India elected to UN Security Council as non-permanent member
This will be India’s seventh term on the Security Council as a non-permanent member. India has previously been a member of the Security Council in
1950-51, 1967-68, 1972-73, 1977-78, 1984-85, and 1991-92.
India will take over the Asian seat in the Security Council vacated by Japan at the end of this year.
It will re-enter the Security Council after a gap of 19 years.
In the elections held at the UN Headquarters in New York, India got 187 votes, the highest among the countries standing for election. This was 98 per cent of the total membership of the UN and much more than the required 128 votes, which is two-thirds of the votes of the 192 Member States of the United Nations.
Most significant is that for the first time, the Security Council will witness the simultaneous presence of all BRIC [Brazil, Russia, India, China] and IBSA [India, Brazil, South Africa] countries, and three of the four G4 countries {India, Brazil and Germany}.
India, Germany to work closely for reforms in U.N. architecture
Germany and India have decided to work closely in the United Nations Security Council to push for reforms in the architecture of the world body. Both countries were recently elected as non-permanent members to the Security Council.
Germany is India's fifth largest trading partner, besides being its largest trading partner in Europe. The bilateral trade in 2009 crossed €13 billion.
Germany is also the eighth largest investor in India.
India signs international N-damages pact
India signed the international agreement on nuclear liability which will make it easier for nuclear suppliers from the US to enter the Indian nuclear industry.
The Indian envoy to Vienna, Dinkar Khullar, signed the UN Convention of Supplementary Compensation (CSC) on nuclear damage, which will establish a global legal system that will award damages in case of a nuclear incident.
India will be the 14th country to sign on to the CSC, and when it ratifies it, one of a handful. Along with the signature, India will also provide the IAEA with a list of reactors it plans to bring under the CSC.
At the moment four States have signed and ratified the Convention - Argentina, Morocco, Romania and the United States. India’s signing brings a total of 14 States as current signatories to the Convention.
By acceding to the CSC, India will be able to pay civil damages as a result of a nuclear incident within its exclusive economic zone. – According to IAEA statement
Aam Admi reforms - Pregnant Women to Get Cash, Vendors Health Cover
In a major push towards aam admi reforms, the Union Cabinet cleared two big ticket schemes — conditional cash transfer for pregnant women and health insurance for street vendors — likely to benefit 18.3 lakh women and 42.19 lakh street vendors respectively.
Each pregnant and lactating woman will receive Rs. 4,000 in three instalments between the second trimester of pregnancy until the child is six months old.
The scheme, to be implemented through the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme infrastructure and personnel, will cost Rs. 1,000 crore.
The scheme will be fully funded by the Centre and Rs. 390 crore and Rs. 610 crore have been allocated for 2010-11 and 2011-12 respectively.
2. The Cabinet also approved the labour ministry’s proposal for extension of Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) to street vendors. The RSBY scheme, which presently extends to Below Poverty Line (BPL) families (a unit of five) is a smart card-based cashless health insurance scheme. Beneficiaries under RSBY are entitled to coverage up to Rs 30,000 for most diseases that require hospitalization.
The government said in a statement that street vendors, who form an important segment of unorganised workers in urban areas, will now be covered under RSBY. “The government proposes to cover all registered street vendors under RSBY by the year 2013-14, out of which 4.21 lakh are proposed to be covered in the current financial year. The premium for the insurance scheme will be paid by the central and state governments in the ratio of 75:25 and for the northeastern states and Jammu and Kashmir, the expenditure is shared in the ratio of 90:10.
The total expenditure on the part of the central government during the current year will be around Rs 20 crore. The recurring expenditure after 2013-14 will be around Rs 200 crore annually.
Social audit for government schemes planned
A meeting of the secretaries and heads of departments chaired by Chief Secretary R. Chandramohan convened recently decided to engage experienced and reputable non-governmental organisations to conduct social audit of government programmes and schemes.
The Planning and Research Department will be given the task to identify the NGOs.
Cabinet nod for new Enemy Property Bill
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved yet another version of the controversial Enemy Property Bill to replace the ordinance that lapsed on September 6. It is based on a fresh proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Second Bill, 2010, will now be introduced in the winter session of Parliament.
The four-decade-old Enemy Property Act bars Indian legal heirs from inheriting the properties of relatives who migrated to Pakistan after Partition. The Custodian of Enemy Property for India, a government department, is empowered to appropriate the property.
