INTERNATIONAL
China, Russia, Pakistan discuss
Afghanistan situation
Officials from China, Russia and Pakistan on 3
April 2013 held talks on the issue of coordination between their positions on
Afghanistan.The officials from three nations backed the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation (SCO) that is grouping to play a great role in
Afghanistan after the withdrawal of NATO Forces in 2014. These talks were held
to enhance coordination. The talks followed a similar meeting India, China and
Russia held in Moscow recently, reflecting the delicate balancing act — and
increasingly complicated regional dynamics — as different countries look to
push their interests in the lead up to 2014.
Malaysia PM Dissolves Parliament
On 3 April Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak has
dissolved the Parliament ahead of a general election.This dissolution will pave
the way for the 13th general election.The elections have to be held before June
2.The Barisan Nasional coalition that has ruled Malaysia since independence in
1957 is expected to face a stiff challenge in the polls from the opposition
three-party Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Pact).
Tammam Salam named as Lebanon new
Prime Minister
On 6 April well-known Sunni lawmaker Tammam Salam
has been named Lebanon’s new prime minister , after receiving overwhelming
parliamentary support.His appointment comes after previous prime minister Najib
Mikati resigned and effectively brought down his Hezbollah-dominated
government.
China, Australia Signed Direct
Currency Exchange Agreement
On 10 China and Australia have signed a currency
swap agreement in a bid to promote bilateral trade and investment.The agreement
makes the Australian dollar the third major currency to directly trade in
China’s mainland foreign exchange market, after the US dollar and the Japanese
yen.Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard discussed bilateral security issues
with China’s President Hu Jintao.
China Pledges $548 million Aid To
Cambodia
On 10 April China has pledged $548 million in aid
to Cambodia for infrastructure and irrigation systems.Agreements covering $500
million in soft loans and $48 million in grants were signed during Cambodian
Prime Minister Hun Sen .
Nepal Peace Process Ends
On 13 April Nepal’s much delayed peace process with
end of the decade long civil war has finally reached conclusion.Though the
peace process had started on 2006, the Special Committee was formed in 2008 to
oversee the army integration process.The last meeting of the cross-party
Special Committee decided to accept application of 47 Maoist combatants to quit
the Nepal Army training.
Nicolas Maduro Wins Venezuelan
Presidential Election
Nicolas Maduro,Socilist Party member who became
Hugo Chavez’s protege, was declared the winner of Venezuela’s presidential
election on 14 April 2013.Maduro secured 50.8% of votes while opposition
candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski won 49.0%.Maduro got 3 lakhs votes of
majority than Henrique.
New Zealand Approved Gay-Marriage
Bill
On 17 April New Zealand’s parliament has approved
the bill to legalise same-sex marriage.New Zealand has become the first country
in the Asia-Pacific region to do so. No other country in the Asia-Pacific
region allows gay marriage.Cheers and applause ring out in parliament building
after 77 of 121 members vote to allow gay couples to wed.New Zealand is now the
13th country to legalise gay marriage.
U.S Senate Rejects Gun Control
Bill
On 18 April The US Senate has rejected a strong gun
control bill.US Senators supported the measure with just 54-46 votes , falling
short of the 60 votes required to pass the amendment.The legislation was
considered the best hope for gun control sought by President Obama in the wake
of the mass shooting at Newtown Elementary School last year.Among them, a vote
to ban assault weapons was rejected by 40 votes to 60, while a measure to limit
the size of gun clips received just 46 votes in its favor.
US House of Representatives
Passed CISPA
On 18 April The US House of Representatives has
passed the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protect Act (CISPA).The
aim of CISPA is to fight with the cyber threats, by enabling the law enforcers
to get access to the web data.This is the second time Cispa has been passed by
the House.Senators threw out the first draft, saying it did not do enough to
protect privacy.Senators had earlier rejected the first draft of this bill on
the grounds that it wasn’t providing enough for protecting the privacy.
Napolitano Re-elected as Italy’s
President
On 21 April Italy’s Parliament re-elected
Giorgio Napolitano as the Italy’s President for second 7-year term .Giorgio
Napolitano will be the first Italian president to be re-elected to serve a
second term.He got 738 votes, far more than the 504 needed for victory.More
than 1,000 national and regional lawmakers had convened to elect the next
Italian president, with the overwhelming majority of them ultimately backing
Napolitano.The People of Freedom party of former Prime Minister Silvio
Berlusconi got second place in Italy elections.He is the first President of
Italy to have been a member of the Italian Communist Party and the first to be
elected to a second term as President.Giorgio Napolitano is the 11th President
of the Italian Republic since 2006.
Horacio Cartes Elected as
Paraguay’s new President
On 22 April Businessman Horacio Cartes of the
Colorado Party has been declared Paraguay’s new president.The electoral board
announced that Cartes had 46.1 percent of the vote and his main rival Senator
Efrain Alegre of the ruling Liberal Party 36.9 percent.The conservative
Colorados held Paraguay’s presidency for 60 years until leftist former Catholic
bishop Fernando Lugo was elected in 2008.
French Parliament Approved Gay
Marriage Law
On 23 April France parliament approved a new law to
allow gay marriage. Parliament passed the bill by 331 votes for and 225
against.France has become the 14th country to allow gay marriage..
UK Approved Caste Discrimination
Bill
On 25 April Britain has outlawed caste
discrimination, after the House of Lords voted for legal protection to be given
to the most vulnerable, mainly in the Indian and Sikh communities.The UK now
looks set to become the first country in Europe to outlaw discrimination based
on caste.
Cuba and Venezuela Signed 51
Cooperation Projects
On 28 April Cuba and Venezuela have signed at
Havana accords for 51 joint projects worth two billion U.S. dollars.At the
close of 13th Cuba-Venezuela Intergovernmental Meeting , Cuban President Raul
Castro and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced the deals for projects
in such areas as education, health, sports, cultur, food production,
construction, transport, communications, energy and support of social
missions.Havana and Caracas agreed to jointly invest two billion dollars to
develop these projects and also signed a memorandum to establish a bilateral
medium- and long-term economic agenda.The investment also covers joint ventures
in vital and strategic economic areas in both countries.
Pakistan court bans Musharraf
from contesting polls for life
A four-judge bench of the Peshawar high court
headed by chief justice Dost Muhammad Khan imposed the life ban while
dismissing Musharraf’s appeal challenging the rejection of his nomination
papers for May 11 general election.The lifetime ban was imposed because
Musharraf had abrogated the Constitution twice and detained judges during the
2007 emergency.
INDIA & WORLD
India and Singapore Signed MoU on
Air Services
On 2 April India and Singapore signed a new Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral air services arrangement in the presence of
Civil Aviation Minister, Shri Ajit Singh and Minister of Transport of
Singapore, Mr Lui Tuck Yew in Singapore.
India, Azerbaijan ink 3 key pacts
Aimed at creating the necessary legal framework in
areas of extradition, India and Azerbaijan on 04 April 2013 inked three key
pacts which also included treaties for mutual legal assistance in criminal and
civil matters.Visiting Justice Minister of Azerbaijan Fikrat Mammadov held a meeting
with Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde where the extradition treaty was signed.
India and Tanzania Signed
Agreement To Explore Mineral Wealth
On 6 April India and Tanzania have signed an
agreement for forging an alliance to explore mineral wealth in the African
nation.The agreement was signed by the Union Minister of Steel, Beni Prasad
Verma and Sospeter Muhongo, the Minister of Energy and Minerals, United
Republic of Tanzania at Der es Salaam.
India and Russia signed
Regulation of Co-operation Agreement
On 10 April India and Russia signed a Regulation
defining the structure, functions and procedure of the Joint Commission at
Moscow.The agreement was signed by Vladimir Puchkov, Minister of the Russian
Federation for Civil Defense, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of
Natural Disasters and Sushil kumar Shinde, the Union Minister of Home Affairs.
Two Day India-China
Counter-Terrorism Dialogue on Afghanistan ended
The two-day India-China counter-terrorism dialogue
ended on 12 April 2013 in Beijing China. The two nations discussed upon the
ways to step up cooperation to counter terror in Afghanistan as a follow up
plan after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in 2014.
India – Mauritius Signed MoU on
Electoral Cooperation
On 12 April India and Mauritius signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) in New Delhi on cooperation in the field of Election
Management and Administration. The MoU was signed by Chief Election
Commissioner of India, V.S. Sampath and the Electoral Commissioner of
Mauritius, Mohammad Irfan Abdool Rahman.
India – Mauritius Signed MoU on
Electoral Cooperation
On 12 April India and Mauritius signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) in New Delhi on cooperation in the field of Election
Management and Administration. The MoU was signed by Chief Election
Commissioner of India, V.S. Sampath and the Electoral Commissioner of
Mauritius, Mohammad Irfan Abdool Rahman.
Bangladesh Inks $1.6 Billion
Power Deal with India
On 20 April India and Bangladesh signed its biggest-ever
joint venture agreement with India involving investment of $1.6 billion for
1,320 MW coal-fired power plant which is expected to be operational in the next
five years.The two country’s signed three deals under a pact to run the plant
at Rampal of Bagerhat while the two others were Power Purchase Agreement and
Implementation Agreement.A supplementary joint venture agreement floating the
company was signed by Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) chairman Abdual
Wahab Khan and NTPC Chairman and Managing Director Arup Roy Choudhury while the
two others agreements were signed by officials concerned of the two countries.
