MARCH 2012

 

NATIONAL

     State Elections 2012

• Uttar Pradesh: The Samajwadi Party won a landslide victory and formed the government without any outside support. It won 224 seats of the 403-member Assembly. Akhilesh Yadav, son of Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, was elected as the youngest Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, representing a generational shift in a State whose politics is dominated by caste and religion. He was sworn in on March 15.
• Goa: The BJP which, along with its ally the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), bagged a majority (24 seats) in the 40-member Assembly.Mr Manohar Parrikar was sworn-in as the Chief Minister on March 9.
• Uttarakhand: Congress won 32 seats, BJP bagged 31. BSP got 3 seats and Independents 4 in the Assembly of 70. Mr Vijay Bahuguna of Congress was elected as the Chief Minister of the State.
• Manipur: Manipur Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh sworn in as Chief Minister of the State. The veteran Congressman led the party to the third consecutive victory in Manipur.
• Punjab: The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP alliance made history by overcoming anti- incumbency to retain power for the second consecutive term, thus creating history in the Punjab electoral politics. Mr Parkash Singh Badal was sworn-in as the Chief Minister on March 14.

• India hosted the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) summit for the first time. It was held in Indian capital New Delhi. The theme of the Summit was BRICS Partnership for Global Stability, Security and Prosperity.

• Lok Sabha passed the Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2011, aimed at striking a balance between maximising judicial independence and laying down accountability at the same time for members of the higher judiciary.

• BrahMos the supersonic cruise missile, was successfully test-fired from the Interim Test Range, Chandipur from Balesore district of Odisha. BrahMos, which has a target range of 290-km, is the surface-to-surface cruise missile capable of carrying a conventional warhead of 200 to 300 kg.

• Union government gave its consent to a seven percentage increase in the rate of dearness allowance (DA) for its employees and pensioners.

• Union Cabinet approved the setting up of a credit risk guarantee fund trust with an initial corpus of Rs. 1200 crore, to encourage housing for low-income groups in India.

• Union Cabinet approved the redrafted Marriage laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010. The bill seeks to give a woman share in her husband’s property in case of a divorce but the share will be decided by the courts on case by case basis.It also aims at giving rights to adopted children on par with biological off-springs.

• Union Government notified the setting up of the anti-terror body, National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC). NCTC will have the power to carry out operations including arrest, search and seizure under the provisions of the UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

• Mamoni scheme launched by the Assam government in the state under the National Rural Health Mission, to reduce Maternal Mortality Ratio.

• Madhya Pradesh emerged victorious by bagging maximum number of awards in National Tourism Awards 2010-11, held in New Delhi.
  

 INTERNATIONAL

• The US Senate confirmed career diplomat Nancy Powell as ambassador to India.
• Seoul nuclear security summit was held in South Korea. It was the second nuclear security summit.
• Lt General Zaheerul Islam appointed as Director General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency.
• Abd-Rabbuh Mansour Hadi became the President of Yemen.
• Joachim Gauck was elected as Germany's new president.
• Vladimir Putin won the Russian Presidential Election with 63.75 percent of votes.
• Dav Whatmore appointed as coach of Pakistan Cricket Team.

  INDIA AND WORLD

• Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited South Korea. India and South Korea agreed to set a new bilateral trade target of 40 billion US dollars by 2015.
• The World Bank approved a 109-million dollar grant to fund Rajasthan Agricultural Competitiveness Project which is aimed at promoting water-efficient agriculture through sustainable and efficient use of resources in Rajasthan.
• India signed an IDA credit worth 152 million dollar with the World Bank to finance the Centre's efforts to help improve the efficiency, quality and accountability of health services in Uttar Pradesh.
• India and Colombia signed a Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP) in New Delhi for the Years 2012-2016.
• Assam government signed an agreement for the grant of 81 mn dollar with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to develop urban infrastructure in the state.
• India and China decided to have maritime cooperation to build confidence and It was decided during the talks between the External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi in New Delhi.

 

SPORTS & GAMES

• M.C. Mary Kom and Sarita won two gold medals in the Asian women's boxing championship at Mongolian capital Ulaanbator.
• Ferrari driver, Fernando Alonso, won the Formula One Malaysian Grand Prix.
• Pakistan defeated host Bangladesh to lift Asia Cup Cricket Trophy.
• Saina Nehwal won the Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold trophy by securing a victory over China's Shixian Wang.
• Indian national women Kabaddi team won its maiden Women World Cup Kabaddi championship title.
• Mahesh Bhupati and Rohan Bopanna won the doubles title of Dubai Open.
• Roger Federar defeated Andy Murray to win the singles final of Dubai Open.