MSP for wheat, pulses up
The Centre announced a modest hike of Rs. 20 per quintal in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of wheat to be procured from farmers for the Targeted Public Distribution System.
MSP of wheat has been raised to Rs. 1,120 per quintal for the 2010-11 rabi season from Rs 1,100 per quintal last year.
The MSP of gram has been hiked to Rs. 2,100 from Rs. 1,760 per quintal, while the MSP of masur dal has been raised to Rs. 2,250 from Rs. 1,870 per quintal last year.
The MSP of mustard/rapeseed was hiked by Rs. 20 to Rs. 1,850 per quintal, while the MSP of safflower was up to Rs. 1,800 per quintal from Rs. 1,680 per quintal last year.
The MSP of barley was fixed at Rs. 780 per quintal against Rs. 750 per quintal last year.
World Bank approves $ 13 m in additional financing for Mizoram roads project
The World Bank has approved a credit worth $13 million in additional financing for the India Mizoram State Roads Project to continue revitalizing and modernizing the state’s highway system.
The credit from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s concessionary arm, has 35 years tomaturity with a 10-year grace period; it carries a service charge of 0.75 per cent.
Fiscal Stability and Development Council to be set up
The Government will set up a Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) to strengthen and institutionalise the mechanism for maintaining financial stability and development.
According to an official press release, the apex council would, without prejudice to the autonomy of regulators, engage in macro prudentialsupervision of the economy, including the functioning of large financial conglomerates and address inter-regulatory coordination issues. The council would also focus on financial literacy and financial inclusion. It will also look into issues relating to financial development from time to time.
Govt. sets up Task Forces to examine developmental needs of Jammu, Ladakh
The Government today set up two separate Special Task Forces to examine the developmental needs of the Jammu and Ladakh regions of Jammu and Kashmir, with particular reference to deficiencies in infrastructure, and make suitable recommendations.
The Task Force for Jammu will be headed by Planning Commission Member Abhijit Sen and the one for Ladakh will be headed by another Planning Commission Member, Prof Narendra Jadhav. There are other members too in the respective task forces for Jammu and Ladakh.
The terms of reference of the two Task Forces are:
(i) To identify the special development needs of the region and suggest measures for addressing the same.
(ii) To examine the allocation to the region in terms of infrastructure needs and to make suitable recommendations to overcome the deficiencies.
Indian Statistical Institute celebrates first World Statistical Day
Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) here joined the world in celebrating the first World Statistics Day on 20th oct.
October 20 was declared as World Statistics Day was taken by the United Nations General Assembly earlier this year.
India tops Commonwealth countries in underweight children
India has the highest number of underweight children among all the Commonwealth countries.
In a new report, “Commonwealth or Common Hunger?” Save the Children, an NGO, claims that 64 per cent of the world's underweight children live in the 54 Commonwealth countries, and India has both the highest number and the highest proportion of underweight children.
The 54 countries are home to one-third of the world's children but two-thirds of the children under five are under-nourished. More than two-thirds of the children who are stunted (88.5 million or 68.6 per cent) and nearly half of those who are underweight (95 million or 48.7 per cent) live in just seven Commonwealth countries.
What is the Commonwealth?
The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of 54 countries that support each other and work together towards shared goals in democracy and development.
How many countries are members of the Commonwealth?
54 (including India)
Indra 2010
After a gap of three years, India and Russia will conduct a 10-day joint anti-terrorism exercise termed as “Indra 2010” in Uttarakhand's Ranikhet district.
Indian and Russian military personnel will form a joint task force and plan and carry out a series of mock anti-terrorism missions in the mountains.
Rustom 1 test-flown successfully
Rustom 1, a medium-altitude and long-endurance Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), developed by the Bangalore-based Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), was successfully test-flown.
Rustom 1 followed the two other UAVs developed by the ADE — Lakshya and Nishant. While Lakshya — a drone that is remotely piloted by a ground control station — provides aerial sub-targets for live-fire training, Nishant is a surveillance aircraft primarily tasked with intelligence gathering over enemy territory.
Features
- The UAV has an endurance of 12 to 15 hours and can carry payloads up to 75 kg.
- It has an altitude ceiling of 25,000 feet.
- Such flights of UAVs remove the risk to human pilots when they have to fly them in hazardous zones
- This UAV can be used by all the three armed services of our country
Subsidized LPG scheme for poor gets plan panel nod
The Planning Commission has approved the subsidized LPG scheme for the Below Poverty Line population, which will help boost the poor’s share of use of cooking gas.