Indian origin boy won spelling
championship
12 years old Indian origin boy won the very popular
spelling competition beating another 30 competitors, held at Singapore. The
name of the competition was R.B.H- The Straight Times National Spelling
Championship. The name of the boy is Ashwin Shiv Kumar, who won the top place
in this championship on 27 April 2013 . He is the student of 6th grade at
Anglo-Chinese school. He was awarded by 5000 Singapore Dollars, as a prize he
got. He passed through 10 stages and won the competition.
NATIONAL
Prez Pranab Mukherjee clears
anti-rape bill
President Pranab Mukherjee had given his assent to
the anti-rape bill which provides for life term and even death sentence for
rape convicts besides stringent punishment for offences like acid attacks,
stalking and voyeurism.Mukherjee accorded his assent to the Criminal Law
(Amendment) Bill-2013 on 03 April 2013.This is called as the Criminal Law
(Amendment) Act, 2013.The law, passed by Lok Sabha on March 19 and by Rajya
Sabha on March 21.
Union Government Approved Project
for NOFN Creation in Gram Panchayats
On 12 April The Government of India approved the
project for creation of National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) connecting all the
250000 Gram Panchayats (GPs) in the country through Optical Cable (OFC). The
Union Government decided to fund the project through Universal Service
Obligation Fund (USOF).
Government Approved For 13 Power
Projects
On 22 April The Cabinet Committee on Investment
cleared 13 power projects that involves investment of 33000 crore rupees. The
projects on which the investments will be made include one hydro and two
thermal project as well as ten transmission projects. 25 oil and gas blocks
with investment commitment of about seven billion US dollars also got approval
during the same meet. Of these 16 blocks were given conditional clearances,
while nine blocks were approved without any condition. Approval of these
projects was pending due to the objections raised by the Ministry of Defence
over national security.
Mukherjee Gives Assent To Sexual
Harassment of Women at Workplace Bill
On 25 April President Pranab Mukherjee has given
his assent to the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention,
Prohibition and Redressal) Bill, 2013.Sexual harassment at workplace is a
violation of women’s right to gender equality, life and liberty.It creates an
insecure and hostile work environment, which discourages women’s participation
in work, thereby adversely affecting their economic empowerment and the goal of
inclusive growth. (ANI)
STATES
Andhra Pradesh Government
launched Online Services named Parishkaram for Entrepreneurs
Andhra Pradesh Government on 1 April 2013 launched
the AP Industrial Infrastructure Corporation’s online services for
entrepreneurs and grievance redressal system. The platform is proposed to be a
link between the APIIC and entrepreneurs which would make the
process of application and registration of land for setting up industries a
paperless one.
EC issues notification for
Karnataka assembly polls
The Election Commission on April 10
issued the notification for the Karnataka Assembly polls.The nomination
papers will be scrutinised on April 18. The last day for withdrawing the
nominations is April 20. The votes polled on May 5 will be counted on May 8.
Himachal Govt To Connect All Gram
Panchayats With Broadband
On 12 April Himachal Pradesh government signed
memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Department of Telecommunication, Govt of
India (GOI) and Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL) for providing broadband
connectivity to all Gram Panchayats of the state by establishing of an optical
fiber network.
Himachal celebrates 66th
anniversary
On 15 April 2013 Himachal Pradesh celebrated 66th
Himachal Day.Himachal Pradesh came into existence on 15 April 1948 with the
merger of 30 princely states.During the function, the Chief Minister announced
many schemes for the state which are under development phase like Mukhyamantri
Adarsh Krishi Gaon Yojana, Skill Development Allowance. In the skill
development Allowance, the government would provide 1000 rupees per month to
educated unemployed youths and 1500 rupees to persons with disabilities of the
state.
India’s first automatic toll
collection system launched in Maharashtra
The country’s first interoperable RIFD(Radio
Frequency Identification Device )-based electronic toll system was rolled out
on the Ahmedabad-Mumbai National Highway and the system would allow vehicles
fitted with electronic tags to sail through six toll plazas automatically.
Tamilnadu Planned Rs.7000 crore
Underground Hydel Power Station
On 25 April Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J.
Jayalalithaa announced the government planned a Rs 7,000 crore underground
hydel power station in Nilgiris district besides the ongoing related
schemes,which in all will cost over Rs 20,000 crore.The first unit of North
Chennai Thermal Power plant, third unit of Vallur project and 2x 500 MW each of
Tuticorin Power project would start generating power between March 2014.The
first unit of North Chennai Thermal Power plant, third unit of Vallur project
and 2x 500 MW each of Tuticorin Power project would start generating power
between this year May and March 2014
CONFERENCES
PM inaugurated CII national
conference
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurated the
two-day national conference and annual general meeting of the Confederation of
Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi on 03 March 2013.Around 1,500 industrialists
from across the country will attended the meeting. The theme for this year’s
deliberations is “India tomorrow: Imperatives of growth, security and governance”.
Conference of CM’s of States
& Chief Justices of High Courts held at New Delhi
Conference of Chief Ministers of States & Chief
Justices of High Courts held at New Delhi on 7 April.The conference presided
over by Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir, aims to address pressing issues
related to the country’s justice delivery system that’s often criticised for
being tardy.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurated the joint
conference.Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh has called upon the judiciary and
executive to work together to make the Indian judicial system an arrear free.
Hyderabad will host ICSE
conference in 2014
The 36th International Conference on Software
Engineering, ICSE2014, will be held in Hyderabad, India from 1 June 2013 to 7
June 2013. India is home to some of the largest software companies in the
world, and Hyderabad is one of the main centers for software development in
India.This conference is going to be a premier software engineering conference
that is going to provide a forum for researchers, practitioners and educators
to present and discuss the most recent innovations, trends, experiences and
concerns in the field of software engineering.This is the first time conducted
in India.
UNWTO Conference Held in
Hyderabad
United Nations World Tourism Organisation ( UNWTO)
Commission’s Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development and 25th Joint
Meeting of the UNWTO Commission for East Asia, Pacific and South Asia will be
held at Hyderabad from 12th to 14th of this month.The conference attended by
dignitaries belonging to 29 countries spread across in East Asia & Pacific
and South Asia, eight UNWTO affiliate members, two regional organizations as
well as industry organizations. The UNWTO Secretary General Taleb Rifai along
with his team of senior delegates presented at the meeting .The delegates
discussed the market trends of the region in the year 2012 and tourism
prospects for the year 2013.The next Joint Meeting would be held in Philippines
and the 21st Session of General Assembly of UNWTO will be held in Cambodia.
AWARDS & HONOURS
National Awards for State
Industries
On April 1st ,the state of Micro, Small &
Medium Enterprises (MSME) got the National Awards .In the Research &
Development Efforts in MSMEs category includes three Awards (First, Second and
Third) for Micro and Small Enterprises and have gone to entrepreneurs from
Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Haryana respectively.Three National Awards (First,
Second and Third) for Micro Enterprises in Outstanding Efforts in
Entrepreneurship category Haryana , West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh got
first,second and third respectively.Three National Awards (First, Second and
Third) for Small Enterprises. First Award has gone to an entrepreneur from
Himachal Pradesh. Second Award has been given jointly to four
entrepreneurs from Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, New Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
Third Award has been given jointly to three entrepreneurs from Madhya
Pradesh, Odisha and Karnataka.This awards will be presented by the President
Pranab Mukherjee.
Desmond Tutu Won Prestigious
“2013 Templeton Prize “
On 4 South Africa’s Archbishop Emeritus Desmond
Tutu has won “”2013 Templeton Prize “” for his life-long work in promoting love
and forgiveness.The prize was announced at the foundation’s headquarters in
West Conshohocken in Pennsylvania and is valued at $1.7-million (about
Rs.15.6-million).Last year’s prize was awarded to the exiled Tibetan Buddhist
spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
ICSI National Awards for
Excellence in Corporate Governance – 2012
Chairman of the Awards Jury of the ICSI (Institute
of Company Secretaries of India) and former Chief Justice of India Shri Justice
M. N. Venkatachaliah in New Delhi on 05 April 2013 presented the ‘ICSI National
Awards for Excellence in Corporate Governance -2012’ to two ‘Best Governed
Companies’:
1. Indian Oil
Corporation Limited; and
2. HCL Technologies
Limited.
The Awards were presented during the ongoing 2nd
CSIA International Corporate Governance Conference.
ICSI Life Time Achievement Award for the year 2012
was presented to Shri Deepak S. Parekh, Chairman, Housing Development Finance
Corporation Ltd. for translating excellence in Corporate Governance into
reality.Certificates of Recognition were presented to the Top Five Companies.
These are :
1.
CMC Limited
2. Engineers India
Limited
3. ONGC Limited
4. Persistent Systems
Ltd.
