HOW BIMSTEC WILL MOVE FORWARD
-- To take matters forward..the leaders committed to expedite signing of BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters
-- They also agreed on early ratification of the BIMSTEC Convention on Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism, Transnational Organized Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking
-- They resolved to strengthen cooperation to protect environment
-- and stressed the necessity of implementing the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at regional and national levels
4 key sectors were identified for swift action as well and intructions issued.
HOW BIMSTEC WILL MOVE FORWARD
-- The leaders also agreed to enhance connectivity for regional integration where possibility of BIMSTEC Motor Vehicles Agreement will be explored
-- They also agreed to have closer cooperation in disaster management
-- There was decision to expedite signing of BIMSTEC MoU on Grid Interconnection
-- There was agreement to deepen cooperation in agriculture, horticulture, blue economy and health
-- Negotiations are to be expedited of BIMSTEC Free Trade Area
-- several ways were identified for work on people to people contact including tourism
The BIMSTEC leaders further committed to effective implementation of the BIMSTEC Poverty Plan of Action adopted at the 2014 summit in Myanmar.
They also direct the BIMSTEC Secretariat to plan a series of activities to be to undertaken to celebrate the 20th annivesary of the establishment of the grouping in 2017.
BIMSTEC
(HQ - DHAKA Established - 6 June 1997)
Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an international organisation involving a group of countries in South Asia and South East Asia. These are: Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.
2. India and Brazil signed 4 agreements in areas of investment cooperation and facilitation, cattle genomics, pharmaceuticals and agriculture.
3. Blast off! China sends two astronauts to live onboard its space station in nation's longest manned mission yet
The Shenzhou-11 spacecraft blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi desert.
Two astronauts are onboard and they will take around two days to reach the Tiangong-2 space lab
They will remain on board for 30 days to conduct tests on spacecraft technologies and experiments
Space laboratory is part of a broader plan to have a permanent manned space station in service in 2022.
4. Modi launches SC/ST hub in Ludhiana
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled key initiatives and a hub, to provide support to entrepreneurs from the SC/ST community in Ludhiana.
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The National SC/ST Hub, under the MSME Ministry, was announced in the Budget as well. With an initial outlay of 490 crore rupees, the hub will work towards strengthening market access/linkage, monitoring, capacity building, leveraging financial support schemes and sharing industry-best practices.
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Prime Minister Modi also launched ‘zero defect, zero effect’ (on environment) scheme which is aimed at raising quality levels in the unregulated MSME sector.
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PM Modi also said a spirit of entrepreneurship among Dalits will benefit the country. He added there are youngsters whose dreams are to create enterprises and jobs.
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5. SC dismisses BCCI review petition in Lodha panel logjam.
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In a fresh blow to the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed BCCI's petition, seeking review of the court verdict on July 18, which had validated the Lodha Panel recommendations.
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In the order passed on July 18, the court had okay-ed the reforms suggested by former Chief Justice of India R M Lodha-led panel which had made widespread ideas to improve the administration of the game in the country and make it cleaner.
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Some of the most important reforms are one state-one vote, one person-one post and a 70-year age limit for office bearers.
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But in the months since, BCCI have been reluctant to implement these three important recommendations while the board accepted small reforms at its recent Special General Meeting.
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The Court on Monday decided to consider imposing monetary sanctions on the BCCI until the board implements the reforms mooted by the panel. The court reserved its orders on issues such as fixing a limit on money the BCCI could use, and seeking the Lodha panel's approval for all financial contracts and agreements.
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The court also has an option to appoint independent administrators in place of the current office holders but that plan has been considered as an "extreme option".
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The court had barred BCCI from handing funds to state associations with some state bodies disallowed from using these funds.
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6. The crucial three-day meeting of the all-powerful GST Council, starting Oct 18, 2016 will decide on the tax rate and sort out issues like compensation formula for rollout of the new indirect tax regime from April 1, 2017.
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With the finance ministry setting November 22 as the deadline for building consensus on all the issues in the Council, the upcoming meeting is significant as it will decide on the most crucial aspect of tax rate that will have a bearing on the common man.
At its previous meeting last month, the GST Council, which has all state finance ministers as members, had finalised area-based exemptions and how 11 states, mostly in the North-East and hilly regions, will be treated under the new tax regime.
The meeting will also deliberate on the vexed issue of the Centre retaining power to assess 11 lakh service tax filers under the new dispensation.
While a decision to this effect was taken at the first meeting of the GST Council, at least two states dithered on approving the minutes of the meeting, saying they are not in favour of losing power of assessment of these assessees.
The finance ministry will try and reach a consensus on the key issues so that the subsequent central GST (CGST) and integrated GST (IGST) legislations can be introduced in the month-long Winter Session of Parliament beginning November 16.