 PERSONALITIES

• Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee selected for India's highest film honour - the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2012.
• Manik Godghate, Marathi poet and Sahitya Akademi award winner passed away. He was popularly known by his pen name Grace.
• Sharukh Khan appointed as the brand ambassador for the state, West Bengal.
• Harsh Pati Singhania, took over as the President of International Chamber of   Commerce (ICC), India.
• C.P. Gurnani, appointed as the CEO of Mahindra Satyam-Tech Mahindra.
• K. Venkataramanan appointed as the chief executive officer (CEO) and Managing Director of the company, Larsen and Toubro Ltd.
• Rahul Dravid, announced his retirement from international cricket.
• RK Tyagi took charge as Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

 

BOOKS & AUTHORS

     The Last Journey – Satish Pendharkar

      Baby – Nandini Krishnan

     Romeo & Juliet- No Strings Attached – Prashanth Kumar Nair

     Scratch – Swetanshu Bora

     AjataSatru – V.Narayanan

     Dark Clouds Of The Dawning Sky – Anand Raghav

     Metaphor – Deepa Kylasam Ayyar

 

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• NTPC board approved an investment of over 17000 crore rupees in two power projects in Maharashtra having a total generation capacity of 2640 MW. The two approved projects are the Mouda Super Thermal Power Project and Solapur Super Thermal Power Project.
• Hinduja Energy India, a subsidiary of Hinduja Group formed a joint venture with Steag Energy Services (India) for operation and maintenance of power projects.
• Shyamala Gopinath appointed as the Chairperson of the Advisory Board on Bank, Commercial and Financial Frauds.

• RBI restructured the fair practices code (FPC) to be adopted by non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) while doing lending business. The guidelines issued by the central bank covered general principles on adequate disclosures on the terms and conditions of a loan and also adopting a non-coercive recovery method.

• Bank of Baroda, 1001 ultra small branches to provide banking services to the people of villages which don’t have access to banking services.

• Microsoft, leading IT company took up five girl schools in Bihar under Digital Literacy Programme for computer training.

• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) sanctioned, 423 crore rupees loan assistance to the Gujarat government under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund for an irrigation project in the water scarce district of Sabarkantha.

• ICICI Bank on launched a new card named, ICICI Bank Sapphiro, for the super rich class and the bank’s Wealth Management customers. It is the third in the bank’s gemstone series of credit cards, after ICICI Bank Coral and ICICI Bank Rubyx.

• Foreign direct investment (FDI) in India went up by 31 per cent to 27.5 billion US Dollars in 2011 despite global economic slowdown and uncertainities.

• Reliance Communications unveiled India’s first CDMA network technology driven tablet computers.

• ICICI Bank along with Bank of Baroda, Citicorp Finance India Ltd, Life Insurance Corporation, launched India's first infrastructure debt fund (IDF) of a capacity of 2 billion dollar.

• Madhukant Girdharlal Sanghvi appointed as new Chairman and Managing Director of Syndicate Bank.

 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

• Astronomers discovered an ancient planetary system, which belonged to one of the earliest cosmic eras, 13 billion years ago. It consists of the star HIP 11952 and two planets namely HIP 11952b and HIP 11952c.
• Scientists discovered a human gene called IFTIM3 that influences how people respond to flu infections.
• NASA spacecraft, Messenger discovered further evidence for the existence of water ice at Mercury's poles.
• Scientist from Iran developed a gas-filled aspirin that can enhance the cancer-fighting ability of the drug. The new aspirin was dubbed NOSH, which stands for Nitric Oxide and Hydrogen Sulphide.
• Researchers found a new frog species in Meghalaya. The new species was named Fejervarya Sengupti.
• Researchers invented fibre-optic technology under a project called Sardana to run ultra-fast Internet. It demonstrated speed of upto 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps), around 2000 times faster than today’s fastest Internet speed.

AWARDS & HONOURS

• Russian President Dimitry Medvedev was conferred with the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy by the Jawaharlal Nehru University.
• Tamil writer A A Manavalan to be honoured with the Saraswati Samman 2011 for his book on Ramayana.
• The 59th National Film Awards:

           Best Feature Film: ‘Deool’ (Marathi) and ‘Byari’ ( Beary language of coastal Karnatak

           Best Director: Gurvinder Singh for ‘Anhe Ghore Da Daan’

           Best Actor: Girish Kulkarni for ‘Deool’

           Best Actress: Vidya Balan for ‘The Dirty Picture‘

           Best Supporting Actor: Appu Kutty for ‘Azhagarsamiyin Kudhirai’

           Best Supporting Actress: Leishangthem Tonthoingambi Devi for ‘Phijigee Mani’( Manipuri)

           Best Cinematography: Satya Rai Nagpaul for ‘Anhe Ghore Da Daan’

           Best Hindi Film: ’I AM’ directed by Onir

           Best Female Playback Singer: Rupa Ganguly for ‘Abosheyshey’

           Best Male Playback Singer: Anand Bhate for ‘Bal Gandharva’

           Best Child Artist: Partho Gupte for ‘Stanley ka Dabba’ and the Chillar Party Group

           Best Children’s Film: Chillar Party

EVENTS & DAYS

• World Glaucoma Day - March 12.
• World Forestry Day - March 21.
• World Water Day - March 22.