5. Powergrid
Corporation of India Limited
Barfi! wins top honours at The
Times of India Film Awards
Barfi movie was the top winner at the maiden
edition of The Times of India Film Awards, bagging the Best Film, Best Director
(Anurag Basu), Best Actor (Ranbir Kapoor), Best Actress (Priyanka Chopra) and
Best Debut Female (Ileana D’Cruz) trophies. The award for the Best Debut Male
went to Ayushmann Khurrana for Vicky Donor, which also won the Best Supporting
Actor award for Annu Kapoor and the Best Supporting Actress trophy for Dolly
Ahluwalia. Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur got the Critics’ Choice award
for Best Film. Abhishek Bachchan, who won the Best Actor in a Comic Role award
for Bol Bachchan, dedicated the honour to his wife Aishwarya.
Pran gets Phalke Award
On 12 April 2013,Hindi film actor Pran Krishan
Sikand will be conferred with the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2012.
The 93-year-old actor, popularly known as Pran, will be the 44th recipient of
the top-most film award in the country.Pran, who has acted in over 400 films in
his six-decade-long career.The award, named after the father of Indian cinema
Dada Saheb Phalke, will be conferred on Pran on May 3, which will also mark the
100 years of cinema this year.
New York Times won four Pulitzer
Prizes
The New York Times won four Pulitzer Prizes on 15
April 2013, including the award for investigative reporting for stories that
detailed how Wal-Mart used bribery to expand in Mexico.The Sun Sentinel in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida, was awarded the public service Pulitzer for its reporting
on off-duty police officers’ reckless driving.The Pulitzer in breaking news
photography went to The Associated Press for its coverage of the civil war in
Syria.The Pulitzers, journalism’s highest honour, are given out each year by
Columbia University on the recommendation of a board of journalists and others.
Each award carries a $10,000 prize except for the public service award, which
is a gold medal.
Raj Chetty won John Bates Clark
young economist award
Delhi-born Raj Chetty, the professor in the
Department of Economy at the Harvard University won John Bates Clark medal for
2013, also called Baby Nobel.John Bates Clark medal is conferred upon the
American economist whose age is below 40 years and the one who has made crucial
contribution to economic knowledge and thought.Baby Nobel is one of the most
prestigious awards of economy. Infact, it is second only after Nobel Prize in
economic science.Raj Chetty, 33, is the first Indian-origin person to win this
high honour. His areas of work include social insurance, tax policy as well as
education policy.
Telugu writer Ravuri Bharadwaja
honoured with Jnanpith award
Telugu writer Dr Ravuri Bharadwaja got the
country’s prestigious Jnanpith award for 2012 for his contributions to Telugu
literature over 60 years.He got this award for his novel “Pakudurallu”.He is
the third recipient of the country’s highest literary award from Andhra
Pradesh, after Dr Viswanatha Satyanarayana in 1970 for his Srimad
Ramayana Kalpavriksham and Dr C. Narayana Reddy in 1988 for his book
Viswambhara. Eighty six-year-old Dr Bharadwaja was chosen for the award by a
selection Board chaired by poet Sitakant Mahapatra, said a statement of the
Jnanpith award committee.
RGIA is Named the Best Airport in
India
On 17 April The GMR Group operated and managed
Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) has been rated as the No.1 airport in
India, the fifth best regional airport in Asia and also as the eighth best
airport in the 5 to 10 mppa capacity.The ratings were given at the recently
concluded Skytrax-World Airport Awards held at the Passenger Terminal Expo in
Geneva.
Manmohan Singh, Sonia and Rahul
Gandhi Named Among Top 5 Most Influential Asians
On 17 April Congress president Sonia Gandhi (2nd
Rank), Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (4th Rank) and AICC vice president Rahul
Gandhi (5th Rank) have been named among top 5 in the world’s 100 most
influential list of Asians topped by China’s new President Xi Jinping.Among the
other key Indians to make the grade included Reliance Industries chief Mukesh
Ambani for owning Indias most valuable company in ninth place, followed by
President Pranab Mukherjee at 19th place and steel magnate Lakshmi N Mittal at
20th position.Indian entries dominated the Top 100 with 39 names, followed by
15 from China and six from the Philippines.While Infosys co-founder Narayan
Murthy was named Philanthropist of the Year, industrialist Adi Godrej bagged
Entrepreneur of the Year award for his contribution to Indian industry and Ravi
Ruia, vice-chairman of the Essar Group, won in the Outstanding Contribution to
Sustainability category, for his company’s high sustainability ratings
NRI Kartar Lalvani Received
Queen’s Award
On 20 April Vitabiotics, a company founded by NRI
entrepreneur Kartar Lalvani, has received the coveted Queen’s Award for
Enterprise in Innovation for its research on vitamins.’Vitabiotics’, UK’s
largest supplier of minerals and vitamin supplements to the retail trade, won
the award for the development of its Pregnacare range and in recognition of its
successful Pregnacare clinic research.
Saina Nehwal Selected for
‘Yudhvir ‘ Award
Yudhvir Foundation has selected ace badminton
player Saina Nehwal for the 22nd Yudhvir Memorial Foundation Award for the year
2013, which was being given every year to honor the individuals who excel in
some field of human endeavor. The award was established in the name of late
Yudhvir, founder editor of the Hindi Milap daily in 1991 after his demise.Saina
Nehwal was selected for the Award as she won a medal in Olympics in badminton
and also the first to win the Asian Satellite Badminton tournament (India
Chapter) twice keeping the country’s image high abroad.The previous Yudhvir
awardees include Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Classical maestro Pandit
Jasraj, Space Scientist Prof. UR Rao, Amar Chitra Katha founder late Anant Pai
and eminent film maker Shyam Benegal and others.
Asha Bhosle, Mala Sinha to get
Phalke Academy awards
The Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Awards will be
bestowed on singer Asha Bhosle, actress Mala Sinha, late filmmaker Yash Chopra,
and late superstar Rajesh Khanna among several others at a ceremony in Mumbai
on April 30.Asha, who has regaled music lovers with her melodious voice in her
over six decades old career, will receive the Phalke Ratna Award from the
academy, while Mala Sinha, who has acted in “”Pyaasa”", “”Maryada”"
and “”Hariyali Aur Rasta”" will get the Golden Era Award.
Major Anup Joseph awarded Kirti
Chakra, 12 others get Shaurya Chakra
Major Anup Joseph Manjali was on Saturday awarded
the second-highest peacetime gallantry award Kirti Chakra by President Pranab
Mukherjee for killing three foreign militants in Jammu and Kashmir. 12 defence
personnel were awarded the Shaurya Charkra for their acts of bravery including
Captain A Rahul Ramesh and Naik Krishna Kumar who were given the honour
posthumously.
Seven South African Indians get
National Orders
The awards(National Orders)are presented on the
Freedom Day of South Africa that is celebrated on April 27 to mark the day on
which Nelson Mandela took over as the country’s first democratically-elected
President in 1994. Among the recipients of the order was veteran Indian
diplomat Enuga Sreenivasula Reddy who had led the fight against apartheid at
the UN since 1963 received the Order of the Companions of OR Tambo(Silver).The
second highest award called the Order of the Baobab was presented to
Lenasia-based community worker Suraya Khan, popularly known to all as “Aunty
Bibi”, while the same order in Silver went to journalist and community activist
Yusuf Abramjee and pioneering skin cloning plastic surgeon Dr Ridwan Mia. Prof
Quarraisha Abdool Karim received the Order of Mapungubwe in Bronze for her
internationally acclaimed research into HIV Aids.
SPORTS & GAMES
Rahi Sarnobat won a Gold medal in
25-M Pistol Event
Rahi Sarnobat clinched the first gold for India in
International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup in Korea on 5 April
2013. She defeated Kyeongae Kim 8-6 in 25m pistol final. She is the first
pistol shooter from India who won the Gold in World Cup.
Indian Women’s Cricket Team Won
the Twenty20 International Series against Bangladesh
The Indian women’s cricket team finished the
Twenty20 International series against Bangladesh Women with 3-0 clean sweep in
Vadodara in the final match on 5 April 2013. India won the final match by 10
runs against Bangladesh. The T-20 International series against Bangladesh began
on 2 April 2013.
Nanjappa wins bronze in men’s 10m
air pistol at World Cup
India’s Prakash Nanjappa won a bronze medal in the
men’s 10m air pistol event at the ISSF World Cup at Changwon, Korea on 06 April
2013.This is Nanjappa’s first ever medal in an ISSF competition. He had also
finished eighth at the men’s 50 metre pistol final. He scored 180.2 points.The
gold was won by Vietnam’s Xuan Vinh Hoang, the 2012 Asian champion, with a
total score of 200.8 points while the silver went to China’s Wang Zhiwei, the
2012 Olympic bronze medallist, who shot 200.1.
Narayanan Srinath Won Asian
Junior Chess Title
On 6 April India’s International Master Narayanan
Srinath won Asian Junior chess title that concluded at Sharjah in the United
Arab Emirates.Sahaj Grover of Delhi was second, as he also remained undefeated
just like Srinath.Top seed Grandmaster Salem Saleh of UAE finished third losing
to Srinath and to a Vietnamese.Vo Thi Kim Phung (Vietnam) won the Asian Junior
girls blitz championship title.