Last year, a panel headed by Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian had suggested 17-18 per cent as the standard rate for bulk of goods and services while recommending 12 per cent for low rate goods and 40 per cent for demerit ones like luxury car, aerated beverages, pan masala and tobacco. For precious metal, it recommended a range of 2-6 per cent.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had last week said tax on environment-unfriendly products will be “distinct” from others in the GST framework.
As for the formula for the Centre compensating loss of revenue to states, 3-4 alternatives were discussed at the first meet, but a decision could not be reached.
As per the proposals, a state can be compensated if the revenue under GST falls short of the average tax earnings in the best three years out of the past five years.
Second, of the five years, two outliers are left out and an average is taken. If the revenue under GST is short of this, then states get compensated. Third, a base year can be fixed and a particular growth rate decided for all states. If the revenue falls short of that, then the state gets compensated. The base year would be 2015-16. .
So far, as many as 6 issues have been settled by the GST Council, including finalisation of rules for registration, rules for payments, returns, refunds and invoices.
In the first meeting, the Centre and states had reached an agreement on keeping traders with annual revenue of up to Rs 20 lakh out of the new national sales tax ambit that will subsume all cesses.
It also resolved issues over dual control over small traders, and decided that states will have exclusive control over all dealers up to a revenue threshold of Rs 1.5 crore in a year.
A mechanism will be worked out for traders above Rs 1.5 crore to ensure a dealer is regulated either by the central government or the state and not both.
7. New sensor can detect vitamin B12 deficiency in minutes.
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Scientists have developed a new world-first optical sensor that may quickly detect vitamin B12 defficiency, a condition linked to an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
Research - University of Adelaide in Australia.
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The device would enable the tracking of vitamin B12 levels in high-risk patients and early intervention ? to top up vitamin B12 levels when low - and help overcome the limitations of current testing methods which are time-consuming and costly.
"Vitamin B12 deficiency has been shown to be a potential modifiable risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer's disease and is associated with cognitive decline.
"Older adults are particularly at risk of B12 deficiency due to age-related reduction in absorbing vitamin B12 received through their diet," said Tsiminis.
"Our sensor is an early first step towards a point-of-care solution for measuring and tracking B12 in healthy ageing adults. This would allow doctors to monitor B12 levels and intervene as soon as B12 deficiency was detected.
The sensor is still at proof-of-concept stage but, with development, has wide-reaching potential applications.
"However, this is the first time a rapid technique based on optical spectroscopy has been shown to be able to detect vitamin B12 in human blood serum.
This is the first demonstration of vitamin B12 being measured in human blood serum without the need for a full laboratory test.
The sensor uses an optical measuring technique called Raman spectroscopy which produces a unique optical fingerprint of a target molecule, in this case vitamin B12.
8. Mining Surveillance System
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The government has launched the Mining Surveillance System (MSS). It uses space technology for curbing illegal mining activity in the country.
What is it?
MSS is a satellite-based monitoring system which aims to establish a regime of responsive mineral administration, through public participation, by curbing instances of illegal mining activity through automatic remote sensing detection technology.
Who developed it?
Ministry of Mines, through Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), has developed the MSS, in coordination with Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG), Gandhinagar and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY).
Significance of MSS:
Developed under the Digital India Programme, MSS is one of the first such surveillance systems developed in the world using space technology. The current system of monitoring of illegal mining activity is based on local complaints and unconfirmed information. There is no robust mechanism to monitor the action taken on such complaints.
9. Kigali makes history with HFC freeze.
197 countries have struck a new landmark deal at Kigali in Rwanda to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which could prevent up to 0.5 degrees Celsius of global warming by year 2100.
- The announcement came at Kigali where 197 countries that are party to the Montreal Protocol were trying to negotiate a deal to substantially reduce the use of HFCs by 2030.
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Highlights:
- The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is legally binding.
- The agreement at Kigali came after seven years of negotiations under which the 197 Montreal Protocol parties reached a compromise wherein developed countries will start to phase down HFCs by 2019.
- Developing countries will follow with a freeze of HFCs consumption levels in 2024, with some countries freezing consumption in 2028. By the late 2040s, all countries are expected to consume no more than 15-20% of their respective baselines. Overall, the agreement is expected to reduce HFC use by 85% by 2045.
- As per the agreement, China, which is the largest producer of HFCs in the world, will reduce HFC use by 80% by 2045 over the 2020-22 baseline. India will reduce the use of HFCs by 85% over the 2024-26 baseline.
- The countries negotiating at Kigali also agreed to provide adequate financing for HFCs reduction—which runs in billions of dollars globally. The exact amount of additional funding will be agreed at the next meeting of the Parties in Montreal, in 2017.
- The amendment will enter into force on 1 January, 2019, provided that at least 20 instruments of ratification, acceptance or approval of the Amendment have been deposited by states or regional economic integration organisations that are parties to the Montreal Protocol on substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer.
