golden Peacock Award for theBest Film at the 41st International Film Festival of India(IFFI) 2010.

The film is a saga of the life and times of Lalan Faquirand his liberal sect whose message of tolerance and secu-larism is becoming most relevant in today’s world.

The 11-day festival concluded on December 2, 2010with the screening of the French film ‘The Princess ofMontpensier,’ directed by Bertrand Tavernier, premierFrench director and screenplay writer.

The Silver Peacock Award for the Best Director wasbagged by Susanne Bier of Denmark for her film ‘In aBetter World’. ‘Just Another Love Story’ from India and‘The Boy’ from New Zealand were the joint winners of theSpecial Jury Award.

The Rs. 40 lakh cash prize was shared by Mr. Ghoseand producers of the film Gautam Kundo (India),Habiburahaman Khan and Faridureza Saqar (both fromBangladesh).

The Best Actor Award of Rs. 10 lakh went to theTurkish actor Guven Kirac for his role in the film ‘TheCrossing’ while the Best Actress Award was won byMagdalena Boczarska of Poland for her role in ‘LittleRose.’

The films were chosen by a five-member competitionjury out of 18 entries in the competition section from theU.K., the Czech Republic, Finland, Denmark, China, Iran,Israel, Maxico, Poland, Russia, Turkey, New Zealand,Taiwan, Thailand, and three films from India. The jurywas headed by Polish director Jerzy Antczak.

Other members of the jury were Sturla Gunnarsson(Canada), Mick Molloy (Australia), Olivier Pier (Switzer-land) and Revathi Menon (India).

The 11-day extravaganza which was began onNovember 22, 2010 with U.K. filmmaker Andy Emmony’s‘West is West’ witnessed the screening of 300 films from61 countries in 11 theatres.

S. M. Khan, Festival Director and Goa Chief SecretarySanjay Srivastava were present.

Tata Steel Bags MAKE 2010 AwardTata Steel has received the distinction as the only

manufacturing company from India’s Most AdmiredKnowledge Enterprise (MAKE) for 2010 for sustainedexcellence in the field of knowledge management. TheMAKE has rated Tata Steel best (first place) in developingknowledge workers through senior management leader-ship. It is the only manufacturing company to achieve thisfeat in 2010.

Karan Thapar Gets Asian Television AwardThe Asian Television award for the Best Current

Affairs Presenter was presented to Karan Thapar of the

CNN-IBN at a glittering ceremony in Singapore onDecember 9, 2010.

This is the fifth time that Mr. Thapar won the BestCurrent Affairs Presenter Award in the 15-year history ofthe Asian Television awards. He won the award in 1999,2003, 2005 and 2007.

This year Mr. Thapar won the award for his ‘Devil’sAdvocate’ interview programme. The winning interviewwith Ram Jethmalani was conducted in June 2010. Thesubject was Mr. Jethmalani’s controversial decision torejoin the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The interview ended abruptly when Mr. Jethmalaniwalked out in anger over questions that exploredallegations of opportunism surrounding his return to theBJP.

K. C. Kulish International Award for GhanaNewspaper

The prestigious Rajasthan Patrika Groups K. C.Kulish International Award for Excellence in Print MediaJournalism for 2009 has been conferred on ‘The NewCrusading Guide—a daily newspaper from Ghana inWest Africa. The daily has been selected on the basis of aseries of reports on Ghana’s Madhouse and Chinese sexmafia.

The award, set up in the name of the Patrika founder,carries a cash component of 11,000 US dollars and atrophy. The theme for this year’s award was ‘‘Inclusivedevelopment.’’ The merit awards have also beenannounced for reports appearing in Hindustan (Lucknow),

PD/February/2011/1364 “A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe if you hold it close enough to your eye.”

Malayala Manorama (Kottayam), Hindustan Times (Delhi),Indian Express (Delhi), Rashtra Deepika (Kottayam), LaOpinion (Los Angles), and Daily Jang Mir (Quetta,Balochistan).

The awards were selected by a jury comprisingGloria Brown Anderson of The New York Times, S.Gurumurthy corporate advisor and columnist, YogendraK. Alagh Chairman of the Institute of Rural Managementand Gulab Kothari, Editor-in-Chief of Patrika.

India’s Nicole Faria Crowned Miss Earth 2010India’s Nicole Faria has been crowned Miss Earth

2010 in Vietnam. The 10th edition of the Miss Earthbeauty pageant was held in Vinpearl Land, Nha Trang,Vietnam in December 2010.

Miss Earth 2010 Nicole Faria

Nicole also won the2010 Miss Earth TalentCompetition. Miss PuertoRico Yeidy Bosquez wasannounced Miss Earth Fireand Miss Ecuador JenniferPazmino won the MissEarth Air title. MissThailand WatsapornWattanakoon grabbed theMiss Earth Water Crown.

Talking about Nicole,Miss India World 2010,Manasvi Mamgai said, “Ifeel very happy for her.

This is the only title India has won in 2010, so it’s great.Nicole has got the looks, so we all had expectations thatshe would win.”

During an interview, Nicole said, “I want to makefriends and enjoy my time in Vietnam. It’s not aboutwinning or losing, but how you play the game.”

Faria is a 20-year-old girl from Bangalore.

Right to Information Awards : Saikia DuttaGets the Best RTI Journalist Award

Saikia Dutta of the Outlook magazine, Vinita Kamte,Manoj Kumar Karwarsa and Athar Shamsi have beennamed among the seven National RTI Awards winnersfor 2010. Saikia Dutta of the Outlook magazine hasbagged the Best RTI Journalist Award for using the Rightto Information Act to expose a Rs. 2500 crore scam in theexport of rice. The awards were announced on December20, 2010.

The other awardees are Manoj Kumar Karwarsa, aschool teacher from Haryana who filed RTI petitions toexpose the panchayat occupation of government land inhis village; Ramesh Kumar Verma, a Haryana-basedactivist who brought to light irregularities in the supply ofmedicines to government hospitals; Athar Shamsi, whofought for the rights of beedi workers in Uttar Pradesh;and Rajan Savlo Ghate, who exposed the illegal purchaseof Goan lands by foreign nationals.

The winner in the Best PIO category is PradeepKumar, a young Block Development Officer of Bilaspur inHimachal Pradesh with a sterling record in upholdingtransparency and handing out information.

It may be added here that the awards are given bythe Public Cause Research Foundation. The foundationalso organized a ceremony to honour the 10 RTI activistswho were killed this year.

The awards were decided by a jury consisting, amongothers, of Infosys founder N. R. Narayana Murthy; theformer Chief Justice of India, J. S. Verma; journalist-editorMadhu Trehan; and the former Chief Election Commis-sioner, J. M. Lyngdoh.

Nitish Kumar Chosen the CNN-IBN Indian ofthe Year 2010

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was chosen as theCNN-IBN Indian of the Year 2010 in December 2 010. He

Nitish Kumar

has been chosen for this honour forchanging the vocabulary of politics,putting development on centre stageand triggering hope amongst millions.Agriculture scientist M. S. Swaminathanhas been honoured with the CNN-IBNIndian of the Year 2010 LifetimeAchievement Award for his outstandingleadership in the field of agriculture that

has contributed to ensuring food security for millions ofIndians.

M. S. Swaminathan receiving theCNN-IBN Indian of the Year 2010Lifetime Achievement Award fromUnion Finance Minister PranabMukherjee.

Wrestler SushilKumar was chosenin the Sports cate-gory, industrialistKumar MangalamBirla (business), filmdirector Shankar(entertainment) andthe Ladakh Ecologi-cal DevelopmentGroup and SEEDSIndia (public servicecategory).

Special Achievement awards went to the ShillongChamber Choir and the Indian Women’s Relay Team ofManjeet Kaur, Sini Jose, Ashwini Akkunji, Mandeep Kaur.

J. Gopikrishnan, journalist, who was instrumental inexposing the 2G spectrum scam, was honoured with theCNN-IBN Indian of the Year 2010—Special AchievementAward.

IFFCO Bags National Energy ConservationAward

Fertilizer cooperative major IFFCO (Indian FarmersFertiliser Cooperative Limited) in December 2010 said ithad bagged the National Energy Conservation Award2010 for adopting clean and efficient technologies at itsPhulpur unit in Uttar Pradesh. IFFCO’s complex fertilizerunit in Paradeep, Orissa, has also received the ‘Certificateof Merit for 2010’ for conservation of energy, according toa company statement.

The awards, constituted by the Union PowerMinistry, were presented to IFFCO marking the NationalEnergy Conservation Day on December 14, 2010.

PD/February/2011/1365 “Is the glass half empty, half full, or twice as large as it needs to be ?”

Sahitya Akademi Awards for 2010 Announ-ced : Veerendra and Nanjil are among theWinners

The former Union Minister, M. P. Veerendra Kumaris among the 22 who have won Sahitya Akademiawards 2010 for the best works in literature. The awardswere annnounced in December 2010. Mr. Kumar haswon the award for his travelogue ‘Haimavathabhuvil’ inMalayalam.

The other winners include eight poets, four novelistsand three short story writers.

The winning poets are : Arun Sakhardande [Konkani],Vanita [Punjabi], Mithila Prasad Tripathi [Sanskrit], SheenKaaf Nizam [Urdu], Laxman Dubey [Sindhi], MangatBadal [Rajasthani], Aurobindo Uzir [Bodo] and GopiNarayan Pradhan [Nepali].

The novelists are Esther David [English], Bani Basu[Bengali], Dhirendra Mehta [Gujarati] and M. Borkanya[Manipuri].

Under the category of short stories, Nanjil Nadan[Tamil], Uday Prakash [Hindi] and Manoj [Dogri] havebeen chosen for the award.

Among others, Rahamat Tarikere [Kannada], AshokR. Kelkar [Marathi], Basher Bashir [Kashmiri] have wonthe awards for best books of criticism, Pathani Pattnaik[Oriya] under the category of ‘autobiographies’ andBhogle Soren [Santhali] under ‘plays.’

It may be added here that the awards are in the formof caskets containing an engraved copper plaque, a shawland a cheque for Rs. one lakh.

They will be presented at a function on February 15,2011 during the festival of letters organised by theAkademi.

Srikrishna Committee Submits ReportThe Srikrishna Committee, after holding wide-rang-

ing consultations over the past 11 months on the demandfor a state of Telangana and maintaining the presentstatus of a United Andhra Pradesh, submitted its report toUnion Home Minister P. Chidambaram in New Delhi onDecember 30, 2010.

Srikrishna Committee Chairman Justice B. N. Srikrishna(second from left) submits the panel’s report on Telangana toHome Minister P. Chidambaram in New Delhi on Dec. 30.Others in the picture from left are : Ravinder Kaur, Professor,Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT-New Delhi;member-secretary of the panel V.K. Duggal; and Vice-Chancel-lor of National Law University in New Delhi Ranbir Singh.

It may be recalled that this five-member committeeheaded by Justice Srikrishna, a retired Supreme CourtJudge had been constituted on February 3, 2010 and itsterm was to end on December 31, 2010. The contents ofthe report were not divulged in the year past.

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Army Grants Permanent Commission toWomen Officers

The Indian Army has decided to grant permanentcommission to 12 women officers in the Education andJudge Advocate General branches, Army sources divul-ged the information in New Delhi.

Had appealed in Court

The decision came after the selection board metduring the second week of November, the sources said.These officers were among the group which had sought adirection from the Delhi High Court. It had come inMarch 2010.

Later in August, the government said in the SupremeCourt that it would consider granting the permanentcommission.

DEFENCE

New Vessel to Patrol India-Pakistan SeaBorder

Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Vijit, the second inthe series of 90-metre Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV), wascommissioned by Minister of State for Defence M. M.Pallam Raju at Goa on December 11.

Vice - AdmiralAnil Chopra, Direc-tor-General of theCoast Guard, andRear Admiral(retired) VineetBakshi, Chairmanand ManagingDirector of the GoaShipyard Limited(GSL) which built theship, were present onthe occasion.

The ICGS willbe commanded byDeputy InspectorGeneral Naresh Kauland manned by eightofficers and 82 men.

To be homepor-ted at Porbander, thestate-of-the-art vesselwill be used exten-sively to patrol thecountry’s north-western maritimeregion, more soalong its sensitiveInternational Mari-time Boundary Line(IMBL) with Paki-stan, according to apress release.

PD/February/2011/1366 “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.”

The ICGS is fitted with advanced navigation andcommunication equipment, sensors and machinery. Itfeatures an Integrated Bridge System, High PowerExternal Fire Fighting System (ABS Fi-Fi Class-1), and anindigenous Close Range Naval 91 Gun Mount, along withan optical fire control system for round-the-clock use.

The ship is designed to carry one twin-engine lighthelicopter and five high-speed boats for search and rescue(SAR), law enforcement and maritime patrol. It is alsocapable of carrying pollution response equipment tocombat marine oil spill contamination.

The advanced Global Maritime Distress and SafetySystem on board makes it the right platform to carry outSAR operations. ICGS Vijit displaces 2,390 tonnes and iscapable of attaining a maximum speed of 26 knots. Ateconomical speeds, it has an endurance of 4,500 nauticalmiles and can stay at sea for 15 days without replenish-ment.

STUDY/RESEARCH/SURVEY

Malnutrition : A Big Challenge in India[Each year 23 million children die before reaching

the age of five.]

On his first visit to India, UNICEF (United NationsInternational Children’s Emergency Fund) executivedirector Anthony Lake expressed his grave concern at theproblem of malnutrition and lack of quality education inIndia.

According to Mr. Lake, with 46% children under-weight and 38% stunted, India faces its biggest develop-ment challenge. Each year 23 million children die beforereaching the age of five in India, accounting for 21% of theworld’s under-five deaths.

‘‘Stunting, or low weight for age, is an indicator ofslow cognitive development, which inpacts the child’sfuture. India is short of over 1 million teachers who needto be hired to reduce the high drop-out rate in schools,’’he said.

‘‘India is making progress in the under-five mortality,which has halved since 1990 and is above the globalaverage. There are millions of young adults alive in Indiatoday if it wasn’t for this statistic,’’ Mr. Lake stated.

A World Bank-UNICEF study found that across theworld, be it India or Ethiopia, the bottlenecks are not inthe supply but in demand. People don’t access servicessuch as healthcare and education because of issues ofsocial exclusion, which is why the world needs an equityfocused approach to child survival and development, Mr.Lake is understood to have said.

A new UNICEF study shows that $ 1 million spent onhelping children under 5-years in the most backward areascan prevent 60% more deaths than the current approach.

‘‘Governments have to partner with communities tomake the most of available resources to meet the 2015deadline of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG)”,Mr. Lake said.

Mr. Lake visited the Vaishali district in Bihar and sawthings for himself. He was satisfied, however, that thingsare changing in Bihar. ‘‘The future history of India will bewritten in places like Bihar,’’ Mr. Lake stated.

Corruption Tops Minds of IndiansThe big question is as to what the Indians generally

talk and worry about. A recent survey of people in 26countries showed that the most talked about topic thisyear among Indians in the year 2010 was corruption.About a third of Indians reportedly talked about corrup-tion with friends, co-workers and family.

Core Concerns

Country Issue Issue Personsshare*

India Corruption Extreme hunger/poverty

69%

China Climate change Corruption 68%Pakistan Terrorism Environment/pol-

lution64%

US, UK State of global eco-no-my

Terrorism 61%

Russia Extreme hunger/poverty

Rising prices 59%

* Multiple mentions were allowed.

Most interestingly, what Indians thought was themost serious global problem. It was corruption again.

The year 2010 has seen the exposure of sleaze at anunheard of scale in the country, gathering all manner ofthe high and mighty in its sweep. Topping the charts isthe gigantic 2G spectrum scam with its chaotic politicalfallout. Then there was the Commonwealth Games scam,the UP food scam, and a host of others. All these havepreoccupied Indians like never before.

The survey carried out by opinion researchconsultancy Globescan, for BBC World Service revealedthat corruption/greed was considered the most seriousproblem in 21 out of 26 countries surveyed. Over 68% ofpeople mention corruption as one of the most seriousproblems facing the world. In neighbouring PakistanTerrorism was the most talked about subject with over54% respondents mentioning it—the highest in the worldalongwith Turkey. Rising prices was the second mosttalked about issue in Pakistan followed by corruption.

PD/February/2011/1367/3 “Be careful how you interpret the world : It is like that.”

In India Terrorism was the second most popular topicof conversation in India, with about a quarter of thosesurveyed mentioning it. This is much higher than theglobal average of about 14%. Globally, too, corruptionwas considered the most worrying problem, with 21%respondents flagging it.

Prayer Helps Tackle Woes in Crunch Situa-tions

Those who choose to pray find personalised comfortduring hard times and can easily deal with their emotionsand problems, according to a new study.

The 75% ofAmericans whopray on a weeklybasis do so tomanage a range ofnegative situationsand emotions–illness, sadness,trauma and anger,a researcher atUniversity of Wis-consin - Madisonhas claimed.

Through thecourse of hisindepth interviewswith victims ofviolent relation-ships, Shane Sharp,a sociologygraduate at theUniversity of Wis-consin - Madison,gathered ways howprayer helped themdeal with theirsituations. Sharp’sinterviewees repre-sented a wideswath of the US ingeographic, educa-tional and racialterms, and camelargely from Chris-tian back-grounds.Those who wereboiling with anger said they found ‘‘a readily availablelistening ear,’’ said Sharp.

India No. 2 in EmigratingIndia continued to be the largest recipient of remit-

tances in 2010, with the figure rising from $ 49·6 billion in2009 to $ 55 billion in 2010.

It was also the country with the second largest num-ber of emigrants (those migrating abroad) after Mexico,according the recently released Migration and Face-book2011. Interestingly, even as 11·4 million people from Indiawent abroad, 5·4 million came into the country, makingIndia No. 10 in the list of nations attracting the mostimmigrants and the most attractive Asian country forimmigrants.

India and China which received $ 51 billion inremittances, accounts for almost a quarter of the world-wide remittances flows of $ 440 billion in 2010, the reportestimated.

High income OECD (Organisation of European Co-operation and Development) accounts for just $ 107billion of the global remittances flow.

Not surprisingly, it is the developing countries whichreceive the bulk $ 325 billion, an increase of 6% from 2009.Middle income countries including China, Russia, Mexico,India, Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkey receive the lion’s shareof over $ 301 billion, while low income countries includingBangladesh, Tajikistan, Nepal, Uganda and Cambodiareceive just $ 24 billion. Bangladesh alone account for over$ 11 billion.

US Remains Top Migrant Destination CountryThe true size of remittances, including unrecorded

flows through formal and informal channels, is believedto be significantly larger. Interestingly, even recordedremittances in 2009 were nearly three times the amount ofthe official foreign aid and almost as large as foreigndirect investment (FDI) flows to developing countries.The fact book estimated the total number of internationalmigrants or people living outside their country of birth in2010 to be 215 million persons, or 3% of the worldpopulation, only a marginal increase over the levelsrecorded in 2005.

Meanwhile the World Migration Report 2010, broughtout by the International Organisation said that about 57%of all migrants live in high income countries up from 43%in 1990. Migrants now make up 10% of the population ofhigh-income regions, up from 7·2% in 1990.

The US remains the top migrant destination countryin the world, with 42·8 million migrants in 2010 comparedto 34·8 million in 2000, according to the World BankReport. However, just over 2·2 million Americans liveoutside the US, less than 1% of the country’s population.

PD/February/2011/1368 “Each act is virgin, even the repeated ones.”

Migrants from South Asia Vulnerable toHIV Infection

[UN Reports paints alarming picture, buying sex said to bereason.]

Migrants from South Asia who send billions of dollars asremittances to their home countries are extremely vulnerable toHIV infection as a large proportion of them migrate underconditions that expose them to greater risk of such infection.

Over 40% of the $ 44 billion in remittances received byIndia in 2008 was contributed by the increasing number ofunskilled and semi-skilled Indian workers employed in theGulf states and Malaysia. It is just these unskilled and semi-skilled workers who are most exposed to the risk of contractingHIV.

This was revealed in the report HIV/AIDS and Mobilityin South Asia of the United Nations Development Programme(UNDP), UNAIDS and the International Labour Organisationreleased on World AIDS Day.

While data is not available for all South Asian countries,what is available paints an alarming picture. About 67% of theidentified HIV positive cases in Bangladesh are returnedmigrant workers and their spouses. In Nepal in 2007, 41% ofreported cases of HIV were among migrant workers. Morethan 40% of the women who have tested positive both abroadand in Sri Lanka are, or have been, migrants. Out of more than7·2 million people living with HIV/AIDS in Asia Pacific, 5million are in South Asia.

Of the 849,000 low-skilled Indian workers who wentabroad for work in 2008, over 96% went to the Gulf countries.Of all migrant workers, unskilled workers, particularlydomestic workers, and workers who migrate through illegalchannels are the most vulnerable to exploitation and in thesecountries there is little or no mechanism to protect theseworkers, stated the report.

Since migrant workers tend to buy sex when they areaway from home, several million of them will be at risk ofinfection, said the report. It pointed out that most South Asiancountries did not have any process for reintegrating HIV-positive migrants who have been deported or have returnedhome on their own. HIV-infected returnees often preferred tohide their positive status for fear of exclusion and humiliation,said the report calling for stronger support systems to facilitatemigrant reintegration.

While migration itself is not considered a vulnerabilityfactor for HIV infections, the unsafe conditions under whichpeople migrate exposes them to a greater risk of infection, saidCaitlin Wiesen, UNDP Country Director in India. Protectingand promoting the right to health of migrants including accessto HIV services is vital for safe mobility, urged the report.

Vulnerability to HIV is often an outcome of externalfactors, including language barriers, prejudice, discrimination,lack of access to health care facilities and support mechanisms.Countries that send migrants out, as well as host countries,have important roles in protecting migrants’ rights and accessto health services. However, to date, a general absence ofsupport services and treatment for sexually transmittedinfections, including HIV, throughout the migration cycle isevident in all countries of South Asia, stated the report.

Besides the US, other top destination countries are Russia,Germany and Saudi Arabia in that order.

The US also recorded the largest outflow of remit-tances in 2009—$ 48 billion—followed by Saudi Arabiawith an outflow of $ 26 billion and Switzerland andRussia accounting for less than $ 20 billion of outflowseach. Many of the big destination countries are also origincountries like Germany, the U.K., Ukraine, Russia andIndia. The top immigration countries relative to popula-tion are Qatar where migrants make up 87% of the popu-lation, Monaco (72%), the United Arab Emirates (70%),Kuwait (69%) and Andorra (64%).

The Migration Report said that for Asia too, the USwas the main destination with 7·9 million Asian emigrantsgoing to that country. Asians are the second-most nume-rous group of migrants in the US, next to Mexicans, withover 10 million people—a 27% share of the total migrantpopulation—made up of nearly 2 million Chinese, 1·7million Filipinos and 1·6 million Indians.

CULTURAL HERITAGEARCHAEOLOGY AND

Roman Statue UnearthedA Roman statue buried for centuries has been

unearthed by the winter gales that rocked Israel’s coast.The white-marble figure of a woman in toga and sandalswas found in the remains of a cliff that crumbled underthe force of winds, waves and rain at the ancient part ofAshkelon in Israel, official sources revealed.

The Roman statueunearthed in Israel.

‘‘The sea gave us thisamazing statue,’’ they said.The statue which lacks a headand arms, is about 4 feet tall,weights 200 kg and dates backto the Roman occupation ofwhat was western Judea,between 1,800 and 2,000 yearsago. It will be put on display inmuseums.

Also, recovered at the sitewere fragments of Romanbath-house and mosaics.

But long-established Israeliarchaeological sites such as the

ruins of coastal Caesarea suffered serious damage in thestorm, so the statue’s find brought the officials little joy.

Mummified Head of French King Henry-IVFound

A 400-year old mummified head has been identifiedas that of French king Henry IV, whose body wasmutilated by revolutionaries during a symbolic desecra-tion of the tombs of the country’s monarchs in 1793.

Royal Match : A reconstruction of theface of France’s king Henry IV (L) andhis skull with the reconstructionoverlaid. After 9 months of tests,researchers in France identified hisembalmed head, which disappearedduring the French Revolution in 1793.

A team of multi-disciplinary resear-chers, who carriedout an extensiveforensic examinationof the mummifiedhead and its innerparts, concluded thatthe head actually isof the beloved kingas thought earlier.

The team led byosteo - archaeologistPhilipp Charlier ofUniversity HospitalPoincare in Garches, composed the head with sculpturesand portraits of Henry, and digitally reconstructed theface.

PD/February/2011/1369 “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.”

The result was a dead ringer for the beloved king, theresearchers said, adding that the same techniques couldbe used on the other mutilated remains of French royalty,Live Science reported. The story of how Henry IV’s headbecame the subject of a forensic investigation can betraced to 1589, when his predecessor, Henry III, wasassassinated by a fanatical monk.

The head stayed in the hands of private collectorsuntil recently. The mummified head was well-preserved,and the royal brain lay undisturbed inside the skull.

TERRORISM

Centre Forms Teams to Nab 31 Most WantedTerrorists

The Union Government has constituted special teamsto locate and nab 31 ‘most wanted’ militants, including 19of the Indian Mujahideen and some Jamiat-ul-Ansar-ul-Muslimeen terrorists.

Fact Sheet19 out of 31 belong to Indian Mujahideen

● Karnataka (3 from Bhatkal town) 10● Uttar Pradesh (All from Azamgarh) 8● Kerala (All from Kannur) 6● Maharashtra 3● Gujarat 2● Jharkhand 2

If needed, the teams will co-ordinate with foreign lawenforcement agencies and go abroad to get the terroristsfrom the countries where they are currently holed in,most of whom are wanted for carrying out of or the otherbomb blast in the last three-four years.

The list of terrorists sent by the Union Home Ministrycontains documents and sketches/photographs of the 31absconding terrorists.

Detailed dossiers of these terrorists have also beenshared with a few Gulf countries as intelligence inputssuggest that some of them are currently based there andcarrying Pakistani passports.

‘‘We have asked the teams to make a concerted effortto apprehend these people,’’ said a source.

He said the move was part of the planned crackdownon absconding terrorists, adding some foreign countrieshad already started helping the security agencies andbegun surveillance on some suspects.

The Centre’s plan assumes significance in the light ofrecent terrorist bombing in Varanasi as well as intel-ligence inputs that the Indian Mujahideen is trying toexpand its network by recruiting new members, particu-larly from Uttar Pradesh, and sending some of them toPakistan for training.

The Indian Mujahideen’s hand is suspected in over 10serial blasts in Delhi and other parts of the country thatclaimed nearly 500 lives while JIAM struck in Bangaloreon July 25, 2008, where nine bombs exploded, killing awoman and injuring 20 people.

The Indian Mujahideen, an offshoot of the bannedSIMI and Pakistan based Lashkar-e-Taiba and is directlycontrolled by the Pakistan intelligence agency ISI.

HyderabadThe capital of Andhra Pradesh Hyderabad will host

the World Wide Web 2011 meet. Scheduled in India forthe first time it is the fourth in an Asian city. TheConference is the latest in the series of internationalevents that started with Geneva.

Abu DhabiThree decades after it came into being the Gulf

Cooperation Council (GCC) session was held in AbuDhabi (UAE) in December 2010.

Jim Corbett National ParkThe world famous Jim Corbett National Park—home

to the endangered Royal Bengal Tiger—is celebrating itsplatinum jubilee in January 2011.

Nha TrangA coastal city of Vietnam where 2010 Miss Earth

beauty pageant was held in December 2010.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS

1. Convenient Action : Gujarat’s Response to Challen-ges of Climate Change

—By Narendra Modi, Chief Minister ofGujarat, Published by MacMillan, India

A 250-page book, it primarily focusses on howGujarat has responded to challenges of climatechange. It may be mentioned that Modi had earlierpenned short stories, poetry and essays, but they areall in Gujarati. The present book is the one in English.

2. India for A Billion Reasons—Edited by Amit Dasgupta, Daryaganj, New Delhi

3. My Life with the Taliban—By Abdul Salam Zaeef, Translated by Alex

Strick Van Linschoten and Felix Kuehn4. The China Syndrome : Grappling with Uneasy

Relationship —By Harsh V. Pant5. Ourselves Unborn : A History of Foetus in Modern

America —By Sara Dubow6. Shah Commission Report : Lost and Regained

—By Era Sezhiyan7. Global Crisis Recession and Uneven Recovery

—By Y. V. Reddy; Orient Blackswan, Hyderabad

National DaysFebruary 24 Central Excise Day

February 28 National Science Day

International DaysFebruary 2 World Wetlands DayFebruary 21 International Mother Language Day

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1370 “In the ideal sense nothing is uninteresting; there are only uninterested people.”

U.P. PCS Additional Private Secretary (U.P.

Secretariat) Examination 2010

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 21, 2011.

Total Vacancies—250.

Educational Qualifications—Agraduate degree from any universityrecognised by Law in India withminimum 80 words p.m. speed inHindi shorthand and minimum 25words p.m. speed in Hindi type.

Age Limit—21 years to 35 yearsof age.

How to Apply—As per theformat published in EmploymentNews December 25-31, 2010.

Selection Procedure—Paper Iwill have General Knowledge, PaperII will have General Hindi, Paper IIIwill be based on Hindi shorthandwhile Paper IV will have Hinditypewriting.

See Employment News December25-31, 2010 for more details.

East Coast Railway : Recruitment Against Ex-

Servicemen Quota in Group D

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 24, 2011.

Total Vacancies—277.

Eligibility Criteria—Ex-service-men who have retired after putting in15 years of service and have passedArmy class-I certificate.

Mode of Selection—The namesof eligible candidates will be arran-ged in the order of merit on the basisof total length of military service.

How to Apply—As per theformat given in Employment NewsDecember 25-31, 2010.

See Employment News December25-31, 2010 for more details.

Recruitment in North Eastern Railway for

Various Post

Recruitment in North Eastern Railway for

Various Post

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—February 12, 2011.

Total Vacancies—146.Educational Qualifications—

Minimum 10th Class Pass.Age Limit—18 to 33 yearsHow to Apply—As per the

format given in Employment NewsDecember 25-31, 2010.

Selection Procedure—All candi-dates shall be required to appear inPhysical Efficiency Test (PET).

See Employment News December25-31, 2010 for more details.

Recruitment in South Western Railway Against

Ex-Servicemen Quota

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 25, 2011.

Total Vacancies—987.

Eligibility Criteria—Ex-Service-men who have retired after putting in15 years and have passed class-Icertificate or equivalent.

Procedure of Recruitment—Therecruitment shall be on the basis ofscrutiny of applications.

How to Apply—As per theformat given in Employment NewsDecember 25-31, 2010.

See Employment News December25-31, 2010 for more details.

Recruitment in East Coast Railway Against

Sportsperson Quota (Open Market) for the

year 2010-11

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 24, 2011.

Total Vacancies—12.Educational Qualification—

Matriculation or its equivalent from arecognised board.

Age Limit—18 years to 25 years.Selection Procedure—Selection

will be based on performance inSports Trials/Interview.

See Employment News December25-31, 2010 for more details.

Recruitment in Indian Navy as Sailors for

Artificer Apprentice (AA)

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 15, 2011.

Educational Qualifications—10 + 2/equivalent.

Age Limit—16 to 19 years.Selection Procedure—The ques-

tion paper will comprise four sectionsEnglish, Science, Mathematics andGeneral Knowledge. There will bePhysical Efficiency Test (PET).

How to Apply—The applicationsare to be downloaded from websitewww.nausena-bharti.nic.in, Applica-tion will be received only throughOrdinary Post.

See Employment News December18-24, 2010 for more details.

Recruitment in Bharat Heavy Electricals

Limited for Engineering Professionals

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 7, 2011.

Total Vacancies—50.Educational Qualifications—

Full Time Engineering Degree inCivil/Mechanical/Electrical Enginee-ring etc.

Age Limit—36 years for DeputyManager and 39 years for Managers.

Selection Procedure—SelectionProcess will Comprise Personal Inter-view.

How to Apply—The submissionof applications will be online onlythrough our website :

www.bhelisg.comSee Employment News December

11-17, 2010 for more details.

PD/February/2011/1371 “I am not an Athenian or a Greek, I am a citizen of the world.”

UPPSC : Combined State/Upper Subordinate Service Examination 2011

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 28, 2011.

Total Vacancies—100.

Plan of Examination : The com-petitive examination comprises threesuccessive stages viz —

(1) Preliminary Examination(Objective Type). (2) Main Examination(Conventional Type), i.e., Writtenexamination. (3) Viva-voce (PersonalityTest).

The preliminary examination willconsist of two objective type papers ofwhich answer sheet be on OMR sheets.

Paper-I (Optional)Paper-II (Compulsory) : General Studies

For the Mains Examination : TheWritten Examination will consist ofcompulsory and optional subjects. Thecandidates have to select any twooptional subjects for mains examination.Each optional subject will consist of twopapers.

After Mains Exam. Personality Test(Interview) will be held.

Educational Qualifications—Thecandidates must possess a Bachelor'sDegree or its equivalent from anyrecognised University.

Age Limit—21 to 35 years.How to Apply—OMR Appli-

cation forms with instruction can bepurchased for Rs. 155 from the desi-gnated Post Offices.

See Employment News January1-7, 2011 for more details.

Northern Railway : Recruitment Against Ex-

Servicemen Quota

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 10, 2011.

Total Vacancies—2116.

Eligibility Criteria—Ex-Service-men who have retired after putting in15 years of service and have passedArmy Class-I certificate or equivalent.

Mode of Selection—The recruit-ment will be on the basis of scrutinyof application and there will be nophysical efficiency test or written test.

How to Apply—As per theformat given in Employment NewsDecember 11-17, 2010.

See Employment News December11-17, 2010 for more details.

SSC Recruitment of Junior Engineers

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 31, 2011.

Total Vacancies—142.

Educational Qualifications—Degree or Diploma in Civil orMechanical Engineering.

Age Limit—Upto 32 years forJunior Engineers (Civil and Mechani-cal) in Central Water Commissionand 18-27 years for Junior Engineers(Electrical) in Department of Posts.

Selection Procedure—There willbe two papers. Paper I will consist ofGeneral Intelligence, General Aware-ness, General Engineering and PaperII will consist of Engineering subject.

How to Apply—As per Applica-tion format as given in EmploymentNews January 1-7, 2011 should besubmitted.

See Employment News January1-7, 2011 for more details.

SSC Junoir Engineers (Civil and Electrical)

Examination 2011

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 31, 2011.

Age Limit—18 to 27 years.

Selection Procedure—Writtentest will have two Papers. Paper-I willbe objective type having GeneralIntelligence and Reasoning, GeneralAwareness, General Engineering(Civil and Structural, Electrical andMechanical) while Paper-II will beconventional type (General Engineer-ing—Civil and Structural, Electricaland Mechanical).

How to Apply—Applicationsmust be submitted only in the pre-scribed format given in EmploymentNews January 1-7, 2011.

See Employment News January1-7, 2011 for more details.

PD/February/2011/1372 “Just because a man lacks the use of his eyes doesn’t mean he lacks vision.”

Recruitment in Ballia—Etahwah Gramin

Bank for Assistants

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 25, 2011.

Total Vacancies—199.

Educational Qualifications—Bachelor's Degree or its equivalentfrom a recognized University in anydescipline.

Selection Procedure—WrittenTest will consist of Reasoning,Numerical Ability, Clerical Aptitudeand General Awareness.

FORTHCOMING COMPETITIVE EXAMS., 2011Punjab and Sind Bank Probationary Officers

Scale-I Exam. (Jan. 16)Clerical Recruitment Exam. in State Bank of

India’s Associate Banks (Jan. 16)Corporation Bank Officers Cadre Examination (Jan. 16)Madhya Pradesh Assistant Director/DistrictStatistical Officer Exam., 2009 (Jan. 16)M.P. Police Telecommunication Organisation,

Bhopal Constables (Radio) Operator Exam. (Jan. 17)Madhya Bharat Gramin Bank Officers Scale-I

Exam. (Jan. 23)Punjab and Sind Bank Specialist Officers Exam. (Jan. 23)I.D.B.I. Bank Executives Exam. (Jan. 23)UCO Bank Probationary Officer in JMGS-I

Exam. (Jan. 30)GATE 2011 Online Exam. (Jan. 30)

(Papers : GG and TF, AE and MN)Punjab and Sind Bank Clerical Cadre Exam. (Jan. 30)Madhya Bharat Gramin Bank Office Assistants

Exam. (Jan. 30)U.P. PCS Review Officer/Assistant Review Officer

etc. General Selection (Pre.) Exam., 2010 (Jan. 30)National Insurance Company Ltd. Administrative

Officer (Scale-I) Examination. (Jan. 30)M.P. School Education Department, Principal

Higher Secondary School Recruitment Exam. (Jan. 30)M.P. Police Constable Recruitment Exam. (Jan. 30)

(Closing Date : 10 Jan., 2011)Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Entrance Exam. (Feb. 6)

(For Class VI)Reserve Bank of India Grade ‘B’ Officers Exam. (Feb. 6)Union Bank Clerical Cadre Exam. (Feb. 6)Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Post Graduate

Teacher Preliminary Exam. (Feb. 11)Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan TGT and

Librarian, Primary Teacher (Pre.) Exam. (Feb. 12)U.P. Trained Graduate Teacher Recruitment

Exam. (Feb 13&20)Central Bank of India Clerical Cadre Exam. (Feb. 13)Assam Gramin Vikas Bank Office Assistant

Exam. (Feb. 13)UPSC Combined Defence Service Exam. (I),

2011 (Feb. 13)GATE 2011 Offline Exam. (Feb. 13)

(Papers : AR, BT, CE, CH, CS, ME, PH and PI,AG, CY, EC, EE, IN, MA, MT, XE and XL)

Assam Gramin Vikas Bank Officer JuniorManagement Scale-I Exam. (Feb. 20)

Madhya Pradesh State Services (Pre.) Exam.,2010 (Feb. 20)

Baroda Rajasthan Gramin Bank Officer Scale-Iand Scale-II Examination (Feb. 20)

Chhattisgarh Gramin Bank Officer Scale-I Exam. (Feb. 20)Indian Air Force Airman Recruitment Test (Feb.)

(Group ‘X’ Technical Trade)S.S.C. Multi Tasking (Non-Technical) Staff

Recruitment Exam. (Feb. 27)Dena Bank Probationary Officers Exam. (Feb. 27)LIC Assistant Administrative Officer (Generalists/

Chartered Accountants/Company Secretary/Legal) Exam. (Feb. 27)

Chhattisgarh Gramin Bank Office Assistants Exam.(Feb. 27)Baroda Rajasthan Gramin Bank Office Assistants

Recruitment Exam. (Feb. 27)Rajasthan Gramin Bank Officers Recruitment

Exam. (March 6)Dena Bank Clerical Cadre Exam. (March 6)Bank of India General Banking Officer Scale-I

and II Examination for North Eastern States (March 6)Baroda U.P. Gramin Bank Officers (Scale-I)

Exam. (March 6)Bank of India Clerk Examination for North Eastern

States (March 13)Rajasthan Gramin Bank Office Assistant (Multi-

purpose) Exam. (March 13)Andhra Pradesh Gramin Vikas Bank Office

Assistants Exam., 2010 (March 13)(Online Closing Date : 14 Jan., 2011)

Baroda U.P. Gramin Bank Office AssistantClerical Cadre Exam. (March 13)

Indian Navy Senior Secondary Recruitment Exam.(March-April)

C.B.S.E. All India Pre-Medical and Pre-DentalEntrance Exam., 2011 (April 3)

Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Post GraduateTeacher (Mains) Exam. (April 8)

Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan TGT andLibrarian, Primary Teacher (Mains) Exam. (April 9)

I.I.T. Joint Entrance Exam., 2011 (April 10)Rajasthan Sub-Inspector Police Combined

Competitive Exam., 2010 (April/May)C.B.S.E. All India Pre-Medical and Pre-Dental

(Mains) Exam., 2011 (May 15)I.E.R.T. Entrance Exam., 2011 (Allahabad) (Engg./

Technology Diploma Course) (May 24)(Closing Date : 19 April, 2011)

How to Apply—Candidates arerequired to apply on-line throughBank's website www.bkgb.co.in.

See Employment News January1-7, 2011 for more details.

Recruitment in the Office of Registrar General

India for Various Posts

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—February 14, 2011.

Total Vacancies—Approximately700.

Educational Qualifications—Asper the requirement of the post.

Selection Procedure—On depu-tation basis in most cases.

How to Apply—As per theinstructions given in EmploymentNews January 1-7, 2011.

See Employment News January1-7, 2011 for more details.

Recruitment in Saurashtra Gramin Bank

for Various Posts

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 28, 2011.

Total Vacancies—134.

PD/February/2011/1373

Educational Qualifications—Bachelor's Degree.

Selection Procedure—The testwill comprise Reasoning, NumericalAbility, General Knowledge, GeneralEnglish, General Hindi.

How to Apply—As per theformat given at the website

www.sgb.org.in.

Log onto www.sgb.org.in formore details.

Recruitment in Directorate of Border

Security Force for Various Posts

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—February 26, 2011.

Total Vacancies—865.

Educational Qualifications—Matriculation.

Age Limit—18 to 23 years forHC (RO)/HC (Fitter) 18 to 25 years(ASI-RM).

Selection Procedure—In firstPhase Written Exam will comprisePhysics, Mathematics, Chemistry andEnglish & GK while in Second Phase

UPSC Calendar for Examinations-2011

S.No Name of Examination

Date ofNotification

Last Date forReceipt of

Applications

Date ofCommence-

ment

1. Civil Services (Pre.) Exam., 2011 19.02.2011 21.03.2011(Monday)

12.06.2011(Sunday)

2. Indian Forest Service Exam., 2011 12.03.2011 11.04.2011(Monday)

09.07.2011(Saturday)

3. SCRA Exam., 2011 19.03.2011 18.04.2011(Monday)

31.07.2011(Sunday)

4. NDA & NA Exam. (II), 2011 09.04.2011 09.05.2011(Monday)

21.08.2011(Sunday)

5. CDS Exam. (II), 2011 30.04.2011 30.05.2011(Monday)

18.09.2011(Sunday)

6. Central Police Forces (AC) Exam.,2011

28.05.2011 27.06.2011(Monday)

09.10.2011(Sunday)

7. Civil Services (Mains) Exam., 2011 — — 29.10.2011(Saturday)

8. IES/ISS Exam., 2011 30.07.2011 29.08.2011(Monday)

03.12.2011(Saturday)

9. Geologists’ Exam., 2011 13.08.2011 12.09.2011(Monday)

03.12.2011(Saturday)

10. S.O./Steno (GD-B/GD-I) Ltd.Deptt. Competitive Exam.

23.07.2011 19.09.2011(Monday)

17.12.2011(Saturday)

Physical Efficiency Test, Dictation inEnglish and Personal Interview willbe held.

How to Apply—As per theformat given in www.bsf.nic.in.

Log onto www.bsf.nic.in formore details.

Recruitment in Bank of Baroda for Probationary

Officers

Last Date (Receipt of Applica-tion Forms)—January 25, 2011.

Total Vacancies—900.Educational Qualifications—

Degree in any discipline from arecognized University.

Age Limit—21 to 30 years.Selection Procedure—Written

Test will consist of Objective test, onReasoning, Quantitative Aptitude.General Socio Economic and BankingAwareness English Language andMarketing Aptitude.

How to Apply—Candidates arerequired to apply online throughwebsite www.bankofbaroda.com. Noother means of application will beaccepted.

Log onto www.bankofbaroda.com. for more details. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1374 “The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.”

CRICKET

India Sweep ODI SeriesAgainst New Zealand

India defeated New Zealand inChennai on December 10, 2010 in OneDay International and thus had 5-0ODI series sweep. India registeredeight wicket victory over New,Zealand with 173 deliveries to spare.This was India's biggest win in termsof balls against New Zealand.

Yuvraj Singh (42 not out) wasdeclared Man-of-the-Match. Lefthanded Gautam Gambhir wasadjudged ‘Player of the Series’ for 329runs—including two centuries—at109·66 in the series. It may be recalledhere that India's only previous 5-0sweep was against England at homein the 2008/09 season.

India secured a series whitewash againstNew Zealand with an eight-wicketvictory in Chennai on December 10, 2010.

Sachin's Another Milestone :Makes 50th Test Century

Sachin Tendulkar — India's mostloved cricketer—recorded anothermilestone in the history of cricketwhen he scored an unprecedented50th Test century against SouthAfrica on December 19, 2010 inCenturion (South Africa). NowSachin Tendulkar has become thefirst batsman in the 133 years history

of Test Cricket to achieve half centuryof hundreds. It may be recalled herethat Tendulkar has scored seven Testcenturies in 2010 during which healso notched up the first double-century in the history of one-daycricket. Saurav Ganguly-India's for-mer captain of cricket team calledhim the best batsman ever ahead ofthe late Don Bradman who retired in1948 with a Test batting average of99·94.

England Retains Ashes :Crushes Australia in FourthTest

England retained the Ashes onAustralian soil for the first time in 24years by completing and emphaticinnings and 157-run win overAustralia on the fourth day of thefourth test on December 29, 2010 inMelbourne. It was England's biggestwin over Australia since 1956 puttingit an unbeatable 2-1 up with onematch to play-after a quarter ofcentury after Mike Gattings teamclaimed the series 2-1 in 1986-87 in

England's last triumph in Australia.The English responded with a tower-ing 513 to hold a match winning 415run innings lead which Australiafound totally beyond it.

Bangladesh Wins 5th ODI;Clinches Series AgainstZimbabwe

Bangladesh beat Zimbabwe inthe fifth and final overs internationalby six wickets and clinched the five-game series against Zimbabwe 3-1 inChittagong on December 12, 2010.Bangladesh reached the winning runin reply to Zimbabwe’s 188-6 withseven overs. Bangladesh’s Iqbal wasfive runs short of reaching hiscentury because of which he wasnamed man of the match for his96-ball knock that included fiveboundaries and seven sixes in histown. It is noteworthy that Zimbabwewon the first match and Bangladeshtook the second and third. The fourthmatch was abandoned due to wetfield.

PD/February/2011/1375 “Every man takes the limits of his own field of vision for the limits of the world. ”

HOCKEY

Air India Clinches LalBahadur Shastri Tournament

Air India subdued Oil andNatural Gas Corporation (ONGC) 4-2after leading 3-0 in the final of theIndian Oil 21st Lal Bahadur ShastriHockey Tournament on December 4,2010 in New Delhi. Air India took thematch away by scoring three goals inthe first 16 minutes. Two of themwere by Birender Lakra.

The Air India team which won theIndian Oil 21st Lal Bahadur ShastriTournament on December 4, 2010.

The champion side was presen-ted Rs. 2 lakh, and the runner-up gotRs. 1 lakh. Diwakar Ram was adjud-ged the ‘best player’ of the tourna-ment and V. Raghunath was givena special prize, a Hero Honda bike,for emerging the top scorer of thetournament.

Army XI was presented the fairplay trophy.

FOOTBALL

Russia and Qatar DeclaredHosts of World Cup 2018 and2022 Respectively

Russia has been awarded thehostship of 2018 World Cup Footballwhile the gulf country of Qatar hasbeen declared the host of 2022 WorldCup. This information was madepublic on December 2, 2010 in Zurich.The announcement means the WorldCup will be staged in two countrieswhich have never hosted the eventbefore following the 2014 tournamentin Brazil. Qatar 2022 bid PresidentMohammed Bin Hamad Al Thanipromised—“we won't let you down.

You will be proud of us, proud of theMiddle East”. The winners (hosts)were declared after a secret ballot of22 FIFA executive committee mem-bers in Zurich.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter announcesRussia as the host nation for the 2018FIFA World Cup in Zurich on December2, 2010. Qatar will host the followingedition of 2022.

Previous Hosts/Winners ofFIFA Cup

Years Host Winners

1930 Uruguay Uruguay1934 Italy Italy1938 France Italy1950 Brazil Uruguay1954 Switzerland West Germany1958 Sweden Brazil1962 Chile Brazil1966 England England1970 Mexico Brazil1974 West Germany West Germany1978 Argentina Argentina1982 Spain Italy1986 Mexico Argentina

1990 Italy West Germany1994 United States Brazil

1998 France France

2002 South Korea &Japan

Brazil

2006 Germany Italy

2010 South Africa Spain

TENNIS

Lertpitaksinchai GrabsMaiden Title

Nicha Lertpitaksinchai ofThailand won the $ 25,000 QuestnetOpen ITF Women's tennis on Decem-ber 11, 2010 in Bangalore. She outplayed Kimiko Ijima of Japan 6-4, 6-3

to emerge winner. Earlier Thai pair ofWannasuk and Kumkhum won thedoubles title on December 10, 2010.

Nicha Lertpitaksinchai

Serbia Bags Davis Cup 2010Serbia's Victor Trocki defeated

France's Michael Llodra to bagSerbia's first Davis Cup title in the110-year old competition on Decem-ber 5, 2010 in Belgrade (Serbia) Trocki

Serbian tennis team holds the Davis Cuptrophy after winning the cup againstFrance in Belgrade, Serbia.

recorded straight sets victory overMichael Llodra in the final singlesmatch. Earlier Novak Djokovic beatGael Monfils to level the tie at 2-2.The World No. 3 Novak Djokovicwon both his singles rubbers in the 3-2 victory. He rated the triumph as thebest moment of a career. Earlier,France's Michael Llodra and ArnaudClemont beat Nenad Zimonjic andVictor Troicki to emerge championsin doubles final by 3-2.

Past Ten Years Winners ofDavis Cup

Year Winner Runner-up

2009 Spain Czech Rep.2008 Spain Argentina2007 USA Russia2006 Russia Argentina2005 Croatia Slovak Rep.2004 Spain USA2003 Australia Spain2002 Russia France2001 France Australia2000 Spain Australia

PD/February/2011/1376 “Efficiency is intelligent laziness.”

BADMINTON

Prannoy and Sindhu ClaimTitles

Kerala's Prannoy and AAI'sSindhu won their maiden badmintonmajor senior titles on the final day ofthe Bank of India all-India Seniorranking badminton ranking tourna-ment in Bangalore on November 30,2010. Prannoy downed Nanda Gopalof Andhra Pradesh whereas Sindhuout classed fellow AAI player andfourth seed Neha Pandit.

Sindhu and Prannoy with Trophies

Thus Prannoy clinched men'stitle and purse of Rs. 75,000 whileSindhu pocketed Rs. 50,000 for herwin.

Saina Nehwal Clinches HongKong Open

Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwalregistered a scentillating three-gamevictory over Shixian Wang of Chinato bag the title in Wanchal (HongKong) on December 12, 2010. The 20year old Indian took her career'sfourth Super Series title triumph with

Saina Nehwal with Hong Kong OpenTrophy

a 15-21, 21-16, 21-17 win over theChinese in one hour and 11 minutessummit clash. It is note worthy thatSaina won back-to-back title—IndianOpen Grand Prix, Singapore Open

Series and defended the IndonesiaSuper Series. In Men's singles, LeeChong Wei of Malaysia beat TaufikHidayat (Indonesia) 21-19, 21-9 to bagthe title. In Men's Double's Ko SungHyun and Yoo Yeon Seong of Koreadefeated Markis Kido and HendraSetiawan of Indonesia to emerge win-ers. In Women's Doubles JoachimFischer Nielsen and Christinna Peder-sen (Denmark) outclassed Zhang Nanand Zhao Yunlei (China) to clinchvictory.

Rumbaka and Hui ZhouEmerge Triumphant

Top seeded Rumbaka HayomDionysius of Indonesia defeated theunseeded Avihingsanon Suppanyu ofThailand 14-21, 21-15, 21-12 to clinchmen's singles title in the Indian OpenGrand Prix Badminton Champion-ship on December 19, 2010 in Hydera-bad. In the women's singles final, theunseeded Hui Zhou of China out-classed fifth seeded FransiskaRatnasari of Indonesia 21-13, 21-17.In men's doubles final the secondseeded Indonesian pair AhsanMohammad and Septano Bona beat

Rumbaka Hayom Dionysius and HuiZhou who won the singles titles.

top seeded Gan Chai Teik and TanShen Bin of Malaysia 19-21, 21-15,21-14 to emerge winners. In women'sdoubles Huan Zia and Tang Jinhua ofChina beats Ng Hui Ern and Ng HuiLin (Malaysia) to clinch title. In mixeddoubles, Liu Peixuan and TangJinhua (China) defeated Ng Hui Linand Gan Chai Teik (Malaysia) 21-17,21-17 to claim the title.

ATHLETICS

26th National Junior AthleticsChampionship Concludes :Nirupama Completes SprintDouble

The 26th National JuniorAthletics Championship came to a

close in Bangalore on December 4,2010. Karnataka's Nirupama Sunder-raj completed the sprint double forthe second year in a row. After hervictory in the 100 m earlier, she alsoswept the field aside to win theunder-20 girl's 200 m dash setting anew meet records in the process.

Her time of 24·28s was well insideMaria James' 24·83 from five yearsago. Sunderraj also ran a spectacularanchor leg in the 4 × 100 m relay,overtaking two runners to help theKarnataka team finish with a silver.

Kerala, meanwhile, took theoverall championship with a tally of28 gold, 19 silver, and 23 bronzemedals. Haryana (18-28-10), andMaharashtra (17-9-3) finished secondand third, condemning Tamil Nadu(16-14-16) to fourth place.

Triple jumper Arpinder Singhalso had a memorable outing, leaping16·45m to break Renjith Maheshwary'ssix year-old under-20 boys' record of16·06, on a day when seven otherNational records fell. Maharashtra'sShraddha Ghule was responsible forone of those, turning in an excellentperformance in the under 20 girls'long jump to add to her triple jumpgold. Ghule managed 6·30m, improv-ing over Ruta Patkar's mark of 6·25.

The Results (winners only) :Boys : U-20 : 200 m : Manish

(Har) 21·85s; 400 m hurdles :Ramashankar Bharati (Mah) 53·46;800 m : Jinson Johnson 1 : 52·49; 3000m steeple-chase : Jiyalal Bind (MP)9 : 30·85; Triple jump : ArpinderSingh (Pun) 16·45 m, NR (Old RenjithMaheshwary 16·06); Shot put :Gurwant Singh (Pun) 17·37 m; 4 ×××× 100m relay : Kerala 41·64. Best athlete :Arpinder Singh (Pun) 1096.

U-18 : 200 m : Prateek Ninave(Mah) 22·22s; 400 hurdles : DurgeshKumar Pal (Mah) 51·74, NMR (Old :Shejil Verghese 53·14); 3000 m :Inderjeet (UP) 8 : 25·91, NR (Old :Indrajeet Patel, 8 : 27·31); Pole Vault :Parmender Patel (UP) 4·70 m, NR(Old Parmender Patel 4·30); Hammer: Ali Ahmed (UP) 64·34 m; Shot put :Surender Singh (Har) 16·98; Javelin :Manoj Yadav (UP) 71·96, NR (Old :Rohit Kumar 71·52). Best athlete : K.Prem Kumar (TN) 1096.

U-16 : 200 m : Kamberdeep Singh(Pun) 22·33s, NR (Old : Jatin Jain

PD/February/2011/1377 “It is not enough for a man to know how to ride; he must know how to fall.”

23·03); High jump : Ajay (Har) 1·91m.Best athlete : Shuvhendu Mishra(UP) 931.

U-14 : Long jump : AshafulMondal (WB) 6·62m, NR (Old : P.Anburaja 6·33). Best athlete : ShaktiSolanki (Del) 982.

Girls : U-20 : 200 m : NirupamaSunderraj (Kar) 24·28s, NMR (Old :Maria James 24·83); 400 m hurdles :Anju Rani (Har) 1 : 02·56; 800 m :Anju (Har) 2 : 13·81; Long jump :Shraddha Ghule (Mah) 6·30 m, NR(Old : Ruta Patkar 6·25); Discus :Parmila (Har) 49·10 m, NMR (Old :M. R. Saroj 48·74); 4 ×××× 100 m relay :Kerala 48·38. Best athlete : NirupamaSunderraj (Kar) 1038.

U-18 : 200 m : C. Rengitha (Ker)24·79s, NMR (Old : Chitra Soman25·00); 400 m hurdles : R. Anu (Ker)1 : 02·65, NR (Old : Geetha Roby1 : 03·43); 3000 m : Sahanara Kalam(WB) 10 : 29. 53. Best athlete : R. Anu(Ker) 999.

U-16 : 200m : Ruma Sarkar (WB)25·42s; High Jump : P. Merlin (Ker)1·56. Best athlete : Duttee Chand(Ori) 1026.

U-14 : Best athlete : RochelleMacfarlane (TN) 949.

CHESS

S. P. Sethuraman is India'sYoungest Grand Master

Former World Under-16 Cham-pion S. P. Sethuraman won a GrandMaster Tournament by a one pointmargin at Poland on December 1,2010 to complete his third GrandMaster norm and become India'syoungest grandmaster on date.

S. P. Sethuraman

In the 10-player all-play-all,Sethuraman scored7/9 and finishedahead of the GMNorm requirementwhich was 6·5. Histhird norm follo-wed earlier normsmade at Parsvnath Open in Delhi2009 and Paris Open July 2010.

The 1993-born player fromChennai has become a Grand Master

as he is already rated above the 2500mark. He disappointed at PortoCarras in Greece by not finishingamong the medals despite starting asthe favourite in the World Under-18Championship. His showing inPoland has certainly compensated forit.

Parimarjan Negi EmergesNational Champion

Parimarjan Negi of Bharat Petro-leum won the 48th National PremierChess Championship in New Delhion December 22, 2010. He won the

Newly-crowned National championParimarjan Negi (right) and runner-upG. N. Gopal display their trophies inNew Delhi on December 22, 2010

title after beating G.N. Gopal. Thetitle win fetched him not only aglittering trophy and a cheque forRs. 1·25 lakh but also an unexpectedbonus of Rs. 50,000 from Delhi ChessAssociation. He is the first NationalChampion from Delhi.

`GOLF

Rikard Karlberg Bags IndianOpen Crown

Sweden's Rikard Karlberg wonthe Indian Open Crown of golf inNew Delhi on December 5, 2010.

Rikard Karlberg with the Indian Opencrown Trophy

Karlberg stayed off the lead and BaekSeu K. Hyun dropped three strokesby 12 holes and surprise leaderManav Jaini tumbled from 11-underto chok on the 16th and 17th. Ulti-mately it was Karlberg who finishedto seal the $ 1·25 million Hero HondaIndian Open golf title. It is note-worthy that Karlberg won the SAILOpen title and began this event inthird place on the Asian Tour's Orderof Merit. Baek Seu K. Hyun (Korea)finished second while Manav Jainifinished third in the tournament.

SPORTS ANDGAMES BRIEFING

Saurav Ghosal Wins SquashTitle

Saurav Ghosal defeated Harin-der Pal Sandhu for a 10-12, 12-10,11-14, 11-2 victory in the men's finalof 58th Senior National Champion-

Saurav Ghosal

ship on December10, 2010 in Mumbai.In women's final, itwas Joshna Chinap-pa (Tamil Nadu)who after beatingSaumya Karki(Maharashtra) 11-6,11-4, 11-7 emergedtriumphant in the tournament.

Vijender Bags AwardBoxer Vijender Singh was pre-

sented the Most Valuable Perfor-mance Award by Samsung onDecember 22, 2010. Vijender haddefeated world champion Abbos

The President and CEO of SamsungSouth West Asia, Jung Soo Shin, pre-senting the ‘Most valuable PerformanceAward’ to Vijender Singh.

Atoev of Uzbekistan 7-0 in the final in16th Asian Games in Guangzhou inNovember 2010. The MVP award,carries a reward of Rs. 5 lakh worthof Samsung products. All the otherathletes who had won medals in theAsian Games were also felicitatedwith different sizes of LCD televisionsets and mobile phones.

Matthew and Duncalf ClaimSquash Titles

World Champion of Squash NickMatthew of England beat JamesWillstrop to register a splendidvictory and thus clinch the $ 192,500Punj Lloyd PSA Master Squash Cham-pionship in New Delhi on December19, 2010.

Nick Matthew (right) and Jenny Duncalfwon the PSA and WISPA Masters titleson December 19, 2010.

The champion collected $ 29,093and the runner-up $ 19,118. In thewomen's final the top seeded JennyDuncalf of England outplayed thesecond seeded Kasey Brown ofAustralia and clinched WISPAMasters title in 34 minutes dropping14 points.

Tamil Nadu and Railway areVolleyball Champions

Tamil Nadu scripted a classiccome-from-behind victory afterdefeating Kerala in the final of the

The triumphant Tamil Nadu team mem-bers pose with the trophy.

Velammal Silver Jubilee 59th SeniorNational Volleyball Championship(men's title) in Chennai on December19, 2010. Earlier Railway womenclinched a hat-trick of titles beatingKerala to emerge champion inwomen's section. P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1357

CommentIt may however be mentioned

that Nouri al-Maliki is by and large asagacious leader. He acquitted him-

self well in the first term, with vio-lence writ large on Iraqi polity rightsince the formation of a governmentin his first term. He has succeededwell enough in bringing conflictingsegments of Iraq’s political brass andhas been able to elicit a vow fromAmerica to withdraw its forces at theearliest. The Arab world will be welladvised to extend all cooperation tothe new government and let it workindependently in the interest ofregional peace. No cause of excusemust be left for the imperialist forcesto prolong their stay in Iraq.

Pakistan Test-fires its Gauri Missile Successfully

Pakistan on December 21, 2010successfully test-fired Hatf V(Gauri)—a Medium Range BallisticMissile—capable of carrying bothconventional and nuclear war headsover 1,300 km. Lauding the 11-year-

Operational : Hatf V (Gauri) being test-fired from an undisclosed location inPakistan on December 21.

old Army Strategic Force Command(ASFC) for the successful launch,Prime Minister Syed Yousuf RazaGilani said that the test was a signalto the world that Pakistan’s defencecapability was impregnable andshould never be challenged.

Addressing concerns voicedinternationally about the safety andsecurity of Pakistan’s nuclearweapons, the Prime Minister said thatthey “are safe, fully secure and undera multi-layered command and controlsystem.”

According to Press sources thelaunch was conducted by the Strate-gic Missile Group of the ASFC on theculmination of a field trainingexercise.

PD/February/2011/1378

News in a Nutshell

Russia Launches RocketCarrying its Glonass

Rocket launched a rocket carry-ing three Glonass navigational satel-lites into space on December 5, 2010from the Baikonour cosmodrome inKazakhstan. It was reported by Inter-fax news agency.

The Protocol M-rocket blasted offon time carrying three Glonass–Msatellites part of a system designedby the Russian government as a rivalto the United States government'sGlobal Positioning System (GPS),Inter fax reported.North Korea Digging Tunnelfor N-Test

North Korea is digging a tunnelat its nuclear test site which wouldmake it ready to conduct a thirdnuclear test by March, journalisticsources revealed on December 15 asSouth Korea prepared for its largestcivil defence drills in years. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1379 “Every man regards his own life as the New Year’s Eve of time.”

National

● The new Chief of Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) is ➟ Sanjeev (SK) Tripathi

☞ Sanjeev (SK) Tripathi—who was hitherto the head of the Aviation Research Centre (ARC) has been appointedthe Chief of Research and Analysis Wing—India's external intelligence agency.

● The man who has been chosen CNN-IBN Indian of the year is ➟ Nitish Kumar

☞ Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has been chosen as the CNN-IBN Indian of the year for changing thevocabulary of politics, putting development on centre stage and triggering hope amongst millions.

● The National (Chess) Champion is ➟ Parimarjan Negi

☞ Parimarjan Negi beat G.N. Gopal to clinch the 48th National Premier Chess Championship on December 22,2010 in New Delhi.

● India recently signed 30 pacts with ➟ Russia

☞ Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev had a very significant visit to India in December 2010 during which 30agreements were signed between India and Russia.

● India recently held joint military exercise with ➟ Mongolia

☞ The troops of India and Mongolia held joint military exercise with two-week drill in counter insurgencyending in Belgaum on December 19, 2010. The exercise was named ‘Nomadic Elephant’.

● The 4th Indo-US Healthcare Summit will be held in ➟ Jaipur

☞ The American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI)—a premier medical association in Americarepresenting 60,000 doctors is holding its 4th Indo-US Healthcare Summit in January 2011.

● The winners of 59th Senior National Volleyball Championship in Men's and Women's Sections respectively are

➟ Tamil Nadu and Railway

☞ Tamil Nadu beat Kerala to clinch the 59th Senior National Volleyball Championship (men's section) whileRailway also defeated Kerala to bag women's title of the 59th Senior National Volleyball Championship heldin Chennai in December 2010.

● The winners of Indian Grand Prix (Badminton) title in men's and women's finals are

➟ Rumbaka Hayom Dionysius and Hui Zhou

☞ Top seeded Rumbaka Hayom Dionysius of Indonesia beat Avihingsanon Suppanayu of Thailand to clinchmen's singles title while in women's singles final Hui Zhou of China beat fifth seeded Fransiska Ratnasari tobag the title in the Indian Open Grand Prix badminton championship held in Hyderabad in December 2010.

● The winner of Hong Kong Open (Badminton) Championship is ➟ Saina Nehwal

☞ Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal registered a scintillating three game victory over Shixian Wang of China toclinch the title at the Hong Kong Open in Wanchai on December 12, 2010.

● India recently signed two pacts on nuclear safety and 5 pacts in nuclear field with ➟ France

☞ India signed five agreements with France in the nuclear field as announced on December 6, 2010 by ExternalAffairs Ministry while two pacts on nuclear safety with the same were also signed on the same date.

● The Mid Year Analysis Projects for Indian Economy ➟ 9% growth

☞ In its Mid Year Analysis 2010-2011 tabled in Parliament on December 7, 2010 by Finance Minister PranabMukherjee it is estimated that growth in 2010-11 will be 8·75 plus or minus 0·35 per cent that is nearly about9%.

● The winner of the Hero Honda Indian Open golf title is ➟ Rikard Karlberg

☞ Sweden's Rikard Karlberg registered a splendid victory to clinch the $ 1·25 million Hero Honda Indian Opengolf title on December 5, 2010 in New Delhi while South Korea's Baek Seuk-Hyun finished second in thetournament.

PD/February/2011/1380 “All the suns labour to kindle your flame and a microbe puts it out.”

● The highest HIV infection in the country in percentage term is found in ➟ Manipur

☞ As per the latest data released by National Aids Control Organization Manipur continues to top the list withan adult prevalence of 1·40 per cent followed by Andhra Pradesh (0·90%) Mizoram at (0·81 per cent) andNagaland at (0·78 per cent).

● The estimated new HIV infections in India in 2009 was ➟ 1·2 lakh☞ As per recently released data released by NACO it is estimated that India had approximately 1·2 lakh new

HIV infections in 2009 as against 2·7 lakh in 2000.● India recently test-fired ➟ BrahMos Missile

☞ India's supersonic cruise missile BrahMos was successfully flight-tested on December 2, 2010 from theIntegrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, Orissa.

● Recently Indian Army was involved in Operation ‘Saiyam’ (patience) which was related to➟ Scrap Ammunitions

☞ Indian Army began its biggest operation in November-December 2010 to dispose of scrap ammunitions(mortar bombs projectiles, grenades, rockets etc.) in Shekowal and Khelwal village near Ludhiana. Theoperation was named Operation Saiyam (patience) which aims at destroying scraps imported between 1999and 2004.

● The Best RTI Journalist Award has been conferred on ➟ Saikat Datta

☞ Saikat Datta of the Outlook has been given the Best RTI Journalist Award for using the Right to InformationAct to expose a Rs. 2,500 crore scam in the export of rice.

International

● Russian Parliament recently approved ➟ New START

☞ The Russian—American New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) won preliminary approval of theRussian Parliament by a 350-56 majority in the first of three votes on December 24, 2010 in the State Duma—Lower House of Parliament, though the Parliament postponed its final approval till next year.

● Pakistan recently test-fired ➟ Hatf V (Ghauri)☞ Pakistan on December 21, 2010, successfully test-fired Hatf V (Ghauri)—a Medium Range Ballistic Missile—

capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads over 1,300 km.● The man who has been declared African Player of the Year is ➟ Samuel Eto

☞ Cameroon's Samuel Eto of Inter Milan was named African Player of the year for a record fourth time onDecember 20, 2010. He also won this honour in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

● The Time Magazine Person of the Year 2010 is ➟ Mark Zuckerberg☞ Mark Zuckerberg founder and Chief executive of the Facebook—social networking site that has more than

half billion users has been named Time Magazines 2010 Person of the Year in December 2010.

● The K.C. Kulish International Award for Excellence in Print Media Journalism for 2009 has been conferred on

➟ Ghana Newspaper the New Crusading Guide

☞ The New Crusading Guide-a daily newspaper from Ghana in West Africa has been named the winner ofRajasthan Patrika Group's K.C. Kulish International Award for Excellence in Print Media Journalism 2009 forits series of reports on Ghana's Madhouse and Chinese sex mafia.

● The year which has been ranked as one of the top three warmest years is ➟ The year 2010

☞ Since the beginning of instrumental climate records in 1850 the year 2010 is almost certain to rank in the topthree warmest years. As per World Meteorological Organization data, at present 2010's nominal value is thehighest on record just ahead of 1998 and 2005.

● FIFA World Cup Football hosts for 2018 and 2022 respectively are ➟ Russia and Qatar

☞ Russia and Qatar were awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups (Football) following a secret ballot of 22 FIFAexecutive committee members in Zurich on December 2, 2010. The 2014 World Cup of Football will be held inBrazil.

● The winner of Davis Cup (Tennis) 2010 is ➟ Serbia

☞ Serbia's Vicktor Troicki beat France's Michael Llodra to clinch Davis Cup (Tennis) 2010 in Belgrade. It wasSerbia's first title in the 110 year old competition.

● The winner of Ashes Test Series (cricket) in December 2010 was ➟ England

☞ England retained the Ashes Test Series after an innings and 157 run victory in the fourth Test againstAustralia in Melbourne on December 29, 2010 with one match yet play. It was Englands biggest win overAustralia since 1956. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1381 “As far as the Moon is concerned, he is always full.”

RBI Promotes Liquidityby Reducing SLR to 24%

Reserve Bank of India in itsMonetary Policy Review on Decem-ber 16, 2010 put main focus on liq-uidity problem which commercialbanks were facing. RBI reducedStatutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) by 1per cent to 24 per cent. SLR signifiesthe fraction of deposits which com-mercial banks are mandated to investin government bonds. Besides, RBIannounced infusion of 48000 crorein liquidity—equivalent to a 1 percent cut in cash reserve ratio–throughopen market operations in one month.

RBI has taken these steps to easethe liquidity tightness and to providesupport to credit growth. Analystsput the view that these steps of easingliquidity tightness and increasinggovernment spending will ensure acomfortable environment on liquidityfront.

40

35

30

25

20

38.5

Sep 22 ‘91 Effective date

24.0

Dec 18 ‘10

SLR’s Journey(in %)

Though in its review on Decem-ber 16, 2010 RBI has not altered anyof the other key rate including Bank

What is Statutory LiquidityRatio ?

SLR refers to that portion of totaldeposits of a commercial bank which ithas to keep with itself in the form ofcash reserves. SLR is an effective instru-ment of credit control with ReserveBank of India. By varying the SLR, theRBI controls the expansion and con-traction of credit. If SLR is reduced, thelendable resources with the scheduledcommercial banks gets correspondinglyincreased and vice-versa.

Rate, CRR, Repo Rate and ReverseRepo Rate but RBI may raise theserates as the inflation pressures arestill mounting in the economy.

Key Rates of RBI(Status as on Dec. 18, 2010)

Key Rate Rate w. e. f.

Bank Rate 6·0% April 30, 2003

Cash ReserveRatio

6·0% April 24, 2010

Repo Rate 6·25% Nov. 2, 2010Reverse RepoRate

5·25% Nov. 2, 2010

StatutoryLiquidity Ratio

24% Dec. 18, 2010

RBI also Cuts SLR forRRBs to 24%

After 10 days of announcing areduction of 1% in SLR to 24% w.e.f.December 18, 2010, Reserve Bank ofIndia on December 27, 2010 alsoannounced reduction in SLR by oneper cent point 24 per cent for RegionalRural Banks (RRBs). RBI also madethis rate effective for RRBs fromDecember 18, 2010. The similar cutfor commercial banks was announcedby RBI in its monetary review madeon December 18, 2010.

The new measure declared forRRBs means that RRBs can now keepless of government securities andhave more lendable resources forcredit needs.

Mid-year Economic Review Puts Economy on

Right Track

Finance Ministry on December7, 2010 presented country's Mid-yearEconomic Review 2010-11 whichindicates good health of the economyand projects 9·1 per cent growth ratefor the year 2010-11. It is the highestprojection of the growth rate in thelast three years. The EconomicSurvey, presented by the Ministrybefore budget 2010-11, had projectedthe growth rate of 8·25–8·75 per centfor 2010-11.

Mid-year review highlights thebetter performance of the economy inthe second quarter of the year 2010-11. 4 per cent growth in farm sectorand 9·8 per cent growth in manu-facturing sector helped the economyto attain 8·9 per cent GDP growth inthe second quarter of the economy.

Mid-year review puts agricultureand industry growth rates for April-September 2010 period at 3·8 per cent

PD/February/2011/1382 “The rich would have to eat money if the poor did not provide food.”

and 10·2 per cent respectively whilethey were only 1·0 and 6·3 per centfor the same period of 2009. GDP hasbeen estimated at 8·9 per cent in thefirst half of 2010-11 which is higher to7·5 per cent obtained in the first halfof 2009-10.

Important Statistics Mid-year Economic Review

(in million $)

April-June

2009 2010

Trade Balance – 25·64 – 34·19

Current AccountBalance

– 4·45 – 13·73

NRIDeposits/Remittances

1·82 1·12

FDI (Net) 6·12 3·12

Portfolio 8·27 4·61

Mid-year review presents satis-factory scenario of revenue deficitand fiscal deficit due to increase intax and non-tax revenues. Revenuedeficit and fiscal deficit may remainbelow the target of 4% and 5·5% ofGDP for the entire year 2010–11.Finance Ministry puts signals to bringthe economy on the right track, butraises concerns over debt and deficit.Average food inflation, projected at19·95 per cent is another seriousworry raised in the mid-year survey.

India and China to Raise Bilateral Trade to $ 100

billion by 2015

India and China have agreed toraise bilateral trade to $ 100 billion by2015. Both the countries have decided

to reduce the trade deficit. Accordingto the official statistics, India's cumu-lative merchandise exports to Chinain 2009-10 stood at $ 178751·43million while total imports were at$ 288372·88 million. India's tradebalance with China has risen from$ (–) 46075·20 million in 2005-06 to$ 109, 621·45 million. China has be-come India's largest trading partners,though the balance of trade liesheavily in favour of China. Now boththe countries agreed to take measures

to promote India's exports to Chinaso as to reduce India's trade deficit.

The bilateral trade between Indiaand China is expected to be around$ 60 billion in 2010. The bilateraltrade imbalance was against Indiato the tune of $ 19 billion during2009-10.

Economy Scenario India Vs.China at a Glance

GDP 2009China $ 4·98 trillionIndia $ 1·31 trillion

GDP Growth Rates (%)

2007 2008 2009

China 13 9 9·1India 9 7·4 7·7

China agreed to support Indianparticipation in national and regionaltrade fairs, enhance exchange andcooperation of pharmaceutical su-pervision and expedite completion ofphytosanitary negotiations on agroproducts.

To step up the potential ofbilateral trade, India and China havedecided to establish a Strategic Eco-nomic Dialogue to enhance macroeconomic policy coordination andaddress challenges facing economicdevelopment.

India and China also agreed to“jointly oppose protectionism in allforms,” besides expanding bilateralcooperation in sectors like infrast-ructure, environmental protection, in-formation technology, telecommuni-cations, investment and finance, on apriority basis.

The two sides agreed to encour-age greater mutual investment andproject contracting cooperation bet-ween businesses of the two countriesand deal appropriately with issuesconcerning economic and trade fric-tions.

PD/February/2011/1383/4 “My play was a complete success. The audience was a failure.”

ASSOCHAM Ranks Uttar Pradesh Among Top 2 Domestic Investment

Destinations

ASSOCHAM (Associated Cham-bers of Commerce and Industry ofIndia) has ranked Uttar Pradesh asthe second most preferred domesticinvestment destination in India afterKarnataka. As per the statistics, UttarPradesh registered a growth of 75 percent (year-on-year) and 4·7 per centshare of total investment commit-ments made during April-September2010-11.

According to ASSOCHAM'sInvestment Meter (AIM), UttarPradesh attracted massive investmentplans of about 205000 crore duringthe first half of 2010-11. Power andservices were prominent sectorswhich attracted major investments.