Rupesh Shah Won ONGC 12th Asian
Billiards championship
On April 7 the world champion Rupesh Shah won the
12th Asian Billiards championship at Indore Tennis Club,Indore.He defeated Alok
Kumar .It is is the 10th Asian Billiards title for Rupesh Shah.Rupesh Shah
already qualified for 2013 World Championship as the defending champion.
Serena Williams Won Family Circle
Cup Tennis Title
On 7 April The top-ranked Serena Williams (USA) won
the Family Circle Cup Tennis title after defeated Jelena Jankovic (Serbia) in
the final at Charleston (South Carolina).Williams successfully defended her
title by claiming her third overall Charleston crown.She earned her 49th career
singles title.
India got Silver in World Youth
Weightlifting Championships 2013
Jamjang Deru gave India the first medal in the
World Youth Weightlifting Championships as he won a silver in the 50kg boys
category at Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Deru won the silver in clean and jerk with an
effort of 110 kg and finished fourth in the total lift with 195kg. He lifted
85kg in snatch.In the same category, Deepak Lather finished 12th in total lift
with an effort of 174kg (80+94).
India Women Complete Clean Sweep
Over Bangladesh
India Women completed a 3-0 One-Day International
series clean sweep over Bangladesh Women with a 58-run victory in the final
match in Ahmedabad.India batted first in the third match and posted 154.
Pakistan bans two umpires over
spot-fixing
Pakistan cricket authorities on 13 April 2013
banned two umpires.The allegations against the umpires first came up
after a television sting operation last year. The PCB set up an inquiry
committee led by PCB Chairman Zaka Ashraf soon after and passed on its
findings to the board’s integrity committee to determine the punishments.Nadeem
Ghauri, the Pakistan umpire, has been handed a four-year ban by the PCB after
its integrity committee found him guilty of being willing to accept money for
favourable umpiring decisions. His colleague Anis Siddiqi was banned for three
years.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso wins
Chinese Grand Prix 2013
Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso won the Formula One
Chinese Grand Prix on 14 April 2013.Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen and Mercedes’ Lewis
Hamilton got second and third positions respectively.Red Bull’s Sebastian
Vettel got a 4th position.But Force India’s Paul di Resta got 8th Position.
Adam Scott Won Augusta Masters
Golf Tournament
Australia’s Adam Scott won the 77th Masters (2013
Masters Tournament), become the first Australian golfer to capture the green
jacket.It was Scott’s first major championship and the first time an Australian
has won the Masters.
Chandigarh win Hockey India
sub-junior men’s national championship
Chandigarh defeated Punjab 2-1 to lift the 3rd
Hockey India Sub-Junior Men National Championship (North Zone) title at Sonepat
on 15 April 2013.Meanwhile, Haryana won the 3rd Hockey India Sub-Junior Women’s
National Championship (North Zone) after getting the better of Chandigarh, 3-1
in the final.
Amit won gold, three other
Indians bag a bronze each
Amit Kumar clinched a gold medal in men`s 55kg
category while three other grapplers bagged a bronze medal each for India in
the Senior Asian Wrestling Championship in New Delhi on 20 April 2013.In the
women`s category, Vinesh (51kg) and Babita Kumari (55kg) won their bronze medal
bouts while Bajrang (men`s 60kg) pocketed a bronze, to end the day three of the
championships on a high after two medal-less days.
Sebastian Vettel Won Bahrain Grand
Prix Title
On 21 April The Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel from
Germany won the Bahrain Grand Prix 2013 by defeating Lotus drivers Kimi
Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. Kimi Raikkonen got second postion.Lewis Hamilton
of Mercedes took fifth position and Fernando Alonso of Ferrari was successful
in grabbing the eighth position in the listings
Novak Djokovic Won Monte Carlo
Masters Title
On 21 April World Number One Novak Djokovic won his
first Monte Carlo Masters title.Djokovic defeated Spain’s Rafael Nadal in the
final.The Serbian inflicted Nadal’s first defeat in Monte Carlo in 47 matches
and avenged last year’s final defeat to lift his first Masters title.
Amit Kumar Dhankar won Gold
Amit Kumar Dhankar won India’s second gold medal of
the championships in Men’s 66kg Freestyle at KD Jadhav Stadium in New Delhi on
22 April 2013. India topped the medals tally in Freestyle division with 2 gold
and 2 bronze medals.India finished top of the Men’s freestyle rankings with 2
golds and 2 bronze medals. India got 48 points to br crowned champion for the
first time in the history of the Asian Wrestling Championships.India finished
with nine medals – 2 gold, 1 silver and 6 bronze.
Chris Gayle Hits Cricket’s
Fastest-ever Century in IPL Match
On 23 April Chris Gayle, the West Indies opener,
hit the fastest ever century in the history of cricket by reaching 100 in
merely 30 balls during Royal Challengers Bangalore-Pune Warriors IPL
match.Gayle scored a total run of 175 runs in merely 66 balls, which included
17 sixes and 13 boundaries. It is important to note that this is the most
number of runs scored in any T20 innings. This was also his fourth century in
the IPL career.
Lancashire’s Jordan Clark hits 6
sixes in 1 over
Lancashire all-rounder Jordan Clark had become only
the fifth professional player to hit six sixes in one over, achieving the feat
in a second XI match against Yorkshire on 25 April 2013.
Clark joins an illustrious list that contains
former West Indies all-rounder Garfield Sobers (1968), India’s Ravi Shastri
(1985), South Africa batsman Herschelle Gibbs and India all-rounder Yuvraj
Singh (both 2007).
Federation Cup Senior Athletics
Championship in Patiala
Federation Cup Senior Athletics Championship in
Patiala on 25 April 2013.
Men: 4x100M relay: Andhra Pradesh (K Pavan Kumar, E
Gopi, Md Baba, M Manikanand Raj) 41.06 seconds, 1; Tamil Nadu ‘A’
(Silambarasan, Al Ameen, Vijayakumar, Balamurugan) 41.10, 2; Kerala ‘A (Anuroop
John, Jeris Jose, Rahul G Pillai, Renjith KG) 41.39, 3.
Women: 4x100M relay: Chhattisgarh (Niksy Joseph,
Shilpa, Priya PK, Sini S) 47.40 seconds, 1; ONGC ‘A’ (Mounika Gaddam, Meghna
Shetty, Purnima Hembram, Duteechand) 47.78, 2; Kerala ‘A’ (Merlin K Joseph,
Neethu Mathew, Neethu Rajan, Rengitha C) 48.24, 3.
Dhoni fined for slow over rate
Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni
was fined $20,000 for his team’s slow over rate in their 14-run win over
Kolkata Knight Riders in a Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter in Chennai on
28 April 2013.
India Open Super Series Badminton
Tournament Winners
Men’s Singles:-On 28 April World number one Lee
Chong (Malaysia) won the men’s singles title at India Open Super Series badminton
tournament at NewDelhi.In the final Lee Chong defeated Kenichi Tago of Japan
and got the title.
Women’s Singles:-Ratchanok Intanon of Thailand won
the women`s singles title after defeated Juliane Schenk of Germany in the final
.
Rafael Nadal Won Barcelona Open
Tennis Title
On 28 April Rafael Nadal from Spain won the
Barcelona Open Tennis title for the eighth time.In the final at Barcelona
,Nadal defeated Nicolas Almagro from Spain.It was Nadal’s 54th career title and
fourth this year
Maria Sharapova Won Porsche
Tennis Grand Prix Title
On 28 April Maria Sharapova from Russia won Porsche
Tennis Grand Prix Title.She defeated China’s Li Na in the final at Porsche
Arena in Stuttgart, Germany.It was her 16th consecutive clay court title.
ECONOMY
India Joins The Madrid Protocol
System
On 8 April India joined the International
Registration of Marks at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) by
depositing the instrument of accession to the Madrid Protocol.India is the 90th
member to join the international trademark system.India is the 90th member to
join the international trademark system and the treaty will enter into force
with respect to India on 8 July 2013.The Madrid Protocol system provides for
the international registration of trade marks by way of one application that
can cover more than one country. The opportunity of having a single
registration to cover a wide range of countries gives advantages, both in terms
of portfolio management and cost savings, as opposed to a portfolio of
independent national registrations.
Yamaha to Develop Cheapest Bike
of the World in India
Yamaha, the Japanese two-wheeler company on 9 April
2013 announced that it will soon roll out the cheapest motorcycle of the world
in India. The price of this bike would be around 500 US dollar or 27000 Rupees
approximately.
WTO cuts 2013 global trade growth
forecast to 3.3%
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) on 10 April 2013
cut its forecast for global trade growth in 2013 to 3.3 percent, from the
previous prediction of 4.5 percent.
Gujarat Tops in Attracting
Private Investment
According to the “”Composition of Outstanding
Private Investments Across States “” report released by Assocham ,Gujarat has
ranked on top for attracting investment across the country — cornering about 14
per cent of total outstanding private sector investment worth over Rs 75 lakh crore
as of December 2012.Odisha ranks second with private investment commitments
worth over Rs 8 lakh crore.With a share of about 9.4 per cent and 9.3 per cent,
Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra both have attracted private investments worth
over Rs 7 lakh crore respectively.The private sector accounts for over 62 per
cent of total outstanding investments worth about Rs 122 lakh crore attracted
by India as of December 2012.Of the total investments from private sources
worth over Rs 75 lakh crore, the domestic private sector accounts for a
majority share of about 58 per cent.Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir,
Uttarakhand and Assam account for a share of less than even one per cent in the
total private investment commitments attracted by India.