FEBRUARY 2012

NATIONAL

Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry on launched a web portal for implementation of the National Scheme of Incentive to Girls for Secondary Education (NSIGSE) in New Delhi. Web portal was developed by the Canara Bank to implement the scheme.

Vinod Rai, Comptroller and Auditor General of India is the new chairman of the 45-nation strong Asian Organization of the Institutions of the Accountants General. ASOSAI is the largest regional organisation of the government auditors. India took over the post of chairman from Pakistan.

Delhi government hiked the reservation for OBC [Other Backward Classes] in higher education institutions from 21 percent to 27 percent.

Supreme Court directed the union government to implement the ambitious interlinking of rivers project.

25 agriculture and allied activities were included in the new version of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, MGNREGA.

Haryana government announced to increase minimum wages of skilled and unskilled labourers. The state government decided to increase minimum wages of unskilled labourers to Rupees 186 a day while the wages for skilled labourer was raised to Rupees 211.42 a day.

Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Panel (PMEAC) projected 7.5 - 8 per cent growth rate for the fiscal 2012-13.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit launched a major State-wide de-worming campaign, as a part of the Chacha Nehru Sehat Yojna.

Supreme Court cancelled 122 2G licences granted during the tenure of former Telecom Minister A Raja declaring it as “illegal” and blamed the government's flawed first-come-first-served policy.

Gujarat topped the list of most preferred business destination in India in year 2011.

India's indigenously developed micro-light pilot-less target aircraft Lakshya-1 was successfully test flown from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur.

Union cabinet approved the National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy (NDSAP-2012) to facilitate access to central government owned shareable data and information.

Delhi became the first State in the country to issue e-stamp papers in all denominations.

According to Sample Registration System (SRS) bulletin, December 2011 released by the Registrar General of India (RGI), Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) has dropped further by  3 points from 50 to 47 infants deaths per 1000 live births during 2010. IMR for rural areas has dropped by 4 points from 55 to 51 infant deaths per 1000 live births while the Urban rate now stands at 31 from the previous 34/1000.




INTERNATIONAL

United Nations (UN) appointed former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan as the joint United Nations-Arab League envoy to Syria.

Iran launched three nuclear projects including a fourth generation Ultra Centrifuge, which is capable of enriching the Uranium faster than its earlier models.

President of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, after weeks of protest. The protest was against his decision to sack a judge he had accused of favouring the opposition.

Vice President of Maldives Mohammed Waheed Hassan was sworn in as President, following Nasheed’s resignation.

Indonesia became the 157th country to adopt the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

SHADE- The pact signed by India, japan and China to achieve the most efficient use of Naval forces present in the Indian ocean region. This initiative is called the Shared Awareness and Deconfliction (SHADE).

Iran successfully launched an observation satellite called navid satellite into orbit above Earth.



INDIA AND WORLD


India and ADB (Asian Development Bank) signed the third and last tranche of loan agreement, amounts to 120.6 million US dollars to support electricity transmission and distribution capacity in Assam under the Assam Power Sector Enhancement Investment Programme. It amounts to 120.6 million US dollars.
India and the USA discussed ways of expanding their growing strategic partnership and cooperation at the 12th Defence Policy Group meeting held in New Delhi.
The 12th India-EU Summit was held in New Delhi.
India and Saudi Arabia agreed to set up a Joint Working Group on Defence Co-operation.The focus was on strengthening bilateral co-operation in the defence sector.
India and the USA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in Washington to co-operate on Labour and employment issues during the visit of labour and employment minister Mallikarjun Khagre.


SPORTS & GAMES


South African Golfer James Barry Kruger won Avantha Masters Golf tournament in New Delhi. Popularly called Jbe Cruger, it was his maiden European Tour title.

Former Indian tennis player Manisha Malhotra conferred upon a top International Olympic Committee Award for her contribution in promoting sport among women.
Serbian tennis star, Novak Djokovic was awarded with the highest Serbian award, the Gold Star of Karadjordje.

Egypt defeated India 2-1 in the final of the SDAT-WSF Under-21 Squash World Cup.

Ajay Mittal of Haryana won the gold medal at the 55th National Shooting Championships for shotgun.