Among the list of top 20 in-vestment attracting states, Karnatakahas emerged as a preferred destina-tion with the highest share of over 9per cent in domestic investment plans.

According to the ASSOCHAMInvestment Meter, an assessment ofcorporate investments across statesand sectors, total investment plansof India incorporated increasedsignificantly from 79,70,000 crorein 2009 to 100,97,000 crore duringthe current financial year.

The availability of rich mineralresources like coal and iron ore alongwith cheap availability of manpowerhelped Jharkhand rank amongst thetop three states in attracting corporateinvestments.

Gujarat and Orissa securedfourth and fifth position by attractinginvestment plans worth 1,96,000crore and 1,91,000 crore respecti-vely.

India's Tele-density Reaches 60·99 as on

Sept.-end 2010

As per the data released by theTelecom Regulatory Authority ofIndia (TRAI), the country's total tele-phone user base, including landlineand mobile phone users as on

September 30, 2010 reached 723·28million. Wireless user base registered2·55 per cent increase between August2010 and September 2010, adding17·10 million new subscribers butcountry's fixed line phone connectionas of September 30, 2010 declined to35·37 million from 35·77 million ofAugust 2010. India's total broadbandsubscription at the end of September2010 was 10·29 million.

Bharti Airtel, country's largesttelecom provider, retains its lead-ership position in mobile phone userbase with a market share of 20·84 percent, followed by Reliance with 17·06per cent market share. VodafoneEssar with market share of 16·80 percent stood third in the race.

In land-line telephone marketBSNL is still leading with 73·71 percent share in the market and having26·22 million land-line users as ofSeptember-end 2010. MTNL rema-ined the second largest fixed line tele-phone operator with a market shareof 9·77 per cent or 3·47 million sub-scribers as on September 30, 2010.Bharti Airtel with 9·04 per cent sharein the land-line market stands third inthe list.

The over-all tele-density statisticshas been placed at 60·99 as onSeptember 30, 2010 while it was 59·63in August-end 2010. The wirelesstelephone density rose to 57·99 inSeptember-end from 56·61 of August2010.

Maharashtra Attracted Maximum FDI in April-Sept. 2010

Maharashtra attracted themaximum Foreign Direct Investment(FDI) of about $ 2·67 billion ( 12,275crore) during the first half of 2010-11(i.e., April-September period of 2010)which is 34 per cent of the totalFDI inflows into the country. Delhi’sNational Capital Region (NCR),including parts of Uttar Pradesh andHaryana could attract $ 1·96 billion( 8961 crore) of FDI during theperiod which is 20 per cent of totalFDI into the country. Thus, Maha-rashtra and NCR accounted for over50 per cent of total FDI inflows intothe country during the first half of

2010-11. The total FDI inflow duringthe first half of 2010-11 stood at $ 11billion.

Karnataka remained the third-most preferred FDI destination in thecountry, attracting $ 1·04 billion dur-ing the period, followed by AndhraPradesh ($ 491 million), MadhyaPradesh ($ 398 million) and TamilNadu ($ 331 million). FDI flows intodifferent states in India have in-creased steadily since the early 1990sbut Maharashtra and NCR took thelead in attracting maximum FDI dueto better infrastructure as comparedto other states of the country.

Less developed states like Raj-asthan received $ 13 million of FDIduring the period, while Orissa andUttar Pradesh attracted $ 11 millionand $ 80 million, respectively.

The sectors that attracted themaximum FDI include services, tele-communication, metallurgical in-dustries, power, computer hardwareand software and construction. Sincethe beginning of liberalisation andglobalisation era, government ismaking sustained efforts to make theFDI policy regime more attractiveand investor-friendly.

The foreign direct investmentinto the country in 2009-10 was$ 25·88 billion which was 5 per centlower than the $ 27·33 billion FDIinflow in 2008-09. The main reason ofthis decrease was global recession.

RBI asks Banks to Cap Cash Deposit Charges

Maximum at ` 5

The Reserve Bank of India hastaken a major step by directing banksnot to charge more than 5 for anycash deposit made at a non-homebranch i.e. branch other than the onewhere the customer has the account.RBI has taken this step after takingnote of the fact that some bankscharge as much as 110 for such cashdeposits.

It may be recalled that in 2008,the apex bank Reserve Bank of Indiahad directed that the charge for atransaction under the National Elec-tronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) upto 1lakh should not exceed 5. Makingsimilar to the line with NEFT charges,RBI now directed banks not to charge

PD/February/2011/1384 “The tyrant is nothing but a slave turned inside out.”

more than 5 for cash depositcharges.

RBI takes such type of stepswhenever it finds banks on unfairtrack. Last year, RBI had mandated afixed charge for cash withdrawalfrom third-party automated tellermachines, beyond the five freetransactions. Banks used to chargecustomers as much as 55 for cashwithdrawal from other bank ATMs.

Besides for reviewing customerservice in banks, RBI recently set up acommittee under former Securitiesand Exchange Board of India chair-man, M. Damodaran. It would look atthe range of services offered to retailand small borrowers, includingpensioners, and suggest a mechanismto expedite grievance redressal.

FDI into DevelopingCountries to Rise 17% in

2010 : World BankAccording to a Report of World

Bank, the foreign direct investment(FDI) inflows into developing countries,including India, was expected torecover over the next few years and wasprojected to rise by 17 per cent in 2010.

The report—World Investmentand Political Risk—launched by theWorld Bank's Multilateral InvestmentGuarantee Agency said that the net FDIinflows into the developing countrieswas projected to touch $ 416 billion in2010, up from its 2009 level of $ 354billion.

World Bank's report also extendsthe view that the overall FDI inflows tothe developing world continued to be‘overwhelmingly’ concentrated inmiddle-income nations, with Brazil, theRussian Federation, India and Chinaalone absorbing half.

Hero Groups Terminates Joint Venture with Japanese Honda

Munjals Group of Hero Hondaon December 16, 2010 announced thetermination of its 26-year old jointventure with Japanese auto companyHonda Motor Corporation. In accor-dance with a Memorandum of Under-standing (MoU) signed between thetwo companies, Munjals-promotedHero Group will buy out Honda'sentire 26 per cent stake in Hero

Honda. After buying this stake,Munjals will have control over 52 percent stake in the company. The agreedtransaction will take place in aphased manner and is expected to becompleted by 2011. Hero group hasnot specified the price at which shareswill be exchanged.

Hero Honda will continue toproduce and sell its existing productrange. Agreement made under MoUshows that the Hero Honda groupcan also use the Honda brand nameon new models until 2014.

Though Munjals group is depen-dent on Honda for research anddevelopment (R&D) but Munjalsdisclosed that the Hero group will befree to develop its own R&D cap-abilities after completion of transac-tion.

Besides, Munjals have signed anew agreement with Honda, replac-ing its old agreement, which was toend in 2014. Under this new agree-ment, Honda will provide the Herogroup new models at the existingroyalty rates.

PNB Acquires About Two-Third Stake in JSC Dana

Bank, Kazakhstan

PNB has completed the tran-saction for acquisition of 63·64% stakein JSC Dana Bank Kazakhstan. PNBhas acquired 35 million shares of 1000Tenge each, at par, for 3·5 Bn Tenge(US D 23·765 Mio approx.), which hasraised the capital of JSC Dana Bank tothe level of 5·5 Bn Tenge from theexisting 2 Bn. Tenge. This transactionshall be placed for necessary ratifi-cation, in the General Body Meetingof shareholders of JSC Dana Bank.Kazakhstan the largest economy inCentral Asia has strategic importancefor India due to growing economiccooperation between two countries atthe apex level. PNB has its presencein Almaty, Kazakhstan since 1998through its Representative Office. Inorder to systematically achieve theaspiration of becoming a truly globaland universal bank in the foreseeablefuture, operational presence inKazakhstan has been consideredcrucial for PNB due to growingbilateral business opportunities andper capita income in Kazakhstan,which has natural resources aplenty.

Many Indian Oil and Gas, Pharma-ceuticals and Engineering Com-panies have already set up offices inKazakhstan. Further there being noother Indian bank in CIS countriesother than Russia, Kazakhstan can bea gateway for CIS countries fortapping India centric business.

37 Companies Selected to Build Solar Power Plants

To support country's Solar Mis-sion Plan, unveiled last year, thegovernment has selected 37 com-panies to build solar power projects.India has initiated a plan which seeksto significantly scale up production ofsolar energy from zero to 20 GW by2022. According to the road map ofSolar Mission Plan, the country is toproduce 1300 MW of power by 2013,an additional supply of upto 10 GWby 2017 and the rest by 2022 at anoverall investment of about $ 70billion.

As per the NTPC Vidyut VyaparNigam Ltd. Sources, Lanco Infratech,KVK Energy Ventures Pvt. Ltd. andRajasthan Sun Technique Energy Pvt.Ltd. won bids for a maximum projectcapacity of 100 MW each. Otherselected bidders included Mahar-ashtra Seamless Indian Oil Corp,Welspun Solar AP, a unit of WelspunCorp that has interests in steel andtextiles, and Punj Lloyd Infra.

NTPC, through its unit, NTPCVidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) willlead the solar plan's initial phasethrough long-term contracts to buythe first 1 GW of energy fromdevelopers at Rs. 15·31 per kWh forsolar thermal and Rs. 17·91 per kWhfor solar module—about eight timesthe cost of coal power.

Godawari Power and Ispat, Cor-porate Ispat Alloys Ltd. and MeghaEngineering and Infrastructure Ltd.were also selected to build powerplants with a capacity of 50 MW each.

The Solar Mission Plan is tomake the use of solar-powered equip-ment and applications mandatory forhospitals, hotels and governmentbuilding, and encourage the use ofsolar lighting systems in villages andsmall towns with micro financing.

PD/February/2011/1385 “The bluebird carries the sky on his back.”

Delhi gets 1 MW Solar Energy Generator

North-Delhi Power Ltd.(NDPL)—a joint venture of TataPower with the Delhi governmenthas commissioned a solar powerplant installed by Tata BP Solar. Theinstalled power plant consists ofmore than 5500 solar photovoltaicpanels made of crystalline silicon.These panels will absorb sunlight andconvert it into electricity and will feeddirectly to NDPL's main grid line.

The panels in the solar powerplant have been designed to work for25 years. This 1 MW unit is designedto produce. 1·58 million units ofelectricity annually which is sufficientto light more than 1000 homes.

NDPL has planned a three-foldinitiative to promote solar powergeneration over the next three to fouryears. This includes setting up grid-interactive solar PV systems on theroofs of 56 of its grid substations in itsdistribution network of North andNorth-west Delhi, with a cumulativecapacity of 2·53 MW. It is alsopursuing the prospect of setting up a100 MW grid interactive solar powerplant in Rajasthan.

NDPL will also facilitate gridinteractive solar PV systems on therooftops of individual householdsand commercial buildings.

India Becomes Largest Borrower of IDA

According to the statistics ofWorld Bank, India has become thelargest borrower from the Inter-national Development Association(IDA), a component of World BankGroup which helps the poorestcountries of the world.

Among the bank’s FY10 Top TenIDA borrowing countries, India topsthe table with $ 2,578 million, follo-wed by Vietnam ($ 1,429 million),Tanzania ($ 943 million), Ethiopiaand Nigeria with $ 890 million each,Bangladesh ($ 828 million), Kenya($ 614 million), Uganda ($ 480million), Democratic Republic ofCongo ($ 460 million) and Ghana(433 million).

IDA, termed as ‘Soft LoanWindow’ of the World Bank, was

established in 1960 with the aim toreduce poverty by lending money(known as credits) on concessionalterms. IDA credits have no interestcharge and the repayment periodranges between 35 to 40 years. IDA isthe largest sources of assistance forthe world’s 79 poorest countries, 39 ofwhich come from Africa.

Not only with IDA, India is alsothe third largest borrower of the Inter-national Bank for Reconstruction andDevelopment (IBRD), a part of WorldBank group with a total loan of $ 21·9billion which have financed 77 pro-jects in the country. Among variousstates in India, Tamil Nadu hold themaximum assistance of $ 2·1 billionfrom the World Bank to support itssix on-going projects.

Exports Register 27% Growth in November 2010

India's exports in November2010 registered a rise of 26·8 per centto touch level of $ 18·9 billion year-on-year basis which raised govern-ment's confidence to breach theexport target and touch $ 215 billionlevel. Another favourable figure ofimports for November 2010 shows amuch slower pace of 11·2 per cent to$ 27·8 billion.

On cumulative front, for April-November 2010 period, exports havegone up by 26·7 per cent to $ 140·3billion while imports expanded 24per cent to reach $ 222 billion level.The trade deficit for the first eightmonths of 2010-11 stands at $ 81·7billion. With the ongoing trend, theCommerce Ministry has extendedhope to see export level at anywherebetween $ 210 billion and $ 215billion. It is worthnoting that thegovernment had set an export targetof $ 200 billion for 2010-11 against theexport level of $ 179 billion obtainedin 2009-10.

During the current financial year2010-11, the official data show a hugeamount of positive growth everywhere. However, certain sectors likegarments and agricultural items arein negative as exports of most of thecommodities are restricted.

The big positive on exports camefrom the engineering sector whichincreased by 50 per cent in the first

eight months to $ 31·6 billion, andgems and jewellery by 16 per cent.Besides, exports of petroleumrefinery products increased by 41 percent and cotton yarn by 46·5 per centdue to support of global market.

IIP Rebounds to 10·8% Growth

The third quarter of the financialyear 2010-11 started with a robustindustrial growth. After showing abig dip in September 2010, Index ofIndustrial Production (IIP) reboundsback into double digits at 10·76 percent in October 2010. It may berecalled that IIP had registered the16-month low level of 4·4 per cent inSeptember 2010. All the three sectoralcomponents of Index of IndustrialProduction (IIP) showed declinedgrowth rates in September 2010 on anannual, as well as on a sequentialbasis. September's IIP growth in 2010is the lowest expansion since May2009. Except July 2010, all the monthsof 2010-11 experienced declininggrowth path in IIP.

IIP Growth Path in 2010-11April 17·6%

May 11·5%

June 7·1%

July 13·8%

August 5·6%

September 4·4%

October 10·8%

IIP could take rebound basicallyon the back of an increase inmanufacturing, particularly of con-sumer durables. Manufacturing reg-istered the highest rate among sectorsat 11·3 per cent in October 2010 com-pared with 10·8 per cent last year.Mining and electricity productiongrew at 6·5 per cent and 8·8 per centrespectively compared with 9·1 percent and 4 per cent.

Basic and intermediate goodsgrew at 7·7 per cent and 9·5 per cent,respectively in Oct. 2010 comparedwith 4 per cent and 15·4 per cent ofOct. 2009. Capital goods, which havebeen one of the most volatilecomponents of IIP, grew at a robust22 per cent in October 2010 afterregistering a contraction of 4·1 percent in September 2010.

PD/February/2011/1386 “The chains that bind us most closely are the ones we have broken.”

Sectoral Growth October2009 Vs. October 2010

SectorOctober

2009October

2010

Mining 9·1 6·5

Manufacturing 10·8 11·3

Electricity 4·0 8·8

IIP 10·1 10·8

JSW Steel Buys Ispat Industries

JSW Steel declares to buy acontrolling 41·29 per cent stake inIspat Industries for 2157 crore.Disclosing the road map of IspatIndustries revival plan, Vice-Chair-man and MD of JSW Steel Mr. SajjanJindal said that JSW would refinanceIspat's entire 7500 crore debt at alower interest rate and get freshlenders on board. JSW Steel will raisethe entire debt from a new set oflenders at lower interest rate and willrepay the existing lenders by Septem-ber 2011. Presently IDBI, ICICI andIFCI are Ispat's prime lenders of IspatIndustries. Ispat also owes State Bankof India 2000 crore as part of itsworking capital debt.

As per the agreement betweenthe two Ispat will issue on a pre-ferential basis 108·66 crore equityshares at 19·85 a share, for a con-sideration of 2157 crore. The entirecapital infusion will go towardsstrengthening Ispat's balance sheet bypaying off creditors and lenders.

WPI Moderated to 11-month Low Level of

7·48 per cent

Due to deceleration in food infla-tion and high base effect, WholesalePrice Index (WPI) got moderated toan 11-month low of 7·48 per cent inNovember 2010. The inflation ratewas 4·5 per cent during November2009. Wholesale inflation has main-tained a broadly moderating trendsince April 2010. This rate was 8·58per cent in October 2010 which againmoderated to 7·48 per cent in Novem-ber 2010.

Food inflation stood at 9·4 percent in November 2010, compared to14·1 per cent in October 2010 and

16·73 per cent during November 2009.Inflation for primary articles alsomoderated to 13 per cent as com-pared to 16·7 per cent in October 2010and fuel price inflation declined to10·3 per cent compared to 11 per centin the month October 2010.

Finance Ministry has extendedhope that the inflation rate will comedown to six per cent coinciding withthe Reserve Bank of India target bythe end of the financial year 2010-11.

IMF Chief Places India as‘Economic Powerhouse’

On the basis of solid performanceof Indian economy, InternationalMonetary Fund (IMF) ManagingDirector Dominique Strausskahndescribed India as a ‘Leading Power’and an ‘Economic Powerhouse’. On hisvisit to New Delhi, IMF ManagingDirector extended the view that India'sresult in terms of economic growth andalso in terms of inclusive growth werereally amazing.

IMF has projected Indian economyto grow by 9·7 per cent in 2010 and theIndian economy is well going ahead toachieve this projection. India, whichuses a different computation for cal-culating GDP, expects the economy togrow by 8·5 per cent during 2010-11.

IMF chief also extended the viewthat higher economic growth than whatwas being witnessed by India mightlead to risks of inflation and highcurrent account deficit in the country.

Russia Invited to Explore India's Hydrocarbon

Reserves

India has invited Russia for exp-loration of its hydrocarbon reserves.India has taken this step to attractmore investment in its energy sectorso as to ensure less dependence on oiland gas imports. India, on the otherhand is also interested in increasingits participation in the developmentof Russia's vast oil and gas reserves.

With its New Exploration andLicensing Policy (NELP) which waslaunched in 1999 India offered betterterms to contractors for exploringreserves in India. India imports overtwo-third of its crude oil needs andthat's the reason why India has comeforward to reduce its dependence onoverseas purchases of oil and gas. Inits continued efforts, Indian energyofficials presented the ninth round of

NELP in Moscow, urging Russia totake part in the exploration of 34hydrocarbon blocks. The bids for thelatest auction is scheduled to closedown on March 18, 2011. ThePetroleum and Natural Gas Ministryhas extended hope to arrange invest-ment of around $ 14 billion in thisninth round of auctioning. NELP-VIIIcould attract a very poor responsewhich could manage only $ 1·1billion.

Gazprom is one of the mostactive Russian energy companieswhich has been invited by India'sstate-run explorer Oil India Ltd. (OIL)to co-operate in two upstream gasprojects.

RBI to Buy upto 12000 croreof Govt. Bonds

The Reserve Bank of India dec-lared to buy upto 12000 crore ($ 2·7billion) of government bonds throughOpen Market Operations (OMO) in amove to inject liquidity into country'sbanking system. As per official sourcesof RBI, the auction was conducted onDecember 15, 2010.

Government Securities purchasedunder the programme included the 7·02per cent 2016 bonds, the 7·99 per cent2017 bonds, the 8·13 per cent 2022bonds.

News in a Nutshell

● Farm sector shows 3·8% growthin first half 2010-11—Due tobetter support from Kharif cropproduction, the agriculture andallied sector registered growth of3·8 per cent in the first six-monthof 2010-11, compared to only oneper cent growth obtained in thesame period of last year.

According to the Gross DomesticProduct (GDP) data released bythe Central Statistical Organisa-tion (CSO), the country's farmsector grew by 2·5 per cent and4·4 per cent each in the first twoquarters of the current financialyear 2010-11, compared to 1·9 percent and 0·9 per cent, respecti-vely, in the same period last year.Allied sectors livestocks, forestryand fisheries showed growth inthe range of 3-4 per cent which

PD/February/2011/1387 “If you see the world in black and white, you’re missing important grey matter.”

gave support to farm sector toobtain 3·8% growth in first halfof 2010-11.In 2009-10, the agricultural sectorrecorded its lowest growth infive years, at 0·1 per cent, due towidespread drought across thecountry. The sector had grown1·6 per cent in the previousfinancial year.

The government has set a targetof 4 per cent agricultural growtha year in the 11th Five-Year Planperiod (2007-12).

● Natural gas price for non-pri-ority sector raised—The govern-ment has given its approval toraise 10 per cent prices of naturalgas which state-own petroleumcompanies sell to consumers innon-priority sectors such as steeland petro-chemicals. As perofficial declaration, ONGC andOil India Ltd. (OIL) have beenallowed to charge upto $ 5·25 permillion British thermal unit(mBtu) for 7–8 million standardcubic metres per day (msc md)of gas which is sold to non-power and non-fertiliser sectorw.e.f. December 1, 2010. Therates set would be excludingcess, transportation charge, mar-keting margin/service chargeand taxes. It is worthnoting thatnatural gas produced by ONGCand OIL, from fields given tothem on a nomination basis issold at government controlledprice calle APM (AdministeredPricing Mechanism) rate.

According to the petroleum min-istry order, consumers in westernand northern parts of the country(Maharashtra, Gujarat and otherstates covered by GAIL's Hazira-Vijaipur-Jagdishpur and Dahej-Vijaipur pipeline, like Rajasthan,Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh,Haryana and Delhi) will pay$ 5·25 an mBtu.Users in Rajasthan, South Gujaratand isolated customers inGujarat, who are getting gas fromidentified onshore fields, wouldbe charged $ 5 anmBtu while thesame in Tamil Nadu and AndhraPradesh would pay $ 4·75 permBtu and $ 4·5 per mBtu, res-pectively. Consumers in the

North-east would pay $ 4·2 permBtu.

● Indirect tax collections went upby 42·3%—With an increase incustom duty collection, IndirectTax collections have gone up by42·3 per cent to 207756 crorebetween April-November 2010period against 145958 crore inthe corresponding period of2009-10. The collections in thefirst eight months are about 66per cent of the budget estimate of

315000 crore for 2010-11.Year'scollection during the same periodconstituted 54·5 per cent of theoverall target.

The biggest contributor toindirect tax revenue collectionshas been custom duty whichincreased 67 per cent to 86844crore in the eight-month periodthis year against 52011 crore inthe year-ago period.

Excise duty collections went upto 81984 crore which is 34·4 per

cent more than 61020 crorecollected during the same periodlast year.

Revenue collections from servicetax stood at 38927 crore, show-ing an increase of 18·2 per centover 32927 crore collected dur-ing the same period of 2009-10.

Indirect Tax RevenueCollections April-November Period

( crore)

Tax 2009-10 2010-11%

increase

CustomDuty

52011 86844 67·0

ExciseDuty

61020 81984 34·4

ServiceTax

32927 38927 18·2

TotalIndirectTax

145958 207756 42·3

● Onion Export banned for shortperiod to curb prices—Onionprices in the open market haverisen 70 per cent to 60-70 per kgin the past few days whichworried the government andcompelled it to suspend onionexports till January 15, 2011.

Agriculture cooperative majorNafed, a regulating agency, hasbeen asked by the government tostop giving fresh clearance toexporters. The government hasalso made exports almost im-possible for those who arealready in possession of ‘noobjection certificate’ (NOC) givenby the Nafed and 12 other agen-cies. It has more than doubledthe minimum export price (MEP)to $ 1,200 a tonne from $ 525,meaning no shipment can takeplace below this price.

The rise in onion prices is due tostock holding in home market onthe one hand and on the otherdue to large scale export of theproduce to gulf countries andneighbouring Sri Lanka andBangladesh since September2010.

Government attributed the pricerise of onion phenomenon tosupply crunch due to unseasonalrain in Maharashtra, Gujarat andSouthern states which producesbulk of onion in the country.

● UP Signs MoU with Neyveli forPower Project—A Memorandumof Understanding (MoU) hasbeen signed between Uttar Pra-desh government and NeyveliLignite Corporation (NLC) to setup a 2000 MW thermal powerplant unit at Gatampur, Kanpur.The project is scheduled to becompleted by 2014 with anestimated investment of 10000crore. The State Government willget 75 per cent of the powergenerated. As per MoU signed,the project's equity ratio betweenNLC and U.P. Rajya VidyutUtpadan Nigam will be 51 and49 per cent respectively. Around70 per cent of the project will befunded by debt and 30 per centby equity capital.

Proposed power plant will havethe initial capacity of 2000 MWbut it will be extended in future.This project is estimated togenerate direct employment for800 people and another about10000 jobs indirectly.

It may be recalled that recentlyUttar Pradesh has taken the MoUroute for power projects totalling

PD/February/2011/1388 “A boil is no big deal. On someone else’s neck.”

almost 10000 MW. Work hasalready been started on threepower projects at Bara, Karch-chna and Meja with total cap-acity of 4600 MW.

● Anti-dumping duty imposed onChinese equipment—India hasimposed anti-dumping duty ofupto 266 per cent on import of anIT equipment—also used in thetelecom sector—to guard thedomestic industry against cheapChinese and Israeli shipments.

According to the official declara-tion, the restrictive duty on im-port of the ‘synchronous digitalhierarchy transmission equip-ment’ would range from three to266 per cent on the CIF (cost,insurance and freight) value ofimports.

The move would impact importof the equipment from companieslike Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell,ZTE Corporation and Israel-based ECI Telecom.

As per the declaration of Depart-ment of Revenue, the anti-dump-ing duty shall be levied for aperiod of five years (unlessrevoked, superseded or amendedearlier) from the date of imposi-tion of the provisional anti-dumping duty, that is, fromDecember 8, 2009, for importfrom China and Israel.

● Indo-Israel horticulture projectsetup in Haryana—To enablefarmers to grow unseasonalvegetables, Haryana governmenthas set up an Indo-Israel horti-culture project at Gharaunda inDistt. Gujarat at the cost of 6crore. The project is expected toprovide opportunities to thefarmers to grow new kinds ofvegetables. This project wouldhelp farmers to increase theirincome because unseasonal culti-vation of vegetables would fetchbetter prices in the market.

The project has been set up overan area of 25 acres of land. In thisproject, seedling of various veget-ables like tomato, seedless cu-cumber and capsicums would beprepared in the green house, nethouse and these saplings wouldbe provided to the farmers onsubsidy.

● BSE launched ‘Shariah Index’—The Bombay Stock Exchange(BSE) and Taqwaa Advisory andShariah Investment Solutionshave launched the BSE TASISSHARIAH 50 Index since De-cember 27, 2010.

The index is the first shariahindex created in India utilisingthe strict guidelines and localexpertise of a domestic Shariahadvisory board. The index com-prises the 50 largest and mostliquid Shariah-compliant stockswithin the BSE 500.

According to Madhu Kannan,managing director and chiefexecutive officer of BSE, theindex will give Islamic and othersocially responsible investorsanother means to access theIndian market and help attractpools of capital from the Gulf,Europe, and Southeast Asia.

● FDI in services dips 21% inApril-Sept. 2010—According tothe data released by Commerceand Industry Ministry, theForeign Direct Investment (FDI)in the country’s service sectorduring the first half of the year2010-11 declined by 21 per centto $ 2·06 billion ( 9506 crore).Last year for the same period thisfigure was $ 2·62 billion ( 12782crore).

The overall FDI inflows in thecountry during April-September2010 dropped by 28 per cent to$ 11 billion against $ 15·27 billionin the same period of 2009.

The service sector, despite the21·4 per cent dip in FDI, toppedthe chart in attracting FDI inflowsfrom abroad.

During the period, the highestFDI, of $ 3·84 billion, came fromMauritius, followed by Singa-pore ($ 1·13 billion), the US ($ 724million), Japan ($ 563 million)and the Netherlands ($ 498million).

● Telecom sector registers growthof 40% in 2010—The telecomsector has added 216·13 millionsubscriber in 2010 which shows agrowth of 40 per cent over thestatistics of 2009. As on October31, 2010, the telephone connec-

tions in the country stood at742·13 million, compared to 526million a year ago. Out of thistotal of 742·13 million, 706·70million were wireless or mobilephone users which stands about95 per cent of the total sub-scribers.

Wireline connections are declin-ing every year. Landline sub-scribers, which were 41·42 mil-lion in March 2005, declined to35·43 million in October 2010.On the other hand, wireless (ormobile) subscribers increasedfrom 56·95 million to 706·70million (more than 12 times) dur-ing the same period of five years.

The subscriber base of wirelessservices rose at a compoundedannual growth rate of 57 per centsince 2004. Addition of morethan 17 million connections permonth has put the telecom sectorin a strong footing. India is nowhaving the largest wireless net-work in the world.

● ONGC proposes to raise stakein ‘Pawan Hans’—Oil and Nat-ural Gas Corporation (ONGC)has proposed to increase itsequity in government-ownedPawan Hans Helicopters Ltd.(PHHL) to 49 per cent from thepresent level of 21·5 per cent byinfusing 96 crore. ONGC hasalso agreed to give Pawan Hansa five year loan of 275 crore.Besides, NTPC has also proposedan investment of 55 crore inPHHL in return for services, notequity. This NTPC investmentwill be used for fleet expansionin PHHL. At present, PawanHans has 41 helicopters.

Pawan Hans was incorporated in1985 to provide helicopter sup-port to the oil industry, servicesto remote areas and also topromote tourism in the country.At present government owns78·5 per cent share in PawanHans Helicopter Ltd.

PHHL is also looking for invitingFDI because 100% FDI is per-mitted in a seaplane operationventure.

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1389 “Listen or thy tongue will keep thee deaf.”

NATO : New Strategic Concept

—Arunoday Bajpai

North Atlantic Treaty Organisa-tion (NATO) adopted a new strategicconcept at its Lisbon Summit con-cluded on November 20, 2010. Thenew strategic concept underlines thechanging role and status of NATO inglobal affairs. In fact, NATO is theonly collective security/military orga-nisation active outside the UN collec-tive security system. NATO came as acollective military response of westernbloc in the beginning of global coldwar politics. After the second WorldWar, the differences between thesoviet bloc (communist countries)and western bloc (capitalist countries)were intensified, which led to theemergence of cold war in inter-national politics. The capitalist blocwas led by the USA, while commu-nist bloc was led by the Soviet Union.In response to NATO's establishmentin 1949, the communist bloc alsoestablished its own military organisa-tion, which was known as WARSAWpact. In addition to these two majorcollective security organisations, theUSA and western bloc also managedto set up other such collective securityorganisations in other parts of theworld. The example of such organisa-tions are SEATO and CENTO. Thesemilitary organisations, on the onehand, ensured the collective securityof its members, whereas they createdsuspicion and hatred among thenations, on the other. Both NATOand WARSAW pacts were chiefinstruments of western and commu-nist blocs respectively during theheyday of cold war politics.

After the end of cold war anddisintegration of the Soviet Union in1991, the WARSAW pact was dis-banded in 1992. Most of the EastEuropean member states ofWARSAW pact switched over tocapitalism and multi-party demo-

cracy. In the normal course, theNATO should have also gone in toredundancy after the end of cold war.But NATO continued to exist andexpand in the post-cold war era withnew focus and priorities. Its mem-bership has been opened to formersoviet bloc countries. Its expansion inEastern Europe and further attemptto include breakaway republics offormer Soviet Union has beenresented by Russia. The eastwardexpansion of NATO near the bordersof Russia and its plan to set-up missiledefence system in eastern Europe areconsidered as security threats byRussia.

New Strategic ConceptNATO has adopted a new

strategic concept for the defence andsecurity of its members in the LisbonSummit held on Nov. 20, 2010. TheStrategic concept contains 38 points.Its guiding principle is “Active Enga-gement, Modern Defence.” It reflectsupon the new threats arising from thechanging global security environ-ment, core tasks and activities ofNATO and the commitments ofNATO in the changing scenario. Thestrategic concept is likely to guide thenext phase in the evolution of NATO,so that it continues to be effective in achanging world, against new threatsand with new capabilities and newpartners.

1. The Changing Security En-vironment—The Strategic concepthighlights both the conventional andmodern threats faced by Euro-Atlanticarea. As far as conventional threatsare concerned it states that, at present,Euro-Atlantic area is at peace and thethreat of a conventional attack againstNATO territory is low. However, it isaware that the acquisition of sub-stantial and modern military capa-

bilities particularly proliferation ofballistic missiles in different regionsand countries poses a real and grow-ing threat in Euro-Atlantic area.

The strategic concept identifiesmany new and non-conventionalthreats to security of its members.These are proliferation of nuclearweapons and other weapons of massdestruction and their means of deli-very, spread of terrorism and otherextremist groups, instability or con-flicts beyond NATO border areas,cyber attacks, safety of land andmaritime means of transport andcommunication, development of laserweapons, electronic warfare andtechnologies and environmentalthreats like climate change, healthrisks or water scarcity.

In its estimate, terrorism posesdirect threat to the citizens of NATOcountries and more broadly to theinternational stability and prosperity.It says that terrorist groups continueto spread to the areas of strategicimportance to NATO and moderntechnology increases the threat andpotential impact of terrorist attacks,in particular, if terrorists acquirenuclear, chemical, biological orradiological capabilities. On cyberthreat, the Summit leaders agreedthat cyber attacks are becoming morefrequent, more organised and moredamaging to the government admini-strations, businesses, transportationand supply networks and criticalinfrastructures. Such attacks havepotential to reach a threshold thatthreatens national and Euro-Atlanticprosperity, security and stability.

In brief, the strategic concept hasreviewed all the conventional andnon-conventional sources of threatto the peace and security of NATOnations in the contemporary scenario.

2. Core Tasks and Principles—The strategic concept identifies threesets of principles and three types ofcore tasks, which have deep bearingon the future role of NATO in global

PD/February/2011/1390 “No one really listens to anyone else, and if you try it for a while you’ll see why.”

affairs. The three fundamental princi-ples are :

(a) The fundamental and enduringpurpose of NATO is to safeguardfreedom and security of all itsmembers by political and mili-tary means. NATO is an essentialsource of stability in an unpre-dictable world.

(b) NATO community is committedto the principles of individualliberty, democracy, human rightsand rule of law. Besides, theSummit leaders expressed theircommitment to the Washingtontreaty and charter of the UN.

(c) It underlined the political andmilitary bonds between Europeand North America, which wasforged since the NATO wasformed in 1949. The Security ofNATO members on both sidesof Atlantic is indivisible. TheNATO shall continue to defenditself together on the basis ofsolidarity, shared purpose andfair burden-sharing.

In the prevailing security envi-ronment at present, the strategicconcept has identified the followingthree Core Tasks of NATO :

(a) Collective Defence—The NATOwas established under theWashington treaty signed bymember states in 1949. Article 5of this treaty states that anyattack against one member shallbe considered as an attack onall the members. Accordingly,NATO shall deter and defendagainst any threat of aggressionor security challenge thatthreatens the fundamental secu-rity of member states.

(b) Crisis Management—NATO hasdeveloped capabilities to addressthe full spectrum of crises-before,during and after conflicts. NATOshall employ appropriate mix ofpolitical and military tools tohelp manage developing crisesbefore they escalate into con-flicts, to stop ongoing conflictswhich affect Alliance Securityand to help consolidate stabilityin post-conflict situations, whichcontributes to Euro-Atlanticsecurity.

(c) Cooperative Security—It hasbeen reaffirmed that alliance

would engage actively to streng-then international securitythrough partnership with rele-vant countries and other inter-national organisations, by con-tributing to arms control, non-proliferation and disarmament,and by keeping the door tomembership of NATO open toall European democracies thatmeet its standards.

It also noted that alongwithdefence, the deterrence, based onapproximate mix of nuclear andconventional capabilities,remains a core element ofNATO's strategy. It is reiteratedthat as long as nuclear weaponsexist, NATO will remain anuclear alliance. It is also decidedthat in order to make NATOsecurity missions more effective,the NATO will engage in acontinuous process of reform,modernisation and transforma-tion.

3. Renewed Commitments—Inview of the prevailing securityenvironment, the strategic conceptlists the following commitments ofNATO :

(a) It commits the alliance to preventcrises, manage conflicts, stablisepost-conflict situations, includingworking closely with internati-onal partners, UN and EuropeanUnion.

(b) It commits NATO to the goal ofcreating the conditions for aworld without nuclear weapons.But as long as there are nuclearweapons in the world, NATOshall remain a nuclear alliance.

(c) NATO shall offer more politicalengagement with its allies toshape the ongoing missions ofthe alliance.

(d) It is the firm commitment ofNATO to keep its door open forthe new European states, becauseenlargement shall advance thegoal of a Europe, whole, free andat peace.

(e) It commits NATO to continuousreform towards a more efficient,effective and flexible alliance.

(f) The strategic concept reaffirmsthe bond between the memberstates to defend one anotheragainst attack.

Current Military Operationsof NATO

At present, NATO is engaged infour military operations in differentregions of the world :

1. The first major operation is totackle the problem of terrorismin Afghanistan. The NATO forcesin Afghanistan were deployedin April 2003. These forces arecalled International SecurityAssistance forces. The NATOforces led by the USA areengaged in bitter battle withTaliban terrorists.

2. The second military mission ofNATO is deployed in the off theHorn of Africa since Aug. 2009 totackle the problem of piracy. Inthe present decade, the coastalregions of Eastern Africa havefaced the major problem ofpiracy, threatening the East-Westmaritime sea routes.

3. The third on goining militaryoperation of NATO is ‘OperationActive Endeavour’ in Sept. 2001to tackle the problem of terror-ism in the mediterranean. Thepurpose of this mission is toconduct maritime operations inthe assigned area of operations todemonstrate NATO's resolve tohelp deter, defend, disrupt andprotect against terrorism.

4. The fourth ongoing mission isNATO mission in Kosovo, whichwas launched on June 12, 1999under the United Nations man-date. The purpose of internati-onal forces is to establish andmaintain security in Kosovo.This is a peace-enforcementforce.

ConclusionThe Lisbon Summit, Nov. 20,

2010 also committed NATO leadersto pull-back international forces fromAfghanistan by the year 2014. Thewithdrawal of forces will commencein 2011 itself. For better cooperationbetween Afghanistan and NATOforces, a joint statement by theAfghan President and NATO wasalso issued during the Lisbon Summit.However, the actual withdrawal ofNATO forces shall depend upon theimprovement of security situation inAfghanistan. Even after the deadline

PD/February/2011/1391 “Home is where you can say anything you like cause nobody listens to you anyway.”

NATO : Important FactsNATO was founded by the treaty of Washington which was signed on April 4, 1949.

NATO played an active role during cold war era as a major collective security alliance of western bloc led by the U.S.A. Afterthe end of cold war, it existed and expanded as a single largest collective security alliance for maintaining peace and security indifferent parts of the world. Both its role and size have expanded in the post cold war era.

The Treaty of Brussels signed on March 1948 is considered precursor to NATO. This treaty was signed by five countriesnamely Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and the United Kingdom. These five states alongwith seven other nations—USA, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Denmark and Ireland were the orginal founders of NATO.

NATO has been the military vanguard of US bloc against the communist bloc led by the USSR during the cold war period.After the end of cold war and disintegration of the USSR. NATO got fertile ground to expand to eastern Europe. At present its 28members are : Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary,Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovania, Spain, Turkeythe UK and the USA. Albania and Croatia joined on April 1, 2009. The new membership of NATO has come from the EasternEurope and Balkans including the former members of WARSAW pact, which was disbanded in 1992.

The future enlargement of membership is also planned as NATO decided to incorporate Republic of Mecedonia, Ukraine andGeorgia, in 2008 at Bucharest Summit. However, the expansion was not materialised as Greece opposed the membership ofMecedonia and Russia opposed the incorporation of Ukraine and Georgia. Similarly, the membership of Cyprus is opposed byTurkey.

NATO's Headquarters is located at Brussels, the capital of Belgium. Its apex structure consists of NATO Parliament, NATOcouncil and two commands.

The NATO Parliamentary Assembly consists of legislatures from member countries as well as Thirteen Associate memberstates. The Assembly is the political integration body of NATO that deliberates in the political policy agenda of NATO. Thus, it isresponsible for setting broad strategic goals of NATO. It holds two meetings in a year.

The NATO council consists of ministers of Defence and Foreign ministers of member countries. Within the given strategicgoals, the council is the highest decision-making body of the NATO. Its meetings are presided over by its Secretary General. AndersFogh Rasmussen is the present Secretary-General of NATO. Larger strategic issues are decided by the Annual Summit meetings ofNATO. Besides, each member is represented at NATO by its permanent representative.

NATO's military structure consists of the military committee and two operational commands. The NATO military committeeconsists of military representatives from member countries. Its principle role is to give direction and advice on military policy andstrategy. It is responsible for recommending to political authorities of NATO those measures which are necessary for the commondefence of the NATO region.

NATO's military activities are carried out by two commands—(1) Allied Command Transformation (ACT), which isresponsible for transformation and training of NATO forces; and (2) Allied Command Operations (ACO), which is responsible forworld wide military operations. The supreme commander of ACO is called the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) andis based in the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), which is located in Belgian city of Mons.

After the break up of the Soviet Union, NATO has tried to engage Russia as partner to coordinate security process in Europe.For this purpose NATO-Russia permanent joint council was established in 1998. The Annual Summit meetings of this council areheld alongwith NATO Summit. The 2010 Summit of this council was held on 20th Nov. at Brussels in which both sides resolved :Based upon our joint cooperation agenda, we have agreed to further broaden and deepen NATO-Russia dialogue and practicalcooperation and bolster a NATO-Russia partnership that enhances security for all in the Europe Atlantic area and beyond.

The ongoing military partnership between NATO and Russia underscores the military hegemony of NATO in Europe andbeyond. However, Russia has raised objection to NATO's activities on two counts. First, Russia opposes the inclusion of Ukraineand Georgia as it considers their inclusion as a threat to its Security. Secondly, the NATO missile defence plan in Eastern Europe isalso opposed by Russia on security grounds. In view of the resurgence of Russia in 21st century, the partnership between NATOand Russia may not have a smooth sailing. The present American strategy to ‘reset’ relationship with Russia is directed to sort outthese differences.

of 2014, the NATO forces may remainin Afghanistan to assist and trainAfghan national forces.

If we review the 60-years exis-tance of NATO as a security bloc, wefind that it has not only survived buthas also strengthened and expandedafter the disintegration of the SovietUnion and the end of cold war. Atpresent, NATO remains the onlycollective security organisation whichhas its areas o f operation in Europe

and beyond. It has emerged as a chiefinstrument of western military hege-mony in the world. With the dis-integration of WARSAW pact, NATOis not likely to face any collectivemilitary challenge in the world. Evenin some cases, NATO has actedbeyond or without the UN mandate.Though, there are certain fundamen-tal differences between the NATOand Russia, the impact of NATO inglobal security and political stability

is likely to increase in coming years.However, its long and complicatedpresence in Afghanistan is yet to pro-duce a stable and secure Afghani-stan. NATO has conducted militaryraids against terrorists in Pakistaniareas bordering Afghanistan. Afghanpeople have become weary of arbi-trary military activities of NATO. Thelarger public opinion is opposed tothe unwanted military interferencesin different part of the world.

PD/February/2011/1392 “The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said.”

Reconfiguration of India-RussiaRelations

The latter half of the year 2010marks the phase of high diplomacy asfar as Indian foreign relations areconcerned. It is a rare coincidencethat heads of government/state of allthe P-5 countries (Five permanentmembers of Security Council) visitedIndia with diverse agenda related toeconomic and strategic issues. BritishPrime Minister visited India in July2010, followed by Barack Obama inNovember 2010. The FrenchPresident, the Chinese Premier andfinally Russian President DmitryMedvedev visited India in the closingmonth of December 2010. These highprofile visits within a period of 6months have two significant impli-cations. First, India is poised toensure a position as a global playerin the international affairs. Second,given the complicated nature ofstrategic relations among the P-5members themselves, India has totread a careful path keeping inmind her own national interest. Thestrategic pathlines of the relationsamong these countries are not clearand bold. There are both areas ofconvergence and divergence amongthem. Given the historical back-ground of Indo-Russia relations aswell as present setting the visit ofRussian President assumes specialsignificance.

The Russian President DmitryMedvedev paid an official visit toIndia on 21-22 December, 2010 at theinvitation of Indian Prime MinisterDr. Manmohan Singh for the 10thAnnual Summit Meeting under theIndia-Russia Strategic Partnership. Togive new direction and filip to therelations between the two countries,both had signed Declaration onStrategic Partnership on October 3,2000 at New Delhi and decided tohold annual Summit meeting tostrengthen and advance this strategicpartnership. The present visit was10th in the series of annual summitslaunched in 2001. The highlight of thevisit was the signing of 30 agreementsbetween the public and privatesectors of two countries. This reflectsthe consolidation and extension ofstrategic cooperation in the civil

nuclear, hydrocarbons and spacesectors. Indian Prime Ministerremarked that India’s relationshipwith Russia was ‘Special and privi-leged’ and would grow independentof her relations with other countries.The implicit reflex was to ward offany misgiving about the close rela-tions between India and the USA.

Russian President Medvedevrecognised India as a state possessingnuclear weapons and supportedIndia’s bid to full membership of theNuclear Supplier Group that worksas a nuclear export control club. Itshould be noted that similar recogni-tion was accorded to India by the USand France. Russian President alsoreiterated its support to India for thepermanent membership of the UNSecurity Council. Thus, at present,China is the only P-5 country, whichhas not supported clearly the Indianclaim for permanent membership ofthe Security Council.

The Joint StatementThe leaders of the two countries

signed a joint statement, on Decem-ber 21, 2010, which is subtitled as“Celebrating a Decade of the India-Russian Federation StrategicPartnership and Looking Ahead.”The 25 points joint statement stressedthat this partnership had been mar-ked by close coordination of foreignpolicy approaches to a wide range ofinternational and regional issues,large-scale trade and economic inter-actions including modernisation anddeployment of high-technology,greater military and technical co-operation including the joint manu-facture of modern armaments andtransfer of technology and a warmtraditional friendship between thepeople of two countries, particularlymanifested in cultural and people topeople bonds. During the visit, bothsides reviewed the progress in princi-pal areas of cooperation includingin the military-technical, energy andhigh technology sectors of space andtele-communication. The main pointsof the joint statement are givenbelow.

(A) Bilateral Cooperation1. After noting the substantial

progress in bilateral trade, bothsides agreed to make efforts toachieve the annual target of tradevolume of $ 20 billion by the year2015. The bilateral trade betweenthe two countries was $ 4·5 billionin 2009-10. For the expansion ofbilateral trade both countriesdecided to put in place a Com-prehensive Economic Coopera-tion Agreement (CECA) andconsider the possibility of con-stituting a customs unionbetween Russia, Kazakhstan andBelarus, after due consultationwith all parties involved.

2. Both countries viewed bilateralenergy cooperation as an impor-tant pillar of strategic partner-ship, as Russia is a major energyproducer and India is a potentialenergy consumer. Accordingly,they reviewed the progress in thecommissioning of unit I and II ofthe Kudankulam Nuclear project(Developed with the Assistanceof Russia) and decided to com-plete discussion for setting uptwo additional units III and IV.Both sides reviewed the ongoingefforts to establish joint coopera-tion ventures between Indianand Russian companies in the oiland gas sector. Both countriessigned the Inter-governmentalagreement on cooperation in thehydrocarbon sector, which wouldwork as a legal mechanism tofacilitate such joint ventures. AsMemorandum of Understanding(MoU) was signed between theONGC Videsh and the Russiantelecom petro giant, sistemawhich gives concrete shape tosuch cooperation.

3. Both leaders acknowledged thatthe progress in the traditionallyclose cooperation between thetwo countries in the military-technical field reflects the trustand confidence between the twocountries. The Agreement on thelong term programme for mili-tary and technical cooperationfor the period 2011-2020 wassigned in December 2009, wouldfurther expedite the process ofjoint research and development,manufacturing and marketing

PD/February/2011/1393 “If animals could talk, the world would lose its best listeners.”

activities in this field. They notedwith satisfaction that the thirdIndia-Russia joint military exer-cises held in India in October13-23, 2010, had concluded suc-cessfully. This military exercisefocused on counter-terrorismoperations. However, the high-light of the military cooperationduring this visit was the signingof the contract between thepublic companies of the twocountries for the preliminarydesign of the Fifth GenerationFighter Aircraft (FGFA). It wouldinvolve the production of 200-250 aircrafts. Besides design anddevelopment, the project coversthe production and joint marke-ting of the aircraft to thirdcountries.

4. Both countries decided to extendthe Integrated Long Term Pro-gramme (ILTP) for Scientific andTechnical cooperation foranother decade. This programme

Indo-Russian Friendship : BackgroundIndia and Russia (Formerly Soviet Union) have shared a warm and close

friendship for a long time. Even during the national movement, the Soviet Union haddisplayed sympathy for India’s independence. The first Prime Minister of India,Jawaharlal Nehru was deeply touched by the planned economic development of theSoviet Union. Besides socialism and planned development, both countries shared acommon ideological background against colonialism, imperialism and racialism.Thus, after India’s independence, both countries evolved and matured as naturalallies in international politics. Though India followed a policy of non-alignment, itsideological indicator was tilted towards communist bloc during the heyday of coldwar. While the USA termed the policy of non-alignment as ‘immoral’, the SovietUnion did not hesitate to appreciate the stands taken by India. India too displayedsoft attitude towards controversial activities of the Soviet Union in internationalaffairs. Thus, India expressed muted criticism of Soviet intervention in Hungary in1956 and military intervention in Afghanistan in 1979.

The turning point in the close relationship between the two countries was thesigning of the treaty of friendship and cooperation in 1971, in the background of Indo-Pak War 1971. Many observers remarked that India had renounced the policy of non-alignment and had joined the Soviet Camp. Whatever may be the criticism againstthis treaty, it proved to be of great help to India during the 1971 crisis. Thus, duringthe cold war era both countries shared close relations in the field of space, defence,technology etc. The cultural bonds also matured between the two countries duringthis period. It is a known fact, that the Indian movies and films have been verypopular in the Soviet Union.

After the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the end of cold war, thereconfiguration occurred in the relationship between the two countries. As Russia wasentangled in the domestic problems to attain political and economic stability, India,too, gradually moved towards closer relations with the USA. The relationshipbetween the two countries became sluggish and lacked the warmth of earlier period.During his eight years of presidency 1992-2000, Boris Yelstin visited only once India.Similarly, during the last decade of 20th century, Russia was gradually oriented to thewestern countries led by the USA.

However, when Putin assumed the Presidentship of Russia in 2000, a new phaseof bilateral and strategic relationship between the two countries was in initiated. TheSigning of Declaration on Strategic Partnership by the two countries in October 2000marks the beginning of close cooperation and partnership. This is the process ofreconfiguration of historical ties between the two countries.

would focus on innovation-led tech-nology projects. The new Indian-Russian S&T Centre shall facilitatesuch innovative programmes.

(B) Cooperation in Inter-national and Regional Issues1. Both leaders observed that the

coordination of approaches ofthe two countries to variousinternational and regional issueswas an effective way to streng-then global peace, security andstability and to build a just anddemocratic global order. Bothsupported an international orderwhich was inclusive and demo-cratic, based on the supremacy ofinternational law and adheringto the goals and principles of theUN Charter.

2. In order to increase the authorityand efficiency of the UN, bothcountries agreed to cooperate onthe issue of the reform of theSecurity Council, which should

be carried out in the manner thatreflects the contemporary reali-sties and makes it more repre-sentative and effective in dealingwith both present day andemerging challenges. Russiasupported India as a deservingand strong candidate for apermanent seat in the expandedSecurity Council.

3. Both leaders considered the on-going global recovery as fragileand characterised by widedisparities in the experience ofindividual countries. For a sharedgoal of strong, sustainable andbalanced growth, the SeoulAction plan of G-20 should befully implemented. Both reitera-ted their commitment to thesuccessful completion of theongoing reforms of the WorldBank and International MonetaryFund to make them more inclu-sive, representative and efficient.

4. The two sides stressed theimportance of enhancing interna-tional efforts to combat climatechange under the ages of UNFramework Convention onClimate Change (UNFCCC).While expressing satisfaction atthe recently concluded CancunConference, they agreed that thepost-Cancun negotiations shouldbe part of a comprehensivepackage covering all pillars ofthe Bali Action Plan.

5. Both leaders reaffirmed thatinternational terrorism is a threatto peace and security, a graveviolation of human rights and acrime against humanity. Theydemanded an early conclusion ofcomprehensive convention onInternational Terrorism to beadopted by the UN. Both Indiaand Russia called upon Pakistanto expeditiously bring all theperpetrators, authors andaccomplices of November 2008Mumbai attacks to justice. Itshould be noted that the ChinesePremier, during his visit to Indiaa few days back, avoided tocriticise Pakistan for Mumbaiattacks.

6. India and Russia both asresponsible states, possessingadvanced nuclear technologyshare the objective of preventing

PD/February/2011/1394 “My wife says I never listen to her. At least I think that’s what she said.”

proliferation of weapons of massdestruction including theirpossible acquisition by terroristgroups. Both emphasised theneed for global nuclear disarma-ment to promote stability, peaceand security for all. Indiapromised to continue to contri-bute to international efforts atstrengthening nuclear non-pro-liferation regime. Russia suppo-rted India’s full membership toNuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)and Missile Technology ControlRegime (MTCR).

7. Both sides underlined theimportance of successful regionaland security cooperation formatsoperating in Asia, and in theIndian and Pacific Ocean regionlike, RIC (Russia, India China),SCO (Shanghai CooperationOrganisation), SAARC, APEC,East Asia Summit and ASEAN.Russia supported India’s pro-posed membership of SCA andAsia Pacific Economic Coope-ration (APEC). Similarly, Indiawelcomed Russia joining EastAsia Summit in 2011. Both sidesresolved to work towards thecreation of a transparent, open,inclusive and balanced securityand economic cooperation archi-tecture in the Asia-pacific region,having due consideration to thelegitimate interest of all states.

8. On Afghan situation, bothleaders expressed concern at thedeteriorating security situationand desired successful stabili-sation of Afghan situation afterelimination of safe havens andinfrastructure of terrorism bothin Afghanistan and Pakistan.

With respect to Iranian nuclearissue, both sides reiterated thatall possible efforts should bemade to address it throughdialogue and negotiation andagreed that Iran has the right todevelopment, research, produc-tion and use of nuclear energyfor peaceful purposes in con-formity with its internationalobligations.

Looking AheadIt is explicit from the foregoing

discussion that India and Russia haveshared historical ties of friendship,

Highlights of Medvedev’s

Visit to IndiaThe following are the major high-

lights of Medvedev’s visit (December21-22, 2010) to India—

● Both agreed to expand bilateraltrade from $ 4·5 billion (2009-10) to$ 20 billion by the year 2015.

● Both agreed to conclude negotia-tions for the setting of two addi-tional Nuclear Units III and IV atKudankulam (Tamil Nadu) byRussia.

● Both signed the contract for thedesign and development of FifthGeneration Fighter Aircraft inIndia with Russian collaboration.

● Both decided to set up joint ven-tures in the field of hydrocarbonand energy.

● In total both sides signed 30agreements out of which 8 memo-randa of understanding weresigned between the private com-panies of the two countries.

● Russia agreed to relax travelprocedure for business people andvisitors to facilitate business co-operation between the two coun-tries.

● Both agreed to the conclusion of aComprehensive Economic Coope-ration Agreement (CECA).

● Russia supported India’s perma-nent membership to the SecurityCouncil and full membership tothe Nuclear Suppliers Group.

● Russia demanded that Pakistanshould punish the perpetrators ofMumbai terrorist attack.

● Both agreed to contribute to theevolution of an inclusive andbalanced security and economiccooperation architecture in Asia-pacific region.

● Russia also supported Indianmembership to SCO and APEC.

trust and goodwill. After, the end ofcold war and following the disinte-gration of the Soviet Union in 1991,the relationship between the twocountries received temporary setback.Both reconfigurated their relationshipwith the west. However, since theyear 2000, both launched a new phaseof strategic partnership. The progressin relationship in the fields of trade,nuclear sector, hydrocarbon andenergy and defence is the testimonyto growing partnership. The Russianresurgence in the present decade alsofacilitated this partnership.

At present, both share a commonviewpoint on many regional andinternational issues such as terrorism,reform of the UN and other inter-national financial institutions,stabilisation of situation in Afgha-nistan and evolving architecture ofregional cooperation in Asia-pacificregion. Both share common platformin BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China)RIC (Russia, India and China) East-Asia Summit and G-20. Russia is alsointerested to closely engage Indiawith Shanghai Cooperation Organi-sation, a security mechanism inCentral Asia.

Yet, India has to play a balancingrole in relationship between Russiaon the one hand and her relationshipwith the USA on the other. For last 10years, India’s closer engagement withthe USA has invited the attention ofmany international observers. TheUSA intends to promote India as acounterbalance to China in global andregional affairs. This may not be likedby Russia. Besides, the resurgentRussia and the US have many pointsof differences such as expansion ofNATO, proposal of the US to developmissile defence system in the EasternEurope, nuclear issues of Iran andNorth Korea etc. In addition, Russiahas come closer to Pakistan andChina both in compa- rison to itsrelations with these countries duringcold war. Thus, in view of the Chinaand US factor, India has to movecarefully to protect its core nationalinterests and strategic position in theregion and beyond. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1395 “The most precious gift we can offer anyone is our attention.”

Coping with Hurdles that Hamper Success

Personality DevelopmentPersonality Development

—I. M. Soni

A cluster of reasons silentlyoperates behind your failure (orsuccess) in life and career. When thiscluster is split, it yields an untidycrop, which varies from person toperson. Yet, some of the reasons arecommon to many youngsters on thethreshold of a career, or those whoyearn to go up the greasy pole ofsuccess. They are : habits morbidity,nerves, shyness (read inferioritycomplex), poor memory, ifs and buts,and a failure—attitude.

Every man has habits. Some arehelpful. Others are not. He hasphysical, mental, emotional and moralhabits. He should tackle his badphysical habits first. If these defy him,he will not go far.

He should grapple with his bademotional habits. He should controlhis baser feelings. He should put hismind in order and begin to learn.And when his will has been streng-thened, he can deal with his moralweaknesses and build up hischaracter.

Some habits are really obses-sions, such as, for instance, the bitingof the fingernails. Some people areterrified of cats or lifts. Rossini wasfrightened of railway trains. Dr. Amuel Johnson touched every postthat he passed. There are many littleobsessions of this kind. Some areharmless. But all are irrational.

As soon as a man makes thegreat decision to live his own life, hemust overhaul his habits. Those thatare silly or harmful he must over-come. It is wise to live automaticallywith regard to the small matters oflife.

You must regularize life so thatyou will have more leisure. Youshould choose habits and not havethem thrust on you. You must, in aword, bring your whole life intoconformity with what you havedecided to do.

Every man has characteristicfaults or habits of thought that aremore or less irrational. But in most

cases this only means that he has hisown point of view.

No man has a perfectly balancedbrain. As engineer, for instance, doesnot appreciate the value of adver-tising.

No man has ever yet cleared hismind of prejudices, but he shouldknow that he is prejudiced on manymatters. He should not, as many mendo, make a hobby of his prejudices.

As far as possible, he should beopen to conviction. He should modifyhis opinions according to commonsense and experience.

One drawback is morbidity. It isserious because it is hard to over-come. Morbidity is caused by someexperience in childhood. Invariably,there has been a shock of fear thathas made the brain in some wayimbalanced. Morbidity is a ‘mentaldisorder’.

A morbid person becomes moreand more self-centred and hostile. Heinclines to sink back into isolationwhich is in itself a cause of morbidity.

Morbidity ruins disposition. It isa surrender to the weaker self—to thefears of the subconscious. It hasbrought ruin and unhappiness tothousands of young people.

The cure is simple. A morbidperson must mingle with happypeople, laugh, help others, develop asense of humour and a spirit ofgaiety. Should not brood on a troubleor a bereavement or a defect or awrong. The wisest plan is toconcentrate on some task that mustbe done—to turn it on somethingoutside of itself.

‘Nerves !’ Usually, this is a wordfor bad temper and lack of self-control. It often leads to a physicaland mental breakdown.

People who have ‘nerves’ areirritated by trifles. They ‘cannotendure’. They are ‘driven mad’. Theyhave no poise-no steel. Even able menhave allowed themselves to becomethe victims of ‘nerves’. Pulitzer, the

journalist, had to spend the lasttwenty years of his life on a yacht-a‘silence yacht’ that was specially builtfor him-because he could not endurethe slightest noise.

Carlyle, too, tortured himself bybeing irritated by trifles. He once saidto himself : “Alas ! I ought to bewrapped in cotton-wool. I can standnothing. I am really ashamed of thefigure I cut.”

Any case of ‘nerves’ can be curedby doses of will-power and commonsense. He own sense of self-respectshould lift him above the power oftrifles.

If he has the delusion that he istoo fine-too delicate-too high-strungfor his rough world, he must throwthis out of his mind. Many endureharder troubles than he does.

He should train himself to lookon the bright side of life and to thinkmore of others and less of himself. Heshould get rid of ‘nerves’ whichparalyse.

Shyness is serious when a manremains shy all his life. It is seriousbecause it represses him. It makeshim put too low a value on himself. Itprevents self-expression. It is a mildfear. It keeps hundreds of men in therank and file.

It may harden into an inferioritycomplex. It becomes a sense ofsmallness. An inferiority complexmay do one of two things. It mayspur us on to develop ourselves anddo our best, or it may send us into ahole.

If a young man has no pluck, hisinferiority complex will make him aweakling. He will be stuck in the rankand file. But if he has mental ambi-tion, his inferiority will stimulate himto learn, to take chances and to breastthe blows of circumstances andgrapple with his fate.

The best way to overcomeshyness is to meet more people,especially strangers. If a man is afraidof the sound of his own voice, he

PD/February/2011/1396 “Don’t worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you.”

should join a class in public speaking.He should take more part in con-versation in larger groups.

There is another pull-backmemory. The average mind is practi-cally all memory and feelings. Theactive thinking part is not developed.

“Memory is the creator oftradition, which is the most powerfulenemy of progress”, says O.S.Marden. A certain body of know-ledge or ignorance becomes standar-dized. When it becomes old, itbecomes sacred. It becomes a creed. Itis orthodoxy and whoever questionsit, is regarded as immoral.

Keyserling says, “The power ofmemory is overwhelming. It is almostthe incapacity to forget.” There is themain reason why people are unpro-gressive. They do not think. Theyonly remember.

We do bind the brain with for-malism and class distinction. Wecreate castes. We do have our tradi-tional body of learning. We rank men,not by their usefulness and creativepower, but by other tests which havenothing to do with intelligence.

We have invented ways of dul-ling and paralyzing the brain. We aimat oblivion rather than self-expres-sion. We deaden the brain with drink,drugs, superstitions, traditions andcastes.

Consequently, when one decidesto follow his own reason and to livehis own life, he is faced with diffi-culties and opposition, both fromwithin and without.

Every young man, with a spark,has a wish to attain success. He mayhave a wish to be distinctive. But heshrinks back from paying the price.He says. “What will people say ?”and “I don't feel like it.” He makesweak excuses.

He says : “I am what I am.” “Ican't change myself.” “There is toomuch risk.” His spark of ambitionbecomes a cinder. He settles down todo what he is told to do and to live alife that is controlled by others-apuppet !

These are the whines of the weak,the timid. No one can set limits to selfdevelopment. Many have madehistory and shaped the destinies ofnations though born with a woodenspoon.

If Columbus had said : “I don'tfeel like going on,” when he was athousand miles from land, he wouldnever have discovered a new con-tinent. If he had been influenced bytradition or by what people said, hewould never have started on the mostfamous of all voyagers !

The weak man is always a ‘but’man. He is held fast by the pull-backs. When anyone suggests a newplan or improvement, he says : “Yes.That would be a good idea, but….”He always has a ‘but.’ His ‘buts’ havekept him unsuccessful, yet they con-tinue to repress him.

There are always ‘buts’-risks andobstacles. If fame were sold in‘Bargain Basements,’ we could all becelevrities. The only way that anyman can succeed is facing and overcome his ‘buts’.

There is always a resistance to beovercome. All the prizes of life areupstream. They can never be reachedby drifting.

Imagination rescues us from theclutch of memory. It makes a manlook forward, not back. And it giveshim forethought instead of fear-thought. However you find yourselfopposed and uncertain, the wisestpolicy is to concentrate upon the nearfuture and the next step.

RBI

Previous Years’ Solved Papers General Awareness English

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Code No. 443 Price : Rs. 335/-

It Contains

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OFFICERS GRADE ‘B’ EXAM.

UPKAR PRAKASHAN, AGRA–282 002● E-mail : care@upkar.in ● Website : www.upkar.in

Exam. Date6 Feb., 2011

Think tomorrow. Take a shortview. Go forward as man does on astrange road in a dark night-one stepat a time. As a gold champion, oncesaid : “It is the next shot that counts.”

If an ocean liner could think andfeel, it would be afraid to leave itsdock. It would think of the vastocean. And the storms and the greatwaves. It would think of all itsdangers and it would be afraid. Butthe fact is that it has only to meetonce wave at a time. And it is strongenough to overcome one wave.

If you have a big problem, divideit up and tackle one part at a time.Wave by wave, a ship goes throughthe sea, and step-by-step, a man canovercone most, it not all, of hisdifficulties.

A man goes forward by tacklinghis todays and planning his tomor-rows. Every bit of progress giveshim increased confidence.

A man prepares himself fortomorrow's work by making a strongassertion of what he will do-bymaking it just before he goes to sleep.This, says C. G. Leland, strengthensthe will. It keeps the brain positive. Itgives the habit of forethought and islikely to awaken a glow of resolutionand confidence. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1397 “Be beautiful if you can, wise if you want to, but be respected—that is essential.”

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ Inspiring Youth ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

“To labour intelligently is the secret of my success.”—Suman Rawat

Toppers—Civil Services Exam., 2009 (44th Rank)

‘Pratiyogita Darpan’ arranged an exclusive interview with Suman Rawat who has been selected inCivil Services Exam. 2009. He has achieved 44th rank. He deserves all admiration and ourheartiest congratulations on his splendid success. This important, thought provoking and highlyinspiring interview is being presented here in its original form.

PD—Achieving top slot in the CSExamination is no small feat : acceptour heartiest congratulations on yoursplendid success.

Suman—Thanks a lot. Withoutthe blessings of God, encouragementfrom parents, guidance from teachersand love of my siblings this wouldn’thave been possible.

PD—Can you recall the exactmoment when you realized theimportance of Civil Services ?

Suman—The importance of CivilServices was brought to my notice bymy father who at his time couldn’tattempt the exam. owing to hisfinancial constraints.

PD—Finally, at what point oftime did you make up your mind tomake career in ‘Civil Services’.

Suman—I was constantly intouch with the trends post my undergraduate studies; but I took a totalplunge after completing my Mastersacademics.

PD—You must have read IASToppers’ interviews in newspapers/magazines : what inspired you themost ? Any particular success storywhich influenced your journey to thisresult ?

Suman—I used to read IAStoppers’ interviews regularly inPratiyogita Darpan and other maga-ines. What inspired me the most wasa factor that was common in them alli.e. ‘Never say die’ attitude.

PD—Was CSE a planned decisionor your parent’s wish ? Did you keepin mind some time frame, for theexamination preparation and numberof attempts ?

Suman—CSE, though initiatedas a parent’s wish ultimately calledfor a planned preparation based on

“Pratiyogita Darpan is an excellent effort and isof great importance to any aspirant. It isimpeccable. Hindi medium issue is an invaluablehelp for the Hindi medium aspirants who mightfind it difficult to consolidate their preparationotherwise due to paucity of quality Hindimedium books. PD Extra Issue on GeneralStudies is of remarkable significance owing toits excellent compilation and relevance. Ipersonally referred to Economics and PolityIssues” —Suman Rawat

pragmatic decision. Though the firstattempt immediately after graduationwas out of overconfidence generatedowing to being the university topper,the next was based on a and plannedeffort.

PD—The first step is the mostdifficult; how to prepare ? Whichoptionals ? What to read ? How muchto read ? Many such questions cometo your mind when you really getserious about Civil Services Examina-tion ? From where, you did get theright advice ?

Suman—I read the plannersavailable in the market to put thingsin perspective. Then the invaluablehelp of my seniors from the univer-sity who got into services was ofgreat help and more so, my friendMajor Ajay Singh Rana’s (ShauryaChakra) efforts to keep me stream-lined and disciplined paying me richdividends.

PD—Were you confident of yoursuccess in this examination and howdid you react to this news of yoursuccess ?

Suman—I was confident of mysuccess in the examination. I, how-ever was expecting a good rank, butthe Science and Technology portionof General Studies paper perhapspulled me down, though I haven’tseen the scores as yet.

PD—In how many attempts haveyou achieved this success ? How doyou visualize your preparation/pre-vious attempts ?

Suman—This was my secondattempt. The previous attempt was acompletely unprepared one just to getthe feel of the exam as I couldn’tconvince myself of taking coaching.However this attempt was a wellplanned and a laborious one.

PD—Were you preparing forother career opportunities as wellwhile preparing for your ultimategoal i.e. Career in Civil Services ?

Suman—After my Master’s Iwas working as a Junior Specialist atthe University of California. But theCivil Services kept drawing me so Icame back. I enrolled in M. Phil. andwas teaching at Daulat Ram College,University of Delhi; along with mypreparation.

PD—While the changing eco-nomic environment offers immenselucrative career opportunities invarious sectors, still what kept youmotivated towards Civil Services ?

Suman—Civil Services open aplethora of opportunities to proveyourself at various avenues. It is atailormade profession for those whomsocial considerations drive more thaneconomic considerations. It is notwithout a reason that it carries adageof ‘a heaven born services’.

PD/February/2011/1398 “Self-respect knows no considerations.”

PD—While making final choicefor optional subject/s, what’simportant and what’s not ? Shareyour thoughts and opinions.

Suman—While making finalchoice for optional subject/s what’sof prime importance is your interest,availability of course material andguidance. You must never go bymarket opinion. Sharing my ownblunder, I bought the market opinionin my first attempt regarding optionaland paid a heavy price.

Bio-DataName—Suman Rawat

Father’s Name—Mr. M. S. Rawat

Mother’s Name—Mrs. S. Rawat

Date of Birth—May 10, 1984

Educational Qualifications—

10th—76% (2000), OSN, Rishikesh

12th—68% (2002) OSN, Rishikesh

B.A. (Hons.)—69·75% (2005) DaulatRam College

M.A.—64% (2007) Hindu College

M. Phil.—(2008) continuing Univer-sity of Delhi

Previous Selections—

2009—Was teaching Philosophy(Hons.) Course at Daulat Ram CollegeUniversity of Delhi.

2007—Worked as a Junior Specialistat University of California, Santa Cruz.Got through University of Rome forPh.D.

PD—What were your optionalsubjects ? Give the basis of selectingthem.

Suman—Prelims : Philosophy.

Mains : Philosophy and PublicAdministration.

Since I am a Philosophy graduateand was pursuing M. Phil. with samesubject, it was an obvious choice.

Public Administration wasadvantageous considering that it wastheory of what I would do postjoining services.

PD—Did you keep the sameoptional subjects in all your attempts ?

Suman—In my previous attemptI wrote prelims with Public Ad-ministration and failed miserably.

PD—In your opinion at whichEducational Level should one startpreparing for Civil Services and what

should be the minimum period oftime required to prepare for CivilServices Examinations ?

Suman—One should start whenone feels that one is ready for thechallenge. Every person has uniquecircumstances, so there cannot be astatic answer to this.

However, one year before oneplans to take the prelims is appro-priate and adequate time to getstarted.

PD—What is your opinionregarding the general view thatScience subjects have better chance toscore than Humanities ?

Suman—Well as far as CS isconcerned, this time the above ques-tion will have an answer in positivefrom me. Looking at the result ofprevious few years including thisyears. Science subjects surely areadvantageous eventually science doesplay a role in ranking.

PD—What is the importance ofmedium of examination for examslike CSE ?

Suman—Any medium is good,as long as you can express yourselfbest in that medium.

PD—Does the educational, finan-cial and demographic status of thefamily of an aspirant have any impacton the preparation ?

Suman—Yes in the course ofpreparation these factors do have pulland push impact. But if you aredetermined then even sky is not thelimit.

PD—In your opinion what roledo the Competition Magazines playwhen you are preparing for anexamination like Civil Services ?

Suman—Competition Magazinesare of immense importance. They notonly are a repository of informationbut in an archival form are alwayspresent as a ready reference data.

They save a lot of time and attime inspire and boost a candidate’sconfidence, with its documentedevidence of the success of previousaspirants and toppers.

PD—According to a recent reportpublished by reputed survey agency,PRATIYOGITA DARPAN (Hindi) is

the largest read and the only Careerand Competition magazine in topfour magazines in India. How do youfind Pratiyogita Darpan ?

Suman—Pratiyogita Darpan isan excellent effort and is of greatimportance to any aspirant ofcompetitive exams.

Its impeccable Hindi Issue is aninvaluable help for the HindiMedium aspirants who might find itdifficult to consolidate their prepara-tion otherwise due to paucity ofquality Hindi medium books.

PD—Please give your commentson the PD Extra Issues Series on‘General Studies’ and a few OptionalSubjects ?

Suman—PD Extra Issues Serieson ‘General Studies’ is of remarkablesignificance owing to its excellentcompilation and relevance. I perso-nally referred to Economics andPolity issues. I didn't however refer tooptional series and hence can’tcomment on the same.

Personal QualitiesFavourite Person—Moshe Dayan

Strong Point—Oratory skills

Weak Point—To hide weak points

Hobbies—Playing violin, playingsquash, script writing, making craftsfrom waste materials, reading, Internetbrowsing etc.

PD—Did you refer to PratiyogitaDarpan—Year Book ? What is youropinion about the contents, size andthe time of publishing ?

Suman—I didn’t refer to thesame as I confined myself to standardIndia Year Book owing to paucity oftime.

However, my friends in theservices did recommend it to me asan invaluable compilation.

PD—What is the secret of yoursuccess ?

Suman—Success has no secrets;one who labours the most gets themost; but don’t labour like a donkey;intelligence has a role to play.

PD—What preference in serviceshave you opted for ?

Suman—IAS, IFS, IPS

PD/February/2011/1399/5 “Respect yourself and others will respect you.”

PD—To whom would you like togive the credit for your success ?

Suman—My father whose com-mitment to education is my inspira-tion; my mother whose love andaffection are my strength; my brotherParikshit who kept me on toes; my

MY STRATEGY FOR SUCCESS

FOR PRELIMS

For General Studies, afterstrengthening the conventional areasfrom NCERT’s I focussed on inte-grating them with current happen-ings from newspapers and maga-zines. I made my own notes of G. S.as well as optionals.

For the optional subject I read asmuch as possible and accorded awide coverage to the subject. Eventhough Philosophy is a popularsubject for Mains, opting it forprelims was a challenge. But I tried itwith focussed approach and it didwork well. I could attempt almost allquestions correctly in prelims in myoptional subject.

I gave equal importance andtime to both.

As for negative marking, I pra-ctised a lot of MCQ’s before Prelimsto improve my accuracy rate in exam.I didn’t over attempt, and attemptedonly those questions about which Iwas completely sure.

Anyhow I feel ‘NegativeMarking’ is a boon, not a bane to getthe best people in.

FOR MAINS

For Mains I laid extremeemphasis on answer writing practice;selective and intensive reading.

I also kept myself stress free andcool by attending various culturalfestivals happening around the city.

Here so, I gave importance to‘See and learn’ strategy to and travel-led around and interacted more andmore.

FOR ESSAY PAPEREssay writing comes effortlessly

to me. Since childhood my father hasinculcated a habit of reading andwriting in me and that training madeEssay paper relatively easier for me.

friend Major Ajay Singh Rana, with-out whom this was just impossible.

PD—Any suggestion/advice youwould like to give to the futureaspirants.

Suman—Toil Toil ye rising shipnever stop till you see the sun !

This time I picked up ‘Is Indiaa Soft State ?’ I have interest inNational security and political hap-penings. I also was up to date on thehappenings on the security front. Allthis made my choosing this topic anobvious fact.

FOR INTERVIEW

For my interview I read a lot oflatest literature, interacted regularlywith my friends; talked to my seniorsetc.

My brother Parikshit who is inclass XII used to take my mockinterviews on phone which were ofimmense help, Major Ajay Singh alsogroomed in personality relatedissues.