IMF slashed Economic Growth Rate
of India to 5.7 percent from 5.9 percent for 2013
IMF(International Monetary Fund) in its latest
release on 16 April 2013 of the World Economic Outlook (WEO) slashed the growth
projection of India from its earlier prediction of 5.9 percent to 5.7 percent
for the calendar year 2013.
Ambani Brothers 20th Richest in
World
Mukesh and Anil Ambani, India’s leading
industrialist brothers, have been together listed as 20th richest in the world
in the Sunday Times Rich List 2013.The Walton family of the US, who own
Supermarkets (Walmart), are the richest in the world with a 90 billion pounds
fortune in 2013 as against 51 billion pounds last year.The Hinduja brothers,
Srichand and Gopichand Hinduja, Chairman and Co-Chairman respectively of the
Hinduja Group, are 47th richest in the world with a fortune worth 11 billion
pounds in 2013 as against 9 billion pounds last year.
Spain Unemployment Rate Hits New
Record
On 24 April According to the National Statistics
Institute data ,Spain’s unemployment rate soared to a new record of 27.2% of
the workforce in the first quarter of 2013.The total number of unemployed
people in Spain has now passed the six million figure, although the rate of the
increase has slowed.The jobless rate, which stood at 7.9% in mid-2007, has
risen relentlessly since the collapse in 2008 of a Spain’s labour-intensive
property boom.
India became the world’s eighth
most powerful nation
According to Delhi-based Foundation for National
Security Research (FSNR), the world’s 10 most powerful countries, India
had been ranked 8th. India is ranked eighth in 27 countries. Professor Satish
Kumar says that we study about the selection of powerful countries on several
grounds. Some of these countries had to fulfill the necessary criteria. For
instance, were the countries, whose population was more than 5 million. The
level of GDP was over U.S. $ 500 billion. India is one of such countries.Study
states that the United States is the world’s most powerful country and China
stood in 2nd position.
India’s GDP likely to improve to
5.7% in 2013: IMF
According to International Monetary Fund’s(IMF)
‘Regional Economic Outlook: Asia and Pacific’ report ,the GDP of India in 2013
is 5.7% and in 2014 it is 6.2%.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Cicada’s Insect Wing’s Kills
Bacteria
Human eye cells have been grown on cicadas’ wings
after it was found that the wings’ surface kills bacteria and boosts cell
growth.Dr Greg Watson, a researcher at James Cook University in Cairns, began
looking more closely at cicadas after noticing, while out on a walk more than a
decade ago, that their wings took much longer to decompose than their bodies.It
is the first time scientists have found that tiny features found on a natural
surface, rather than chemicals, kill bacteria.
Supreme Court of India Rejected
Novartis’ Patent Plea for Cancer Drug Called Glivec
The Supreme Court of India on 1 April 2013 rejected
the plea of Novartis, the Swiss drug maker, to patent the updated version of
cancer drug called Glivec. A bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash
Desai dismissed the patent plea to Novartis on the basis that there was no
inventiveness or novelty in the new version of the drug. In its ruling, the
Supreme Court of India declared that because the application for patent on
beta-crystalline salt did not meet any inventiveness or novelty standard,
therefore the company’s plea for patent was dismissed.
World’s first solar plane to fly
across US
A first of its kind ultra-lightweight plane powered
completely by the sun is set to fly coast-to-coast this spring.The Solar
Impulse plane will stop in Dallas city in Texas during its historic
cross-country journey that begins on May 1.The plane, which requires zero fuel
and relies solely on solar panels and battery power, would be the world’s first
plane powered purely by solar energy.
Obama Announced $100 Million
“Brain Initiative” Project
On 2 April US President Barack Obama has announced
the “BRAIN Initiative” a $100 million brain-mapping project.The BRAIN
initiative will attempt to find ways to treat Alzheimer’s disease and strokes
while also aiding in job growth.
Carbon aerogel world’s lightest
material
Chinese scientists have developed the world’s
lightest substance — carbon aerogel — with a density only one sixth of that of
the air.Scientists at Zhejiang University produced the solid material which has
a density of only 0.16 mg/cubic centimetre, breaking the previous record of the
world’s lightest material held by graphite aerogel.The graphite aerogel was
developed by German scientists last year with a density of 0.18 mg/cubic
centimetre.
Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
Detected Evidence of Dark Matter
On 3 April NASA scientists announced the Alpha
Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) placed on the International Space Station (ISS) may
have detected the elusive dark matter. The scientists made the announcement
after they observed an excess of positrons in the Cosmic Ray Flux, which can be
the reason of the presence of elusive dark matter.
100 billion Earth-like planets in
our galaxy
Scientists have proposed a new method for finding
Earth-like planets in our Milky Way galaxy and they anticipate that their
number may be up to a whopping 100 billion.The strategy devised by researchers
at The University of Auckland uses a technique called gravitational
microlensing, currently used by a Japan-New Zealand collaboration called MOA
(Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics) at New Zealand’s Mt John
Observatory.
German Shipyard Launches World’s
Largest Private Yacht
On 5 April A German shipyard has launched
“”Azzam”" , the world’s largest private yacht at 590-feet long, which also
happens to be among the fastest vessels, costing a whopping USD 609 million.The
luxury private vessel ‘Azzam’ – with a beam 68-feet high – overshadows previous
longest superyacht, The Eclipse, by 57-feet. Designed by Nauta Yachts in
Italy and constructed by German company Lurssen Yachts, Azzam is almost two
football fields long and rivals the size of some cruise ships.It took four
years to complete the superyacht from concept to construction.With 94,000
horsepower generated from two gas turbines and two diesel engines, the Azzam
can reach speeds of over 55.5kph, which makes it one of the fastest yachts in
the world.
New Camera System That Can
Captured Images From 1 km Away
In the month of April the team of researchers from
Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh , developed a New Laser powered Camera System
that can take image of any object from a distance of about one kilometer by
creating high-resolution 3D images.The technique on which the camera is based
is called ‘Time-of-Flight (ToF)’ navigation systems for autonomous vehicles. In
this principle of photography, to capture the image of the far away object, a
laser beam is bounced on the object and measure the time that is taken by the
beam of light to be back to the detector.
India test-fires nuclear capable
Agni-II missile
The medium-range, nuclear capable Agni-II missile
was successfully test-fired with a strike range of more than 2,000 kms from the
Wheeler Island off Odisha coast on 07 April 2013.The trial of the
surface-to-surface missile was conducted from a mobile launcher from the Launch
Complex-4 of Integrated Test Range (ITR).The 20-metre-long Agni-II is a
two-stage, solid-propelled ballistic missile. It has a launch weight of 17
tonnes and can carry a payload of 1,000 kgs over a distance of 2,000 kms.The
state-of-the-art Agni-II missile was developed by Advanced Systems Laboratory
(ASL) and integrated by the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) in Hyderabad.Agni-II
is part of the Agni series of missiles developed by DRDO which includes Agni-I
with a 700 km range, Agni-III with a 3,000 km range, Agni-IV with 4,000 km
range and Agni-V with a more than 5,000 km range.
NASA Approved “TESS” Project
NASA has approved a The Transiting Exoplanet Survey
Satellite (TESS), a $200 million mission to search for Earth-size planets
orbiting the nearby stars.Led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with
seed funding from Google, TESS was one of 11 proposals selected for NASA
funding in September 2011, down from the original 22 submitted in February of
that year.TESS, along with the Neutron star Interior Composition ExploreR
(NICER), had been selected for launch in 2017.
The project will come into full swing within the
next four years.
Pakistan Tests Nuclear-Capable
Hatf-IV Missile
Pakistan successfully test-fired the
nuclear-capable Hatf-IV ballistic missile on 10 April 2013. The missile has a
range of 900 km and it can also hit targets in India. Hatf- IV ballistic
missile is also called Shaheen-1.
Indian Astronomer Discovered Blue
Super-Giant Star
An Indian scientist Dr. duo Ananda Hota and his
Taiwanese colleague Dr. Youichi Ohyama have discovered a blue super-giant star
located in the constellation Virgo, far beyond our Milky Way Galaxy. Over 55
million years ago, the star emerged in an extremely wild environment,
surrounded by intensely hot plasma (a million degrees centigrade) and amidst
raging cyclone winds blowing at four million kilometres per hour.This star is
in small IC 3418 Milky Way Galaxy and it is about 5.5 billion light-years
away from Earth.
Astronomers find most Earth-like
planets yet
NASA scientists announced on 19 April 2013 that
they discovered two earths like plants which are 1200 light years far from
earth. NASA discovered the five plants which are rotating around Kepler 62 star
using the Kepler Space Telescope. Two of the five planets orbiting a
sun-like star called Kepler-62 are squarely in what astronomers call the
habitable zone — not too hot, not too cold and possibly bearing water. These
two plants are named as a Kepler-63e and Kepler 62f.
