Govt to roll out LPG subsidy transfer in 269 districts from Jan 1
Following
the success of the direct benefit transfer (DBT) cash subsidy payment scheme in
20 districts of the country, the Government has decided to go for a massive
roll out of the scheme in 269 more districts of the country from January 1,
2014 in a phased manner to cover LPG consumers.
“Based
upon the experience gained in 20 districts, we have decided to rapidly roll out
the DBT for the LPG over 269 more districts in a phased manner. By January 1, a
huge proportion of LPG beneficiaries will be covered under the DBT system. They
will get their subsidy credited one month in advance. Therefore, they can go
and get their LPG cylinder for a month following that. It is already successful
in 20 districts,’’ Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said, after the approval by
the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs for the extension of the scheme.
Under the
scheme, Rs. 435 is credited to the accounts of LPG consumers the moment they
book a cooking gas refill or cylinder. The consumer is then supposed to use
this to buy a 14.2 kg LPG cylinder at market price, which is almost two times
the subsidy. The moment the refill is bought, another Rs. 435 is credited to
Aadhaar-linked bank account of LPG consumer. The scheme is aimed at checking
subsidised LPG cylinders meant for household use finding way to the black
market or being used in commercial establishments.
The
government estimates it could end up saving Rs. 9,000 crore annually when the
scheme is rolled out all over the country. Under the scheme, consumers will get
cash subsidy to buy 9 cylinder refills in a year. Any requirement beyond that
would have to be purchased at market price.
Mr. Chidamabaram
said the scheme will be rolled out on the first day of each month between
September and January. In the first phase, starting with September 1, it would
be rolled out in 34 districts, benefiting 1,47,54,303 consumers. On October 1,
it would be rolled out in 44 districts; 46 districts in November; 40 districts
in December and 105 districts in January, 2014.
“This is
an ambitious programme. These lists have already been sent to banks concerned.
All the banks have been asked to focus on the districts where the scheme is
going to be rolled out in September 1 and October 1,” he remarked.
Mr.
Chidambaram said oil marketing companies have also been asked to chip in for
opening bank account of the consumers. He said subsidy will be transferred to
consumers who have bank accounts seeded with Aadhaar number, but a three-month
grace period will be given to consumers to procure the Aadhaar number and
opening up of the bank account.
“The
scheme has been remarkable success. We think that there will be a saving between
10-12 per cent on subsidy outgo towards the LPG cylinder. Those who have got
double connection or false connection are not coming to open bank account and
are not coming forward to get their Aadhaar number,” he added.
Sarraf selected for ONGC top job
Dinesh K.
Sarraf, managing director, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Videsh Limited (OVL)
has been shortlisted by the Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB) to be the
next chairman and managing director of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
Mr.
Sarraf will replace present incumbent Sudhir Vasudeva whose tenure ends in
February next year. Mr. Sarraf was selected from among the four candidates who
appeared before it for interviews held on Friday. Now his appointment has to be
approved by the Prime Minister headed Cabinet Committee on Appointments.
Originally,
PESB had shortlisted seven candidates. Besides Mr. Sarraf, these included
state-run GAIL India chairman and managing director B.C. Tripathi, ONGC
Director (T&FS) Shashi Shanker, Security Printing and Minting Corporation
of India head M.S. Rana and Indian Railways Chief Mechanical Engineer, Ashwani
Lohani. However, Mr. Tripathi did not attend the interviews.
Mr.
Sarraf was Director (Finance), ONGC, before moving to OVL in September 2011. He
transformed the company into an aggressive overseas firm, stitching 4 deals
worth over $11 billion in the past one year.
Nobel Literature Laureate Seamus Heaney died
Irish
writer Seamus Heaney died at the age of 74 on 29 August 2013. He had won the
1995 Nobel Prize in Literature.
Seamus
Heaney was born in Northern Ireland. He published his first collection of
poems, Death Of A Naturalist in 1966. He went on to become one of the English
language’s leading poets.