I had my interview on March 25,2010 in Sir I.M.G. Khan’s board. Myinterview went on impeccably. I wasquestioned on every sphere withquestions ranging from my back-ground, optionals to foreign affaireconomics and current happenings.Contrary to general perception, Ienjoyed my interview, it was one ofthe best moments of my life. It lastedfor 35 mins.

Time Management

Since I was doing my M. Phil.along with my preparation, timemanagement, was indispensable.Being a University Topper, I didn’twant to lose my rank in M. Phil. too,so I had tough times often to balancebetween the two.

But since it is true that ‘nothingis impossible’ I made a schedule,strictly followed it and sometimesoverstretched myself, the entireUniverse then conspired to sail methrough.

List of Books● Outlines of Indian Philosophy—

M. Hiriyanna

● A History of Philosophy—FredrickCopelston

● Introduction to Indian Philoso-phy—C. D. Sharma

● Penguin Dictionary of Philoso-phy—

● The Problems of Philosophy—Bistrand Russell

● My Experiments with Truth—M.K. Gandhi

● Ethics—W. Irankena

● Introduction to Ethics—WilliamLillie

● A Short history of Ethics—AlsaidMclntyre

● Ethics and Language—C. L. Steve-nson

MainsOptional I

Philosophy● Outlines of Indian Philosophy—

M. Hiriyanna● Introduction to Indian Philoso-

phy—C. D. Sharma● Indian Philosophy Series— S .

Radhakrishna● A History of Western Philo-

sophy—Fredrick Copelston Series● A History of Western Philoso-

phy—Y. Masih● Social and Political Philosophy—

O. P. Gauba● Arthashastra—Kautilya● Willgenstein and Modern Philoso-

phy—Martnack● Ideas—Husserl● Philosophy of Religion—John

Hick; Y. Masih etc. and articlesfrom JSTOR

Optional II

Public Administration

● New Horizons of Public Adminis-tration—Mohit Bhattacharya

● Public Administration & PublicAffairs—Nicholas Henry

● Public Administration—Fadia &Fadia

● Administrative Thinkers—Prasad& Prasad

● Indian Administration—Arora &Goyal

● Public Administration—Sharma &Sadana

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1400 “A man who doesn’t trust himself can never really trust anyone else.”

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ Inspiring Youth ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

“The power is within me to shape my life.”—Mrs. Komal Kiran

Selected in Bank Probationary Officers Exam., 2010

‘Pratiyogita Darpan’ arranged an exclusive interview with Mrs. Komal Kiran who has beenselected in Bank Probationary Officers Examination 2010. She deserves all admiration and ourheartiest congratulations on her splendid success. This important, thought provoking and highlyinspiring interview is being presented here in its original form.

PD—Heartiest congratulations onyour brilliant success in the Bank P.O.Exam.

Kiran—Thank you.

PD—As you are aware, on thegreat demand from lakhs of aspiringyouths like you, PD English waslaunched on 1st June, 2006. Now thatyou have tasted the sweetness of suc-cess, so please tell us—

(i) What difference could it havemade if you had got PD English whileyou were preparing for Bank P.O.Exam. ?

(ii) What special feature/ featureswould you like to see in PD English ?

Kiran—(i) PD English is anexhaustive book of knowledge. Oneneed not read anything else if onereads PD thoroughly for G.K. andCurrent Awareness. I was completelydependent on it for my exams andinterview.

(ii) PD is already equipped withall the requirements of Bank P.O.exams.

PD—Were you confident of yoursuccess ? How did you react to thisspecial news of your success ?

Kiran—I feel that success is oftenthe result of taking a step in the rightdirection. I was not sure aboutsuccess in this particular exam., but Iwas confident about its arrival sooneror later. I thank God for letting metaste it earlier than my other friends.

PD—Before knowing your ownresult, what was your perceptionabout toppers ?

Kiran—Before my selection Iused to think that those who qualifythese exams do hours of labour tosucceed, and they do somethingdifferent but now I realised it wastheir strategy towards preparations.

“Pratiyogita Darpan is really in great demandand I personally rate it as 9/10 because I wascompletely dependent on it for my currentawareness preparation. PD Extra Issue Series onGeneral Studies contain awesome features andare of great help. Economic Issue helps a lot inunderstanding the socio-economics and financialterms which are frequently asked.”

—Mrs. Komal Kiran

PD—Was only Bank P.O. yourultimate goal or were you preparingfor other career opportunities as wellsimultaneously ?

Kiran—Being an eligible candi-date for Banking services exams andbeing a part of financial sector wasnot my aim but dream. Frankly sayingI took steps only for banking servicesexaminations.

PD—In your opinion at whichlevel of education should one startpreparing for Bank P.O. Exam. andwhat should be the minimum periodof time required to prepare for BankP.O. Examinations ?

Kiran—It is never late to start.The moment one realises his/hergoal one should move forward to it. Imyself started after completing mygradua-tion. Six months are enough ifprepared with honest efforts.

PD—What is the importance ofmedium of expression in the examslike Bank P.O. ?

Kiran—It really doesn’t matter.It is the concept that really matters.The basic concept of anythingwhether in English or Hindi is impor-tant. One should opt for in whichhe/she is comfortable.

PD—Does the educational, finan-cial and demographic status of thefamily of an aspirant have any impacton his/her preparations ?

Kiran—It does have as they doimpact on our concentration power.But as it is well said that adversitymakes you strong and bright. I feelthat it is hard but not impossible toovercome these problems.

Bio-DataName—Mrs. Komal KiranFather’s Name—Shri Shyam

Bihari ThakurMother’s Name—Smt. Sunita

ThakurDoB—October 19, 1985Educational Qualifications—10th—(2003) DAV Public

School, Patna (74%)12th— (2005) DAV Public

School, Patna (65%)B.A.—(2008) A. N. College

(MU), Patna (59%)Previous Selections—OBC

Clerk, 2009; Allahabad (P.O.), 2010;Allahabad Clerk, 2010; PNB Clerk,2010; SBI (P.O.), 2010 (Resultawaited).

PD—In your opinion what roledo the Competition Magazines playwhen you are preparing for an exami-nation like Bank P.O. ?

Kiran—Competition Magazinesguide us in exact way. Even if onedoesn’t go to classes for preparation,one can perform well following the

PD/February/2011/1401 “Respecting yourself means listening to your body and emotions continuously.”

details and manner of solving thequestions in these magazines.

PD—PRATIYOGITA DARPANis the largest read Career andCompetition Magazine in India.How do you rate Pratiyogita Darpanand in what way can this magazinebe made more useful for Bank P.O.aspirants ?

Kiran—PD is really in greatdemand and I personally rate it as9/10 because I was completelydependent on it my current aware-ness preparation.

Personal QualitiesFavourite Person—Kalpana

Chawala.Strong Point—Persistence and

curious to know.Weak Point—Feeling low when

I do not get something I desire.Hobbies—Reading novels and

magazines and listening music.

PD—Please give your commentson the PD Extra Issue Series on ‘Gene-ral Studies’ and other Bank’s relatedexaminations.

Kiran—They are awesomefeatures and are of great help.Economic Issue helps lot in under-standing the socio-economics andfinancial terms which are frequentlyasked.

PD—Did you see our latestpublication : Pratiyogita Darpan—Year Book ? What is your opinionabout the contents, size and thetiming of launch (Mid April—justbefore Prelims) ?

Kiran—Pratiyogita Darpan YearBook is a detailed round up of hap-penings and events of particular yearand to every aspirant of competitiveexams. I would suggest to follow itwithout any doubt.

PD—What is the secret of yoursuccess ?

Kiran—For me the learninggraph never ends. The power iswithin me to shape my life. I have astrong conviction that if I do not getsomething I desire, something biggerawaits me.

PD—Did you join any coachinginstitute at any stage of the prepara-tion ? If yes, then what is youropinion about the role these institutesplay in the preparation for Bank P.O.Examinations ?

Kiran—Yes, I joined the classesfor strategic preparations. Theseinstitutes guide us in right directionand in a strategic way. I would liketo give credit to my teachers atMaxmin Tutorials where I learntmany basic things required to qualifythese banking exams.

PD—To whom would you like togive the credit for your success ?

Kiran—First of all the AlmightyGod who is present within me. Thenthe support of my family membersespecially my father and mother andsome teachers with awesome per-sonality who has been motivatingalways.

PD—Point out the detailedstrategy for Bank P.O. Exams., andInterview.

Kiran—Time management. Beselective, if you are good at particularsection try to get maximum in it andthen give prioritisation to othersections.

MY STRATEGY FOR SUCCESS

FOR INTERVIEW

For Interview I covered thesyllabus of my degree subject and forcurrent affairs I read PD English andnewspaper (Times of India). Thequestions asked were :1. Banking ombudsman.

2. Question related to RBI (now it isdiff. from other banks).

3. What is RTI Act, what is itschanges.

4. Computer related questions,(what is rediffmail).

5. Some questions from my Hons.subject etc.

Time Management

Banking exams are all abouttaking stress tests. These examsincreased my capabilities to deal inhard situations. Frequent testsconducted at Maxmin Tutorialshelped me to understand where I amlacking. I followed the principle ofsmart and strategic study to tacklemy time management problem.

P.Darpan

Interview—Go through the lastacademic course you have qualifiedi.e., degree or P.G. whatever it is learnsome general banking terms, socio-economic topics and current affairs(newspaper and magazines).

PD—Your biggest mistake.

Kiran—Earlier I was unable tomanage the time in exam. Mistakesare unavoidable which give youlessons and experience for your bettertomorrow.

PD—Any suggestion/adviceyou would like to give to the futureaspirants ?

Kiran—I would suggest to allaspiring candidates to have faith inthemselves. And if you don’t get suc-cess at first attempt, just think some-thing bigger and good awaits you.Just follow—‘Concentrate and have’.

PD—Thank you very much andwishing you all the best for a brightfuture.

Kiran—Thank you, once again.

PD/February/2011/1402 “Self-respect is a question of recognizing that anything worth having has a price.”

TouTourism Articleism Article

Village Tourism : An Agent for Rural Economic Growth

—C. P. Chandan

The spirit of India resides in hervillages and those living in cities andtowns have their roots in rural life, itsart and rituals. Indian villages, whichhave pastoral beauty and touchingsimplicity, offer fresh comfortingbreezes and lavish openness. Theyare the reservoirs of traditional know-ledge. Those in the developed worldwho have a craze for knowledgeabout traditional ways of life, artsand crafts will be attracted to visitrural India if the concept of ruraltourism is marketed well. Tourismgrowth potential can be harnessed asa strategy for Rural Development.The development of a strong plat-form around the concept of villagetourism is definitely useful for acountry like India, where almost 74%of the population resides in its morethan half million villages.

Rural tourism or village tourismstands for showcasing the ethnic arts,crafts, culture and lifestyle in itstraditional setting, and providing aplatform for tourists to experiencethis. It also signifies promoting theconcept of home-stays in the hostcommunity.

Though rural tourism may berelatively a new concept in India,in European countries it started asearly as 1950. In France, agro-tourismstarted in 1950 and today nearly20,000 farmers offer their services totourism interested in rural tourism.Similarly, rural tourism in Spainstarted in the eighties and the countryhas nearly 7,000 rural resorts com-prising 50,000 beds for peopleinterested in visiting the countryside.In United Kingdom, rural tourismstarted in mid seventies, and today itis a strategic force in the rural eco-nomy. Overall speaking, in Europe 2-5 per cent farmers are directly orindirectly engaged in rural tourism.In countries like Australia, Ukraine,Canada, Philippine, Italy agriculturetourism is emerging as a mini-boomto the rural economy.

In India, rural tourism started inmid nineties, when some entrepr-eneurs and some NGOs startedexploring the possibilities of ruraltourism. Here the scope of ruraltourism is very vast, where 74 percent of the total population lives in itsmore than half million villages. Thecountry has more compelling reasonsto promote rural tourism. One, is theimmense potential of rural youth, theother is the urgent need to checkrural migration to cities.

Moreover, across the world, thetrends of industrialization and devel-opment have had an urban centricapproach. Alongside, the stresses ofurban lifestyles have led to a counter-urbanisation syndrome. This has ledto growing interest in villages. At thesame time, this trend of urbanizationhad led to falling income levels. Ruraltourism is one of the few activitieswhich can provide a solution to theseproblems.

Village tourism or rural tourismhas various forms of tourism suchas—agriculture or farm tourism,nature tourism, heritage tourism, pil-grim tourism, adventure tourism, cul-ture tourism, etc. Indian villages havepotential of all such forms of tourism.

Farm TourismSome important farm tourism

may be explained as below :Spread over 10 acres of land the

Banni Khera Farm is located in SamarGopalpur in Rohtak, in Haryana. Itis designed on the lines of VaastuShastra. Farming is a year roundoccupation with a variety of activitiesoccurring throughout the year. Thisfarm has a tranquil location.

Located in Amarpur village nearPalwal in Faridabad district, Haryanaapproximately 65 km from Delhi, theProgressive Farm spreads over 25acre. The Farm is based on theconcept of ‘Back to Nature. TheProgressive Farm provides naturalliving, natural food, natural care andnatural farming.

The Botanix Farm House islocated in Abhaypur village inGurgaon district in Haryana. It offersthe ultimate in leisure and weekendbreaks. It is set in its own extensivelylandscaped gardens in the heart ofGurgaon countryside. It combinesstate-of the—art of facility with thecharm of traditional village tourismto create one of the most luxuriousand relaxing nature health farms inthe country.

The Kalki Mystic Farm House isdesigned on the lines of VaastuShastra. It spreads over 10 acres ofland in Garhi Hasru village nearSultanpur lake tourist complex inGurgaon district, Haryana. Farmingis a year round occupation with avariety of activities occurringthroughout the year. The exclusivesetting makes it an ideal place forpeople seeking an experience, of trueethnic and cultural ethos and expo-sure of modern day farming.

Spread over 75 acres of land, theNature Care Farm is located inDaulatpur in Haryana’s Hissardistrict. The greenery all aroundinvites visitors to a breath of naturalvillage life and other relaxing breaksfrom hectic urban lifestyle. The Farmhas an ecosystem concept of agri-culture (biodiversity) which includesHerbal Farming, Organic Farming,Vermi compost unit, orchard andVegetable garden, bee keeping, studFarm, Dairy Farming, Poultry, agroforestry, aqua culture.

Situated at Talao village inHaryana’s Jhajjar district, PratapgarhFarms and Resorts have a lot ofoutdoor learning fun activities likearchery, tube well baths, villagegames like gulli danda etc. The acco-mmodation is cozy and the rooms arefurnished with modern amenities.

Designed on the lines of VaastuShastra, the Sheilma Farm House isspread over 10 acres of land at KhoriJamalpur village in Faridabad districtin Haryana. Here visitors are welcome

PD/February/2011/1403 “If we lose love and self respect for each other, this is how we finally die.”

to explore the haveli at Sheilma farmsand fields at their leisure. Its tranquillocation is enhanced by on-site fish-ing. The exclusive setting makes it anideal place for people seeking anexperience, of true ethnic and culturalethos and exposure of modern dayfarming.

Surijivan Farm is located veryclose to New Delhi. It has lush greenundulation sprinkled with the mostbreathtaking variety of colourfulplants, then the mud house for aheady taste of village and rustic life.The adjoining village is famous formaking hand-made shoes andcoloured baskets woven out of thatch.The tourists can be taken to thesevillages where they can also purchasethese if they like.

Set up at Bhulwana village inFaridabad district, the YMCA RuralCenter Hodal is the lighthouse ofsustainable rural development, im-parting technical know-how of themodern farming techniques, createsawareness through non-formal edu-cation and to improve the healthstatus of the community. The mainobjective of this farm is the develop-ment of body, mind and spirit.

Apart from these farms there arelots of other farms such as The GoldenDunes Farm House, The Laksh FarmHouse, The Wilderness Farm House,which offer fulfilling experience inrural eco-tourism.

Heritage Tourism

India has glorious past whichrepresents the rich heritage. Thesplendid architecture, minutelycarved motifs, embellished facades ofthe heritage monuments narrate theimmense skill of the craftsmen of theyore which have been fascinating theworld for many centuries.

The exquisite marble inlay workof the Taj Mahal or the titillatingsculptures of the Khajuraho Templesor the excellent fusion of science andart in Konark Sun Temple, all tell thestory of golden past of the country.The number of important monumentsand sites is so great that a single tourto discover the multifarious facets ofits wonderful heritage is not enough.Nevertheless, it will give you anadmirable glimpse into the Indianhistory and heritage. At the end ofyour trip, you will surely develop a

huge respect for the Indian heritagewhile craving for more such tours inthe near future.

Pilgrim Tourism

It is a widely accepted view thatIndia has been a country of spiri-tuality from time immemorial. Peopleseeking eternal quest and peace ofmind used to come here to gainreligious knowledge. Max Mueller,Grearson, including Chinese travel-lers all came to India to seek know-ledge.

Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainismand Sikhism have originated on theIndian soil. The unity in diversity isthe keyword for the grand country.The Hindus flock to take a dip in theholy rivers, the Sikhs walk up to aheight of 4329 meters through thedifficult terrain to reach the Hem-kund Sahib. The cradle of Buddhism,devotees from the world over fre-quent the holy city of Sarnath.

The great pilgrim destination forthe Hindus is Haridwar, or the doorto God, at the foothills of Shivaliks.The aarti held every evening at theHar-ki-Pauri, with innumerable float-ing diyas and flowers is a must forall, something not to be missed. TheChardham Yatra is a major attractionfor tourism in India. The Yatra to theChardhams comprise visit to holyplaces of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gan-gotri and Yamunotri. Rishikesh, inthe laps of the Himalayas happens tobe the common point for all the fourpilgrim spots besides being sacreditself. It happens to be a great site forrafting and trekking as well.

Located at the confluence of theAlaknanda and the Bhagirathi rivers,Devprayag is a famous pilgrimagespot. Uttarkashi town is situated onthe banks of the river Bhagirathi andits Vishwanatha temple, devoted toLord Shiva, attracts several pilgrims.The holy city of Rudraprayag locatedat the confluence of Alaknanda andMandakini draws several pilgrims tothe Rudranath, Chamunda Devi andthe Koteshwar temples. Further up atGaurikund, one may visit the famousGauri temple and bathe in the hotwater pond. The package is com-pleted with visit to Joshimath,Badrinath and Govind Ghat.

As far as the Buddhist pilgrim-age is concerned, here too we have

several pilgrim spots in the countrythat are associated with the birth andteaching places of Buddha. Lumbiniis the birthplace of Buddha. The cityof Sarnath is popular amongst theBuddhist as the spot for Buddha’sfirst sermon, which revealed the eight-fold path after His enlightenment.Lord Buddha had attained Enlighten-ment under the Bodhi tree inBodhgaya, which too is a pilgrimagefor the Buddhists. The pilgrimage toVaishali is significant as Buddhadelivered His last sermon here andannounced His Nirvana.

The holy city of Varanasi issituated on the banks of the Ganga.Its name has been derived from thetwo streams flowing through itnamely, Varuna and Assi. Pilgrims tothe holy land, follow the age-oldtradition of bathing and performingpuja at the ghats. The AlamgirMosque or the Beni Madhav KaDarera close to the main city is anexample of the beauty of amalga-mation of the Hindu and Mughalstyles of architecture.

For the Sikhs one of the mostrevered shrines is the HemkundSahib. Pilgrims trek to a height of4329 metres to pray at the world'sHighest Gurudwara. The pilgrimagestarts at the base camp of GovindDham. Devotees visit the Sri GuruNanak Dev ji gurudwara at Mani-karan known for the hot watersprings with healing properties. Thesacred city of Poanta Sahib is visitedto regard the tenth guru, GuruGovind Singh. Pilgrims also flock toAnandpur Sahib, the residence andmeditation spot for the Gurus.

Adventure Tourism

As most rural tourism tripswould be in the lap of nature, fishing,hunting, trekking and bird-watchingcould go with it. India has an endlessscope of adventure tourism becauseof its diverse topography and climate.The mountainous regions offer um-pteen scope for mountaineering, rockclimbing, trekking, skiing, skating,mount biking and safaris while therushing rivers from these mountainsare just perfect for river rafting,canoeing and kayaking. The oceansare not behind in any manner as well.The forest and the desert regions

Continued on Page 1471

PD/February/2011/1404 “How like herrings and onions our vices are in the morning after we have committed them.”

International RInternational Relaelations tions ArticleArticle

India-Japan Ties : A Strategic Partnership—C. P. Chandan

Indian Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh’s visit to Japanfor Annual Summit of the PrimeMinisters on October 24-25, 2010 atthe invitation of Japanese PrimeMinister of Naoto Kan has resulted ina strong, vibrant and multi-dimen-sional relationship between Indiaand Japan. Both the countries decidedto extend their cooperation to areassuch as joint ventures in rare earthminerals, some hitherto unexploredareas in defence, and transport andindustrial corridors in south India.

Prime Ministers of both thecountries resolved to continue thetalks on a civil nuclear agreement.They instructed officials to ensure thesmooth implementation of the Com-prehensive Economic PartnershipAgreement (CEPA) and acceleratediscussions on the reform of theUnited Nations Security Council(UNSC), to which both countries areaspirants as permanent members.

Manmohan Singh and NaotoKan discussed the need for open andtransparent dialogue with China.They agreed that engaging China inmore productive dialogue and deve-loping structures of cooperation is theway forward. It requires deep analy-sis, close engagement and lots ofpatience. The reality is that both willhave to develop indepth ties withChina.

The two countries signed aMemorandum of Understanding onsimplifying visa procedures thatwould supplement the CEPA bycatering for India's areas of strengthin pharmaceuticals, healthcare per-sonnel and information technology.In MoU there are many measuresrelated to Business Visas in Indiaand Temporary Visitor’s Visas forBusinessmen in Japan. Under theMemorandum, any Japanese comingto India for business or work will bestraightway granted three-year visaand similar procedures will befollowed by Japan. Each side mayissue multiple entry visas valid for up

to 5 years to each other's businessmenwho travel to the other country on atemporary visit for business pur-poses, with a limit on the number ofdays of stay.

The memorandum would alsopave way for more exchanges in theeducation community with the visasprocedures being simplified forstudents seeking to pursue courses inthe other country.

The agreement also relaxes entryprocedures for tourists. India has alsorelaxed for tourists from Japan itstough entry norm that requires a two-month interval between two visitsto ensure that genuine tourists arenot adversely affected. “Nationals ofJapan with tourist visas, after initialentry into India, may visit anothercountry largely on account of neigh-bourhood tourism and need to re-enter India within 60 days, beforefinally exiting”, the MoU says.

The two Prime Ministers reitera-ted the fundamental identity ofvalues, interests and priorities bet-ween Japan and India. They reaffir-med the political commitment in bothcountries cutting across party linesand popular desire for upgradingbilateral relations, and valued theircooperation for sustained peace andprosperity in a changing and dyna-mic Asia and the world. In thiscontext, they expressed their commondesire to further consolidate, enhanceand expand the Strategic and GlobalPartnership between them throughthe second decade of the 21st Century.

Dr. Singh and Naoto Kanexpressed satisfaction at the steadygrowth of political exchanges, dia-logue and policy coordination atall levels. They positively evaluatedMinisterial-level annual dialoguesand exchanges between ForeignMinister, Defense Minister andMinister of Economy, Trade andIndustry of Japan and ExternalAffairs Minister, Defense Minister,Commerce and Industry Minister andDeputy Chairman of the Planning

Commission of India and noted thatall these exchanges were successfullyaccomplished in 2010.

India and Japan also supportedthe establishment of a MinisterialLevel Economic Dialogue betweenthem to give strategic and long-termpolicy orientation to their bilateraleconomic engagement, taking intoaccount the regional and globalcontext and to coordinate economicissues of cross-cutting nature,including infrastructure developmentand financing. They welcomed thelaunch of the ‘2 plus 2’ dialogue atSubcabinet / Senior Official level andthe launch of a dialogue on Africa atthe official level in 2010 as a reflectionof wider policy consultation andcoordination on foreign policy andsecurity issues.

Both Prime Ministers welcomedthe successful conclusion of nego-tiations on a balanced and mutuallybeneficial Japan-India Comprehen-sive Economic Partnership Agree-ment (CEPA). They directed their con-cerned authorities to work towardsearly entry into force of CEPA and itssmooth implementation. They expres-sed optimism that Japan-India CEPAwill deepen their economic engage-ment, in terms of trade in goods andservices, investment and cooperationand contribute to mutual prosperity.They hailed CEPA between thesetwo leading economies of Asia as animportant step for regional integra-tion.

Both of them underlined the vitalimportance of economic cooperation,including Japan's Official Develop-ment Assistance to India and SpecialEconomic Partnership Initiatives, instrengthening Japan-India partner-ship. Prime Minister Singh expressedhis appreciation to the Governmentand the people of Japan for Japan'sgenerous role in India's development.The two Prime Ministers aimed forearly completion of both phases ofthe Western Dedicated FreightCorridor in India in a parallel manner

PD/February/2011/1405 “The cyclone derives its powers from a calm center. So does a person.”

with Japan's financial and technicalassistance, and noted with satisfac-tion the progress on the Phase II ofthe Corridor with the signing of theExchange of Notes for the Engineer-ing Services for Phase II in July 2010.They expressed their desire to accele-rate progress on the Delhi-MumbaiIndustrial Corridor (DMIC).

Japanese Prime Minister Mr. Kanexpressed his intention to enhanceJapan's involvement to DMICDC(Delhi-Mumbai Industrial CorridorDevelopment Corporation) throughthe efforts of related organizationssuch as JETRO (Japan External TradeOrganization) and AOTS (Associationfor Overseas Technical Scholarship).The two Prime Ministers positivelyappraised the efforts from both sidesto develop the Corridor in an eco-friendly manner as "Smart Commu-nities" and welcomed the progress ofcooperation in the field of urbandevelopment. They took note of thepotential of the DMIC project toenhance physical connectivity acrossAsia. They encouraged greater invest-ment from Japan into India includingin the infrastructure sector over thenext decade to realize this vision, andasked their respective sides to engagein dialogues on public-private par-tnership on DMIC. Prime MinisterSingh appreciated Japan's decisionon the extension of the period oftechnical cooperation programme,Visionary Leaders for Manufacturing(VLFM) Programme. The two PrimeMinisters hoped that this programmewill contribute to the development ofmanufacturing sector in India.

Historical Perspective of Ties

Bilateral relations between Indiaand Japan began in sixth centurywhen Buddhism was introduced toJapan. Japanese culture was greatlyinfluenced by the Indian cultureand this is a relevant source of theJapanese people’s sense of closenessto India.

Indian first Prime Minister Pt.Jawaharlal Nehru provided twoIndian elephants to the Ueno Zoo inTokyo in 1949. This brought a ray oflight into the lives of the Japanesepeople who still had not recoveredfrom defeat in the war. Japan andIndia signed a peace treaty andestablished diplomatic relations on

28th April, 1952. This treaty was oneof the first peace treaties Japan signedafter the World War II.

India had helped Japan byexporting iron ore to them. Thishelped a great deal Japan’s recoveryfrom the devastation in the postWorld War II period. FollowingJapanese Prime Minister NobusukeKishi's visit to India in 1957, Japanstarted providing yen loans to Indiain 1958, as the first yen loan aidextended by Japanese government.Since 1986, Japan has become India'slargest aid donor.

In August 2000 Japanese PrimMinister Mori’s visit to India pro-vided the momentum to strengthenthe India-Japan tie. Since then, annualmeetings between prime ministers,including Prime Minister Koizumi'svisit to India in April 2005, IndianPrime Minister Singh's visit to Japanin December 2006, Japanese PrimeMinister Shinzo Abe's visit to India inAugust 2007, and Prime MinisterSingh's visit to Japan on October 22-23, 2008, have led to the establish-ment of the “Strategic and GlobalPartnership between Japan and India”as well as the further strengthening ofthe bilateral relationship. DuringJapanese Prime Minister Hatoyama’svisit to India in December 27-29, 2009,Japan and India singed the JointStatement “New State of Japan-IndiaStrategic and Global Partnership”. Itmain elements included :

1. Bilateral Cooperation—(a)Finalization of the Action Plan toadvance security cooperation, includ-ing the establishment of Sub-cabinet/Senior Official 2 + 2 dialogue, (b)Acceleration of EPA/CEPA nego-tiations, (c) Early realization of DFCproject, (d) Collaboration in IITHyderabad, (e) Joint establishment ofPDF for DMIC project, etc.

2. Regional and Global Coopera-tion—(a) Disarmament and Non-proliferation, Climate Change, (b)Counter-Terrorism, (c) WTO, (d) UNReform, etc.

3. Security Cooperation—Indiaand Japan have been conductingannual Foreign Office Consultationsat the Foreign Secretary level. TheSecurity Dialogue between the twocountries was set up in 2001 and sixrounds of dialogue have been

conducted since then. During theIndian Prime Minister’s visit to Japanin 2008, “the Joint Statement onsecurity cooperation between Japanand India” was issued.

Besides, Action Plan to advanceSecurity Cooperation based on theJoint Declaration on Security Co-operation between Japan and Indiawas issued during the Japanese PrimeMinister Hatoyama’s visit to India in2009. The India-Japan 2 plus 2 Dia-logue, which is the framework esta-blished based on the agreement bythe Prime Ministers of both countriesat the Annual Summit in December2009, was held in July 2010 in NewDelhi.

High level exchange is continu-ing between the defense authorities.From Japan, General Masaki, Chiefof Staff (September, 2005), AdmiralSaito, Chief of Maritime SDF(February, 2006), General Mori, Chiefof Ground SDF (March, 2006), andGeneral Yoshida, Chief of Air SDF(April, 2006) visited India. FromIndia, Admiral Prakash, Chief ofNaval Staff, visited Japan in October,2005. Defense Minister of India, Mr.Antony, visited Japan in November,2009, and Joint Press Statement wasissued to promote defense exchangesand cooperation. In April, 2009,Maritime SDF joined in the ‘Malabar2009’ which was co-hosted by U.S.and India. Furthermore, four Indiannavy vessels visited the port of Saseboand the Maritime SDF's training squa-drons visited the port of Goa in May2009.

Between the coast guards, com-bined exercises on anti-piracy, searchand rescue etc. have been conductedsince 2000. The both coast guardsconducted 8th joint exercise when theIndian coast guard ‘Sagar’ visitedNagoya in May 2007. Heads of coastguards of both countries visit eachother almost every year. The twocoast guards exchanged a Memoran-dum on Cooperation at the occasionof commandant Ishikawa's visit toIndia in November, 2006.

4. Cooperation in EconomicFields—Recently, bilateral trade bet-ween two countries is expanding butthe speed and scope of expansion arestill limited. Joint Study Group (JSG),

Continued on Page 1471

PD/February/2011/1406 “Those who flee temptation generally leave a forwarding address.”

International Relations International Relations ArticleArticle

Barack Obama’s Visit to India : Hopes and Hypes—Amresh Chandra

US President Barack Obama hasvisited India for a series of high-levelmeetings and events designed tostrengthen ties between the twocountries, particularly in agriculture,strategic issues and on regionalissues concerning China, Afghanis-tan, Pakistan and Kashmir. ThePresident’s historic visit to Indiaoffers an opportunity to set a newcourse for the direction of the US-India partnership-one that acknow-ledges India’s growing global roleand the changing Asian strategiclandscape that makes strong US-Indian partnership imperative forstability and prosperity in the region.Among the agreements reachedduring Obama’s visit are US D 10billion worth of business dealsdesigned to boost US exports amidthe country’s sluggish economy.Obama has also endorsed India’s bidfor a permanent seat at the U.N.Security Council that could signi-ficantly change the contours of Indo-US ties.

Their commonality is based onvarious aspects and has broaddimensions. The US and India sharecommon values based on theirdemocratic, multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and multi-religious societies,as well as a strong entrepreneurialspirit, all of which support thebilateral Strategic Partnership. Boththe US and India are committed tofull exploitation of the mutualbenefits of globalization, which is anirreversible process driven by tech-nology and the development ofhuman resources in an increasinglyknowledge-based world. Throughmutual harnessing of technology andhuman capital, the US and India canforge a unique partnership to achievegreater competitiveness and pros-perity for the citizens of both nations.

This feeling got reflected in thevery first comments of the USPresident during his tour to India ashe said, “we took this trip with theintention of strengthening what is

already an incredible friendshipbetween the United States and India.As I've said earlier during my visit, Ibelieve that the partnership betweenthe United States and India will beone of the defining partnerships ofthe 21st century. We are the twolargest democracies in the world. Weshare extraordinary people-to-peoplecontacts. Most importantly, we sharea core set of values.”

Further he said, “During thecourse of these discussions betweenmyself and the Prime Minister,myself and the President, and othermembers of the Indian delegation,that we will be able to continue tobuild on the commercial ties thatwe already have to strengthen ourcooperation in our bilateral relationsin the international economy; thatwe'll be able to focus on issues likecounter-terrorism in order to assurethat both the United States and Indiaare secure well into the future; thatwe can build on the people-to-peopleties that are in part grounded in themillions of Indian Americans whocontribute so much to our countryand help give us an appreciation ofIndian life; and that, given that Indiais not simply an emerging power, butnow is a world power, that theUnited States and India will be ableto work together to promote theinternational principles, the rules ofinteraction between nations that canpromote peace and stability andprosperity not only for our twonations, but for the world as awhole.”

Relation in ChronologicalScale

From Second World War to1970—After independence, thoughthe decade of 50s was that of povertyand underdevelopment when a weak,divided nation was staggeringlypicking up its broken bits, yet, Indiaearned respect internationally due toPandit Jawaharlal Nehru’s calculativepolicy of Non-Alignment, at a timewhen the world had polarized into

two blocs. This alienated it fromAmerica. The decision of US to sellarms to Pakistan further distancedthe two countries. During his visit toUS in 1954, Pandit Nehru stronglyprotested against this but to littleavail.

India’s strong socialist leaningsand growing closeness with theSoviet Union further strained therelations. Dwight Eisenhower, knownfor his India leanings was the first USPresident to visit India in 1959. Thereign of John F. Kennedy (1961–1963),saw India as a partner against therising power of communist China.This resulted in military and strategicassistance by US to India during its1962 border conflict with China.During Kennedy’s period, US helpedestablish one of the first computerscience departments at IIT, Kanpur.In 1969 Richard Nixon became thesecond American President to tourIndia, but not much came out of it.

From 1970 to 80—The decade ofseventies saw a change in the foreignpolicy of the US. While it turnedwith warmth and support towardsPakistan, it attempted to woo Chinaand decided to ignore India. The thenPresident Richard Nixon’s disliketowards India and its people isoften blamed for this worsening ofrelations. During the 1971 war withBangladesh, US clearly expressed itssupport in favour of Pakistan. IndiraGandhi’s visit to the US in the sameyear turned out to be completelyfruitless. The 1974 Pokharan nucleartest resulted in increased suspicionand innumerable economic sanctionson India. 1975 was a significant yearas an embargo on arms sale to Indiawas lifted by the then PresidentGerald Ford. In 1978, PresidentJimmy Carter visited India.

From 1980 to 90—With thecollapse of Communism, Americaninterests and outlook towards theinternational order changed. Mean-while its continued help to Pakistankept India estranged from it. How-

PD/February/2011/1407 “It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.”

ever, the 80s saw some sunshine andthe bilateral relations began toimprove due to numerous high levelvisits and inking of several economic,military and cultural agreements.Indira Gandhi’s visit to the US in 1982resulted in the latter agreeing tosupply fuel and spare parts for thenuclear power plant at Tarapur. RajivGandhi’s visit to the US in 1985 wasgreatly successful as a bilateralagreement on scientific and techno-logical exchanges was agreed uponby the two states.

From 1990 to 2000—With thedisintegration of the USSR in 1991,the Cold War ended, resulting in therise of new geo-political equationsand providing a much needed boostto Indo-US camaraderie. With theintroduction of New EconomicReforms by Manmohan Singh, Indiaopened its markets and the relationsbetween the two countries got a freshlease of life. In fact from 1991 to 2004,the stock of FDI inflow from the USincreased from US $ 11.3 million to$ 344.4 million. In 1994 PM NarasimhaRao visited America when severalagreements were signed. He alsoaddressed a joint session of theCongress. India and US signed anExtradition treaty in 1997. In 1998 theNDA government tested nuclearbombs at Pokhran for a second time,resulting in US sanctions under theGlenn Amendment Act.

From 2000 onwards—The 9/11attack on America in 2001 became anew parameter that began toinfluence the politics world over,including the Indo-US relations.Terrorism, nuclear proliferation, riseof China and economic and environ-mental concerns became major factorsdetermining the ties between the twostates at the dawn of the new millen-nium. While the terror attack onPentagon and World Trade Centrecreated suspicions against Pakistan,China’s rapid rise became a majorcause of concern for the US. Indiabegan to be looked upon by theworld’s only superpower as a safetyvalve in South Asia. Bill Clinton’slove for India further catapulted usfrom the peripherals to the position ofa strategic partner.

In 2000, India and the USAagreed to establish a Joint WorkingGroup on Counter-Terrorism. And in

the same year Bill Clinton became thefourth American President to tourIndia on a highly successful trip thatliterally changed equations betweenthe top leaderships of the two coun-tries. The George W. Bush years areargued to be the best for India,though not as much for the world atlarge. In 2001, Bush lifted post-Pokharan II sanctions imposed onIndia. In the next year 2002, the Indo-US High Technology CooperationGroup came into being. In 2005 anOpen Skies Agreement signed bet-ween the two countries. In the sameyear Manmohan Singh visitedAmerica and many agreements,including the civil nuclear deal, wereinked. In the 21st century, the US hasbecome India’s largest investmentpartner with American direct invest-ment of $ 9 billion accounting for 9%of total foreign investment into India.

The Obama era—Initially, it wasbelieved that due to Obama adminis-tration’s excessive emphasis onChina and the promises made on Iraqand Afghanistan, relations with Indiawould take a backseat. The fears weresupported by the fact that in February2009 India was excluded from the listof countries that the US Secretary ofState Hillary Clinton toured duringher first South Asia visit. But Mrs.Clinton allayed the fears when shevisited India in July in the same yearand called India a key partner. Sheinstitutionalized what is known asStrategic Dialogue between the twocountries. In the same year Indiastrongly criticized Obama admini-stration’s decision to limit H-1B visasand that issue continues to be a thornfor the two sides. In May 2009,Obama reiterated his anti-outsourc-ing views and criticized the currentUS tax policy for favouring com-panies who outsourced jobs.

The ties in his reign have beenhighlighted by symbolisms “Dr.Manmohan Singh was the first headof the government that Obama hostedafter becoming President, this is hisbiggest state visit to any country, hecalls Singh a guru and has spokenglowingly about Mahatma Gandhiand enviously about India’s know-ledge and economic prowess. Singh’svisit of 2009 was marked by a newKnowledge Initiative, launch of US-

India Financial and Economic Part-nership etc.

With this visit of PresidentObama [November 2010], touted ashis largest in his presidency term tillnow, there is a potential of correctingthe chart which seems to be goingaway from the path set by his recentpredecessors. It is a chance for Indiato showcase warmth which is at oncesymbolic of its love for the Americansand is also an indicator that they candepend on their partner in the East.That partner may not be China ifeverything goes well.

Agreements Signed DuringObama’s Visit● India and the United States have

agreed to set up a research anddevelopment centre for cleanenergy in India and will provideannual funding of $ 5 millioneach for five years to completejoint research in solar, biofuelsand energy efficiency.

● US signed Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) withIndia to set up a Global Centrefor Nuclear Energy Partnershipfor research and development ofsecure and proliferation resistantreactor systems.

● MoU to establish an India-USEnergy Cooperation Programme.It will mobilise private sectorexpertise and resources to add-ress clean energy-related issuesin India and the US. This willbroadly cover all sources ofenergy, including renewablesource, and ties in with Obama’sfocus on climate change.

● Agreement on technical co-operation to study India’s annualmonsoon rains. The agreement islikely to help India improve itscapability in predicting mon-soon, which is crucial for theagriculture sector, crop weatherprediction and predicting floods.

● MoU between India and the USon shale gas resources which willsee US technology used to assessshale gas resources in India.India does not have technologyto exploit shale gas, an uncon-ventional gas trapped insedimentary rocks and the US isa pioneer in the field.

PD/February/2011/1408 “The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.”

● India and the US signed MoU onestablishing and operating aGlobal Disease Detection Centrein India. The MoU would beimplemented through an agreedplan between the NationalCentre for Disease Control, Indiaand the Centre for DiseaseControl, Atlanta. The agreementwould enable sharing bestpractices for detection andresponse to emerging infections

Major Areas of Cooperationin the Recent Past

In recent years, there have beenclose and frequent contacts atpolitical and official levels. There isnow a wide-ranging dialogue onglobal, regional and bilateral issuesof mutual interest between the twocountries.

Prime Minister’s visit to USAin November 2009—Prime Ministervisited Washington in November2009, at the invitation of PresidentObama as his first State Guest. Thevisit focused on the common interestsand shared values in a strategicpartnership of global relevance andreflects the vision and resolve of thetwo leaders to embark upon a newphase in their bilateral partnership.

Prime Minister had metPresident Obama for the first timein London in April 2009 on thesidelines of G-20 Summit— He metthe President again in L’Aquila inItaly and also during the G-20 Summitin Pittsburg, USA in September 2009.Earlier, Secretary of State HillaryClinton visited India in July 2009 andhad launched a new Strategic Dia-logue with External Affairs Ministry.A Joint Statement titled “India andthe United States : Partnership for aBetter World” was issued by PrimeMinister and President Obama onNovember 24th 2009, which high-lights the main areas of cooperation.Both the leaders recognized that theIndia-US partnership is indispensablefor global peace and security andacknowledged the common threatthat international terrorism poses toregional and global security. TheStatement also focussed on trade andinvestment, clean and efficient energy,science and technology, space, hightechnology, education, health, agri-

culture and counter-terrorism. Thetwo sides launched a KnowledgeInitiative with a total funding ofUS D 10 million that will be allocatedto increasing university linkagesand junior faculty developmentexchanges between U.S. and Indianuniversities and they also agreed tolaunch the US-India Financial andEconomic Partnership to strengthenengagement on economic, financialand investment related issues.

Both the leaders reaffirmed theirintention to move ahead and opera-tionalize the provisions of the CivilNuclear Agreement at the earliestand also agreed to consult regularlyand seek the early start of negotia-tions on a multilateral, non-discri-minatory and internationally veri-fiable Fissile Material Cutoff Treatyat the Conference on Disarmament.They further committed themselvesto strengthening and reform theglobal economic and financialarchitecture in the G-20, World Bankand the IMF, and to achievinggenuine reform of the United Nationsincluding in its Security Council in amanner that reflects the contem-porary realities of the 21st century.

Secretary Clinton and ExternalAffairs Minister established a‘Strategic Dialogue’ during theformer’s visit to India in July 2009, tobe pursued by bilateral workinggroups of five principal fields viz;Strategic Cooperation on nonproli-feration, counter-terrorism andmilitary; Energy and Climate Change;Education and Development oneducation and women’s empower-ment; Economics, Trade and Agri-culture on business, trade and foodsecurity; and Science and Techno-logy, Health and Innovation on majortechnologies and global healthchallenges which will lead to morefocus on areas of common interest.The two sides signed a TechnologySafeguards Agreement that will allowIndia to launch satellites containingUS parts on its satellite launchvehicles for non-commercial pur-poses. They also established a $ 30million Science and TechnologyEndowment for various related pro-jects.

India-US Economic Relations—The growing economic partnershipbetween the US and India has been

one of the pillars of the transformedbilateral relationship. In the JointStatement issued on November 24,2009, during Prime Minister’s statevisit to Washington, Prime Ministerand President Obama agreed tolaunch the India-US Financial andEconomic Partnership to strengthenbilateral engagement on macro-economic, financial, and investment-related issues.

India has emerged as a thrivingmarket for US exports, which nearlytripled in value between 2004 and2007. The upward trend has conti-nued in 2008, though at a slower rateand declined in 2009 due to the globaleconomic downturn. The total tradeduring 2008 was US $ 43·4 billion(India’s exports to US – 25.7 and USexports to India-17·7) as compared toUS $ 21·6 billion (15·5 + 6·1) in theyear 2004. The total trade duringJanuary-August 2009 was US $ 24·4billion (13·6 bn + 10·8 bn). Major USexports to India include aircraft andaviation-related products, fertilizers,other machinery, precious stones andmetals, organic chemicals, optical andmedical instruments. Major com-ponents of India’s export to the USinclude gems and jewellery, textiles,pharmaceuticals, organic chemicals,engineering goods and, since lastyear, iron and steel products.

The US is the third largest sourceof foreign direct investments in India.Cumulative FDI inflows from theUSA till July 2009 were $ 9.71 billion.The FDI inflows from USA to Indiaincreased from US $ 502 million in2004-05 to US $ 1.80 billion in 2008-09.The sectors attracting FDI from USAare Fuels (Power and Oil Refinery),Telecommunications, Electricalequipments (including computersoftware and electronics), FoodProcessing Industries and Servicesector. According to the India BrandEquity Foundation, investments fromIndia to US in 2006 were estimated ataround US $ 2 billion and rosesharply in 2007 to touch US $ 13billion. In 2007-08 alone, an estimatedUS $ 10.25 billion was invested byIndian companies in the US. Con-sequently, by industry estimates,an additional 65,000 jobs were createdin the US in diverse sectors (steel,chemicals, hotels, and beverages,automobile).

PD/February/2011/1409 “You must admit you have self-control before you can use it.”

Indo-US Defence Coopera-tion—During PM’s visit, bothGovernments agreed to continuepursuing mutually beneficial defencecooperation through the existingsecurity dialogue, service-levelexchanges, defence exercises andtrade and technology transfer andcollaboration. The ‘New Frameworkfor India-US Defence Relationship’signed between the two sides on June28, 2005 and the India-US ‘Frame-work for Maritime Security Co-operation’ signed in March 2006 haveadded a new dynamism to the Indo-US defence ties. Under the Frame-work for Defence Cooperation, sixJoint Working Groups are function-ing.

Joint Exercises between the threeServices of both countries haveimproved in scale and frequencysince the signing of the New Frame-work. From the US, India haspresently contracted for defenceequipments such as radars, maritimepatrol aircraft, transport aircraft, antiship missiles etc.

Indo-US Space Cooperation—The US-India Joint Working Groupon Civil Space Cooperation is theforum for discussions on jointactivities in space. India signed alandmark agreement with NASA attheir Ames Research Centre on July28, 2008 to carry out lunar explo-ration. India's first unmanned lunarmission, Chandrayaan-I was success-fully launched from Shriharikotaon 22nd October, 2008 and carriedtwo NASA payloads—a MiniatureSynthetic Aperture Radar to map icedeposits in the moon's surface and aMoon Mineralogy Maper to assessmineral resources of the Moon. ATechnology Safeguards Agreement(TSA) signed with the US on July 20,2009 in New Delhi during the visit ofUS Secretary of State, will open upfresh opportunities for India in thefield of space launches and willfacilitate the launch of non-commer-cial US satellites and satellites withUS components on Indian launchvehicles. US has subsequentlyapproved launch of ALSAT-2A and2B satellites by Polar Satellite LaunchVehicle (PSLV).

A Letter of Intent was signedbetween ISRO and NASA on

November 18, 2009, on Oceansat-2collaboration, on the sidelines of the6th plenary session of the Groupon Earth Observations (GEO) inWashington. The Oceansat-2 wassuccessfully launched by ISRO fromSriharikota on September 23, 2009using PSLV. This would enable theUS agencies to receive Oceansat-2data for research, education etc.

Indo-US Cooperation in Scienceand Technology—India and the USsigned a Science and TechnologyAgreement on October 17, 2005 thatdeals with IPR issues and providesfor joint research and training, andthe establishment of public-privatepartnerships. A $ 30 million Scienceand Technology Endowment forvarious related projects was esta-blished during the visit of Secretaryof State to India on July 20, 2009. The11th annual governing body meetingof the India-US Science and Techno-logy Forum (IUSSTF) was held atNational Institute of Health, Bethesda,USA during December 7-8, 2009. AnMoU for ‘Earth Observations andEarth Sciences’ has been signedbetween Ministry of Earth Sciences(MoES) and US National Oceanicand Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) in April 2008 and the firstJoint Executive Meeting (JEM) washeld during October 6-7, 2009 in NewDelhi. The 6th Steering CommitteeMeeting of Methane to Markets(M2M) partnership was held atWashington DC during September10-11, 2009 and was representedby India. A delegation from Indiaattended the XXXII Antartica TreatyConsultative Meeting and XII Com-mittee for Environmental Protectionmeetings held in Baltimore, USA,from April 16-17, 2009.

During the recent visit of PM, an“Agreement for access to TraditionalKnowledge Digital Library” wassigned between CSIR, India andUS Patent and Trademark office onNovember 23, 2009, to preventmisappropriation of traditionalknowledge belonging to India, atinternational patent offices. AMemorandum of Intent between USDeptt. of Health and Ministry ofHealth and Family Welfare, GOI, wassigned on November 24, 2009. Thisenvisages setting up a Global DiseaseDetection Centre in Delhi.

Joint Working Group onCounter Terrorism—During the visitof PM in November 2009, the India-US Counter-terrorism CooperationInitiative was initialled between thetwo countries, which would expandcollaboration on counter-terrorism,information sharing and capacitybuilding. Prime Minister andPresident Obama expressed theirgrave concern about the threat posedby terrorism and violent extremistsemanating from India’s neighbour-hood, and agreed that resolute andcredible steps must be taken to eli-minate safe heavens and sanctuariesthat provide shelter to terrorists andtheir activities. JWG on CounterTerrorism was established in January2000 and in the aftermath of theMumbai terrorist attacks in Novem-ber 2008, both sides have reiteratedtheir commitment to combatingterrorism. The 11th meeting of theJWG was held in Washington on June17, 2009.

Conclusion : More Pro-activism of US Serves itsLong Range Goals

For a long time now, Obama hasconsistently held that India—morethan any other emerging power—hasthe potential to become America’smost important strategic partnerbecause of its geopolitical weightand because both countries are tiedtogether by common values andshared interests. In fact, the strategicvalue of strong U.S.-Indian ties forAmerica’s larger Asian and, by exten-sion, global interests was consideredsubstantial enough to warrant contin-ued nurturing even in what could beinitially fallow years. Nothing haschanged in the global environmentsince Bush’s departure to call intoquestion the basic course adopted bythe United States towards India.Consequently, Obama would like touse the opportunity presented by hisvisit to India to deepen the bilateralrelationship even if India currentlyremains more a beneficiary than areciprocator.

Further, although India’s econo-mic expansion has been slower thanChina’s in comparative terms, it isnonetheless growing rapidly enoughthat it is expected to become the third

Continued on Page 1499

PD/February/2011/1410 “It’s all right letting yourself go, as long as you can get yourself back.”

Political Science Political Science ArticleArticle

Human Rights Through the Ages—Shourya Gupta

Today, nearly all states in allregions of the world, at all levels ofdevelopment, proclaim their com-mitment to human rights. This wasnot always the case. A nation’s pro-gress on human rights or lack of ithas been an established subject ofinternational relations for only abouthalf a century. Deep in the mind andspirit of human beings lies the con-viction that every person has rights,including a right to freedom fromoppression, freedom to make reason-able choices and freedom fromcruelty. Historically, most societiesgranted rights only to the lucky few.

In all civilized nations attemptsare made to define and buttresshuman rights. The core of the conceptis the same everywhere. Traditionallyall groups of humans have hadnotions of justice, fairness, dignityand respect. Human rights are therights that one has simply becauseone is human. They are universaland equal. Human rights are alsoinalienable. They may be suspended,rightly or wrongly, at various placesand times, but the idea of inherentrights cannot be taken away. The ideaof human rights, which recognizesthat human beings are extremelyvulnerable and need protection fromother men and oppressive govern-ments, can be traced back to religiousrules and teachings that emphasizehumanitarian values. Ages ago inpre-historic times it was believed thatrulers had an obligation to governwisely and for everyone’s benefit.However, this obligation was believedto come from divine commandmentor from tradition. It did not rest ona concept of personal human rightsthat ordinary people could call onto defend themselves against unjustrulers. Noticeably, in medieval timesthe idea was present in the form ofmoral obligation, or a duty. Thisprogressed and evolved into ‘humanrights’, rights that man was entitledto, which ensured his dignity andwere enforced by the rule of law. Incontemporary society, the univer-

sality of the term ‘human rights’ isalways being re-evaluated and modi-fied.

As understood today, the pur-pose of human rights to promotevalues like empathy, compassion,and goodwill, are to be found in allreligions. Although the term ‘humanrights’ is not used in religious textsthe idea is represented as man’smoral obligations ordained by God.Every religion has the commonmessage to impart. In the shifting ofweight from medieval to moderntimes the concept of duty, whichcontinued to exist, led to the emer-gence of subjective rights, rights thatprotected an individual from injusticein society and ensured his dignity.The internationalising of humanrights has had a range of effects.International pressure, both fromgovernments and from foreignorganisations led to the governmentestablishing global concern towardshumans. The link that is made bet-ween human rights and trade, andthe social clause that has been underdiscussion, has, on the other handresulted in a wariness both with thestate, and among a number of humanrights and development activists. Thethreat of intervention in the arena ofhuman rights has been a cause forhostility to international instrumentswhich deal with human rightsstandards. It’s the human right tooverthrow a sovereign who failed toprotect their basic rights, furtheringthe idea that rights were not justman’s duties but also things man wasentitled to.

In the face of industrialization, itwas emphatically true, the growinginequality and dissatisfaction of theworking class. Many eminent peoplebecame a rallying point for pre-viously marginalized individuals,reflecting the very spirit of humanrights in making the weak visible tothe powerful. Socialist ideas bothcontributed from and detracted tohuman rights, as communist regimescommitted many atrocities. During

World War II the inhumane acts com-mitteed by Hitler, a democraticallyelected leader, made human life acurse. Every individual was deniedtheir basic civil right. His dictatorshipcurbed all ‘human rights’. Today,human rights have a powerfulinfluence in promoting dignity, therule of law and representativegovernment. History evidently pointsto the Cold War between theAmericans and the Soviet Union thatwas prevailing decades ago. It was awar of democracy against the com-munists, characterized by competingversions of human rights as primarilypolitical and civil rights, versusprimarily social and economic rights.As each superpower tried to convertthe world to its own beliefs, it becameincreasingly apparent that the ideaof respecting human dignity hadbecome lost in a political agenda.Defending human rights had reallybecome a point of concern. It was afight to reach the top of the world,humanity being totally sidelined. Inthe race for supremacy of power,humans suffered as they did neverbefore.

In contemporary society the term‘human rights’, with its universalappeal, is being regularly mani-pulated to subvert the rule of law andadvance political goals. In this era of‘Globalization’ and ‘The War onTerror’, securing national bordertakes precedence over human rights.In all adverse situations, dispossessedgroups used their limited freedoms topress for legal recognition of thefundamental rights still denied tothem. The acceptance of argumentslike “we are all entitled to the samebasic rights as well as to equal concernand respect from the state” has led toradical social and political changesthroughout the world. Across theglobe, regimes that denied basichuman rights to their citizens havelacked long-term stability. In the eraof globalization the establishment ofdemocratic institutions and inviol-ability of human rights have become

PD/February/2011/1411

an essential condition for political,social and economic development.

Many of the great political strug-gles of the past two centuriesrevolved around expanding the rangeof protected rights. This includedextending the right to vote to allcitizens, permitting working peopleto lobby for improved pay andworking conditions, and eliminatediscrimination based on race andgender. ‘Women’s rights are humanrights’ has demanded a re-construc-tion of the understanding of humanrights. Earlier existing social customlike land Alienation, demolitions of‘slums’, sexual harassment at theworkplace, death penalties, fakeencounters (extra judicial killings)have greatly denied humans theirfundamental right. Often identifiedas being dowry-related deaths,unnatural deaths of women in theirmarital home has acquired promi-nence. But being vigilant towardshumanity has immensely reducedhonour killings. Respecting humanlife in a given form has made theprevailing of human rights morejustified.

Differences in culture, religionand political ideology are starklyrepresented in society today. Manycountries have become hostiletowards the term ‘human rights’. Inthe past decade the context of humanrights in India was influenced by thestate policy of liberalisation, the inter-nationalising of human rights(Globalisation is the ‘buzz’ word).Intermixing of cultures of differentcountries and free trade have madepeople aware about the relevance andimportance of granting every indivi-dual their ‘human rights’ becausethey are born as humans.

All human beings have a right todignity, equality and freedom accord-ing to the universal declaration ofhuman rights, a product of con-temporary society intended to protectthe weak and vulnerable. The lessonof the recent past is that, whereverpeople are given the chance tochoose, they choose internationallyrecognised human right. They wanttheir voices to be reached to themasses. All people want their

standard of living to be emphaticallyimproved upon and guaranteed thantheir ‘humanitarian rights’. However,today the very existence of humanrights is being threatened by apolitical attitude that accepts powerstruggles, cyclical violence, and war,and by world leaders, whose actionspromote this unjust reality instead ofa world order based on humanitarianvalues developed over time. There isa paradigm shift in the ideology ofthe way human rights were beingtreated, a decade ago. More emphasisis now being laid on humanity ratherthan on the socio-economic or politi-cal aspects of the case under study. Itis the high time when we regardedrights as ‘claims’ rather than appealsto charity. It is the need of hour topoint out that human rights are thenew standard of civilisation. ‘Allhuman rights for all’ is the goal of thecentury and the aim is to ensure thathuman rights are universally accep-ted and respected. We still haven’tgone far enough to realise that, ‘Themeaning of life is to serve humanity’.

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1412 “If we resist our passions, it is more because of their weakness than because of our strength.”

Career ArticleCareer Article

The Proposed Changes in the Civil Services Exam. : Are they Biased Against the Rural Aspirants ?

—Gopala Krishna V.

Excellence is an essential requi-site for any public service and itspursuit begins with the recruitmentprocess. In India, the foundations fora professionalised recruitment pro-cess can be traced to the East IndiaCompany.

The Macaulay Committee in 1854recommended that the ‘patronage’based civil service of the East IndiaCompany be replaced by a ‘perma-nent’ civil service recruited on ‘merit’by a written competitive examination.The recruitment system was based onthe principle of ‘transferability ofacademic talent to administration’.The committee believed that ‘Earlysuperiority in academics indicates theexistence of some qualities which aresecurities against ‘vice’ – ‘industry’, ‘selfdenial’, a ‘taste for pleasure not sensual’,a laudable desire of ‘honourable distinc-tion’, a still more laudable desire toobtain the ‘approbation of friends andrelations’. Accordingly the examina-tion was structured comprising com-pulsory and optional subjects likeEnglish Language and Literature,Mathematics, Natural Sciences andMoral Sciences.

The Macaulay system of exami-nation continued till ‘Independence’.While designing a successor civilservice the Indian political leaderschose to retain the system of exami-nation based on open entry andacademic achievements. Minorchanges were made in the schemeof examination while retaining thebasic ‘principles’ established by theMacaulay report.

In 1974, the UPSC appointed aCommittee under the Chairmanshipof Shri. D. S. Kothari. The Committeerecommended a sequential systemof examination based on the dictumthat “the average quality would getricher as the stream proceeds fromone ‘stage to the next’. Sequenceswould improve the efficiency of theselection process and make it morehomogeneous”. Accordingly the

examination was designed as asequential three stage process : anobjective type Preliminary examina-tion comprising one Optional andGeneral Studies (to prevent over-loading the selection process by alarge number of indifferent candi-dates), a Main examination whichwould comprise 9 written papers(compulsory papers and optionalswhich would test the depth of know-ledge of the aspirant and finally aPersonality Test to test the ‘govern-mental sense’ of the aspirant. TheKothari Commission also ensured‘inclusiveness’ by allowing candi-dates to appear at the Main exami-nation in any regional language.

In 1989, the government appoin-ted the Satish Chandra Committee tosuggest reforms. The committeerecommended that the ‘Kothari’model should be retained and minorchanges should be incorporated toremove the ‘imbalances’ that hadcrept in inadvertently. Accordingly,an ‘Essay’ paper was introduced totest the drafting skills of the pros-pective aspirants and the marks forthe Interview were enhanced from250 to 300. Presently, the CivilServices Examination is conducted onan annual basis on this pattern.

The Y. K. Alagh Committee,appointed in 2001, recommended anoverhaul of the existing system. Itsuggested that the ‘optional’ subjectat the Preliminary examinationshould be continued but the GeneralStudies paper should be recast tothat of a Civil Services Aptitude Test(CSAT) comprising questions on basicawareness’, ‘problem solving andanalytical abilities’ (situation from thecivil services arena to be taken to testreasoning and understanding ofproblems) and ‘data analysis ability’.It recommended that the optionalsat the Main examination should bereplaced by compulsory papers viz.Sustainable Development and SocialJustice, Science and Technology in

Society, Democratic Governance,Public Systems and Human Rights.The ‘Hotha Committee’ on CivilServices which was set up sub-sequently supported the views of theAlagh committee and recommended‘aptitude’ and ‘leadership’ tests forselection. No action was taken by thegovernment on the proposals of theAlagh Committee.

The Second AdministrativeReforms (Veerappa Moily) Commis-sion in its report in 2008 recommen-ded further changes. It recommendedthat the Preliminary and the Mainexamination should consist of com-pulsory subjects like the Constitutionof India, Indian Legal System, Admi-nistrative Law, Indian Economy,Indian Polity and Indian History andCulture (At present, as the selectedaspirants come from diverse back-ground these subjects are taught atthe foundational training course).

Recently, in a written reply inParliament, the Minister of State inthe Ministry of Personnel—ShriPrithvi Raj Chauhan declared that thegovernment had decided to replacethe Civil Services Preliminary Exami-nation with a Civil Services AptitudeTest (CSAT) which will test theaspirants aptitude for a demandinglife in the Civil Services.

The Preliminary examination isexpected to comprise two ObjectiveType papers :

1. Civil Services Aptitude Test(Problem Solving and AnalyticalSkills, Logical Reasoning andDecision-making skills, from thePublic Administration Perspec-tive and specifically the arena ofCivil Services). (300 marks )

2. General Studies (CurrentEvents, India after Indepen-dence, Indian Polity, Societyand Economy and DataAnalysis Ability). (150 marks)

PD/February/2011/1413 “For every man there exists a bait which he cannot resist swallowing.”

However, before the AptitudeTest is made a part of the examina-tion the following questions need tobe answered :● In an ever changing scenario of

governance in India, how doesone test the ‘aptitude’ of a candi-date for the civil services ?

● Even today, a majority of thestudents at the University levelare not aware of the opportunityof a career in the civil service. Inthis context, would it be fair totry to test their aptitude ?

● If aptitude is equated with ‘ethicsand morals’, can a Test bedesigned which would serve thepurpose with reliability and pre-dictability ? Is ethics a product ofheredity and schooling or is it anoutcome of the system which oneenters after passing the examina-tion ?

● All examinations which aredesigned to test the requiredaptitude like the CommonAdmission Test for BusinessSchools and the Common LawAdmission Test for the LawSchools have a dominantemphasis on English and areaccessible only to the ‘elite’.Incase the Preliminary examina-tion is recast along these lines,would it not keep a majority ofthe rural aspirants out of thereckoning? Does this not defeatthe avowed ideals of the makersof the Constitution who advoca-ted an inclusive bureaucracywhich represents all sections ofthe society ?

● The Preliminary question paperhas to be administered in bothEnglish and Hindi Medium . Canan aptitude test be designed insuch a way that the HindiMedium student is not at adisadvantage as compared to hisEnglish medium counterpart ?

● Many aspirants prepare for theoptional in their ‘mother tongue’,as they have had their entireeducation in the regional media.Though, they have a problemwith attempting the Preliminaryin English yet they are able toqualify due to the their know-ledge of the subject matter. Doesthis system where the ‘subjectmatter’ is new (and not availablein their mother tongue) not workagainst their interests ?

● An eligibility test would logicallybe a test in what has beenalready taught at the universitylevel. This is the logic behind theoptional at the examination.Would it be fair to test what hasnot been taught ?

● Would it not make more sense ifthe ethical component is testedat the final stage i.e., thePersonality test and not at thescreening test level ?

● When there is no uniformity ofsubjects, teaching and standardsfor evaluation in the differentuniversities, would such anaptitude test not give an undueadvantage to aspirants from the‘golden mile’ universities locatedin the metropolitan cities whichinculcate the required aptitudeby their environmental impact ?

● Can a candidate from the ruralmilieu ever hope to competewith his urban counterpart ?

● Most of the State Public ServiceCommissions like the UttarPradesh Public Service Commis-sion and the Karnataka PublicService Commission, follow asimilar pattern of examination.This has the twin advantage of a‘backup’ for an aspirant as wellas assured quality for the ‘State

Public Service’ as most of thecandidates appear for both theexaminations. If the examinationpattern is changed it would dis-turb this equilibrium. Also, thegap between the direct recruitand the promotee would getaccentuated as the recruitmentpatterns are different whichwould defeat the avowed aim ofesprit ‘de’ corps. In these days of‘demands for smaller states’ canwe afford such a gap ?

The syllabus for the aptitude testis being examined by a high-poweredcommittee headed by Prof. S. K.Khanna, a former Vice-Chairman ofthe University Grants Commission.The committee is expected to workout the details of the Preliminaryexamination and submit its report.The UPSC would, then, discuss therecommendations with the govern-ment and finalise the content of thepaper.

Unless, by consensus, the com-mittee finds suitable answers to theabove questions it would be pre-mature to introduce any change. Untildue diligence is completed it wouldbe better to rely on the time honoureddictum—‘an intellectual test is thebest moral test’ which has success-fully produced the ‘steel frame’ fordecades. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1414 “An element of abstention, of restraint, must enter into all finer joys.”

International Diplomacy International Diplomacy ArticleArticle

Geopolitics and Superpowers Concerning Conflict and Crisis in Major of Asia

—Dr. Shahid Ali Khan and Dr. Md. Akhtar Hasinur Rehaman

GeopoliticsRudolf Kjellen, a Swedish politi-

cal scientist coined the term ‘geo-politics’ and he himself defined it asthe theory of the state as a geo-graphic organism or phenomenon inspace, i.e, as a land, territory, area ormost especially, as a country. Infact,the term geopolitics came to pro-minence during the late nineteenthcentury and referred to the way inwhich ideas relating to politics andspace could be used within nationalpolicy. Thus, geopolitics is concernedwith political relations betweenstates, the external strategies of statesand the global balance of power. Bygeopolitics or geopolitical competi-tion means the contention betweengreat powers and aspiring greatpowers for control over territory,resources and important geographicalpositions, such as ports and harbours,canals, river systems, oases and othersources of wealth and influence. If welook into past, we will find that thiskind of contestation has been thedriving force in world politics andespecially world conflict in much ofthe previous few countries. Forexample, the incidents leading up tothe First World War came out of thismode of thinking of geopolitics, suchas the 1898. Fashoda incident over theheadwaters of the Nile river that gaverise to a near conflict between thirdRepublican France and late VictorianBritain. The Spanish-American Warwas an intentional device by whichthe United States acquired an empire.The Spanish-American war and theoccupation of the Philippines werefollowed quickly by the seizure ofPanama, openly justified by geopolitical ideology.

Now let us sit back for a minuteand return to the classical geo-political thinking of the early partof the last century, particularlythe views of Sir Helford Mackinderof great Britain. This perspectiveholds the view that Eurasia was themost important part and termed

‘Heartland’ of the civilized world andthat whoever controlled this Heart-land by definition controlled the restof the world because of the concen-tration there of population, resourcesand industrial might. In classical geo-political thinking, world politics isessentially a struggle over who willcontrol the Eurasian heartland.

After the turn of twentiethcentury, the strategists and politicalanalysts saw two ways throughwhich global dominance could arise.One was through the emergence of acontinental power (or a combinationof continental powers) that domi-nated Eurasia and was therefore, themaster of the world. The otherapproach to global dominance per-ceived by political strategists was tocontrol the ‘Rimland’ (the inner ormarginal crescent of the heartlandwhich is partly continental and partly‘oceanic’ renamed as the ‘Rimland’ byNicholes J. Spykman of the universityof Yale) of Eurasia that is westernEurope, The pacific rim, and theMiddle-Eastern and there by containany emerging ‘Heartland’. Forstrategic point of view, the UnitedStates determined that it would infectmaintain a permanent militarypresence in all the Rimlands ofEurasia. And it was this outlook thatled to the formation of NATO, theMarshall Plan, SEATO, CENTO andthe US military alliances with Japanand Taiwan.

Concerning geopolitics as anideology of self conscious through aset of beliefs on which elites andleaders of the super powers acted canbe evaluated as : to see just how selfconscious this process is, really, if westudy the history of the cold war, theovert conflicts that took place wereconsciously framed by a geopoliticalorientation from American point ofview. For instance, the reason forboth the Korean War and the VietnamWar was understood at the highestlevels in terms of the US interest incontrol of the Pacific Rim. The United

States’s motto to control the MiddleEast and its oil may trace out on thebasis of the Truman Doctrine and theEisenhower Doctrine and the CarterDoctrine. Observably, the best way tosee what’s happening today in Iraqand elsewhere is through a geo-political prism. America has embar-ked on the classical geopoliticalproject of assuring US dominance ofthe most important resource areas asa source of power and wealth.

Today, we are seeing a resur-gence of unabashed geopolitical ideo-logy among the leadership cadres ofthe superpowers, above all in theUnited States. The new centre of geo-political competition, as we see it, issouth-central Eurasia, encompassingthe Persian Gulf area which possessestwo-third of the world’s oil. Similarly,the Caspian Sea basin and otherpotential resource countries of centralAsia is the new centre of the worldstruggle and conflict. Until now, thecontested Rim lands of Eurasia werethe base of US power.

SuperpowersSuperpowers symbolize those

countries which have global capacityand strength to influence the eventsof world affairs. They achieve theirstatus through economic power,military might and political influence.For them, the world’s surface is like agiant chess board where the movesand counter moves indicate thechanging balance of power. Thus,their aim is to incorporate as much ofthe world as possible into theirsphere of influence. However, thespheres of influence may be in areasof strategic importance in which asuperpower can wield effectivepower.

The size of geographical sphereand degree of influence make asuperpower the ability to reach adesirable out come. Attemptedly/desirably, they try to maintain andimprove their geopolitical position by

PD/February/2011/1415/6 “Conscience whispers, but interest screams aloud.”

extending their relative spheres ofinfluence. This is achieved throughmaintaining control in their respec-tive cores. Thus, the actions of super-powers are codified in geopoliticalstrategies which try to legitimatizetheir international role.

Geopolitics of the Middle-East

Broadly, for the purpose ofdefinition, the Greater Middle-Easthas been defined in an expansivemanner to include the Arab world,Iran, Israel and Turkey-as also theHorn of Africa, the Trans-Caucasus,Western Central Asia and South Asia;to the geographical region from Iranto Saudi Arabia. More importantly,the Middle-East geopolitics and realpolitic bedrock have distinctiveaspects on global politics.

Many strategists, experts andpoliticians implicitly believe thatMiddle-East politics are primarilyshaped by ideology. Ironically, thisview accepts the claims of pan-Arabnationalism or radical Islamic groupsthat all Arabs want to unite and thatthey set their policy mainly based onthe Palestinian issue and inter-Arab(or Islamic) solidarity. Paradoxically,a parallel concept is held by Israel’sright-wing. The Arab world is seen asrelatively unchanging due to ideolo-gical factors deeply rooted in politicalculture. Since Arab states will notcease trying to destroy Israel, thenreal peace is impossible, any Israeliconcessions are dangerous, and it isbetter to hold onto territories ratherthan seek a comprise solution. Whilethere is evidence for this standpointin the regions, political rhetoric, thereis far less proof of these concepts inits history. Indeed, no one knowsbetter than the Arab nationalistintellectuals that reality has beenquite different from the expectationof the 1950s and 1960s when pan-Arab nationalism seemed to be thewave of future’s line of course.

Among individual Middle-Eastcountries, a distinct regional role andinterest often transcends regimechanges and alliance shifts. Thegoverning forces are each county’s,location, contours, resource base,history, blend of population groupsand relative strength. Israel and Syria,

for example are bound to be com-petitors whether or not they evensign a peace treaty. Equally, the Iraq-Iran competition over gulf hegemonywill continue in some form regard-less of who is in power in Baghdadand Tehran. These trajectories havemade all the more clear that a con-ceptual framework for understandingMiddle-East is remarkably complex.Several key principles based on realpolitik and geopolitics is indispens-able to make a sense of region’spolitical course. Today, the Gulf Arabstates portray themselves in afascinating way where Israeli issuehas become a minor factor in thatprocess. The Gulf monarchies areeagerly interested to rebuild relationswith Iran-Oman-Qatar, the UnitedArab Emirates and are also mostopen to links with Israel in order todeter Iran and ensure them moreindependence from Saudi Control.Real politik, not ideological enthu-siasm is the foundation of Gulfpolitics. They had long pursued thispotion: buying US military equip-ment, asking the US navy to convoytankers and protect them. US-Israelrelations were no barrier to co-operation because their own survivalwas at stake. Like the Gulf Americanmonarchies, the similar states in theMiddle-East were also ready to seekUS and other western support toguarantee survival against their Arabbrothers. Equally, they were reluctantto be dragged into Arab-Israeli con-frontation lest these should dest-abilize them. The likely scenario ofone power dominating Asia’s geo-political future is unlikely. Instead, itwill be several powers dominatingAsia together to decide the futurecourse of Asia and middle-East. Inter-stingly, the 21st century is projectedto be Asian century, as the futurepeace and stability in Asia and worldwill be perhaps determined by thepolicies to be pursued by India,China, Russia and the US, for whomAsia is the meeting ground. Onerecent analysis, for example, judgesthat the likely emergence of Chinaand India as new Asian and globalplayers will transform the geopoli-tical landscape of the Asian continent.It is well worth remembering thatIndia and China are competitors forthe energy resources found in theMiddle-East.

These developments and a num-ber of significant global and regionalevents have changed the Middle Eastin recent years, ofcourse opening anew era there. The USSR’s collapse,US’s rise to sole superpower status,Iraq’s defeat in Kuwait and break-throughs in Arab-Israeli peacemaking have greatly influenced thewhole political affairs of the Middle-East. The Arab-Israeli conflict as awhole and radical Arab nationalism’sappeal has declined sharply. Indivi-dual Arab states are far freer to stakeand seek their interest. Free enter-prise and the pursuit of economicdevelopment have become higherpriorities.

Geopolitics of the PersianGulf Triangle

The Persian Gulf area containsabout 40 per cent current oil pro-duction and huge amounts of naturalgas as well. In strategic terms, thearea is triangular and there is noother place in the world like this.Apart from this, most of the world’sreaming oil located-approximately 70percent of known petroleum reserves.We should think of oil not just as asource of fuel but as a source ofpower because of its significance asa valuable asset. Strategists see it;whoever controls Persian Gulf oilcontrols the world’s economy and,therefore, has the ultimate lever overall competing powers. In comingdecades, China is expected to betotally dependent on the Persian Gulfand the Caspian Sea area for the oil, ifshe needed to sustain its economicgrowth. Europe, Japan, South Koreawill be in much the some position.This is the only geographical regionin the world where the interests ofthe putative great powers collide. Inthe hotly contested Caspian Sea area,Russia, China and the United Statesare expanding powers. They arestruggling with one another con-sciously and actively. AmericanAdministration is determined todominate this area and to subor-dinate these two potential Challengesand prevent them from forming acommon front against the UnitedStates.

PD/February/2011/1416 “Not using faults does not mean that one does not have them.”

Geopolitics of the IndianOcean

The strategic importance of theIndian Ocean by definition mayclearly be understood as a majorsource of raw materials, the house tosome of the world’s most volatileregions, the incubator of violentextremism, the location for a largenumber of failed and failing states,the littoral importance for the globaleconomy and great power. The strate-gic maritime focus of the world hasinexorably shifted from the Atlantic-Pacific of the Cold War to the PacificIndian Ocean combine in the post9/11 system. Given overwhelmingnaval superiority to the Indian Ocean,the USA remains the lead presence inthe Indian Ocean region and will seekto retain its advantage in the navig-able oceans of the world includingprincipal interlocutors namely Indiaand China. China which is the risingpower of the early 21st century isdriven by the same logic of greatpowers with global aspirations tostraddle two of the three navigableoceans of the world and is investingin the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) in avery determined manner. ‘String ofPearls’ is a phrase often involved todescribe the Poeple’s Republic ofChina’s investment in ports inPakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar andnow Bangladesh. The Beijing con-siders that the Hormuz-MalaccaOceanic arc is both the new silk routeand the Achilles heel for the rise ofChina. Further, USA. China, Indiaand Japan are naval powers of vary-ing capability and Beijing’s deepestfear is the possibility of long termtriangular maritime cooperation withstrategic overtones among the threedemocracies, Consequently, Chinahas been making a concerted attemptto legitimize and enhance its IndianOcean Region (IOR) presence.