China Tested Self Developed
Biofuel Flight
On 24 April China successfully conducted a first
test flight powered by self-developed biofuel made mainly from palm oil and
recycled cooking oil.An Airbus A320 operated by China Eastern Airlines landed
at Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport ,after completing an 85-minute
journey using aviation biofuel produced by Sinopec, the country’s top oil
refiner.The success made China the fourth country after the United States,
France and Finland to boast independent production of bio-jet-fuel.
PERSONS IN NEWS
A) APPOINTMENTS
Jonty Rhodes named South African
tourism ambassador in India
Former cricketer Jonty Rhodes was named as the
brand ambassador of South African Tourism in India.
Chitra Ramkrishna Took Over as
NSE chief
On 1 April Chitra Ramkrishna took over as National
Stock Exchange (NSE) new Managing Director and CEO .As MD and CEO of the NSE,
Ramkrishna succeeds Ravi Narain who would assume the role of non-executive Vice
Chairman .She is the first female head of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in
its nearly 20-year history of operations as a bourse.
Rakesh Bhatia is Catholic Syrian
Bank’s new MD & CEO
Rakesh Bhatia had taken over as the new Managing
Director and Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Syrian Bank.He was previously
the Global Head of HSBC’s Trade and Receivables Finance Division.
2 Indians selected for Yale
fellowship programme
Abhik Sen, Managing Editor, The Economist Group,
and Prodyut Bora, State General Secretary of BJP in Assam, have been selected
as the two Indian representatives for 2013 Yale World Fellows Program.About 16
people have been selected for the programme.Since 2002, the university has
welcomed a group of exemplary mid-career professionals from a wide range of
fields and countries for an intensive four-month period of academic enrichment
and leadership training.With the selection of Sen and Bora, the total number of
Indian fellows stands at 13.
Infosys’ S Gopalakrishnan is the
new CII President
S. Gopalakrishnan (Kris), co-founder and executive
co-chairman, Infosys Technologies Limited, had been elected as the President of
CII for the year 2013-14. He succeeds Mr Adi Godrej as the new President.
S.C. Sinha Appointed as NHRC
Member
On 5 April National Investigation Agency (NIA)
chief S.C. Sinha has been appointed as a member of National Human Rights
Commission (NHRC) .S C Sinha, a 1975 batch Haryana cadre officer.He will now
get a five year term at NHRC.
Krishna Kumar Natrajan appointed
as the New Chief of NASSCOM
Krishnakumar Natarajan, CEO and Director of
Mindtree on 8 April 2013 was appointed as the Chairman of Nasscom for the year
2013-14. He succeeded N Chandrasekaran, MD and CEO of TCS, who was the Chairman
for the year 2012-13.
First Woman director for IICT
On April 8,Dr. Mannepalli Lakshmi Kantam, had been
appointed as Director of the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT),
the first woman scientist to head any of the 37 laboratories belonging to
Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in the country.
Kenyatta sworn in as Kenya’s
president
Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn in as Kenya’s fourth
president on 09 April 2013, becoming the second sitting president in the world
to be indicted for crimes against humanity and creating a challenge for western
governments keen to sustain links with a strategic east African ally.
PJ Kurien elected Chairman of
Asian forum of Parliamentarians
On April 11 Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, PJ
Kurien was unanimously elected as the Chairman of the prestigious Asian
Forum of Parliamentarians on Population and Development (AFPPD) during the
during the 73rd Executive Committee Meeting of AFPPD at Bangkok. He replaced
Yasuo Fukuda, former Prime Minister of Japan as the Chairman of AFPPD. PJ
Kurien at present is also the Chairman of the Indian Association of
Parliamentarians on Population and Development.
Five new judges sworn-in
Five new judges to the Andhra Pradesh High Court
were sworn-in by acting Chief Justice N.V. Ramana in Hyderabad on 12 April
2013.The new judges who were administered the oath of office and secrecy are:
Challa Kodanda Ram, A. Rajasekhar Reddy, P. Naveen Rao, A.V. Sesha Sai and S.V.
Bhatt.
Two Judges Sworn in Supreme Court
On 12 April with two more judges sworn in the
strength of the Supreme Court has risen to 30.Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri and
Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde were administered the oath of office and secrecy by
Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir.While Justice Sikri was the Chief Justice
of Punjab and Haryana High Court, Justice Bobde was the Chief Justice of Madhya
Pradesh High Court. The sanctioned strength of the apex court is 31 judges including
the CJI.
Sunil Kumar Takes over as
Managing Director of CRIS
On 16 April 2013,Sunil Kumar took over as the
Managing Director of Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS).
Shri Asoke Kumar Mukerji
appointed as the Permanent Representative of India to the UN
On April 17,Shri Asoke Kumar Mukerji, took charges
as the Ambassador/Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations
at New York.
CRPF gets first woman Special DG
On April 18, Senior IPS officer Aruna Bahuguna
appointed as the Special Director General of the country’s largest paramilitary
force CRPF. This is the first time a woman officer is occupying the second top
post in the hierarchy of the force. She is a 1979-batch IPS officer. She was
till now serving as the Chairman of the AP police housing corporation. Bahuguna
is expected to take charge at the force headquarters in New Delhi within 15
days.
Abdul Hamid elected Bangladesh
President uncontested
Abdul Hamid is to be Bangladesh’s 20th president
after no other candidate was nominated in the poll to replace President Zilliur
Rahman who died on 20 March 2013. Abdul Hamid was elected uncontested as the
20th President of Bangladesh.
Sunil Bharti Mittal Appointed as
Vice Chairman of ICC
On 22 April Sunil Bharti Mittal , the Chairman and
Group CEO of Bharti Enterprises appointed as the Vice-Chairman of the
International Chamber of Commerce (ICC),which is one of the world’s
oldest global business organisations.With the appointment as the Vice Chairman
of ICC, Mittal became the third business person from India in the history of
ICC to be appointed on the ICC Executive Board.
Ajay Devgn, Runa Laila named
SAARC ambassadors for HIV/AIDS
Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn, Bangladeshi singer Runa
Laila and Oscar-winning Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy have been
named as SAARC Goodwill Ambassadors for HIV/AIDS.A meeting of the
selection committee was held recently at the SAARC Secretariat and of the 10
nominations received from the member states, the three celebrities were
nominated.
Takehiko Nakao is new ADB
President
On 27 April Takehiko Nakao has been unanimously
elected president of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) by the Board of Governors
at New Delhi.He succeeds Haruhiko Kuroda, who resigned in March to take up his
assignment as Bank of Japan governor.Nakao assumed office as ADB’s ninth
president on 28 April.
Gulzar’s appointment as
chancellor elates Assam University
Lyricist-writer and Padma Bhushan awardee, Gulzar
has been appointed the new chancellor of Assam University.Established in 1994,
the Assam University campus is situated in Dargakona, about 20 km from Silchar.
B)RESIGNS
Kerala minister resigned
following domestic violence complaint by wife
Kerala Forest minister K.B.Ganesh Kumar resigned
his post on 02 April 2013 due to domestic violence complaint by wife in the
local police station.He is only one Congress person in the Congress- UPF
Coalition Alliance government in Kerala.
Cyprus Finance Minister Michalis
Sarris Resigns
On 3 April Cyprus Finance Minister Michalis Sarris
has resigned citing his role as chairman of Laiki Bank, whose failure was a
major contributor to the island’s near financial meltdown, as one of the reasons
behind his decision.
UP Goverment suspends cabinet
minister Raja Ram Pandey
The Uttar Pradesh government on 13 April 2013
removed cabinet minister of Khadi and Gramudyog, Raja Ram Pandey for making
sexist comments.Pandey had promised to “build roads as smooth as Hema Malini’s
and Madhuri Dixit’s cheeks” besides giving the state’s roads “a facial” while
addressing a function in Pratapgarh on 12 April 2013.UP CM Akhilesh Yadav, who
is now in charge of 63 ministries, has taken charge of Pandey’s ministry.
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam
Fayyad Resigned
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad resigned on
13 April 2013 after falling out with president Mahmud Abbas. Salam Fayyad was
tasked with the role of caretaker for the current government until a new prime minister
is appointed.
Supreme Court bids farewell to
Justice Aftab Alam
On April 19,the Supreme Court bid farewell to
Justice Aftab Alam marking the end of his five and a half year tenure at the
Supreme Court. Justice Alam enrolled as an Advocate on March 27, 1973. He
practised in the Patna High Court and was designated as Senior Advocate by the
Patna High Court on February 1, 1984. He was appointed as Judge of the Patna
High Court on July 27, 1990 and was later transferred to the Jammu &
Kashmir High Court, where he was appointed as the Acting Chief Justice on June
06, 2007. He assumed office as Supreme Court judge on November 12, 2007.