The petroleum ministry will urge the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs to fund the scheme that is expected to cost Rs 490 crore.
Around 35 lakh families are expected to benefit from the scheme.
New pattern for civil services preliminary exam
The Union Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Ministry has announced changes in the pattern of the Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2011.
The examination will consist of two papers. Paper I and II are each worth 100 marks and have been allotted two hours each. In Paper I, candidates will be tested on their knowledge of current events of national and international importance, Indian history, the Indian national movement, Indian and world geography, including the physical, social and economic geography of India and the world. Questions will also be asked on the Indian polity and governance as well as the Constitution, the political system, panchayati raj, public policy and rights. Candidates will have to be prepared for questions on economic and social development, sustainable development, poverty, inclusion, demographics and social sector initiatives. Questions related to general issues on environmental ecology, bio-diversity, climate change and general science will also be posed.
Paper II will consist of English language comprehension skills of the Class X level, interpersonal skills, including communication skills, logical reasoning and analytical ability, decision making and problem solving as well as general mental ability.
Candidates will be tested on basic numeric skills of the Class X level such as numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude and data interpretation.
NIMHANS to be institute of national importance like AIIMS
The Union Cabinet approved a proposal to declare the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bangalore as an Institute of National Importance.
This would be on the lines of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh and Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research (JIPMER), Puducherry.
The Cabinet also approved introduction of the "National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences Bangalore Bill, 2009" in Parliament.
IIMs free to open centres in India and abroad: Sibal
Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal today said the elite Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) were free to open centres in India and abroad and had full powers to create posts within the approved norms.
At a meeting with the Chairpersons and Directors of the IIMs here on the future vision of the IIMs and the steps to be taken to achieve it, Mr Sibal said his Ministry had, in the last one and a half years, taken several steps to provide autonomy to these institutions.
Among other things, they had the powers to amend rules of the IIM within the framework of the Memorandum of Association and Rules, to acquire and dispose of property not fully or partially funded by the Ministry, to approve their own budget and to manage the funds generated by them on their own.
Bengal Engineering & Science University to be converted to IIEST
The Union Cabinet approved a proposal for taking over the Bengal Engineering and Science University (BESU) at Shibpur in West Bengal and converting it to an Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST).
The project cost has been estimated at Rs 592.20 crore over a five-year period, including Rs 300.30 crore as non-recurring cost towards capital expenditure and Rs 291.90 crore as recurring expenditure.
New oral vaccine may eradicate polio in 3 years
A single oral vaccine that protects against two deadly strains of polio — P1 and P3 — could eradicate the crippling disease from the world in the next three years.
Scientific analysis of the vaccine - bivalent oral polio vaccine (BOPV), presently being used in India and Nigeria, two of the world’s poliovirus hotspots, has found that it induced a significantly higher immune response — 30% more than other trivalent or monovalent vaccines. Publishing their findings in the British Medical Journal “The Lancet”, Nigel Crawford and Jim Buttery, researchers at Australia’s Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, said the effectiveness of the new vaccine was already evident in India, which has recorded only 32 cases so far this year as compared to 260 in 2009.
Trains to have five-digit numbers
For the first time in the 150-odd year history of Railways, the four-digit number of trains will give way to five-digit numbers, the switchover process starting with the superfast and express trains with effect from December 20.
Under the new five-digit numbering scheme, all express trains will have the existing four-digit numbers. The addition will be in the form of a prefix 1 (one). The name of the trains will remain the same.
The new five-digit number will be applicable to all scheduled and regular express and superfast trains.
Under the new five-digit numbering scheme, all express trains will have the existing four-digit numbers. The addition will be in the form of a prefix 1 (one). The name of the trains will remain the same.
The new five-digit number will be applicable to all scheduled and regular express and superfast trains.
EU bans import of branded Indian honey
The European Union has banned the import of branded honey from India after laboratory tests showed a high level of lead and antibiotics in the samples.
Adult HIV prevalence on the decline in the country: NACO report
As per the National AIDS Control Programme (NACO) report, The estimated adult HIV prevalence in the country has declined from 0.45 per cent in 2002 to 0.29 per cent in 2008. Similarly, the estimated number of people living with HIV also declined from 2.73 million to 2.27 million over the same period. However, there is a significant variation in the trends with the data showing that the HIV epidemic has stabilised in the four high-prevalence States of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
Mumbai gets world's largest diamond bourse
The Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB), the world's largest, was inaugurated in Mumbai.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
Under-five mortality rate dropping: UNICEF
Even as the number of deaths among children under the age of five globally has fallen from 12.4 million in 1990 to 8.1 million in 2009, India accounts for 21 per cent of such deaths.