PERSONALITIES

Akhlaq Mohammad Khan (Shahryar), renowned Urdu poet  and noted lyricist of Umrao Jaan, passed away. Khan had received the Jnanpith Award for 2008.

Whitney Houston, winner of six Grammy Awards died.

Music composer Rajesh Roshan was honoured with the Lata Manageshkar award by the Madhya Pradesh government.

Rahul Bhatia, Managing Director of InterGlobe Enterprises group chosen for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2011.
Vodafone India appointed Analjeet Singh as its non executive Chairman.

Mike Pandey, Veteran environmental filmmaker was honoured with the prestigious V. Shantaram Life Time Achievement Award.

Mallikarjun Kharge, union minister for labour and employment was presented with Pride of India award by the Indian-American community in Washington.


BOOKS & AUTHORS


Freedom's Mother – Anisul Hoque
The Convert – Deborah Baker
River Of Smoke- Amitav Ghosh
When Loss Is Gain- Pawan K. Verma
The Best Thing About You Is You – Anupam Kher

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

Kotak Securities launched a ready to trade kit aimed at on-the-spot broking. The kit has been named My Box.

Flipkart, online shopping major unveiled its digital music store Flyte.

Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd, appointed R.P. Singh as the Director (Personnel) of the company. He would take the charge from 1 April 2012.

US banking major Citi group sold its 9.85 percent stake in HDFC for around 1.9 billion dollars.

National Australia Bank opened its maiden branch in Mumbai, India.
RBI panel on priority sector lending proposed increment in the target (priority sector) for foreign banks to 40% of net bank credit from the current level of 32 per cent with sub-targets of 15 per cent for exports and 15 per cent for the MSE sector.
Competition Commission of India gave its nod to the proposed merger of Netizen Rajsthan with Reliance Infratel. Netizen Rajsthan, is a 100% subsidiary of Reliance Infratel.
Facebook, integrated the music site from Indiatimes Gaana.com as an application into its new Timeline.

RBI changed bank rate to realign it with Marginal Standing Facility rate after nine years. The bank rate, a benchmark rate at which RBI buys or re-discounts bills of exchange or other commercial papers eligible for purchase, was hiked with immediate effect to 9.5% from 6%. The bank rate will change whenever there is a change in the repo rate.

Indian FMCG major Marico bought the Paras Pharmaceuticals’ personal care arm from British consumer care giant Reckitt Benckiser.

RBI issued the Draft Circular for Deployment of White Label Automated Teller Machines (WLAs) from non-bank entities. The central banks' issuance of the draft reflected the bank’s intention to accelerate the growth and penetration of ATMs in the country. WLA means ATM owned, run and maintained by third parties on a contract basis from a financial institution.

SEBI gave its approval to the listing of 64.27 lakh shares of MCX[Multi Commodity Exchange of India] in the capital market.



SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Scientists identified two genes, NACP and MAPT linked to Parkinson's disease, a finding which may pave the way for better treatments for the second most prevalent neurological condition after dementia.

Researchers at the Harvard Smithsonian centre for Astrophysics discovered that the planet GJ1214b was largely covered in water. GJ1214b was described as a super-Earth. It is approximately 2.7 times Earth’s diameter and weighs almost 7 times as much.

Astronomers found the fourth habitable planet outside our solar system called GJ667Cc. The planet is 22 light years from Earth. The newly found planet is rocky in nature. It orbits its star every 28.15 days. It has a mass at least 4.5 times that of earth. The team of astronomers analysed data from the European Southern Observatory.



AWARDS & HONORS


Noted Hindi writer Professor Ramdarash Mishra was selected for the 21st Vyas Samman for his poetry collection Aam Ke Patte published in 2004.

84^th Academy Awards/Oscars Ceremony
Best Picture - The Artist
Best Actor - Jean Dujardin for The Artist
Best Actress - Meryl Streep for The Iron Lady
Best Director - Michel Hazanavicius for The Artist
Best Supporting Actor - Christopher Plummer for Beginners
Best Supporting Actress - Octavia Spencer for The Help
Best Animated feature film - Rango
Best foreign language film - A Separation ( Iran)

The 54th Annual Grammy Awards
Album of the Year: 21 - Adele
Record of the Year: Rolling in the Deep, Adele
Song of the Year: Rolling in the Deep, Adele
Best New Artist: Bon Iver
The British songstress, Adele swept the awards winning a staggering six golden gramophones for her Album, 21.