Heaney
worked as the professor of poetry at Oxford University between 1989 and 1994.
He is survived by his wife Marie and three children.
Heaney was known for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which paid tribute to everyday miracles and the living past.
Heaney was known for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which paid tribute to everyday miracles and the living past.
Graphic Biography on Dhyan Chand Launched:Dhyan Chand-The
Wizard of Hockey
Dhyan
Chand-The Wizard of Hockey: Luis Fernandes
The
graphic biography on former Indian Hockey player Dhyan Chand titled Dhyan
Chand-The Wizard of Hockey was launched at Dhyanchand Stadium in New Delhi on
29 August 2013. The biography was launched on the National Sports Day to
commemorate the 108th birth anniversary of the legend. The graphic biography is
the first-of-its-kind book on a sportsman.
The book
has been written by Luis Fernandes, who researched extensively on the subject.
It is available for 100 rupees at all leading book stores.
The book
is being printed by comic-series publication Amar Chitra Katha. The book
focussed on Dhyan Chand’s achievements and goal-scoring feats at 1928, 1932 and
1936 Olympics that got him the title The Wizard.
The book
was launched in the presence of Minister of State for Human Resource
Development Shashi Tharoor. There is also an autobiography of Dhyanchand called
Goal.
Foreign Minister of Nicaragua,Samuel Santos Lopez
visited India
The
Foreign Minister of Nicaragua, Samuel Santos Lopez paid an official visit to
India since 19 August to 23 August 2013. Earlier, he had visited India in June
2008 to participate in the India-SICA (Central American Integration System)
Foreign Ministers' meeting. Nicaragua is an important member of SICA with which
India has an institutionalised dialogue mechanism at the Foreign minister
level. During his visit, India and Nicaragua discussed bilateral, regional and
international issues of mutual interest.
India and
Nicaragua enjoy warm and friendly relations and both countries share common
perspectives on a wide variety of international issues. Bilateral trade between
the two countries for the year 2012-13 was 60.12 million US dollars. Foreign
Minister Lopez also interacted with a number of high representatives from
business and industry for promoting trade and investment linkages.
Sun Burn Response in Whales Can Give Clues to Anti Ageing in Humans: Research
Researchers
from the Newcastle University, UK revealed in the month of August 2013 that the
way whales reacted to sunlight explained about the ageing process of humans.
Some of the whale species reacted to the sunlight by getting darker in UV
exposure, a process which is similar to the way humans tan. Other whales have
the capability of protecting themselves from getting tanned by turning their
genes on and off.
The research can help in the creation of new anti-ageing treatments in humans. For various years, the marine biologists in Mexico had noticed that a large number of whales in that region had skin which was sun-burnt because of exposure to UV light.
For conducting the research, the researchers took the skin samples from three diverse species of the whales. This was done over three years time period. The samples were collected during the annual spring migration when they had migrated to the sunnier waters of Gulf of California.
Research on the Blue Whales
The researchers found that the different species of whales reacted in a different way to the increase in sunlight. Blue Whales are biggest creatures that have lived on the Earth. They react to the Sun by enhancing quantity of pigment in the skin, in the same way like humans do. Therefore, the blue whales get tanned in a same way like the human beings do. It is this tan that gives them protection from the sun-burnt DNA.
Prof Mark Birch-Machin from Newcastle University explained that after being exposed to the ultra-violet rays of the Sun, not just the skin, but also the DNA in mitochondria can be damaged. The blue whales’ ability to tan when exposed to UV rays, might be connected to the historic migratory patterns because every year they move from high latitudes to lower ones that have higher amount of sunlight.
Research on the Sperm Whales
In yet another kind of species, the Sperm Whales, there is an altogether different kind of behaviour towards the Sun. The sperm whales have the ability to spend around six hours at a stretch on the ocean’s surface and have much higher exposure to the UV light. The sperm whales can thus be compared with the people who go for lobster approach. Therefore, the changes in their pigment do not help them a lot because the UV light becomes overpowering in the system.