Similarly, at first, possibly Chinaand India are emerging as importantsources of the world economicgrowth and the drivers of regionalintegration in the Indian Ocean.Second, the increase in the economicmass of China and India wellintensify their gravitational pull andmost certainly recognize the geo-political space in the littoral of IndianOcean. Observably, the most impor-tant strategic triangle in our littoral

and the maritime world will be thatbetween the United States, China,and India. While other major powerslike Russia, Japan, France andmedium powers like Korea, Indonesiaand Iran to name a few well indeedhave a bearing on the maritimestructures of the India ocean, it is thetriangular dynamic between Wash-ington, Beijing and Delhi that will bethe most consequential.

Summarily, some argue that therelative decline of the United States isinevitable and organization of thebalance of power in the Indian oceanis necessary amidst the rise of Chinaand the emergence of India. Othersargue that structural change in thegeopolitics of the Indian ocean maybe inevitable, but not imminent. Thelogical interpretation of globalizationand trade means China and India aretoday more reliant on the seas thanever before. Nearly 90 per cent ofworld trade in commodities andgoods continues to flow by the seas.Thus, both Beijing and Delhi havegreater stakes at sea. This means asteady expansion of the size andquality of China and Indian navalforces.

Geopolitics of the PipelinesIran was the first country in the

Middle-East to export gas viapipelines. Therefore, it has alreadyexisting internal pipeline networks ofalmost 4,000 kilometres of majorlines, covering both the South-Northand East-West regions. Along aSouth-North axis, Persian Gulf isconnected via pipeline to the CaspianSea. In view of Iran’s geo-graphicalposition it has a high privilege ofbeing the only country linking thetwo strategically hydro-carbonsregions of the Caspian Sea andPersian Gulf. Thus, in principle, Irancould have the opportunity to play acentral role in the competition fornew pipeline networks offering animportant water ways to the landlocked central Asian countries.

Here, in the game of the variouspossible pipelines to connect the landlocked Caspian Sea has claimed Iran’srole not merely as a transit route, butalso as a final market for Caspian

oil. This claim not only offers thecheapest transit route in its region foroil and gas but also to be competitivefrom a security point of view. This isbecause this transitional pipelineregards the role of Iran as a final userof Caspian oil and gas which furtherguarantees that oil and gas flowswould not be interrupted. Interest-ingly, Iran itself needs to satisfy itsgrowing national energy demand,besides enhancing oil recovery inold oil reservoirs. Another factoraffecting Iranian policies is the strongincrease of energy demand in Indiaand other Asian nations. Even Iranand India quietly reached a majorlong-term gas agreement underwhich Iran will supply India with 5million tonnes of Liquefied NaturalGas (LNG) annually for 25 years andwith 100,000 barrels of oil per day fora period of one year. Iran has just twobasic options here; either to lay apipeline overland from Iranian gasfields to India, via Pakistan or to lay apipeline underwater from the fieldsto the final destination, thus bypassing Pakistan. India has alwaysinsisted on avoiding Pakistaniterritory. On its part, Pakistan hasalways favoured the passage of pipe-line on its soil to get annual revenuein term of royalties.

However, upto now, UnitedStates opposition and ‘Iran, LibyaSanctions Act’ (ILSA) have stronglyhindred projects for an Iranianroute. To this end, the approval of thecontroversial Baku-Ceyhan pipelineconstruction in the summer of 2002,involving Azerbaijan, Georgia andTurkey has been a highlight con-firming this tendency to Iranianexclusion.

Last but not least, the wholediscussion and these developmentsreveal that it will be several powerscoming together to decide the futurecourse of Asia. In coming decades,the power leverages countries likeIndia and China would haveincreased manifold within Asia’s geo-political landscape while the UnitedStates will be forced by circums-tances, if not deliberate design to takeinto account the rising power of theAsian giants in its own policytowards Asia. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1417 “The trouble with resisting temptation is it may never come your way again.”

Indian Polity andConstitution

★ Which Constitutional Amend-ment Act facilitates the appoint-ment of the same person as agovernor for two or more states ?

—7th Constitutional AmendmentAct, 1956

★ Which Article of the Constitu-tion empowers the High Court toissue writs including habaescorpus, mandamus, certiorari,prohibition and quo warranto forthe enforcement of fundamentalrights of the citizens and for anyother purpose ?

—Article 226

★ Who headed the committee on‘Revitalisation of Panchayati Raj’Institutions for Democracy andDevelopment appointed by theRajiv Gandhi Government in1986 ?

—L. M. Singhvi

★ 73rd Constitutional AmendmentAct 1992 has added a new Part-IX to the Constitution of Indiaentitled as the ‘Panchayats’ whichprovides for :

—a Three-Tier System ofPanchayati Raj System

★ The Central Recruiting Agencyof India is :

—The Union Public ServiceCommission (UPSC)

★ To be eligible as Vice-President aperson should have completed :

—35 years of age

★ The pardoning power of thePresident in India as enshrinedin the Article 72 of the Consti-tution of India includes :

—Pardon, Commutation, Remission,Respite, Reprieve

★ Under which Article of theConstitution does the governorof state possess the pardoningpower ?

—Article 161

★ The Zonal Councils are thestatutory bodies established byan Act of the Parliament that is :

—States Reorganisation Act of 1956★ The first proclamation of

National Emergency was issuedin October 1962 on account of :

—Chinese aggression in the NEFA(North East Frontier Agency

now Arunachal Pradesh)★ The State has its own Constitu-

tion is :—Jammu and Kashmir

Indian NationalMovement

★ In the history of Indian NationalMovement Santhal Rebelliontook place between :

—1855-1856

★ The famine which killed nearly 8lakh people during British rule asper the report furnished by theFamine Commission of 1660 hadstruck :

—Western India in November1876-77

★ Swami Vivekanand establishedthe Ramakrishna Mission in

—the year 1897★ The first President of the Indian

National Congress was :

—Sir Wyomesh Chandra Banerjee★ Who called the revolt of 1857 as a

war between barbarism andcivilisation ?

—T. R. Holmes

★ Who is the author of the book‘The Great Rebellion’ ?

—Ashok Mehta

★ Who said, “This (the revolt 1857)was an eruption of social volcano,where many spent forces foundvent. After the eruption, thewhole social topography hadchanged; the scars of rebellionremained deep and shining.”

—Ashok Mehta★ Sisir Kumar Ghosh, Shambhu-

chand Mukherjee, Kali Mohan

Das and Jogesh Chandra Duttwere editors of :

—Amrit Bazar Patrika★ Which of the British Acts pro-

vided for the establishment of AllIndia Federation at the centre ?

—The Government of IndiaAct 1935

★ Ashfaqullah Khan, ChandraShekhar Azad, Ram PrasadBismil, Rajendra Lahiri, RoshanSingh and Sachindranath Sanyalwere all associated with :—The Kakori Conspiracy (1925)

History and Cultureof India

★ Who wrote the book “TheWonder that was India” ?

—A. L. Basham★ Who said that “The mythology,

as well as cosmogony of theEgyptians, Greeks and Romanswere borrowed from the doc-trines of the Brahmins.”

—Nanthaniel Halhed★ Vedic Literature includes :

—Vedas, the Brahmanas, theAranyakas and the Upanishads

★ The first definite mention ofBharata as a region is to be foundin :

—Panini who lived about sixthcentury B.C.

★ The Palaeolithic Age in India isdivided into three phasesnamely :

—Lower Palaeolithic (Handaxe andcleaver industries), Middle

Palaeolithic (Tools made onflakes) and upper Palaeolithic

(Tools made on flakes andblades)

★ The Harappan civilization wasdiscovered in 1920-21 followingexcavation :

—By R. D. Banerjee(at Mohenjodaro) and ByD. R. Sahni (at Harappa)

★ Nizam-ul-Mulk Asaf Jah foun-ded the state of Hyderabad in :

—1724

PD/February/2011/1418 “Most people want to be delivered from temptation but would like it to keep in touch.”

★ Tipu Sultan was the Sultan (ruler)of Mysore from :

—1782 to 17999★ The Sikh Khalsa was formed to

instil a strong martial spirit in theSikhs by :

—Tenth Sikh Guru Guru GobindSingh in 1699

★ The Chief of Sukarchakiya misl(a Sikh confederacy) was :

—Maharaja Ranjit Singh

Economic Affairs ofIndia

★ The Rashtriya MadhyamikShiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) aims atensuring universal access tosecondary level education by :

—the year 2017★ The National Food for Work

Programme was launched in :—November 2004 in 150 most

backward districts of thecountry

★ Based on the European Bankingsystem the first bank in Indiawas started in India :

—at Calcutta in 1770 named‘Hindustan Bank’

★ In the country, which state is onthe top in present in newly deve-loped Education DevelopmentIndex ? —Kerala

★ Which bank has become the firstregistrar for Unique Identifica-tion Authority of India forcollecting both demographic andbiometric informations of thebank’s account holders ?

—State Bank of India★ Who won the Ernst and Young

Entrepreneur of the Year Award2009 ?

—Anand Mahindra★ Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited

of Tata group has been renamedas—Tata Communication Limited

★ In Global Hunger Index (GHI)India has been ranked at :

—96th place among 119 developingcountries

★ The important gold fields in thecountry are :

—Kolar Gold Field (Kolar district)and Hutti Gold Field (Raichur

district Karnataka) and RamgiriGold Field (in Anantpur district

Andhra Pradesh)★ The only tungsten producing

mine in the country is :—Degana (Rajasthan)

★ In coal production, India ranks inthe world :

—Third (after China and America)

Geography(India and the World)

★ The middle zone of the earth witha thickness of 2780 km having anaverage density of 5·6 is knownas : —Pyrosphere

★ The instrument which recordsthe seismic waves generated bythe occurrence of earthquakes iscalled :

—Seismograph★ Wild Ass Sanctuary is situated

in :—Little Rann of Kutch, Gujarat

★ The headquarters of NorthEastern Railway is :

—Gorakhpur★ The Western Ghats are also

known as :—The Sahyadris

★ The major peaks like Mt. Everest,Kanchenjunga, Makalu, Dhaula-giri, Mansalu, Cho Oyu, NangaParbat and Annapurna all aresituated in :

—The Greater Himalayas(Himadri)

★ The highest peak of the Kara-koram Range is :

—Mt. K2 (Godvin Austin)★ Vembnad Lake is located in :

—Kerala★ The most important coal field in

India is :—Jharia Coalfield

★ The top five million cities ofIndia as per the 2001 census, indescending order are :

—Greater Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi,Chennai and Bangalore

Science & Technology★ Institute for Nuclear Medicine

and Allied Sciences is located in :—New Delhi

★ The instrument which graphi-cally records physiological move-ment (e.g., blood pressure/heartbeat) is known as :

—Kymograph★ Who invented Ball-point pen ?

—C. Biro in 1938★ The instrument which measures

strength of electric current is :—Ammeter

★ One Angstrom is equal to :

—10– 10 metre★ Astronomical distance is

measured in : —light year★ Dynamite, Tri-Nitro Toulene

(TNT), Tri-Nitro Benzene (TNB)and Tri-Nitro Phenol (TNP) andRDX are all used as :

—Explosives★ The heaviest element is :

—Osmium★ The opposition offered by a

conductor to the flow of currentthrough it is called :

—Resistance

Agriculture★ As per the Eleventh Five Year

Plan Period (2007-2012) targetunder the National Food SecurityMission (NFSM), the productionof rice, wheat and pulses is to beincreased by :

—10, 8 and 2 million tonnesrespectively

★ Food management in India hasthree basic objectives namely :

—Procurement of foodgrains fromfarmers, distribution of food-

grains to the consumers andmaintenance of food buffers for

security and price stability★ Keeping in view the interest of

the farmers as also the need ofself-reliance the Government hasbeen announcing MinimumSupport Price (MSP) for :

—24 major crops★ FRP stands for :

—Fair and Remunerative Price (ofSugarcane)

★ Under the Decentralized Procure-ment Scheme (DPC)–operationalsince 1997 foodgrains are pro-cured and distributed by :

—The State Governmentsthemselves

PD/February/2011/1419 “There is a charm about the forbidden that makes it unspeakably desirable.”

★ National Project on OrganicFarming was launched during :

—10th Five Year Plan (2002–2007)

★ The instruments for food mana-gement are :

—Minimum Support Price (MSP)and Central Issue Price (CIP)

★ RKVY stands for :

—Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana★ The Zaid crop is grown during :

—The months of March to June★ Rice (Paddy) Jowar, Bajra, Maize

Cotton, Sugarcane, Seasamum,Soybean, Groundnut are all :

—Kharif Crops

Sports and Games★ Jwala Gutta and V. Diju are the

famous players of :—Badminton

★ Lin Dan who was declared MostValuable Player in 16th AsiadGuangzhou belongs to :

—China

★ The youngest World SnookerChampion who won the final ofONGC—IBSF World SnookerChampionship in Hyderabad inNovember 2009 was :

—Ng-On Yee★ Boris Gelfand is associated with :

—Chess★ Agha Khan Cup is associated

with :—Hockey (Western India)

★ Bully, Carry, Corner, Dribble,Hat-trick, Off-side are the termsassociated with :

—Hockey★ The playground of wrestling is

called :—Arena

★ Fuwa was the official mascot of :

—Beijing Olympics 2008

★ Brooklyn (USA) is a place asso-ciated with :

—Baseball★ The number of players in Water

Polo is : —7

Miscellany★ The medical term for memory

loss is : —Amnesia

★ Neprologist is a specialist whotreats :

—Kidney system

★ Cirrhosis is a disease whichaffects : —Liver

★ Hypnology is the study of :

—Sleep★ The official language of

Argentina is :—Spanish

★ Dirham is the currency of :

—Morocco★ OPEC stands for :

—Organisation of PetroleumExporting Countries

★ Falklands Islands are in :

—South Atlantic★ National Highway No. 3 runs

from :—Agra to Mumbai

★ Hertz is a unit of :

—Frequency of sound waves

★ The function of DNA in the bodyis :

—To control the heredity★ In a human body, the basic

building blocks are :—Cells

★ Prince of Wales Cup is associatedwith : —Golf

★ ‘Being Myself’ is the autobio-graphy of famous tennis player :

—Martina Navratilova

★ The study of Cancer is called :

—Oncology★ Ceylon is the old name of :

—Sri Lanka★ Bering Strait was discovered by :

—Vitus Bering★ The capital of Bahrain is :

—Manama

★ Kangaroo is the national emblemof : —Australia

★ Jatiyo Sangsad is the Parliamentof :

—Bangladesh

★ Lake Nyasa and Lake Victoriaare located in :

—Continent of Africa

★ Zulus are the tribes living in :

—South Africa

★ Knesset is the name of theParliament of : —Israel

★ First man to sail round the worldwas :

—Ferdinand Magellan

★ Wildlife Institute of India issituated in :

—Dehradun

★ Integrated Coach Factory (ICF) issituated at :

—Perambur (Chennai)★ Bhilai Steel Plant was built in

1955 with the cooperation of :

—Former USSR

★ The first Indian to win theGolden Globe for best originalMusic Score with Jai Ho was :

—A. R. Rahman★ The national tree of India is :

—Banyan (Ficus benghalensis)

★ Sentinelese and Shompens arethe tribals inhabiting :

—Andaman and Nicobar IslandsP.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1420 “Do not bite at the bait of pleasure till you know there is no hook beneath it.”

Official Name : Nihon (or Nippon) Koku(Land of the Rising Sun)

Capital : TokyoArea : 3,77,915 sq kmOfficial Language : JapaneseMajor Islands : Honshu, Hokkaido,

Kyushu and ShikokuPopulation : 12,77,67,994

(as per 2005 census)Males : 6,23,48,977Females : 6,54,19,017Population Density : 343 per square kmUN Projected Popula-

tion for 2050: 102·51 million

Largest Conurbation ofthe World

: Tokyo (with a populationof 35·2 million)

GDP per Capita(as per 2005 data)

: (PPD $) 31,267

HDI/World Rank(2010 Human Deve-lopment Report)

: 0·884 (Rank 11)

Adult Literacy Rate : 99%Birth Rate (2005) : 8·4 per 1000 populationDeath Rate (2005) : 8·6 per 1000 populationLife Expectancy at birth

(2005 data): 85·5 years for women and

78·5 years for menCurrency : Yen (JPY)

Map of Japan

Japanese Current PrimeMinister Naoto Kan

Japan’s CurrentMonarch : Akihito

GDP growth rate for2007

: 2·1% (In 2007 Japan’s totalGDP was US $ 4,376·7billion)

Central Bank/MainBank

: The Nippon Ginko (Bankof Japan) founded in 1882

Largest Stock Exchange : Tokyo Stock ExchangeTotal Length of Roads : 11,85590 km (2005 data)Main International

Airports: Fukuoka, Hiroshima,

Kagoshima, Nagoya,Naha, Nugate, Osaka

Principal Airlines : Japan Airlines International(JAL)

Main Broadcasters : Japan Broadcasting Cor-poration (Nippon HosoKyokai–NHK) and theNational Association ofCommercial Broadcasters

National Anthem : Kimigayo (The Reign ofour Emperor)

Major Cities : Akashi, Akita, Yokohama,Toyota, Tokyo, Tokushima,Sapporo, Osaka, Nagoya,Nagasaki, Kyoto, Kobe,Kawasaki, Hiroshima,Fukuyama, Nara, Kochi,Kashiwa, Ichikawa, Gifu,Chiba, etc.

Major Prefecturs : Yamanashi, Shiga, Saga,Iwate, Hokkaido, Fukui,Tochigi, Miyagi, Okinawa,Wakayama, Yamagata,Nagano, Kangoshima,Ehime, Miyazaki,Okayama Mie, Ibaraki,Shizouka Oita, Aichi,Aomari, Gumma,Ishikawa, Kagoshima,Niigata

Brief History

The first Japanese state appeared in the central regionof Honshu in the 7th century. In 1710 the first Japanese

PD/February/2011/1421 “We like slipping, but not falling; our real anxiety is to be tempted enough.”

capital was established in Nara by Empress Genmei. In1794 capital was moved to Heian—Kyo (present dayKyoto). In 12th century anarchy entered Japan; the controlof barons (daimyo) started ruling Japan through thewarriors also known as The Samurai. Taira Kiyamoriseized power and ended anarchy and then civil warfollowed causing the defeat of Taira Kiyamori. The powerpassed to Minamoto Yoritomo who established a newoffice Shogun. For the next 700 years Japan was ruled by amilitary dictator—the shogun while emperor ruledreclusively. Nine shogun ruled during the Kamakuraepoch (1185–1333). From 1467 to 1603 Japan suffered theFighting Principalities (Sengokiyidai). The Spanish Jesuitmissionary St. Frances Xavier landed in Japan in 1549.

The Tokugawa shogunate ruled Japan till 1869 andestablished himself at Edo (present day Tokyo). In 1636Japanese were forbidden to emigrate. Europeans wereexpelled and thus Japan remained for 220 years underself-imposed isolation. Cut-off from outside Japangradually became strong. A revitalized Japan defeatedChina in the First Sino Japanese war in 1894-95 andgained Taiwan. After making alliance with Japan enteredfirst world war against Germany in 1914 and tookGerman island colonies in the north. Japan began phase ofaggressive expansionism Japan invaded Manchuria in1931. In 1937 there was full scale war with China. Japancaptured Shanghai in 1937, Guangzhou in 1938 andNanjing in 1940. Under premier General Tojo HidekiJapan invaded the US fleet in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii inDecember 1941. Thus Bringing USA into second worldwar (1939–1945). Japan’s ruthless advance overwhelmedthe Allied powers. In August 1945 USA planes droppedatomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki causing morethan 2,00,000 deaths. The emperor Hirohito surrendered.The new Japan remained a monarchy in which theemperor was a figurehead. Now the country has emergedas a major donor to aid the developing countries.

Constitution and the Government

In present, the Emperor of Japan is Akihito whosucceeded his father on January 1989 (enthroned onNovember 12, 1990). The emperor is the symbol of theunity of the people. Sovereign power rests with thepeople. Legislative power rests with the ‘Diet’ which con-sists of Shugi-in (House of Deputies) having a four yearsterm and Upper House, Sangi-in (House of Councillors)of 242 members (96 elected by party list system withproportional representation according to the d’ Hondtmethod and 146 from prefectural districts) one half of itsmembers being elected every three years. A law waspassed in year 2000 giving voters a choice betweenindividual candidates and parties when casting ballots forthe proportional representation seats in the House ofCouncillors. It may be added here that the succession tothe throne is fixed upon the male descendents in terms ofmonarchy. Prince Hisahito was the first male born intothe imperial family since 1965. The 1947 Constitutionsupersedes the Meiji Constitution of 1889. The emperorhas no power related to government. In May 2007 Parlia-ment approved a national referendum on changing thecommitment to postwar pacifism.

Location

As earlier mentioned Japan consists of four majorislands, Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Shikaku and numberof small islands. It is an archipelago lying off East Coast ofAsia. In the east is the Korean peninsula. It is an islandchain between the North Pacific Ocean and Sea of Japan.

Climate

Japan lies in temperate zone. The climate is temperatewith warm, humid summers and relatively mild winters.The rainy season occurs in June-July. The best seasonsare spring and autumn. Sometimes September bringstyphoons. Annual rainfall is 1·128 mm.

Mineral and Energy Resources

Japan is not very rich in energy resources. Thecountry is dependent on foreign supplies for theseresources. In 2006, Japan had a generating capacity of47,700 Megawatt. Total installed generating capacity was274·5 million kilowatt in 2006. In 2005 there were 55nuclear reactors. Output of crude petroleum was 9,17,725kilolitres almost entirely from oilfields on the island ofHonshu. Output of natural gas in 2005 was 3,120 millioncubic metres with reserves of 40 billion cubic metres.

Agriculture and Industry

In Japan, the leading companies by market capitali-zation in March 2008 were Toyota Motor Corporation,Mitsubishi, Financial Group and Nintendo. The indus-trial structure is dominated by corporate groups(Keiretsu). A total of 1,14,84,000 motor vehicles weremanufactured in Japan in 2006, making it the secondlargest producer after USA. Japan is the largest producerof passenger cars (97,57,000 in 2006). The chemicalindustry ranks fourth in shipment value after machinery,metals and food products. As for agriculture, theagriculture population was 4·08 million in 2004. Rice isstaple food. Rice cultivation accounted for 17,06,000hectare in 2005. Livestock stood in 2006 at 9·62 million in2006. In 2002 there were 1,08,01,000 workers organized in65,642 unions. In January 2003 unemployment stood at5·5% the highest rate on record. As for fisheries, the catchin 2005 was 57,65,000 tonnes excluding whaling. Japan isthe leading importer of fishery commodities with importsin 2003 totalling US $ 12·40 billion.

Major Tourist Places

Japan has 14 sites on the UNESCO World Heritagelist. The important tourist sites are the Buddhist Monu-ments in the Horyuji Area, Himeji-jo, YakushimaShirakami-Sanchi, the Ancient Monuments of Kyoto,Marine and land ecosystem at Shiretoko, the IwamiGinzan Silver Mine and its cultural landscape, HiroshimaPeace Memorial, Shrine and Temples of Nikko GusukuSites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryuku,Itsukushima Shinto Shrine and the historic ancient monu-ments of Nara including five Buddhist temples.

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1422 “If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.”

Present Scenario and New Initiatives in Indian Labour and Employment Sector : Highlights

Annual Report : 2009-10Annual Report : 2009-10

Undoubtedly ! in Indian agri-culture and industries/factories, thetotal operational and manufacturingwork is being done by the labourers—as a key for operational work. So also,the success and progress both aretotally depend on manpower i.e.,labour. For the protection, safeguardand interest of the workers, in general,the Government of India (GOI) andState Governments are fully respon-sible, which (labour) constitutes thepoor, deprived and disadvantagedsections of the society. The Ministryof Labour and Employment (GOI)decides the policies/laws, wages,regulates the terms and conditions ofservice as well as employment ofworkers for the welfare and socialsecurity and their development andcreates awareness through research,training and development program-mes. For which, labour Research andTraining Institutes like; VVGNLI(V. V. Giri National Labour Institute)established in July 1974; NRCCL(National Research Centre on ChildLabour); CBWE (Central Board forWorkers Education) established in1958 Hq. Nagpur (Maharashtra)NARTSS (National Academy forResearch and Training in SocialSecurity) etc. are fully engaged intheir respective fields for Indianlabour and employment sector.

Based on the Annual Report(2009-10) of the Ministry of Labourand Employment (GOI), severalefforts have been made in the interestof labour and employment sectorthrough labour research and training,workers education, IT (InformationTechnology) Initiatives etc. activitiesand the main highlights can beexpressed in nutshell, as below :

Major Achievements and NewInitiativesOrganisational set-up/Infrastructureand Functional Activities of theML&E (Ministry of Labour andEmployment–GOI)

● Under the ML&E (Ministry ofLabour and Employment, GOI),

the supreme post is of 1–Secre-tary (L&E) and under Secretary,the other posts are of : JointSecretary, Director General/Deputy Director General (DDG)–Labour welfare, EconomicAdviser, Additional Secretary(L&E), Special Secretary (L&ELabour and Employment),Labour and EmploymentAdviser etc.

● The ML&E (GOI) has fourattached offices and ten subordi-nate offices, 4 AutonomousOrganisations, 22 AdjudicatingBodies and 1–Arbitration Body.

● In attached offices, DirectorateGeneral of Employment andTraining (DGE&T), LabourBureau etc. and in subordinateoffices–DGMS (DirectorateGeneral of Mines Safety), WelfareCommissioners etc., Autono-mous Organisations, Adjudicat-ing Bodies etc., are various orga-nisations in the ML&E (GOI).

● Under functional activities,Career Management and Train-ing, Labour Research and Train-ing, Information Technology (IT)Initiatives etc. Programmes areconsidered.

● Website : http://www.labour.nic. in.

Labour Research, Training andEducation

● VVGNLI (V. V. Giri NationalLabour Institute)—an autono-mous body of the ML&E (GOI),est. in July 1974, is a premierInstitute of Research, Trainingand Education in the area ofLabour. The main activities ofthis institute are; organisingtraining, educational program-mes, seminars, workshops,group meetings, scientists meetas well as promote and coordi-nate research with other agenciesof the country and other coun-tries.

● C B W E (Central Board forWorker’s Education) establishedin 1958 Hq. at Nagpur (Maha.), isa registered society impartingschemes related to workers train-ing and develop consciousnessamong them about their rights,duties and responsibilities. ThisBoard (CBWE) also undertakesprogrammes for rural workers’education and functional adulteducation.

● EPFO (Employee’s ProvidentFund Organisation)–works underEmployees Provident Funds andMiscellaneous Provisions Act,1952 and also responsible forschemes of Provident Fund,Family Pension and DepositLinked Insurance for the benefitof workers. The Employees’Pension Scheme, 1995 came intoexistence on Nov. 16, 1995.

● NARTSS (National Academy forResearch and Training in SocialSecurity)—administered by theEPFO (Employees ProvidentFund Organisation) and impartsresearch, training programmeson labour welfare, socialstandards and security, person-nel management and industrialrelation. The EPFO covers 0·57million establishments and 47·07million subscribers for socialsecurity–as an organized sector.Under New Initiatives (2009-10),the computerization plan ofEPFO with NIC is being imple-mented.

New Initiatives (during 2009-10)

● ML&E (GOI) gave the morestress during the year (2009-10)on vocational training for creat-ing a world class skilled labourforce, through a network of morethan 2000 Industrial TrainingInstitutes (ITIs) and 5509 Indus-trial Training Centres (ITCs)located throughout India. About1·06 million training seats areavailable in both ITIs&ITCs in

PD/February/2011/1423 “Opportunity may knock only once, but temptation leans on the doorbell.”

the country, which shows a pro-gress in this sector.

● Under vocational training pro-gramme of the ML&E, NKDP(National Skill DevelopmentPolicy) has been formulated. It isimparting various schemes like;‘Skill Development InitiativeScheme (SDIS)’ w.e.f. 2006-07 toachieve a target to train onemillion persons in first 5 years inModular Employable Skills(MES) framework and thereafterone million every year for schooldrop-outs and existing workers,mainly in informal sector.

● ESIC (Employees State InsuranceCorporation)—It covers about 13million insured persons and 50million beneficiaries, and it istaking-up Medical EducationProjects.

● RSBY (Rashtriya Swasthya BimaYojana)—w.e.f. April 1, 2008, inunorganized sector for socialsecurity, provides healthinsurance to all BPL (BelowPoverty Line) families, a unit of 5over period of five years. Underthis scheme RSBY 1·27 crorecards have been issued upto Feb.28, 2010.

● NCLP (National Child LabourProject)—Scheme launched in1988, and in 12 child labourendemic distts. of the country,5·21 lakh children have beenmainstreamed into formaleducation system.

● Wage improvement—w.e.f. Nov.1, 2009, the National Floor LevelMinimum Wage has been revisedfrom Rs. 80 per day to Rs. 100 perday. The minimum wages Act,1948 was enacted for labour.

Other Activities

Labour Welfare Scheme (LWS)

The LWS, monitored by the GOIprovides help in Group Insurance,Medical and Health Care, Scholar-ships and Pension for the construc-tion workers. The unorganizedWorker’s Social Security Act, 2008has been enacted.

Awards and Conferences

● The National Safety Awards(Mines) were awarded on Oct.23, 2009 and also NSA (National

Safety Awards and VRP(Vishwakarma RashtriyaPuraskar) awards were given onSept. 17, 2009. Every year, ML&Edistributes these awards as wellas PM Shram Awards toworkers.

● Workers Education Day wascelebrated on Sept. 16, 2009 atGuwahati (Assam) and onAugust 15, 2009 (Eve of Inde-pendence Day), the PrimeMinister’s Shram Awards forthe year 2007 were given to 52workers, including 7 women.

● Since 1970 till Sept. 2009, theC B W E (Central Board forWorkers Education) Hq. Nagpur(Maha.), has conducted 935programmes of varied durationsat National level for 22,584participants.

● Hindi Use—Hindi TeachingScheme (GOI), Hindi Workshopfor awards, incentives, allowan-ces to labour etc. were organised.

● Plantations Labour (Amend-ment) Bill, 2008—PlantationsLabour Act, 1951 provides for thewelfare of labour and regulatesthe conditions of work in planta-tion. This Act/Bill providessafeguards to be adopted in theuse and handling of agro-chemicals (Insecticides / Pesti-cides / Herbicides–Weedicides)for handling hazardous chemi-cals in plantations and to pro-hibit employment of children,below 14 years in plantations.

● Gender Budgeting—NCLP(National Child Labour Project),Indus Project Scheme, Welfare ofSCs/STs, CBWE (Central Boardfor Workers Education) etc. areunder operation for genderbudgeting including women,child, etc. NVTI (National Voca-tional Training Institute) forWomen, Noida provides train-ing for Women.

SummaryBased on the present status,

labour Research, Education andTraining activities and new initiativestaken under the Ministry of Labourand Employment–ML&E (GOI) dur-ing the year 2009-10 for attitudinalchange, skill development and

enhancement of knowledge of labour,it can very well be summarized innutshell that; ● Under LabourResearch, Training and Education,several institutions like; VVGNLI (V.V. Giri National Labour Institute)w.e.f. 1974; CBWE (Central Board forWorkers’ Education, since 1958, atNagpur (Maha.); EPFO (Employee’sProvident Fund Organisation Act,1952); NARTSS (National Academyfor Research and Training in SocialSecurity) etc. are working in thevarious fields for labour research/training/education. ● Several newinitiatives have been taken in theinterest of labour and employmentthrough ITIs (Industrial TrainingInstitutes), ITCs (Industrial TrainingCentres) under Vocational TrainingProgrammes of the ML&E (GOI),through NSDP (National SkillDevelopment Policy) like; wageimprovement revised from Rs. 80 perday to Rs. 100 per day; ● UnderNCLP (National Child Labour Project)w.e.f. 1988—5·21 lakh children havebeen mainstreamed into formaleducation system; ● Under Planta-tions Labour (Amendment) Bill, 2008,original Plantation Labour Act, 1951,prohibits the employment of childrenbelow 14 years in plantations, it alsoprovides safeguard to be adopted inuse and handing of agro-chemicals(insecticides/pesticides/herbicides)in plantation.

Overall, it can be concluded aspin-points that the M L & E (GOI)activities are continuously underprogress and providing the rightdirections to labour through research,training, seminars, workshops. IT(Information Technology) for theiremployment opportunities in thecountry.

Objective Questions

1. RSBY (Rashtriya SwasthyaBima Yojana) formally launchedunder Ministry of Labour andEmployment (GOI) on October1, 2007, which has become opera-tional from April 1,……(A) 2007(B) 2008(C) 2009(D) None of these

Continued on Page 1511

PD/February/2011/1424 “You are a puppet, but in the hands of the infinite, which may be your own.”

International OrganisationInternational OrganisationInternational OrganisationProfileProfile

SOUTH ASIAN ASSOCIATIONFOR REGIONAL COOPERA-

TION (SAARC)

Established in — 1985

Headquarters — Kathmandu (Nepal)

Member States — Afghanistan, Pakistan,Nepal, Bangladesh, India,Sri Lanka, Bhutan,Maldives.

Chairman — Jigmi Y. Thinley (Bhutan)

Secretary General — Sheel Kant Sharma

Official Language — English

Type of OrganisationThe South Asian Association for Regional Coopera-

tion (SAARC) is an organisation of South Asian nations

SAARCLogo of SAARC

founded in 1985. The organisation isdedicated to economic, technological,social and cultural developmentemphasizing collective Self-reliance.The concept of SAARC was firstadopted by Bangladesh during 1977.

The organisation was establishedto accelerate the process of economic and social deve-lopment in member states through joint action in agreedareas of cooperation. The foreign ministers of the sevenmember countries met for the first time in New Delhi inAugust 1983 and Declaration on South Asian Regional Co-operation whereby an Integrated Programme of Action(IPA) was launched. The charter establishing SAARC wasadopted at the first summit meeting in Dhaka in Decem-ber 1985.

Objectives of SAARCThe charter lays down the objectives as—to promote

the welfare of the people of South Asia and to improvetheir quality of life; accelerate economic growth, socialprogress and cultural development in the region and toprovide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignityand to realize their full potential; to promote and streng-then collective self-reliance among countries of SouthAsia; to contribute to mutual trust, understanding andapprecia-tion of one another's problems; to promote activecollaboration and mutual assistance in the economic,social, cultural, technical and scientific fields; to strengthencooperation with other developing countries; to streng-then cooperation among themselves in internationalforums on matters of common interest and to cooperate

with international and regional organisation with similaraims and purposes. Afghanistan was added to theregional grouping in November 2005.

Dhaka 2009 Summit of SAARC

The Dhaka 2009 Summit accorded observer status toPeople's Republic of China, Japan, South Korea and United

Sheel Kant SharmaSecretary-General

of SAARC

States of America. The nations alsoagreed to organize development fundsunder a single financial institution witha permanent secretariat, that wouldcover all SAARC programs and alsoranging from social to infrastructure toeconomic ones.

Organisational StructureThe highest authority of the

SAARC is vested in the heads of stateor government who meet annually at the summit. TheCouncil of Foreign Ministers meet twice a year and isresponsible for formulating the policy. It reviews progressand decides on new areas of cooperation and mechanismwhich is necessary for that. The Council is supported bya Standing Committee and by 11 Technical Committeesresponsible for individual areas of SAARC's activities ofthe Secretarial, located in Kathmandu, is headed by aSecretary General who is assisted by seven Directors in hiswork. He is appointed by the Secretary-General uponnomination by member states for a period of three yearswhich may be extended in extraordinary circumstances.

SAARC Preferential Trading Agreement

The Agreement on SAARC Preferential TradingAgreement (SAPTA) was signed in April 1993 and enteredinto force in December 1995 with the desire of the MemberStates of SAARC to promote and sustain mutual trade andeconomic cooperation within the SAARC region throughthe exchange of concessions.

The basic principles underlying SAPTA are : (i) overallreciprocity and mutuality of advantages so as to benefitequitably all contracting States taking into account theirrespective level of economic and industrial development,the pattern of their external trade and trade and tariffpolicies and systems, (ii) negotiations of tariff reform stepby step, improved and extended in successive stagesthrough periodic reviews, (iii) recognition of the specialneeds of the Least Developed Contracting States andagreement on concrete preferential measures in theirfavour, (iv) inclusion of all products, manufacturers andcommodities in their raw, semi-processed and processedforms.

Continued on Page 1476

PD/February/2011/1425 “Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you’d have preferred to talk.”

Multiple Choice QuestionsMultiple Choice Questions

Current QuestionnaireCurrent QuestionnaireCurrent QuestionnaireCurrent QuestionnaireCurrent Questionnaire1. India recently signed MoU for

High-tech Disease DetectionCentre with—(A) South Korea(B) USA(C) Russia(D) Japan

2. India is purchasing the giganticC-17 Globemaster-III giantstrategic airlift aircraft from—(A) Japan (B) USA(C) Australia (D) England

3. Judge Soumitra Sen has beenfound guilty of corruption by aRajya Sabha-appointed commit-tee and thus is liable for impeach-ment ? He is from—(A) Calcutta High Court(B) Allahabad High Court(C) Delhi High Court(D) Supreme Court

4. Army’s Strategic Forces Com-mand recently tested—(A) Agni-II (B) Agni-I(C) Prithvi-III (D) Trishul

5. Recently the Cabinet Committeeon Economic Affairs (CCEA)approved the commencement ofan Integrated Action Plan (IAP)in—(A) 60 Naxal hit districts(B) 80 Naxal hit districts(C) 50 Naxal hit districts(D) 40 Naxal hit districts

6. The President of India inNovember visited—

(A) Syria and UAE(B) Egypt and Jordan(C) Sudan and Libya(D) South Africa and Leosotho

7. The state of Orissa has beenrenamed as—(A) Odisha (B) Orisa(C) Odisa (D) Orrisha

8. Aung San Suu Kyi—pro-democracy leader of Myanmarwas released from house-arrestby military ruler in—

(A) September 2010(B) November 2010(C) October 2010(D) December 2010

9. The United Kingdom signedtreaties agreeing to militarycooperation including testing ofnuclear warheads with—(A) Belgium(B) France(C) The Netherlands(D) Germany

10. G-20 Summit was recently heldin—(A) New York (B) Seoul(C) London (D) Tokyo

11. Which year has been set as adeadline for withdrawal of troopsby North Atlantic Treaty Organi-sation from Afghanistan ?(A) Year 2013 (B) Year 2015(C) Year 2014 (D) Year 2016

12. The New Chief Minister ofAndhra Pradesh is—(A) Jaganmohan Reddy(B) Chiranjeevi(C) Kiran Kumar Reddy(D) K. Rosaiah

13. The New Chief Minister ofMaharashtra is—(A) Ashok Chavan(B) Ajit Pawar(C) Sharad Pawar(D) Prithviraj Chavan

14. Dilma Rouseff has been elected athe new President of—(A) Brazil (B) Argentina(C) Peru (D) Chile

15. Justice Arun Kumar Mishra isnew Chief Justice of—(A) Calcutta High Court

(B) Rajasthan High Court

(C) Madras High Court

(D) Bombay High Court

16. Amar Pratap Singh has beenappointed as the new Directorof—

(A) Research and Analysis Wing(B) Central Bureau of Investiga-tion(C) Prasar Bharti(D) None of the above

17. Nikki Randhawa Haley—anIndian-American recentlybecame the first woman to winthe governor’s race in—(A) Texas(B) South Carolina(C) Ohio(D) Louisiana

18. Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace,Disarmament and Developmentfor 2010 has been conferred on—(A) Atal Bihari Vajpayee(B) Asma Jahangir(C) Lula da Silva(D) Tony Blair

19. Which magazine has beenselected for International PressInstitute (IPI) Award ?(A) India Today(B) Tehalka(C) Outlook(D) Frontline

20. The Hindu Best Fiction Award2010 has been conferred on—(A) Manu Joseph(B) Vikram Seth(C) Anita Desai(D) None of the above

21. Which of the following has beenranked as one of the most power-ful women of past century in‘Time Magazine’ list ?(A) Indira Gandhi(B) Mother Teresa(C) Both of the above(D) None of the above

22. The 2010 Aga Khan Award (ofArchitecture) has been given to—(A) Five Projects(B) Six Projects(C) Three Projects(D) Four Projects

PD/February/2011/1426 “We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”

23. International Association ofAthletics Federation (IAAF) MaleAthlete of the year 2010 is—(A) Usain Bolt(B) David Rudisha(C) Lin Dan(D) Michael Phelps

24. International Association ofAthletics Federation (IAAF)Female Athlete of the year 2010is—(A) Blanka Vlasic(B) Saina Nehwal(C) Aselefech Mergia(D) None of the above

25. The Most Valuable Player of 16thAsiad 2010 was—(A) Lin Dan(B) Swimmer Park(C) Sushil Kumar(D) Saina Nehwal

26. As per a recent global report thecountry which tops the terrorismrisk list is—(A) Pakistan (B) Somalia(C) Iraq (D) Iran

27. Which of the following wasrecently inscribed on UNESCO’sintangible heritage list include—(A) Kerala’s Mudiyetu(B) Chhau of East India(C) Kalbelia of Rajasthan(D) All the above

28. ‘Decision Points’ is a bookwritten by—(A) Barack Obama(B) George Bush(C) Bill Clinton(D) Dr. Manmohan Singh

29. National Youth Day is observedon—(A) January 12(B) January 15(C) January 18(D) January 22

30. The 16th FCCC Conference wasrecently organised in—(A) Cancun (B) Moscow(C) Tokyo (D) Jakarta

31. Hambantota is a newly built portof—(A) Thailand (B) Sri Lanka(C) Vietnam (D) Pakistan

32. National Thermal Power Cor-poration along with French firmAreva is developing the 9,900Megawatt Jaitpur Power Projectin the state of—(A) Odisa(B) Kerala(C) Bihar(D) Maharashtra

33. Who won the Paris Masters finalof Tennis in November 2010 ?(A) Robin Soderling(B) Roger Federer(C) Rafael Nadal(D) Andy Roddick

34. The theme song of 16th Asiad2010 was Chongfeng whichmeans—(A) Harmony(B) Solidarity(C) Reunion(D) Justice

35. The country which led the medaltally in 16th Asiad 2010 atGuangzhou is—(A) China (B) Germany(C) USA (D) India

36. India’s position in terms ofmedals tally at 16th Asian Games2010 at Guangzhou was—(A) Fifth (B) Sixth(C) Seventh (D) Third

37. Which Indian boxer won thegold medal in 60 kg category andthus became the youngest to wina boxing gold for India ?(A) Vijender Singh(B) Vikas Krishan(C) Ronjan Sodhi(D) Somdev

38. As per the Human DevelopmentReport 2010 released in Novem-ber 2010, India has been placedat—(A) 120th rank(B) 119th rank(C) 118th rank(D) 115th rank

39. India’s Human DevelopmentIndex (HDI) value in 2010 UNDPHuman Development Reportis—(A) 0·482 (B) 0·519(C) 0·499 (D) 0·552

40. The winner of Durand Cup(Football) 2010 is—

(A) Chirag United(B) Dempo Sports Club(C) Churchill Brothers SC(D) Mahindra United

Answers with Explanations

Continued on Page 1482

PD/February/2011/1427 “Lenin could listen so intently that he exhausted the speaker.”

Current Objective QuestionsCurrent Objective Questions

Trade and IndustryTrade and IndustryTrade and IndustryTrade and IndustryTrade and Industry1. On December 16, 2010, RBI in its

Monetary Policy issue hasreduced one of its key rates.Which is this rate ?(A) Cash Reserve Ratio(B) Statutory Liquidity Ratio(C) Repo Rate(D) Reverse Repo Rate

2. India and China agreed to raisebilateral trade to—(A) $ 120 billion by 2015(B) $ 110 billion by 2015(C) $ 100 billion by 2015(D) $ 100 billion by 2012

3. ASSOCHAM Investment Meter(AIM) makes a list of top 20investment attracting states.Which rank Uttar Pradesh gets ?(A) 1st (B) 2nd(C) 3rd (D) 4th

4. RBI has recently sold its stakein a financial institution to thegovernment. Which is this insti-tution ?

(A) IDBI (B) SIDBI

(C) NHB (D) NABARD

5. RBI has directed banks not tocharge above a limit for any cashdeposit made at a non-homebrance. What is this directedlimit ?(A) 5 (B) 10(C) 20 (D) 50

6. With effect from December 18,2010, the Statutory LiquidityRatio (SLR) becomes—

(A) 24% from 25%(B) 25% from 24%(C) 24% from 26%(D) Maintained at 25%

7. Hero group and Honda termina-ted their 26-year old jointventure known as Hero Honda.Signed MoU allows Hero Hondagroup to use Honda brand nameon new models until—(A) 2012 (B) 2013(C) 2014 (D) 2015

8. Which of the India’s publicsector bank has acquired two-third stake in JSC Dena BankKazakhstan ?(A) Punjab National Bank(B) Bank of Baroda(C) State Bank of India(D) Central Bank of India

9. Which of the following grouphas bought and acquired thecontrolling stake in Ispat Indus-tries ?(A) Tata Steels(B) Arcelor-Mittal Steels(C) JWS Steels(D) None of the above

10. During first half of 2010-11, farmsector in India registered growthof—(A) 2·3% (B) 3·2%(C) 3·8% (D) 4·2%

11. How many Navratna Companieshave been upgraded and awar-ded the status of ‘Maharatna’Companies ?(A) 4 (B) 5(C) 6 (D) 7

12. Which of the following stateshows the fastest growth inexpanding Micro Finance busi-ness in the country ?(A) Gujarat(B) Andhra Pradesh(C) Maharashtra(D) Karnataka

13. As per the statistics released bythe Commerce Ministry, thegrowth rate of India’s exports (indollar value) during the first halfof 2010-11 stood at—(A) Above 25 per cent(B) Between 20 to 25 per cent(C) Between 15 to 20 per cent(D) Below 15 per cent

14. On the basis of market capitali-sation which of the followingIndian Company ranks first ?(A) ONGC (B) RIL(C) OIL (D) IOC

15. The new Direct Tax Code isproposed to replace the existingIncome Tax Act. From whichfinancial year it will be effective ?(A) 2011-12 (B) 2002-13(C) 2013-14 (D) 2014-15

16. In Mid-year Economic Reviewmade by Finance Ministry,country’s GDP growth for theperiod April-Sept. 2010 is placedat—(A) 8·2% (B) 8·5%(C) 8·9% (D) 9·2%

17. Which public sector bank wasthe banking partner to theCommonwealth Games 2010 ?(A) State Bank of India(B) Central Bank of India(C) Bank of Baroda(D) Punjab National Bank

18. Rajeev Gandhi Scheme forEmpowerment of AdolescentGirls named as ‘Sabla’ includesthe girls of the age group—(A) 9 to 12 years(B) 10 to 15 years(C) 11 to 18 years(D) 15 to 18 years

19. SAARC Trade Fair was orga-nised between December 15-19,2010 in—(A) Kathmandu (Nepal)(B) Hyderabad (India)(C) Dhaka (Bangladesh)(D) Islamabad (Pakistan)

20. Global vision Award of AsiaSociety was awarded to an Indianentrepreneur in November 2010.Who is he ?(A) Anil Ambani(B) Mukesh Ambani(C) Ratan Tata(D) L. N. Mittal

21. Which of the following publicsector enterprise does not possess‘Maharatna’ status given to fourNavratna Companies ?(A) SAIL (B) BHEL(C) ONGC (D) NTPC

Continued on Page 1504

PD/February/2011/1428

Geography

MADHYA PRADESH P.S.C. (Pre.) EXAM., 2009

(Held on 9-5-2010)

Solved Paper

1. Alaknanda and Bhagirathi meetat—(A) Vshnu Prayag(B) Dev Prayag(C) Karan Prayag(D) Badrinath

2. Mumbai-Kolkata rail-route pas-ses through which pass ?(A) Bhorghat(B) Palghat(C) Thalghat(D) None of these

3. Which area is water-dividerbetween Indus drainage systemand Ganges drainage system ?(A) Saharanpur-Roorkee(B) Roorkee-Haridwar(C) Ludhiana-Ambala(D) Ambala-Saharanpur

4. Out of the following situationswhere will be the maximumclustered pattern of settlements ?

(A) Along river-course(B) Along road(C) In fertile agricultural plain(D) In the area of industry

5. Who called time as fourthdimension in Geography ?

(A) Richard Hartshorne(B) Carl Sauer(C) F. K. Schafer(D) Peter Hagget

6. Which characteristic is not ofEcosystem ?(A) Monistic(B) Functional(C) Descriptive(D) Structured

7. ‘Mesa’ and ‘Butte’ are formed bywhich agent ?(A) Air(B) Glacial(C) Underground water(D) River

8. Which one is not a reason forriver-rejuvenation ?(A) Climatic change(B) Dearth of water in River(C) Dearth of river-load in River(D) Changes in sea-level

9. Which one is not a characteristicof ‘Doldrums’ ?(A) Convectional currents(B) Low Pressure(C) High Temperatures(D) Air Deflection

10. In Madhya Pradesh, districtswith high population of Gondsare—(A) Mandla - Balaghat - Chhind-wara - Seoni(B) Devas - Rewa - Neemach -Bhopal(C) Ujjain - Sagar - Indore -Rewa(D) Bhopal - Guna - Hoshang-abad - Rewa

11. The observatory providinginformation regarding season inMadhya Pradesh is located at—(A) Indore(B) Bhopal(C) Pachmarhi(D) Shivpuri

12. Tropical cyclones are moredestructive than temperatecyclones, because—(A) These have origin in summer(B) They have no fronts(C) Pressure gradient and rainare higher(D) These originate throughconvectional currents

13. In an ecosytem third and fourthphase of food-chain populationdescreases because of—(A) Negative effect of first andsecond phase(B) Energy decreases in transfer(C) Competition in organic life(D) Decrease in food materials

14. The coral reef along east coast ofAustralia is an example of—(A) Fringing reef(B) Barrier reef(C) Atoll(D) Coral Island

15. Who believes that “all coral reefswere formed as fringing reefsand upgrowth was due tosubsidence” ?(A) Dana (B) Murray(C) Davis (D) Darwin

16. According to relief of ocean basincontinental shelf is landform ofwhich order ?(A) First(B) Second(C) Third(D) None of these

17. All hot deserts of the world arein western parts, because—

(A) Temperatures are high

(B) Sand-Dunes are there

(C) Are in zone of easterlies

(D) Are in rain shadow areas

18. The largest pork producer inworld is—(A) United States of America(B) China(C) Germany(D) France

19. Which index cannot be deter-mined for a living person ?

(A) Cephalic Index

(B) Nasal Index

(C) Orbital Index

(D) Cranial Capacity

20. Which race has Nasal Indexabove 85 ?

(A) Mongoloid(B) Caucasian(C) Negroid(D) Australoid

PD/February/2011/1429

21. If valley glaciers in their courseof erosion meet with sea-coast,then they form—(A) Dalmatian coast(B) Fiord coast(C) Ria coast(D) Neutral coast

22. In Madhya Pradesh mostly ruralsettlements are of which type ?(A) Clustered(B) Scattered(C) Semi-clustered(D) Radial

23. Nomadic herders Badouinshabitats in—(A) Hammad and Nefud deserts(B) Atacama desert(C) Central Asia desert(D) Kalahari desert

24. Which effect of globalisation isnot true in India ?

(A) Development of SpecialEconomic Zones

(B) Increase in foreign trade ofIndia

(C) Increase in number offoreign banks

(D) Entering of foreign workersin India

25. Which river is most important interms of Inland waterway ?(A) Amazon(B) Mississippi(C) Rhine(D) Hooghly

26. When lava solidifies in interior ofthe Earth’s crust in intermediatepart in the shape of dome, that isknown as—(A) Batholith (B) Lacolith(C) Phacolith (D) Dyke

27. In Europe and Asia some settle-ments, houses developed aroundwater bodies have a settlementpattern—(A) Nebular(B) Nucleated(C) Linear(D) Rectangular

28. According to 2001 census literacyrate in Madhya Pradesh was—

(A) 50-55% (B) 56-60%

(C) 61-65% (D) 65-70%

29. In Madhya Pradesh Rock Phos-phate is produced at—(A) Jhabua district(B) Chhindwara district(C) Balaghat district(D) Jabalpur district

30. Denudation which takes place ina limestone region, is primarilyby the process of—(A) Corrosion (B) Attrition(C) Solution (D) Deflation

31. Narmada Water Disputes Tribu-nal in its report of 1979 allocatedthe maximum distribution ofwater of Sardar Sarover Projectto which state ?(A) Madhya Pradesh(B) Gujarat(C) Rajasthan(D) Maharashtra

32. Out of the following which is thepurpose of Ganga Action Plan ?

(A) Providing Electric Cremato-rium

(B) Plantation along river course

(C) Blocking residuals fromMunicipal Committees, changingdirection

(D) All of the above

33. Which industry is developed inShahdol and Nepanagar ?(A) Sugar Industry(B) Cotton Textile Industry(C) Paper and Pulp Industry(D) Cement Industry

34. What are Roaring forties, furiousfifties and Shrieking sixties ?(A) Oceanic storms(B) Westerlies in southern hemi-sphere(C) Westerlies in northern hemi-sphere(D) Pacific Ocean currents

35. The largest mica producing stateof India is—(A) Jharkand(B) Rajasthan(C) Madhya Pradesh(D) Andhra Pradesh

36. In which latitudes oceanic sali-nity is highest ?

(A) 0°–10° (B) 10°–20°

(C) 20°-40° (D) 40°–60°

37. Sun’s rays can make right angleonly upto 23

12° N and S latitudes

because—(A) Earth is inclined at an angleof 661

2° on its axis

(B) Earth’s angular momentumobstructs beyond it(C) Albedo increases beyond it(D) Tropical zone ends

38. In which country Karst region islocated ?(A) Ukraine(B) Italy(C) France(D) Serbia and Montenegro

39. In marine trenches, the deepesttrench is—(A) Tonga(B) Mariana(C) Puerto Rico(D) Kamchatka

40. In morphology of cities thehighest cost of land is in—(A) Residential zone(B) Fringe zone(C) Industrial zone(D) Central Business District

41. The water body separatingAndaman and Nicobar is knownas—(A) Bay of Mannar(B) Andaman Sea(C) 10° Channel

(D) 11° Channel

42. Minicoy Island was formed dueto—(A) Volcanic eruptions(B) Coral reef(C) Ridge formation(D) None of these

43. Vama, Mandar, Gaderi, Mehedaetc. are Gotra/class of whichtribe ?(A) Gond (B) Vaiga(C) Maria (D) Bhil

44. Lumberjack of Canada are invol-ved in which economic activ-ities ?(A) Cultivation in Summer andLumbering in winter(B) Navigation and Agriculture(C) Hunting and fishing(D) Forest gathering

PD/February/2011/1430

45. Which type of coffee is grownmaximum in the world ?(A) Coffea arabica(B) Coffea robusta(C) Coffea liberia(D) Mountain coffee

46. How much share of total uraniumproduction of the world isproduced by Canada (Approxi-mate) ?(A) 25% (B) 28%(C) 31% (D) 34%

47. When a cold air-mass enterswarm surface, then—(A) Stability develops in Air(B) Inversion of Temperatureoccurs in Air-mass(C) Precipitation is low(D) Air becomes unstable andprecipitation occurs

48. Which lake is an example ofLagoon ?(A) Pulicut(B) Sambhar(C) Dal(D) All of these

49. The total road length per 100 sq.km in Madhya Pradesh is—(A) 21 km (B) 23 km(C) 25 km (D) 27 km

50. In South-East Asia mostly rice isgrown, because—(A) Amount of rainfall is high(B) Rice has higher sustainingpower(C) Population is high andconditions are favourable(D) All facts apply

51. Concentration of Bhils inMadhya Pradesh is in whicharea ?

(A) Balaghat-Betul-Chhindwara

(B) Dhar-Jhabua-Ratlam-Nimar

(C) Mandla-Seoni-Rewa

(D) Devas-Bhopal-Hoshangabad

52. In India geo-thermal energy isproduced at—

(A) Tamil Nadu(B) Jabalpur(C) Laddakh(D) Mizoram

53. In Demographic Transition whichis ‘Early Expanding State’ ?

(A) First(B) Second(C) Third(D) Fourth

54. Formation of a region around acentral place is an example of—(A) Uniform Region(B) Special Region(C) Nodal or Functional Region(D) None of these

55. According to Tobbler which isthe first law of Geography ?(A) Everything is related toeverything, but near things aremore related than distant things(B) Geography is the study ofAreas(C) Geography is related withwhere, how and why(D) Present is key to the past

56. Masai Tribe of East Africa havemajor occuption as—(A) Hunting(B) Fishing(C) Agriculture(D) Livestock Rearing

57. Chickel Rose used for makingchewing-gum is extracted fromwhich tree ?(A) Cinchona (B) Ebony(C) Zapota (D) Hamlock

58. In groundnut production Indiaranks……among the world.(A) Second (B) First(C) Fifth (D) Fourth

59. Spouting Horn is a feature of—

(A) Karst Topography

(B) Marine Topography

(C) Glacial Topography

(D) Aeolian Topography

60. Outwash plain formation is anexample of—(A) Glaciofluvial Deposits(B) Ground Moraine(C) Plucking by Glacier(D) Lateral Moraine

61. Who of the following has startedmathematical tradition in Geo-graphy ?(A) Thales(B) Hipparchus(C) Ptolemy(D) Eratosthenes

62. Who propounded the concept of‘Stop-and-Go determinism’ ?(A) Friedrich Ratzel(B) Richthofen(C) Griffith Taylor(D) Ellen Churchill Semple

63. Temperate grasslands provideideal conditions for which crop ?(A) Rice (B) Rubber(C) Tea (D) Wheat

64. Which is the oldest mountainrange of India ?(A) Himalayas(B) Vindhyachal(C) Satpura(D) Aravalli

65. Which of the following sequen-ces is right in terms of flow ofChambal ?(A) Mhow, Kota, Boondi,Dholpur, Etawah(B) Kota, Mhow, Dholpur,Boondi, Etawah(C) Etawah, Mhow, Kota,Dholpur, Boondi(D) Boondi, Kota, Etawah,Mhow, Dholpur

66. Which seismic waves passthrough solid, liquid andgaseous ?(A) Primary and secondarywaves(B) Only primary waves(C) Only secondary waves(D) L-waves

67. Habitat of which tribe is relatedwith ‘Playa’ and ‘Salt Pan’ ?(A) Eskimo (B) Pygmy(C) Bushman (D) Mawri

68. ‘Doggar Banks’ known for fish-ing is located in which sea ?(A) Baltic sea(B) North sea(C) Black sea(D) Mediterranean sea

69. In India which region’s climate isaffected by ‘Norwesters’ ?(A) Assam and West Bengal(B) Punjab and Haryana(C) Gujarat and Maharashtra(D) Andhra Pradesh and TamilNadu

70. In Madhya Pradesh major coalproducing area is—

PD/February/2011/1467

(A) Betul(B) Korba(C) Sundergarh(D) Singrauli and Sohagpur

71. A town is located at a height of825 metres above mean sea leveland its average temperature forJune is 15°C. Had this town beenon mean sea level this tempera-ture would have been—

(A) 10°C (B) 20°C

(C) 15°C (D) 30°C

72. Which of the following state-ments is not true ?

(A) 90° of the world’s popula-tion lives in Northern Hemi-sphere(B) 50% of the world’s popula-tion lives between 20°N-40°Nlatitude in Asia(C) 10% of the world’s popula-tion lives between 0° to 20°Nlatitude in Asia(D) 50% of the world’s popula-tion lives between 40°N to 60°Nlatitude in Europe

73. According to 2008 productionabout more than one-third of theManganese production of theworld came from single nation—(A) China(B) India(C) South Africa(D) Brazil

74. In which district Chalk hillsfamous for magnesite is situated ?(A) Mysore (B) Bellary(C) Hassan (D) Salem

75. According to 2001 census, theper cent share of population ofMadhya Pradesh to India is—(A) 5·88 (B) 7·62(C) 7·35 (D) 4·89

76. According to Wegner’s Conti-nental Drift theory which forcewas effective for drift towardsequator ?(A) Buoyancy force(B) Gravitational force(C) Centrifugal force(D) Buoyancy and Gravitationalforces

77. In which census of India, thenatural growth rate was mini-mum ?

(A) 1921 (B) 1981(C) 2001 (D) 1911

78. Leading producers of Rubber inthe world are—(A) Thailand and Indonesia(B) Indonesia and Malaysia(C) Malaysia and India(D) Thailand and Malaysia

79. During Green Revolution inIndia major thrust was on whichof the following ?(A) Enhancement of Greenery(B) Green Fodder Crops(C) More Foodgrain Production(D) More Cash Crops

80. In region of Gonds words Dippa,Panda, Dahia, Mandla etc. areused for what ?

(A) Regional Division

(B) Shifting Cultivation

(C) Division of Groups

(D) Settlement type

81. If velocity of a flowing riverincreases two-times, then itscapacity to carry load willincrease how much ?(A) Two times(B) Twelve times(C) Thirty-six times(D) Sixty-four times

82. According to Guha which racialgroup has been considered asmost ancient settlers in India ?(A) Proto-Australoid(B) Negreto(C) Nordic or Vedic Aryans(D) Mongoloid

83. Innuits are inhabitants of whichregion ?(A) Tropical desert(B) Mediterranean(C) Tundra(D) Equatorial

84. The name ‘Parkland’ has beengiven to which vegetation ?

(A) Tropical grasslands of SouthAfrica

(B) Temperate grasslands ofSouth Africa

(C) Temperate grasslands ofSouth America

(D) Tropical grasslands ofVenezuela

85. Concept of Region was definedand developed by—

(A) Hartshorne Committee

(B) Whittlesey Committee

(C) Dickinson Committee

(D) Preston James Committee

86. Which one of the following factsis not true regarding IndianBlack-soils ?(A) These are rich in Iron-content(B) These are rich in Potash(C) These are rich in Humus(D) These are poor in Nitrogen

87. According to 2001 census inMadhya Pradesh cities of morethan ten lacs were in descendingorder of population—

(A) Jabalpur, Bhopal, Indore

(B) Bhopal, Jabalpur, Indore

(C) Indore, Jabalpur, Bhopal

(D) Indore, Bhopal, Jabalpur

88. The Richter Scale was developedin—(A) 1925 (B) 1935(C) 1940 (D) 1945

89. Semang belong to—(A) Australia (B) Kalahari(C) China (D) Malaysia

90. Surface currents in the ocean areprimarily caused by—

(A) Temperature differences

(B) Density differences

(C) Wind action

(D) Coriolis effect

91. First Iron and Steel Industry inIndia was established—(A) TISCO, Jamshedpur(B) IISCO, Burnpur(C) Bengal Iron and Steel, Kulti

(D) Mysore Steel Works,Bhadravati

92. What is ‘Hammada’ ?

(A) Aeoloian deposited SandyPlain

(B) Rockey Desert of Libyaregion

(C) Plains deposited by river

(D) Plains of glacial plucking

93. Regarding morphology of citiesmultiple-nuclei theory was givenby—

PD/February/2011/1468

(A) Burgess(B) Homer Hoyt(C) Jefferson(D) Ullman and Harris

94. The term Ecosystem was firstlyused by—(A) Ackerman (B) Darwin(C) Tansley (D) Huntington

95. Baba Gurgur area is known forwhich production ?(A) Petroleum(B) Manganese(C) Coffee(D) Coal

96. If cirques are formed on variousslopes of a mountain on a sameelevation, they form which topo-graphy ?(A) U-shaped valley(B) Horn(C) Glacial Troughs(D) Roche Moutonnee

97. For functional classification oftowns standard deviation tech-nique was first adopted by—(A) Chauncy D. Harris(B) L. L. Pownall(C) J. F. Hart(D) H. J. Nelson

98. The largest sugarcane producingstate in India is—(A) Karnataka(B) Madhya Pradesh(C) Uttar Pradesh(D) Maharashtra

99. Ideal climate for the productionof juicy fruits is—(A) Equatorial Region(B) Mediterranean Region(C) Monsoon Region(D) North-west Europe type

100. The maximum deflection ofwinds due to Coriolis force ismaximum at—(A) Poles(B) Equator

(C) 45° North and South Lati-tudes

(D) 2312° North and South

Latitudes

101. In India with reference toregional disparities in agriculturehighest yield is in—

(A) Karnataka, Tamil Nadu,Kerala(B) Madhya Pradesh, Chhattis-garh(C) Maharashtra, Gujarat(D) Punjab, Haryana, WesternUttar Pradesh

102. According to 2001 the largestgold production in the worldcomes from—(A) United States of America(B) Australia(C) South Africa(D) China

103. To check environmental degra-dation which measures aredesirable ?(A) Industrial development beblocked(B) A check on greenhousegases(C) Energy utilization bedecreased(D) All of the above

104. Bhils call their huts by whichname ?(A) Fana or Koo(B) Pal(C) Jirga(D) Tola

105. Which are the most dangerous,blasting and disastrous volca-noes ?(A) Hawaiin type(B) Strambolian type(C) Volcano type(D) Pelean type

106. According to Koeppen’s classi-fication in which region of IndiaTropical Savanna type (Aw)climate is found ?(A) Western Coast South of Goa(B) Coromandel Coast of TamilNadu(C) Major part of PeninsularPlateau at south of Tropic ofCapricorn(D) Western part of Rajasthan

107. Which pollutatns are responsbilefor maximum damage to Ozonelayer ?(A) Hydro-carbon(B) Carbon dioxide(C) Nitrous oxides(D) Chlorofluorocarbons

108. Which ocean route is on GreatCircle ?(A) Vancouver-Yokohama(B) London-Mumbai(C) San Fransisco-Singapore(D) Philadelphia-Liverpool

109. The highest number of Artesianwells in the world is in whichregion ?(A) India(B) Australia(C) South Africa(D) Brazil

110. Out of the following whichpeople are not coinciding withtheir habitat ?(A) Masai—African grasslands(B) Zikaro—Amazon basin(C) Punan—Borneo(D) Papuan—Sahara desert

111. Out of total surface area of theworld how much percentage iscultivable ?(A) 5% (B) 27%(C) 11% (D) 52%

112. Which pair is incorrect ?(A) Chinook–Rockies(B) Fohn–Alps(C) Sircocco–Atlas(D) Bora–Himalayas

113. In Madhya Pradesh per hectareyield of wheat is low, because—

(A) Lack of rain and irrigation(B) Soil cover is thin(C) Farmers are not laborious(D) None of the above

114. Best example of acidic igneousrocks is—(A) Gabbro (B) Granite(C) Dolerite (D) Basalt

115. ‘Old faithful’ Geyser of USAerupts at an interval of—(A) 30 minutes(B) 35 minutes(C) 60 minutes(D) 65 minutes

116. The largest share for world’sproduction of Tobacco comesfrom—(A) India(B) Brazil(C) China(D) United States of America

PD/February/2011/1469

117. The highest peak on ChotaNagpur plateau is—

(A) Dhoopgarh(B) Pachmarhi(C) Parasnath(D) Mahabaleshwar

118. Which racial group has waivyhair ?(A) Caucasian(B) Mongoloid(C) Negro(D) Australoid

119. Generally which three races areconsidered as major by Anthro-pologists ?

(A) Australoid, Mongoloid,Negroid

(B) Capoid, Negroid, Caucasoid

(C) Mongoloid, Caucasoid,Australoid

(D) Caucasoid, Mongoloid,Negroid

120. Exfoliation is which type ofweathering ?(A) Physical(B) Chemical(C) Biological(D) Bio-chemical

Answers with Explanations

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P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1403

have their own distinct place inproviding scope for adventuretourism in India. Tourists can enjoyanimal safari, jeep safari, bird watch-ing, wild camp, wildlife safari andjungle trail in the forest region whilejeep safari and camel safari are themost favoured adventure sports inthe desert region.

Nature Tourism

India has varied topographicalfeatures that range from the snow-capped mountains to exquisite back-water. Everything related to naturecan be found in villages of this coun-try. The nature tours in India alsoinclude the scenic hill destinationsthat are some of the most sought aftertourist spots in the country. Visitorscan explore the paradisiacal destina-tions such as Dharamsala, Kodai-kanal, Shimla, Manali, Mussoorie,Ooty, Munnar, Dalhousie and Dar-jeeling on these tours.

Nature has played a key role inenticing the people to travel from onepart to another in search of thenatural treasures and also to exploreits hidden mysteries. What can bemore scenic than a clean and ruralsetting. India has all that. The fasc-inating Himalayan valleys and thelong coastlines of the Arabian Seaand the Bay of Bengal provide touristsa good opportunity to indulge inangling, a sport fast gaining popul-arity in the country.

Kerala is known as ‘God’s ownCountry’. It is undoubtedly the mostcaptivating destination of southIndia. Its tropical setting is bestowedwith greenery and breathtaking back-waters. Peep into the village life ofthe people here and observe theirroutine while enjoying the exquisitesurroundings. The whispering palm-groves and swaying paddy fieldscombine to enrich the charm of theplace.

Village Tourism and Govern-ment’s Efforts

Falling income levels, lesser jobopportunities in the rural areas leadto poverty in the rural areas. Villagetourism can provide a solution to allthese problems. In order to promotevillage tourism for socio-economic

benefits to rural and its new geo-graphic regions, the Government ofIndia have identified some areasunder Endogenous Tourism Project(ETP) of United Nation DevelopmentProgramme (UNDP) across thecountry as tourist spots. The projectpromoted people’s institutions, devel-oped skills for hospitality and mar-keting in 31 sites of the 139 ruraltourism destinations. These 31 vill-ages are spread across 20 states.

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Continued from Page 1405

composed of government officialsand representatives of business andacademia from the two countries,held four meetings after July, 2005.JSG submitted its report to bothPrime Ministers when they met inJuly, 2006, which includes a recom-mendation for launching EPA nego-tiations.

In December, 2006, the PrimeMinisters of the two countries deci-ded to launch immediate negotiationsfor the conclusion of a bilateralEconomic Partnership Agreement/Comprehensive Economic Partner-ship Agreement aiming to completein substance as soon as possible inapproximately two years. Thirteenrounds of negotiations were held inNew Delhi and Tokyo respectively asof July 2010. India-Japan StrategicDialogue on Economic Issues whichreviews the current status of bilateraleconomic issues discussed at Summitmeetings, and undertakes coordina-tion as necessary was held 3 times inNew Delhi and Tokyo respectively asof July 2010 since the Dialogue waslaunched in July 2007. In August2007, the Business Leaders' Forumwas held in New Delhi on theoccasion of Prime Minister Abe's visitto India, and the Second meeting washeld in Tokyo in October 2008.

The Hatoyama visit to India inDecember 2009 had taken place at atime when China was set to overtakeJapan in the future as the secondlargest economy of the world and itsall weather friend, the United States,had scaled down rhetoric overChinese military spending seen bywestern experts as disproportionateto its legitimate requirements.

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1472

General Awareness

UNITED INDIA INSURANCE A.A.O. EXAM., 2010

(Held on 6-6-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. Jawaharlal Nehru National SolarMission or Solar India has beenlaunched to create an installedcapacity of 2000 MW by the endof—(A) 13th Plan (B) 14th Plan(C) 15th Plan (D) 16th Plan

2. Bollywood actors who, onFebruary 2, 2010 rang bells inNASDAQ on Time Square, NewYork—an honour usually reser-ved for CEOs of major corpora-tions, are—(A) Amir Khan and PriyankaChopra(B) Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol(C) Abhishek Bachchan andAswarya(D) Saif Ali Khan and KareenaKapoor

3. The term ‘16 yards hit’ is asso-ciated with—(A) Badminton (B) Baseball(C) Polo (D) Hockey

4. The vital constituent of bloodthat helps in clotting is—(A) Platelets (B) Haemoglobin(C) Plasma (D) Serum

5. Which of the following animalscan hear ultrasonic sound ?(A) Cat (B) Rat(C) Bat (D) Squirrel

6. The acid rain destroys vegeta-tions because it contains—(A) Sulphuric acid(B) Ozone(C) Carbon monoxide(D) Nitric acid

7. Man Booker Prize winner Ms.Kiran Desai’s novel, ‘The Inheri-tance of Loss’ deals with—(A) Telangana movement(B) Santhal movement(C) Gorkhaland movement(D) Bodoland movement

8. GARC is the acronym for—(A) Global Automotive ResearchConsortium

(B) Global Atomic ResearchConsortium(C) Global Automotive ResearchCentre(D) Global AdvancementResearch Centre

9. The largest fresh water lake,‘Lake Superior’ is located in—(A) Canada (B) Russia(C) Tanzania (D) Argentina

10. In which State of India is thelargest river island Majuli ?(A) Assam (B) Kolkata(C) Orissa (D) M.P.

11. Match the following—(a) Berlin, Germany(b) Ankara, Turkey(c) Bristol, UK(d) Budapest, Hungary1. Danube 2. Kizil3. Spree 4. AvonCodes :

(a) (b) (c) (d)(A) 2 1 4 3(B) 4 3 1 2(C) 1 4 2 3(D) 3 2 4 1

12. Government’s ambitious UIDProject has been renamed—(A) Parichaya (B) Pahchan(C) Aadhar (D) Aanklan

13. Who is the author of the book‘Speaking for Myself’ ?(A) Salman Rushdie(B) Cherie Blair(C) Mohammad Hanif(D) Hillary Clinton

14. The name of India’s first home-built stealth warship whosefeatures reduce the probability ofbeing detected at sea is—(A) Sahyadiri (B) Satpura(C) Shivalik (D) Shivaji

15. Which country will host the 17thSAARC summit ?(A) Bangladesh(B) Nepal

(C) Shri Lanka(D) Maldives

16. India’s Prime Minister Man-mohan Singh is seated at the……… spot in the leaders’ list of100 most influential persons ofthe world realeased by thefamous Time Magazine recently.(A) 15 (B) 19(C) 23 (D) 27

17. The Islam was established in—(A) 5th A.D. (B) 7th A.D.(C) 3rd B.C. (D) 5th B.C.

18. Which part of the human body ishighly affected by the nuclearradiation first ?(A) Bone marrow(B) Skin(C) Lungs(D) Eyes

19. Who invented the video-tape ?(A) Charles Ginsberg(B) Georges de Mestral(C) Richard James(D) P. T. Farnsworth

20. Match the following—(a) NH–1 (b) NH–3(c) NH–5 (d) NH–7

1. Varanasi–Kanyakumari2. Kolkata–Chennai3. New Delhi–Amritsar4. Agra–MumbaiCodes :

(a) (b) (c) (d)(A) 2 1 4 3(B) 3 4 2 1(C) 4 3 1 2(D) 1 3 4 2

Answers

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1473

General Awareness

PUNJAB AND SIND BANK PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM., 2010

(Held on 16-5-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. The Rate on which Banks borrowfrom the RBI is called—(A) SLR(B) CRR(C) Interest Rate(D) Bank Rate(E) Repo Rate

02. M. K. Narayan has taken over asthe Governor of—(A) Gujarat (B) Assam(C) Meghalaya (D) West Bengal(E) None of these

03. Which of the following will bethe venue of the India-ASEANSummit to be held in 2012 ?(A) Tokyo (B) Jakarta(C) Beijing (D) New Delhi(E) None of these

04. As we know the RBI is the apexBank of India, similarly the apexBank of USA is called—(A) Federal Reserve(B) The Central Bank of USA(C) Bank of America(D) Central National Bank ofUSA(E) None of these

5. As per the newspaper reports theStandards and Poors (S&P) haschanged India’s sovereign ratingfrom ‘Negative’ to ‘Stable’. Thismeans—1. India’s economic condition

has improved a lot.2. There is no pressure of

inflation of the economy asit is well under control.

3. India’s economic conditionhas further gone down as ithas failed to control thefiscal deficit.

(A) Only 1 (B) Only 2(C) Only 3 (D) Only 1 and 2(E) None of these

06. As per the Foreign Trade Policy(FTP) unveiled by the UPA Govt.

in August 2009, India will try tocapture new markets for itsexports in Asia, Latin America,Africa and Oceania etc. Earlieramongst the following wereIndia’s biggest export markets ?1. USA2. Europe3. SAARC Nations(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) All 1, 2 and 3(E) None of these

07. As per the recent reports publi-shed in various newspapers, thecore infrastructure industriesregistered a 4.5% growth in themonth of February 2010. Thisfigure does not include theperformance of which one of thefollowing industries; as it is not acore industry ?