Interesting fact: About half of global under-five deaths occurred in just five countries in 2009 — India, Nigeria, Democratic Republic of Congo, Pakistan and China. India, with 21 per cent, and Nigeria, with 10 per cent, together account for nearly a third of under-five deaths worldwide. The highest rates of child mortality continue to be found in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in eight children dies before their fifth birthday — nearly 20 times the average for developed regions (one in 167).
Southern Asia has the second highest rates, with about one in 14 children dying before the age of five.
U.S. census report shows spike in poverty
The United States Census Bureau (USCB) has revealed that poverty in the country jumped significantly in 2009, reflecting the debilitating effects of the recession on those at the bottom of the economic ladder.
The Bureau said the official poverty rate in 2009 was 14.3 per cent — up from 13.2 per cent in 2008, with 43.6 million people in poverty in 2009, up from 39.8 million in 2008. In terms of absolute numbers of people in poverty.
Myanmar laying rail line to China
Myanmar has started work on a railway line from its planned deep-sea port at Kyaukphyu to south-western China's Yunnan province.
The line, which will be completed in 2015, will transport Chinese goods for export, and also be used by China to expand its access to Myanmar's natural resources.
The two countries, last year, began work on an oil pipeline from Kyaukphyu to Ruili in Yunnan.
Tsunami, volcano kill 114 in Indonesia
Indonesian islands has been pounded by a 10-foot tsunami that swept away homes, killing at least 113 people.
Indonesia, the world’s largest archipelago, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity due to its location on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire — a series of fault lines stretching from the Western Hemisphere through Japan and Southeast Asia.
The 7.7-magnitude quake that struck late on Monday just 20km beneath the ocean floor was followed by at least 14 aftershocks, the largest measuring 6.2, according to the US Geological Survey.
China high speed trains @350kph
The China-made CRH380 train has been clocked at almost 420 kilometers per hour, a world speed record, though it will usually operate at a maximum speed of 350 kph. China already has the world’s longest high speed rail network. It aims to have 13,000 kilometers of high speed rail in operation by 2012 and 16,000 kilometers by 2020.
Nagoya Protocol-A lifeline for ecosystems
A new international treaty to ensure that the benefits of natural resources and their commercial derivatives were shared with local communities was signed in the Japanese city of Nagoya
A historic global treaty to protect the world’s forests, coral reefs and other threatened ecosystems within 10 years was sealed at a UN summit.
Delegates from 193 countries committed to key goals by 2020 such as curbing pollution, protecting forests and coral reefs, setting aside areas of land and water for conservation, and managing fisheries sustainably.
However, the flip side is that the United States — one of the largest users of such resources — is not among the nearly 200 signatories of the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) rules of the Nagoya Protocol. Getting the Americans into the net will be a key aim of the next U.N. summit on biodiversity to be held in New Delhi in 2012.
The ABS is the result of almost two decades of U.N. negotiations, where India leads a group of 17 mega diverse countries with rich reserves of exploitable natural resources.
The new ABS Rules mean that multinational companies will have to share their profits with local communities not only for using the original resource, but also any derivative products developed from it. For example, a pharma company which develops a new drug from ingredients found in an Indian plant will now have to give a fair share to Indian communities which nurtured the plant in the first place.
The Nagoya Protocol includes a sweeping plan to protect biodiversity by setting targets for 2020. Nations agreed to make 17 per cent of the globe's land area and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas into protected regions, as opposed to the current levels of 13 and one per cent.
They also agreed to bring “natural capital” into national accounting systems so that the trillions of dollars worth of benefits that nature provides to economies are valued.
Telecom reach on Everest
Climbers at the top of Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak, will now be able to make video calls and surf the internet on their mobile phones, a Nepalese telecom group claims.
Ncell, a subsidiary of Swedish phone giant TeliaSonera, said it had set up a high-speed third-generation (3G) phone base station at an altitude of 17,000feet near Gorakshep village in the Everest region.