Instead of the alterations to the pigment, the Sun can lead to stress response in genes of the sperm whales, which is again like the protective mechanism of humans against the sun damage. It is for the first time that the evidences of genotoxic pathways being activated in whales’ cells have been seen. It is absolutely similar to the damage response which is caused because of free radicals in human skin.
Research on the Fin Whales
The third kind of species is the Fin Whales on which research was conducted. The deeply pigmented animals were more resistant to the sun damage. They had lower prevalence of the sunburn lesions.
Conclusion of the research
The researchers, after conducting study on these three kinds of whale species explained that this could be helpful in finding the changes in genes as well as pigment. The whales can thus shed light on the process of ageing in the human beings.
The sun-burnt DNA in the whales was the same kind of sun-burnt DNA which was found in the humans and this was linked to the process of ageing. The study depicted the interaction of these systems which can be examined even more in the human research. It can thus be used for studying the anti-ageing process as well as skin cancer approaches. The research can prove to be beneficial to the pharmaceutical companies.
The researchers however explained that further work needed to be done in order to see whether sun burn in whales can lead to skin cancer. The researchers also wanted to know whether early warning system for animals can be developed or not.
The research can help in the creation of new anti-ageing treatments in humans. For various years, the marine biologists in Mexico had noticed that a large number of whales in that region had skin which was sun-burnt because of exposure to UV light.
For conducting the research, the researchers took the skin samples from three diverse species of the whales. This was done over three years time period. The samples were collected during the annual spring migration when they had migrated to the sunnier waters of Gulf of California.
Research on the Blue Whales
The researchers found that the different species of whales reacted in a different way to the increase in sunlight. Blue Whales are biggest creatures that have lived on the Earth. They react to the Sun by enhancing quantity of pigment in the skin, in the same way like humans do. Therefore, the blue whales get tanned in a same way like the human beings do. It is this tan that gives them protection from the sun-burnt DNA.
Prof Mark Birch-Machin from Newcastle University explained that after being exposed to the ultra-violet rays of the Sun, not just the skin, but also the DNA in mitochondria can be damaged. The blue whales’ ability to tan when exposed to UV rays, might be connected to the historic migratory patterns because every year they move from high latitudes to lower ones that have higher amount of sunlight.
Research on the Sperm Whales
In yet another kind of species, the Sperm Whales, there is an altogether different kind of behaviour towards the Sun. The sperm whales have the ability to spend around six hours at a stretch on the ocean’s surface and have much higher exposure to the UV light. The sperm whales can thus be compared with the people who go for lobster approach. Therefore, the changes in their pigment do not help them a lot because the UV light becomes overpowering in the system.
Instead of the alterations to the pigment, the Sun can lead to stress response in genes of the sperm whales, which is again like the protective mechanism of humans against the sun damage. It is for the first time that the evidences of genotoxic pathways being activated in whales’ cells have been seen. It is absolutely similar to the damage response which is caused because of free radicals in human skin.
Research on the Fin Whales
The third kind of species is the Fin Whales on which research was conducted. The deeply pigmented animals were more resistant to the sun damage. They had lower prevalence of the sunburn lesions.
Conclusion of the research
The researchers, after conducting study on these three kinds of whale species explained that this could be helpful in finding the changes in genes as well as pigment. The whales can thus shed light on the process of ageing in the human beings.
The sun-burnt DNA in the whales was the same kind of sun-burnt DNA which was found in the humans and this was linked to the process of ageing. The study depicted the interaction of these systems which can be examined even more in the human research. It can thus be used for studying the anti-ageing process as well as skin cancer approaches. The research can prove to be beneficial to the pharmaceutical companies.
The researchers however explained that further work needed to be done in order to see whether sun burn in whales can lead to skin cancer. The researchers also wanted to know whether early warning system for animals can be developed or not.