(A) Coal (B) Power

(C) Paper (D) Cement(E) All are core industries

08. Who amongst the following hastaken over as the new Chief ofthe Armed Forces ?(A) Pradeep V. Naik(B) V. K. Singh(C) Suresh Mehta(D) Deepak Kapoor(E) None of these

09. As per the provisions made inthe Union Budget 2010-11, Govt.will infuse Rs. 16,500 crores inbanks to make their capital basestrong. This money will beinfused in which of the followingtypes of banks ?

(A) Gramin Banks

(B) Cooperative Banks

(C) National Housing Banks(D) Public Sector Banks(E) None of these

10. Who amongst the following isthe recipient of the Nobel Prizefor Peace in 2009 ?(A) Herta Mulber(B) Barack Obama(C) Martli Ahtisaari(D) Paul Krugman(E) None of these

11. As reported in various financialnewspapers the Govt. of India isplanning to link the prices ofdiesel and petrol to market pricesand may also introduce a gradedsystem of sharing subsidy. If it isdone this will be in order toimplement the recommendationof which of the following com-mittees ?

(A) Murli Deora Committee

(B) C. Rangarajan Committee

(C) Kirit Parikh Committee

(D) S. Sundareshan Committee

(E) None of these

12. Which of the following schemesof the Govt. of India is plannedto help farmers by providing acompetitive price to their pro-duce ?1. Minimum support price of

agro products

2. Creating buffer stock of foodgrains

3. Making loans available tothem on special and subsi-dized rates of interest

(A) Only 1

(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) All 1, 2 and 3(E) None of these

13. Which of the following norms/practices adopted by the banksis/are launched to ensure thatthe money from illegal activities/sources does/do not come tobanks and therefore, the econo-

PD/February/2011/1474

mic health of the nation does notget affected ?1. Know your Customer2. Financial Inclusion3. Branchless Banking(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) Only 1 and 2(E) All 1, 2 and 3

14. As a practice, all banks nowdeduct some amount from theirpre tax income and set aside ina separate account to create acushion for the loans which maygo bad. This is called—(A) CRR(B) SLR(C) Provisioning(D) PLR(E) None of these

15. As we know many Indian Banksare opening their branches inforeign countries these days.What in your opinion is/are thereasons owing to which thesebanks are willing to openbranches in foreign countries ?1. India has the largest net-

work of bank branches inthe world. Hence othernations also wish to takeadvantage of their services.

2. Indian Banks get anopportunity to raise foreigncurrency funds and also theexperience funding jointventures of multinationals.This prompts them to opentheir branches in foreignnations.

3. As many foreign banks arefunctioning in India, India inturn is also required to openequal number of branchesin foreign countries. HenceIndian Banks are openingbranches in these countries.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) Only 1 and 2(E) None of these

16. Who amongst the following wasrecently nominated as the‘Member of the Rajya Sabha’ ?(A) Amitabh Bachchan

(B) Manoj Kumar(C) Aamir Khan(D) Javed Akhtar(E) None of these

17. The 97th annual session of theIndian Science Congress washeld in which of the followingcities in January 2010 ?(A) Mumbai(B) Kolkata(C) New Delhi(D) Thiruvananthapuram(E) Hyderabad

18. Which of the following cropsneed plenty of water to grow ?(A) Jowar (B) Cotton(C) Paddy (D) Bajra(E) All these need plenty ofwater

19. Which of the following is/aretrue about the National RuralEmployment Guarantee Act ?1. The Act is now known as

Indira Gandhi NationalRural Employment Guara-ntee Act.

2. The Act is now applicable toall the districts of thecountry.

3. Minimum wage fixed underthis Act is now Rs. 250 perday.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2

(C) Only 3

(D) All 1, 2 and 3(E) None of these

20. Who amongst the following wasrecently awarded the prestigious“Order of Merit of the ItalianRepublic” ?

(A) Sunil Mittal

(B) Ratan Tata

(C) Harshpati Singhania

(D) Rahul Bajaj

(E) None of these

21. Govt. of India recently approvedthe national policy on Bio fuels.Which of the following crops isone which is used to make bio-fuels ?

(A) Onion (B) Sugarcane

(C) Wheat (D) Coconut(E) None of these

22. Which of the following countriesis the largest producer of milk inthe world ?(A) China (B) India(C) Denmark (D) USA(E) None of these

23. Which of the following terms isnot associated with the game ofHockey ?(A) Bouncer(B) Bully(C) Short Corner(D) Goal(E) Penalty Corner

24. Saina Nehwal is a famous—(A) Lawn Tennis Player(B) Golf Player(C) Table Tennis Player(D) Badminton Player(E) None of these

25. Who amongst the following isassociated with music and is amaestro of international repute ?(A) Vikram Seth(B) Steve Waugh(C) Salman Rushdie(D) Ritu Beri(E) A. R. Rahman

26. India is providing help to whichof the following nations in sett-ing up a Medical College thereon the lines of the AIIMS ?(A) Nepal (B) Bhutan(C) Bangladesh (D) Myanmar(E) None of these

27. Which of the following is theabbreviated name of the com-pany which produces chemicalfertilizers in India ?

(A) IASRI (B) BHEL

(C) IFFCO (D) FICCI

(E) FERA

28. Which of the following is not afood grain ?(A) Paddy (B) Jatropha(C) Bajra (D) Jowar(E) Wheat

29. As we know Govt. is payingmuch attention towards thedevelopment of watersheds andwater bodies in all the areas ofthe country. What is/are thereasons owing to which Govt.has to take these special efforts to

PD/February/2011/1475

develop/recharge watershedsand water bodies ?1. The one single biggest

problem of the agricuture inthe country is inappropriateirrigation facilities andfarmers’ overdependence onthe monsoon. Govt. wantsfarmers to come out of it.

2. The water table in some ofthe areas in the country isgoing down. This is a matterof great concern for all of usas this may result in severewater problem in days tocome. Govt. is serious aboutit.

3. Around 30 to 35 per centwatersheds/water bodies inthe country are not beingutilized as the quality of thewater in these has deterio-rated over the years.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) All 1, 2 and 3(E) None of these

30. Which of the following is/aretrue about the Indira AwasYojana ?1. The scheme provides finan-

cial assistance to peopleliving below poverty line forconstruction of housingunits.

2. Every family gets an assis-tance of Rs. 3 lakhs forconstruction of new housingunit and upto Rs. 2 lakhs forupgradation of old/exis-ting units.

3. Scheme is available only tothose who are staying in anyvillage or urban areas havinga population of 50000 ormore.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) All 1, 2 and 3(E) None of these

31. The head office of the WorldTrade Organisation is locatedin—(A) Nepal (B) India(C) Japan (D) Australia(E) None of these

32. Who amongst the followingis/was not a famous writer ofEnglish Language ?(A) V. S. Naipaul(B) Anita Desai(C) Harivansh Rai Bachchan(D) Kiran Desai(E) Chetan Bhagat

33. Which of the following awards isgiven for excellence in the fieldof Sports ?(A) Kalidas Samman(B) Shanti Swarup BhatnagarAward(C) Jananpith Award(D) Arjun Award(E) Bharat Ratna

34. Which of the following trophies/cups is associated with the gameof Cricket ?(A) Davis Cup(B) Agha Khan Cup(C) Nehru Trophy(D) Durand Cup(E) Duleep Trophy

35. Who amongst the following isNOT a recipient of the PadmaVibhushan Award given awayrecently ?(A) Y. V. Reddy(B) Zora Segal(C) V. Ramakrishnan(D) Pratap C. Reddy(E) Shreya Ghosal

36. The conference of the Speakersand presiding officers of thecommonwealth countries wasorganized recently in—

(A) New Delhi

(B) London(C) Pretoria(D) Kuala Lumpur(E) None of these

37. Which of the following films wasadjudged as the ‘Best FeatureFilm’ in 56th National FilmAwards, announced recently ?

(A) Antaheen (B) Fashion

(C) Jogva (D) Bioscope

(E) None of these

38. Who amongst the followingIndian Players won the MixedDoubles of the Australian OpenTennis 2010 ?

(A) Mahesh Bhupati(B) Leanders Paes(C) Sania Mirza(D) Rohan Bopanna(E) None of these

39. As per the “Education for AllGlobal Monitoring Report”,released by the UNO, over halfof the total illiterate populationof the world lives in just fourcountries. Which of the followingis not one of these four ?(A) China(B) India(C) South Africa(D) Pakistan(E) Bangladesh

40. Which of the following is/arecorrect about the Rajiv GandhiLPG Vitrak Yojana ?1. Women/men in the age

group of 21-45 years will bestakeholders.

2. All stackeholders will earnRs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 permonth as their income.

3. LPG will be suppliedthrough a pipeline from thenearest depot to the fillingstation which will becommon for a constellationof 4 to 5 villages.

(A) Only 1

(B) Only 2

(C) Only 1 and 2

(D) Only 1 and 3

(E) All 1, 2 and 3

41. An individual going to Bangla-desh will be required to make allhis/her payments in which of thefollowing currencies ?(A) Rial (B) Dinar(C) Taka (D) Rupee(E) Dollar

42. Mr. Najib Tun Razak, who wason a visit to India a few monthsback, is the—(A) President of Iran(B) Prime Minister of Iran(C) President of Malaysia(D) Prime Minister of Malaysia(E) None of these

43. The construction of a dam onwhich of the following rivers inArunachal Pradesh has become a

PD/February/2011/1476

matter of concern as some peoplefeel that it will damage the sociocultural environment of theState ?(A) Brahmaputra(B) Teesta(C) Gandak(D) Padma(E) None of these

44. India recently provided a US $ 1billion credit to which of thefollowing countries in its neigh-bourhood so that bilateral tradewith it can be improved ?(A) China (B) Pakistan(C) Bangladesh (D) Myanmar(E) None of these

45. Which of the following regula-tory fiscal bodies is celebratingits Platinum Jubilee this year ?(A) NABARD (B) SEBI(C) IRDA (D) AMFI(E) RBI

46. As we all know the Govt. ofIndia had launched ‘Look EastPolicy’ a few years ago so that itcan have better relations andtrade with South East Asiancounties. Which of the followingnations is considered or called the“Door of South East Nations” ?(A) Bangladesh(B) Myanmar(C) China(D) Afghanistan(E) None of these

47. Which of the following countriesis going to host SAARC summitnext year ?(A) Bangladesh(B) India(C) Pakistan(D) Nepal(E) Bhutan

48. As per the reports published invarious newspapers, the UnionMinister of Corporate Affairs isplanning to introduce a systemwhere two firms may auditaccounts of every company.Which of the following may bethe impact of this dual auditsystem, when implemented ?1. This will bring transparent,

independent and objectiveassessments of the functio-ning of the companies.

2. This will create a warning oralarming system so thatSatyam like episodes can beaverted.

3. This will give an oppor-tunity to auditors to learnmore about the ‘insideactivities’ of the companiesand also a better under-standing of the businesstactics, the companies adoptto beat their competitors.

(A) Only 1

(B) Only 2

(C) Only 3

(D) All 1, 2 and 3

(E) None of these

49. Some financial experts andbusiness leaders feel that thepresent policies of the RBI mayresult in hardening of the interestrates further. Besides thishardening of the ‘rupee ininternational markets is alsopossible. If it happens, what willbe its impact on the market ?1. More and more Indian firms

would like to borrow fromglobal markets instead ofdomestic ones.

2. Companies may have tosuspend their plans ofraising capital needed forextension of business forsometime.

3. More and more Indiancompanies would like toopen their offices/branchesin foreign nations so thatthey can approach foreigninvestors easily.

(A) Only 1

(B) Only 2

(C) Only 1 and 2

(D) Only 2 and 3

(E) None of these

50. Which of the following is/aretrue about the “Gram Nyaya-layas” ?

1. These courts will be mobilecourts and will function atPanchayat level.

2. The Magistrate of thesecourts will go to the villagesin their area of coverage andwill dispose off cases of thevillages there itself.

3. Only civil suits related to theproperty of Rs. 5,00,000 andabove will be disposed off inthis way.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) Only 1 and 2(E) All 1, 2 and 3

Answers with Hint

P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1424

South Asia Free Trade AreaThe agreement on the South Asia

Free Trade Area is an agreementreached at the 12th SAARC Summitin Islamabad in January 2008. Itcreates a framework for the creationof a free trade in the member coun-tries. The seven foreign members ofthe region signed a framework agree-ment on SAFTA with zero customsduty on the trade of practically allproducts in the region by the end2016. The new agreement i.e., SAFTAcame into force in January 2006 andwill be operational following theratification of the agreement by theseven agreements. In the final fiveyear phase ending 2012 the 20% dutywill be reduced to zero in a series ofannual cuts. The least developednations in South Asia consisting ofNepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh andMaldives have an additional threeyears to reduce tariff zero. India andPakistan have signed but not ratifiedthe treaty. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1477

General Awareness

BANK OF INDIA PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM., 2010

(Held on 31-10-2010)

Test-III(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. The Business CorrespondenceModel being adopted by thebanks provides Banking facilitiesto which of the following ?(A) Only Corporate borrowers(B) Only Weaker sections thesociety and people of smallvillages(C) Only those who are takinghousing loans(D) All (A), (B) and (C) above(E) None of these

2. The concept of ‘Carbon Credit’ isassociated with which of thefollowing areas ?(A) Protection of environment(B) Women empowerment(C) Development of rural infras-tructure(D) Development of coal mines(E) None of these

3. As we all know Government ispaying much attention toimprove Public DistributionSystem (PDS) in our country.Which of the following havebeen the achievements of thePDS uptill now, owing to whichGovernment wants to furtherimprove it ?

[Pick up correct statement(s).]1. After implementing PDS in

India, no famine was repor-ted. PDS was always thereto give people at least thebare minimum to survive.

2. A drought of 1987 wasworst in this century butPDS played a vital role inovercoming the drought.

3. Now PDS is feeding thepoorest of the poor in thiscountry.

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 3(D) All 1, 2 and 3 are correct(E) None of these

4. Global Micro Credit Summit-2011will be organized in which of thefollowing countries ?(A) Britain (B) South Africa(C) Spain (D) Italy(E) None of these

5. Many times we read about SHGsin financial newspapers. What isthe full form of the term ?(A) Small Help Groups(B) Self Help Groups(C) Small Hope in Growths(D) Self Hope Groups(E) None of these

6. Whenever newspapers talk aboutthe performance of core indus-tries, which of the following isnot considered among them ?(A) Petroleum (B) Automobile(C) Mining (D) Steel(E) Cement

7. Which of the following agencies/organizations in India maintainsthe Micro Finance Developmentand Equity Fund which was innews recently ?(A) Confederation of Industriesin India (CII)(B) Indian Bank’s Association(IBA)(C) Small Industries Develop-ment Bank of India (SIDBI)(D) Reserve Bank of India (RBI)(E) National Bank for Agricul-ture and Rural Development(NABARD)

8. As per recent newspaper reportsUK based Cairn Energy is in theprocess of selling its stake towhich one of the following com-panies of Indian base ?(A) ONGC Videsh(B) Hindustan Petroleum Cor-poration Ltd.(C) Vedanta Resources(D) Posco India(E) None of these

9. Which of the following billspresented in the Parliament willbring some changes in existingtax regime ?(A) Direct Taxes Code (DTC)Bill(B) Foreign Exchange Manage-ment Regulatory Bill(C) Companies Act Bill(D) Salaries and Perks for MPsBill(E) Finance Bill 2010-11

10. Under Indira Gandhi NationalOld Age Pension Scheme(IGNOAPS), the benefits areavailable to the people havingminimum age of …….(A) 50 years (B) 55 years(C) 65 years (D) 60 years(E) 70 years

11. Mr. Katsuya Okada who was ona visit to India few months backis the Foreign Minister of—(A) South Korea(B) Myanmar(C) Japan(D) Thailand(E) None of these

12. Govt. of India has decided toreview its Foreign Direct Invest-ment Rules twice in a year. Thiswill be done from—(A) 2015 (B) 2012(C) 2014 (D) 2011(E) None of these

13. Many times we read about‘Hawala’ transactions in newspa-pers. Hawala in India is pro-hibited under the provision ofwhich of the following Acts ?(A) Fiscal Responsibility andBudget Management Act(B) Banking Regulation Act(C) Financial action Task ForceAct(D) Foreign Exchange Manage-ment Act(E) None of these

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14. India recently reviewed its traderelation policy with Russia. Whatare the main exports from Indiato Russia ?1. Pharmaceuticals2. Apparel and Clothing3. Tea and Coffee

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) All 1, 2 and 3(D) Only 2 and 3(E) Only 1 and 2

15. As we all know DIPP is the nodalagency in the field of foreigninvestments in India. What is thefull form of DIPP ?(A) Department of IndustrialPolicy and Promotion(B) Department of IndustrialProcedures and Promotions(C) Directorate of IndustrialProcedures and Promotions(D) Directorate of IndustrialPolicy and Publicity(E) None of these

16. ‘Israel and Palestinians opentalks’ was the headline in somemajor newspapers. As we allknow both the nations were notcoming for the talks since 2008.Which of the following is themain dispute between these twonations ?

(A) Membership of World TradeOrganisation(B) Membership of G-20(C) Selecting Syria, one of themajor trade partners by Israel.Palestine is dead against it(D) Redefining the boundariesas a major glacier between themhas erased the same(E) None of these

17. Many times we read about theperformance of Asian Markets invarious financial newspapers.Which of the following is notincluded in Asian Market ?(A) Japan(B) China(C) Hong Kong(D) South Korea(E) Brazil

18. As per the figures released by theWorld Bank, which of the follow-ing countries was the largest

recipient of loans from the WorldBank during 2009-10 ?(A) Bangladesh(B) Pakistan(C) Brazil(D) China(E) India

19. Which of the following has beenfixed as the target for fiscaldeficit 2010-11 ?

(In terms of percentage of GDP)(A) 3% (B) 3·5%(C) 4% (D) 5%(E) 5·5%

20. As per news in various news-papers ‘kfw’ Group releasedanother instalment of its financialaid to India. kfw is an organi-zation/bank based in—(A) France (B) Japan(C) Italy (D) China(E) Germany

21. Which of the following countrieshas become the main supplier ofDefence goods to India and hasreplaced Russia ?(A) Canada (B) USA(C) Israel (D) France(E) None of these

22. As per existing policy, newforeign investments in manufac-turing of which of the followingis not allowed ?(A) White cement(B) Plastic goods(C) Cigarette and Cigars(D) Polythene bags(E) Pesticides

23. The Mixed Double of which ofthe following Lawn Tennistournaments was won byLeander Paes along with CaraBlack in 2010 ?(A) Wimbledon(B) US Open(C) Australia Open(D) Dubai Open(E) None of these

24. Which of the following is notamongst the Prime Minister’snew 15 point programme ?(A) Enhanced Credit Supportfor economic activities(B) Modernizing MadarsaEducation(C) Improvement in conditionof slums inhabited by minorities

(D) Free train journey forunemployed youths

(E) Rehabilitation of victims ofcommunal riots

25. The Summit of Shanghai Coop-eration Organisation was held inJune in which of the followingplaces ?(A) Shanghai (B) Moscow(C) Tashkent (D) Astana(E) None of these

26. India’s political relations with itsneighbouring countries are acritical part of its …….(A) Industrial policy(B) Trade policy(C) Foreign policy(D) Development policy(E) None of these

27. Which of the following organi-zations of Indian Origin ishelping Sri Lanka in rehabili-tation of its war widows ?(A) Khadi and Village Commis-sion(B) SEWA(C) Action for Food Production(D) Adhar(E) Aasha

28. Who amongst the followingbecame the first Cricketer to take800 wickets in Test Cricket ?

(A) Kumar Sangakkara

(B) Saqlain Mustaq(C) Anil Kumble

(D) Muttiah Murlitharan

(E) None of these

29. Which of the following agencies/organizations has decided tomake major changes for ULIPs ?(A) IRDA (B) RBI(C) AMFI (D) FRBI(E) None of these

30. The 16th SAARC Summit wasorganized in Thimpu. Thedeclaration of the Summit wasnamed as—(A) Towards Green and HappySouth Asia(B) Silver Jubilee of SAARC(C) Let us meet again in Delhi(D) SAARC : The Future ofSouth Asia(E) None of these

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31. Which of the following is thename of the programme launchedby the Govt. of India to helplonely women by providingvocational training to make themself dependent ?(A) Apnalaya(B) Prayas(C) Abhiyogyata(D) Swadhar(E) Swawlamban

32. Which of the following terms isnot used in the game of Cricket ?(A) Doosra (B) Century(C) Bouncer (D) Love(E) Ashes

33. Which of the following countrieswon the Asia Cup Cricket Tour-nament 2010 held in Sri Lanka ?(A) Sri Lanka (B) India(C) Pakistan (D) Bangladesh(E) None of these

34. Mr. James Alix Michael who wason a visit to India recently is thePresident of ……(A) Australia(B) New Zealand(C) Colombia(D) Seychelles(E) None of these

35. Trupti Murgunde whose namewas in news recently is a—

(A) Badminton player

(B) Golf player

(C) Lawn Tennis player

(D) Table Tennis player

(E) Cricket player

36. Which of the following is not afinancial term ?(A) Acid Test(B) Double Fault(C) Gross Profit(D) Depreciation(E) Cash flow

37. In the terms of economics, therecession occurring two timeswith a small gap in between isknown as—(A) Double Deflation(B) Deflation(C) Deep Recession(D) Double Dip Recession(E) None of these

38. Saina Nehwal was in Parisrecently to play in World Cham-pionship. She lost her matchagainst whom amongst thefollowing players ?(A) Le Chong Wei(B) Shixian Wang(C) Taufik Hidayut(D) Jung Eun(E) None of these

39. Union Cabinet recently cleared 15000 crore Sukhoi deal. Sukhoi

is—(A) Battle tank(B) Fighter plane(C) Submarine(D) Radar system(E) None of these

40. Who amongst the following isthe recipient of the Rajiv GandhiKhel Ratna Award-2010 announ-ced recently ?(A) Pankaj Adwani(B) Leander Paes(C) Sania Mirza(D) M. S. Dhoni(E) None of these

41. Which of the following terms isnot used in Economics ?(A) Balance of Payment(B) Call Money(C) National Debt(D) Elasticity of Demand(E) Boyle’s law

42. Which of the following ministries/departments operates the‘Village Grain Bank’s Schemes’ ?

(A) Ministry of Tribal Welfare(B) Department of Food andPublic Distribution(C) Department of SocialWelfare(D) Ministry of Forest(E) None of these

43. Which of the following countriesrecently conducted generalelection and became the firstParliamentary Democracy ofCentral Asia ?

(A) Turkmenistan

(B) Uzbekistan

(C) Kyrgyzstan

(D) Kazakhstan

(E) None of these

44. Which of the following books iswritten by Chetan Bhagat ?(A) The Golden Gate(B) Journey to Ithaca

(C) Fore on the Mountain

(D) The inheritance of Loss

(E) 2 States : The Story of MyMarriage

45. Which of the following nationsis the recent one to join Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) ?(A) Fiji (B) Cuba(C) Sri Lanka (D) Colombia(E) Egypt

46. Hiroshima Day is observed onwhich of the following dates ?(A) 6th August(B) 16th August(C) 6th September(D) 16th September(E) 26th July

47. Who amongst the following isthe Chairperson of the HumanRight’s Commission of India atpresent ?(A) Prof. M. S. Swaminathan(B) Justice K. G. Balakrishnan(C) Justice A. R. Lakshmanan(D) Justice P. V. Reddi(E) None of these

48. ‘Booker Prize’ is given in thefield of ……(A) Literature(B) Social service(C) Films(D) Science(E) Sports

49. Which of the following games/sports is not included in the listof Commonwealth Games 2010 ?(A) Table Tennis(B) Hockey(C) Weight lifting(D) Golf(E) Boxing

50. Dronacharya Awards are givento a person associated with—(A) Education(B) Social service(C) Journalism(D) Sports(E) Films

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PD/February/2011/1480

General and Financial Awareness

I.D.B.I. ASSISTANT MANAGER EXAM., 2010

(Held on 14-11-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. The present Cash Reserve Ratiois—(A) 5% (B) 5·5%(C) 6% (D) 6·5%(E) None of these

2. One of the objectives of KYC(Know Your Customer) normsis—(A) to give boost to bankdeposits(B) to safeguard banks advances(C) to monitor transactions ofsuspicious nature(D) to help income tax autho-rities to collect income tax(E) None of these

3. Contribution to Prime Minister'srelief fund enjoys Income Taxbenefit up to—(A) 50% under section 80G(B) 75% under section 80G(C) 100% under section 80 G(D) 100% under section 88(E) No exemption is available

4. Which of the following activitiesare expected to be performed bythe Business correspondents ?(A) Disbursal of small valuecredit(B) Collection of small valuedeposits(C) Sale of micro insurance /mutual fund products(D) All the three above(E) Only (B) and (C) above

5. Tax at source by banks isdeducted on interest paid onterm deposits in the interestamount in a financial yearexceeds—(A) 3,000 (B) 5,000(C) 10,000 (D) 15,000(E) There is no such provision

6. Securitisation and Reconstructionof Financial Assets and Enforce-ment of security Interest Actrelates to—

(A) Sanction of loans(B) Enhancement of loan limits(C) Recovery of loans(D) All the above(E) None of above

7. MSMED Act is applicable to—(A) Smalls enterprises only(B) Medium enterprises only(C) Micro enterprises only(D) Micro, Small and Mediumenterprises(E) All enterprises irrespectiveof their size engaged in manu-facturing activity

8. Money Laundering refers to—

(A) Conversion of assets intocash(B) Conversion of Money whichis illegally obtained(C) Conversion of cash into gold(D) Conversion of gold into cash(E) None of the above

9. The Monetary and Credit Policyis reviewed by the RBI after agap of—(A) one year (B) one month(C) two years (D) five years(E) None of these

10. PPF account is opened for aperiod of—(A) 5 years (B) 10 years(C) 15 years (D) 20 years(E) None of these

11. Yuan is the currency of—(A) Japan (B) China(C) Indonesia (D) Myanmar(E) None of these

12. National savings certificatematures at the end of—(A) Six years(B) Three years(C) Six and half years(D) Five years(E) Five and half years

13. Normally Bank accept FixedDeposits for a maximum periodof—(A) 5 years (B) 3 years(C) 10 years (D) 20 years(E) Any number of years

14. Code of banks commitment toMicro and Small enterprises isprepared by—(A) RBI (B) SEBI(C) FEDAI (D) BCSBI(E) Ministry of Small andMedium Enterprises

15. Which one of the following is nota salient feature of debit card ?(A) No bad debts to banks andno suits for recovery(B) No interest earning for banks(C) Works like a normal with-drawal(D) All the above(E) 45 dayes credit is given tothe card holder

16. IFRS stands for—(A) International FinancialReporting standards(B) Indian Financial RatingStandards(C) International FinancialRating Standards(D) All the three above(E) None of the above

17. What is the present Repo Rate ?(A) 5% (B) 5·5%(C) 6% (D) 6·5%(E) None of these

18. There are certain financial instru-ments whose prices are derivedfrom the price of the underlyingcurrency of interest rate or stocksetc. These are known as—(A) Derivatives(B) Securitisation(C) Leasing(D) Factoring(E) Venture Capital Funding

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19. What is the full form of ASBA ?

(A) Allotment supported byBlocked Amount(B) Application supported byBlocked Amount(C) Application supported byBank Amount(D) Allotment supported byBank Account(E) None of the above

20. Reverse Repo is used by RBI to—(A) Inject liquidity(B) Absorb liquidity(C) Increase the liquidity withbanking system(D) Keep the liquidity at onelevel(E) None of the above

21. Which of the following is notconsidered as lending underinfrastructure sector ?(A) A Highway project(B) Construction of EducationalInstitution(C) Construction of Hospital(D) Laying down of petroleumpipelines(E) None of the above

22. KYC guidelines have beenframed on the recommenda-tions/as per guidelines of—

(A) Reserve Bank of India

(B) Ministry of Finance

(C) Indian Banks Association

(D) Financial Action Task Force

(E) Ministry of Home affairs

23. The term ‘Power of Attorney’refers to—(A) Power of a person

(B) An authority to operate aBank account

(C) An instrument by which aperson is empowered to act foranother person

(D) All of the above

(E) None of the above

24. What is the amount of com-pensation to be paid per day, asper RBI directives in case offailed ATM transactions ?

(A) 50 (B) 100(C) 200 (D) 500(E) It is at the discretion of eachBank

25. Financial Action Task Force hasan office in India at which place ?(A) Mumbai (B) Chennai(C) Kolkata (D) New Delhi(E) All the above places

26. Bridge loans refer to—(A) Loans granted to contructioncompanies for construction ofbridges(B) Loan granted to PWD forconstruction of bridges overRivers(C) Interim finance allowed bybanks to their customers pendingdisbursement of term loans byfinancial institutions(D) All of the above(E) None of the above

27. Payment of Demand Draft can bestopped by—(A) Payee (B) Holder(C) Purchaser (D) All of these(E) None of these

28. Can any one file an appealagainst the order passed by theBanking Ombudsman ? If so whois the Appellate Authority ?(A) The Chairman of concernedBank(B) The Deputy Governor RBI(C) Governor of RBI(D) Finance Minister(E) None of the above

29. For which one of the followingreasons, the Government hasapproved a plan to infuse

15,000 crore capital into PSBs ?

(A) To boost their lendingcapacity

(B) To maintain minimumCRAR as per Basel II norms(C) To maintain NPA provisioncoverage ratio

(D) To strengthen the BalanceSheet of banks

(E) None of these

30. What is monetary policy trans-mission ?

(A) It refers to monetary policyof Central Bank

(B) It refers to fiscal policy ofGovernment

(C) It refers to various channelsthrough which the monetarypolicy of a Central Bank alters

prices or output in the realeconomy(D) It refers to various channelsthrough which the fiscal policyof the Government alters pricesor output in the real economy(E) None of these

31. On which one of the followingissue IMF has supported mone-tary policy of India ?(A) Tightening of monetarypolicy(B) Stimulus for agriculturesector(C) Concessions for foreigninvestment(D) Introduction of GST(E) None of these

32. The advantage of convenience incredit card operations is for—(A) Customer(B) Members Establishments(C) Banks(D) All the above(E) None of the above

33. Under provisions of which oneof the following Acts, CAs/CShave been told to report allsuspicious fund trasnfers ?(A) RBI Act(B) Banking Regulation Act(C) Indian Companies Act(D) Unlawful Activities(Prevention) Act(E) None of these

34. Bancassurance is—(A) an insurance scheme toinsure bank deposits(B) an insurance schemeexclusively for the employees ofbanks(C) a composite financial serviceoffering both bank and insuranceproduct(D) a bank deposits schemeexclusively for employees ofinsurance companies(E) None of the above

35. In the term STRIPS, the firstletter ‘S’ denotes—(A) Separate (B) Small(C) Special (D) Savings

(E) None of these36. Which of the following organi-

zations, provide credit history ofthe borrowers ?

PD/February/2011/1482

(A) CIBIL (B) SEBI(C) RBI (D) CRISIL(E) IBA

37. Loans/advances to farmers istreated as—(A) Personal Loans(B) Priority Sector Loan(C) Business Loan(D) Corporate Loan(E) None of these

38. Which one of the followingOrganisations maintains CRR ?(A) RBI (B) SEBI(C) NABARD (D) IBA(E) None of these

39. When the loan is granted forpurchase of white goods it iscalled—(A) Consumption loan(B) White goods loan(C) Consumer durable loan(D) All the above(E) None of the above

40. Which one of the following is theobjective of Mahatma GandhiNational Rural EmploymentGuarantee Act ?(A) To provide 100 days employ-ment to people in rural areas(B) To provide employment toeducated youth(C) To provide employmentunder KVIC schemes(D) To create more valuablerural assets(E) None of these

41. Structure of Basel II is based onhow many pillars ?(A) Two (B) Three(C) Four (D) Eight(E) Six

42. With which one of the following‘Channel Financing’ is associ-ated ?(A) Retail Lending(B) Corporate Lending(C) SME Lending(D) Supply Chain Finance(E) None of these

43. Expand the term FRBM—(A) Financial Responsibility andBusiness Management(B) Fiscal Responsibility andBusiness Management

(C) Financial Responsibility andBudget Management(D) Fiscal Responsibility andBudget Management(E) None of these

44. A customer can approachBanking ombudsman if he doesnot get satisfactory response tohis grievance from the bankwithin how many days ?(A) 10 days (B) 20 days(C) 8 days (D) 30 days(E) 60 days

45. Which one of the followingcountry is in talks with EU andInternational Monetary Fund, toexit from debt crisis ?(A) Spain (B) Turkey(C) Portugal (D) Greece(E) Finland

46. For achieving 8·5 percent GDPgrowth in fiscal 2010-11, whichone of the following should bepercent growth in farm sector ?(A) 2·0 (B) 2·5(C) 3·0 (D) 4·0(E) None of these

47. According to a report submittedby IMF in its World EconomicOutlook, which one of thefollowing countries will havehighest percent GDP growth ratein 2011 ?(A) China (B) India(C) Brazil (D) Russia(E) None of these

48. Which one of the following hasgiven ‘Aadhaar’ as its new brandname ?(A) UIDAI(B) Sports Ministry, GOI(C) Ministry of Tourism, GOI(D) NHAI(E) None of these

49. Which of the following will helppoor to come out of theirpoverty ?1. Good Health Service2. Freedom from illiteracy3. Optimum Sex Ratio

(A) Only 1(B) Only 2(C) Only 1 and 2(D) Only 3(E) All 1, 2 and 3

50. Which one of the following is percent Bank Rate ?(A) 4·0 (B) 4·5(C) 5 (D) 3·33(E) None of these

Answers with Hints

P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1426

P.Darpan

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CSAT Mock TestFORTHCOMING CIVIL SERVICES (Pre.) EXAM., 2011

(Continued from the Last Issue) —Dharmendra Mittal

PART-V

General Mental Ability86. John started walking towards

east and walked 10 m beforeturning to his right. Then hewalked 15 m and turned to hisleft and after walking 20 m, heagain turned to his right andwalked 10 m. He again turned tohis right and walked 30 m andfinally he turned to his right andwalked 25 m to reach the point F.At what distance and in whichdirection is he now from thestarting point ?(A) 10 m to the East(B) At the starting point(C) 15 m to the West(D) 20 m to the SouthDirections—(Q. 87-88) Read the

given information and carefullyanswer the following questions.

A started from point P and went2 km east; he turned right andcovered 3 km. At the end of third kmhis bicycle got punctured. He left itwith the mechanic and turned rightand went 1 km. Then he turned leftand went 1 km and finally he turnedright and after walking 1 km reachedhis destination. Now answer thefollowing questions ?87. How far is A's destination from P

(shortest distance in km) ?

(A) √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯32 + 22 (B) √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯42 + 32

(C) √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯42 + 22 (D) 4

88. What is the total distancecovered by A ?(A) 6 km (B) 8 km(C) 7 km (D) 9 km

89. Introducing Shyamlal, Reshmasaid, “He is the only son of mymother's mother”. How isReshma related to the Shyamlal ?(A) Reshma is the daughter ofShyamlal(B) Reshma is the sister ofShyamlal(C) Reshma is the cousin ofShyamlal(D) Reshma is the niece ofShyamlal

90. Nisha told Sheetal, "The girl Imet yesterday night in the partywas the youngest daughter of thebrother-in-law of my friend'smother". How is the girl relatedto Neha's friend ?(A) Daughter (B) Niece(C) Aunt (D) Cousin

91. In a certain code language‘PAINT’ is written as ‘ZBVSK’and ‘COPE’ is written as ' WARJ'.How ‘NOTICE’ is written in thatcode ?(A) SAKVWJ (B) SAUVWJ(C) SRKVWJ (D) SAKVXJ

92. In a code language ‘TIME’ iswritten as ‘JUFN’ and ‘MOTHER’is written as ‘UPNSFI’. How‘BOTH’ is written in thatlanguage ?(A) ANUI (B) PCIU(C) PCGS (D) NAIU

93. Four of the following five aresimilar in relation to their posi-tion in the English alphabet andhence from a group. Which onedoes not belong to the group ?(A) BDHN (B) FHLR(C) QTYC (D) JLPV

94. Four of the following five arealike in a certain way and so forma group. Which is the one thatdoes not belong to that group ?(A) 1995 (B) 1998(C) 1991 (D) 1996

95. Shyama remembers that herhusband's birthday is after 19thbut before December 22. Whereas her mother-in-law remem-bers that the birthday of her onlyson is after 20th but before 24thDecember. If both of them aretrue, which day is Shyama'shusband's birthday ?(A) December 23(B) December 22(C) December 21(D) December 20

96. If the alternate letters in thefollowing alphabet starting from' A ' are changed into small letter

leaving the rest in capitals, whichof the following represents thesecond month after June ?

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O PQ R S T U V W X Y Z

(A) AugusT (B) AUgUsT(C) augusT (D) August

97. WAIT is related to WEIGHT asINDICT is related to—(A) Predict (B) Indite(C) Depict (D) Lick

98. SUCCESS is related to FAILUREas HAPPY is related to—(A) Rejoice(B) Bliss(C) Disappointed(D) Sad

Directions—(Q. 99-100) In thequestion below some numbers aregiven in rows A, B, C and D. In threerows the numbers are related to eachother while the numbers in one rowhold no relation. Identify that row—

99. (A) 0.5, 2, 1, 4(B) 1, 4, 2, 8(C) 0.25, 1, 0.5, 2(D) 2, 4, 6, 8

100. (A) 1, 3, 5, 7(B) 0.5, 1, 2, 1.5(C) 0.25, 0.5, 1, 0.75(D) 1, 2, 4, 3

101. Replace the question work bychoosing the correct response.

8 16 32

16 32 8

32 ? 16

(A) 8 (B) 10(C) 12 (D) 16

102. Pick up the missing numberfrom the answer choice. Theother numbers will give a clue tothe pattern—

(A) 3 (B) 2(C) 4 (D) 6

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103. A one rupee coin is placed on aplain paper. How many coinsof the same size can be placedround it so that each one touchesthe central and adjacent coins ?(A) 4 (B) 3(C) 7 (D) 6

104. ‘Anemia’ is related to ‘Blood’ inthe same way as ‘Anarchy’ isrelated to—(A) Disorder(B) Monarchy(C) Government(D) Lawlessness(E) Democracy

Directions—(105–109) Each ofthe question given below containsthree elements. These elements mayor may not have some intenselinkage. Each group of elements mayfit into one of the diagrams lettered(A), (B), (C), (D) or (E). You have toindicate the diagram in which thegroup of elements fits correctly ?

(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

105. Teachers, Saints, Human beings.106. Sweets, Oranges, Fruits.107. Father, Mother, God.108. Person, Philosopher, Writer.109. Clerks, Educated Persons,

Government servants.110. Nishant remembers that his

brother Rajesh's birthday iscertainly after 11th but before15th October, while his uncleremembers that Rajesh's birthdayis certainly before 17th but after12th October. If both of them arecorrect, on which date of Octoberis the birthday of Rajesh ?(A) 13th (B) 14th (C) 12th(D) Either 13th or 14th

111. Four friends M, N, O and P areplaying cards. M and N are

partners. P faces towards North.If M faces towards West, thenwho faces towards South ?(A) O(B) N(C) P(D) Data inadequate

112. Kanny started walking towardsEast. After moving a distance of1 km, he turned southwords andwalked 5 km. Again, he turnedto East and walked 2 km. Finally,he turned to the North andwalked 9 km. How far is he fromhis starting point ?(A 7 km (B) 5 km(C) 4 km (D) 3 km

113. Introducing a girl, Ramprasadsaid, "Her mother is the onlydaughter of my mother-in-law".How is Ramprasad related to thegirl ?(A) Father(B) Husband(C) Brother(D) Cannot be determined

114. Malti is the mother of Rohan.Sameer is the father of Ajit. Ajit isthe brother of Rohan and Dipu.Which of the following state-ments of not true ?(A) Malti is the mother of Dipu(B) Sameer is the husband ofMalti(C) Sameer has three children(D) Ajit is the daughter of Malti

115. If rain is called water, water iscalled air, air is called cloud,cloud is called sky, sky is calledsea, sea is called road, where dothe airplanes fly ?(A) Air (B) Sky(C) Cloud (D) Sea

116. In a certain code BACTERIA iswritten as AJSFUDBB. How isPROTOZOA written in thatcode ?

(A) APAQUPTP(B) BPAPUPSP(C) APAPUPSP(D) None of these

117. Four of the following five itemsmentioned below are similar insome respect and so form agroup. Which one is not a part ofthe group ?

(A) Sock (B) Gloves(C) Coat (D) Spectacles

118. Four of the following five arealike in a certain way and so forma group. Which is the one thatdoes not belong to the group ?(A) TW (B) DG(C) NR (D) OR

119. How many 7's not immediatelypreceded by 4 but immediatelyfollowed by 2 are there in thefollowing series ?

3 4 7 2 8 7 2 9 4 7 1 3 5 7 2 9 9 7 7 25 1 4 7 2 3

(A) 1 (B) 2(C) 3 (D) 4

120. In a row of boys, Anand iseleventh from the left andDeepak is fifteenth from theright. When Anand and Deepakinterchange their positionsAnand will be fifth from the left.Which of the following will beDeepak's position from the rightafter rearrangement?(A) Seventh(B) Seventeenth(C) Eleventh(D) Ninth

PART-VI

Basic Numeracy andData Interpretation

121. Reena is the thrice as old as Dev.Seema will be twice as old asReena 6 years hence. Six yearsago Dev was 5 years old. What isSeema’s present age?(A) 28 years (B) 42 years(C) 60 years (D) 72 years

122. A discount of 15% offered afterincreasing the price by 15% isequivalent to—(A) A discount of 2.25% onoriginal price(B) No discount(C) A hike of 2.25% on originalprice(D) A discount of 5.75%

123. A sold a cooker to B at a profit of10% who sold it to C at a loss of5% who sold it to D at a profit of20% who sold it to E at a profit of1% who sold it to F at a loss of10%. If F paid Rs.113.98 for it, Ahad purchased it for (Rs.)—

PD/February/2011/1485

(A) 92·65 (B) 100(C) 50 (D) 110

124. If x : y :: 5 : 2, the value of 8x + 9y: 8x + 2y is—(A) 22 : 29 (B) 29 : 22(C) 61 : 26 (D) 26 : 61

125. A, B and C invest Rs. 4,000, Rs.5,000 and Rs. 6,000 respectively,in a business. A gets 25% ofprofits for managing the businessand the rest of the profit isdivided by A, B and C in theproportion to their investment. Ifin a year A gets Rs. 100 less thanB and C together, what was theprofit that year ?(A) Rs. 500 (B) Rs. 750(C) Rs. 1,000 (D) Rs. 1,200

126. Two pipes A and B can fill a tankin 15 hours and 20 hours res-pectively while a third pipe Ccan empty the full tank in 25hours. All the three pipes areopened in the beginning. After10 hours, C is closed. The timetaken to fill the tank is—(A) 35 hours(B) 12 hours

(C) 1312 hours

(D) 18 hours

127. Two pipes P and Q fill a tank in24 and 30 minute respectively.But due to the presence of anexhausting pipes it takes 20minute to fill the tank, when allthe three are working simul-taneously. How long will it takefor the exhausting pipes to emptythe filled tank ?(A) 40 minute(B) 50 minute(C) 30 minute(D) 60 minute

128. A can run a kilometre in 4minute 50 second and B can runin 5 minute. How many metresstart A has to give to B in a kmrace so that they end in a deadheat ?(A) 40 metre

(B) 3313 metre

(C) 25 metre(D) 30 metre

129. The radius of a circular wheel is13

4 m. How many revolutions it

has to make in travelling 11 km ?

(A) 1500 (B) 1200(C) 1000 (D) 1600

130. What is the compound intereston Rs. 5,000 for 4 years if the rateof interest is 10% p.a. for the first2 years and 20% p.a. for the next2 years ?

(A) Rs. 2,320.50

(B) Rs. 3,712

(C) Rs. 3,745

(D) Rs. 5,368

131. What is the number of numbersbetween 400 and 500 if both thenumbers are counted ?(A) 101 (B) 100(C) 99 (D) 102

Directions—(Q. 132 and 133)Refer to the data given below andanswer the questions that follow.

A class of 30 students comprisesof boys who can play Cricket, Hockeyand Football. 3 boys play only Cricket,3 boys play only Hockey and 2 playonly Football. 4 boys could play allthree games, while 11 could play Foot-ball and Cricket, and 10 boys couldplay Football and Hockey.

132. How many boys played Cricketand Hockey but not Football ?(A) 1 (B) 2(C) 3 (D) 5

133. How many boys can play at leasttwo games ?(A) 16 (B) 18(C) 10 (D) 22

134. Two taps can fill a tank in 20minutes and 30 minutes res-pectively. There is an outlet tapat exactly half level of therectangular tank which canpump out 50 litres of water perminutes. If the outlet tap is open,then it takes 24 minutes to fill anempty tank. What is the volumeof tank ?(A) 1200 (B) 1500(C) 1800 (D) 2400

135. A tells B, “if you give me Rs. 400then I shall have 5/4 times asmuch as you have.” B tells A, “ifyou give me Rs.200, then I shallhave three and half times asmuch as you have.” How muchdoes B have ?

(A) Rs. 1200(B) Rs. 900(C) Rs. 800(D) Rs. 1600

136. Two customers borrowed thesame amount of money, one atcompound interest and the otherat simple interest. If after twoyears, the interest payable by onewas Rs. 220 and the other Rs.200, then what was the principlemoney lent to each one of them ?

(A) Rs. 450(B) Rs. 500(C) Rs. 550(D) None of these

137. How many bricks are required tobuild a wall of 15 meters length,12 meters height and 20 cmthickness if the brick is 36 cmlong, 25 cm wide and 10 cmthick ?(A) 2000(B) 4000(C) 12000(D) None of these

138. A certain type of bacteriareproduce itself at the rate of 10every 5 minutes. In how manyminutes will the number doubleitself ?(A) 20 minutes (B) 30 minutes (C) 40 minutes(D) None of these

139. What is the present value (inlakhs Rs.) of an income of Rs. 2lakh in 2 years if the rate ofinterest is 5% ?(A) 1·81(B) 1·67(C) 2·2(D) None of these

140. Two groups of students , whoseaverage ages are 20 years and 30years, combine to form a thirdgroup whose average age is 23years. What is the ratio of thenumber of students in the firstgroup to the number of studentsin the second group ?(A) 5 : 2(B) 2 : 5(C) 7 : 3(D) None of these

PD/February/2011/1486

141. The average weight of 8 men isincreased by 1.5 kg when one ofthe men who weights 65 kg isreplaced by a new man. Theweight of the new man is—(A) 76 kg (B) 76.5 kg(C) 76.7 kg (D) 77 kg

142. The area of rectangle getsreduced by 9 square units if itslength is reduced by 5 units andthe breadth is increased by 3units. If we increase the lengthby 3 units and breath by 2 units,the area is increased by 67 squareunits. Find the length andbreadth of the rectangle—(A) 12; 7 (B) 17; 9(C) 11; 21 (D) None

143. Find the sum of 30 terms of theseries 5 + 11 + 17 + ……

(A) 2760 (B) 2670

(C) 2245 (D) 2345

144. Simplify the 214 of 11

2 ÷ 118 × 22

5 —

(A) 715 (B) 51

5

(C) 718 (D) 51

8

145. The sum of all three digit num-bers which leave a remainder 2when divided by either 7 or 5is—(A) 14179 (B) 14157(C) 15011 (D) 14171

146. If √⎯⎯3

√⎯ 8.√⎯⎯4

4 = 2x then x2 is equal

to—

(A) 1 (B) 0

(C) 12 (D) 21

6

Data InterpretationDirections—(Q. 147–152) Study

graph given below and answer thequestions that follow—

Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

28000002700000260000025000002400000230000022000002100000

2607

000

2623

500

2649

400

2538

000

2382

400 27

5000

0

147. What is the average foreignexchange earning per foreigntourist in India in 2003 ?(A) Rs. 62,000 (B) Rs. 6,30,000(C) Rs. 63,600 (D) Rs. 62,00

148. The average annual percentagegrowth for 1998-2003 of foreigntourist arrivals in India is—(A) 0·5% (B) 0·9%(C) 1·1% (D) 1·25%

149. The highest average forex earn-ing per foreign tourist in Indiawas highest during the years—(A) 2003 (B) 2002(C) 2001 (D) 2000

10000

12000

14000

16000

18000

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

14098

14126

14238

14344

14419

175

00

Forex Earning (Rs. crore)

150. The percentage fall in touristarrivals in 2002 was—

(A) 6·15% (B) 6·55%

(C) 5·45% (D) 5·75%

151. If $ 1 = Rs. 46, how many milliondollars did India earn foreignexchange on account of foreigntourists, in 2001 ?(A) 300 (B) 3100(C) 31,180 (D) 3187

152. In 2002, the foreign exchangeearnings increased marginallybut the number of foreign touristsfell. Which of the following, iftrue, would not explain thisanomaly ?

Directions—(Q. 156 to 160) Study the following table and answer thequestions given below :

Year-wise and Discipline-wise Number of CandidatesSelected in an Industry

YearDiscipline

1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986

ScienceCommerceArtsAgricultureEngineeringOthers

160804010.50.5

201208030101

25128.53.01·00.5

1511102.51.00.5

1415111.00.50.5

1613132·00.50.5

Total 30 45 50 40 42 45

(A) The average spend perforeign tourist increased in 2002(B) The number of rich touristsincreased while the number ofbudget travellers decreased(C) The value of the dollar withregard to the rupee hadincreased(D) None of these

Directions—(Q. 153 to 155) Thefollowing pie chart shows the marksobtained by a student in an exami-nation, who scored 540 marks inall—

Maths

SocialScience

72º Science75º

Hindi60º

English

90º63º

Study the graph and answer thequestions 153-155 given below.

153. The subject in which the studentscored 108 marks is—(A) Science(B) Hindi(C) English(D) Social Science

154. The subject in which the student

scored 1623% is—

(A) Social Science (B) Hindi(C) English(D) Science

155. The marks scored in Hindi andMathematics differ from themarks scored in English, Scienceand Social Science by—(A) 90 (B) 72(C) 85 (D) 61

PD/February/2011/1487

156. The number of selected candi-dates of which discipline isincreasing every year ?(A) Science(B) Engineering(C) Agriculture(D) Arts

157. Approximately what per cent ofcandidates of science disciplinewere selected for the givenperiod ?(A) 38 (B) 42 (C) 42.3 (D) 45

158. If all the class graduates wereeligible to apply, which of thefollowing inferences is probablytrue?(A) Among the applicants thenumber of science disciplinecandidates is the largest(B) If written test was given forselection the test was biasedtowards science discipline(C) The industry requiredscience discipline graduates morein its personnel(D) All of these

159. In which year is the percentage ofAgriculture discipline candidatesthe highest?(A) 1982 (B) 1983(C) 1984 (D) 1985

160. In which year for the first timedid the Arts discipline candi-dates constitute more than 25 percent of selected candidates?(A) 1982 (B) 1983(C) 1984 (D) 1985

PART-VII

English LanguageComprehension SkillsDirections—(Q. 161 to 170) In

Part A each problem consists of anincomplete sentence. In the followingsentence, there are four choices,marked (A), (B), (C), and (D). Youshould find the one choice that bestcompletes the sentence. Mark yourchoice on the answer sheet.

Example : Because the UnitedStates has little tin, ……produced inthe rest of the world.

(A) tin is used(B) it uses tin(C) uses of tin(D) uses tin

The correct answer to theexample is (B).

161. The principle of a rocket motor issimple, …………rockets are verycomplicated machines.

(A) large and powerful

(B) but large, powerful

(C) large although powerful

(D) so large, powerful

162. No other object in the sky ………the Crab Nebula, a shell of gaseswith a complex structure.(A) looks like(B) as is(C) or In(D) except for

163. ………very common to find starsin pairs.(A) It is (B) Being (C) Nor is it(D) That is

164. Some areas of the moon are sofull of craters …………an extre-mely rough surface.(A) that they present(B) presenting(C) which present(D) to present

165. James Cook, ……, also dis-covered the Hawaiian Islands.

(A) by exploring the South Seahe reached Australia

(B) explored the South Sea andreaching Australia.

(C) who explored the South Seaand reached Australia

(D) he explored the South Seabefore reaching Australia

166. ………, but also it filters outharmful sun rays ?

(A) The atmosphere gives us airto breathe

(B) Not only the atmospheregives us air to breathe

(C) The atmosphere which givesus air to breathe

(D) Not only does the atmos-phere give us air to breathe

167. One of the most obvious charac-teristics of the moon is the wayin which it continuouslyChanges ……

(A) it is appearing(B) its appearance(C) are appearing(D) to appear

168. …………perished, allowing theflourishing of mammals.(A) Dinosaurs which(B) Then dinosaurs(C) Among dinosaurs(D) When dinosaurs

169. The sense of smell is extraordi-narily precise and ……senses.

(A) most of all direct the (B) all direct the most of(C) the most direct of all (D) direct most of all the

170. With any vaccine or drug, ………possibility of severe reactions oreven death exists.(A) a (B) there is a (C) so a (D) that a

Directions—(Q. 171 to 185) Ineach of the following sentences, fourwords or phrases have been bold.You should choose the one word orphrase that would not be appropriatein standard written English. Markyour choice on the answer sheet.

Example : The average age atwhich people begin to need eye- (A) (B)glasses vary considerably.

(C) (D)

Is incorrect in standard writtenEnglish.

171. Following the success of the(A)

early satellites, scientists quickly(B)

foresee the likelihood of further (C) (D)space probes.

172. Sugar provides man with quick(A)

energy, but it has neither vita-(B)

mins, minerals, and other body-(C) (D)

building material.

173. Archeological evidence shows(A) (B)

that the Egyptians were organi-zed, civilized, and skill in using

(C) (D)crafts.

PD/February/2011/1488

174. Although tea drinking is a(A)

considerably old custom in the(B)

Far East, this custom first(C)

reached Europe for the first time(D)

in the seventeenth century.

175. A virus, which is too small to be(A) (B)

seen except with a powerful(C)

microscope, is causing measles.(D)

176. The Mediterranean, a large seasurrounded by land, is a mile

(A)deep and more than 2,000 miles (B) (C)length.

(D)

177. The findings of Gregor Mendelwere published in 1866, but

(A)little attention was paid to it for (B) (C) (D)half a century.

178. People of the Middle Ages werewilling to pay a high price for

(A) (B)spices because disguised, the

(C)bad taste of spoiled food.

(D)

179. When a spider catches an insect,(A)

it releases some poison into an(B) (C)

insect with its fangs. (D)

180. Storm clouds of modest size(A)

produces a few flashes a minute(B) (C)

and a power of a few hundred(D)

mega watts.

181. The stars can be classified by(A)

their various characteristics, such(B)

as size, temperature, colour, and(C)

bright. (D)

182. Even in ancient times, its impor-(A) (B)

tance of the sun was recognized(C)

in sustaining life on earth.(D)

183. William Pitt urged that the(A)

English colonists were given the(B)

same rights to which other(C)

English subjects were entitled.(D)

184. Dermatologists warning that(A)

tanning salons are often run by (B) (C)operators who lack knowledge

(D)of the dangers of radiation.

185. Sir Winston Churchill, as the(A)

British Prime Minister, leads his(B)

country to victory despite near(C) (D)

defeat.

Directions—(Q. 186 to 195) Eachproblem in Part A consists of asentence in which one word or phrasehas been bold. From the four choicesgiven, you should choose the oneword or phrase which could be sub-stituted for the bold word or phrasewithout changing the meaning of thesentence. Mark your choice on theanswer sheet.

Example : The frown on theman's face showed that he was dis-pleased.

(A) look of fear(B) look of anger(C) look of delight (D) look of surpriseThe best answer is (B)

186. The two companies are going tomerge by the first of the year.(A) become one(B) divide into two(C) dissolve(D) change owners

187. The old woman is too feeble tocross the street without, hernephew's help.

(A) tired (B) weak(C) timid (D) blind

188. In America, there is no alterna-tive; the President must approvethe bill if Congress passes it.(A) chance of agreement(B) doubt(C) other choice(D) mistake

189. It is futile to argue with himonce he has made up his mind.(A) unpleasant(B) encouraging(C) helpful(D) useless

190. He hurled the statue to the floorwith such force that it shattered.(A) dropped (B) pulled(C) pushed (D) threw

191. He is the most intrepid explorerin the present century.(A) successful(B) fearless(C) reliable(D) fearsome

192. It is not easy to remain tranquilwhen events suddenly changeyour life.(A) superior (B) serious(C) severe (D) serene

193. One symptom of the disease is ahigh fever.(A) symbol (B) sign(C) cause (D) pain

194. He was greatly vexed by the newand unexpected development.(A) astonished (B) annoyed(C) enlightened (D) contented

195. The clerk had been insolent tohis superior once too often; nowhe is without a job.(A) affectionate (B) rude(C) dishonest(D) sly

Directions—(Q. 196 to 200) Thesentences given in each question,when properly sequenced, form acoherent paragraph. Each sentence islabeled with a letter. Choose the mostlogical order of sentences fromamong the given choices to constructa coherent paragraph.

PD/February/2011/1489

196. 1. Branded disposable diapersare available at many super-markets and drug stores.

2. If one supermarket sets ahigher price for a diaper,customers may buy thatbrand elsewhere.

3. By contrast, the demand forprivate-label products maybe less price sensitive since itis available only at a corres-ponding supermarket chain.

4. So, the demand for brandeddiapers at any particularstore may be quite pricesensitive.

5. For instance, only SavonDrugs stores sell SavonDrugs diapers.

6. Then, stores should set ahigher incremental marginpercentage for private-labeldiapers.

(A) 123456 (B) 123546(C) 142356 (D) 154236

197. 1. Having a strategy is a matterof discipline.

2. It involves the configurationof a tailored value chain thatenables a company to offerunique value.

3. It requires a strong focus onprofitability and a willing-ness to make tough tradeoffsin choosing what Not to do.

4. Strategy goes far beyond thepursuit of best practices.

5. A company must stay thecourse even during times ofupheaval, while constantlyimproving and Extending itsdistinctive positioning.

6. When a company's activitiesfit together as a self-rein-forcing system, any competi-tor wishing to imitate astrategy must replicate thewhole system.

(A) 135426 (B) 132456

(C) 432561 (D) 123546

198. 1. As officials, their vision of acountry shouldn't run toofar beyond that of the localpeople with whom they haveto deal.

2. Ambassadors have to choosetheir words.

3. To say what they feel theyhave to say, they appear tobe denying or ignoring partof what they know.

4. So, with ambassadors aswith other expatriates inblack Africa, there appearsat a first meeting a kind ofambivalence.

5. They do a specialized joband it is necessary for themto live ceremonial lives.

(A) 23541 (B) 25413

(C) 25143 (D) 23451

199. 1. "This face off will continuefor several months given thestrong convictions on eitherside," says a senior func-tionary of the high-poweredtask force on drought.

2. During the past week-and-half, the Central Govern-ment has sought to denysome of the earlier appre-hensions over the impact ofdrought.

3. The recent revival of therains had led to the emer-gence of a line of dividebetween the two.

4. The state governments, onthe other hand, allege thatthe Centre is downplayingthe crisis only to evade itsfull responsibility of finan-cial assistance that isrequired to alleviate thedamage.

5. Shrill alarm about the eco-nomic impact of an inade-quate monsoon had beensounded by the Centre aswell as most of the states, inlate July and early August.

(A) 52341 (B) 42135(C) 24315 (D) 53241

200. 1. This fact was established inthe 1730s by French surveyexpeditions to Equador nearthe Equator and Lapland inthe Arctic, which found thataround the middle of theearth the arc was about akilometer shorter.

2. One of the unsettledscientific questions in thelate 18th century was theexact nature of the shape ofthe earth.

3. The length of one-degree arcwould be less near theequatorial latitudes than atthe poles.

4. One way of doing that is todetermine the length of thearc along a chosen longitudeor meridian at one degreelatitude separation.

5. While it was generallyknown that the earth wasnot a sphere but an 'oblatespheroid', more curved atthe equator and flatter at thepoles, the question of 'howmuch more' was yet to beestablished.

(A) 25314 (B) 25431

(C) 54132 (D) 52431

Answers with Explanations

PD/February/2011/1495

Logical Ability

HOTEL MANAGEMENT, AURANGABAD EXAM., 2010

(Held on 7-3-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

Directions—(Q. 1–5) In eachquestion given below, there is a state-ment followed by two assumptionsnumbered I and II . An assumption issomething supposed or taken forgranted. You have to consider thestatement and the following assump-tions and decide which of the assump-tions is implicit in the statement. Giveanswers—

(A) If only assumption I isimplicit.

(B) If only assumption II isimplicit.

(C) If neither I nor II is implicit.(D) If both I and II are implicit.

1. Statement : The cotton cropcontinues to be poor even afterthe introduction of improvedvariety of cotton seeds.

Assumptions :

I. The yield of cotton wasexpected to increase afterintroduction of improvedvariety of seeds.

II. The yield of cotton wasadequate before the introduc-tion of new variety of seeds.

2. Statement : No budgetary provi-sion for the purpose of appoint-ing additional faculty would bemade in the context of institute’schanged financial priorities.

Assumptions :

I. Appointment of facultyrequires funds.

II. There are areas other thanappointment of faculty whichrequire more financialattention.

3. Statement : The office buildingneeds repairing just as urgentlyas it needs internal as well asexternal painting.Assumptions :I. Efficiency of people working

in the office cannot be

improved unless office build-ing is repaired.

II. Repairing and painting ofoffice building require funds.

4. Statement : An opportunity tocarry out reforms in elections tothe Parliament and State Legis-latures has been lost when werejected most of the recommen-dations of Goswami Committeefor partisan reasons.

Assumptions :

I. Goswami Committee madecertain good recommenda-tions to improve the existingelection system.

II. Most of the decisions in ourcountry are taken withpartisan considerations.

5. Statement : Shri Roy, retired IASofficial has taken over as the newDirector of the All India NuclearResearch Institute. It is nowexpected that the administrationof the institute will improve.

Assumptions :

I. The Institute had no Directorbefore Shri Roy.

II. Director is supposed to lookafter the administration of theInstitute.

Directions—(Q. 6–10) At anElectronic Data Processing Unit, fiveout of the eight program sets P, Q, R,S, T, U, V and W are to be operateddaily. On any one day, except for thefirst day of a month, only three of theprogram sets must be the ones thatwere operated on the previous day.The program operating must alsosatisfy the following conditions—

(i) If program ‘P’ is to be operatedon a day. ‘V’ cannot be operatedon that day.

(ii) If ‘Q’ is to be operated on a day,‘T’ must be one of the programsto be operated after ‘Q’.

(iii) If ‘R’ is to be operated on day,‘V’ must be one of the programsto be operated after ‘R’.

(iv) The last program to be operatedon any day must be either ‘S’ or‘U’.

6. Which of the following is true ofany day’s valid program setoperation ?(A) ‘P’ cannot be operated atthird place(B) ‘Q’ cannot be operated atthird place(C) ‘R’ cannot be operated atfourth place(D) ‘U’ cannot be operated atfourth place

7. If the program sets ‘R’ and ‘W’are to be operated on the firstday, which of the followingcould be the other programs onthat day ?(A) Q, T, V (B) T, S, V(C) Q, S, V (D) T, S, U

8. If the program sets operated on aday is P, Q, W, T, U, each of thefollowing could be the next day’sprogram set except—(A) Q, R, V, T, U(B) Q, T, V, W, S(C) W, R, V, T, U(D) W, T, S, P, U

9. Which of the following could bethe set of programs to beoperated on the first day of amonth ?(A) P, R, V, S, U(B) Q, S, R, V, U(C) T, U, R, V, S(D) U, Q, S, T, W

10. If ‘R’ is operated at third placein a sequence, which of thefollowing cannot be the secondprogram in that sequence ?(A) Q (B) S(C) T (D) U

PD/February/2011/1496

Directions—(Q. 11–15) In eachquestion below are given threestatements followed by four con-clusions numbered I, II, III and IV.You have to take the three givenstatements to be true even if theyseem to be at variance from com-monly known facts. Read all theconclusions and then decide whichof the given conclusions logicallyfollows from the three given state-ments, disregarding commonlyknown facts.

11. Statements :Some apples are watermelons.All watermelons are fresh.Some potatoes are fresh.Conclusions :I. Some apples are fresh.II. Some potatoes are apples.III. Some watermelons are

potatoesIV. Some watermelons are

apples.(A) Only I(B) Only I and II(C) Only I and IV(D) Either II or III and I

12. Statements :All pens are pencils.Some pens are erasers.Some erasers are clips.Conclusions :I. Some clips are pens.II. No clip is a pen.III. Some erasers are pencils.IV. No eraser is a pencil.(A) Only I and II(B) III and either I or II(C) IV and either I or II(D) Only III

13. Statements :Some books are papers.Some papers are plastic.No plastic is black.Conclusions :I. Some papers are not black.II. All papers are not black.III. Some papers are black.IV. Some books are black.(A) Only I(B) Only I and IV(C) I, III and IV(D) Either II or III

14. Statements :Some doors are windows.All windows are black.Some black are brown.Conclusions :I. Some windows are brown.II. All doors are black.III. Some doors are black.IV. No window is brown.(A) Only III(B) Either I or IV, and III(C) Only II(D) Only IV

15. Statements :All teachers are doctors.All doctors are engineers.All engineers are typists.Conclusions :I. Some typists are teachers.II. All doctors are typists.III. Some engineers are teachers.IV. All doctors are teachers.(A) Only I and II(B) Only I and III(C) Either II or IV(D) Only I, II and III

Directions—(Q. 16–20) In eachquestion below is given a statementfollowed by two courses of actionnumbered I and II. A course of actionis a step or administrative decision tobe taken for improvement, follow-upor further action in regard to theproblems, policy, etc. on the basis ofthe information given in the state-ment. You have to assume everythingin the statement to be true, thendecide which of the given suggestedcourses of action logically follows forpursuing. Give answers—

(A) If only I follows.(B) If only II follows.(C) If neither I nor II follows.(D) If both I and II follow.

16. Statement : Air export volumeshave increased substantially overthe past decade causing backlogs and difficulties for air cargoagents because of increaseddemand for space and service.Course of Action :I. Airlines and air cargo agents

should jointly workout asolution to combat theproblem.

II. The reasons for the increasein the volume of air exportshould be found out.

17. Statement : The world confer-ence on “Education of All” tookplace in Thailand in 1990. Widelyattend conference endorsed theFramework for Action for Meet-ing the Basic Learning Needs ofall Children.Course of Action :I. India should suitably imple-

ment the Action points of thisconference.

II. India should also imme-diately organise this type ofconference.

18. Statement : About 30 to 40% ofchildren who are enrolled, do notattend school on any given day.Course of Action :I. More schools should be

started.II. Reasons for their absenteeism

should be found out.

19. Statement : Although the Indianeconomy is still heavily depen-dent on agriculture, its share inglobal agricultural trade is lessthan the share of agriculturalexports to total exports.Course of Action :I. Efforts should be made to

increase our agriculturalproduction.

II. The exports of non-agricul-tural commodities should bereduced.

20. Statement : Huge amount ofresources are required to developtourist places in a country likeIndia which is endowed withvast coastal lines, rivers, forests,temples, etc.Course of Action :I. More tourist-resorts along the

coastal line only should bestarted.

II. The tourist-potential of Indiashould be exploited.

Directions—(Q. 21–25) Each ofthe questions below consists of aquestion and two statements markedP and Q given below it. You have todecide whether the data provided inthe statements are sufficient toanswer the question. Read both thestatements and give answers —

PD/February/2011/1497

(A) If the data in statement Palone are sufficient to answerthe question, while the datain statement Q alone are notsufficient to answer thequestion.

(B) If the data in statement Qalone are sufficient to answerthe question, while the datain statement P alone are notsufficient to answer thequestion.

(C) If the data even in both thestatements P and Q togetherare not sufficient to answerthe question.

(D) If the data in both state-ments P and Q together areneeded to answer the ques-tion.

21. How many daughters does ‘L’,have ?P. R’s father has three daugh-

ters.Q. ‘T’ is R’s sister and daughter

of L.

22. Who is the brother of C ?P. D is the daughter of M.Q. M is the father of C.

23. A library contains only English,Hindi and Telugu novels. Howmany Telugu novels are there inthe library ?P. Of the one thousand novels

in the library, fifty per centnovels are in English andHindi.

Q. The number of Hindi novelsis double the number ofEnglish novels.

24. “You must renew your drivinglicence within ten days from thedate of expiry”. What is the exactdate before which the licencemust be renewed ?P. The statement was uttered on

17th February.Q. It was a leap year.

25. The area of a playground is 484sq metres. What is its perimeter ?P. It costs Rs. 912 to put a fence

around the playground.Q. The playground is a perfect

square.

26. Three of the following four arealike in a certain way and soform a group. Which one of the

following does not belong to thegroup ?(A) Ear (B) Lung(C) Heart (D) Kidney

27. Raman starts walking towardsWest. After walking 10 metres heturns towards North. After walk-ing 20 metres he turns towardsEast and walk 10 metres. Howfar is he from his originalposition and in which direction ?

(A) 20 metre, North(B) 10 metre, North(C) 10 metre, South(D) 20 metre, South

28. Anxiety causes ulcer. However,some who are happy-go-luckytype also suffer from ulcer.Which of the following wouldstrengthen the association ofanxiety and ulcer ?

(A) Peptic ulcer is caused byeither excessive anxiety or spicyfood(B) Anxiety is more harmfulthan ulcer(C) About 90% of the womensuffer from ulcer(D) About 65% of the ulcerpatients were found to be highon anxiety

29. Role conflict and ambiguity arethe most widely examined sourcevariable in managerial stressresearch. Research in this areais extremely homogeneous, asanywhere from 50% to 85% ofthis literature employs scalesdeveloped by APA.

Based on the above information,which of the following can beconcluded ?

(A) 50% to 85% of the studies onstress are related to role conflictand ambiguity(B) In this area only one scaledeveloped by APA is available(C) Role conflict is the onlycause of stress

(D) There is dearth of researchin the field of managerial stress

30. ‘A’ is taller than ‘B’, ‘C’ is tallerthan ‘D’. ‘D’ is taller than ‘E’. Todetermine who among them isthe tallest, which of the followingfurther information, if any, isrequired ?

(A) ‘A’ is taller than ‘E’ and ‘D’(B) ‘C’ is taller than ‘B’(C) ‘A’ is taller than ‘D’(D) ‘E’ is taller than ‘A’

Directions—(Q. 31–35) In each ofthese questions, a situation has beenexplained through statements 1 and 2followed by probable reasons RI andRII. Your task is to find out which isthe reason for the situation. Markyour answer—

(A) Only RI is right.(B) Only RII is right.(C) Either RI could be right or

RII.(D) Neither RI nor RII is right.

31. Statements :1. According to an authentic

report, several militantswere hiding in area X.

2. In spite of a through search,they could not be found.

RI. The locals were providingthem with a cover.

RII. When they came to knowabout the search, theymoved onto another area.

32. Statements :1. Many officers were trans-

ferred at a very short noticeby the Chief Secretary.

2. Only those officers, whokept the Chief Secretary ingood humour were nottransferred.

RI. The Chief Secretary is a jollyperson.

RII. The transfers were based onpersonal feelings of theChief Secretary.

33. Statements :1. Party ‘X’ lost elections in a

certain area.2. Lack of enthusiasm in the

party workers was verynoticeable.

RI. The party workers play amajor role during electioncampaign.

RII. Had the workers been thedevoted type, the party wassure to win the elections.

34. Statements :1. Only those buildings fell

down during heavy rainswhich had faulty designs orinferior material.

PD/February/2011/1498

2. The heavy rains wiped awhole colony.

RI. The houses in the colonyhad faulty designs.

RII. An inferior kind of buildingmaterial was used duringconstruction.

35. Statements :1. If a person dies while he is

in police custody, the police-man are summoned by theCourt.

2. If atrocities are proved, theyare punished by law.

RI. Law is very considerate forthe criminals.

RII. No person can die a naturaldeath while he is in policecustody.

Directions—(Q. 36–40) Eachquestion contains six statementsfollowed by four sets of combinationsof three. Choose the set in which thestatements are logically related.36. (a) No wealthy persons are

vagrants.(b) All lawyers are wealthy

persons.(c) Some lawyers are vagrants.(d) Some wealthy persons are

not vagrants.(e) No lawyers are vagrants.(f) All lawyers are vagrants.

(A) abc (B) bed(C) abf (D) abe

37. (a) All voters are residents.(b) Some voters are citizens.(c) All citizens are residents.(d) No citizen is a resident.(e) All voters are citizens.(f) Some residents are voters.(A) cea (B) acb(C) cef (D) aed

38. (a) Some preachers are personsof unfailing vigor.

(b) Some intellectuals are per-sons of unfailing vigor.

(c) No preacher is an intellec-tual.

(d) Some persons of unfailingvigor are not preachers.

(e) All preachers are persons ofunfailing vigor.

(f) Some intellectuals are notpreachers.

(A) cba (B) cbd(C) abd (D) cbe

39. (a) All students are the peoplewho saw the game.

(b) All persons who saw thegame are persons who wereat dance.

(c) Some students were personswho were at the dance.

(d) Some persons who saw thegame are students.

(e) Some students are not thepersons who saw the game.

(f) No one who was at the dancesaw the game.

(A) bdc (B) abc(C) acf (D) cda

40. (a) Some intellectuals are shyand retiring people.

(b) Some shy and retiring peopleare successful politicians.

(c) No intellectuals are success-ful politicians.

(d) All shy and retiring peopleare intellectuals.

(e) Some successful politiciansare intellectuals.

(f) No shy and retiring peopleare successful politicians.

(A) cfa (B) cdf(C) fae (D) cbd

Answers with Hints

PD/February/2011/1499

P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1409

largest economic power in the worldamong states (and the fourth largestamong political entities) by themiddle of this century. Interestingly,the National Intelligence Council—using a composite measure thatintegrates gross domestic product,defense spending, population, a ndtechnology growth for individualstates—has concluded that India willhold the fourth largest concentrationof power in the international systemmuch earlier by 2026.

These assessments are certainlyplausible. Despite the current globaleconomic crisis, India has chalked upgrowth rates of about 8 per cent andmost estimates suggest that, based oncurrent trends, it will grow at ratesof 9 per cent or higher for at leastanother two to three decades. In largemeasure, this is because India’seconomic model, which is driven bydomestic demand rather than trade,is likely to be more sustainable overthe long term than China’s currentapproach, which centers on invest-ment-driven, export-centered growth.As the Economist recently concluded,“despite the headline, India is doingrather well… It has a long way to gobefore it is as rich as China—theChinese economy is four times big-ger—but its growth rate could over-take China’s by 2013, if not before.

Some economists think India willgrow faster than any other largecountry over the next 25 years. Rapidgrowth in a country of 1.2 billionpeople is exciting, to put it mildly.”