What is the Montreal Protocol?
The Montreal Protocol on Substances that deplete the Ozone Layer is a landmark international agreement designed to protect the stratospheric ozone layer. The treaty was originally signed in 1987 and substantially amended in 1990 and 1992.
The Montreal Protocol, which came into force in 1989, is aimed at reducing the production and consumption of ozone depleting substances in order to protect the earth’s fragile ozone layer.
Background:
Commonly used in refrigeration and air conditioning as substitutes for ozone-depleting substances, HFCs are currently the world’s fastest growing greenhouse gases, their emissions increasing by up to 10% each year. They are also one of the most powerful, trapping thousands of times more heat in the Earth’s atmosphere than carbon dioxide (CO2).
Growth of HFCs has mainly been driven by a growing demand for cooling, particularly in developing countries with a fast-expanding middle class and hot climates.
Sources: the hindu.
10. Kashmiri Red Stag or Hangul to be Declared Critically ENDANGERED by IUCN.
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THE magnificent Kashmiri Red Stag or Hangul could finally get some protection with the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) all set to declare it a 'critically endangered' species.
KASHMIRI HANGUL TO GET RECLASSIFIED
Known for its giant antlers bearing 11 to 16 points, Hangul has been hunted over centuries and its habitat destroyed, leading to its population in the wild plunging to a mere 150. Even then, IUCN - the biggest international body assessing threat levels to flora and fauna - categorised it as that of 'Least Concern' by clubbing with European and other 'red deer' species of the world.
OTHER IMPORTANT Affairs :-
1. CBI registered a case in connection with dope test of wrestler Narsingh Yadav. Earlier this month, Haryana govt referred case to CBI for further investigation.
2. PM Narendra Modi inaugurates three hydro-power projects of 1,752 MW capacity in Himachal Pradesh.
3. After concluding his 3-day Hungary tour, Vice-President Mohammad Hamid Ansari reaches Algiers in 2nd & final leg of two-Nation visit.
India and Hungary sign two agreements including co-operation in Water resources and co-operation between Indian Council of World Affairs and its Hungarian counterpart.
4. Indian shuttler Sourabh Verma wins men's singles title at the Chinese Taipei Open badminton.
5. According to Home Ministry 20 patients were killed and 109 others injured in a fire that broke out in the ICU wing of the Institute of Medical Sciences & SUM hospital in Bhubaneshwar, Odisha.
6. October 16 was World Food Day. This day is observed to commemorate the founding of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation.
This year the theme is 'Climate is Changing' which focuses on climate actions for a sustainable future highlighting the close link between climate change, sustainable agriculture and food and nutrition security.
7. Maldives government in October decided to leave the 53-member Commonwealth of Nations. The decision was announced weeks after the organisation warned it of suspension by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) if it failed to take further steps to promote the rule of law and democracy.
Maldives had decided to leave the Commonwealth saying it was treated unjustly and unfairly by the Commonwealth.
8. Indian boxer Neeraj Goyat retained his welterweight Asia title. In the final bout played in New Delhi on 14 October 2016, Goyat outpunched Australian Ben Kite. The fight was organised by the Professional Boxing Organisation of India.
9. Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal was appointed as a member of the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Athletes' Commission. Saina received a letter to the effect from the IOC President Thomas Bach on 17 October 2016.
The letter read it is great pleasure to appoint you in consultation with the Chair, as Member of the Athletes’ Commission. This member can be termed as a rare honour for the Indian sportsperson.
The Athletes' Commission is chaired by Angela Ruggiero and it comprises nine vice presidents and 10 other members.
International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Athletes' Commission
The IOC Athletes' Commission is a body maintained by the International Olympic Committee for the purpose of representing athletes. It was established in 1981 by the then-President of the IOC, Juan Antonio Samaranch, and its creation was subsequently codified by the IOC in Rule 21 of the Olympic Charter.
10. The company that recently launched India’s first indigenous electric bus is - Ashok Leyland
11. INDIA has now Nuclear Triad.India on 18 October 2016 completed its nuclear triad by inducting country's first indigenously-constructed nuclear submarine INS Arihant into service.
INS Arihant is the lead ship of India's Arihant class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines.
A nuclear triad refers to the nuclear weapons delivery of a strategic nuclear arsenal which consists of three components: strategic bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).
The purpose of having a three-branched nuclear capability is to significantly reduce the possibility that an enemy could destroy all of a nation's nuclear forces in a first-strike attack.
12. International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was observed on 17 October 2016 with theme Moving from humiliation and exclusion to participation: Ending poverty in all its forms.
2016 theme of the day highlights how important it is to recognize and address the humiliation and exclusion endured by many people living in poverty.The triad also ensures a credible threat of a second strike, and thus increases a nation's nuclear deterrence
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