C)DEATHS
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Oscar
winner and novelist, died
Oscar, the Booker Prize winner novelist and
screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, author of “Heat and Dust” and many other
books set in India, died on 03 April 2013.Jhabvala also worked on several movie
adaptations with filmmakers James Ivory and Ismail Merchant, winning two
Academy Awards for her screenplays for 1985 movie “A Room With a View” and
“Howards End” in 1992.Jhabvala was born in Germany but emigrated with her
family to Britain during the Nazi regime. She later married an Indian architect
and moved to India, where she began to write about her life there.Jhabvala
collaborated with Merchant and Ivory on more than 20 movies including “The
Remains of the Day” and “Mr. And Mrs. Bridge.”
Bratindra Nath Mukherjee passes
away
A Padmashri winner, Professor Bratindra Nath
Mukherjee, renowned historian and an expert in epigraphy who deciphered several
ancient scripts, died in Kolkata on 04 April 2013.
Britain’s First Female Prime
Minister Margaret Thatcher Died
Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s first and still only
female prime minister has died on 8 April at London.Thatcher was the Prime
Minister of Britain from 1979 to 1990 from Conservative party of Britain and
was the first lady to hold the post of Prime Minister.She was the
longest-serving British Prime Minister of the 20th century and is the only
woman to have held the office. A Soviet journalist called her the “”Iron
Lady”", a nickname that became associated with her uncompromising politics
and leadership style. “This first volume of Margaret Thatcher’s memoirs
book(1993), which encompasses the entirety of her career as Prime Minister.
Test-tube baby pioneer dies
British scientist Robert Edwards, 87, who won the
Nobel Prize for his pioneering work in in vitro fertilisation, leading to the
birth of the first test- tube baby, died in London on 10 April 2013.He born in
Yarkfire in North England on 27 September 1925.Robert Edwards and Patrick
Steptoe both proceeded to achieve in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), resulting in
the birth of Louise Brown, the first “test-tube baby”, on 25 July 1978..
Polio Vaccine Developer Koprowski
Died
On 11 April Dr Hilary Koprowski , a Polish
researcher who developed the first successful oral vaccination for polio died
in Philadelphia. He was 96 years of age.He was a Polish virologist and
immunologist and was known for developing the first effective polio vaccine. In
2006, he was conferred with the record 50th grant from the National Institutes
of Health.
Justice Chinnappa Reddy dead
Justice O Chinnappa Reddy, one of the highly
respected members of the Indian judiciary, died at his jubilee hills residence
in Hyderabad on 13 April 2013. He was born at Gooty in Anantapur district on
September 25, 1922.Justice Reddy was appointed as judge of the Supreme Court
from January 17, 1978 and continued in the post for about 10 years.He retired
on 24 September 1987.After his retirement he became chairman of the Karnataka
BC commission.
Playback singer PB Srinivas
passes away
Veteran playback singer PB Srinivas who rendered
more than 3,000 songs in eight languages died in Chennai on 14 April
2013.He debuted as a singer with Hindi film Mr. Sampath in 1952. His last song
was from the 2010 Tamil film Aayirathil Oruvan.
Ex-CEC, governor VS Rama Devi dead
Former Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh Governor V S
Ramadevi, the only woman to head the Election Commission, died in Bangalore on
17 April 2013.Born on March 15, 1934, Ramadevi was the Chief Election
Commissioner of India from November 26, 1990 to December 11, 1990. She was the
only woman who became the CEC. She was succeeded by T N Seshan.She had served
as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh from July 26, 1997 to December 1, 1999 and
as the Governor of Karnataka from December 2, 1999 to May 20, 2002.
Dina Thanthi MD Sivanthi Adithan
dead
Veteran journalist and managing director of Tamil
daily Dina Thanthi B Sivanthi Adithan died in Chennai on 19 April 2013.He was
also head of the Indian Olympic Association before Suresh Kalmadi took over and
is the former vice president of Olympic Council of Asia. At the time of his
death, Sivanthi Adithan was the life president of IOC and president of the
Volleyball Federation of India.Sivanthi Adithan was honoured with Padmashree in
2008.
Mathematical Genius Shakuntala
Devi Died
On 21 April The ‘human computer’ ‘mental
calculator’, mathematics whizard Shakuntala Devi died at Bangalore.Her name was
recorded in Guinness Book of World Records for her ability of making
calculations at lightning-speed.In the year 1977, she calculated the 23rd root
of digit number 201 in just 50 seconds.Some of her books were Puzzles to Puzzle
You, Mathablit, Astrology for You, Fun with Numbers and Awaken the Genius in
Your Child.
Former England Captain Mike
Denness Died
On 19 April Michael Henry Denness, popularly known
as Mike Denness, the former England captain died in London.Mike Denness played
county cricket for Essex and Kent. He scored over 25000 runs in the first-class
career.He was the captain of Kent to six domestic trophies between 1972 and
1976.He was among first few inductees into the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame.He
was also named as the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1975.
Former Chief Justice of India J S
Verma dead
Former Chief Justice of India J S Verma, who headed
the government-appointed committee to frame a tough law to tackle crime against
women in the wake of the December Delhi gangrape incident, died in
Gurgaon on 22April 2013.Justice Verma was the 27th Chief Justice of India and
served from March 25, 1997 until his retirement on January 18, 1998.He began
his legal career in 1955 and became a Judge of Madhya Pradesh High Court in
June-1973. He became Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court in June,1986
and also served as Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court from September, 1986
to mid-1989.Justice Verma was also a former Chairman of National Human Rights
Commission.He was also the first Chairperson of News Broadcasting Standards
Authority.
Veteran violinist Lalgudi
Jayaraman died
Celebrated violinist and composer Lalgudi Jayaraman,
who carved out a niche for himself in the Carnatic music with his unique style,
died in Chennai on 22 April 2013. Jayaraman, who began his music career at the
age of 12 as an accompanying artist, later achieved fame as a solo violinist
and also had success as a composer in four languages – Telugu, Tamil, Kannada
and Sanskrit.Considering his contribution to the field of music, he was
conferred with several awards including Padma Shri in 1972 and Padma Bhushan in
2001.He was also feted with state Vidhwan of Tamil Nadu and also fellow of
Sangeet Natak Akademi.
Legendary Singer Shamshad Begum
Died
On 23 April Legendary singer Shamshad Begum died in
Mumbai . She was 94 years of age. She was one of the first few playback singers
of the Hindi film industry. She was conferred with the O P Nayyar award for
contribution to Hindi film music, in the year 2009.In 2009 again, she was
conferred with the third-highest civilian honour of India, Padma Bhushan.
Sripathi Rajeswara Rao dead
Former Telugu Desam Minister Sripathi Rajeswara Rao
who founded the All India NTR Fans Association several decades ago, died of
kidney ailment at NIMS in Hydearabad on 28 April 2013.
Sailendra Nath Roy died In
Zip-Line Ponytail Stunt
Sailendra Nath Roy, a 49-year-old police officer, was
attempting to cross the River Teesta in the state of West Bengal on 28 April
2013 on a 180m (594ft) wire above the water.After attaching his shoulder-length
hair to a pulley on the wire, Mr Roy had completed around half the distance but
then became entangled and found himself unable to move.After sometime he dead.
Mr Roy achieved the Guinness World Record after covering 82.5m (271ft) on a
zip-line while attached by his hair in 2011 at the Neemrana Fort, a heritage
hotel in the desert state of Rajasthan.
Nuthakki Bhanu Prasad Passes away
On 29 April 2013 the Scientist, Padma Shri award
recipient died in Hyderabad.He got Padma shri award in 1959 for his
Contribution in field of India’s Atomic reactor.The Petrotech 2003
Lifetime Achievement award was presented to Padmashri Dr. Nuthakki Bhanu Prasad
for his contribution to India’s Upstream Petroleum Industry.He is also worked
as a Chairman of ONGC.
D)VISITORS
Indian PM schedules UAE visit in
August
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will pay a “stand
Alone visit” to the United Arab Emirates in early August, the first by an
Indian prime minister to the Gulf nation since Indira Gandhi visited nearly
three decades ago.
PM Manmohan Singh leaves for
Germany on a three-day visit
On April 10, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had left
India on a three-day official visit to Germany, where he will co-chair inter –
governmental consultations and witness the signing of a series of agreements on
education, science and technology and renewable energy.The PM is leading a
high-level delegation to Berlin that includes five cabinet ministers: Salman
Khurshid (external affairs), Anand Sharma (commerce), Farooq Abdullah
(renewable energy), MM Pallam Raju (human resource development) and S Jaipal
Reddy (science and technology).
Prime Minister of India Visited
Germany: Important Documents Signed
Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh visited
Germany from 10 April 2013 to 12 April 2013 for participating in second round
of Inter Governmental Consultations with Germany.
During his visit, certain documents were signed.
These documents are as follows:
1.Joint Declaration of Intent regarding promotion
of German as a foreign language in India
2.Intergovernmental MoU between India & Germany
on Cooperation in the field of Higher Education
3.Joint Declaration of Intent on Indo-German
cooperation in the area of Civil Security Research
4.Joint Declaration for the bilateral
“”Kooperations Program” of the German Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and
Consumer Protection and the National Seeds Association of India and the German
Association of Plant Breeders
5.Joint Declaration of Intent on the Establishment
of an Indo-German Working Group on Quality Infrastructure for Cooperation in
Standardisation, Conformity Assessment and Product Safety
6.Joint Declaration of Intent on Indo-German
Development Cooperation regarding the Establishment of Green Energy Corridors
Vice President Hamid Ansari
Visited Tajakistan
The Vice-President of India, Hamid Ansari visited
Tajikistan from 14 April to 17 April 2013.During the visit he was accompanied
by a high-level delegation that included Minister of State for Agriculture and
Food Processing Industries and four Members of Parliament.On 15 April , the
Vice President met the President Emomalii Rahmon and Oqil Oqilov the
Prime Minister of Tajikistan.