Although various internationalassessments differ on when exactlyIndia becomes the fourth or third-largest global economy—because ofthe varying assumptions used in theanalyses—they all reach the conclu-sion that India will become aninternational power of consequencebefore 2050. In other words, Indiawill certainly shift from being a third-world country to plausibly becomingthe world’s third-largest economywell within the lifetimes of thosealready born in the United States. Inaddition to these economic synergiesstrong bilateral ties between them areproviding/ought to provide diplo-matic and strategic strength to twobiggest democracies in the newemerging multi-polar World order.This potential dimension should givemore hope and tonic to bilateralismthan speculated hype as antipodalpolitical analysts do prophase. Afterall, building a global partnership withIndia is ultimately in the strategicinterests of the United States. ForIndia, the nurturing of the relation-ship with the US has been the mostimportant foreign policy priorities inthe recent years. P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1479

Answers with Hint

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1500

Reasoning

SYNDICATE BANK PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM., 2010

(Held on 29-8-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. Which of the following expres-sions is correct if the expression‘Z > Y ≥ W < V’ is definitelycorrect ?(A) V > Y (B) W < Z(C) Z > V (D) Y ≥ V(E) None of these

2. Which of the following figuresrepresents the relation between‘Sparrows’, ‘Birds’ and ‘Crows’ ?

(A) (B)

(C) (D)

(E)

3. A ‘Tumbler’ is related to ‘Empty’in the same way as a ‘Seat’ isrelated to ‘………’.(A) Occupied (B) Person(C) Chair (D) Sitting(E) Vacant

4. Four of the following five arealike in a certain way and henceform a group. Which one doesnot belong to the group ?(A) Long (B) Tall(C) High (D) Short(E) Dim

5. ‘Army’ is related to ‘Land’ in thesame way as ‘Navy’ is relatedto ‘………’.(A) Ships (B) Battle(C) Water (D) Admiral(E) Defence

6. How many such pairs of lettersare there in the word RETURNS,each of which has as many lettersbetween them in the word (inboth forward and backwarddirections) as they have betweenthem in the English alphabeticalseries ?(A) None (B) One(C) Two (D) Three(E) More than three

7. If each alphabet in the wordFRACTION is arranged in alpha-betical order (from left to right),

and then each vowel is changedto next letter in the Englishalphabetical series and each con-sonant is changed to previousletter in English alphabeticalseries, which of the followingwill be fourth from the right sideof the new arrangement thusformed ?(A) M (B) J(C) P (D) E(E) Q

8. Town D is 13 km towards theEast of town A. A bus starts fromtown A, travels 8 km towardsWest and takes a right turn. Aftertaking the right turn, it travels 5km and reaches town B. Fromtown B the bus takes a right turnagain, travels 21 km and stops.How far and towards whichdirection must the bus travel toreach town D ?(A) 13 km towards South(B) 5 km towards West(C) 21 km towards South(D) 5 km towards South(E) None of these

9. What will come in place of ques-tion-mark (?) in the followingseries ?

HK JM ? NQ PS(A) NL (B) LO(C) KN (D) KO(E) None of these

10. A disease would always neces-sarily have—(A) Medicine (B) Bacteria(C) Cause (D) Cure(E) Fever

Directions—(Q. 11–17) Study thefollowing information carefully andanswer the given questions—

Seven friends A, B, C, D, E, F andG studied in colleges X, Y and Z andare currently in different professionsnamely, Medicines, Fashion design-ing, Engineering, Business, Acting,Teaching and Architecture (not

necessarily in the same order). Atleast two and not more than threefriends had studied in the samecollege.

C is an architect and studied incollege Y. E is not a businessman.Only G amongst the seven friendsstudied in college X along with E. F isan engineer and did not study incollege Y. B is an actor and did notstudy in the same college as F. A didnot study in college Z. Those whostudied in college X are neitherFashion Designers nor teachers. Noneof those who studied in college Y is ateacher.

11. Which of the following groupsrepresents the students of collegeY ?(A) C, E, G (B) A, C, D(C) A, B, C (D) D, B, C(E) None of these

12. Who amongst the following is inthe profession of Medicines ?(A) E (B) G(C) A (D) D(E) None of these

13. Who amongst the following is ateacher ?(A) A (B) D(C) E (D) G(E) None of these

14. What is the profession of A ?(A) Teaching(B) Medicines(C) Business(D) Fashion Designing(E) None of these

15. Which of the following combina-tion of person, college and pro-fession is definitely correct ?(A) E – X – Fashion Designing(B) F – X – Engineering(C) A – Y – Businessman(D) D – Z – Teaching(E) None of these

PD/February/2011/1501

16. Who amongst the following havestudied in college Z ?(A) B, A (B) C, F(C) B, D, F (D) A, D(E) D, F

17. What is the profession of F ?(A) Engineering (B) Business(C) Medicines (D) Acting(E) None of these

Directions—(Q. 18–22) In eachquestion below are three statementsfollowed by two conclusions num-bered I and II. You have to take thethree given statements to be true evenif they seem to be at variance fromcommonly known facts and thendecide which of the given conclusionslogically follows from the three state-ments disregarding commonly knownfacts. Give answers—

(A) If only conclusion I follows(B) If only conclusion II follows(C) If either conclusion I or con-

clusion II follows(D) If neither conclusion I nor

conclusion II follows(E) If both conclusion I and con-

clusion II follow

18. Statements :All districts are cities.All states are cities.Some cities are countries.Conclusions :I. Some states are districts.II. Some countries are states.

19. Statements :All keys are locks.No lock is a door.All doors are windows.Conclusions :I. No key is a door.II. Some windows are locks.

20. Statements :All books are pages.All libraries are books.All words are pages.Conclusions :I. All words are books.II. All libraries are pages.

21. Statements :Some clouds are ashes.Some ashes are particles.All particles are elements.Conclusions :I. No particle is a cloud.II. Some elements are ashes.

22. Statements :All ships are aeroplanes.All trucks are ships.All cars are trucks.Conclusions :I. Some ships are not cars.II. All cars are aeroplanes.

Directions—(Q. 23–30) Study thefollowing information carefully andanswer the given questions—

Eight friends Q, R, S, T, V, W, Yand Z are sitting around a circulartable, facing the centre. There arethree males and five females in thegroup of friends. No two males areimmediate neighbours of each other.● V sits second to the right of his

wife.● S sits third to the right of V.● W sits second to the right of her

husband Z. Z is not an immediateneighbour of V’s wife.

● T is a male and Y is not animmediate neighbour of V.

● R sits second to the right of Q.

23. Who amongst the following sitsexactly between V and Y ?(A) Q (B) W(C) R (D) T(E) Z

24. Which of the following is nottrue regarding T ?(A) T is an immediate neigh-bour of Z’s wife(B) No male is an immediateneighbour of T(C) Q sits second to right of T(D) The one who sits third to theleft of T is a male(E) All are true

25. Which of the following state-ments regarding S is definitelycorrect ?(A) S is one of the male mem-bers of the group(B) Both the immediate neigh-bours of S are females(C) S sits third to the left of T(D) W i s a n immediate neigh-bour of S(E) S sits second to the right ofQ

26. Which of the following pairsrepresents the immediate neigh-bours of T ?(A) RQ (B) WZ(C) YV (D) WY(E) None of these

27. What is the position of T withrespect to Z ?(A) Second to the left(B) Immediately to the right(C) Third to the left(D) Second to the right(E) Third to the right

28. Who amongst the following isV’s wife ?

(A) Q (B) Y

(C) R (D) T

(E) None of these

29. Who amongst the following hasa male sitting to the immediateleft and the right ?

(A) Y (B) R

(C) Q (D) S

(E) None of these

30. How many people sit between Vand S when counted in anti-clock-wise direction ?

(A) None (B) One

(C) Two (D) Three

(E) Four

Directions—(Q. 31–35) In eachquestion below is given a statementfollowed by two assumptions num-bered I and II. An assumption issomething supposed or taken forgranted. You have to consider thestatement and the following assump-tions and decide which of theassumptions is implicit in the state-ment. Give answer—

(A) If only Assumption I isimplicit.

(B) If only Assumption II isimplicit.

(C) If either Assumption I orAssumption II is implicit.

(D) If neither Assumption I norAssumption II is implicit.

(E) If both Assumptions I and IIare implicit.

31. Statement : Give adequate jobrelated training to the employeesbefore assigning them full fled-ged work.Assumptions :

I. Training helps in boosting theperformance of employees.

II. Employees have no skill setsbefore training is provided tothem.

PD/February/2011/1502

32. Statement : Take a ferry or a boatinstead of a bus to reach theKravi islands faster.Assumptions :I. The islands being in remote

location are not easily acces-sible.

II. Ferries and boats are avail-able to travel to Kravi islands.

33. Statement : The government hasdecided to run all commercialvehicles on bio-fuels in order tosave the depleting fossil fuelreserves.I. It is possible to switch over

from fossil fuel to bio fuelsfor vehicles.

II. Sufficient amount of bio-fuelcan be produced in the coun-try to run all commercialvehicles.

34. Statement : To save the environ-ment enforce total ban on illegalmining throughout the country.Assumptions :I. Mining which is done legally

does not cause any harm tothe environment.

II. Mining is one of the factorsresponsible for environmen-tal degradation.

35. Statement : Banks should alwayscheck financial status beforelending money to a client.I. Checking before lending

would give a true picture ofthe client’s financial status.

II. Clients sometimes may notpresent the correct picture oftheir ability to repay loanamount to the bank.

Directions—(Q. 36–40) In eachquestion below a statement is givenfollowed by two courses of actionnumbered I and II. A course of actionis a practicable and feasible step oradministrative decision to be takenfor follow-up, improvement, or furt-her action in regard to the problem,policy, etc. On the basis of the infor-mation given in the statement, youhave to assume every thing in thestatement to be true, and decidewhich of the suggested courses ofaction logically follow(s) for pursu-ing. Give answers—

(A) If only I follows(B) If only II follows(C) If either I or II follows(D) If neither I nor II follows(E) If both I and II follow

36. Statement : An increasing num-ber of farmers prefer to availloans from local moneylendersinstead of the banks owing tocomplicated paperwork involvedin banks.Courses of action :I. Local moneylenders who

charge interest rates lowerthan the banks should bepunished.

II. Banks should simplify theprocedure to avail loans soas to suit the farmers.

37. Statement : Indigenous tribesliving near Amazon forests arecutting down trees to cover theirbasic needs, thus severely affect-ing the ecological balance in thearea.Courses of action :

I. All the tribes living near theAmazon rainforests shouldbe forced to shift to urbanareas of the country.

II. The tribes should be allowedto continue doing so as theycut down trees for their basicneeds and not for commercialpurposes.

38. Statement : A major river in thecity was reduced to a pollutedand dirty canal after tonnes ofsewage made way into it overthe years.

Directions—(Q. 41–50) In each of the questions given below which one ofthe following five answer figures on the right should come after the problemfigures on the left, if the sequence were continued ?

Problem Figures Answer Figures

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

41.Z O

E V

E V

P T

P T

D S

D S

A Z

A Z

B

B B

A

B

Z ZA B

B R O W N D N R O W W S D R O O W P S R R O W V P L R O W C P R O W V V R O W C C R O W V V R O W P

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

42.

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

43.

A A

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

44.

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

45.

Courses of action :I. All those who dumped gar-

bage and sewage into theriver should be penalized.

II. The government shouldmodify the sewage systemand find an alternate way todump city’s waste.

39. Statement : Water table in mostparts of the State has gone downto such a level that its extractionfor irrigation purposes is noteconomical any more.Courses of action :I. Extraction of ground water

for any purpose in the Stateshould be banned for sometime in order to replenish thewater table.

II. The Government shouldmake provisions for alter-native methods of irrigationso that the farmers are notcompelled to use groundwater.

40. Statement : A university libra-rian reported increased cases oftheft of books from the library.Courses of action :I. Stricter security arrangements

should be put in place inorder to prevent such inci-dents.

II. All the students in the univer-sity should be made to pay ahefty fine in order to replacethe lost books.

PD/February/2011/1503

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

46.

3

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

47.

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

48.

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

49.

(A) (B) (C) (D) (E)

50.

Answers with Hints

PD/February/2011/1504

P.Darpan

Test Your Knowledge

Answers with Hints

P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1427

22. Retail Investors can now applyfor higher amounts in IPOs asper latest directives of SEBI.What is the new limit ?(A) 1 lakh (B) 1·5 lakh(C) 2 lakh (D) 3 lakh

23. As of September-end 2010,India’s tele-density reached—(A) 60·99 (B) 59·63(C) 58·05 (D) 57·86

24. Which department of thegovernment has completed its150 years in 2010 ?(A) Income Tax(B) Customs Excise Duty(C) Post and Telegraph(D) Television and Broadcasting

25. The regulator of Micro Finance inIndia is—(A) Finance Ministry(B) Reserve Bank of India(C) State Bank of India(D) None of these

Answers

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1505

Quantitative Aptitude

BANK OF INDIA PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM., 2010

(Held on 31-10-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

Directions—(Q. 1–5) What willcome in place of the question-mark(?) in the following questions ?

1. 1217 of 25% of 1020 = 120 + ?

(A) 60 (B) 40(C) 80 (D) 120(E) None of these

2. 4321 – 9241 + 5642 + 3220= ? + 1203

(A) 2649 (B) 2769(C) 2639 (D) 2749(E) None of these

3. 52 × 26 ÷ 169 – 32 = ? – 42

(A) 65 (B) 57(C) 55 (D) 67(E) None of these

4. √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯54 × 5 + 150 + 21 = (?)2

(A) 21 (B) √⎯⎯21

(C) 4412 (D) 441

(E) – 441

5. 72 × 492 = 7? × 343(A) 4 (B) 3(C) 6 (D) 2(E) None of these

Directions—(Q. 6–10) What ap-proximate value will come in place ofthe question-mark (?) in the followingquestions ? (You are not expected tocalculate the exact value.)

6. 465·84 + 764·86 – 211·99 = ?(A) 1100 (B) 1080(C) 1000 (D) 1020(E) 1060

7. 149·9% of 149·9 + 149·9 = ?(A) 375 (B) 400(C) 350 (D) 425(E) 450

8. 3001 × 749 ÷ 1001 – 1399 = ?(A) 650 (B) 700(C) 950 (D) 850(E) 1000

9. √⎯⎯⎯⎯2642 – √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯1156 + √⎯⎯⎯459 = ?(A) 50 (B) 90(C) 40 (D) 20(E) 30

10. 90129 × 91

301 ÷ 51599 = ?

(A) 140 (B) 120(C) 60 (D) 80(E) 110

Directions—(Q. 11–15) What willcome in the place of the questionmark (?) in the following numberseries ?

11. 11, 15, 31, 67, 131, (?)(A) 233 (B) 221(C) 243 (D) 231(E) None of these

12. 483, 471, 435, 375, 291, (?)(A) 183 (B) 184(C) 185 (D) 186(E) None of these

13. 5, 7, 13, 25, 45, (?)(A) 67 (B) 75(C) 65 (D) 55(E) None of these

14. 4, 11, 25, 53, 109, (?)(A) 221 (B) 234(C) 212 (D) 222(E) None of these

15. 15, 21, 33, 51, 75, (?)(A) 113 (B) 103(C) 105 (D) 115(E) None of these

Directions—(Q. 16–20) In the fol-lowing questions two equations num-bered I and II are given. You have tosolve both the equations and giveanswer, If :

(A) x > y(B) x ≥ y(C) x < y(D) x ≤ y(E) x = y or the relationship can

not be established.

16. I. x2 – 1200 = 244II. y + 122 = 159

17. I. 14x – 25 = 59 – 7x

II. √⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯y + 222 – √⎯⎯⎯36 = √⎯⎯81

18. I. 144x2 – 16 = 9

II. 12y + √⎯ 4 = √⎯⎯⎯49

19. I. x2 – 9x + 20 = 0

II. y2 – 13y + 42 = 0

20. I. √⎯ x5 + 3 √⎯⎯x

10 = 1√⎯ x

II. 10√⎯ y

– 2√⎯⎯y

= 4 √⎯ y

Directions—(Q. 21–25) Each ofthe questions below consists of aquestion and two statements num-bered I and II given below it. Youhave to decide whether the data pro-vided in the statements are sufficientto answer the question. Read both thestatements and give answer—

(A) If the data in Statement Ialone are sufficient toanswer the question, whilethe data in Statement IIalone are not sufficient toanswer the question.

(B) If the data in Statement IIalone are sufficient toanswer the question, whilethe data in Statement I aloneare not sufficient to answerthe question.

(C) If the data in Statement Ialone or in Statement II aloneare sufficient to answer thequestion.

(D) If the data in both theStatements I and II are notsufficient to answer thequestion.

(E) If the data in both theStatements I and II togetherare necessary to answer thequestion.

21. In how many days will fivewomen complete a work ?

PD/February/2011/1506

I. Two women, five boys andthree men together completethe work in eight days.

II. Six women complete thesame work in sixteen days.

22. What is Sonu's monthly income ?I. Rita's monthly income is

5,000 more than Sonu'smonthly income.

II. Sonu's monthly income is 8,000 more than Sohan's

monthly income.

23. What will be Pravin's age after 4years ?I. The ratio between Pravin's

and Shekhar's present age is2 : 3 respectively.

II. Shekhar is six years olderthan Pravin.

24. What is the area of a circle ?I. The radius of the circle is

equal to length of a rect-angle.

II. The breadth of the rectangleis equal to 22 cm.

25. What is the average speed of acar ?I. Average speed of the car is

four times average speed ofa truck which covers 220 kmin 11 hours.

II. Average speed of the truckis half the average speed ofa train whereas the averagespeed of a jeep is 40 km/hr.

26. A man sold a wristwatch for 2,400 at a loss of twenty-five

per cent. At what rate should hehave sold the wristwatch to earna profit of twenty five per cent ?(A) 3,600 (B) 4,000(C) 3,500 (D) 3,800(E) None of these

27. The average of five numbers is56. If the average of first fournumbers is 54, what is the valueof the fifth number ?(A) 68 (B) 72(C) 56 (D) 64(E) None of these

28. If a number is added to seven-ninth of thirty five per cent of900, the value so obtained is 325.What is the number ?(A) 60 (B) 120(C) 90 (D) 180(E) None of these

29. The ratio between the threeangles of a quadrilateral is 1 : 4 :5 respectively. The value of thefourth angle of the quadrilateralis 60°. What is the differencebetween the value of the largestand the smallest angles of thequadrilateral ?(A) 120° (B) 90°(C) 110° (D) 100°(E) None of these

30. What least number should besubtracted from 1740, so that itwill be completely divisible by88 ?(A) 156 (B) 68(C) 58 (D) 146(E) None of these

Directions—(Q. 31–35) Study the following table carefully to answer thequestions that follow :

Number of Flights (in hundreds) Cancelled in Five DifferentStates During Six Different Years

StatesYears

Punjab Haryana Rajasthan Assam West Bengal

2004 1·4 3·2 0·3 1·1 1·52005 1·3 4·1 0·7 0·8 2·12006 0·5 1·7 0·2 1·3 3·52007 2·7 2·6 1·8 2·7 4·32008 1·4 1·5 2·2 1·3 5·52009 2·7 1·3 2·1 1·4 6·0

31. What was the respective ratiobetween the number of flightscancelled in Rajasthan in the year2006 and number of flightscancelled in West Bengal in theyear 2009 ?(A) 1 : 6 (B) 15 : 2(C) 1 : 30 (D) 30 : 7(E) None of these

32. What was the average number offlights cancelled in all the statestogether in the year 2008 ?

Directions—(Q. 36–40) Study the following graph carefully and answerthe questions that follow :

Water level of Four major Rivers (in metres) in Four DifferentMonths Water Level of Four Rivers

A B C D A B C D A B C D A B C DJune July August September

Wat

erle

vel(

inm

etre

s)

196202

196

146

205224

210200

230 211

230 234

212 207184

219

Months

River - A River - B River - C River - D

(A) 278 (B) 232(C) 238 (D) 272(E) None of these

33. What is the difference betweenthe number of flights cancelled inAssam in the year 2007 and thetotal number of flights cancelledin Rajasthan in the year 2005,2007 and 2008 together ?(A) 200 (B) 230(C) 210 (D) 240(E) None of these

34. In which state the number offlights cancelled continuouslyincreased during the years 2004to 2009 ?(A) Punjab(B) Haryana

(C) Rajasthan(D) Assam(E) West Bengal

35. Number of flights cancelled inHaryana in the year 2004 waswhat per cent of the total numberof flights cancelled in Punjabover all the years together ?

(A) 12 (B) 32(C) 36 (D) 24(E) None of these

PD/February/2011/1507

36. What was the respective ratiobetween the level of River–C inSeptember and the water level ofRiver–B in June ?`(A) 91 : 101 (B) 94 : 101(C) 51 : 103 (D) 31 : 101(E) None of these

37. If the danger level of all the fourrivers is above 215 m, whichriver has not crossed the dangerlevel in August but has crossedthe danger level in July ?(A) River–A (B) River–B(C) River–C (D) River–D(E) None

38. What is the average water levelof River–A in all the four monthstogether ?(A) 224·50 m (B) 212·25 m(C) 210·75 m (D) 222·25 m(E) None of these

39. In which river and in whichmonth respectively the waterlevel is highest ?(A) River–C in August(B) River–D in September(C) River–B in July(D) River–D in August(E) None of these

40. If the water level of River–A inJuly is decreased by 20 per cent,then what will be the water levelof River–A in July ?(A) 156 m (B) 162 m(C) 164 m (D) 152 m(E) None of these

Directions—(Q. 41–45) Studythe following graph carefully toanswer the questions that follow :

Percentage of Marks of ThreeDifferent Students in Five

Different Classes

1009080706050403020100

Cla

ss-X

Cla

ss-X

II

Classes

B.S

c.

M.S

c.

M.P

hil

Per

cen

tage

ofM

ark

s

Student - AStudent - BStudent - C

(in this Graph, 1 block = 2 Percentage)

41. What is the respective ratiobetween the percentage of marksof Student–B in B.Sc. andStudent–C in Class–X ?(A) 7 : 5 (B) 7 : 6(C) 35 : 26 (D) 35 : 23(E) None of these

42. Performance of which studenthas consistently decreased fromClass–XII to M. Phil ?(A) Only A(B) Only B(C) Only C(D) Only A and C(E) None

43. To get admission for Ph.D.course one has to consistentlyscore more than 60 per cent ofmarks in each of the five Classes.Which student will be able to getadmission for Ph.D. course ?(A) Only A(B) Only A and B(C) Only C(D) Only B(E) None

44. Which one of the following setsof students got highest per-centage of marks in M.Sc. andlowest percentage of marks inClass–X respectively ?(A) B and C (B) B and A(C) C and A (D) A and C(E) A and B

45. Percentage of which studentincreased from Class–X to M.Sc.but decreased from M.Sc. toM.Phil. ?(A) Only A(B) Only B(C) Only C(D) Only A and B(E) None

Directions—(Q. 46–50) Study thefollowing information carefully toanswer the questions that follow :

In a school there are 800 studentswho have visited five different citiesviz. Delhi, Ajmer, Varanasi, Mumbaiand Jodhpur. Fifty-four per cent ofthe total students are boys. One-fourth of the total number of girlsvisited Mumbai. Twenty-five per centof the total number of girls visitedDelhi. Number of girls who visitedJodhpur is half the number of girls

who visited Delhi. Five-sixth of theremaining girls visited Ajmer. Totalnumber of students who visitedMumbai is 192. One-fourth of thetotal number of boys visited Varanasi.101 boys have visited Ajmer. Two-third of the remaining number ofboys have visited Delhi.46. What is the respective ratio

between the number of girls whovisited Delhi and number of boyswho visited Mumbai ?(A) 23 : 24 (B) 23 : 50(C) 23 : 25 (D) 50 : 23(E) None of these

47. What is the average number ofboys who visited Delhi, Varanasiand Jodhpur together ?(A) 82 (B) 77(C) 86 (D) 76

(E) None of these

48. What is two-third of the totalnumber of girls who visitedJodhpur and Varanasi together ?(A) 46 (B) 48(C) 54 (D) 58(E) None of these

49. Total number of students whovisited Jodhpur is approximatelywhat per cent of number of girlswho visited Ajmer ?(A) 90 (B) 81(C) 66 (D) 70(E) 76

50. What is the total number ofstudents who visited Varanasi ?(A) 121 (B) 143(C) 111 (D) 153(E) None of these

Answers with Hints

PD/February/2011/1509

Computer Knowledge

PUNJAB AND SIND BANK PROBATIONARY OFFICERS EXAM., 2010

(Held on 16-5-2010)

(Based on Memory)

Solved Paper

1. OCR stands for —

(A) Optical Character Recogni-tion(B) Optical CPU Recognition(C) Optimal Character Render-ing(D) Other Character Restoration(E) None of these

2. If a new device is attached to acomputer, such as a printer orscanner, its………must be instal-led before the device can beused.(A) Buffer(B) Driver(C) Pager(D) Server(E) None of these

3. The software that allows users tosurf the Internet is called a/an—

(A) Search engine

(B) Internet Service Provider(ISP)

(C) Multimedia application

(D) Browser

(E) None of these

4. A tuple is a—(A) Column of a table(B) Two dimensional table(C) Row of a table(D) Key of a table(E) None of these

5. The method of file organizationin which data records in a file arearranged in a specified orderaccording to a key field is knownas the—

(A) Direct access method(B) Queuing method(C) Predetermined method(D) Sequential access method(E) None of these

6. IN Excel, …… contains one ormore worksheets.

(A) Template(B) Workbook(C) Active cell(D) Label(E) None of these

7. Which of the following is apopular programming languagefor developing multimedia webpages, websites, and web-basedapplications ?(A) COBOL(B) JAVA(C) BASIC(D) Assembler(E) None of these

8. Compilling creates a(n)—(A) program specification(B) algorithm(C) executable program(D) subroutine(E) None of these

9. A CD-RW disk—(A) has a faster access than aninternal disk(B) is a form of optical disk, so itcan only be written once(C) holds less data than a floppydisk(D) can be erased and rewritten(E) None of these

10. The first page of a Web site iscalled the ……(A) Homepage(B) Index(C) Java Script(D) Book mark(E) None of these

11. A word in a web page that, whenclicked, opens another docu-ment—(A) Anchor(B) URL(C) Hyperlink(D) Reference(E) None of these

12. The …… manual tells you howto use a software program.(A) documentation(B) programming(C) technical(D) user(E) None of these

13. What disk is used to cold boot aPC ?

(A) Steup disk

(B) System disk

(C) Diagnostic disk

(D) Program disk

(E) None of these

14. The …… tells the computer howto use its components.

(A) utility

(B) network

(C) operating system

(D) application program

(E) None of these

15. A …… contains buttons andmenus that provide quick accessto commonly used commands.(A) menu bar (B) toolbar(C) window (D) action bar(E) None of these

16. Numbers in table columns areusually—(A) right-aligned(B) left-aligned(C) justified(D) centered(E) None of these

17. The …… of software ontainslists of commands and options.(A) menu bar(B) title bar(C) formula bar(D) tool bar(E) None of these

18. To access a mainframe or super-computer, users often use a—

PD/February/2011/1510

(A) terminal (B) node(C) desktop (D) handheld(E) None of these

19. By default, your documents printin …… mode.(A) Landscape(B) Portrait(C) Page Setup(D) Print View(E) None of these

20. What characteristic of read-onlymemory ROM‚ makes it useful ?(A) ROM information can beeasily updated(B) ROM provides very largeamounts of inexpensive datastorage(C) Data in ROM is nonvolatile,that is, it remains there evenwithout electrical power(D) ROM chips are easily swap-ped between different brands ofcomputers(E) None of these

21. What are .bas, .doc, and .htmemaples of ?(A) extensions (B) domains(C) protocols (D) databases(E) None of these

22. ctrl, shift and alt are called ……keys.(A) adjustment(B) function(C) modifier(D) alphanumeric(E) None of these

23. Which type of file is created byword processing programs ?(A) database file(B) storage file(C) worksheet file(D) document file(E) graphical file

24. Personal computers can be con-nected together to form a—(A) server(B) supercomputer(C) network(D) enterprise(E) None of these

25. A modem—(A) translates analog signalsfrom a computer into digital

signals that can travel alongconventional telephone lines(B) transaltes digital signalsfrom a computer into analogsignals that can travel alongconventional telephone lines(C) demodulates digital signalsfrom a computer(D) modulates signals from ananalog telephone line(E) None of these

26. Which of the following menutypes is also called a drop-downmenu ?(A) fly-out (B) cascading(C) pop-up (D) pull-down(E) None of these

27. Data (information) is stored incomputers as —(A) files(B) directories(C) floppies(D) matter(E) None of these

28. the central processing unit con-tains which of the following as acomponent ?(A) Memory Regulation Unit(B) Flow Control Unit(C) Arithmetic Logic Unit(D) Instruction ManipulationUnit(E) None of these

29. Memory unit is one part of —(A) Control unit(B) Central Processing Unit(C) Input device(D) Output device(E) None of these

30. The process of writing out com-puter instructions is knows as —(A) assembling(B) compiling(C) executing(D) coding(E) None of these

31. A Web site address is a uniquename that identifies a specific…… on the Web.(A) Web browser(B) PDA(C) Web Site(D) Link(E) None of these

32. A character of information isrepresented by a(n)—

(A) byte (B) bit

(C) field (D) attribute

(E) None of these

33. An example of a telecommuni-cations device is a—(A) keyboard(B) mouse(C) printer(D) modem(E) None of these

34. ……is a procedure that requiresusers to enter an identificationcode and a matching password.(A) Paging(B) Logging on(C) Time-sharing(D) Multitasking(E) None of these

35. Which deivce is used as thestandard pointing deivce in aGraphical User Environment ?(A) Keyboard(B) Mouse(C) Joystick(D) Track ball(E) None of these

36. The simultaneous execution oftwo or more instructions iscalled—(A) sequential access(B) reduced instruction set com-puting(C) multiprocessing(D) disk mirroring(E) None of these

37. Multiprogramming systems ……(A) Are easier to develop thansingle programming systems(B) Execute each job faster(C) Execute more jobs in thesame time period(D) Use only one large main-frame computer(E) None of these

38. Which device can understanddifference between data andprograms ?(A) Input device(B) Output device(C) Memory(D) Microprocessor(E) None of these

PD/February/2011/1511

39. Which of the following deviceshave a limitation that we canonly read it but cannot erase ormodify it ?(A) Tape Drive(B) Hard Disk(C) Compact Disk(D) Floppy Disk(E) None of these

40. Which of the following is not anoutput device ?(A) Plotter(B) Printer(C) Monitor(D) Touch Screen(E) None of these

41. Data that is copied from anapplication is stored in the—(A) driver (B) Clipboard(C) terminal (D) prompt(E) None of these

42. Every component of your com-puter is either—(A) sofware of CPU/RAM(B) input devices or outputdevices(C) application software orsystem software(D) hardware or software(E) None of these

43. A collection of interrelatedrecords is called a—(A) management informationsystem(B) spread sheet(C) database(D) text file(E) None of these

44. Which of the following is thestorage area whit in the com-puter itself which holds dataonly temporarily as the computerprocesses instructions ?(A) The hard disk(B) Main memory(C) The control unit(D) Read-only memory(E) None of these

45. Codes consisting or bars or linesof varying widths or lengthsthat are computer-readable areknown as—(A) a bar code(B) an ASCll code(C) a magnetic tape

(D) a light pen(E) None of these

46. A ……… contains specific rulesand words that express thelogical steps of an algorithm.(A) programming language(B) programming structure(C) syntax(D) logic chart(E) None of these

47. ……… is a set of keywords,symbols, and a system of rulesfor constructing statements bywhich humans can communicatethe instructions to be executed bya computer.(A) A computer program(B) A programming language(C) An assembler(D) Syntax(E) None of these

48. The general term ‘peripheralequipment’ is used for—(A) any device that is attachedto a computer system(B) large-scale computer systems(C) a program collection(D) other office equipment notassociated with a desktop com-puter(E) None of these

49. If a memory chip is volatile, itwill—(A) explode if exposed to hightemperatures(B) lose its contents if current isturned off(C) be used for data storageonly(D) be used to both read andwrite data(E) None of these

50. ……… is the process of findingerrors in software code.(A) Compiling(B) Assembling(C) Interpreting(D) Debugging(E) None of these

Answers

P.Darpan

Continued from Page 1423

2. The Minimum Wages Act—tosafeguard the interests of workersmostly in unorganized sectorwas enacted in the year—(A) 1947 (B) 1948(C) 1950 (D) 1955

3. The Plantations Labour Act,1951, framed for the welfare oflabour and regulates the condi-tions of work in plantations andit was re-introduced as Planta-tion Labour (Amendment) Bill inthe year…… (on October 21).(A) 2000 (B) 2004(C) 2008 (D) 2009

4. The CBWE (Central Board forWorkers Education) underMinistry of Labour and Employ-ment–ML&E, GOI) establishedin 1958 as a tripartite Society forWorkers Education Programmesin the country, has its head-quarters (Hq.) at—(A) Nagpur (B) Bhopal(C) Chennai (D) Guwahati

5. Indian Institute of WorkersEducation under CBWE (CentralBoard for Workers Education)–an aplex level training Institute,with its Headquarters (Hq.) atMumbai, was established in theyear—(A) 1965 (B) 1968(C) 1970 (D) 1985

6. VVGNLI (V. V. Giri NationalLabour Institute)–a premierInstitute of Research, Trainingand Education in the area oflabour (Under ML&E, GOI) wasset-up in July—(A) 1974 (B) 1980(C) 1990 (D) 2000

Answers

P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1512

Human Rights Through Ages

Essay Contest

—Dr. S. Purvaja

“Open your newspaper any dayof the week and you will find a reportfrom somewhere in the world ofsomeone being imprisoned, torturedor executed because his opinionsor religion are unacceptable to hisgovernment.”

—Peter BenensonFounder, Amnesty International

Human Rights are rights whichare inherent to all human beingswhatever their nationality, place ofresidence, sex, ethnic origin, colour,

Dr. S. Purvaja

religion, languageor any other status.They are one of thefundamental as-pects of a civilizedsociety. The recog-nition of the Uni-versal HumanRights is a pre-requisite for ensuring peace andharmony in the world.

The concept of ‘rights’ hasexisted in history for long. The ancientGreek philosopher Aristotle had clearideas about rights and had used aterm, ‘to dikaion’ meaning ‘a justclaim’, of property and participationin public affairs, in his works. In the18th and 19th centuries, philosopherslike Thomas Paine, John Stuart Milland G.W.F. Hegel developed thephilosophy of Human Rights. In the19th century, slavery became the keyissue of concern for reformers suchas William Wilberforce of Britain.Finally, slavery was fully abolished inBritain by 1833. In the United States,Abraham Lincoln who became thePresident in the year 1860 had cam-paigned against slavery. TheAmerican Civil War (1861 to 1865)broke out between the southern states,in favour of slavery, known as ‘theconfederacy’ and the other free statesof the Union which had abolishedslavery. During the period of recons-truction following the war, variousamendments were made in theAmerican Constitution by whichslavery was banned and civil rights

were granted to all the citizens of thecountry.

Many Human Rights groups andmovements cropped up in the 20thcentury which strove hard to bringabout social changes, such as thelabour unions, Women’s rights move-ments and the National liberationmovements. However the conceptof Universal Human Rights in themodern sense came to the fore as anaftermath of the holocaust that tookplace during the World Wars. Therewere human casualties on a largescale and gross abuses of basichuman rights during these wars. Atthe end of the First World War, ‘TheLeague of Nations’ was establishedaccording to the ‘Treaty of Versailles’with the primary goal of disarma-ment. A mandate to promote humanrights were enshrined in its charter.This organisation however, had ashort life span and the Second WorldWar broke out in 1939 and lastedtill 1945. After the end of the war, atthe Yalta Conference in 1945, thedecision to establish an internationalbody called ‘the United Nations’ wastaken. It was this organisation whichhad played a pioneering role in thecreation of the International HumanRights. The rights espoused in theUN Charter were codified in the‘International Bill of Human Rights’comprising the Universal Declarationof Human Rights, the InternationalCovenant on Civil and PoliticalRights and the International Covenanton Economic, Social and CulturalRights. On the December 10, 1948, theUnited Nations General Assemblyadopted and proclaimed the‘Universal Declaration of HumanRights’. Following this historic Act,the Assembly called upon all themember countries to publicize thetext of the Declaration and “to causeit to be disseminated, displayed,read and expounded principally inschools and other educational insti-tutions, without distinction based onthe political status of the countries orterritories.”

Independent organisations likethe ‘Human Rights Watch’ and the‘Amnesty International’ have takenup the task of defending and pro-tecting human rights. By focussinginternational attention to those placeswhere human rights are violated,they give voice to the oppressed andhold the oppressors accountable fortheir crimes. They garner the supportof the public and the internationalcommunity for the cause of ‘HumanRights for all’.

The Asian Centre for HumanRights’ is another organisation dedi-cated to the promotion and protectionof Human Rights and fundamentalfreedoms in the Asian region. It pro-vides timely information and com-plaints to the National Human RightsInstitutions, the United Nationsbodies and mechanisms as appro-priate and conducts investigation,research, campaigning and lobbyingon country situations or individualcases. It also increases the capacity ofhuman rights defenders and civilsociety groups through relevanttraining on the use of national andinternational human rights proce-dures and provides input into inter-national standard-setting processeson human rights. Further, it provideslegal, political and practical adviceaccording to the needs of humanrights defenders and civil societygroups and secures the economic,social and cultural rights through arights based approach to develop-ment.

In the Indian context, from theancient period till about the middle of19th century, the concept of ‘might’enjoyed predominance over the con-cept of ‘rights’. The powerful worldrule and the extent to which thesubjects enjoyed their liberty washeavily dependent on the benevo-lence of the monarch.

‘Arthashastra’, the oldest treatiseon polity written by Kautilya inaround 300 B.C., while describing theideal features of a welfare state, has

PD/February/2011/1513

not mentioned anything about rightsfor the subjects of the Kingdom. Itplaces the well-being of the people atthe mercy of the crown. The conceptof ‘rights’ crept into the Indiansociety during the nationalist strugglefor independence. Under the Britishrule in India, the basic human rightsof the natives were many a time sup-pressed. After the Indian Indepen-dence, the founding fathers of ourConstitution have, therefore, createda Part III dealing exclusively with‘Fundamental Rights’ for the citizensof the country. In addition, the IndianParliament has enacted the ‘Protec-tion of Human Rights’ Act in 1993which provides for the setting up of aNational Human Rights Commission(NHRC), States Human RightsCommissions in states and HumanRights Courts for better protection ofHuman Rights and to look intomatters connected therewith. This Actstands as amended in 2006.

Human Rights Activism, inIndia, started gaining recognition andinterest in the last quarter of the 20thcentury. It took roots in the denial ofright to life and personal liberty

guaranteed by Article 21 during theEmergency in 1975-77. Civil libertiesmovements and women’s movementscame up. In the late seventies andearly eighties, the Supreme Courtdevised an institutional mechanismcalled ‘Public Interest Litigation’(PIL) under which any person couldmove the court on behalf of a classof persons who due to indigence,illiteracy or incapacity of any kind,are unable to reach out for theirrights. In the recent years, in additionto those for civil liberties andwomen’s rights, there are groups andmovements which fight for environ-mental rights and against the dis-placement of locals, movement forforest dwellers’ rights, against childlabour and so on.

Despite the Constitution of Indiaproviding for Right to Equality(Articles 14-18) and other Fundamen-tal Rights, the National and the StateHuman Rights Commissions and thevoluntary organisations working forthe protection of Human Rights, itsabuse in various forms still go on inour country. Custodial violence, caste

discrimination, encounter killings,child abuse, sexual harassment atwork place, rape, domestic violenceand project displacement are some ofthe common forms of Human Rightsviolation. The reported murder of thefour members of a family belongingto a ‘dalit’ community in a villagecalled Khairlanji, in Maharashtra, is acase in point.

The protection of basic humanrights is an absolute necessity for thefullest development of an individual.If the proposed bills called ‘Protectionof Women Against Sexual Harass-ment at Workplace Bill, 2010’ and‘Protection of Children from SexualOffences Bill, 2010’ materialise intolaws, they can go a long way in theprotection of Human Rights ofwomen and children from abuse. Inaddition, the various movements bygroups of people by way of voluntaryorganisations offer a ray of hopetowards individual empowermentleading to a holistic development ofour nation. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1514

CONCENTRIC QUIZ(Modern History of India Special)

1. In Mughal history, Ali Gauharwas the son of—(A) Alamgir II(B) Shah Alam II(C) Akbar II(D) Bahadur Shah II

2. When was Nizam-ul-Mulkappointed the Wazir of theMughal Empire ?(A) 1722(B) 1723(C) 1744(D) 1732

3. Treaty of Aix La Chappell isassociated with—(A) First Anglo Mysore War(B) First Carnatic War(C) Second Carnatic War(D) Third Carnatic War

4. Who was responsible for black-hole tragedy in modern historyof India ?

(A) Shiyauddaula

(B) Sirajuddaula

(C) Ali Vardi Khan

(D) None of the above

5. Who ended the dual system ofgovernment in Bengal as esta-blished by Lord Clive ?

(A) Warren Hastings

(B) Lord Dalhousie

(C) Lord Irwin

(D) Lord Wellesley

6. The Treaty of Salbai was signedin—(A) 1785(B) 1782(C) 1790(D) 1795

7. Who is also known as Earl ofMoira ?

(A) Lord Cornwallis

(B) Lord Minto

(C) Lord Hastings

(D) Lord Dalhousie

8. Madhavrao and Narayanraowere the sons of—(A) Peshwa Balajirao(B) Mahadji Scindia(C) Nana Phadanvis(D) Balaji Baji Rao

9. Under the civil administrationof Maharaja Ranjit Singh whichof the following departmentswas related to the accounts ofpay and other emoluments inthe various governmentalservices ?(A) Daftar-i-Mawajib(B) Daftar-i-Taujihat(C) Daftar-i-Roznamcha-i-Ikhrajaj

(D) None of the above

10. Which of the following is calledthe builder of British Empire ?(A) Lord Hardinge(B) Lord Dalhousie(C) Lord Irwin(D) Lord Hastings

11. Wajid Ali Shah, the last ruler ofOudh ascended the throne in—(A) 1844(B) 1845(C) 1847(D) 1850

12. Who said, “Every Indian iscorrupt” ?(A) Lord Cornwallis(B) Lord Wellesley(C) Lord Hastings(D) Lord Dalhousie

13. Vellore Mutiny took place inthe year of—(A) 1764(B) 1806(C) 1857(D) 1935

14. The name of the commission toenquire into Jallianwala BaghMassacre was—(A) Simon Commission(B) Hunter Commission

(C) Raymond Commission(D) Linlithgo Commission

15. Which court was considered asthe highest criminal court ofappeal during East India Com-pany rule ?(A) Circuit Court(B) Provincial Court(C) Sadar Diwani(D) Sadar Nizamat

16. In which Session did Congressdemand Poorna Swaraj ?

(A) Lucknow Session 1916(B) Calcutta Session 1917(C) Kanpur Session(D) Lahore Session

17. By which Act, did the Rule ofEast India Company end inIndia ?

(A) Regulating Act 1773(B) Pitts’ India Act 1784(C) Government of India Act1858(D) Morley Minto Act 1909

18. In 1908 which of the followingActs was passed ?(A) Indian Press Act(B) The Newspapers (Incite-ment to Offences) Act(C) Indian States (Protection)Act(D) Press (Objectionable Matter)Act

19. The post of the Collector wascreated in—(A) 1772(B) 1860(C) 1919(D) 1935

20. The aim of Poona Pact was—(A) Hindu-Muslim Unity(B) Representation to thedepressed classes(C) Special right to the nativestates(D) Review of Dyarchy

P.Darpan

Q. No. A B C D Q. No. A B C D

1. 11.

2. 12.

3. 13.

4. 14.

5. 15.

6. 16.

7. 17.

8. 18.

9. 19.

10. 20.

Age.................. Academic Qualification..........................

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(Modern History of India Special)

PD/February/2011/1517

1. Somdev Devvarman is a famousplayer of—(A) Tennis(B) Billiards(C) Snooker(D) None of the above

2. Who won the World SnookerTitle in May 2010 ?(A) Pankaj Advani(B) Neil Robertson(C) Cliff Thorburn(D) None of the above

3. The Wenlock is the mascot of—(A) The Commonwealth Games2014(B) The Olympic Games London2012(C) 17th Asian Games(D) None of the above

4. Arun Bajpayee is the youngestIndian to mount—(A) K2 Godwin Austin

(B) Mount Everest(C) Dhaulagiri(D) Kanchendzunga

5. ‘Romancing with Life’ is a bookwritten by—(A) Dilip Kumar(B) Debasheesh Dutta(C) Dev Anand(D) Hemamalini

6. Phylloquenone is the chemicalname of—(A) Vitamin D(B) Vitamin E(C) Vitamin K(D) Vitamin C

7. B. C. Roy Trophy is associatedwith—(A) Cricket (B) Football(C) Chess (D) Hockey

8. Which Indian player was namedRookie of the year for 2009 ?(A) Rashid Khan(B) Anirban Lahiri(C) Gaganjeet Bhullar (D) C. Muniyappa

9. Which of the following organi-zations has its headquarters inRome ?(A) World Food Programme(B) Food and Agriculture Orga-nization(C) International Labour Orga-nization(D) European Free Trade Asso-ciation

10. The Criminal Procedure Code(Amendment) Act 2008 cameinto force in—(A) January 2010(B) January 2009(C) January 2008(D) None of the above

11. Dakar is the capital of—(A) Romania(B) Senegal(C) Syprus(D) Mozambique

12. Theorphrastus is called the fatherof—(A) Botany (B) Zoology(C) Anatomy (D) Astrology

13. National Youth Day is observedon—(A) January 15(B) January 12(C) January 20(D) January 28

14. Which of the following cities isfamous for Tobacco industry ?(A) Jharia (B) Khetri(C) Firozabad (D) Guntur

15. Who was the first scholar to usethe term Indus Civilization ?(A) John Marshall(B) Rakhal Das Bannerji(C) R. S. Bist(D) Dayaram Sahni

16. The recommendations of 11thFinance Commission covered theperiod—(A) April 1, 2002 to March 31,2007(B) April 1, 2002 to March 31,2005

(C) April 1, 2007 to March 31,2012(D) None of the above

17. Uranium Corporation of India islocated in—(A) Mumbai(B) Delhi(C) Thiruvananthapuram(D) Jadugoda

18. The provision of ContingencyFund of India has been madeunder—(A) Article 266(B) Article 265(C) Article 267(D) Article 268

19. Who is known as the father ofSanskrit Grammar ?(A) Panini(B) Patanjali(C) Kalidas(D) None of the above

20. Which movie won the Palm d' Or(Best Feature Films) Award atthe 63rd Cannes Film Festival inMay 2010 ?

(A) Of Gods And Men

(B) Uncle Boonmee Who CanRecall His Past Lives(C) On Tour(D) Our Life

21. Padma Bhushan Award is—(A) Gallantry Award(B) Bravery Award(C) Civilian Award(D) Literary Award

22. National Law Day is observedon—

(A) 26th January

(B) 15th August

(C) 26th May

(D) 26th November

23. Who is the author of ‘MyExperiments with Truth’ ?

(A) Nehru (B) Tagore

(C) Gandhi (D) Jinnah

PD/February/2011/1518

24. DNA refers to—(A) Di-oxyribo Nucleic Acid(B) Di-oxide Nucleic Acid(C) Different Nucleic Acid(D) None of these

25. The last session of the existingLok Sabha after a new Lok Sabhahas been elected is called—(A) Lame-duck Session(B) Remaining Session(C) Essential Session(D) Last Session

26. LG ICC Cricketer of the Year2010 is—(A) M.S. Dhoni(B) Sachin Tendulkar(C) Virender Sehwag(D) None of the above

27. Miss World 2010 is—(A) Alexandria Mills(B) Adriana Vasini(C) Denise Perrier(D) None of the above

28. Mwai Kibaki is the Presidentof—(A) Kenya(B) Mozambique(C) South Africa(D) None of the above

29. Which country recently overtookJapan to become No. 2 EconomicPower ?(A) China (B) Russia(C) India (D) S. Korea

30. Bollywood Actress PriyankaChopra was appointed recentlythe National Ambassador of—(A) UNICEF (B) UNO(C) FAO (D) WHO

31. The 18th Rajiv GandhiSadbhavana Award has beenconferred on—(A) Maulana Wahiduddin Khan(B) Shabana Azmi(C) Aruna Roy(D) Swami Agnivesh

32. A.H.M. Noman Khan who is oneof the recipients of the 2010Ramon Magsaysay Award isfrom—(A) Pakistan (B) Maldives(C) India (D) Bangladesh

33. Miss Universe 2010 is JimenaNavarrete whose country is—

(A) Venezuela (B) Mexico(C) Austria (D) Argentina

34. ‘The Masque of Africa’ is thebook written by—(A) V. S. Naipaul(B) Raghav Bahl(C) Nelson Mandela(D) Jacob Zuma

35. Which day was observed asWorld Habitat Day in 2010 ?(A) October 4, 2010(B) October 15, 2010(C) October 8, 2010(D) October 9, 2010

36. ICPS stands for—(A) International CommunityProtection Service(B) Integrated CommunityProtection Scheme(C) Integrated Child ProtectionScheme (ICPS)(D) None of the above

37. Santosh Trophy is associatedwith—(A) Football(B) Cricket(C) Chess(D) None of the above

38. Saraswati Samman is an awardgiven for excellence in the fieldof—(A) Sports(B) Social Service(C) Literature(D) Science and Technology

39. Usain Bolt is a famous—(A) Cricket player(B) Athlete(C) Footballer(D) None of the above

40. Alberto Contador is worldfamous—(A) Tennis player(B) Cyclist(C) Chess player(D) Snooker player

41. Who won the French OpenWomen’s Singles title for 2010 ?(A) Samantha Stosur(B) Francesca Shiavone(C) Serena Williams(D) Venus villiams

[For Answer See Page 1504]

Topic : Human Rights through theAges

WinnersFirst Prize Winner

Second Prize Winner

Third Prize Winner

Miss Sweta JalanGuwahatiAssam–781 001

RESULT

Mahesh KumarC/o Chiman LalJugal Kishore,Mahaveer Marg,NarnaulHaryana–123 001

Dr. S. PurvajaJalahalli, BangaloreKarnataka–560 013

Essay Competition

PD/February/2011/1519

Indian Economy :Salient Indicators

India’s GDP 8·9% inSecond Quarter 2010-11

The Central Statistical Organi-sation (CSO) on November 30, 2010released the GDP’s data for the Q2(i.e., July-September) 2010-11, placingcountry’s GDP growth at factor costwith 8·9 per cent. This growth ratestood the fastest in the last 11 quartersperiod. India’s growth rate duringthis quarter puts the country as thesecond fastest growing economy afterChina, which has registered a growthof 9·6 per cent in September quarterof 2010. CSO’s latest released statisticsalso upped the GDP growth of firstquarter (April-June) 2010-11 to 8·88

GDP Growth SecondQuarter 2009-10 Vs. 2010-11

(in %)

Sector 2009-10 2010-11

Agriculture andAllied

0·9 4·4

Mining andQuerring

10·1 8·0

Construction 8·4 9·8Electricity, Gasand Water Supply

7·7 3·4

Manufacturing 8·3 8·8Trade, Transportand Communication

8·2 12·1

Finance, Insuranceand Other Service

11·3 8·3

Social and PrivateServices

14·0 7·3

GDP at Factor Cost 8·7 8·9

Gross Domestic Product(Growth in%)

2009 2010GDP

Q1 Q2 Q1 Q2

GDP at

Factor Cost

6·33 8·68 8·88 8·89

GDP atMarket Price

5·64 6·62 10·28 10·56

per cent. This revision is on accountof the new base year adopted in thecirculation of inflation and industrialoutput.

IMF Forecasts HighestGDP Growth for India

Among Various Projections

International Monetary Fund(IMF) has projected India's GDPgrowth rate at 9·7% for the calendaryear 2010 and 8·4% for 2011 due tobetter macro-economic performanceand strong industrial growth. Accord-ing to World's Economic OutlookReport of IMF, growth in emergingAsia economies stand at about 9·5%with robust demand from China,India and Indonesia benefiting otherAsian economies. Asian DevelopmentBank (ADB) on September 28, 2010had raised its India's GDP forecastfrom 8·2% to 8·5%.

IMF in its report highlights thatIndia's macroeconomic performancehas been vigorous, with industrialproduction at a two-year high.Moreover, the leading indicators ofthe economy show a steady improve-ment which makes IMF's projectionfor India's growth stronger.

India's GDP Growth Projec-tions by Various Agencies

IMF 9·7% 2010

CMIE 9·2% 2010-11

ADB 8·5% 2010Govt. of IndiaRBI PMEAC

}.. 8·5% 2010-11

CRISIL 8·1% 2010

PMEAC’s ‘EconomicOutlook 2010-11’

Prime Minister’s Economic Advi-sory Council (PMEAC) on July 23,2010 released the ‘Economic Outlook2010-11’. The salient highlights of thisreview of the economy for the year2010-11 are—

● Indian economy is expected toexpand by 8·5% in 2010-11 and9·0% in 2011-12 compared to7·4% growth in 2009-10.

● To sustain a growth rate of 9·0%,focus is required on containinginflation, improving farm pro-ductivity and closing the largephysical infrastructure deficit.

● Rising Domestic savings andinvestment would be main pro-moters of higher growth rate.

PD/February/2011/1520

Base Year of Wholesale Price Index Changed to 2004-05

The new series of Wholesale Price Index (WPI) with 2004-05 as its base year hasreplaced the series with base year 1993-94 with effect from September 14, 2010. Thenumber of commodities included in the new series stands at 676 while it was only 435in old series with base year 1993-94. In total included 676 commodities, the members ofprimary articles, fuel and power and manufactured products stand at 102, 19 and 555respectively.

Base Year for Wholesale Price Index shifts to 2004-05, number ofcommodities and price quotations increased, and relative weights

in index undergo minor change

The base year for the Wholesale Price Index has been moved from 1993-94 to2004-05. The basket of commodities has been increased from 435 to 676 with thenumber of price quotations substantially stepped up from 1,918 to 5,482. Relativeweights in the index for the various components has also changed marginally. WPI forAugust 2010 released recently is based on the new series index.

Base Year

1970-71 1981-82 1993-94 2004-05

Number of Commodities

Food sub group of Primary Articles 39 44 54 55Primary Articles 80 93 98 102Fuel and Power 10 20 19 19Manufactured Products 270 334 318 555All Commodities 360 447 435 676

Number of Price Quotations

Food sub group of Primary Articles 264 320 340 431Primary Articles 411 519 455 579Fuel and Power 30 73 72 72Manufactured Products 854 1779 1391 4831All Commodities 1295 2371 1918 5482Relative Weight in WPI

Food sub group of Primary Articles 29·799 17·386 15·402 14·337Primary Articles 41·667 32·295 22·025 20·118Fuel and Power 8·459 10·663 14·226 14·910Manufactured Products 49·874 57·042 63·749 64·972All Commodities 100 100 100 100

O/o Economic Adviser, Deptt. of Ind. Policy and Promotion.

● Current Account deficit estimatedat 2·7% of GDP in 2010-11 and2·9% of GDP in 2011-12.

● Inflation rate projected at 6·5%by March 2011 due to expectednormal monsoon combined withthe base effect.

● High buoyancy in direct andindirect tax collections.

● Agriculture growth rate for 2010-11 has been pegged at 4·5 per centon a expectation of a strongrebound in foodgrains output onthe back of good monsoon.

● For the entire 11th five year planperiod (2007–12), average annual

growth for the farm sector hasbeen projected 3% which is lowerto the target of 4%.

● Country is likely to fall short ofthe power generation target of78740 MW by the end March2012 and it would stay on 62000MW power generation level.

Planning CommissionExpects 11th Plan Growth

Rate to Exceed 8·1%Planning Commission Deputy

Chairman Mr. Montek SinghAhluwalia has expressed an opti-mistic view that the average economicgrowth during the 11th plan (2007–

12) could exceed 8·1 per cent, against7·7 per cent recorded during the 10thplan (2002–07). The 11th plan originalannual growth target was put at 9 percent at the beginning of the plan butdue to the impact of the globaleconomic crisis during 2008-09 and2009-10, the target of 9% annualgrowth was found unattainable and itwas cut down to 8·1 per cent in plan’smid-term review. The growth rates ofthe first three years of the plan i.e.,2007-08, 2008-09 and 2009-10 stood at9%, 6·7% and 7·4% respectively andfor 2010-11 it is expected to grow at8·5%. Taking the note of these growthrates, Planning Commission hadrecommended it to cut down to 8·1per cent average annual growth fromtargeted 9% growth which NationalDevelopment Council in its meetingon July 24, 2010 had given itsapproval.

Planning Commission projectsgrowth rates for 2010-11 and 2011-12at 8·5% and 9·0% respectively.

Indian Rupee gets IdentitySymbol

Indian rupee has been given anidentity symbol. Rupee will nowhave a distinct identity like US dollar,British Pound, EU’s Euro andJapanese Yen. Among more than 3,000entries, scrutiny and scanning wasmade and finally the entry of D. UdaiKumar got the approval for IndianRupee’s identity.

The approved symbol of Indianrupee is a blend of ‘Ra’ in Devnagariscript and ‘R’ in Roman. Two parallellines crossing this ‘Ra’ or ‘R’ denotethe symbol ‘is equal to’ one Indianrupee.

The space between two horizon-tal lines signifies the Tricolour withthe Ashok Chakra and the bold para-llel lines stand for ‘equal to’ sign.

The symbol will standardize theexpression for Indian Rupee. It willnot be printed or embossed oncurrency notes and coins, but wouldbe included in the ‘Unicode Standard’and major scripts of the world.

PD/February/2011/1521

Fiscal Highlights

DTC Bill Tabled inParliament

The Direct Tax Code Bill (DTC Bill)has been tabled in the Parliament onAugust 30, 2010. The Cabinet hadapproved this DTC Bill on August26, 2010. The Bill, placed before theParliament proposes some relief toboth individuals and companies. Thenew DTC Bill proposes to increasethe exemption limit from 1·6 lakh atpresent to 2·0 lakh. Till now womentax payers seeking additional exemp-tion limit has been withdrawn i.e.,individual tax payers both men andwomen will now face the same slabsfor calculating their income tax.

The new Direct Tax Code whichwill replace 50-year old Income TaxAct 1961, will be operational fromApril 2012, a year later than the stateddeadline.

Highlights of the New DTC BillPlaced in the Parliament are :

(A) For Individual Tax Payer● No tax on income upto 2 lakh.● Senior citizen tax exemption

raised to 2·5 lakh.● Additional exemption limit for

women withdrawn.

● Tax exemption investment limitin government approved fundsstands at 1 lakh.

● Tax rebate limited on invest-ments in Life Insurance, Health

Insurance and Tuition Fees upto 50000 only.

● Interest upto 1·5 lakh on homeloans retained as tax-free.

● Additional concession on educa-tion loans.

● Special rebates to disabled.

(B) For Companies

● 30% Corporate tax.● MAT will be 20% of book-profit.● Dividend distribution tax pro-

posed at 15%.● SEZs to continue having profit-

based tax concessions.

(C) For Investor

● Three slabs in short-term capitalgain.

● STT to continue.

Tax Collections in FirstHalf 2010-11 Show Rise

As per the data released by theFinance Ministry, the centre’s taxrevenue has increased by 28·4 percent to 332444 in crore the firsthalf of 2010-11. Indirect tax revenueduring April-September 2010 regist-ered 44·4 per cent rise with 66·8 percent growth in custom duty and 40·7per cent growth in excise duty. Thethird partner of the indirect tax clubi.e., service tax could register only14·8 per cent growth in the first halfof 2010-11. With the support of theserise in custom, excise and service tax,the total indirect tax revenue climbedto 150686 crore against the level of

106335 crore obtained in the firsthalf of 2009-10.

Tax Collection of UnionGovernment April-

September 2010( Crore)

Indirect TaxApril-Sept.2009

April-Sept. 2010

%Increase

CustomDutyExciseDutyServiceTax

39907

43237

23191

63229

60834

26623

66·8

40·7

14·8

TotalIndirectTax

106335 150686 44·4

Direct TaxCorpora-tion TaxIncomeTaxWealthTaxSecuritiesTransac-tion Tax(STT)

100572

51897

222

3207

122433

59053

263

2874

21·7

13·7

18·4

–10·3

TotalDirectTax

152625 181758 19·0

Govt. to Study ‘BlackMoney’ Estimates

After a span of 25 years, thegovernment has decided to estimatethe size of black money in theeconomy with the reasons of itsgeneration. For this very task thegovernment has invited proposalsfrom our National institutionsnamely, National Institute of PublicFinance and Policy (NIPFP), theNational Council for AppliedEconomic was conducted in 1985wherein NIPFP had estimatedblack money to be between 31584crore and 36786 crore in 1983-84which was 16·53 per cent of theIndian economy at that time.

Banking

RBI to Issue Coins with‘Commonwealth Theme’

Reserve Bank of India hasannounced to issue new coins of 5and 2 to commemorate the Com-monwealth Games held in New Delhiin October 2010.

PD/February/2011/1522

RBI has decided to put intocirculation coins of 5 and 2 withthe theme ‘XIX CommonwealthGames 2010-Delhi.’

Both the newly planned coins of 5 and 2 denomination will be of

circular shape and have a diameter of23 millimeter and 27 millimeterrespectively. RBI also announced thatthe existing 5 and 2 coins will alsocontinue in circulation.

‘Budget Mannual’ ReleasedUnion Ministry of Finance on

September 26, 2010 released the‘Budget Mannual’ showing the entirebudget process of the country. It is forthe first time when this type of mannual

Pranab Mukherjee

is officially released. While releasingthis mannual, the Finance MinisterMr. Pranab Mukherjee extended thehope that a transparency in variousissues and making of budget will beestablished with this Budget Mannual.Indian Constitution though mentionsbudget and grants-in-aids etc. but doesnot provide any detail. The new BudgetMannual, on the other hand, givesdetailed budget making process.

RRBs Need ` 2200 croreRecapitalisation by 2011-12

According to the committeeheaded by RBI Deputy Governor K.C. Chakrabarty, 40 out of the 82Regional Rural Banks will need 2200crore capitalisation by 2011-12. Thecommittee has recommended torelease the capitalisation fund of

2200 crore in two instalments 1338crore in 2010-11 and 863 croreduring 2011-12.

The committee carried out anassessment of the capital require-

ment of all 82 RRBs to enable them tohave capital adequacy ratio of at leastseven per cent by March 31, 2011, andnine per cent from March 31, 2012.Other 42 regional rural banks will notrequire more capital.

Besides, the committee suggestedan additional amount of 700 crorefor regional rural banks in easternand northeastern region. It recom-mended that the authorised capitalbe raised from 5 crore to 500 crore.

NABARD Extends ` 687crore Credit

National Bank for Agricultureand Rural Development (NABARD)has extended a credit of 687 crore toUttar Pradesh for various projectsunder the Rural Infrastructure Deve-lopment Fund (RIDF). The largestchunk of 463 crore had beensanctioned for 146 Integrated Rain-water Management projects in 71districts of the state. It would provide

RBI’s Review Monetary and Credit Policy 2010-11on November 2, 2010

(A) Key Objectives :

● Sustain the anti-inflationary thrust of recent actions and outcomes in the face ofpersistent inflation risks .

● Maintain an interest rate regime consistent with price, output and financialstability.

● Actively manage liquidity to ensure it remains broadly in balance, with neither asurplus diluting monetary transmission, nor a deficit choking fund flows.

(B) Monetary Measures :● Bank rate retained at 6%.● Repo rate increased 25 basis points (bps) under liquidity adjustment facility from

to 6·25%.● Reverse repo rate raised under LAF by 25 bps from 5% to 5·25%.● Cash reserve ratio of scheduled banks retained at 6%.

Note : On December 16, 2010 RBI in its review of Monetary Policy made no changein Bank Rate, Repo Rate, Reverse Repo Rate and CRR. Only SLR is reducedfrom 25% to 24%.

Soil and Moisture Conservation to anestimated half-million hectares ofland. With the current sanction, thetotal credit under RIDF during 2010-11 has already touched 1,310 crore.

RBI Divests Stake inNABARD to Government

Reserve Bank of India has dives-ted its 71·5 per cent stake, aggregat-ing to 1430 crore, to the governmentin National Bank for Agriculture andRural Development. This disinvest-ment makes RBI's holding down inNational Bank for Agriculture andRural Development (NABARD) toonly one per cent while it raisedgovernment's holding to 99 per cent.

Following this changed holdingstructure in NABARD, the govern-ment now holds a greater control inNABARD's decisions with more sayand flexibility to issue the directionsto NABARD for meeting its creditobjectives set for the priority sector.

PD/February/2011/1523

Despite the change in the holdingstructure, NABARD's board willnot be changed. As per the officialdeclaration of the NABARD, therewill not be any change in the man-date of bank after the stake transfer.At present RBI has three members onthe board of the bank.

Parliament Passes SBI(Amendment) Bill 2010

The both houses of the Parlia-ment has passed a bill for reducingthe minimum level of government’sshareholding in equity of State Bankof India from 55 per cent to 51 percent. Lok Sabha on August 2, 2010and the Rajya Sabha on August 12,2010 have passed this bill, known asState Bank of India (Amendment)Bill 2010. Even with this reducedequity share, State Bank of India willremain and continue as a bank ofpublic sector. This bill raises equitybase of State Bank from 1000 croreto 5000 crore. SBI can now raiseadditional capital through equity/preference/bonus shares. It is worth-noting that at present government’sshareholding in SBI’s equity stands at59·41 per cent.

ICICI Bank-BoR MergerBecomes Effective

After the final approval ofReserve Bank of India, the merger ofBank of Rajasthan (BoR) with ICICIBank has become effective and opera-tive with effect from August 13, 2010.All branches of Bank of Rajasthan hasstarted functioning as branches ofICICI Bank.

It is worthnoting that on May25, 2010 ICICI Bank and Bank ofRajasthan had decided the mergerwith the swap ratio of 1 : 4·72 andnow after RBI’s sanctioning of thescheme of, amalgamation of BoR withICICI Bank, BoR’s branches have gotconverted into branches of ICICIBank.

Bank of Rajasthan had a marketcapitalisation of 2811 crore onAugust 12, 2010. In terms of assets,ICICI Bank is around 25 times aslarge as Bank of Rajasthan. In branchnetwork BoR with 463 branches isless than a fourth of ICICI Bank.

Capital Market

SEBI Raises RetailInvestor’s Investment Limit

The Securities and ExchangeBoard of India (SEBI) has raised the

investment application limit for retailinvestors to 2 lakh from 1 lakh atpresent. However, SEBI has not madeany changes in the quantum of sharesreserved for retail investors in publicissues.

In SEBI’s board meeting held onOctober 25, 2010, some importantdecisions taken are—1. Enhances retail application limit

to 2 lakh from 1 lakh acrossall issues.

2. Disclosures of risk factorsspecific to IPOs by insurancecompanies.

3. SEBI also exempted insurancecompanies from disclosing thedisclaimer clause of IRDA in theoffer document and appointing amonitoring agency.

4. Tightens preferential allotmentframework for promoters.

5. Mandatory for companies to pre-announce dates for dividendpayment and bonus shares.

6. QIB status to insurance funds setup by Department of Posts.

SEBI Allows MobileTrading

Securities and Exchange Board ofIndia (SEBI) has taken a bold step togive a big boost to equity trading byallowing mobile trading and SmartOrder Routing (SOR) between stockexchanges. With the permission ofmobile trading the stock marketinvestors will have no need to call upa broker or log on to a computer tobuy or sell shares. An internet-enabled mobile phone holder has toaccess a trading terminal from theirbroker to buy or sell shares or trans-fer funds from their bank accounts forthe purpose. This move launched bySEBI for mobile trading will increasethe volume of share trading becausemobile holders number in the countryis very large. According to July 2010statistics, over 470 million peoplehold mobile connections while demataccount (required for share trading)holders number is only 10·6 million.

Primary Sector

Minimum Support Pricesfor Rabi 2010-11

AnnouncedAfter the approval of Cabinet

Committee on Economic Affairs

PD/February/2011/1524

(CCEA), the government on October20, 2010 announced minimum supportprices (MSP) for Rabi crops 2010-11.For wheat the MSP gets only a mar-ginal hike of 20 a quintal. The MSPof wheat, a major Rabi crop was 1100per quintal in 2009-10 season whichhas gone upto 1120 per quintal for2010-11. The support prices of pulsessuch as masoor and gram dals havebeen raised sharply by 380 and 340per quintal respectively to encouragefarmers to produce more pulses so asto curb import bill on pulses. TheMSPs of the masoor dal and gramdals have been fixed at 2250 perquintal and 2100 per quintal res-pectively for the year 2010-11.

Minimum Support Prices forRabi Crops of 2010-11 Season

to be Marketed in 2011–12( per quintal)

Commo-dity

MSPfixed

for2009-10season

MSPappro-ved for2010-11season

Changein MSP

over2009-10season

Wheat 1100 1120 20Barley 750 780 30Gram 1760 2100 340Masur(Lentil)

1870 2250 380

Rapeseed/Mustard

1830 1850 20

Safflower 1680 1800 120

First Advance Estimates ofKharif Crops 2010-11

ReleasedMinistry of Agriculture on Sep-

tember 24, 2010 released the firstadvance estimates of Kharif crops for

the year 2010-11. Better monsoon thisyear helped Kharif crops to getincreased to 114·63 million tonne in2010-11. This estimated productionlevel may be called satisfactory as itwas only 103·84 million tonne in2009-10.

Secondary SectorIndustrial Growth Touches16-Month Low Level of 4·4

per centIndustrial growth continued its

declining path also in September 2010and registered the 16-month low levelof 4·4 per cent. All the three sectoralcomponents of Index of IndustrialProduction (IIP) show declinedgrowth rates in September 2010 on anannual, as well as on a sequentialbasis. September’s IIP growth in 2010

IIP Growth Path in 2010-11April 17·6%May 11·5%June 7·1%July 13·8%August 5·6%September 4·4%

is the lowest expansion since May2009. Except July 2010, all the monthsof 2010-11 experienced declininggrowth path in IIP.

Sectoral Growth September2009 Vs. September 2010

SectorSeptember

2009September

2010MiningManufacturingElectricity

7·48·37·5

5·24·51·7

IIP 8·2 4·4

Coal India’s IPO RaisedRs. 15,000 crore from

DisinvestmentCoal India Ltd.'s initial public

offerings (IPO)—the biggest float inIndia's corporate history was openedon October 18, 2010. With thisbiggest public issue, government hasraised 15000 crore. While launchingthe IPO, Union Government hadfixed the price band at 225-245 pershare. On October 25, 2010, govern-ment declared Coal India Ltd. IPO’sprice at 245 per share, the upperceiling of the early offered range.Retail investors and Coal IndiaEmployees were given 5 per centdiscount. Coal India Ltd. has offered631·6 million shares at a face value of

10 each in the offer. The issue gotclosed on October 21, 2010. The issuewas listed on November 4, 2010 witha supportive premium given to share-holders. Coal India's IPO was floatedin the public after government'sdecision to sell 10 per cent of itscurrent 100 per cent stake in thecompany.

TUF Scheme for TextileSector to be Reintroduced

Technology Upgration Fund(TUF) scheme for the textile sector isbeing reintroduced by the TextilesMinistry.

TUF is a financial incentivescheme for the sector extendedthrough banks in which the govern-ment subsidises a portion of intereston loans, exchange rate fluctuationsand capital equipment on a case-to-case basis.

For small and medium enter-prises of capital investment up to 2crore, the proposed special incentivepackage entails capital subsidyinstead of 10 per cent capital subsidyand five per cent interest rate subsidy.

As per the declaration made bythe Textile Ministry, a new salientfeature will be included in the re-introduced TUF scheme. A newsegment of synthetic and technicaltextiles will also be included in thesphere of TUF scheme, provided theproposal entailed in the NationalFibre Policy is approved by thegovernment.

PD/February/2011/1525

REC gets Infra FinancierStatus

Rural Electrification Corpora-tion (REC) has been granted thestatus of an infrastructure financecompany (IFC) by the Reserve Bankof India.

With this financier status, RECcan now take an additional lendingexposure of up to 5 per cent of itsowned funds in case of a singleborrower and up to 10 per cent of itsowned funds for a group ofborrowers. The total permissibleexposure will now be 40 per cent ofowned funds in case of a group ofborrowers.

The firm has also become autho-rised to issue infrastructure bondsand raise funds up to $ 500 millionthrough external commercial borrow-ing in a year.

REC is the second company afterPower Finance Corporation (PFC) tobe accorded the IFC status by RBI.Power Finance Corporation (PFC)was accorded the status in July.

20 per cent Disinvestmentin MOIL

The Cabinet Committee on Eco-nomic Affairs (CCEA) has madedisinvestment in state-run ManganeseOre India Ltd. (MOIL), in which theCentre has devolved 10 per centequity, while Maharashtra andMadhya Pradesh governments woulddivest 5 per cent each.

The government was holding81·57 per cent, Maharashtra 9·62 percent and Madhya Pradesh has 8·81per cent equity in the Nagpur-basedcompany. Following the disinvest-ment, the Government of India sharesin the company has come down to71·57 per cent.

MOIL’s IPO was listed in theshare market on November 15, 2010with a high premium.

Business Confidence IndexDeclines MarginallyThe Survey made by NCEAR

(National Council of AppliedEconomic Research) shows that theBusiness Confidence Index (BCI) inIndia during April-June 2010 quarterregistered a marginal decline. Thisindex came down to 155·9 points infirst quarter of 2010-11 from the peak

level of 156·8 points attained in thelast quarter of 2009-10. This is the firstdecline in the business confidencelevel in the last one year.

NCEAR’s survey measuresbusiness confidence on the basis offour indicators which are—overalleconomic conditions six months fromnow, financial-position of firms sixmonths from now, investment climateand level of capacity utilisation.

Energy

Government LaunchesNELP-IX

Petroleum and Natural GasMinistry on October 15, 2010 haslaunched the ninth round of biddingunder the New Exploration andLicensing Policy (NELP). 34 blockshave been put up for the auctionunder NELP–IX of the blocks offeredin the ninth round, eight are deepwater, seven in shallow water and19 blocks on shore. The Ministryhas extended the hope to arrangeinvestment of around $ 14 billion inthis ninth round of auctioning.

Government had launched the8th round of NELP in the midst of theglobal economic slowdown whichresulted a very poor response. 34 outof 70 blocks could not attract anyresponse and half the awarded blockswent to government-owned Oil andNatural Gas Corporation (ONGC).This poor response of the 8th roundof NELP could manage only $ 1·1billion.

Government has so far awarded235 blocks under various rounds ofNELP, launched in 1999. As per thedeclaration of the Ministry, theexploration coverage of India'ssedimentary basin has expandedfrom 11 per cent to 58 per cent afterthe introduction of NELP regime andthe discoveries made under NELPhave resulted in in-place hydrocarbonreserve accretion of a staggering 642million tonne of oil and oil equivalentgas.

Coal-fired Power Plant tobe Set up in U.P. and

Orissa by NLCNeyveli Lignite Corporation of

the public sector has proposed to setup 4000 MW Coal-based power

plants in the states of Orissa andUttar Pradesh and also a wind mill inTamil Nadu. As per the declarationmade by the government in theParliament, Neyveli Lignite Corpora-tion (NLC) proposes to set up coal-fired power plants of 2000 MWcapacity each in Orissa and UttarPradesh and also to set up a 50 MWwind power plant at Trinelvelidistrict of Tamil Nadu. Coal-firedpower plants would cost NLC asmuch as 20000 crore while theproposed wind mill will cost 313crore as per estimates of the ‘miniratna’ public sector company NeyveliLignite Corporation.

IOC's Paradip Refinery toStart Output by March 2012

Paradip refinery of the Indian OilCorporation has been scheduled tostart commercial production by March2012 and become fully operationalNovember 2012. This Paradip refineryunit has a refining capacity of 15million tonne per year. The estimatedcost of the project is around 320billion.

The first stage of the plant will becommissioned in January 2012. Therefinery will have a complexity factorof 13, allowing it to process and refinevery low quality of crude or crudewith high sulphur content. A pro-posal of building a petrochemicalplant near Paradip refinery is alsounder consideration of Indian OilCorporation and the decision will betaken within the next three-fourmonths.

Indian oil sources also an-nounced that everything produced inParadip refinery will be for domesticconsumption and none of its productwill be exported.

Sasan UMP Project gets$ 917 million Loan from

US EXIM BankThe American EXIM Bank has

cleared $ 917 million (about 4300crore) to Anil Ambani’s power projectin Madhya Pradesh. Reliance-Power’sSasan Ultra-Mega Power Project(UMPP) has got the clearance fromUS EXIM Bank’s board which earlierhad reservations over environmentalconsiderations for issuing the loans.Green activists had raised objectionson this ultra-mega power project dueto CO2 emissions from this coal-fired

PD/February/2011/1526

project. But after seeking assurancefrom Reliance-Power to developgreen-energy projects near the plantsite, the Board of the US EXIM Bankat last became satisfied and clearedthe sanction of $ 917 million loan toAnil Ambani Group. This is thelargest funding support by US EXIMBank to any Indian company.

NHDC to set-up 100 MWWind Power Plant

Narmada Hydroelectric Deve-lopment Corporation (NHDC), whichis a joint venture between NationalHydro Power Corporation (NHPC)and Madhya Pradesh government, isgoing to set up a wind power plant ofthe capacity 100 MW in Kukru villageof Betul district. This wind powerplant will be one of the largest suchplants in the country.