The Social Security Agreement between India and Canada Approved
The Union
Cabinet of India on 29 August 2013 approved the Social Security Agreement
between India and Canada. The agreement will benefit 40 thousand Persons of Indian
Origin in Quebec province. India has similar agreements with countries
including Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Malaysia and Belgium.
The
Social Security totalization agreement between India and Canada was signed on 6
November 2012. The Social Security Agreement between Canada and India is
expected to enter into force in 2014, once both nations have completed their
legislative procedures.
Sockalingam Sam Kannappan Elected Zonal
Secretary/Treasurer of NCEES
The
National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) elected
Sockalingam Sam Kannappan, Chairman of Enforcement Committee of Texas PE Board
as its zonal Secretary/treasurer. Sockalingam Sam Kannappan is an
Indian-American.
Sockalingam Sam Kannappan was elected as the Secretary and Treasurer of Southern Zone (SZ), which has a total of 18 boards under its control.
National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) is an American National Professional Engineers (PE) Board which co-ordinates 50 national PE Boards, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. Different engineering organisations from Japan, Mexico, Canada and other nations work along with NCEES.
NCEES has the role of conducting examination for fundamental (FE) and Professional Examination (PE) the four zones.
Who is Sockalingam Sam Kannappan?
• Sockalingam Sam Kannappan is the registered Professional Engineer in Texas.
• He has 25 years of experience in different areas such as software development, analysis and design for pipeline industries, refinery and petrochemical.
• He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering.
• He is a native of Nattarasankottai in Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu.
Sockalingam Sam Kannappan was elected as the Secretary and Treasurer of Southern Zone (SZ), which has a total of 18 boards under its control.
National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES) is an American National Professional Engineers (PE) Board which co-ordinates 50 national PE Boards, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. Different engineering organisations from Japan, Mexico, Canada and other nations work along with NCEES.
NCEES has the role of conducting examination for fundamental (FE) and Professional Examination (PE) the four zones.
Who is Sockalingam Sam Kannappan?
• Sockalingam Sam Kannappan is the registered Professional Engineer in Texas.
• He has 25 years of experience in different areas such as software development, analysis and design for pipeline industries, refinery and petrochemical.
• He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering.
• He is a native of Nattarasankottai in Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu.
Valley wider than Grand Canyon discovered beneath
Ice Sheet in Greenland
Scientists
in last week of August 2013 unveiled that they have discovered a vast canyon under
the ice sheet of Greenland, which was previously unknown. The latest discovered
canyon stretches in an area of over 750 kilometers and it up to 800 meters
deep.
The canyon was discovered by the scientists using an air borne radar data, which was collected over a period of several decades to piece together the landscape beneath the ice. The hidden valley is longer than the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
The canyon was discovered by the scientists using an air borne radar data, which was collected over a period of several decades to piece together the landscape beneath the ice. The hidden valley is longer than the Grand Canyon in Arizona.
The
canyon spreads from the centre of Greenland up to the northern coastline.
Scientists claim that before formation of the ice sheet it would have contained
a river gushing into the Arctic Ocean, which was buried due to encroaching ice
about 3.5 million years ago.
The findings were reveled in journal Science.
About Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Although it is a part of the continent of North America, but politically and culturally it has been associated with Europe (specifically Norway and later Denmark) for more than a millennium.
Greenland is a home of one of the Earth’s two major ice sheets, the other one lies in Antarctica. A three-dimensional picture of the bedrock of Greenland was developed by the glaciologists until 2001, but the resolution of the same was quite poor.
About Grand Canyon of Arizona
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in the Colorado Plateau of the United States in the State of Arizona. The Grand Canyon is 446 km long and up to 29 km wide and attains a depth of over 1800 meters.
The findings were reveled in journal Science.
About Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Although it is a part of the continent of North America, but politically and culturally it has been associated with Europe (specifically Norway and later Denmark) for more than a millennium.