E)MISCELLANEOUS
Down’s syndrome boy sets Everest
record
A 15-YEAR-OLD American had become the first
teenager with Down’s syndrome to reach Everest Base Camp, according to his
father, in an attempt to inspire different attitudes towards disabilities.Eli
Reimer, from Oregon, reached the 5364-metres high camp in Nepal’s Himalayan
mountains in mid-March after 10 days of trekking.Tom Whittaker, a British
mountaineer, became the first person with a disability to summit the peak in
1998 after a car crash almost two decades earlier had forced him to have his
foot amputated.
Abhilash Tomy Becomes First
Indian To Sail Round The World
Indian Navy’s Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy became the first
Indian to circumnavigate the globe, solo and non-stop, over a 150-day voyage.He
was addressed a function after welcoming Lt Cdr Abhilash Tomy whose boat INSV
Mhadei reached the Gateway of India after commencing its historic journey from
the same spot on November 1 last year.He has sailed around 23,100 nautical
miles, crossing the Indian, Southern, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.Lt Cmdr
Abhilash Tomy is the first Indian and the second Asian to do so. Lt Cdr Tomy, a
maritime pilot, switched off his boat’s engine soon after leaving Mumbai harbour
and switched it on again on 6 April to get the boat alongside the Gateway of
India.
K Vishwanath Name in Limca Book
Of Records
Legendary director K.Vishwanath is the only Telugu
person in the ‘Person of the year – 2013′ announced by the famous Limca books
of Records. This list which contained several other prominent names like Mani
Ratnam, Kamal Haasan, Santosh Sivan, Prabhu Deva, Sreekar Prasad and
Naseeruddin Shah was released on the occasion of Indian cinema completing 100
years. Tabu, Vidya Balan, Shabana Azmi, Kajol and Ranbir Kapoor are also on
this list.
Nepali TV Anchor Made
Guinness(World) Record for Longest Talk Show
A TV anchor in Nepal set a world record of longest
television talk show by staying on air for 62 hours and 12 minutes.The 36 years
old Rabi Lamichhane lived in America and came back to Nepal after hosting the
program ‘Lord Buddha Was Born in Nepal’.Lamichhane broke the world record of
Pavlo Kuzheyew and Tetiana Danylenko of 22 hours. They made that record in 2011
at the Independence Day anniversary of Ukraine. According to the rules of
Guinness World Record Lamichhane got the break of five minutes after every
hour.
Mahatma Gandhi figured among the
Top Three Leaders of the World
As per the 16th Annual Global CEO survey, Mahatma
Gandhi figured among the top three most admired leaders of the world.In this
list Winston Churchill , Steve Jobs(Co-founder of Apple) and Mahatma
Gandhi got the first,second and third places respectively .
Egypt PM sentenced to one-year
jail
On April 17,Egypt’s Misdemeanor Dokki Court
sentenced Prime Minister Hesham Qandil to one year in prison and ordered
his removal from job, accusing him of failing to implement a verdict to return
a privatised company to the state.
Chidambaram, Aamir in Time’s 100
most influential global list
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and actor Aamir
Khan have been named by Time magazine among the 100 most influential people in
the world in its annual list of global achievers that also includes teenaged
Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai and US President Barack Obama.
pakistan former president
musharraf arrested
The Islamabad High Court on 18 April 2013 ordered
Musharraf’s arrest for detaining senior judges when he imposed emergency rule
in 2007.So, Pakistani police arrested Musharraf on 19 April 2013.
Gates’ foundation to put $1.8bn
to eradicate polio
Bill Gates announced in Abu Dhabi on 25 April 2013
his foundation will contribute $1.8 billion to the Global Polio Eradication
Initiative, a third of the total funds needed. He announced this contribution
in Global Vaccine summit in Abu Dhabi.
8 killed as bomb targets Syria’s
prime minister
Syrian Prime Minister Wael al-Halki survived a bomb
attack on his convoy in Damascus on 29 April 2013.8 members(including PM’s car
driver and Personal security) are killed in the blast.
PLACES IN NEWS
7.1 Magnitude Earthquake Hits
Indonesia
A powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit the Papua
province in Indonesia on 06 April 2013.But there was no damage or injuries. It
occurred in a north east to Capital of Papua province, about 75 kilometers (46
miles) in depth.
A Powerful earthquake in Iran
On April 9, A powerful earthquake was strucked
close to Iran’s only nuclear power station, killing at least 37 people and
injuring 850 as it destroyed homes and devastated two small villages.Its
epicentre was 89 km south-east of the port of Bushehr.The magnitude of the earthquake
on Richter scale is 6.3.
Strong earthquake hits Japan
A strong earthquake estimated at magnitude 6.3
strucked the western Japan, on 13 April 2013.In this event 23 people were
injured in that 7 are serious.The earthquake was centered on Awaji Island, just
south of Kobe, at a depth of 15 kilometres.The quake was in the area where a
magnitude-7.2 temblor killed more than 6,400 people in 1995.
Musharraf disqualified from
parliamentary polls
Courts in Pakistan have disqualified former
president Pervez Musharraf for contesting parliamentary elections for
suspending the constitution and imposing emergency in 2007 during his rule.
Earthquake of Magnitude 7.8
Jolted Iran and Pakistan
Earthquake that measured 7.8 on the Richter scale
struck on 16 April 2013 in Iran killed more than 40 people leaving behind
several injured. Epicenter of the quake was near Pakistan-Iran Border in the
southeastern city of Khash. The tremors of the quake were felt across India,
Middle East and Pakistan.
Fertiliser plant explosion in the
US
On April 18, massive explosion at a fertilizer
plant in the Town of West, in Central Texas. It is 120km far from Dallas town
in the Texas state. In this explosion 15 were died and 200 people were injured
Delhi gets “Dildaar Delhi”
tagline
Delhi got its own tagline “Dildaar Delhi”. Penned
by Amit Anand, a cashier in a small confectionery shop in Keshavpuram, the
tagline was selected out of 12,000 entries of a competition organized by Delhi
government and Delhi Tourism department.
German Bakery blast: Himayat Beg
sentenced to death
On April 18, a Pune court sentenced Indian
Mujahideen operative Mirza Himayat Inayat Baig to death in the German Bakery
bomb blast case.The terror attack on the popular pune joint had killed 17
people and injured 64 in February 2010. On 15 April 2013, Pune sessions court
special judge NP Dhote had held Baig guilty in the case.
China hit by strong earthquake
On 20 April ,China was hit by strong earthquake and
killed at least 157 people and injured more than 5,700.The magnitude 7.0 quake
hit a remote mountainous area of southwestern China’s Sichuan province at 8:02
a.m. (0002 GMT), close to where an earthquake killed almost 70,000 people in
2008.The quake struck in Lushan county, near the city of Ya’an, at a depth of
12 km (7.5 miles)
ABBREVIATIONS
CII
—- Confederation of
Indian Industry
MSME
—- Micro,Small &
Medium Enterprises
SCO
—- Shanghai Cooperation
Organisation
AMS
—- Alpha Magnetic
Spectrometer
ICSI
—- Institute of Company
Secretaries of India
TESS
—- Transiting Exoplanet
Survey Satellite
WIPO
—- World Intellectual
Property Organisation
BOOKS IN NEWS
Vice President Released Book
titled Religion, Law & Society-Across the Globe
On 12 April 2013,The Vice President of India, Hamid
Ansari released a book titled Religion, Law & Society – Across the
Globe. The book is authored by Prof. Tahir Mahmood.
COMMITTEES
Uday Kumar Committee To Act as
Single Window Clearance for Film Projects
On 15 April the Government of India announced
creation of an inter-ministerial panel that will work as a ‘single window’
clearance system for international and domestic film projects.The committee
will be headed by I&B Secretary Uday Kumar Varma .The constitution of the
committee is expected to mainstream a proactive mechanism and coordination
process of granting permissions through a single window provision. Apart from
the I&B secretary, the committee will have joint secretaries from the
ministries of I&B, Home Affairs, Tourism, External Affairs, Culture,
Railways, Aviation and Defence on board.
IMPORTANT DAYS AND DATES
World Health Day was Celebrated
on 7th April
World Health Day is celebrated every year on 7
April, under the sponsorship of the World Health Organization (WHO).
National Safe Motherhood Day
Observed across the Country
National Safe Motherhood day was observed across
India on 11 April 2013 to create awareness on proper healthcare and maternity
facilities to pregnant and lactating women.
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Full credit to currentaffairs.freejobalert; the article is shared here for easy of reference to aspirants.
(courtesy @ currentaffairs.freejobalert)
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