On capacity utilisation front inwind power, it stands at hardly 18–22per cent in Madhya Pradesh. NHDChas come forward with an optimisticproject plan and appointed a consul-tant C-wet to prepare a detailedreport in this regard and conduct asurvey. On the basis of this project,NHDC shows its confidence inensuring optimum utilisation of windpower with the plant to be installedin Betul.

Deregulated Petrol Pricesto be Reviewed Every

MonthOn June 25, 2010 Union Govern-

ment raised prices of petroleumproducts—petrol, diesel, kerosene andLPG cylinder and also announced toderegulate petrol prices and made itmarket driven as suggested by KiritParikh Panel. After government’sdecision to deregulate petrol pricesthe government controlled oil market-ing companies (OMCs) have decidedto review the petrol price on amonthly basis.

Though Oil Marketing Com-panies have decided to review petrolprices on a monthly basis, but thethree OMCs—Indian Oil Corpora-tion, Bharat Petroleum andHindustan Petroleum Corporationhave not yet decided the mechanismfor arriving at the market prices.Besides, OMCs also did not specifythe date on which the next pricereview will take place.

As per the declaration madefrom oil marketing companies side,the three OMCs will maintain auniform price for three months andthereafter decide prices based oncompetition.

Transport

Revival of ‘Vayudoot’Proposed

National Aviation Company ofIndia Ltd., the operator of Air India,is planning to revive ‘Vayudoot’ toincrease its connectivity with smallercities in the country. Earlier Vayu-doot brand was under considerationto sell-off. Vayudoot was originallylaunched as a subsidiary of IndianAirlines in January 1981 to serve thenorth-east region of the country.

Vayudoot Past Vs. Future High-lights

● Launched as subsidiary oferstwhile Indian Airlines inJanuary 1981 to increaseconnectivity with smaller cities.

● Merged with IA due to financialcrisis,

● Operations stopped in1997.● Now revival has been planned to

bring traffic from smaller townsto the bigger cities.

● To connect small towns todestinations abroad or otherlocations.

● To operate four types of planesdepending on demand.

● To lease aircrafts also planned.

Navi Mumbai AirportProject Cleared

The Environment Ministry hasgiven its clearance to a new inter-national airport in Navi Mumbai. Theairport which had in-principle appro-val from the Cabinet since July 2007,will make Mumbai the first city inthe country to have two operationalinternational airports. With this newproject, the two airports in Mumbaiwill create a capacity to handle 50million passengers annually by 2015,with an additional 10 million comingfrom the new airport. The plan is toextend the capacity of Navi Mumbaiairport to 40 million by 2030 with aninvestment of 9970 crore. The air-port project will be awarded in 10 to

12 months and the first phase will becompleted by 2014-15.

The new Navi Mumbai airportwill be developed on Public-PrivatePartnership (PPP) basis, with theprivate sector partner getting 74 percent equity while Airport Authorityof India and the Maharashtra govern-ment through City and IndustrialDevelopment Corporation (CIDCO)holding 13 per cent each.

Adani to Develop Terminalat Hazira

Mundra Port and Special Econo-mic Zone (MPSEZ) Ltd. , a part of theAhmedabad based Adani Group hassigned an agreement with HaziraPort Private Ltd. (HPPL) and theGujarat Maritime Board (GMB) fordeveloping non-LNG (LiquefiedNatural Gas) cargo handling facilitiesat Hazira in Southern part of Gujarat.The agreement was signed by AdaniHazira Port Pvt. Ltd. (AHPPL), awholly owned subsidiary of MPSEZ.The investment envisaged for theproject is about 2000 crore. Accord-ing to the company sources, Adanigroup will develop bulk, break-bulk,container and liquid cargo terminalsat Hazira Port.

Orissa to Develop a Port inPuri

Orissa government has signed aconcession agreement with Nava-yuga Engineering Company to set upa port with a capacity of 25 mtpa, atan investment of 6,500 crore in Puridistrict.

This agreement was signedalmost two years after concluding amemorandum of understanding withthe Hyderabad-based developerNavayuga on December 12, 2008.

As per the agreement, the portwill be developed at Astarang in Puridistrict. The port would be opera-tional within four years of landacquisition.

According to the official sources,Astaranga port would be full-fledgedall weather multi-user port on BOOST(build, own, operate, share and trans-fer) basis. Though the initial capacityof the port will be 25 mtpa, it wouldreach 70 mtpa to export cargo likeiron ore, thermal coal, coking coal,coke and break bulk cargo.

PD/February/2011/1527

Railway to Convert TrainsNumber in 5-digit

Indian Railways has initiated aplan to convert the numbers of trainsinto 5-digit. At present, trainsnumbers are of 4-digit. As per theofficial report of Indian Railways, oneadditional digit will be pre-fixed inthe existing 4-digit numbers of thetrains under this newly proposedtrain number system. Shatabdi,Rajdhani, Duranto, Sampark Kranti,Jan Shatabdi, Garib Rath and otherMail / Express / Superfast trainsnumber will be added number 1 atthe beginning of the existing number.Passenger trains numbers will getnumber 5 as additional digit inexisting number while MEMU andDEMU trains will get additionalnumber 6 and 7 respectively.

Major Ports to Follow‘Monopoly Policy’

In its notification, the shippingMinistry has asked all major ports ofthe country to follow its ‘monopolypolicy’ to check the private sectormonopoly in ports with immediateeffect. The notification directs all the13 major ports to follow the mono-poly policy while awarding projectsto private parties through Public-Private-Partnership (PPP).

The monopoly policy approvedby the Law Ministry States that “ifthere is only one private terminaloperator in a port for a specific cargo,the operator of that berth or hisassociates would not be allowed tobid for the next berth for handing thesame cargo in the same port.”

Telecommuni-cation

Fixed-line Phones to have10-digit Number

The Telecom Regulatory Autho-rity of India (TRAI) has given itsrecommendation to use 10-digitnumber for fixed-line phones byDecember 2011. Currently fixed-linephones bear 8-digit number whichwill now be changed to 10-digitnumber. Mobile phones alreadypossess 10-digit number. TRAI in itsrecommendations on ‘EfficientUtilisation of Numbering Resources

3G Spectrum AllocatedSticking to its September 1 deadline, the government on September 1, 2010

allocated 3G spectrum to seven winning bidders after amendments to the licenseterms and conditions. Idea Cellular, however, was not given spectrum for thePunjab circle due to pending regulatory clearances of its acquisition of mobile firmSpice.

Each Operator has been given 5 M Hz of3G Spectrum for each Licensed Circle

in India’ has suggested to completeall preparation by September 30, 2011and to have actual migration to theintegrated scheme by December 31,2011.

Foreign Trade

Trade Deficit Scenario inApril-September 2010In September 2010, India’s

exports increased by 23 per centwhich took India’s exports to thehighest level in the nearly two years.This supportive growth in exportsmade trade deficit shrunk to $ 9·12billion.

According to the data releasedby Commerce Ministry exports grewby 23·2 per cent in September to$ 18·02, while imports rose by 26·1per cent to $ 27·14 billion. As a result,trade deficit shrunk to $ 9·12 billioncompared to $ 13·06 billion in August,which was a 23-month high.

During the first six months of2010-11 i.e., April-September 2010exports went up by 27·6 per cent to $103·3 billion. On the other hand,imports clocked 30 per cent growthduring the April-September period2010 reaching $ 166·5 billion.

PD/February/2011/1528

Taking the note of this encourag-ing scenario of country’s exports,government has extended hope ofachieving export target of $ 200billion for the year 2010 despite therecent appreciation of the Indianrupee.

India's TradeApril-September 2010

(in billion $)

Export 103·3 + 27·6%

Import 166·5 + 30·3%

Trade Deficit – 63·2 —

EXIM Policy ReviewProvides Big Package to

ExportersCommerce and Industry Mini-

stry on August 23, 2010 released theannual review of Foreign Trade Policy

which provides a big financial boostto safeguard the interest of exportersin the phase of weak economicrevival at the world level. Besidesproviding financial package to exportsector, the review announces steps toreduce the transaction cost by at least40 per cent. Annual EXIM policyreview extended the ambit of variousexport promotion schemes. DutyEntitlement Passbook Scheme whichis a duty refund tool, has beenextended till June 30, 2011.

Foreign Debt

India Becomes LargestRecipient of World Bank

Loans in 2009-10World Bank group of institutions

have extended maximum financialaid in the form of loans to India, both

among developing countries and theworld’s poorest nations. InternationalBank for Reconstruction and Deve-lopment (IBRD) and IDA are twolending arms of World Bank whichduring 2009-10 provided $ 9·3 billionfinancial assistance to India.

IBRD provided $ 6·7 billion toIndia during 2009-10 which is 15·1per cent of its total lending. Mexicohas been the second highest recipientafter India with financial aidamounting to $ 6·4 billion.

Soft loan window of World Banki.e., International Development Asso-ciation (IDA) provided $ 2·6 billionconcessionary aid to India during2009-10 which is about 15 per cent ofthe total assistance granted by IDAduring the entire year to the world’spoorest countries.

The statistics of 2008-09 alsoshow that even in terms of actualdisbursement, India was the largestrecipient of World Bank’s financialassistance with a total of releasedasistance of $ 4·7 billion; $ 3·4 billionfrom IBRD and $ 1·3 billion fromIDA.

World Bank’s Aid to IndiaShows 320% Increase in

2009-10During the financial year 2009-10

(ended in June 2010), World Bankprovided aid of $ 9·3 billion to Indiawhich shows an increase of over 320per cent compared to last year. Inrupee terms this aid stands at Rs.42780 crore.

This aid includes $ 2·6 billion(around Rs. 10,856 crore) interest-freecredits by the International Deve-lopment Association (IDA) and $ 6·7billion (around Rs. 30,820 crore) long-term, low-interest loans from theInternational Bank for Reconstructionand Development (IBRD).

According to the World Bank,aid to India traditionally averagedabout $ 2·5-3 billion a year. Theincreased lending to India is theresult of an influence of G-20 duringits November 2008 summit and hugedemands of India’s fast-growingeconomy that needs sustained growthof 8–10 per cent to lift some 400million people out of poverty.

PD/February/2011/1529

ADB to Lend $ 132 millionto Bihar and $ 120 million

to AssamManila-based Asian Develop-

ment Bank has approved $ 132million (over 585 crore) loan forupgrading electricity system in Biharand also a loan package of $ 120million (about 532 crore) to Assamtowards efforts to combat floodingand erosion.

$ 132 million loan to Bihar isbeing granted to Power SystemImprovement Project to upgradeelectricity system in the state. Thefunds have been assigned to be usedto install new transmission lines andto renovate and modernise transmis-sion and distribution facilities toimprove the quality and reliability ofthe state's electricity supply network.ADB has also decided to extend atechnical assistance grant of $ 3 lakhto improve project and financialmanagement in Bihar state ElectricityBoard.

Besides, ADB has also approveda loan package of $ 120 million toAssam as assistance in combatingflooding and erosion in the state.

World Bank to Lend $ 407million for Microfinanceand Statistical Projects

The World Bank has signed twoagreements with India for a total loanof $ 407 million to scale up micro-finance services in unbanked areasand improve capacity to generatequality statistics.

As per official sources, theassisted projects are ‘Scaling upSustainable and Responsible Micro-finance Project’ ($ 300 million loan)and ‘India Statistical StrengtheningProject’ ($ 107 million loan).

The objective of the project is toscale up access to sustainable micro-finance services to the financiallyexcluded, particularly in under-served areas of India. The project willbe implemented by the Small Indus-tries Development Bank of India(SIDBI) over a period of 5 years.

SIDBI will use the funding for on-lending to microfinance institutions(MFIs). The funding, among otherthings, will enable MFIs to leverageprivate commercial funds to on-lendlarger amounts to the under-served.

The second project has beenformulated by the Indian governmentto support statistical reforms in thecountry.

Foreign DirectInvestment

India World’s Second-BestFavourite FDI

Destination : UNCTADWorld Investment Prospect

Surveys 2010-12, published by UnitedNations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD) hasextended the view that India, afterChina, will be the second-bestfavourite destination in the world forForeign Direct Investment (FDI) overthe next two years. China has beenranked as the best-favourite destina-tion for FDI in the world, followed byIndia, Brazil, the United States andthe Russian Federation. All the fourBRIC nations for the first time havebeen ranked in the top-five places forFDI inflows.

Besides, developing nations ofAsia have been placed as the most-sought place for FDI (with six nationsin the top 15). North America andEuropean Union are also attract highinterest in FDI inflows.

The survey, aimed at the largestglobal non-financial transnationalcompanies (TNCs), national invest-ment promotion agencies and loca-tion experts, explores coming trendsin global FDI over the next 3 years inthe wake of the financial crisis.

China, India to have Top FDIInflows Till 2012 : UNCTAD

According to the estimates of UnitedNations study. The world’s biggest com-panies will enter with their investmentsover the next two and three years inmajor emerging economies. China, Indiaand Brazil are the top three nationswhich will attract these investments USeconomy has been placed at fourth rankin attracting FDI inflows in the studymade by UNCTAD (i.e., United NationsConference on Trade and Development).

The conclusions of UNCTAD’Sstudy were based on a survey of the FDIclimate among 236 leading multinationalcorporations and 116 investmentpromotion agencies.

Global investment flows slumped in2008-09 as a result of the economicdownturn but are expected to recoverslowly in 2011 and 2012.

FDI Inflows Register 60%Decline

Data released by industrydepartment show that the ForeignDirect Investment (FDI) in August2010 took a dip of about 60 per cent to$ 1·33 billion which is the lowest inthe financial year 2010-11. The FDIinflow in August 2009 was $ 3·26billion.

Despite the smart recovery in thedomestic economy and a rebound inexports, overseas investment in theform of equity inflows have beendeclining since June 2010. The over-seas investment in June 2010 was at$ 1·38 billion while that in July 2010was $ 1·78 billion. The FDI in the firsttwo months of financial year 2010-11i.e., April and May 2010 stood at $ 2·17billion and $ 2·21 billion respectively.

Cummulatively, in the first fivemonths of the financial year 2010-11i.e., April to August 2010, the FDIinflows declined by 35 per cent to$ 8·88 billion, compared to $ 13·76billion in the same period of 2009.

India’s OverseasInvestments Decline by

36·7%India’s overseas investments

during 2009-10 faced a sharp declineas a result of global financial crisis.During 2009-10, India’s actual out-ward foreign direct investment (FDI)in joint ventures and subsidiariesslipped down by 36·7% and reachedthe level $ 10·3 billion from the level$ 16·3 billion achieved during 2008-09.

As per the data released in RBI’sstudy, though investment financedthrough loans registered a growthduring 2009-10, investments financedthrough equity registered a sharpdecline.

InternationalReports

Human DevelopmentReport 2010

UNDP on November 4, 2010released its 20th Human Develop-ment Report with the theme “TheReal Wealth of Nations : Pathwaysto Human Development”.

PD/February/2011/1530

According to this Human Deve-lopment Report 2010, India is one ofthe fastest progressing country in theworld in terms of its exponentialeconomic growth.

India has been classified in themedium human development cate-gory, placed at 119th rank out of 169countries. India scores HDI valueabove average amongst South Asiancountries, but below average amongother medium human developmentcountries such as China, Sri Lankaand Thailand.

India's HDI value in 2010 reporthas been 0·519, compared to the ave-rage of 0·592 for medium develop-ment countries. It has increased stea-dily through the years, from 0·32 in1980, 0·44 in 2000 and 0·482 in 2005.Between 1980 and 2010, India’s lifeexpectancy at birth increased bynearly nine years, mean years ofschooling grew by close to three yearsand expected years of schoolingincreased by four years. India’s grossnational income per capita grew by254 per cent during that time frame.

The top five countries in 2010Human Development Index (HDI)rankings of 169 countries are Nor-way, Australia, New Zealand, TheUnited States and Ireland while thebottom five are Mozambique, Burun-di, Niger, Congo and Zimbabwe.

67th Rank to India inGlobal Hunger IndexThe Global Hunger Index (GHI)

is a tool adapted and further develo-ped by the International Food PolicyResearch Institute (IFPRI) to com-prehensively measure and trackglobal hunger. The GHI incorporatesthree interlinked hunger-related indi-cators—the proportion of undern-ourished in the population, the preva-lence of underweight in children, and

India’s HDI Indicators for 2010 Relative to SelectedCountries and Region

HDIvalue

HDIrank

Lifeexpectancy

at birth

Expectedyears of

schooling

GNI per capita(PPP US $)

India 0·519 119 64·4 10·3 3,337

Bangladesh 0·469 129 66·9 8·1 1,587

Pakistan 0·490 125 67·2 6·8 2,678

South Asia 0·516 – 65·1 10·0 3,417

Source : Human Development Report 2010, UNDP.

the mortality rate of children. TheGHI aims to raise awareness ofregional and country differences inhunger and trigger action to eliminatehunger.

The index ranks countries on a100-point scale, with 0 being the bestscore (no hunger) and 100 being theworst. Values less than 5·0 reflect lowhunger, values between 5·0 and 9·9

Ranking of India andNeighbouring Nations in

Global Hunger Index-2010Nation Ranking

China 9Sri Lanka 39Pakistan 52Nepal 56India 67Bangladesh 68

reflect moderate hunger, valuesbetween 10·0 and 19·9 indicate aserious problem, values between 20·0and 29·9 are alarming, and values of30·0 or higher are extremely alarm-ing.

Global Gender Gap ReportPuts India on Poor Front

The World Economic Forum'sGlobal Gender Gap Report assessesgender equality in 134 countrieslooking at economic participation and

The Global Gender Gap2010 Ranking

Top 5 Nations

Nation Rank

Iceland 1Norway 2Finland 3Sweden 4New Zealand 5

BRIC Nations

Brazil 85Russia 45India 112China 61

South Asia Nations

Pakistan 132

Sri Lanka 16

Bangladesh 82Nepal 115

PD/February/2011/1531

opportunity, educational attainment,political empowerment, health andsurvival. The report examines bothmen and women's access to resourcesand opportunities rather than thelevels of resources and opportunitiesavailable in a country.

India Slips Down inGlobal Business Com-

petitiveness IndexAccording to the Global Compe-

titiveness Report 2010 released by theWorld Economic Forum, Switzerland,Sweden, Singapore, United States andGermany are the top five nations inthe ranking list of global businesscompetitiveness in the year 2010.India has slipped down its rank to51st from 49 in 2009 due to poorhealth, education and infrastructurefacilities.

Global CompetitivenessReport 2010 Rank

Report Card

Top 5 Rank2009

Rank2010

Change

Switzerland 1 1 0

Sweden 4 2 2

Singapore 3 3 0

US 2 4 – 2

Germany 7 5 2

BRIC

Brazil 56 58 – 2

Russia 63 63 0

India 49 51 – 2

China 29 27 2

Other Asian Economies

Sri Lanka 79 62 17

Indonesia 54 44 10Vietnam 75 59 16

Miscellaneous● Uttar Pradesh launches BPL

families financial aid scheme—Uttar Pradesh government haslaunched ‘Uttar PradeshMukhyamantri MahamayaGarib Arthik Madad Yojana’ forproviding financial aid to 3·1million families living below thepoverty line. Every identifiedBPL family under this schemewill be paid 300 per month.

Every female head of the iden-tified BPL family will get this aidin her bank account every aftersix months. Fifty per cent of theidentified beneficiaries of thescheme will belong to SC/STfamilies. As per the declarationof the government, this schemewill include only those BPLfamilies which had not beencovered under other pro-poorschemes. In the first phase, thenewly introduced scheme willcover 15 million people belong-ing to 3·1 million BPL families. Inthe next phase, the remainingBPL families will be covered.The newly launched schemewould entail an additional annualburden of 1116 crore to theexchequer of the state in the firstphase.

● Govt. to create Innovation Fundwith 5,000 crore—The govern-ment has decided to constitutean ‘innovation fund’ of 5,000crore to promote new talents andtheir innovation tendencies. Thisfund will be functional within sixmonths with the initial capital of

1,000 crore. This fund willfinance the promotional activitiesof new innovations.The government’s share in thisfund will be 20 per cent and theremaining 80 per cent will bemobilised from the private sector.This fund will be operated byNational Innovation Council,headed by Sam Pitroda. Thisfund is a new attempt made bythe government to provide incen-tives to new talents in the direc-tion of strengthening ‘Inclusiveand New India’.

● India Tops Global ConfidenceIndex List—Nielsen Global Con-sumer Confidence Index inSeptember 2010 falls due toconsumer’s opinion that theeconomies of the United Statesand Europe are still in recession.India in Nielsen Companysurvey stays at the top of the listwith the highest score of 129,unchanged from the June survey.Despite being at top, the India’sscore is well below the country’srecord 137 index score readingobtained in the second half of2006. This India’s reading hasbeen the highest for any country

since the Nielsen Consumer Con-fidence Index was launched in2005.

● Three Indian Ladies in Forbes100 Most Powerful WomenList—In the Forbes' list of 100most powerful women in theworld, three Indian women havebeen included. Indra Nooyi, CEOPepsiCo, Shikha Sharma CEO,Axis Bank and Chanda KochharMD and CEO, ICICI Bank havebeen placed at 6th, 89th and 92nd

6th Indra

NooyiPepsiCo

CEO

89th ShikhaSharma

Axis BankCEO

92nd ChandaKochhar

ICICI BankMD&CEO

ranks respectively in this presti-gious list. The first lady ofUnited States Michelle Obamahas topped this list of 100 mostpowerful women in the world.

● Govt. forms 16-member panelon infra-finance—The govern-ment has constituted a High-level Committee on Financing ofInfrastructure under formerReserve Bank of India DeputyGovernor Rakesh Mohan.Government constituted thiscommittee recognising the needfor a policy to enable flow ofresources for infrastructure.The committee will assess theinvestment to be made by theCentre, the state governments,public sector undertakings (PSUs)and the private sector in the 10physical infrastructure sectorsduring the Twelfth Five Year Plan(2012-17).

The 16-member committee willhave representatives from banks,the Pension, Fund Regulatoryand Development Authority, In-surance Regulatory and Deve-lopment Authority (IRDA) andLife Insurance Corporation ofIndia (LIC), among others.

● PF interest raised to 9·5 per cent—The Provident Fund trusteeshas decided to give a higherinterest rate of 9·5 per cent for2010-11 on the retirement savingsof employees in the public andprivate sector.

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Nobel Economics 2010Awarded to Three Economists

for Labour Market TheoryPeter A. Diamond of Massachu-

setts Institute of Technology, DaleMortensen of North Western Univer-sity and Christopher Pissarides fromLondon School of Economics are thethree economists who shared the 2010Nobel Prize in Economics for researchinto the difficulties of matching supplyand demand, particularly in the labourmarket. As per the declaration of theRoyal Swedish Academy of Scienceswhich selects the Nobel laureates, PeterA. Diamond has analysed thefoundations of search markets. DateMortensen and Christopher Pissarideshave expanded the theory and haveapplied it to the labour market. Themodels developed by these Nobellaureates help in understanding theways in which unemployment, jobvacancies and wages are affected byregulation and economic policy.

Nobel Laureates Economics-2010

(From left) Peter A. Diamond, Dale

Mortensen and Christopher Pissarides

The steep 1-percentage pointincrease has taken the interest onPF deposits of 4,71,000 organisedsector workers to a five-year highfrom the current level of 8·5 percent. The decision to raise theinterest rate was taken by thecentral board of trustees, thehighest policy-making body ofthe Employees Provident FundOrganisation (EPFO).

● NABARD raises refinanceinterest rate—National Bank forAgriculture and Rural Develop-ment (NABARD) has made long-term finance to farmers throughcooperative and regional ruralbanks costlier by raising interestrate on refinance by 50 basispoints (bps). With this revision,the interest rate on refinance isnow pegged at 8·25 per cent onyear for cooperative banks and8·75 per cent for commercialbanks. NABARD has taken thisstep of raising interest on

refinance in the wake of mone-tary policy review undertaken byReserve Bank of India. RBI in itsreview of monetary policy hadraised key short-term lendingand borrowing rates by 25 basispoints as part of steps to rein ininflation.

● Cabinet Approves IdentificationAuthority Bill—The UnionCabinet has granted its approvalto the proposed National Identi-fication Authority of India Bill2010 which envisages to makethe Unique Identification Autho-rity of India (UIDAI) a statutorybody. The Bill will now beintroduced in Parliament forapproval.The Bill proposes to constitute astatutory authority to be calledthe National IdentificationAuthority of India and laysdown the powers and functionsof the authority, the frame-work

for issuing unique identification(Aadhaar) numbers, major penal-ties and other related matters,through an Act of Parliament.The draft National IdentificationAuthority of India Bill, 2010,proposes a slew of penalties onoffences ranging from imper-sonation, giving wrong bio-metrics, unauthorised access todata, among other things, withthe highest punishment being 1crore fine and three years ofimprisonment. Among the majoroffences mentioned in the draftBill is the attempt to impersonateanother person by providing anyfalse demographic informationor biometric information.

This offence shall be punishablewith imprisonment for a termwhich may extend to three yearsand with a fine of up to 10,000or both.

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● Mukesh Ambani RichestIndian. : Forbes—Forbes Indiadeclares Mukesh Ambani as therichest Indian with a net worthof $ 27 billion ( 1,20,980 crore).

Laxmi Mittal and Azim Premjistood at second and third in thelist with net worths of $ 26·1billion and $ 17·6 billion res-pectively. Anil Ambani who wasat third rank in 2009 with $ 17·5billion slipped down to sixthrank in 2010 with declinedcapital worth $ 13·3 billion.

As per Forbes estimates, thecollective net worth of the 100wealthiest Indians stood at $ 300billion while it was at $ 276billion in 2009. The four richestIndians have combined worth of$ 86 billion which is much shortof $ 180 billion level, achievedby them in 2007.

India’s Richest ClubNet Worth ( $ BN)

2009

Rank

2010

RankName 2009 2010

1 1 Mukesh Ambani 32 27·0

2 2 Lakshmi Mittal 30 26·1

4 3 Azim Premji 14·9 17·6

5 4 Shashi & Ravi Ruia 13·6 15·0

7 5 Savitri Jindal 12 14·4

3 6 Anil Ambani 17·5 13·3

10 7 Gautam Adani 6·4 10·7

6 8 Kushal Pal Singh 13·5 9·2

8 9 Sunil Mittal 8·2 8·6

9 10 Kumar Birla 7·8 8·5

Source : PTI/Forbes

● Cabinet Approves Caste CensusProcess—The government hasfinally decided to add caste inthe ongoing census process of2011. The union cabinet hasapproved the recommendationsof the Group of Ministers that thecaste of all people as reported bythem will be incorporated in thecensus 2011.

It is also decided that the casteenumeration would be conductedas a separate exercise from June2011 and completed in a phased

manner by September after thePopulation Enumeration phase(to be conducted in February-March) of the Census 2011 isover.

According to the cabinet deci-sion, a suitable legal regime forcollection of data on castes wouldbe formulated in consultationwith the law ministry.

The office of the Registrar Gene-ral and Census Commissionerwould conduct the field opera-tions of the caste enumeration.The central government has deci-ded to constitute an expert groupto classify the caste/tribe returnsafter the enumeration is comple-ted.

● Pilot Project of Subsidised LPGfor BPL Families Launched—The government has launched anambitious programme for pro-viding subsidised LPG connec-tions to below poverty linefamilies.

The programme has initially beenlaunched as a pilot project byMinister of State for PetroleumJitin Prasada in his Dhaurehraparliamentary constituency inKheri district of Uttar Pradesh.

In the opening function, LPGconnections to the heads of 100selected BPL families weredistributed at highly subsidisedrates.

As per the declaration of thegovernment, the scheme of pro-viding subsidised LPG connect-ions will be rolled out on acountry-wide basis by the oilPSUs from October 2, 2010 on theoccasion of Gandhi Jayanti.

The government has earmarkeda budget of 490 crore for theprogramme. 2,86,607 BPLfamilies will be benefitted fromthe programme.

● Oberoi Vanyavilas gets besthotel award—In Travel +Leisure’s 2010 World’s BestAwards reader’s poll, the hotelOberoi Vanyavilas Ranthamborehas been ranked as the best hotelin the world. Besides, three otherhotels of Oberoi group—OberoiAmarvilas and Oberoi Rajvilas,both in Jaipur and Udaivilas inUdaipur—have been placed intop 15 hotels in the world, getting5th, 13th and 15th ranks respec-tively in the list of best hotels.These top hotels of oberoi grouphave also been ranked at top fourplaces in Asia’s list of hotels.

The main features taken into con-sideration while deciding rankingof hotels are location of the hotel,luxurious characteristics of therooms, service, restaurants, foodquality etc. P.Darpan

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India, South Africa Sign Three PactsIndia and South Africa in summit meet in New Delhi

in the first week of June, 2010 agreed to step up theirbilateral cooperation in different fields. They signed threepacts and agreed to support each other’s candidature inthe elections to the rotating non-permanent seats of theUnited Nations Security Council.

During this meeting Prime Minister Dr. ManmohanSingh and the visiting South African President Jacob Zumaon June 4, 2010 also resolved to step up bilateral coopera-tion as well as greater coordination at multilateral fora.

Both sides decided to continue discussing resumptionof full-fledged defence ties which suffered a setback afterthe blacklisting of a major South African firm from defencetenders. They also agreed on the need to expand theBrazil-Russia-India-China (BRIC) group to include SouthAfrica.

The three agreements which the two countries signedpertain to air services agriculture and contacts betweentheir think tanks.

Verdict on Bhopal Gas Leak Case comesafter 26-years

At long last a court in Bhopal on June 7, 2010announced its verdict and convicted all the eight accused,including the former Chairman of Union Carbide, KeshubMahindra, in the much-vexed Bhopal gas tragedy caseand awarded them a maximum of two years’ imprison-ment. They were later released on bail.

The verdict came 26 years after the tragedy on thenight of December 2-3, 1984, which ravaged the city,killing over 15 thousand people and incapacitating evenmore.

Dozens of tonnes of poisonous methylisocyanate gasleaked out from the Union Carbide, India limited (UCIL)a multinational concern of the USA and killed thousandsof people.

Interestingly, Warren Anderson, then Chairman of theUS-based Union Carbide group, who was accused in thetragedy was absconding throughout the trial period,Surprisingly, the court did not mention his name in itsverdict.

India Plans to Raise Commitment to IMFAs multilateral lending agency International Monetary

Fund (IMF) may need more funds to help countries facing asovereign debt crisis in Europe, India plans to pledge addi-tional support of $ 4 billion to the fund. This would increaseIndia’s total commitment to the IMF to $ 14 billion, as it hadalready pledged $ 10 billion in March this year for countriesfacing a financial crisis ‘‘India is likely to contribute up to $ 10billion to the IMF’’, a senior finance ministry official disclosed.

Nag Missile Test-fired SuccessfullyAnti-tank missile Nag on June 13, 2010 was success-

fully test-fired from the Army’s Firing Range at Shamirpetnear Hyderabad. This time it hit a moving target. On June6, it had destroyed a stationary target and proved itscapability of destroying a target at a close range of 500metres in three seconds.

On June 13, 2010 Nag smashed the moving target in3·2 seconds after its launch, an official Defence Researchand Development Organisation (DRDO) said.

The test-firing was conducted by missile scientistsfrom the Defence Research and Development Laboratory(DRDL) after the Army requested for a close range launchon a moving target. The missile punched a hole as itpierced through the target, which was specially deve-loped by Hyderabad-based Delta Technologies in colla-boration with the DRDL.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Raja-paksa’s Visit to India : Seven Pacts Signed

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visitedIndia in the second week of June 2010. During this visitIndia and Sri Lanka on June 9, 2010, decided to extendtheir ties to areas such as defence, space and energysecurity besides strengthening the existing bonds throughrestoration of transport links, setting up additionalconsulates and initiating cooperation in the power sector.

This was reflected in the seven pacts signed by thetwo sides and a joint declaration issued after talksbetween Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and SriLankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

India and Sri Lanka decided to revive the jointcommission mechanism, which will be headed by the twoForeign Ministers, and step up exchange of high leveldefence officials. They agreed on an extensive aid packagefor northern and eastern Sri Lanka that include a projectto construct 50,000 houses and restoration of the railwayinfrastructure, a port and an airport.

In the joint declaration, Mr. Rajapaksa expressed hisresolve to continue implementing the relevant provisionsof the Constitution to strengthen national amity andreconciliation through empowerment. He shared his ideason conducting a broader dialogue with all parties invol-ved, Dr. Singh expressed India’s constructive support forefforts of building peace and reconciliation among allcommunities in Sri Lanka.

National Mission on Enhanced EnergyEfficiency (NMEEE)

The government has approved the establishment of aNational Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency with theaim of building a Rs. 74,000 crore market for energy-

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efficient products. The initiative will help save nearly 23million tonnes of oil equivalent (MTOE) and reduce green-house gases emissions of 98·55 million tonnes. It is esti-mated that this will unlock new and innovative forms ofmarket for energy efficiency estimated at Rs. 74,000 crore.

The Mission is one of the eight missions under theNational Action Plan on Climate Change. Ajay Mathur,Director General of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency hasalso been designated the mission director.

Besides the efficiency trading mechanism, the mis-sion also includes an Energy Efficiency Financial Platform(EEFP), which will provide fiscal tools in aid of projectsthat work to reduce demand of energy.

New Delhi, Ottawa Sign Nuclear Agree-ment

India and Canada on June 28, 2010 signed a civilnuclear cooperation agreement during Indian PM Dr.Manmohan’s stay in Toronto in connection with G-20nations’ summit.

Both countries resolved to ratify the accord andcomplete all remaining steps. This is the next step before

Breaking the Barrier : Prime MinisterManmohan Singh and his Canadiancounterpart Stephen Harper witnessthe signing of a civil nuclear agreementin Toronto.

Canada starts sellingnuclear reactors toIndia. Canada saidthat the agreementwill provide accessfor Canada’s nuclearindustry to India’sexpanding nuclearmarket.

Indian PrimeMinister said thatboth nations agreedto try and take the bilateral trade up to $ 15 billion in thenext five years, up from the current level of around $ 5billion. A comprehensive economic cooperation agreementwas also being envisaged and the initial work on it wason.

NSIC Signs MoU with BotswanaDuring the visit of Lieutenant General Mompati

Sebogodi Merafhe, Vice-President of Botswana in the thirdweek of June 2010, an agreement of mutual cooperationwas signed between National Small Industries Corpora-tion (NSIC) and Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) ofBotswana for the development of micro, small andmedium enterprises in both the countries. The MoU wassigned by Dr. H. P. Kumar, CMD, NSIC and Dr. T. T. K.Matome, CEO, LEA, Botswana, in the presence of S. K.Sinha Director, NSIC and Ravindra Nath, director(finance) NSIC.

Prithvi-II Test-fired SuccessfullyIndia on June 18, 2010 successfully test-fired its indi-

genously developed, nuclear capable, ballistic missilePrithvi-II from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandi-pur about 18 km from Balasore of the Orissa coast.

The missile mounted on a mobile launcher was blas-ted off from the launch complex-3 in the ITR at around6·50 a.m.

A Milestone : Prithvi-II lifting off from a mobile launcher atthe Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, off the Orissa Coaston June 18, 2010.

With a maximum range of 350 km. Prithvi-II iscapable of carrying a payload of 500 kg.

The test-firing of the surface-to-surface missile, whichhas already been inducted into the armed forces, was ausers trial by the Army’s specialised group ‘‘StrategicForce Command (SFC)’’, the sources said.

Prithvi, the first ballistic missile developed under thecountry’s prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Develop-ment Programme (IGMDP) is propelled by liquidpropulsion twin engine.

With a length of nine metres and one metre diameter,Prithvi-II uses an advanced inertial guidance system withmanoeuvring trajectory.

Prithvi-II achieves high degree of accuracy, andmeets all mission objectives. Prithvi now has two variants–Air Force version (Prithvi-II) and Naval (Dhanush) bothhaving a range of 350 km.

Indian Rupee gets Distinct SymbolIndia has finally got a symbol for the Rupee, denoting the

strength of the economy, and joined the select club of countrieswhose currencies have a unique identity.

The Union Cabinet has approvedthe symbol—an amalgam of theDevnagiri ’Ra’ and the Roman capital ‘R’without the stem and two parallel linesrunning at the top. The parallel linessymbolise the ‘equal to’ sign.

With the gaining of the symbol, theIndian rupee joins the club of US dollar,British pound, European euro andJapanese yen that currently have theirown symbols.

The symbol isa mix betweenDevnagiri ‘Ra’ andRoman ‘R’

The symbol was designed by D. Udaya Kumar, who iswith the Department of Design at IIT Guwahati. ‘‘My design isbased on the Tricolour with two lines at the top and whitespace in between. I wanted the symbol for the Rupee torepresent the Indian flag,’’ said Kumar.

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Navy Launches Two Water Jet-PropelledFast Attack Craft

Andhra Pradesh Governor E. S. L. Narasimhan laun-ched two water jet–propelled fast attack craft, INSCankarso and INS Kondul at the naval jetty in Vasakha-patnam on June 29, 2010.

INS Cankarso and INS Kondul, named after twoislands off Goa and in Nicobar, have a displacement of325 tons each and reach a speed of 35 knots.

PSLV-C15 Launched SuccessfullyIn a text book launch, ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch

Vehicle (PSLV-C15) on July 12, 2010 successfully placedinto orbit remote-sensing satellite Cartosat-2B and fourother satellites. PSLV puts 5 satellites in orbit in one go.

At the end of a 51-hour countdown, the 44.4m tallfour stage PSLV-C15 costing Rs. 260 crore, lifted off fromthe Satish Dhawan Space Centre Sriharikota into clearskies.

The most successful launch by any standards demon-strated its reliability and robustness.

It was a flawless mission all the way, with the ignitionand separation of the rocket's four stages taking place ontime, the heat shield protecting the satellites falling off onschedule and the satellites flying out of the fourth stage ata velocity of 27,000 km an hour. The on-board computersworked perfectly. This was the 16th consecutive success-ful flight of the PSLV.

The five satellites launched were : ISRO's 694-kgCartosat-2B; 116-kg Alsat-2A of Algeria; 6.5 kg nanosatellite named NLS6.1AISSAT-I of the Space Flightlaboratory of the University of Toronto, Canada; one-kgnano satellite NLS 6.2 TISAT-1, built by the University ofApplied Science Sciences of Switzerland; and tiny Studsat,built by 35 students of seven engineering colleges inKarnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

With the most successful launch of the PSLV-C15India really has touched milestone in satellite launching.

Approval for Rs. 50,000 crore SubmarineProject

With the Indian Navy trying to expedite a newproduction line for the next generation diesel-electric sub-marines, the Defence Ministry has given its nod to a Rs. 50,000crore project for building six vessels. But as things behave, theyhave yet to identify a private shipyard to take up theresponsibility.

At a recent Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) meeting,chaired by Defence Minister A. K. Antony, the urgency inhaving the second production line was discussed with allseriousness and the nod for the project, code named Project751 was given, as a senior Defence ministry official stated inNew Delhi on July 11, 2010.

Among the shipyards that could be considered to buildthe submarines are the MDL, Visakhapatnam-based HindustanShipyard Limited (HSL) acquired by the Defence Ministry lastyear from the Shipping Ministry and few private shipyardsincluding the L&T, the official stated.

Cabinet Clears National Health PlanWith Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) emerging

as the leading cause of death in India, accounting for over42% of all deaths, the Cabinet Committee on EconomicAffairs (CCEA) has approved the National Programmefor Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiova-scular Diseases and stroke (NPCDCD) for implementationof its various components during the remaining period of11th Five Year Plan. The estimated outlay of Rs. 1,230.90crore will be shared by the centre and the states at theratio of 80 : 20.

The committee also approved the interusability offunds from one component to another within the samegroup of diseases, limited to a ceiling of 10% in order toimpart operational flexibility in the implementation ofthese programmes. Transfer of funds from one com-ponent to the other beyond this limit would be decidedby the Empowered Programme Committee (EPC) andMission Steering Group (MSG).

Approval has also been given to empower the MSGand EPC set up under the National Rural Health Missionto approve financial norms in respect of all components ofthe programme.

Interceptor Missile Successfully Test-firedIndia on July 26, 2010 successfully test-fired its

indigenously developed interceptor missile capable ofdestroying any incoming hostile ballistic missile, from theIntegrated Test Range (ITR) at Wheeler Island off Orissacoast.

Aimed at developing a full-fledged multilayerBallistic Missile Defence (BMD) system, the trial wascarried out from two launch sites of the ITR off the Orissacoast, the defence sources said. The whole exercise is toachieve the desired result with precision, said a seniordefence scientist.

The target missile, a modified surface-to-surface‘Prithvi’ was first lifted off from a mobile launcher at 10.05a.m. from the launch complex 3 of the ITR at Chandipuron-sea, 15 km from Balasore. The supersonic interceptormissile Advanced Air Defence (AAD), positioned atWheeler Island, about 70 km across sea from Chandipur,after getting signals from radars tracked it a few minuteslater and intercepted at a definite altitude in mid-air overthe sea and destroyed it. The debri that fell into the seawas tracked by radars located along the coast.

The first phase of the BMD shield would be opera-tional in 2012 and the second phase in 2016.

Government Clears Funds for UIDScheme

The Union Government on July 22, 2010 sanctionedfunds for the second phase of the ambitious scheme toallocate Unique Identity Numbers to 10 crore of thecountry’s population.

The Cabinet Committee on Unique IdentificationAuthority of India, at a meeting chaired by Prime MinisterManmohan Singh approved the commencement of phaseII of the scheme at an estimated cost of Rs. 3,023·01 crore.

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The estimated cost includes project components forissue of 10 crore unique identity UID numbers by March2011 and recurring establishment costs for the entireproject phase of five years ending March 2014.

The first set of 10 crore UID numbers are expected tobe issued between August 2010 and March 2011. There-after, 600 million UID numbers are expected to be issuedwithin the next three years. The UID project wouldprovide unique numbers to all residents of India.

The UIDAI proposes to collect the demographic andbiometric attributes of residents through various agenciesof the Central and State governments and others, who innormal course of their activities interact with the residents.

The Phase I proposal was approved in November2009.

The UIDAI has since established its headquarters atNew Delhi.

India, America Sign Anti-Terror InitiativeIndia and the United States on July 23, 2010 signed a

Counter Terrorism Initiative that includes steps to checkfinancing of terror activities, joint probe in cases of bombblasts besides cooperation in cyber and border security.

The agreement seeks to further enhance the coopera-tion between the two countries in counter terrorism as animportant element of their bilateral strategic partnership.The initiative provides for strengthening capabilities toeffectively combat terrorism; promotion of exchangesregarding modernisation of techniques; sharing of bestpractices on issues of mutual interest; development ofinvestigative skills and promotion of cooperation inforensic science laboratories.

British PM Cameron’s Visit to India : DealSigned Between India and Britain

British Prime Minister David Cameron came to Indiaon an official visit in the last week of July 2010. He ledwhat Downing Street described as the largest UK tradedelegation in living memory. On July 28, 2010 he was inBangalore where he witnessed the signing of an agree-ment at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.'s facility for thesupply of 57 Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer aircraft to theIndian Air Force and the Navy.

The tripartite agreement involving HAL, BAESystems and Rolls Royce was signed on behalf of HAL byP. Soundara Rajan, Director, Corporate Planning andMarketing Guy Griffith, Group Managing Director, BAESystems, and by Christopher John Awde, CommercialDirector, Rolls Royce.

Under the terms of the contract, BAE systems willsupply products and services to enable HAL build theHawk under license from it for Rs. 3,640 crore.

BAE Systems will provide specialist engineeringservices, raw material and equipment necessary forairframe production and also the support package for theIndian Air Force and the Navy. The deal is valued at Rs.1460 crore.

India, World Bank Sign AgreementIndian government and the World Bank have signed

the Legal Agreements for two World Bank-assisted

projects. Scaling up sustainable and responsible micro-finance project for a loan of nearly Rs. 1,400 crore ($ 30million) and India statistical strengthening projects for aloan of about Rs. 500 crore ($ 107 million). The agreementswere signed by Joint Secretary (M1) of finance Ministry,World Bank's country director (India) and Deputy Mana-ging Director on behalf of Small Industries DevelopmentBank of India.

Government Nod for National InnovationCouncil

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on August 16, 2010gave the green signal for the setting up of a NationalInnovation Council headed by Sam Pitroda, Adviser to thePrime Minister on Public Information Infrastructure andInnovations, to give shape to the government’s decision toobserve the current decade (2010–2020) as the Decade ofInnovation.

The Council will have a mandate to evolve an Indianmodel of innovation that focuses on inclusive growth andcreating an appropriate eco-system conducive to fosteringinclusive innovation.

The 17-member panel includes Planning Commissionmembers K. Kasturirangan and Arun Maira, former Director-General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research(CSIR) R. A. Mashelkar, former President of the NationalAssociation of Software and Services Companies Kiran Karnik,Executive Director of Tata Sons R. Gopalakrishnan, and BioconChairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.

Union Cabinet Clears Bill to ProtectWhistle Blowers

The Union Cabinet on August 9, 2010 cleared a Bill toprotect whistle blowers by providing for severe punish-ment to those exposing the identity of people disclosinginformation about cases of corruption.

The Public Interest Disclosure and Protection toPersons Making the Disclosure Bill, 2010 provides theCentral Vigilance Commission with powers of a civilcourt to hand down harsh penalty to people revealing theidentity of whistle blowers, said the official sources.

The Bill, which has provisions to prevent victimisationor disciplinary action against whistle blowers, will coverCentral, State and Public sector employees.

The Bill is expected to encourage disclosure ofinformation in public interest and people who exposecorruption in government.

It aims at empowering the CVC significantly, makingit the competent authority with all ministries andinstitutions coming under its ambit. Since the whistle-blower who provides inside information will be at graverisk, the CVC’s directions in protecting the identity ofthe person as well as the person himself will have anover-riding effect. It means that no other governmentdirective will be able to supersede the CVC’s order in thisregard.

Centre to Expand PDS CoverAs per press reports, the central government plans to

expand the coverage of Below Poverty Line (BPL) popula-tion under the Public Distribution System (PDS) to 8·07crore from the current 6·52 crore based on the acceptance

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of the Tendulkar Committee’s poverty projections for2011 by the Planning Commission. There will be norevision of quota per family or of the central issue prices.

This will entail an out go of about 34 million tonnesof foodgrains annually and a food subsidy of about Rs.54,000 crore annually on BPL account alone.

On August 15, 2010 Manmohan BecameThird Longest Running PM

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on August 15, 2010reached a milestone—to the envy of many within and outsidehis party.

With his seventh Independence Day speech from Red Forton August 15, Singh addressed the nation and hoisted thetricolour from the iconic monument for the third highestnumber of times.

He not only surpassed his predecessor, the NDA’s AtalBehari Vajpayee, who made the speech six times, he alsopositioned himself third, only after Jawaharlal Nehru (17) andIndira Gandhi (16).

Singh, an economist-turned-bureaucrat-turned-minister-politician, became Prime Minister on May 22, 2004.

The poor would continue to get 35 kg of wheat at thesubsidised rate of Rs. 4·15 a kg or rice at Rs. 5·65 a kg. The2·5 crore poorest of the poor (Antyodaya Anna Yojana)beneficiaries will also continue to get their entitlement ofwheat at Rs. 2 a kg or rice at Rs. 3 a kg.

The move to provide more foodgrains to the poor hasassumed urgency after the Supreme Court’s observationthat the government distribute grains to the poor ratherthan allow them to be damaged for lack of adequatestorage.

GoM Approval for Caste-Based CensusAs per press reports, ending months of fractious debate

across the political spectrum, a Group of Ministers (GoM),headed by Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, gave itsseal of approval to the enumeration of caste in Census 2011 onAugust 11, 2010.

The GoM has recommended that the caste head countshould be done at the biometric stage. Most significantly it willnot be just an OBC head count, but a comprehensive headcount, with every citizen being asked which caste he or shebelonged to. This data will be tabulated and analysed later toarrive at figures of different castes in the country.

The biometric phase will cover photographing, fingerprinting and iris mapping of all citizens over the age of 15 forthe National Population Register (NPR).

Government to Set-up Five Centres forAdvanced Legal Studies

As per reports emanating from a section of the press,the union Law Ministry proposes to establish five regionalcentres for advanced legal studies and research.

According to the draft of the Centres for AdvancedLegal Studies and Research Bill, 2010, prepared by theLaw Ministry, the intention is to establish an autonomousnetworked centre for Advanced Legal Studies andResearch in each region with the objective of carrying outcutting-edge research on various aspects of law, with thethrust on new and emerging areas. It is also aimed at

providing common facilities for legal research for a groupof law schools or for national law universities in general.

The centres will maintain adequate linkages andinstitutionalised interaction with law schools and univer-sities and serve as a think-tank for advising the govern-ment in national and international fora. It will promoteacademic excellence, including continuing legal educationfor faculty, by providing refresher courses on variousaspects of higher legal education and research.

It may recalled here that the recommendation forestablishing the centres for Advanced Legal Studies andResearch was made on the basis of the National Know-ledge Commission.

Russia Hands over Akula N-Submarine toIndia

Russia has handed over a new nuclear poweredsubmarine armed with torpedoes and cruise missiles to Indiaand the vessel set sail in the second week of August for homewith a mixed crew of Indian and Russian sailors.

The Akula class nuclear attack submarine on a ten yearlease to the Indian Navy left its base on the pacific coast,bound for India.

With the expected induction of Nerpa by year end, it willbe after 19 years that the Indian Navy would have a nuclearsubmarine in its fleet.

India’s indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant ispresently undergoing sea test trials. However, an official of theshipyard said that the submarine was still under-going finalsea trials. Reports said that the Nerpa submarine which hasbeen rechristened INS Chakra leased at a cost of $ 650 millionis accompanied by Russian instructors, who will help Indiannaval crew to bring it to the new port of deployment.

Enhances Salary and Perks MPs EnhancedThe Union Cabinet on August 20, 2010 approved a

300 per cent salary hike from Rs. 16,000 to Rs. 50,000 forMembers of Parliament.

The parliamentary panel on the issue had recommen-ded Rs. 80,001, one rupee more than what a cabinetsecretary gets. The parliamentary affairs ministry sug-gested raising it to Rs. 50,000 as against the Rs. 80,001recommended by a parliamentary panel.

Besides salary, an MP gets an allowance of Rs. 1,000for each day the parliament is in session or for taking partin House committee meeting. This has been doubledraising it to Rs. 2,000. A member is also entitled to consti-tuency allowance of Rs. 20,000 a month and an officeexpense allowance of Rs. 20,000 a month. These perkshave been doubled to bring them to Rs. 40,000 each.Constituency allowance and office expense Allowancewere further raised later by Rs. 5,000 each bringing themto Rs. 45,000 each.

Union Cabinet Clears Educational Tri-bunals Bill

The Union Cabinet on August 23, 2010 cleared a Billseeking to create a mechanism to provide for speedyresolution of matters relating to disputes in institutions ofhigher education.

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The Educational Tribunals Bill 2010 was given a go-ahead at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime MinisterManmohan Singh. The Bill proposes to set up a two-tierstructure of Educational Tribunals at the national andstate level to adjudicate on the entire gamut of disputesthat arise in the higher education system.

The Tribunals will act as forums for fast-track andspeedy resolution of issues in institutions in order to buildan effective system of checks and balances in highereducation. The State Tribunals will adjudicate on mattersconcerning teachers, employees and students of institu-tions in the respective states.

The National Tribunal will deal with all mattersconcerning regulatory bodies in higher education and alsomatters involving institutes located in two or more states.The Bill also provides for imprisonment upto three yearsor fine of Rs. 10 lakh or both to those who fail to complywith the orders of the State or The National EducationalTribunals.

Allahabad High Court Verdict on AyodhyaSixty years after the matter first went into litigation

Lucknow Bench of the High Court of Allahabad ruled in amajority judgement on September 30, 2010 that the dis-puted land in Ayodhya where the Babri Masjid stooduntil it was demolished in 1992 shall be divided into threeparts :

● One-third part of the disputed land should be givento the Sunni Waqf Board.

● One-third part should be given to the NirmohiAkhara, and

● One-third part should be given to the party for RamLalla.

The Court ruled that the place where the idol of Ramwas kept was the birthplace of the deity and the idolsshould not be removed.

The entire bench was of the view that the centraldome of the disputed structure goes to Hindu Mahasabha,where the idols were installed in 1949 and again in 1992after the demolition of the Babri Masjid. The Sita Rasoiand Ram Chabootara have been given to Nirmohi Akhara.

The Bench which delivered the much-awaited verdictconsisted of Justice Dharam Vir Sharma, Justice S. U.Khan and Justice Sudhir Agrawal.

The Bench dismissed the suit filed by the Sunni WaqfBoard for possession of the Babri Masjid because it wastime-barred.

The Bench also directed maintenance of status quofor three months and invited suggestions from all theparties for demarcation of the land.

The Waqf Board said that it would file an appeal inthe Supreme Court against the judgement. The Ram-janambhumi Nyas President also said that the Hindu sidewas expected to approach the Supreme Court.

Lok Sabha Adopts Nuclear Liability BillThe Lok Sabha on August 25, 2010 passed the Civil

Liability for Nuclear Damage Bill, 2010 to open up thecountry’s $ 150 billion nuclear power market after thegovernment agreed to tougher accident liability provisionsand higher compensation.

Rejecting the charge that the Bill was aimed atadvancing US interests, Prime Minister Dr. ManmohanSingh said that the accusation was far from truth andhistory will be the best judge. He said that nuclear powerwas an option which the country could not ignore.

Ending weeks of wrangling, the Bill was adopted bythe House by a voice vote after it rejected a CPM amend-ment that sought to fix the liability cap on suppliers incase of accidents at Rs. 10,000 crore instead of the Rs. 1,500crore proposed in the measure.

The government walked more than half way to cometo an agreement with the opposition by deleting thecontentions ‘intent’ word from the clause dealing withsuppliers’ liability.

While introducing the Bill, Prithviraj Chavan,Minister of State in the PMO described the Bill as the nextstep after the 2008 nuclear deal with the United States,that paved the way for India’s participation in inter-national civil nuclear commerce. He divulged that 28nuclear power generating countries had the liability lawbut India and Pakistan were the only two countries whichdid not have such a law. The present Bill filled that gap.

How the Bill Finally Adds up● Section 6(2)—Nuclear operators to be strictly liable for

damages resulting from an accident but their liability iscapped at Rs. 1,500 crore, unless a higher amount isnotified by the government. In earlier draft, the cap wasRs. 500 crore. Beyond this cap, government assumesresponsibility for damages. Bill also specifies ‘maximumliability’ of 300 million SDRs, approximately Rs. 2,100crore.

● Section 17(b)—If accident “has resulted as a consequenceof an act of supplier or his employee, which includessupply of equipment or material with patent or latentdefects or sub-standard services,” the operator shall have aright of recourse, i.e., can sue the supplier for recovery ofany damages paid. There is no need for the supplier toagree to this in a contract or to have intentionally causedan accident, as earlier drafts proposed.

● Section 1(3A)—Only government or ‘government com-pany’ can benefit from the liability cap but the latter isdefined as one where the Central government has ‘not lessthan 51 per cent’ ownership. This paves the way for theliability burden of any private sector partner to besubsidised by the taxpayer.

● Section 18(b)—Increases the time period for filing claimsin case of personal injury from 10 to 20 years.

● Section 16(1)—Claims for damages must be disposed ofwithin three months of application.

● Section 35—Victims can approach the High Court and theSupreme Court for review of compensation amounts.

● Section 46—Government says victims can file tort claimsbut wording is ambiguous.

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President Pratibha Patil’s Visit to Laosand Cambodia

Indian President was on a ten days state visit toSouth East Asian countries Democratic Republic of Laosand Cambodia from September 9 to 18, 2010.

During her visit to Laos, which began on September9, India extended a line of credit with USD 72·55 millionto finance the two power projects in the country. ACultural Exchange Agreement for the year 2011-13 wasalso signed between the two nations. Laos underlined itsdeep appreciation for India’s continued assistance andsupport for its developmental efforts through loans andassistance in the field of human resource development,hydro power and irrigation schemes in particular. ThePresident stated that she was informed that the NationalAssembly of Laos had already approved the Indian-ASEAN Agreement on Trade in Goods and only someadministrative formalities remained prior to its notifi-cation.

The Indian President and her husband Devi SinghShekhawat were accorded a warm welcome at Cambodiancapital Phnom Penh when they arrived on September 13,2010 in Cambodia for the second leg of the 10-day tour.

On September 14, Patil was given a ceremonialreception by King Norodom Sihamoni. A MoU for co-operation between the comptroller and Auditor-Generaland the National Audit Authority of Cambodia wassigned. A US D 15 million credit Line Agreement betweenthe EXIM bank on behalf of India and the Cambodiangovernment was signed for phase II of the Stung TassalWater Development Project.

Centre Clears Caste in Census 2011On September 9, 2010, after five months of wrangling

among political parties, first on whether to undertakecaste enumeration or not, and then on the method fordoing it, the Union Cabinet, after considering the recom-mendations of the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed byFinance Minister Pranab Mukherjee gave its approval,paving the way for caste being included in Census 2011.

Home Minister P. Chidambaram told the journaliststhat “after considering various options, that option thatwe have approved is based on the responses of variouspolitical parties : that caste must be convassed and theintegrity of the head count must not be affected.” Headded that every point of view was accommodated andthe time table drawn up.

Sources in the government point out that this wouldbe a focussed exercise. He stated that since the enumera-tors would be working on a verified data base—TheNPR—the integrity of the data would be maintained.Those being enumerated would be asked to name theircaste, but they would have the option to say ‘No Caste’, ifthey so wish. Later, the raw data collected would beanalysed by an expert group, set up by the Centre.

The office of the Registrar General and Census Com-missioner would be legally empowered to collect castedata by putting in place a suitable legal regime and wouldhand over the details of the castes/tribes to the proposedexpert group.

It may be mentioned that India has not done anycastewise enumeration after Independence. The lastcastewise collection of data took place in the 1931census.

India, South Korea Sign Two MoU onDefence

India’s Defence Minister A. K. Antony visited SouthKorea in the first week of September. The visit was part ofIndia’s policy of strengthening bilateral relations with theSouth East Asian nations in the context of its Look-EastPolicy.

Mr. Antony held talk with his South Korean counter-part, Kim Tae-young on a wide range of regional andglobal security issues. He stated that India thought itselfas an integral part of east Asia and as a founder of theEast Asia Summit, looked at the emerging architecture ineast Asia as open and inclusive.

Heralding a new chapter in the history of defencecooperation and boost the strategic partnerships, bothcountries signed two landmark Memoranda of Under-standing.

The MoUs were signed at the end of delegation leveltalks led by Mr. Antony, who became the first IndianDefence Minister to visit South Korea.

The first MoU envisages exchange of defence relatedexperience and information; exchange of visits by militarypersonnel and experts, including civilian staff associatedwith defence services; military education and training;exchange of visits of ships and aircraft; and conduct ofmilitary exercises. It also envisages cooperation inhumanitarian assistance and international peace keepingactivities.

The other MoU between the Defence Research andDevelopment Organisation (DRDO) and South Korea’sDefence Acquisition and Procurement Agency (DAPA)will be operational under the overarching umbrella ofIndia-South Korea Defence Agreement. The MoU aims atidentifying futuristic defence technology areas of mutualinterest and pursuing R&D. It further envisages co-deve-lopment and co-production of defence products withIndian industry through the DRDO.

India Drops to 51st Position in GlobalCompetitiveness

India has slipped by two places to 51st in the WorldEconomic Forum’s (WEF) global competitiveness rank-ings, while rival China has managed to improve itsstanding to 29th.

As per the WEF’s Global Competitiveness Report2010-11, released in the second week of September 2010,Switzerland is No. 1 in the world in terms of its ability toprovide the most competitive environment on severalfronts.

Sweden, another technology powerhouse in Europe,ranks 2nd, followed by Singapore and the United States,which both fell by two positions from their ranking lastyear. The African nation Chad figures at the bottom ofthe list of 139 countries.

The global competitiveness rankings are viewed as abarometer of the business climate in 139 countries and

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mirrors the assessments of leading businessmen on arange of political, social, and economic parameters.

India has been pushed down to 51st position from49th due to its poor performance in a range of social sectorareas such as education, health and infrastructure.

India Signs Pipeline Deal withTurkmenistan

India on September 20, 2010 signed initial agreements forlaying a pipeline to wheel gas from Turkmenistan throughAfghanistan and Pakistan, though there is cynicism around inthe context of unstable political situation in the region.

The four countries—India, Turkmenistan, Afghanistanand Pakistan—signed the Gas Pipeline Framework Agreement(GPFA) that will lead to the Gas Sales Purchase Agreement(GSPA), in Turkmenistan’s Capital Ashgabat. India’s Ministerof State for Petroleum Jitin Prasada led the Indian delegation atthe signing.

Government Launches Pension Schemefor Unorganised Sector Workers

The Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee onSeptember 26, 2010 launched a pension scheme forworkers in the unorganised sector, who do not haveaccess to the social security net.

“I launched the scheme to coincide with the 78thbirthday of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. Thisscheme will help those who are not covered under anysocial security scheme,” Mr. Mukherjee said after unveil-ing the programme at a function at Jangipur, inMurshidabad district, West Bengal.

Under the scheme—which is named Swabalamban—subscribers would get Rs. 1,000 from the government eachyear for a subscription amount of Rs. 12,000 per year. Thescheme will remain valid for this financial year and forthe next three consecutive fiscals.

Mr. Mukherjee had already allocated Rs. 100 crore forthe scheme in the budget for 2010-11. It will be managedby the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Autho-rity of India.

India, Japan Sign Economic AgreementsIndia and Japan in second week of September 2010

concluded the final round of negotiations on a compre-hensive economic cooperation agreement. It was revealedby Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma onSeptember 12, 2010.

Mr. Sharma said that his Ministry was for making apresentation to Defence Minister A. K. Antony on theneed to raise FDI cap in defence sector to 49 per cent.

Chinese Constructing Rail Link uptoArunachal Pradesh

The Chinese fling surprises in international politics ina manner that the world feels aghast. They are inured toa way of life that is clouded by clandestine and surrepti-tious activities defying proper comprehension. The latestChinese move vis-a-vis India is its design of constructingrail link upto Arunachal Pradesh. We here quote a pressreport detailing the same :

China recently started work on extending its raillink in Lhasa to its border with Nepal, but for India itmight just be a red herring.

In a development, which has alarmed officials,Beijing is simultaneously working on bringing its raillink right up to Nyangtri—located on the border withArunachal Pradesh and an area that China claims as itsown.

Nyangtri is also the site where the Brahmaputra isproposed to be diverted northwards by the Chinese. TheChinese claim that the Nyangtri or Nyingchi prefectureincludes some parts of Arunachal Pradesh. China pro-poses to build the largest dam in the world at this spot.

While the line to Xigaze near Tibet's border withNepal will extend south-west from Lhasa, the line toNyangtri will extend towards Arunachal in the south-east. China proposes to build as many as six big dams inthe region on the Brahmaputra in addition to a dozen orso it has already constructed.

The Great Bend is the place, where the Brahmaputratakes a decisive turn and flows towards India.

India Elected to Security Council as Non-Permanent Member

After 19 years, India was elected on October 12, 2010to the United Nations Security Council as a non perma-nent member.

India secured the backing of 187 of the 191 memberstates in the General Assembly. One member abstainedfrom the vote. The position will help India push moreaggressively for the Security Council reforms.

A founding member of the U.N. India has been onthe Security Council six times earlier, but not since 1992.In 1996, India lost to Japan by 100 votes. This time, how-ever, it has taken over the Asia seat from Japan. It was thesole candidate from the region, with Kazakhstan havingpulled out earlier this year.

In the run-up to the vote, India's External AffairsMinister S.M. Krishna, who was in New York for morethan a week in September itself met leaders of 56 coun-tries on the margins of the General Assembly's annualsession.

In February, India's candidature was endorsed bythe Asian group, but it still had to muster the support of128 countries, two-thirds of the 192-member GeneralAssembly.

The other ‘clean slate’ candidates included SouthAfrica that got the Africa seat, replacing Uganda with thebacking of 182 members, and Colombia, which securedthe seat for the group of Latin American and Caribbeanstates, replacing Mexico.

Enforcement Directorate Decides DiscloseBlack Money in Swiss Banks

In a major development towards bringing transparencyin the probe into black money stashed in swiss banks, theCentral Information Commissioner (CIC) has directed the EDto make public an estimate of the total amount of such moneyinvolved in its investigation.

Rejecting the contention of the directorate that it has beenexempted from making disclosures under the RTI Act, thecommission has held all such matters now investigated by EDcome within the definition of allegations of corruption and,hence, should be disclosed.

The bench, however, exempted the directorate fromdisclosing the nature of such investigations and names ofparties involved.

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India, Scotland Sign Four MoU onEducation

In a bid to strengthen educational links between thetwo countries, India and Scotland on October 12, 2010signed four MoU in various fields that will also promotestudent and faculty exchange and encourage joint degreedevelopment.

The MoUs were signed by directors of institutes fromthe two countries in the presence of HRD Minister KapilSibal and Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond in NewDelhi.

Bill on Judicial Accountability ApprovedThe Union Cabinet on October 5, 2010 approved a

bill providing for a mechanism to deal with complaintsagainst judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court.

The Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill setsjudicial standards and makes judges accountable for theirlapses. It will also mandate the judges of the High Courtsand the Supreme Court to declare their assets and liabi-lities, including those of their spouses and dependents.

The Bill to replace the Judges Inquiry Act retains itsbasic features, contamplates the setting up of a nationaloversight committee with which the public can lodgecomplaints against erring judges, including the ChiefJustice of India and the Chief Justices of the High Courts.

At present, there is no legal mechanism for dealingwith complaints against judges who are governed by‘Restatement of Values of Judicial Life,’ adopted by thejudiciary as a code of conduct without any statutorysanction.

The five member committee will be headed by aretired Chief Justice of India, appointed by the President,and have a serving judge of the Supreme Court and aserving judge of a High Court, both nominated by theChief Justice of India; the Attorney-General; and aneminent person nominated by the President. This marks achange from the earlier proposal in which the committeewas to be headed by the Vice-President and to have theChief Justice of India, a High Court Judge and twodistinguished jurists not involved in regular practice oflaw.

Indian Navy gets Fast Attack Craft toSecure Coast

As part of measures underway to strengthen thecountry's coastal security after the 26/11 terror strikes,the Indian Navy on October 14, 2010 inducted its latestfast-attack craft (FAC) at the Southern Naval Commandin Kochi.

The FAC, INS Kalpeni, propelled by three powerfulwaterjets, can reach speeds in excess of 35 knots. It is theseventh of the 10 FACs, each of which has a crew of threeofficers and 38 sailors, being built at Kolkata-basedGarden Reach shipyard. INS Kalpeni, an improvedversion of Bangaram-class FAC, has been conceived,designed and built indigenously. The FAC's main arma-ment is the 30mm CRN 91 gun, apart from also beingequipped with 11 machine guns and shoulder launchedIGLA surface to air missiles to neutralize aerial threats.

The government also recently inked the first contractto acquire 15 fast-interception craft (FICs) or patrol boatsfor the new Sagar Prahari Bal (SPB) being raised by Navyin the 26/11 aftermath. The 15 boats, which can effec-tively patrol almost up to 200 nautical miles, was signedwith French shipyard Chantier Naval Couach.

These boats will be in addition to the 80 FICsapproved at a cost of over Rs. 320 crore for SPB, thecreation of which was one of the measures announcedafter 26/11, which will be ordered in the coming months.With 1,000 well-armed personnel, the specialized SPB willbe tasked with protection of naval and other assets, basesand harbours on both west and east coasts. But it will takesome time to take concrete shape. For one, the training ofthe first batch of 200 SPB personnel began only lastJanuary. For another, deliveries of the 80 FICs are likely tobegin only by 2012-2013 at the earliest.

Similarly, only Phase-I of the critical coastal surveil-lance network will be up and running by 2011 under aRs. 350 crore project. This will include 46 stations, withcoastal radars, cameras, AIS (automatic identificationsystems) and other sensors mounted atop old lighthousesto dynamically locate and track vessels.

Yudhoyono is Chief Guest at RepublicDay Parade 2011

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono isthe chief guest at this year's Republic Day parade in Delhi,according to official sources.

Both countries will seek to build on the joint declara-tion on a new strategic partnership signed by PrimeMinister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Mr. Yudhoyonoduring the latter's visit to India in 2005. The two sides willalso attempt to expand economic relations bilaterally andunder the aegis of the Association of South East AsianNations (ASEAN) of which Indonesia is a foundermember.

Rustom 1 Test Flown SuccessfullyRustom 1 a medium-altitude and long-endurance

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), developed by theBangalore-based Aeronautical Development Establish-ment (ADE) was successfully test flown at Bangalore onOctober 16, 2010.

As per an official statement, Rustom 1 was flownfrom the Taneja Aerospace and Aviation airfield at Hosurnear Bangalore. The aircraft took off even in inclementweather condition for a first flight, flew for 12 minutesand landed successfully, meeting all its objectives.

According to a Defence Research and DevelopmentOrganisation (DRDO) spokesperson Rustom 1 followedthe two other UAV developed by the ADE—Lakshya andNishant. While Lakshya—a drone that is remotely pilotedby a ground control station—provides aerial sub-targetsfor live fire training, Nishant is a surveillance aircraftprimarily tasked with intelligence gathering over enemyterritory.

The first full flight of Rustom 1 on October 16 wasunder the command of Lt. Col. V. S. Thapa of the Army,an experienced External Pilot for UAVs who waspositioned at the edge of the runway. The statement said

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that he controlled it without any difficulty throughout itsflight, which included the pilot-assisted take-off flight inair and a copy book style landing.

The aircraft has many auto-features such as GPScontrolled Way Point Navigation and Get U Homeincluded even in its first flight, but will be exercised insubsequent flights.

India Signs Social Security Agreementwith South Korea

A reciprocal Social Security Agreement (SSA) andprotocal that will benefit a huge number of Indians—particularly those working in the fields of InformationTechnology, medicine and finance—was signed in Seoul,S. Korean capital on October 19, 2010. Overseas IndianAffairs Minister Vyalar Ravi and Korean Minister forTrade Kim Jong-hoon signed the pact. An official releasesaid that a number of Indians were working in S. Korea,most of them professionals and self-employed persons.

There was huge potential for the employment ofIndians in Korea owing to a large gap in market laboursupply. An SSA with S. Korea would enhance themovement of professionals, and investment, between thetwo countries.

Government Approves Amendments toEnemy Property Law

The Union Government on October 20, 2010approved amendments to a four-decade old law thatproposes to allow Indian legal heirs to inherit theproperties of relatives who migrated to Pakistan afterpartition. However, as per the amendment to the EnemyProperty Act of 1968 only transactions that have beeneffected before July 2, this year will have legal sanction.The Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill,2010 introduced says.

According to the amendments, “if the enemy pro-perty was diverted from the Custodian before 2nd July,2010, it shall stand transferred to and vest or continue tovest in the custodian.”

Through an Act in 1968, the government had declaredthe properties left behind by people who migrated toPakistan during partition as ‘enemy properties‘.

The proposal for fresh amendments provide forensuring that the enemy property shall continue to vest inthe custodian till it is divested by the central govern-mentand the enemy property could be divested only to theowner or his lawful heir.

It means a Muslim citizen of India who is a legalinheritor of such property is able to retain ownership evenif the deceased had gone to Pakistan after partition, but hewill have to legally prove his or her inheritance.

India, Germany Ink Cultural AccordIndia and Germany on October 18, 2010 imparted

fresh momentum to their joint efforts for expansion of theU.N. Security Council and discussed ways to deepencounter-terror cooperation.

External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna held talks withhis German counterparts Guido Westerwelle that focus-sed on UN reforms, enhanced counter-terror cooperation,

climate change and the intensification of economic anddefence ties.

After the talks, Suresh Kumar Goel Director-Generalof the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, and ThomasGoetz Director-General, Culture and Science, The Germanoffice, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)and celebrating a year of Germany in India in 2011-12 anda year of India in Germany in 2012-13.

The celebrations will mark 60 years of Indo-Germandiplomatic partnership. India and Germany have beenelected non-permanent members of the United NationsSecurity Council (UNSC) for 2011-2012.

Prime Minister’s Visit to Japan, Malaysiaand Vietnam

Indian Prime Minister was on a seven-day visit toJapan, Malaysia and Vietnam in the last week of October2010. On October 25 in Tokyo, India and Japan decided toextend their cooperation to areas such as joint ventures inrare earth minerals, some hitherto unexplored areas indefence, and transport and industrial corridors in SouthIndia.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Japanesecounterpart Naoto Kan, resolved to continue talks on acivil nuclear agreement. They instructed the officials toensure the smooth implementation of the ComprehensiveEconomic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and acceleratediscussions on the reform of the United Nations SecurityCouncil, to which both countries are aspirants as perma-nent members.

From Japan the Prime Minister dashed to Malaysiawhere he arrived at Kuala Lumpur on October 26, 2010.

In Kuala Lumpur, India and Malaysia signed sixpacts, with the accord for implementing the Compre-hensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) fromJuly 1, 2011 being the centrepiece. The agreements weresigned at a ceremony presided over by Prime MinisterManmohan Singh and his Malaysian counterpart Mohd.Najib.

An agreement between the Council of Scientific andIndustrial Research (CSIR) and the UNIK of Malaysia onResearch and Development Collaboration will witness thesetting up of a Joint Innovation Accelerator Centre inMalaysia to carry out research in green technology, watertreatment and medicinal and aromatic plants.

From Malaysia Dr. Manmohan Singh reached Hanoi,the capital of Vietnam on October 28, 2010 to attend the5th East Asia Summit and the 17th ASEAN Summit. InHanoi the Prime Minister interacted with several regionalleaders and exchanged views on bilateral and multi-lateral matters. The most significant was Dr. Manmohan’smeeting with Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. In thismeeting which materialised on the sidelines of theAssociation of South East Asian Nations Summit and theEast Asia Summit both leaders covered the entire gamutof relations, including the issue of China issuing stapledvisas to people domiciled in Jammu and Kashmir and theconsequent pause in the high-level defence exchanges. Intheir 10th meeting in six years, they took a broad view ofthe strategic significance of India-China ties and ex-pressed satisfaction at the development of relations.

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Nuclear Deal with South KoreaIndia and South Korea have reached an agreement on

civil nuclear cooperation, marking the ninth such pact Delhihas finalised since getting the Nuclear Suppliers’ Group waiverin 2008.

The announcement came after Prime Minister ManmohanSingh met South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Oct. 29in Hanoi, Vietnam on the sidelines of the Asean Summit. “Wehave finalised agreement on cooperation in civil uses of nuclearenergy, which is now awaiting signature,” national securityadviser Shivshankar Menon said.

India, Bangladesh Sign $ 1 billion Line ofCredit Agreement

India has decided to export 5 lakh tonnes of rice andwheat to Bangladesh despite ban on outward shipmentsof the foodgrains. Both countries also agreed in the thirdweek of October to establish ‘Border Haats’ along theMeghalaya-Bangladesh border and open the Chittagongand Mongla ports to boost trade ties.

The two countries have signed $ 1 billion Line ofCredit agreement and some important pacts for powertransmission. Union Commerce and Industry MinisterAnand Sharma met his Bangladesh counterpart in NewDelhi on October 23, 2010.

January 25 to be National Voters' DayJanuary 25 will hereafter be celebrated as National

Voters' Day, Chief Election Commissioner S. Y. Quraishisaid on October 9, 2010.

The date marks the foundation day of the ElectionCommission of India. On that day, young voters, whoattain the age of 18 years on January 7,' will be givenElector Photo Identity Cards (EPIC).

President Barack Obama’s Visit to IndiaUS President Barack Obama’s visit to India mate-

rialised from November 6 to 9, 2010. He landed inMumbai on November 6 and from there he arrived atDelhi the following day. During his 26-hour stay inMumbai his focus was on business and economic issues.In Mumbai, Obama addressed a town hall interactionwith students, where fielded questions ranging fromMahatma Gandhi to why US was fighting shy of declaringPakistan a terrorist state were asked. He said hisadministration’s foreign policy had been to engageaggressively with Pakistan to communicate that theywanted nothing more than a stable, prosperous andpeaceful Pakistan.

In Delhi President Obama was accorded a rousingwelcome. The Obamas were treated to a slice of emergingIndia as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hosted aprivate dinner on the lawns of 7 RCR on November 7. Heshared the high table with Sonia and Rahul Gandhi andPranab Mukherjee besides the PM and his wife.