The 65^th annual British Academy Film awards
Best Picture: The Artist
Best Actor: Jean Dujardin – The Artist
Best Actress: Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady
Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist
Best Supporting actress: Octavia Spencer – The Help
Best Supporting actor: Christopher Plummer – Beginners
Best Animated film: Rango directed by Gore Verbinski
Best Documentary: Senna
Outstanding British film: Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Best Film not in the English language: The Skin I Live In (Spanish thriller film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar)
Outstanding debut: Tyrannosaur

JANUARY 2012

 

National

India and Pakistan on 1 Jan. 2012 exchanged lists of their nuclear installations and facilities under a two – decade – old pact prohibiting attacks on atomic assets.

Mali signs $100-m line of credit with Exim Bank of India.

India’s ranking in a global press freedom index fallen to 131 out of 179 on the press freedom index compiled by reporters without borders .

India Has The Most Toxic Air, India holds the very last rank among 132 nations in terms of air quality with regards to its effects on human health.

NTPC to build a 1,320 mw coal fired power plant in Bangladesh.

India to Grant $1.5 Million to University Of Chicago to establish a Vivekananda Chair for Indian Studies.

India selected the French fighter Rafale over the Euro fighter  Typhoon in a multibillion dollar contract for the supply of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) the country ‘s largest defence deal estimated to be worth of $ 10.2 billion (54,000 crore).

Union Government gives nod to much-awaited National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC). The counter-terrorism agency will be a separate body under the control of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

India inks a multi lateral global pact to check tax avoidance and evasion with Germany and France

Thailand Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, also  the Chief Guest at the 26 Jan., 2012 Republic Day Parade in India has signed six accords, including one on defence cooperation, as the Southeast Asian nation acknowledged India’s credentials for a permanent seat in United Nations Security Council.

Union government notified the rules allowing 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in single-brand retail.

India and Trinidad & Tobago signed five agreements during the visit of Trinidad & Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar.

Home ministry of India launched the first batch of RICs (Resident Identity Cards) at Porthrapur village in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Asian Development Bank, signed an agreement with Union government of India to give a loan of 24.3 mn USD to boost investment in Maharashtra Agribusiness Infrastructure.

The Government of India and the World Bank signed an IDA credit of 130 mn USD to finance the project called NERLP (North East Rural Livelihoods Project).

The 10th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas was held in the pink city of Jaipur, Rajasthan. The event is held annually between 7th to 9th January.

Madhya Pradesh government launched Panch Parmeshwar scheme. The objective of the scheme is to further empower village Panchayats.

Government doubled the import duty on gold and silver by changing the customs and excise duty structure on precious metals.

International

Obama signs bill to suspend $ 1.1 bn aid to Pakistan

Pakistan wins temporary UN Security Council Seat for a term of Two Year securing 129 out of 193 votes in United Nations General Assembly

Pakistan Court issues Contempt Notice on 16 January 2012 against Prime Minister Gilani for failing to carry out its order to re-open a corruption case against the President.

25 out of 27 EU Nations agreed to sign a new treaty called Fiscal Compact

Romney wins first round battle for GOP’s (Grand Old Party), (US Republican Political Party )  US President nominations.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani dismissed Defence Secretary Lt Gen Khalid Naeem Lodhi.

Dutch government approves burqa ban.

World Future Energy Summit held in Abu Dhabi.

Sports

Novak Djokovic won in themen’s single category of the 2012 Australian Open

Victoria Azarenka won in the women category of the 2012 Australian Open

Rajasthan won the 78th Ranji Trophy by defeating Tamil Nadu.

Awards & Honours

69th Annual Golden Globe Awards

Best Picture: Drama - The Descendants
Best Actor: Drama - George Clooney (The Descendants)
Best Actress: Drama - Meryl Streep (The Iron Lady)
Best supporting Actor - Christopher Plummer (Beginners)
Best Supporting Actress - Octavia Spencer (The Help)
Best Screenplay - Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen)
Best Picture: Comedy or Musical- The Artist
Best Actor: Comedy or Musical - Jean Dujardin (The Artist)
Best Actress: Comedy or Musical - Michelle Williams (My Week With Marilyn)
Best Director - Martin Scorsese (Hugo)
Best Foreign Language Film - A Separation (Iran)
Best Animated Film - The Adventures of Tintin
Best Original Score - Ludovic Bource, The Artist

Books & Authors

NON STOP INDIA – Mark Tully

HIS MONSOON BRIDE - Aastha Atray

VIRTUOUS SIN - Shadan Ahmad

THE WORLD AT HIS FEET - Pullela Gopichand

Business & Economy

Net FII buying crossed the $2-billion mark in January 2012, making January the best month in terms of foreign fund flows since November 2010.

RBI cut the cash reserve ratio (CRR) by 50 basis points from 6 per cent to 5.5 per cent with effect from 28 January 2012.

US beverage maker Coca Cola retained its top position in Interbrand's list of the top 100 global brands in 2011.