Greenland is a home of one of the Earth’s two major ice sheets, the other one lies in Antarctica. A three-dimensional picture of the bedrock of Greenland was developed by the glaciologists until 2001, but the resolution of the same was quite poor.
About Grand Canyon of Arizona
The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in the Colorado Plateau of the United States in the State of Arizona. The Grand Canyon is 446 km long and up to 29 km wide and attains a depth of over 1800 meters.
International Day of the Victims of Enforced
Disappearances Observed Across the World
30
August: International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances
30 August was declared as the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances by the UN General Assembly expressing its concern by the increase in the number of involuntary or enforced disappearances in different parts of the world. The UN General Assembly declared this day by its resolution 65/209, on 21 December 2010.
The UN General Assembly, by this same resolution also welcomed the adoption of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
The involuntary or enforced disappearances are a result of abduction, detention or arrest or other factors or reasons. Also, there are growing numbers of reports which include ill-treatment, harassment as well as intimidation of the witnesses of these disappearances or of the persons or the relatives who have disappeared.
What is Enforced Disappearance?
Enforced disappearance has been used a lot in order to spread the terror in the societies. This gives the feeling of insecurity within a society. Enforced disappearance not just affects the disappeared person or the relatives and witnesses, but also the cumulative society.
Enforced disappearance is a global-level issue and is not restricted to a few areas of the world. Initially, enforced disappearance was a product of the military dictatorship but now it has also entered into situations of internal conflict, primarily the political repression of the opponents.
Major concerns of enforced disappearance
The major concerns of enforced disappearance include:
• ongoing harassment of the relatives of the victims, legal counsel, witnesses as well as human rights defenders
• use by the States of counter-terrorist activities as excuse of breaching the obligation
• widespread impunity of the enforced disappearances
• target groups include people with disabilities as well as children
What is done on the day?
Every year on 30 August, the organisations like Amnesty International and United Nations play a pivotal role in creating awareness about enforced disappearance. Awareness is raised regarding enforced disappearance as a crime. It is explained to the people that enforced disappearance should not be used as tool for dealing with the situations of conflicts.
On this day, at various places, the activists share the personal stories as well as experiences about enforced disappearance through the public event as well as media. The victims of enforced disappearance are brought out openly to share their stories and experiences.
30 August was declared as the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances by the UN General Assembly expressing its concern by the increase in the number of involuntary or enforced disappearances in different parts of the world. The UN General Assembly declared this day by its resolution 65/209, on 21 December 2010.
The UN General Assembly, by this same resolution also welcomed the adoption of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
The involuntary or enforced disappearances are a result of abduction, detention or arrest or other factors or reasons. Also, there are growing numbers of reports which include ill-treatment, harassment as well as intimidation of the witnesses of these disappearances or of the persons or the relatives who have disappeared.
What is Enforced Disappearance?
Enforced disappearance has been used a lot in order to spread the terror in the societies. This gives the feeling of insecurity within a society. Enforced disappearance not just affects the disappeared person or the relatives and witnesses, but also the cumulative society.
Enforced disappearance is a global-level issue and is not restricted to a few areas of the world. Initially, enforced disappearance was a product of the military dictatorship but now it has also entered into situations of internal conflict, primarily the political repression of the opponents.
Major concerns of enforced disappearance
The major concerns of enforced disappearance include:
• ongoing harassment of the relatives of the victims, legal counsel, witnesses as well as human rights defenders
• use by the States of counter-terrorist activities as excuse of breaching the obligation
• widespread impunity of the enforced disappearances
• target groups include people with disabilities as well as children
What is done on the day?
Every year on 30 August, the organisations like Amnesty International and United Nations play a pivotal role in creating awareness about enforced disappearance. Awareness is raised regarding enforced disappearance as a crime. It is explained to the people that enforced disappearance should not be used as tool for dealing with the situations of conflicts.
On this day, at various places, the activists share the personal stories as well as experiences about enforced disappearance through the public event as well as media. The victims of enforced disappearance are brought out openly to share their stories and experiences.
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