India and the US are the world’s largest democraciessharing ‘certain values’ and their relationship will be adefining one in the 21st century, President Barack Obamasaid after receiving a ceremonial welcome at RashtrapatiBhawan in New Delhi on November 8. President Obamalater paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi at the Rajghat andwent into talks with Dr. Manmohan Singh.

US Eases Control on Hi-Tech ExportsThe US on Nov. 8 decided to relax its export controls of

high-tech equipment to India, particularly in the defence andscientific areas, while agreeing to push Delhi’s membership insome key strategic multilateral institutions and work closelytowards global energy security.

The formal announcement came during a joint pressconference addressed by PM Manmohan Singh and USPresident Barack Obama after their one-on-one meeting inNew Delhi at the Hyderabad House, followed by delegation-level talks.

On his part, the US President said the major trade dealsannounced in Mumbai on Nov. 6, worth some $ 15 billion, wasan important step in elevating India to one of America’s toptrade partners.

With US President Mr. Obama on his side PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh on November 8 underlined hiscommitment to pursue peace with Pakistan but made itclear that as long as terror machine was active againstIndia it would be difficult to keep on talking. ‘‘You can’tsimultaneously talk and have at the same time terrormachinery active ever before,’’ said the Prime Minister.

Issues relating to Pakistani origin of terrorism andterror groups active in the region figured prominently inrestricted discussions between Manmohan Singh andObama, said sources.

The major gain out of Obama’s visit to India was theexpression of support for India’s bid for a UNSCpermanent seat. Mr. Obama, on November 8, said that theUS would support India’s bid to become a permanentmember of the United Nations Security Council. BarackObama made this announcement during his address tothe joint session of Parliament.

Obama’s announcement of US support for India’s bidfor permanent seat in the UNSC was not liked byPakistan. In a statement Pakistan said that by supportingIndia’s claim to UNSC permanent seat Obama has madethe process of UN reform more complex. The statementdescribed the US gesture as a hasty step.

During Obama’s visit to India not less than six pactswere signed, mostly relating to energy, weather forecasting, gas extraction and the establishment of globalDisease Detection Centre in India. Both parties issued ajoint statement which touched upon all subjects referredto above and many others.

Indo-US Defence Deal : $ 4·1 billion C-17Aircraft Deal to be Expanded

The biggest Indo-US defence deal in the pipeline, the$ 4·1 billion for 10 C-17 Globemaster-III gigantic strategicairlift aircraft, could get even bigger. India may well orderanother six C-17s after the first 10 for which the deal hasalready been struck.

The gigantic C-17s are capable of carrying a payloadof 164,900 pounds after taking off from a mere 7,000 feetairstrip. These four engine aircraft, manufactured byBoeing, can transport tanks and combat-ready troops over2,400 nautical miles.

This came shortly after Barack Obama while addres-sing the media with Dr. Manmohan Singh, said.

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As Air Chief Marshal (ACM) P. V. Naik said C-17swould significantly augment India’s ability to movetroops and combat systems, as also humanitarian aid anddisaster relief, over large distances.

At present, Indian Air Force (IAF) has just a dozenRussian origin IL-76 ‘Gajraj’ aircraft with its medium-liftfleet comprising 104 Russian AN-32 aircraft. The C-17shave short-landing capabilities, which will be crucial inthe future, Mr. Naik said.

The contract for 10 C-17s, with all its final costs,offsets training packages. India is buying the Globe-masters under US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) pro-gramme in a direct government-to-government deal.

Judge Soumitra Sen Found Guilty ofCorruption

A three-member committee formed by the RajyaSabha to enquire into an impeachment motion againstCalcutta High Court Judge Soumitra Sen has held himguilty.

The panel, constituted by Rajya Sabha ChairmanHamid Ansari, was headed by Supreme Court judge B.Sudarshan Reddy and comprised Punjab and HaryanaHigh Court Chief Justice Mukul Mudgal and noted legalexpert Fali Nariman. Its report was tabled in the RajyaSabha on November 10, 2010.

The panel said that Justice Sen was guilty of ‘‘mis-appropriation of large sums of money which he receivedin his capacity as receiver appointed by the High Court ofCalcutta’’ and ‘making false statements’. Sen also mis-represented facts with regard to the misappropriation ofmoney before the High Court of Calcutta, the panel said.

The report says that charges have been ‘duly proved.’In view of the findings the inquiry committee is of the

opinion that Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta HighCourt is guilty of misbehaviour, the report said.

If the impeachment motion is approved by bothhouses of Parliament, Sen will be the first sitting judge inIndia to be removed in this matter.

An impeachment motion was moved against Sen inFebruary 2009 after a notice signed by more than 50 RajyaSabha MPs was submitted by Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury to Ansari, who thenconstituted the three-member probe panel.

Indian Scientific Team Reaches South PoleAn eight member Indian scientific team reached the South

Pole on November 22, 2010 and hoisted the tricolour there.Speaking to journalists through satellite phone, Rasik

Ravindran, head of the team and Director of the NationalCentre for Antarctic and Ocean Research said : ‘‘We are feelingat the top of the world standing at the bottom of the world.’’

The temperature outside was minus 70 degrees celcius.The team, consisting of five scientists including Dr.

Ravindran, a doctor, and two vehicle engineers, reached theSouth Pole after a gruelling nine-day traverse across Antarctica.

Starting from the Indian research station Maitri, 2,350 kmfrom the South Pole, on November 13, the team travelled infour specialised Arctic trucks designed to handle not onlyharsh weather conditions but also icy and crevasse infestedterrain.

The team was to stay at the South Pole for short durationto conduct more research.

Army’s Strategic Forces Command TestsAgni-I

The Strategic Forces Command of the Army onNovember 25, 2010 Test-fired Agni-I, the surface-to-surface missile, from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) onWheeler Island, off Damra village on the Orissa coast.

The flight was successful with the missile travellingits full range of 700 km. Fired in the morning the missilefollowed its trajectory and reached the designated targetarea in the Bay of Bengal.

Agni-I, which can carry nuclear warheads, is aproduct of the Defence Research and Development Orga-nisation (DRDO). The Advanced Systems Laboratory(ASL), a DRDO facility at Hyderabad, developed it. TheStrategic Forces Command is in charge of the nucleardelivery systems.

Jammu and Kashmir off from UNDisputes List

An annual report of the UN Security Council to the UNGeneral Assembly has once again dropped mention of Jammuand Kashmir, in keeping with a trend that started in 2006,leaving Pakistan diplomats crying foul.

On November 15, Pakistan’s envoy Amjad Sial told theGeneral Assembly debating the annual report of the UNSCthat the absence of the J&K issue was ‘inadvertent.’

However, while welcoming the UNSC report, Indiandiplomats said that the issue has not been part of any UNSCreport since 2006. In 2005, the then UN Secretary General KofiAnnan declared that the ‘plebiscite’ issue could not beenforced or self-implemented. In other words, Indian officialssaid, it was a dead letter.

The India-Pakistan issue has not been debated in theUnited Nations Security Council since 1965. But it was afterAnnan’s remark, made in the context of resumption of Indian-Pakistan dialogue in 2005, that the UNSC dropped reference tothe dispute.

President Pratibha Patil’s Visit to UAEand Syria

India’s President Pratibha Patil had her first officialvisit to the Gulf and the West Asia region in November2010. She journeyed to the United Arab Emirates andSyria which reaffirmed India’s interest to strengthen tieswith countries in these regions. She visited the UAE at theinvitation of his Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed AlNahyan, President of the UAE. He met with a wide cross-section of the UAE polity and society during her visit.Besides visiting Abu Dhabi, she also visited Dubai andSharjah.

During her visit, she also interacted with thebusiness community, both Indian and local in the UAE.India’s bilateral trade which stood at a modest figure ofaround US Dollars 180 million in the early seventies nowtrade at present is valued at US $ 43 billion.

In the second segment of her tour, she visited Syriawhich was the first Presidential visit from India. India andSyria enjoy traditionally friendly ties and cooperateactively in the UN and NAM. Significantly, Syria hasexpressed support for India’s Permanent Membership ofthe UNSC. India, too, on its part, has always supported alljust Arab causes, and has consistently supported thereturn of the Golan Heights to Syria, which remainsoccupied by Israel since 1967. P.Darpan

PD/February/2011/1546

PERSONS IN THE NEWS

Justice N. Santhosh HegdeIn a sudden turn of events, Karnataka Lokayukta N.

Santhosh Hegde on July 3, 2010 decided to withdraw hisresignation submitted to Governor H.R. Bharadwaj onJune 23, 2010.

Earlier BJP leader L. K. Advani had requested Mr.Hegde to withdraw his resignation. Mr. Advani assuredMr. Hegde that the government would act on hisdemands.

Philippe CroizonA frenchman, Philippe Croizon, whose arms and legs

were amputated swam across the English Channel in thesecond/third week of September 2010 using leg pros-theses that had flippers attached.

Priti KumarPriti Kumar (34) is the first motorwoman of western

railway. October 13 was a historic day for the WesternRailway (WR) when the first suburban train driven by amotorwoman chugged out of Churchgate station inMumbai amidst a great reception from commuters whogathered at the station to witness the memorable moment.

V. RadhakrishnanEighty one year old Professor V. Radhakrishnan,

eminent radio astronomer and Trustee of the RamanResearch Institute, Bangalore, is one of the few Indianswho have been criss-crossing the oceans in a yacht, thattoo designed by him. The son of Sir C. V. Raman, he is ona mission to learn more on his chosen field on his yacht‘Eldemer’.

Marisol Valles GarciaThe 20-year old Marisol Valles Garcia has become the

Police Chief in Mexico in the borderland where druggangs have killed public officials and terrified manycitizens into fleeing.

APPOINTMENTS/ELECTION

Y. P. SinghYogendra Pratap Singh has been appointed the first

Ambassador to the Republic of Niger.The earlier appointment of Vinod Kumar Sachdev has

been cancelled.

Chandra Shekhar VermaChandra Shekhar Verma has taken charge of the

office of Chairman, Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL).Prior to his appointment, Mr. Verma was director(Finance) of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL).

Justice Rekha Manharlal Doshit

President Pratibha Patil has appointed Justice RekhaManharlal Doshit of the Gujarat High Court as ChiefJustice of Patna High Court. She succeeds Justice DeepakMisra, transferred to Delhi High Court as Chief Justice.

Ashok Kumar AttriAshok Kumar Attri has been appointed Ambassador

of India to Denmark.Now Consul-General in Chicago, he will succeed

Yogesh Kumar Gupta.

Chistiana Figueres

ChistianaFigueres

Chistiana Figueres has been appoin-ted new executive secretary of theUnited Nations Framework Conventionon Climate Change (UNFCCC) in placeof the present secretary Yoes de Boerswho resigned after the failure to reachan agreement in Copenhagen in Decem-ber 2009 but was persuaded to completehis four year term ending in June 2010.

O. P. Bhatt Elected IBA ChairmanState Bank of India Chairman O. P. Bhatt has been

elected the new Chairman of the Indian Banks’Association (IBA) for 2010-11.

Mr. Bhatt takes charge from M. V. Nair, Chairmanand Managing Director of Union Bank.

Yogesh AgrawalFormer banker Yogesh Agrawal has been appointed

Chairman of interim pension regulator PFRDA. YogeshAgrawal took over the charge of the Chairman interimPension Fund and Regulatory and Development Autho-rity on June 7, 2010.

S. K. KhannaBrigadier S. K. Khanna assumed office as Chief

Engineer (Naval works) at the Southern Naval commandin Kochi. The Chief Engineer (Navy) heads the MilitaryEngineer Services (MES) in Kochi and has jurisdictionover the establishments of the Southern Naval Commandacross the country. Commissioned into the Corps ofEngineers of the Indian Army on June 8, 1985, BrigadierKhanna is a graduate in Civil Engineering.

Justice Madan Bhimrao Lokur

President Pratibha Patil has appointed Justice MadanBhimrao Lokur, Judge of the Delhi High Court, as theChief Justice of the Gauhati High Court. He succeedsChief Justice R. S. Garg, who retired in mid June, 2010.

PD/February/2011/1548

Three Chief Justices AppointedThe Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Mohit

Shantilal Shah has been appointed new Chief Justice ofthe Bombay High Court.

Justice Shah will succeed Justice A.R. Dave, who hasbeen elevated as a Supreme Court Judge.

F. I. Rebello, Judge of the Bombay High Court hasbeen appointed Chief Justice of the Allahabad HighCourt.

J. N. Patel, acting Chief Justice of the Bombay HighCourt has been appointed Chief Justice of the CalcuttaHigh Court.

Nisha Desai BiswalThe Obama government has nominated yet another

Indian-American, Nisha Desai Biswal, to a senior positionwithin its administration. Ms. Biswal has been nominatedto the post of Assistant Administrator for Asia in theUnited States Agency for International Development(USAID).

D.R.S. ChaudharyIn an attempt to streamline its interaction with the

media, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on July 20,2010 appointed D.R.S. Chaudhary, Additional Secretary,as its spokesperson.

Quraishi New Chief Election CommissionerPresident Pratibha Patil has appointed Election Com-

missioner (EC) Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi as the next

S. Y. Quraishi

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) underclause 2 of the Article 324 of the Consti-tution.

Mr. Quraishi (63) takes the place ofNavin Chawla who retired in July itself.

Mr. Quraishi, a former IAS officer ofthe 1971 batch from Haryana cadre, willbe in charge of holding the Assembly

elections in Bihar this year and in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal,Kerala, Puducherry and Assam next year.

Born on June 11, 1947 Mr. Quraishi is a post-graduate inhistory from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi. He became ElectionCommissioner on June 30, 2006. Prior to that, he was UnionSecretary, Youth Affairs and Sports.

Elena KaganElena Kagan, Solicitor General in the Obama adminis-

tration and former Dean of Harvard Law School, has beenconfirmed by the Senate as an Associate Supreme CourtJustice.

The vote, 63–37 along party lines, made Ms Kagan thethird woman justice in the court and the fourth in thecourt’s history.

Naina Lal Kidwai

Naina Lal KidwaiNaina Lal Kidwai, who heads

HSBC’s operations in India has beeninducted into the Asia-Pacific board ofthe global banking major. Kidwai hasbeen with HSBC since 2002 and iscurrently the country head of HSBC inIndia.

Priyanka ChopraBollywood actress Priyanka Chopra was appointed on

August 10 UNICEF National Ambassador for promotingchild rights and adolescence. She follows the foot steps ofAmitabh Bachchan and Sharmila Tagore in supportingthe UNICEF’s work in India and abroad.

Justice Barin GhoshJustice Barin Ghosh has been appointed Chief Justice

of Uttarakhand High Court. He was sworn in Dehradunon August 12, 2010.

Saina NehwalTo promote Andhra Pradesh as an attractive tourist

destinations, the state government has decided to ropeinace badminton star Saina Nehwal as its new brandambassador.

Justice Bhagwati PrasadJustice Bhagwati Prasad was sworn in as Chief Justice

of the Jharkhand High Court on August 22, 2010.

Justice Nissar AhmedIn a departure from its more than two decades’ old

practice, the Supreme Court has recommended theappointment of Justice Nissar Ahmed Kakru, who hailsfrom Jammu and Kashmir, as the Chief Justice of theState's High Court.

P. J. ThomasP. J. Thomas was sworn in as Central Vigilance

Commissioner in the first week of September, 2010.Mr. Thomas, the Telecom Secretary till now, was admini-stered the oath of office by President Pratibha Patil atRashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

Kevin RuddThe former Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd

has got the Foreign Affairs portfolio in Julia Gillard's newMinority government in Australia.

Kevin Rudd

Mr. Rudd ceased to be PrimeMinister when Ms. Gillard toppled himin a political coup within the rulingAustralian Labour Party several weeksbefore seeking a mandate for herself in asnap general election on August 21,2010. The election produced the coun-try's first hung Parliament in nearlyseven decades.

Sushil KoiralaThe 12th convention of the Nepali Congress (NC) has

elected veteran leader Sushil Koirala, a member of theinfluential Koirala family, as its new President.

More than 3,000 party delegates voted in the polls.Mr. Koirala bagged 1,652 votes, defeating his nearestrival, the former Prime Minister, Sher Bahadur Deuba,who obtained 1,317 votes. The third candidate BhimBahadur Tamang obtained 78 votes.

R. ChandrashekharR. Chandrashekhar has been appointed as the new

Telecom Secretary. Mr. Chandrashekhar who was till now

PD/February/2011/1549

Secretary in the Department of Information and Tech-nology has been given the charge of Department ofTelecom, following the appointment of his predecessorP. J. Thomas as Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC).Mr. Chandrashekhar assumed charge on September 24,2010.

Shashikant SharmaThe current Director General in the Ministry of

Defence, will be the new secretary of the department ofInformation and Technology.

Mohamed Abdullahi MohamedSomalia’s President on October 14, 2010 appointed

a Somali-American diplomat Mohamed AbdullahiMohamed as his Prime Minister, filling a post vacant foralmost two months.

K. Vijay KumarK. Vijay Kumar, Director, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

National Police Academy (NPA), Hyderabad has beenappointed the new Director-General of the Central ReservePolice Force (CRPF) headquartered in New Delhi.

Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping

Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinpinghas been promoted to Vice-Chairmanof a key Communist Party militarycommittee, state media reported onOctober 18, 2010. Party leaders alsopledged to make vigorous yet steadyefforts to promote political restruc-turing.

Dilma RouseffIn Dilma Rouseff's election as Brazil's new President the

Worker's Party has seen Lula da Silva, the most popularBrazilian President again maintaining his powerful influence inBrazilian politics. On November 1, 2010 Dilma won 56 per centvotes to beat her social democrat rival Jose Serra and createdhistory by becoming Brazil's first woman President. She sweptthe polls in Brazil's poorer areas, proving that she was Lula'strue inheritor. Dilma, who takes over from Lula on January 1,2011 is affectionaltely called by him the mother of all Brazil.

Mahinda RajapaksaSri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn

in for a second term on November 19, 2010, official sourcesdivulged. The ceremony took place at the PresidentialSecretariat before Chief Justice Ashoka de Silva.

New Rajasthan Chief Justice takes OathJustice Arun Kumar Mishra took oath as the Chief

Justice of the Rajasthan High Court on November 26,2011. Governor Shivraj Patil administered the oath toJustice Mishra, who has been till now the Acting ChiefJustice of the Rajasthan High Court.

Justice Mishra, who was transferred to RajasthanHigh Court, Jodhpur on September 12 this year becamethe Acting Chief Justice on November 1. The 1955-bornJustice Mishra, who joined as the Additional Judge of theHigh Court of Madhya Pradesh on October 25, 1999

became a Permanent Judge on October 24, 2001. He hasbeen the Administrative Judge of the MP High Court andChairman of the Legal Service Authority in that State.

Prithviraj ChavanMinister of state in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO)

Prithviraj Chavan was selected as the new Chief Ministerof Maharashtra, following the resignation of Mr. AshokChavan in the wake of the Adarsh Housing Society scam.

Chavan, who replaces Ashok Chavan said that hewas highly honoured and humbled that the Congressleadership had chosen him to undertake the responsibilityof heading the government of Maharashtra at this impor-tant juncture.

A. P. Singh takes over as New CBI ChiefAmar Pratap Singh, seniormost Special Director in the

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on November 30, 2010took over as the new Director of the CBI.He succeeded Ashwani Kumar, whoretired after completing his 27 month-long tenure.

Mr. Singh belongs to the Jharkhandcadre of the 1974 batch of IPS. He hasearlier held several positions in theinvestigating agency between 1987-1995.It may be added here that he had beenassociated with the investigations of anumber of sensitive cases, including the

Amar Pratap SinghNew CBI Chief

Harshad Mehta scam in 1992. He has also served in the BorderSecurity Force (BSF) as Additional Director-General. He joinedthe CBI as Special Director in April 2009.

DEATHS

Manohar MalgonkarManohar Malgonkar, the author, died in Jagalpet in

Karnataka’s Uttara Kannada district on June 14, 2010. Hewas 97.

Edith ShainEdith Shain, who became something of a celebrity

decades after World War-II, asserting that she was thenurse kissed by a sailor in Life magazine’s memorablephotograph of V-J Day in Times Square, died on June 20,2010 at her home in Los Angeles. She was 91.

Jose SaramagoNobel literature prize winner Jose Saramago, who left

his native Portugal after arguing with his country’sgovernment died on the Canary island Lanzarote. He was87.

Robert Byrd

Robert ByrdU.S. Senator Robert Byrd, who

evolved from a segregationist to a civilrights advocate in becoming the longestserving member ever of the Congress,died on June 28, 2010. He was firstelected to the Congress in 1952. Mr.Byrd was 92.

PD/February/2011/1550

Digvijay SinghDigvijay Singh, Former Union Minister and a sitting

Lok Sabha M.P. from Bihar died in London on June 24,2010 following a brain haemorrhage. He was 55.

Victor LongerVictor Longer, a former Defence Ministry spokesman,

who had played an important role in developing informa-tion set-up in the armed forces, died in New Delhi on July18, 2010. He was 92.

David WarrentDavid Warrent, the Australian scientist who invented

the flight data recorder famously known as the Black Boxto help investigate aircraft accidents died at the age of 85late in July 2010.

S. Krishnamurthi

S. Krishnamurthi, adviser (Research and Planning,Cancer Research Institute, Adyar died in Chennai on July2, 2010. He was 90.

Milon Kumar BanerjeeMilon Kumar Banerjee, the former Attorney-General of

India passed away on July 20, 2010. He was 82.Mr. Banerjee was born in a dis-

tinguished Brahmo Samaj family. Hisfather, Professor A.C. Banerjee, IES, was aWrangler and Owst Prize holder at ClareCollege, Cambridge, Vice-Chancellor ofAllahabad University and the Presidentof the Indian Science Congress.

Mr. Banerjee had the unique pri-vilege of being Law Officer during the Milon K. Banerjeetimes of five different Prime Ministers as Additional Solicitor-General (1979–86), Solicitor-General (1986–1989), AttorneyGeneral (1992-1996 and 2004–2009). He was awarded thesecond highest national award, the Padma Vibhushan in 2005.

Patricia NealActress Patricia Neal, who rebuilt a troubled career to

win an Academy Award only to face a more desperatebattle for survival when three strokes left her paralysed,has died. She was 84. Neal who had lung cancer died ather home in Edgartown, Massachusettes on Aug. 8, 2010.V. Narayanan

V. Narayanan the former Chairman of GoodyearIndia and Founder Trustee of Chennai Willingdon Cor-porate foundation, passed away on September 14, 2010.He was 92.

SwarnalathaNoted South Indian playback singer and National

Award winner Swarnalatha died at a private hospital inChennai on September 12, 2010 following lung infection.She was 37.

Dr. Homi SethnaFormer Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission

Dr. Homi Nusserwanji Sethna, an important figure inIndia's nuclear programme, passed away in Mumbai onSeptember 12, 2010. He was 86.

Mr. Sethna has been suffering from lung fibrosis forthe last several years.

Jefferson Thomas

Jefferson Thomas

Jefferson Thomas, a key figure inthe anti-segregation civil rights move-ment in the US. died in Columbus, Ohioon September 7, 2010. He was 67.

Mr. Thomas was most known forbeing a member of the so-called ‘LittleRock Nine’ group of students, whointegrated Central High School in LittleRock, Arkansas, back in 1957.

Dilip RoyWell-known Bengali actor and director Dilip Roy

died in Kolkata on September 2, 2010 after a prolongedbattle with cancer. He was 79.

In his later years, Mr. Roy acted in a popular genre ofBengali theatre known as ‘Jatra.’

Claude ChabrolFrench film maker Claude Chabrol, who helped start

the New Wave Movement in the 1950s and created someof the darkest portrayals on the silver screen, died inSeptember. He was 80.

Dame Joan SutherlandAustralian opera legend Dame Joan Sutherland was

hailed as ‘La Stupenda’ and ‘voice of the century’ onOctober 10, 2010 after she died following an illness aged83, leaving behind an extraordinary legacy.

Solomon BurkeSoul singer Solomon Burke, who wrote Everybody

Needs Somebody To Love’ and recovered the hit ‘Cryto Me’ used in the movie ‘Dirty Dancing’ died atAmsterdam's Schirphol airport. He was 70.

Soundara KailasamEminent Tamil poet and writer Soundara Kailasam,

who is the mother-in-law of Union Home MinisterP. Chidambaram passed away on October 16, 2010 at herresidence in Chennai. She was 83.

Farooq LeghariFarooq Ahmed Khan Leghari, Pakistan’s eighth

President died on October 19, 2010 after a prolongedillness. He was 70.

Mr. Leghari was President from November 14, 1993to December 2, 1997.

K. E. Eapen

K. E. Eapen

K. E. Eapen, a pioneer in journalismand communication education in thecountry passed away in Bangalore onOctober 23, 2010. He was 87.

Professor Eapen was actively asso-ciated with journalism for over 50 years,having set up three university depart-ments of journalism and communica-tion, and many organisations connectedwith the field.

PD/February/2011/1551

RESIGNATION/DISMISSAL

Swaraj PuriThe Madhya Pradesh government has removed

former Director-General of Police, Swaraj Puri, who hadplayed a key role in the release of the former UnionCarbide Chief Warren Anderson, from the state-runNarmada Valley Development Authority. It may berecalled that Mr. Puri was the Superintendent of Police atthe time of the Bhopal gas tragedy.

Lawrence H. SummersAccording to White House sources, the Chief

architect of President Barack Obama's economic policyLawrence H. Summers would leave the post at the endof 2010. His stepping down continues the exodus of toplevel advisers of President Obama at a time when hispopularity is dipping.

Ramchandra GowdaKarnataka Medical Education Minister Ramchandra

Gowda resigned on September 12, 2010 following allega-tion of his involvement in the illegal recruitment of 350people for two new medical colleges in the state. ChiefMinister B.S. Yeddyurappa was under intense pressurefrom the High Court to act in the matter.

Ashok ChavanAshok Chavan resigned as Maharashtra Chief

Minister on November 9, 2010 following a directive fromCongress Chief Sonia Gandhi in the wake of the AdarshHousing Society scam.

Chavan had on October 30 offered to resign during ameeting with Sonia Gandhi after it emerged that three ofhis relatives were members of the housing society inSouth Mumbai, built for the families of soldiers killed inthe 1999 Kargil war with Pakistan.

A. RajaThe Central Minister for Communication A. Raja

submitted his resignation to the Prime Minister on November14, 2010 in the wake of 2–G scam controversy on account ofwhich the proceedings of the Parliament had been stalled for anumber of days, with the opposition persistently demandingresignation from him holding him personally responsible formore than Rs. one lakh crore worth of 2G spectrum scandal.Initially Mr. A. Raja had refused to resign and the governmenttoo appeared to be shielding him. But the pressure of theopposition proved to be a turning point. It may he recalled thatComptroller and Auditor-General of India (CAG) had indictedthe minister for not distributing 2G spectrum in a transparentmanner resulting in a revenue loss of Rs. 1·40 lakh crore to thegovernment besides author Rs. 36,000 crore for allocatingadditional spectrum to existing cellular operators.

Lord Swaraj PaulLord Swaraj Paul on November 2, 2010 resigned from

the position as the Deputy Speaker of the U. K. Parlia-ment's Upper House, the House of Lord. The movefollowed Paul's unhappiness over his 4-month suspensionfrom the House of Lords over parliamentary expensesclaim.

AWARDS AND PRIZES/HONOURS

IIFA Awards 2010 given awayThe 11th IIFA (International Indian Film Academy)

Awards presentation ceremony was held in Colomboon June 5, 2010. Themovie 3 Idiots emer-ged as the big winnerof IIFA Awards.Kareena Kapoor for 3Idiots and Vidya Balanfor Paa shared theBest Actress Awardtrophy jointly. Vidya Balan Kareena Kapoor

Micromax IIFA 2010 Awards Winner List :

Best Film : Vidu Vinod Chopra for 3 Idiots.Best Direction : Rajkumar Hirani for 3 Idiots.Best Performance in a Leading Role (Male) :

Amitabh Bachchan for Paa.Best Performance in a Leading Role (Female) :

Kareena Kapoor for 3 Idiots and Vidya Balan for Paa.Best Performance in Supporting Role (Male) : For

Sharman Joshi for 3 Idiots.Best Performance in Supporting Role (Female) : For

Divya Dutta for Delhi 6.Best Performance in a Comic Role : Sanjay Dutt for

All the Best.Best Performance in a Negative Role : Boman Irani

for 3 Idiots.Debut of the Year (Male) : Omi Vaidya–Jackie

Bhagnani.Debut of the Year (Female) : Jacqueline Fernandez–

Mahie Gill.Best Music Direction : Pritam for Love Aaj Kal.Best Story : Abhijat Joshi, Rajkumar Hirani and Vidu

Vinod Chopra for 3 Idiots.Best Lyrics : Swanand Kirkire for 3 Idiots.Best Playback Singer (Male) : Shaan–Behti Hawa Sa

Tha Who for 3 Idiots.Best Playback Singer (Female) : Kavita Seth–Ek Tara

for Wake Up Sid.Outstanding Achievement by an Indian Inter-

nationally : Anil Kapoor.

Technical Awards Winners :Best Editing : Rajkumar Hirani for 3 Idiots.

Best Screenplay : Abhijat Joshi, Rajkumar Hirani,Vidhu Vinod Chopra for 3 Idiots.

Best Cinematography : C. K. Muraleedharan for 3Idiots.

Best Dialogue : Rajkumar Hirani, Abhijat Joshi for 3Idiots.

Best Background Score : Sanjay Wandrekar, AtulRaninga, Shantanu Moitra for 3 Idiots.

Best Sound Recording : Bishwadeep Chatterjee,Nihal Ranjan Samel for 3 Idiots.

PD/February/2011/1552

Best Song Recording : Bishwadeep Chatterjee, SachiK. Sanghvi for 3 Idiots.

Best Sound Re-recording : Anup Dev for 3 Idiots.Best Choreography : Bosco Martis, Caesar Gonsalves

for Love Aaj Kal.Best Costume Designing : Anahita Shroff Adajania,

Dolly Ahluwalia for Love Aaj Kal.Best Art Direction : Sabu Cyril for Aladdin.Best Special Visual Effects : Charles Darby—Eyecube

Labs for Aladdin.Best Action : Shyam Kaushal for Kaminey.Best Make up Artist : Christien Tinsley, Domini Till

for Paa.

G. D. Birla Awards PresentedVice-President Hamid Ansari presented on June 21,

2010 the G.D. Birla International Awards to four awardeesfor their outstanding achievement in different fields. Theaward for Humanism was conferred on Ms. ZokhumiVankung—an eminent social activist from the North-Eastwho has made a significant contribution for the benefit ofspastic and handicapped children and to empowermentof women by helping in creation of an instruction calledGilead Special School’ and working for the betterment ofthose needing humanitarian assistance. The couple P.V.Dhananjayan and Ms. Shanta Dhananjayan who have pro-pagated Indian dances was honoured with the award forpreservation of India’s cultural Heritage. Dr. PercyBarnevik, a Swedish national, was presented the award inthe category of rural upliftment who devoted his life andretirement funds to transforming the socio-economicenvironment in rural and remote areas of Kanchipuramdistrict in ‘Tamil Nadu’.

R. P. Goenka Honoured with ICC LifetimeAchievement Award

Mr. R. P. Goenka, Chairman Emeritus of the RPGGroup, received the Lifetime Achievement Award by theIndian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) on July 2, 2010 inKolkata.

Sheila Dikshit

Sheila Dikshit Honoured withTilak Award

Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit hasbeen honoured with Lokmanya TilakAward this year. The award is given bythe Lokmanya Tilak Smarak MandirTrust and carries a Gold Medal, amemento, a citation and Rs. 1 lakh. Theaward was established in 1983.

Bombay Sisters Get Sangita Kalanidhi AwardBombay Sisters C. Saroja and C. Lalitha have been

selected for the prestigious Sangita Kalanidhi award ofthe Madras Music Academy. The award is considered thehighest award in Carnatic Music. The Committee whichselects these award also decided to confer the SangitaKala Acharya Awards on Saguna Vardachari vocalistand Radha dance guru. Besides, vocalist Manakkal S.Rangarajan and Parassala Ponnammal will receive T.T.K.Award.

Arundhati Roy and Indira Nooyi Namedamong 30 Most Inspiring Women

India-born head of PepsiCo Indira Nooyi and socialactivist and writer Arundhati Roy have been named

Arundhati Roy Indira Nooyi

among the world’s 30most inspiring womenin Forbes magazine’s listwhich was recentlyreleased. Ms. ArundhatiRoy comes in third onthe list while Ms. IndiraNooyi has been rankedtenth in the list. The list also features Mother Teresa,media Mogul Oprah Winfrey and United States, Secretaryof State Hillary Clinton. ‘The 30 utterly Inspiring RoleModels’ list has been compiled by ‘Forbes Women’.Others named in the list are actor Angelina Jolie, theformer U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, First LadyMichelle Obama and J.K. Rowling—author of HarryPotter.

Prem Bhatia Award for Ritu SarinThe Prem Bhatia Awards for the year 2010 were

announced in the last week of July 2010. The Prem BhatiaAward for Best Political Reporting has been given to RituSarin of the Indian Express for her in-depth analysis ofkey issues and events. Sarin heads the investigative teamat the Indian Express. Bhopal Post editor RajkumarKeswani has won the award for best reporting onenvironmental issues for his coverage and reporting of theBhopal Union Carbide disaster.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award 2010 forSaina Nehwal

India’s ace shuttler Saina Nehwal was in August 2010selected for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award2010—the country’s highest sporting honour—for her out-standing achievements on the badmintoncourt. National Sports Awards selectioncommittee headed by PT Usha decided tobestow the Khel Ratna on Saina Nehwalafter considering her brilliant perfor-mance in recent months. Besides, HockeyCoach A. K. Bansal has been chosen forthe Dronacharya Award. L. Ibomcha Singh(boxing), Subhash Agarwal (billiards andsnooker), A. K. Kulty (athletics) andCaptain Chan Roop (wrestling) have alsobeen picked for the Dronacharya Award.

Winner of RajivGandhi KhelRatna Award 2010Saina Nehwal.

The Arjuna Awards 2010 have been conferred on 15sportspersons. They include Krishna Punia (athletics), JosephAbraham (athletics), Dinesh Kumar (boxing), Parimarjan Negi(chess), Jhulan Goswami (cricket), Deepak Mandal (football),Sunil Chettri (football), Rajiv Tomar (wrestling), Sandeep Singh(hockey), Jasjit Kaur (hockey), Jajseer Singh (paralympics),Dinesh Kumar (kabaddi), Kapil Dev (volleyball), RehanPoncha (swimm ing) and Sanjeev Rajput (shooting).

The Dhyan Chand Awards 2010 have been conferred onSatish Pal (athletics), Kuldeep Singh (wrestling) and AnitaChanu (weightlifting).

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Ashok Chakra for Major Jyotin SinghThe Ashok Chakra (the country’s highest peace time

gallantry award) has been conferred on Major LaishramJyotin Singh (Posthumously) who laid down his life inFebruary terror attack this year.

The Kirti Chakra announced by the Defence Ministryhas been given to Captain Davinder Singh Jass andSuperintendent of Police Vinod Kumar Chaubey. It maybe added here that the Ashok Chakra has been awardedto an officer for an act of bravery while on a foreign land.

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan gets RajivGandhi National Sadbhavana Award

Eminent Islamic scholar Maulana Wahiduddin Khanhas been bestowed with the 18th Rajiv Gandhi NationalSadbhavana Award for his outstanding contributiontowards the promotion of communal harmony, peace andgoodwill in New Delhi in August 2010.

The previous recipients of the award include MotherTeresa, Ustad Bismillah Khan, Hiteshwar Saikia andSubhadra Joshi (jointly), Lata Mangeshkar, Sunil Dutt,Dilip Kumar, Kapila Vatsyayan, Teesta Setalvad andHarsh Mander (jointly).

The 2010 Ramon Magsaysay AwardsAnnounced

The Board of Trustees of the Ramon MagsaysayAward Foundation (RMAF) in first week of August 2010announced this year seven individuals from Bangladesh,China, Japan and the Philippines the winners of Asia’spremier prize—the Ramon Magsaysay Award. Theawardees include Tadatoshi Akiba (Japan), ChristopherBernido and Ma Victoria Carpio Bernido (the Philippines),Huo Daishan (China), A.H.M. Noman Khan (Bangladesh),and Pan Yue and Fu Qiping (China).

Tenzing Norgay National Adventure AwardAnnounced

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports announcedTenzing Norgay National Adventure Award for the year2009 in second week of August 2010 to recognize theachievements of persons in the field of adventure. Thefour persons selected for the adventure awards for theyear 2009 include HC Kamlesh Kumar Boiunthiyal (LandAdventure), Wg. Com Jai Kishan (Air Adventure), ShriSufyan Sheikh (Water Adventure) and Ms. Chandra-prabha Aitwal (Lifetime Achievement).

UNESCO Literacy Prizes AnnouncedThe six laureates of the UNESCO International

Literacy Prizes for 2010 were announced in August 2010.One of two awards of the UNESCO King Sejong

Literacy Prize supported by the Republic of Korea hasbeen won by the General Directorate of Adult Trainingin Cape Verde.

The second award of the UNESCO King SejongLiteracy Prize was conferred on the State Institute forTeacher Training and School Development in Hamburg,Germany for the Family Literacy Project (FLY).

The UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy, has beenbagged by the Non-Formal Education Centre in NationalLiteracy Campaign.

The second award of the UNESCO Confucius Prizefor Literacy has been given to the Governorate ofIsmailia in Egypt for its programme Females for Families.

Finally, the committee decided to award the Honour-able Mention of the UNESCO Confucius Prize forLiteracy to the Coalition of Women Farmers (COWFA) inMalawi for the Women’s Land Rights Project (WOLAR).

Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete is MissUniverse 2010

Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete (22) was crownedMiss Universe 2010 on August 24, 2010 in Las Vegas.She was followed by Miss Jamaica Yendi Phillips whileMiss Australia Jenista Campbell was the second runner-up at the 59th annual pageant.

Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete after being crowned MissUniverse 2010.

Ratan Tata : Businessman of the DecadeMaharashtra Governor K. Shankarnarayanan con-

ferred the Businessman of the Decade Award on RatanTata August 13, 2010 in Mumbai. The award was given tohim on behalf of the Federation of Indo-Israeli Chambersof Commerce.

Ratan Tata

Lauding the efforts of the Federa-tion of Indo-Israel Chambers of Com-merce for promoting closer business-to-business ties between India and Israel,Sankarnarayanan said relations bet-ween the two countries had witnessed arapid growth across a broad spectrumsince diplomatic ties between the twocountries were established in 1992.

Bhasha Samman for Gurudev Singh and K.Sriramamurthy

A noted Punjabi scholar Gurudev Singh and a Teluguveteran K. Sriramamurthy have been chosen for BhashaSamman by the Sahitya Akademi for their contributionsin the field of classical and medieval literature.

Gurudev Singh has been chosen for the honour fromthe Northern region while Telugu researcher-criticKorlapati Sriramamurthy has been selected from theSouthern region.

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Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2009 forD. Ramanaidu

Veteran film maker D. Ramanaidu has been conferredthe prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2009 by the Govern-ment of India. The announcement wasmade on September 9, 2010. D. Ramanaiduis India's most prolific film producer whohas entered the Guinness Book of WorldRecords for producing the maximumnumber of films (130) but also doing itin the maximum number of languages.Talking of this accompalishment, hesaid—“I have produced films in almost allmajor Indian languages, except Punjabi. D. Ramanaidu

I plan to do that soon.”His debut Ramudu Bheemudu in the 60s with legendary

NTR, was a blockbuster.Negeswara Rao-starrer Premnagar (1971) established him

in the industry : “If Ramudu Bheemudu was the seed (for mysuccess), Premnagar was the tree,” he famously said.

Surjit Patar Honoured with Saraswati SammanEminent Punjabi poet Surjit Patar has received the

prestigious Saraswati Samman 2009 for his collectionLafzan Di Dargah. The award has been instituted by theK. K. Birla Foundation and carries prize money of Rs. 7·5lakh. It was conferred on Mr. Patar by the Union HumanResource Development Minister Kapil Sibal in New Delhiin third week of September 2010. The Saraswati Sammanrecognises an outstanding literary work in any of the 22Indian languages and published during the last 10 years.

Pride of India Award for UK's First AsianJudge

Sir Mota Singh, who is the United Kingdom's firstSikh and Asian judge and was knighted by QueenElizabeth II earlier this year, received the ‘Pride of IndiaAward’ 2009, Instituted by the India InternationalFoundation (IIF).

Malayalam and Urdu Writers Selected forJnanpith Awards

Malayalam litterateur O.N.V. Kurup and Urdu poetAkhlaq Khan Shaharyar were on September 24, 2010selected for the Jnanpith Award for 2007 and 2008 res-

O.N.V. Kurup(Jnanpith Award winner for 2007)

Akhlaq Khan Shaharyar(Jnanpith Award winner for 2008)

pectively. ONV Kurup is a leading voice among contem-porary Malayalam poets while Shaharyar is considered asan intellectual Urdu poet. The selection board chaired byOriya writer and Jnanpith winner Sitakant Mahapatramade these choices for the awards. ONV now has 20collections of poetry and six works of prose to his credit.The trust notes about Akhlaq Khan Shaharyar (a leadingurdu poet).

LG ICC Awards Given Away : Sachin isCricketer of the Year

Sachin Tendulkar emerged winner at the LG ICCAwards on October 6, 2010 in Bangalore after receivingtwo awards simultaneously.

Sachin Tendulkar

The List of theawardees : Sir GarfieldSobers Cricketer of theYear : Sachin Tendul-kar, LG People’sChoice Award : SachinTendulkar; Women’sCricketer of the Year :Shelley Nitschke(Australia); Test Playerof the Year : VirenderSehwag; ODI Player ofthe Year : A. B. deVilliers (South Africa);Spirit of Cricket : New Zealand; Umpire of the Year :Aleem Dar (Pakistan); Emerging Player : Steven Finn(England); Associate and Affiliate Player : Ryan tenDoeschate (Netherlands); Twenty-20 InternationalPerformance of the Year : Brendon McCullum (of NewZealand for his unbeaten 116 against Australia atChristchurch of February 28, 2010).

Inductees into the ICC Hall of Fame : Bishan SinghBedi, Joel Garner, Courtney Walsh and Rachael HeyhoeFlint.

ICC Test World XI : M. S. Dhoni (captain), VirenderSehwag, Simon Katich, Sachin Tendulkar, Hashim Amla,Kumar Sangakkara, Jacques Kallis, Graeme Swann, JamesAnderson, Dale Steyn and Doug Bollinger.

ICC ODI World XI : Ricky Ponting (captain), SachinTendulkar, Shane Watson, Michael Hussey, A. B. deVilliers, Paul Collingwood, M. S. Dhoni (wicketkeeper),Daniel Vettori, Stuart Broad, Doug Bollinger and RyanHarris.

World Statesman Award for Dr. ManmohanSingh

The Appeals of Conscience Foundation based in theUSA has honoured Indian Prime Minister Dr. ManmohanSingh with the 2010 World Statesman Award. He washonoured in absentia in September 2010 in New York.

Tehelka Magazine Selected for IPI IndiaAward

Weekly magazine ‘Tehelka’ has been selected for IPIIndia Award for excellence in Journalism 2010. Themagazine has been honoured for its outstanding jour-nalistic work. The IPI (International Press Institute) awardcomprises a cash prize of Rs. 2 lakh, a trophy and acitation. The jury headed by former Chief Justice of IndiaA. S. Anand chose the report of Teresa Rahman (ofTehalka) on the brutal execution of a youth by securityforces in broad daylight in Manipur on July 23, 2009 andselected it for the award from among the entries.

57th National Film Awards Announced :Amitabh gets Best Actor Award

The 57th National Awards were announced onSeptember 15, 2010 by the Directorate of Film Festivals.

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57th National Film AwardsName of the Award Name of the Film

Best Feature Film Kutty Srank (Malayalam)Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director Lahore (Hindi) : Director—Sanjay Puran Singh ChauhanBest Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment 3 Idiots (Hindi)Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration Delhi 6 (Hindi)Best Film on Social Issues Well Done Abba (Hindi)Best Children’s Film Putaani Party (Kannda) and Keshu (Malayalam)Best Direction Abohoman (Bengali) : Rituparno GhoshBest Actor Paa (Hindi) : Amitabh BachchanBest Actress Abohoman (Bengali) : Ananya ChatterjeeBest Supporting Actor Lahore (Hindi) : Farooque SheikhBest Supporting Actress Paa (Hindi) : Arundhati NaagBest Child Artist Pasanga (Tamil) : Film Characters Jeeva and Anba KarasuBest Male Playback Singer Mahanagar@Kolkata (Bengali) : Rupam IslamBest Female Playback Singer Houseful (Bengali) : Neelanjana SarkarBest Cinematography Kutty Srak (Malayalam) : Cameraman : Anjuli ShuklaBest Screenplay Kutty Srank (Malayalam) Kanasemba Kudureyaneri (Kannada)

Pasanga (Tamil) : Screenplay Writer (Original) " P.F. Mathews andHarikrishna, Screenplay Writer (Adapted) : Dialogues : Pandiraj

Best Audiography Kaminey (Hindi), Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja Malayalam),3 Idiots (Hindi)

Best Editing Abohoman (Bengali) : Arghyakamal MitraBest Production Design Delhi 6 (Hindi) : Samir ChandaBest Costume Designer Kutty Srank (Malayalam) : JayakumarBest Make-up Artist Paa (Hindi) : Christein Tinsley and Dominie TillBest Music Direction Dev D (Hindi), Kerala Verma Pazasi Raja : Music Director (Songs) :

Amit Trivedi Music Director (Background Score) : IlayarajaBest Lyrics 3 Idiots (Hindi) : Swanand Kirkire “Behti Hava Sa Tha Woh…”Special Jury Award Kaminey (Hindi) and Kutty Srank (Malayalam) and Kerala Verma

Pazhassi Raja (Malayalam) : Sreekar PrasadBest Special Effects Magadheera (Telugu) : R. Kamal KannanBest Choreography Magadheera (Telugu) : K. Siva ShankarBest Assamese Film BasundharaBest Bengali Film AbohomanBest Hindi Film PaaBest Kannada Film Kanasemba KudureyaneriBest Konkani Film Palatadcho MunisBest Malayalam Film Kerala Varma Pazhassi RajaBest Marathi Film NatarangBest Tamil Film PassangaSpecial Mention Padmapriya

Non-Feature FilmsName of Award Name of Film

Best Non-Feature Film The Postman : BilalBest Debut Non-Feature Film of a Director (Sharing) Vaishnav Jan Toh, Ekti Kaktaliyo Golpo)Best Compilation Film Pancham UnmixedBest Environment Film Including Agriculture In for MotionBest Film on Social IssuesSpecial Jury Award

Mr. IndiaKelkkunnundo : Child artisit—Aasna Aslam

Short Fiction Film BoondBest Cinematography Gaarud : Cameraman : Deepu S. Unni, Laboratory : AdlabsBest Audiography Gaarud : Re-recordist (final mixed trade) : Lipika Singh DaraiBest Editing In Camera—Tarun BhartiyaBest Narration/Voice Over In Camera : Ranjan PalitSpecial Mention VILAY—Cinematographer : Nitika Bhagat

Best Writing on CinemaName of Award Name of Film

Best Book on Cinema Cinemma Yaana (Kannada)—Publisher : Hasiru Prakashana,Author : Dr. K. Puttaswamy

Special Mention Eka Studioche Atmavrutta : Prabhakar PendharkarBest Film Critic C. S. Venkiteswaran (Malayalam)

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Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Awards 2010Announced

Three women have figured in the list of nine scientistschosen for the prestigious Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize2010. It is for the first time that three women have beennamed for these prestigious awards.

The award for S&T Innovations for Rural Develop-ment 2009 has been received by the Indian Oil Corpora-tion’s Research and Development Centre in Faridabad.

The awardees for Biological Sciences include SanjeevGalande of the National Centre for Cell Science, Puneand Shubha Tole of the Tata Institute of FundamentalResearch, Mumbai.

The others awardees include Swapan K. Pati, Jawa-harlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research,Bangalore; Sandeep Verma, Indian Institute of Techno-logy, Kanpur; G.K. Ananthasuresh, Indian Institute ofScience, Bangalore; Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay, IndianStatistical Institute, Kolkata (Engineering Sciences); MitaliMukerji, Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology,Delhi, Umesh Vasudeo Waghmare, Jawaharlal NehruCentre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore andKalobaran Maiti, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research,Mumbai (Physical Sciences). This year no award is beinggiven in Earth, Atmosphere, Ocean and Planetary Scien-ces and Mathematical Sciences.

The awards were announced on September 26, 2010to mark the foundation day of the Council of Scientificand Industrial Research (CSIR).

Wei Zhang Wins SASTRA Ramanujan PrizeWei Zhang—a Benjamin Pierce instructor at the

Department of Mathematics. Harvard University (USA)has been honoured with the 2010 SASTRA RamanujanPrize. As per a recent release from the Shanmugha Arts,Sciences, Technology, Research Academy (SASTRA)University. Dr. Wei Zhang has been recognised formaking a profound influence at the young age of 29 in awide range of areas of mathematics. It may be mentionedhere that SASTRA Ramanujan Prize was established in2005 and is given annually for outstanding contributionby very young mathematicians in areas influenced byIndian mathematician Srinivasan Ramanujan.

Howard Jacobson : Winner of the 2010 ManBooker Prize for Fiction

British writer and journalist Howard Jacobson’snovel ‘The Finkler Question’ has won the 2010 Man Booker

Howard Jacobson

Prize for Fiction. The FinklerQuestion is the semi-autobio-graphical comic take on hisJewish identity. Jacobson whowas born in Manchester currentlylives in London. He won thisprestigious prize after beatingTom Mc Carthy’s C and EmmaDonoghue’s Room. ‘The FinklerQuestion’ is described as a novelabout “love, loss and malefriendship” and explores what it means to be Jewish intoday’s age.

Lula da Silva Honoured with Indira GandhiPrize for Peace, Disarmament and Develop-ment for 2010

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva the outgoing President ofBrazil has been chosen for the Indira Gandhi Prize forPeace, Disarmament and Development for 2010. This was

Luiz Inacio Lulada Silva

announced in release issued by theIndira Gandhi Memorial Trust. Therelease notes—“Mr. Lula has cham-pioned the cause of global south, andworked to strengthen bonds amongdeveloping countries …… His priorityfrom the start was inclusive growth andthe consolidation and expansion ofsocial programmes.”

Jamnalal Bajaj Awards PresentedPresident Pratibha Patil on October 28, 2010 presen-

ted the Jamnalal Bajaj Awards for 2010 for outstandingcontributions in social development.

Chewang Norphel, a 74-year-old civil engineer fromLadakh, was presented the award for application ofscience and technology for rural development. His‘artificial glacier’ has helped farmers in the dry anddifficult regions of Ladakh get water supply in April andMay—the most crucial period of sowing.

Chunnibhai Vaidya, a nonagenarian from Ahmeda-bad, was given the award for outstanding contribution inthe field of constructive work. Mr. Vaidya has been activein many movements in Gujarat and Rajasthan forbetterment of the poor and the marginalised.

The award for development and welfare of womenand children was given to Shakuntala Choudhary, anonagenarian from Assam.

Miss USA Alexandria Mills Crowned MissWorld 2010

Miss USA Alexandria Mills was crowned the 60thMiss World 2010 on October 30, 2010 in China’s SanyaCity. Miss Botswana Emma Wareus was named the first

Miss World 2010 Alexandria Mills

runner-up whileMiss VenezuelaAdriana Vasini wasnamed the secondrunner-up. Indianbeauty ManasviMamgai even failedto find a place in thetop 20. The juryincluded formerMiss World winnersDenise Perrier Lanfranchi (1953), AnnSidney (1964), MaryStavin (1977) AgbaniDarego (2001) andMaria Julia Mant.

A. S. Chandhiok Honoured with Sikh of theYear Award

Additional Solicitor General and Delhi High CourtBar Association President A. S. Chandhiok has been

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NOBEL PRIZES 2010The Nobel Prizes for 2010 were announced in October 2010.

MedicineBritish scientist Robert Edwards has been selected for the 2010 Nobel Prize for Medicine. He has been given

this award for his pioneering work in in-vitro-fertilization (IVF). It was Robert Edwards whose pioneeringresearch with his late colleague Patrick Steptoe (who died in 1988) led to the birth of the world’s first test tube baby.The Nobel Assembly at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute which awarded the prize (worth ten million SwedishKronor) described his work as a milestone of modern medicine. It said in a statement—“His work has madepossible the treatment of infertility—a medical condition that affects a large proportion of humanity including morethan 10% of couples worldwide” Edwards along with his late colleague Steptoe founded the Bourn Hall Clinic inCambridge—which is the world’s first In-Vetro-Fertilization Centre.

RobertEdwards

Physics

Professor Konstantin Novoselov (left)and Professor Andrei Geim, winners ofthe 2010 Nobel Physics Prize

Russian born Andrei Geim and Konstantin Novoselov of Manchester Universitywere named joint winners of the Nobel Prize for Physics for 2010. They have beenbestowed with the award for their groundbreaking work on experiments withgraphene—a new form of carbon. Professor Geim is Dutch citizen. The Prize Committeesaid—“Since it is practically transparent and a good conductor, graphene could be usedfor producing transparent touch screens, light panels and may be even solar cells”. Thusgraphene has immense possibilities. As a material graphene is completely new andalmost completely transparent yet so dense that not even helium (the smallest gas atom)can pass through it.

ChemistryThree scientists—Akira Suzuki and Ei-ichi Negishi from Japan and Richard

F. Heck from United States of America have won the Nobel Prize for Chemistryfor 2010 in October 2010. They have been awarded the Nobel Prize for inventingnew ways to bind carbon atom with uses that range from fighting cancer toproducing thin computer screens. Akira Suzuki, Ei-ichi Negishi and RichardHeck shared the prize for the development of palladium—‘catalysed crosscoupling’. The Nobel Committee for Chemistry at the Royal Swedish Academy ofSciences said in a statement—“Palladium—catalysed cross coupling is used inresearch worldwide as well as in the commercial production of—for example,pharmaceuticals and molecules used in the electronics industry”.

The winners of the 2010 Nobel Prize inChemistry. (From left) Akira Suzuki, Ei-ichiNegishi and Richard F. Heck.

Mario Vargas LlosaThe 2010 Nobel PrizeWinner for Literature

LiteraturePeruvian—Spanish author and one of the most renowned novelists of his generation Mario Vargas

Llosa (74) has won the Nobel Prize for Literature for 2010 for “his Cartography of structures of power andhis trenchant images of the individual’s resistance, revolt and defeat”. In the words of Peter England—Permanent Secretary of the Swedish Academy—“Mr. Llosa is one of the great Latin Americanstorytellers—a master of dialogue who has been searching for the elusive concept known as the totalnovel and who believes in the power of fiction to improve upon the world”.

Mr. Llosa’s first major international breakthrough came in 1963, with the publication of the novelThe Time of the Hero.

His other profoundly influential novel was The Feast of the Goat (2000). Other well known worksinclude Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (1977), The War of the End of the World (1981) and, more recently, Deathin the Andes (1993).

‘Conversation in the Cathedral’ published in 1969 was his monumental work.

PeaceChinese political activist Liu Xiaobo (aged 54) who is in the jail has been awarded the Nobel Peace

Prize for 2010. The Norwegian Nobel Committee which gives the award said—“Mr. Liu has been given theaward for his calls for political reform, for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rightsin China”. “The Norwegian Nobel Committee has long believed that there is a close connection betweenhuman rights and peace” it said in a statement. “Such rights are a prerequisite for the fraternity betweennations of which Alfred Nobel wrote in his will”.

Liu XiaoboThe 2010 Nobel Prize

Winner for Peace

Christopher Pissarides, Peter Diamond and DaleMortensen : The Nobel Prize Winners of Econo-mics for 2010

EconomicsThree economists—Peter Diamond and Dale Mortensen of USA and

British–Cypriot Christopher Pissarides have won the 2010 Nobel EconomicsPrize. They have been awarded for their work on why supply and demand donot always meet in the labour market and elsewhere. The jury lauded the trio fortheir analysis of markets with search frictions which helps explain howunemployment, job vacancies, and wages are affected by regulation andeconomic policy. It is important to mention that as per traditional theory labourmarket should work on their own, with job seekers finding available job and thereby creating balance. But the Diamond–Mortensen–Pissarides or DMP

model–developed by the three show that markets do not always work in this way. The jury also noted that the trio’s work in searchtheory can also be applied to other areas including housing markets and public economics besides labour markets.

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honoured with the Sikh of Year 2010 award. He has beengiven this award for his outstanding achievement in thelegal field and working for betterment of society. Theaward which includes a citation and a memento has beeninstituted by the Sikh Forum International. The Forumpresents the award every year to a distinguished personfor his/her achievement in different fields. Past recipientsinclude Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Praneet Kaur, Sikhhistorian Patwant Singh and former Army Chief GeneralJ. J. Singh.

Indira Gandhi Ranked 9th Most PowerfulWoman of the Century in ‘Time’ List

India’s Indira Gandhi, world’s longest servingwoman Prime Minister, has been ranked by the Timemagazine as the 9th most powerful woman of the pastcentury, a list that also included Mother Teresa.

Indira Gandhi19-11-1917–31-10-84

The list of ‘25 Most PowerfulWomen of the Past Century’ is toppedby Jane Addams, an outspoken advo-cate for women’s suffrage, who was thefirst American woman to win the NobelPeace Prize.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton isranked sixth on the list.

Besides Indira and Mother Teresa,who is ranked 22nd, no other woman

from the sub-continent has figured in the Time magazinelist which was released on November 19, 2010.

Rudisha, Vlasic IAAF Athletes of theYear 2010

Kenya’s running sensation David Rudisha and Croatia’shigh jump star Blanka Vlasic were named male and femaleathletes of the year respectively on November 21, 2010 by theInternational Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) whichis sports’ governing body.

Rudisha, 21,broke the longstand-ing 800 metres worldrecord twice thisseason while 27-year-old Vlasic won boththe European out-doors and worldindoors titles.

Rudisha is theyoungest athlete everto win the presti-

David Rudisha and Blanka Vlasicwith Awards/Trophies

gious award having first broken the record in Berlin in Augustwith a time of 1 minute 41·09 seconds before bettering thatmark with 1:41·01 in Rieti, Italy, a week later.

Aga Khan Awards AnnouncedThe 2010 Aga Khan Awards were presented on

November 24, 2010 in Doha Qatar. The winning fiveprojects include Wadi Hanifa Wetlands, Riyadh, SaudiArabia, the Revitalisation of the Hypercentre of TunisTunisia, the Madinat Al Zahra Museum Cordoba, Spain,the Ipekyol Textile Factory, Edrine, Turkey and the BridgeSchool Xiashi, Fujian, China. The winning projects wereselected by an independent Master jury from a short list

of 19 projects announced in May 2010. A total of 401projects were presented for consideration for the 2010award. It is noteworthy that Aga Khan Award for Archi-tecture was established in 1977 by His Highness the AgaKhan with a view to enhancing the understanding andappreciation of Islamic culture as expressed througharchitecture.

Lin Dan is Most Valuable Player of 16thAsiad 2010

China’s Lin Dan has been named the Most ValuablePlayer (MVP) of the Guangzhou Asian Games. Lin Danwas selected from five finalists for the Samsung MVPAward. He won two gold medals in the men’s team and

Lin Dan of China

individual badminton events.

As China’s badminton ace, Lin, theBeijing Olympic gold medalist and two-times world champion, also completed acareer grand slam by being crowned thegames singles champion.

The winner of the award at the 2006Doha Asian Games was swimmer Park.

Vasudha Award Jointly given to ‘Niyamgiri’and ‘Kaippad’

Short films on environmental issues ‘Niyamgiri YouAre Still Alive’, directed by Suma Josson, and ‘Kaippad’,directed by Babu ‘Kambrath, were declared joint winnersof ‘The Vasudha Award’, the country’s only governmentaward for an environmental film, on November 30, 2010.

It may be noteworthy that the award instituted by theShort Film Centre (SFC) at the International Film Festivalof India (IFFI) carried a cash prize of Rs. 3 lakh. ‘Extinc-tion-II’ directed by Fernando Uson Fornies, Spain won‘The Golden Lamp Tree Award’ and a cash prize of Rs. 5lakh in the international section of short films.

'The Silver Lamp Tree Award' with prize money ofRs. 1 lakh went to 'Kusum', a film directed by ShumonaBanerjee. 'Special Jury Mention Award' with a cash prizeof Rs. 2 lakh was awarded to 'Charulata… A sequel of theLife Untold', directed by Sangeeta Padmanabhan and'Certificate of Appreciation from the Jury' went to 'Incurable India' directed by Umesh Aggarwal.

PLACES IN THE NEWS

Kolar DistrictThe country’s biggest grid-connected solar power

plant has been set up at Yelesandra village in Bangarpettaluk of Kolar district and was commissioned on June 17,2010.

Gulf of MexicoGulf of Mexico hogged the headlines of newspapers

recently because of what might be the most serioussetback to date in the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crisis. It hasbeen estimated that 1·7 million gallons of oil have beenflowing out of the ruptured well of the BP owned Deep-water Horizon Offshore rig daily with flow rate of 40,000barrels per day.

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CoimbatoreThe First World Classical Tamil Conference was held

in Coimbatore in last week of June 2010. The five daysconference was inaugurated by President Pratibha Patil.

3600-year-Old Egyptian City UnearthedAustrian archaeologists have located an underground

Egyptian city believed to be Avaris, the capital used byHyksos who ruled 3,600 years ago, culture ministry said.The Austrian mission identified parts of Avaris in the NileDelta near the modern town of Tal al-Dabaa.

Mt. EverestBasanta Kumar Singha Roy, a PNB employee posted

at Circle Office Kolkata along with his team recentlyscaled Mount Everest and hoisted the PNB’s flag on thesummit. The expedition was planned and executed by theMountaineers Association of Krishna Nagar (MAK).

Birbhum DistrictAt least 69 people were killed and more than 150

injured in one of the decade’s worst train accidents inIndia at the Sainthia Station in West Bengal’s Birbhumdistrict on July 19, 2010.

South PoleIndia will mount its first scientific expedition to the

South Pole in November 2010 to mark the centenary of thefirst successful expedition to the southern end of theworld by the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen.

JohannesburgJohannesburg is a city of South Africa where 19th

edition of World Cup Football was organized in June-July2010 in which Spain emerged victorious.

NalandaThe Union Cabinet has cleared the Nalanda Univer-

sity Bill 2010 paving the way for the establishment ofNalanda University at Nalanda in Bihar at an estimatedcost of Rs. 100, 5 crore.

Jaipur’s Jantar MantarThe 34th session of the World Heritage Committee

held in Brasilia in the first week of August 2010 hasinscribed Jantar Mantar in the United Nations EducationalScientific and Cultural Organisation’s World HeritageList.

Petermann GlacierAn ice Island four times the size of Manhattan broke

off from one of Greenland’s two main glaciers—one ofthem is the Petermann Glacier. It is the biggest such eventin the Arctic in nearly 50 years.

HyderabadThe International Congress of Mathematicians was

recently held in August 2010 in Hyderabad.

LehHundreds of people were killed in Leh as flash floods

caused by torrential rains hit Leh town and adjoiningvillages on August 6, 2010. Several important buildingswere also washed away in the floods.

Thanjavur Big TempleThe ceremony to mark the completion of the 1000th

year of the Thanjavur Big Temple constructed by RajaRaja Chola I will be held in Thanjavur from September 25to 26, 2010. The Tamil Nadu government announced thisin August 2010.

AyodhyaAyodhya once again became the topic of discussion

and debate and hogged the headlines of newspaperswhen the honourable the Lucknow bench of the AllahabadHigh Court pronounced the long-awaited judgement overthe vexed issue of the Ramjanambhoomi-Babri Masjid asite located in Ayodhya on September 30, 2010 on thecontending title claims to the disputed site made by theMuslim Waqf Board and Hindu Dharm Sansad.

ChristchurchA powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck much of

New Zealand devastating Christchurch—the secondlargest city in first week of September 2010.

San Jose Mine33 miners were rescued from Chilean mine—San Jose

Mine after being trapped in that mine for more than twomonths in second week of October, 2010. The 33 minerscaught in a collapse on August 5, 2010 spent 17 days inisolation before being located by drillers on August 22,2010 and later rescued.

Kalaikunda Air Force Station (West Bengal)A joint exercise by the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the

Royal Air Force (RAF) of the United Kingdom of theUnited Kingdom was held at the Kalaikunda Air Forcestation in West Bengal’s Paschim Midnapur district inOctober 2010. The Exercise was named ‘Indradhanush’.

DehradunThe inaugural South Asian winter Games will be held

in Dehradun in Uttarakhand in January 2011. Bangladesh,Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan areexpected to take part in the Games.

Hambantota PortSri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa opened the

newly built port in Hambantota on November 18, 2010.The port costing $ 1·5 billion was built with Chineseassistance and is being marketed by Sri Lanka as a megainfrastructure project.

PanajiThe 41st International Film Festival of India (IFFI)

was organised in Goan capital Panaji. The festival wasinaugurated by Railway Minister Mamta Banerjee onNovember 22, 2010 whereas Ajay Devgan was the guestof honour at the festival. The 10-day festival provided anopportunity for Indian film industry to compete with bestof the world.

JaitpurThe 9,900 megawatt Jaitpur power project to be set

up in collaboration with a French firm Areva inMaharashtra on November 28, 2010 received clearance

PD/February/2011/1560

from the Environment Ministry which prescribed 35conditions and safeguards. NTPC (Nuclear ThermalPower Corporation) along with French firm Areva willdevelop the plant.

Guangzhou16th Asiad Games were held in Guangzhou, China in

November 2010 in which China led the medals tallyfollowed by South Korea and Japan.

REPORTS

India, China have Maximum Stunted Chil-dren : WHO Report

A WHO (World Health Organisation) report revealsthat India is home to the maximum number of stunted orlow-height-for-age children in the world. While two-thirds of the total child population across the world isaffected by stunting, the maximum of 48 per cent are inIndia, followed by China with 22 per cent.

These findings have been unveiled by the WHO’s“Countdown to 2015—Taking stock of maternal, newbornand child survival” report.

India has 60,000 plus children who are stunted,working out to a 31·2 per cent share of the total affectedchildren among the developing countries. According toWHO, stunting or low-height-for-age is a “particularlyimportant health indicator as it reflects long termnutritional deficiencies with implications for growth anddevelopment of children now and in future generations.”

Failed States of the World : Somalia Tops theList, Pak 10th, India 87th

In the 2010 Failed State Index released by theprestigious Foreign Policy magazine, Somalia tops the list,followed by Zimbabwe, Sudan and Chad. Pakistan standsat 10th.

India is ranked 87th in a list of 177 countries. India’simmediate neighbour Myanmar has been placed at 13, SriLanka at 22, Nepal at 25. China is ranked at 57th place.Norway is ranked at the bottom of the list.

The magazine said that Somalia saw yet another yearplagued by lawlessness and chaos, with pirates plying thecoast while radical Islamist militias tightened their grip onthe streets of Mogadishu, Somalia’s capital.

Eight Indian States Poorer than Africa’s 26Poorest : A Report

Eight Indian States, including Bihar, Uttar Pradeshand West Bengal together account for more poor peoplethan the 26 poorest African nations combined, a new‘multidimensional’ measure of global poverty has said.

The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) wasdeveloped and applied by the Oxfort Poverty and HumanDevelopment Initiative (OPHDI) with the UNDP supportand will feature in the forthcoming 20th anniversaryedition of the UNDP Human Development Report duelate in October, 2010. The MPI, which supplants theHuman Poverty Index, assesses a range of critical factors

or ‘deprivations’ at the household level from education tohealth outcomes, to assets and services.

An analysis by MPI creators reveals that there aremore ‘MPI poor’ people in eight Indian States (42·1 crorein Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh,Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal) than inthe 26 poorest African countries combined (41 crore).

Sikkim has the Highest Suicide RateAccording to a regional representative of the World

Health Organisation on suicide prevention and founder ofSNEHA, a non-governmental organisation, Sikkim hasdislodged the usual top ranker Kerala as the State withthe highest suicide rate in the country.

Sikkim, with a suicide rate of 48.2 per lakh of popu-lation, and Puducherry, with a rate of 46.9 per lakh,presented a new and worrying trend of an escalation ofsuicides in smaller States.

Kerala dropped to the fourth position with a suiciderate of 25 per lakh, while the Andaman and NicobarIslands ranked third with a rate of 34.5 per lakh.

India’s Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR)Declines, Yet it is on the Top

Women dying from complications during pregnancyand child birth fell 34 per cent from 5,46,000 in 1990 to3,58,000 in 2008, says a UN report released on September15, 2010.

Of these, 78,000 child birth related deaths took placein India.

The decline—about 2.3 per cent annually—fell shortof the 5·5 per cent needed to achieve the MillenniumDevelopment Goal (MDG) of reducing the maternalmortality ratio by 75 per cent between 1990 and 2015.

Every day in 2008, about 1,000 women died due tothese complications. Of the 1000, 570 lived in sub-SaharanAfrica, 300 in South Asia and five in high income coun-tries, said the report called Trends in Maternal Mortality,released by the World Health Organization, UNICEF, theUnited Nations Population Fund and the World Bank.

The risk of a woman in a developing country dyingfrom a pregnancy-related cause is 36 times higher thanthat of a woman in a developed country.

India's maternal mortality ratio declined to 254 per100,000 live births in 2004-06 from 301 per 100,000 livebirths during 2001-03, according to the Sample Registra-tion System of the Registrar General of India.

India’s Position Dismal in Global HungerIndex

Times of India correspondent Rukmini Shrinivasanreports that India dropped two ranks to 67th among 84developing countries in the International Food PolicyResearch Institute’s annual ‘Global Hunger Index’ for2010. Even Sudan, North Korea and Pakistan rank higherthan India.

While the report, released on October 11, 2010, showsthat the proportion of the under nourished in India isdeclining, the worsening ranking indicates that otherdeveloping countries have done better in tackling hunger.

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India is home to 42% of the under-weight children underthe age of five in the world.

It is an irony indeed that the policy makers in Indiawho are still fighting over the need to have an expansiveNational Food Security Act are yet to look at the dismalfigures. In 2005-06 about 44% of Indian children belowfive years were under-weight and nearly half-48%—werestunted.Over 8 million Slum Dwellers in Mumbai by2011

The country's financial capital Mumbai will havearound 8·68 people living in slums by next year, notwithstanding the high growth economy and focus on‘inclusiveness’.

Mumbai is followed by Delhi with 3·16 millionpeople estimated to be living in slums by 2011 comparedto 2·3 million in 2001, according to a news methodologyadopted by an expert panel appointed by the housing andurban poverty alleviation ministry. Though Mumbai'sslum population was 6·5 million in the 2001 census, thepanel's methodology estimated it at 6·8 million.

The expert committee set up to estimate ‘reliable’urban slum population, said the country's slum popula-tion had grown by 17·8 million people in the last decade.The committee headed by Pranab Sen, principal adviser tothe Planning Commission and former chief statistician,projected the slum population in 2011 at 93·06 million, upfrom 75·36 million in 2001 as per the new methodology.The 2001 census figures pegged the slum population at52·40 million.

ACRONYMS

AHRC—Asian Human Rights CommissionAIDWA—All India Democratic Women’s AssociationAIS—Automatic Identification Systems.ATGM—Anti-Tank Guided Missile.BSF—Benefit Sharing Fund.CCI—Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure.CDCP—Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.CICA—Conference on Interaction and Confidence

Building Measures in Asia.CSR—Centre for Social Research.CWG—Commonwealth Games.DASA—Direct Admission of Students AbroadDEAL—Defence Electronics Application Laboratory.FAC—Fast Attack Craft.FIC—Fast Interceptor Craft.GDD—Global Disease Detection.HINDRAF—Hindu Rights Action Force.IFFI—International Film Festival of IndiaIGMDP—Integrated Guided Missile Development

Programme.INTACH—Indian National Trust for Art and

Cultural Heritage.ITPGRFA—International Treaty on Plant Genetic

Resources for Food and Agriculture.

MCZMA—The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Mana-gement Authority.

MMRCA—Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft.MPI—Multi-dimensional Poverty Index.MTA—Multirole Transport AircraftNCDC—National Centre for Disease Control.NCHRH—National Council for Human Resource in

HealthNGRBA—National Ganga River Basin Authority.NIAS—National Institute of Advanced Studies.NLD—National League for Democracy.NMEEE—National Mission on Enhanced Energy

Efficiency.NPCDCS—National Programme for Prevention and

Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases andStroke.

PFRDA—Pension Fund and Regulatory and Develop-ment Authority.

SCOPE—Standing Conference of Public Enterprises.SMTA—Standard Material Transfer Agreement.SOJNMS—School of Journalism and New Media

Studies.UAV—Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.

BOOKS AND AUTHORS

1. International Criminal Law and Human Rights—Edited by Manoj Kumar Surha

2. Quest for Participatory Democracy Towards Under-standing the Approach of Gandhi and Jaya PrakashNarain.

—Edited by Anand Kumar and Manish Tiwari3. Aftershock : Reshaping the World Economy After

the Crisis—By Philippe Legrain, Littee Brown

4. Fault Lives : How Hidden Fractures Still Threatenthe World Economy

—Raghuram Rajan, Princeton University Press5. The Beijing Consensus : How China’s Authoritarian

Model will Dominate the Twenty-first Century—By Stefan Halper

6. The Party : The Secret World of China’s CommunistRulers —By Richard McGregor, Harper

7. Securing the State—By David Omand Columbia, University Press USA

8. The Fragrance of Forgotten Years—By Bikees Latif Published by Rupa and Co.,

New Delhi9. Before Memory Fades

—An Autobiography : Fali S. Nariman

10. Islam in A Globalised World—Negotiating Faultli-nes —Edited by Mushirul Hasan

11. Awakening Giants, Feet of Clay : Assessing theeconomic rise of China and India

—By Pranab Bardhan

Edited, Printed and Published by Mahendra Jain for M/s Pratiyogita Darpan, 2/11A, Swadeshi Bima Nagar, Agra-2 and Printed byhim at Pratiyogita Darpan Printing Unit, 5 & 6 Bye Pass Road, Agra.

12. Keeping the Faith : Memoirs of a Parliamentarian—By Somnath Chatterjee

13. Indian Origins of Arab-Islamic Scientific andLiterary Heritage

—By Abdul Ali, MD Publications, New Delhi14. The Tryst Betrayed—Reflections on Diplomacy and

Development —By Jagat S. Mehta15. Outlines of the Protohistoric Chronology of

Western Asia —By Kesari Balakrishna Pillai16. Foundations of Tilak’s Nationalism—Discrimina-

tion, Education and Hindutva —By Parimala Rao17. Ecological Meltdown—Impact of unchecked Human

Growth on the Earth’s Natural Systems.—By Asheem Srivastav and Suvira Srivastava

18. A Rift in Time : Travels with My Ottoman Uncle—By Raja Shehadeh

19. The Arabs and the Holocaust : The Arab-Israeli Warof Narratives

—By Gilbert Achcar, Metropolitan Books20. Superpower ? The Amazing Race Between China’s

Hare and India’s Tortoise —By Raghav Bahl21. The Masque of Africa

—By Indian-Origin Nobel Laureate V. S. Naipaul22. A Journey

—An autobiography by former British PrimeMinister Tony Blair

23. Science and Sustainable Food Security—Selected Papers of Dr. M.S. Swaminathan

24. Climatopolis : How our Cities will Thrive in theHotter Future —By Mathew Kahn, Basic Books

25. Turned out Nice : How the British Isles will Changeas the World Heats up

—By Marek Kohn Faber & Faber26. Besieged—Voices from Delhi 1857.

—By Mahmood Farooqui New Delhi27. The Grand Design

—By Stephen Hawking and Leonard Mlodinow

28. There is Power in a Union : The Epic Story of Laborin America —By Philip Dray

29. Of Thee I Sing : A Letter to My Daughters—By Barack Obama

30. Obama's War —By Bob Woodward31. State and Foreign Policy in South Asia

—Edited by Jivanta Schottli and SiegfriedO. Wolf, Published by Sanskriti, New Delhi

32. Muhammad : A Story of the Last Prophet—By Deepak Chopra

33. Conversations with Myself —By Nelson Mandela34. The Feast of the Goat

—By Mario Vargas Llosa a Nobel laureate35. Harmony —By Prince Charles of Britain36. War on Terrorism or American Strategy for Global

Dominance —By Manzoor AlamP.Darpan