SEBI allowed auctioning of securities through stock exchanges and introduced a new method for institutional placement of stocks.

Science & Technology

A team of scientists identified a group of cancer cells that play a main role in preventing the development of the disease.

Researchers identified a new species of earthworm in Port Blair, the capital of Andaman and Nicobar islands. The species was named Moniligaster Ivaniosi.

UK scientists discovered a new gene in maize plants, called Meg 1. The gene regulates the transfer of nutrients from the plant to the seed.

Personalities

Pankaj Pachauri, senior TV journalist, appointed as Communication Advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office.

Aamir Khan, appointed as UNICEF ambassador for promoting nutrition among children.

M O H Farook, Kerala governor and three-time Puducherry chief minister and MP, died in Chennai on 26 January 2012.

Sukumar Azhikode, award-winning Malayalam writer, scholar and one of the most influential Gandhian intellectual in Kerala, died on 24 January 2012.

Ricky Ponting appointed an officer in the general division of the Order of Australia, highest civil honour of Australia, for distinguished service to cricket & the community.

C. Jagannatha Rao, Senior congress leader and former Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh died.

Nikhat Kazmi, noted Times of India film critic who had been suffering from breast cancer died.

Homai Vyarawala, India’s first woman photo-journalist died.

Vice Admiral M.P. Muralidharan took charge as the 19th Director-General of the Indian Coast Guard.

Noted mathematician & Pro-Vice Chancellor, IGNOU Prof. Parvin Sinclair was appointed the Director of NCERT.

Laura Dekkar, 16 yrs old Dutch girl on 21st Jan 2012, became the youngest sailor to complete a solo circumnavigation of the world.

Events

World Hindi Day - January 10.

National Youth Day - January 12.

National Girl Child Day - January 24.

National Electorate Day - January 25.

Martyrdom Day - January 30

Railway Budget 2012

Union Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi presented the Railway Budget in Parliament on March 14, 2012.   Mr Dinesh Trivedi was forced to resign by Mamata Banerjee and Mr Mukul Roy was appointed as the Railways Minister, who rolled back the hike in fares proposed originally by Mr Trivedi, except in case of AC 2-tier and AC-1 fares.

The highlights of Railway Budget are:

• Minimum fare and platform tickets to cost Rs 5.

• 50 per cent concession in fare in AC-2, AC-3, Chair Car and Sleeper classes to patients suffering from ‘Aplastic Anaemia’ and ‘Sickle Cell Anaemia’.

• Extending the facility of travel by Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains to Arjuna Awardees.

• Travel distance under ‘Izzat Scheme’ to increase from 100 kms to 150 kms.

• SMS on passenger mobile phone in case of e-ticket to be accepted as proof of valid reservation.

• Introduction of satellite based real time train information system (SIMRAN) to provide train running information to passengers through SMS, internet, etc.

• On board passenger displays indicating next halt station and expected arrival time to be introduced.

• Installation of 321 escalators at important stations of which 50 will be commissioned in 2012-13.

• Introduction of regional cuisine at affordable rates; launching of Book-a-meal scheme to provide multiple choices of meals through SMS or email.

• Introduction of coin/currency operated ticket vending machines.

• Upgradation of 929 stations as Adarsh Stations, including 84 stations proposed in 2012-13; 490 stations have been completed so far.

• Specially designed coaches for differently-abled persons to be provided in each Mail/Express trains.

• Introduction of “Rail Bandhu” on-board magazine on Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto trains.

• Setting up of AC Executive lounges at important stations.

• 75 new Express trains to be introduced.

• 725 km new lines, 700 km doubling, 800 km gauge conversion and 1,100 km electrification targeted in 2012-13.

• Rs 6,872 cr provided for new lines, Rs 3,393 cr for doubling, Rs 1,950 cr for gauge conversation, Rs 828 cr for electrification.

• Highest ever plan outlay of Rs 60,100 cr

• A wagon factory to be set up at Sitapali (Ganjam District of Odisha)

• A rail coach factory with the support of government of Kerala to be set up at Palakkad; two additional new manufacturing units for coaches to be established in the Kutch area in Gujarat and at Kolar in Karnataka with active participation of the State governments.

• Setting up of a factory at Shyamnagar in West Bengal to manufacture next generation technology propulsion system for use in high power electric locomotives.

• Creating Missions as recommended by Pitroda Committee to implement the modernization programme.

• Setting up of Railway Tariff Regulatory Authority to be considered.

• Rail-Road Grade Separation Corporation to be set up to eliminate level crossings.

• Indian Railway Station Development Corporation to be set up to redevelop stations through PPP mode.

• National High Speed Rail Authority to be set-up.

• Introduction of a ‘Green Train’ to run through the pristine forests of North Bengal.

• Setting up of 200 remote railway stations as ‘green energy stations’ powered entirely by solar energy.

• Providing solar lighting system at 1,000 manned level crossing gates.

• 2,500 coaches to be equipped with bio toilets.

• Setting up of 72 MW capacity windmill plants in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

• Setting up of a Railway Safety Authority as a statutory regulatory body as recommended by Kakodkar Committee.

• Three 'Safety Villages' to be set up at Bengaluru, Kharagpur and Lucknow for skill development for disaster management.

• Institution of 'Rail Khel Ratna' Award for 10 rail sports-persons every year.

• New coaching terminal at Naihati, the birth place of Rishi Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, commemorating him on 175th Birth Anniversary.

• Project to connect Agartala with Akhaura in Bangladesh to be taken up in 2012-13.

• Freight loading of 1,025 MT targeted; 55 MT more than 2011-12

• Passenger growth targeted at 5.4 per cent.

Economic Survey 2012

Economic Survey 2012 Highlights


Key Highlights are as follows:

The Economy Survey 2011-12 was tabled by the Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the Parliament on March 15, 2012.

The country's economic growth estimated at 6.9 per cent in the current fiscal; growth momentum to pick up in next two fiscals to 7.6 per cent 2012-13 and 8.6 per cent in 2013-14. 

RBI expected to lower policy interest rates, as inflationary pressures expected to ease in coming months; A low interest rate regime to encourage investment activity and push forward economic growth.
 
Steps required for deepening of domestic financial markets, especially corporate bond market and attracting longer-term inflows from abroad; Efforts at attracting dedicated infrastructure funds have begun. 

The growth rate of investment in the economy is estimated to have declined significantly; borrowing costs up due to a sharp increase in interest rates. 

High borrowing costs and increase in other costs affecting profitability and internal accruals. 

Slowdown in Indian economy largely due to global factors, as also because of domestic factors like tightening of monetary policy, high inflation and slower investment and industrial activities. 

Inflation high, but showing clear signs of slowdown by the year-end; Whole-sale food inflation down to 1.6 per cent in January 2012 from 20.2 per cent in February 2010. 

India remains one of the fastest growing economies of the world; Country's sovereign credit rating rose by a substantial 2.98 per cent 2007-12. 

Exports grew by 40.5 per cent in the first half of this fiscal and imports grew by 30.4 per cent; Foreign trade performance to remain key driver of growth. 

Forex reserves expanded further, covering almost the entire external debt stock to the country. 

Food grains production likely to cross 250.42 million tonnes; largely on back of increase in rice production. 

Agriculture and Services sectors expected to perform well; Industrial growth pegged at 4-5 per cent and expected to improve further as economic recovery resumes. 

Global economy remains fragile and concerted efforts needed to restore stability and renewed growth; Steps needed for sovereign debt crisis, financial regulation, growth and job creation efforts and energy security, globally. 

India much more closely integrated with world economy' share of trade to GDP of goods and services has tripled in 1990-2010. 

A progressive deregulation of interest rates on savings accounts to help raise financial savings and improve transmission of monetary policy. 

Sustainable development and climate change becoming central areas of global concern and India too is equally concerned and engaged constructively in global negotiations. 

FDI in multi-brand retail can come into effect in a “phased” manner, beginning from metropolitan cities. The survey said that allowing foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail is one of the major issues in the services sector, but the move would address problems relating to food inflation.

Notwithstanding lower growth of domestic steel consumption during the first three quarters of the current fiscal, the overall performance of the sector is “optimistic”. The survey points out a list of bottlenecks responsible for lower steel consumption, including high inflationary pressure within, deteriorating global economy, multiple hikes in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India. 

Rate of growth estimated to be 6.9% in FY 12.

Real GDP growth expected at 7.6% in FY 13.

GDP pegged at 8.6% in FY 14.

Agriculture grows at 2.5 % growth in FY 12.

Services grow at 9.4 %, in FY 12, share in GDP at 59%.

Industrial growth pegged at 4-5 % in FY 13.

WPI food inflation dropped from 20.2% in February 2010 to 1.6% in January 2012.

India’s sovereign credit rating rose by 2.98 percent in 2007-12.

Central spending on social services up at 18.5% in FY 12 Vs 13.4% FY 07.

Gross capital formation in Q3 of FY 12 as a ratio of GDP at 30%, down from 32% in FY 11.

Balance of Payments widens to USD 32.8 bn in H1 of FY 12 Vs USD 29.6 bn FY 11.

Forex reserves up from USD 279 bn in March ’10 to US USD 305 bn in March 11.

India’s share of trade to GDP of goods and services in world tripled in 1990-2010
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FDI in multi-brand retail recommended.

Agriculture, allied activities account for 13.9 % of GDP in FY 12.

Foodgrains stocks at 55.2 million tonnes.

Production of foodgrains in FY 12 estimated at 250.42 million tones.

Industrial growth pegged at 4-5% in FY 12.

Employment in Industry increase from 16.2% in 1999-2000 to 21.9% in 2009-10 largely due to construction sector.

Services grow by 9.4% despite slowing GDP growth.

Share of services in GDP at increased from 55.1% in FY 11 to 56.3% in FY 12.

India’s exports grew at 23.5% to reach USD 242.8 bn in April 2011 - Jan 2012.

Imports up 29.4% during April - Jan 2011-12 at USD 391.5 bn.

Key import areas: petroleum, oil and lubricant, gold and silver.

UAE India’s largest trading partner, followed by China.

Total FDI inflows into major infrastructure sectors during April-December 2011 registered growth of 23.6%.

Rupee falls by 12.4 % against USD. Rupee’s high volatility impairs investor confidence.

Public sector banks show 19 % growth in priority sector lending.

Credit Disbursement to agriculture sector exceeded target by 19 %.

98 % public sector bank branches fully computerised.

Number of out-of-school children down from 134.6 lakh in 2005 to 81.5 lakh in 2009.

Share of women in organized-sector employment at 20.4% in 2010 March end.

MGNREGA: Coverage increases to 5.49 crore households in 2010-11.

BUDGET 2012-13 HIGHLIGHTS

KEY HIGHLIGHTS GENERAL BUDGET 2012-13

Economy

ü  GDP growth to be 7.6 per cent (+ 0.25 percent) during 2012-13

ü  Central subsidies to be kept under 2 per cent of GDP; to be further brought down to 1.75  per cent of GDP over the next 3 years.

ü  Rajiv Gandhi Equity Saving Scheme: to allow income tax deduction to retail investors on  investing in equities

ü  Rs. 15,888 crore to be provided for capitalization of public sector banks and financial  institutions

ü  A central  “Know Your Customer” depository to be developed

ü   Tax Free Bonds of Rs. 60,000 crore to be allowed for financial infrastructure projects

ü  Allocation of Road Transport and Highways Ministry enhanced by 14 per cent to Rs. 25,360 crore

ü  Financial package of Rs. 3,884 crore for waiver of loans to handloom weavers and their cooperative societies

 ü   Attracting foreign funds: Efforts on to allow FDI in multi-brand retail and permitting foreign airlines invest in domestic players; External borrowings to the extent of USD one billion for aviation companies; Qualified Foreign Investors to get access to corporate bond market.

Taxes

ü  Income tax exemption limit raised from Rs. 1,80,000 to Rs. 2,00,000.

ü   10 per cent tax for 2-5 lakh income

ü   20 per cent for 5-10 lakh

ü   30 per cent beyond Rs. 10 lakh

ü   Savings bank account interest up to Rs. 10,000 exempted from tax.

ü   No change in corporate tax rate, but standard rate of excise duty

ü   service tax rates, raised from 10 per cent to 12 per cent

ü   Securities Transaction Tax on cash delivery reduced by 25 per cent to 0.1 per cent;

ü   A new Rajiv Gandhi Equity Saving Scheme to allow income tax deduction to retail investors in stocks.

Agriculture

ü  Agricultural credit raised to Rs. 5,75,000 crore

ü ü  Interest subvention for short-term crop loans to farmers at 7 per cent interest continues; additional 3 per cent for prompt paying farmers.

ü   Rs. 200 crore for awards to incentivise agricultural research

Rural sector

ü  AIBP allocation raised by 13 per cent to Rs. 14,242 crore

ü   National Mission on Food Processing to be started in cooperation with State Governments

ü  Rural drinking water and sanitation gets 27 per cent rise in allocation to Rs. 14,000 crore; PMGSY gets 20 per cent rise to Rs. 24,000 crore

Defence

ü  Defence services get Rs. 193407 crore; any further requirement to be met

ü  4000 residential quarters to be constructed for Central Armed Police Forces

Financial Highlights

Fiscal deficit targeted at 5.1 per cent of GDP in 2012-13(0.8% reduction from Last year)

 Central Government debt at 45.5 percent of GDP.

Estimated Receipts In Crores
Gross Tax Receipts	10,77,612.00
Net tax to the Centre	7,71,071.00
Non-Tax Revenue Receipts	1,64,614.00
Non-debt Capital Receipts	41,650.00

Estimated Expenditure In Crores
Plan Expenditure	5,21,025.00
non-plan expenditure	9,69,900.00
Total expenditure(INR)	14,90,925.00