The installation will also help tens of thousands of tourists and trekkers who visit the world’s highest mountain every year. Climbers who reached its 8,848-metre peak previously, depended on expensive and erratic satellite phone coverage and a voice-only network set up by China Mobile in 2007, on the Chinese side of the mountain.
This is a great milestone for mobile communications as the 3G high speed internet will bring faster, more affordable telecommunication services, from the world’s tallest mountain
ECONOMY, BANKING AND FINANCE
RBI divests stake in Nabard
Nabard is the apex rural and farm development bank, whose role is to promote credit growth in these areas.
The RBI divested its stake amounting to Rs.1,430 crore in Nabard on October 13. With this, the RBI's holding in Nabard has come down to one per cent of shareholding in the bank.
The Central Government now holds 99 per cent of the stake and RBI holds 1% stake in Nabard.
Earlier the RBI held 72.5 per cent of equity in Nabard, amounting to Rs 1,450 crore. The remaining shareholding worth Rs.550 crore was with the Centre.
The move comes more than three years after the central bank sold its entire stake in the country's largest lender State Bank of India to the government. The government in July, 2008, acquired the RBI's entire 59.73 per cent stake in State Bank of India at over Rs.35,531 crore.
The buying of stake in these institutions would enable the government to have greater say in the boards of these institutions and issue directions to meet its credit objectives for targeted areas.
GAIL begins construction of gas pipeline for UP, Uttarakhand
The public sector natural gas major GAIL (India) Limited today began construction of its Karanpur – Moradabad –Kashipur – Rudrapur / Pant Nagar natural gas pipleline at Kashipur in Uttar Pradesh.
The 182 km pipeline will be laid from the tap-off point on the 24" Auraiya – Sahajahanpur – Babrala - Dadri Pipeline of GAIL at Karanpur to Rudrapur / Pantnagar. The estimated investment on the project is Rs. 250 crore.
The design capacity of the pipeline will be 2.5 MMSCMD. The pipeline will pass through Badayun and Moradabad districts in Uttar Pradesh and Udham Singh Nagar in Uttarakhand. It will supply gas to upcoming power plant in Kashipur in Uttarakhand and to other industrial customers in Moradabad, Kashipur and Rudrapur and for City Gas Distribution in Moradabad.
The pipeline would built in two phases. The first phase is scheduled to be completed by January 2011 at an estimated investment of Rs. 196 crore. In Phase II of the project, 58 km of the pipeline will be laid from Kashipur to Rudrapur / Pant Nagar. This phase of the project will involve an estimated investment of Rs. 56 crore. The entire project is targeted to be completed by January 2012.
India launches IX round of oil, gas assets auction
India kicked off the IX round of auctioning under the New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP), offering 34 oil and gas blocks, including eight deep water ones, sans tax exemptions to investors. The 34 blocks, which include 15 re-cycled blocks, cover a sedimentary basin area of 88,807 sq. km. The deadline for making a bid for the blocks is March 18, 2011. The previous eight rounds of NELP in 235 blocks have fetched an investment of around $14 billion.
Debt swap scheme finalised
After deliberating on the burning issue of the strong-arm methods adopted by microfinance institutions (MFI) to recover loans from debtors, the Cabinet in Hyderabad finalised a debt swap scheme to liberate self-help groups (SHG) from the clutches of these institutions.
The debt swap scheme would help them free from private money-lenders. SHGs would be encouraged to avail low-interest loans from banks to clear their high-interest MFI loans and meet their working capital needs.
RBI panel to study functioning of MFIs
The Reserve Bank of India announced constitution of a sub-committee to look into the functioning of micro finance institutions (MFIs), as they have drawn flak for using strong-arm tactics to recover loans. They would submit their report in three months.
FIIs invest $6.11bn in Oct
overseas funds infused $6.11 billion in October, the highest amount channelized to the country in any single month by the FIIs since they were allowed to invest in local stocks.
With this, foreign institutional investment so far in 2010 has crossed $24.48 billionmark, which is also a record investment that has come in a single calender year.
Exports jump 23% in Sept, fastest in 2 yrs
India’s merchandise shipments in September rose at its fastest pace in two years, clocking a rise of 23%, or approximately $18 billion, but the rate of increase in imports outpaced this growth to stir concerns over a widening trade gap.
Exports aggregated $103.3 billion in the April-September period, marking a 27.6% increase from the year-ago period.
R-Power inks $8.3bn -World’s Largest Deal With Chinese Co For Generation Equipment
Reliance Power (R-Power) on Thursday signed a contract with Hong Kong-listed Shanghai Electric Company (SEC) for generation equipment supplies worth $8.3 billion.
The size of the contract makes it the world’s singlelargest order for key components — boiler, turbine and generator — for coal-fired power plants. The equipment aggregates a capacity of 23,700 MW and makes up almost two-thirds of SEC’s supplies outside China.
APPOINTMENTS/DEATHS
Punia takes over as Chairman, National Commission for ScheduledCastes
Congress Lok Sabha member P L Punia assumed charge as the Chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC).
Mr Punia, 65, a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1971 batch (Uttar Pradesh cadre), has a Master's degree in Arts and a Ph.D. He is a vice-president of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee and was elected to the 15th Lok Sabha in 2009 from Barabanki in Uttar Pradesh.
Dhruv Vijai Singh appointed Secretary, Water Resources
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Mr Dhruv Vijai Singh, currently Special Secretry, Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances, as Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources.
Mr Singh, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1976 batch (Maharashtra cadre), will succeed Mr U N Panjiar on his retirement on October 31.
Tamil poet, orator Soundara Kailasam passes away
Eminent Tamil poet and writer Soundara Kailasam who is the mother-in-law of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram expired. She had served as a Member of the State Backward Classes Commission. She published poetry collections, essays and short stories.
AWARDS
Howard Jacobson's 'The Finkler Question' wins Man Booker prize
Novelist and columnist Howard Jacobson has won the Man Booker Prize 2010 for "The Finkler Question" - the first humourous book to win the award in 42 years.
The Finkler Question is a novel about love, loss and male friendship, and explores what it means to be Jewish in England today.
Jacobson had been longlisted twice for the prize, in 2006 for Kalooki Nights and in 2002 for Who's Sorry Now, but has never before been shortlisted.
CA Technologies bags LEED award
30 million USD new building of CA Technologies at its India Technology Centre (ITC) campus has been awarded the prestigious Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) India Gold for new construction certification from the Indian Green Building Council.
SPORTS
Sachin Tendulkar back on top
Sachin Tendukar has regained the number one position in the Test rankings after a gap of eight years, following his successful run in the just concluded Test series against Australia. Tendulkar was the highest run-getter with 403 runs in the two-match series, which India won 2-0. The Indian batting legend now has 891 rating points, according to the latest ICC rankings list. Virender Sehwag is the next best Indian at number three with 819 points, behind Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakkara (874).
It is the first time in eight years that Tendulkar has topped the batting table.
Rajasthan Royals, Kings XI Punjab out of IPL
Rajasthan Royals, which won the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament in 2008, and Kings XI Punjab will not be part of the Twenty20 event from 2011.
At a meeting held here on Sunday, the reconstituted IPL Governing Council terminated the franchise agreements with Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt. Ltd. (Rajasthan Royals) and K.P.H. Dream Cricket Pvt. Ltd. (Kings XI Punjab).
Murray beats Federer to clinch Shanghai Masters title
Andy Murray defeated Roger Federer 6-3, 6-2 to win the Shanghai Masters and it is his second finals victory over the Swiss World No.3 in two months.
Jurgen Melzer and Leander Paes, a first-time pairing in tournament play, won the doubles title beating Polish regulars Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Marcin Matkowski 7-5, 4-6, 10-5 in the final.
Braavo clinches Daisy Appoo Cup
M/s.S. Marthand Singh Mahindra and Sp. Thirunavukkarasu's Braavo (Ashhad Asbar up) won the Daisy Appoo Cup (1,400m), the main event of the races held here on Thursday (Oct.14). The winner is trained by Byramji.
Russia to host Grand Prix
Russia would host its first Grand Prix from 2014, the same year it hosts the Winter Olympics.
According to an agreement signed by Ecclestone in the presence of Putin, Olympics host city Sochi and its Krasnodar region won the rights to host the world's most glamorous racing competition between 2014 and 2020.
More current affairs
- A cricket bat autographed by Sachin Tendulkar is up for grabs on eBay India.
- Yashwant Sinha resigns as Punjab ‘prabhari'
- The Central government raised Dearness Allowance by 10 percentage points to 45 per cent of the basic pay.
- Mumbai gets world's largest diamond bourse - The Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB)
- A former Commissioner of Central Excise, Shillong, has been sentenced to undergo four years imprisonment and pay a fine of Rs 20,000 in a nine-year-old corruption case,
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment