Current Affairs : June 19, 2011

Summon to Sri-Lankan President by US Federal Court

• Summon received by the Sri Lankan Justice Ministry for President Rajapaksa
  
• Summon issued by the US Federal Court
  
• In connection with the 3 cases filed under the Haugue Convention
  
• Cases filed by the relatives of Tamil victims of alleged extra-judicial killings during Tamil uprising in Srilanka
  
• Petitioners claimed financial compensation under the United States Torture Victims Protection Act
  

A New Technology to prevent contaminated water release into the Ganges

• Mr. Jairam Ramesh (Environment and Forest Minister of India) launched a new Green Technology
  
• To prevent contamination of the River Ganga by the water released from the Leather processing units
  
• Initiative launched at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh
  
• Approximately 50% of the leather processing units in the Ganga river basin are located in UP and West Bengal
  
• To preserve 5,000 tones of raw hide, together they use around 3,000 tones of salt each day
  
• This activity results in pollution and contamination of ground water as about 90% of this salt mixes with the Ganga river
  
• The new LYOPHILISATION Technology
  helps in salt-free preservation of hides and also helps in bringing down the amount of water used in the process,
  
• The Process is low on Cr (chromium) intake and is a more cost-effective effluent treatment. 
  
• The Union Environment Ministry has requested the Leather Industry to voluntarily accept the new Technology on a large-scale without the Ministry having to pass Laws to make it compulsory
  
• The leather industry over the next two years will need to install around 900 such lyophilizes
  
• Each unit costs b/w Rs 60 Lakhs to Rs 2 Crore
  
• The Conventional process of leather preservation uses large amounts of salt and the tannery waste matter has high amounts of dissolved solids thus making effluent treatment complex and expensive
  

Abandonment of salvage operation for MV Wisdom for 15 days

• MV Wisdom:
  9,000-tonne cargo vessel, which ran aground near the beach recently
  
• It was being towed to a ship breaking yard in Gujarat’s Alang
  
• But it broke away from the tug in rough weather and ran aground near the beach
  
• Operations to put it back in the sea started on Friday 17, 2011 but have not borne fruit so far
  
• It istuck on the Juhu beach in Mumbai
  
• Pains to save cargo vessel M V Wisdom were discarded for the third day
  
• As per Mr. S.B.Agnihotri (Director General of Shipping) operations have been hampered for at least a fortnight
  
• Operational difficulties are faced due to engine trouble in the lead tug that strained to dump the rescue efforts till the next spring tide after 15 days when efforts to refloat the vessel would be made afresh
  
• No fear of any oil or cargo related pollution reported
  

Transfer of MV Suez’s crew including 6 Indians to Pakistan’s warship

• When the Egyptian mercantile vessel
  MV Suez began taking on water in the Arabian Sea its 22-member crew, including 6 Indians transferred to a Pakistani warship
  
• The Vessel was on its way to the Omani port of Salalah when it ran out of fuel and started taking on water in violent weather
  
• The crew was in recent times released by Somali pirates following a payment of ransom
  
• Admiral Noman Bashir (Pakistan Navy chief) after getting a call for aid ordered the vessel’s crew to be shifted to the combat ship PNS Babar, which was escorting it
  
• The ship’s crew was then transferred to the PNS Babar
  
• Formerly, MV Suez’s Captain Syed Wasi Hasan appealed to Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry and the naval chief for instantaneous aid as he feared the vessel would roll over after being trapped in strong winds
  

Postponement of Land acquisition for Posco Project

• Land acquisition for the Posco steel project near Paradip of Jagatsinghpur district in Odisha was again postponed
  
• It was followed after orders from senior officials of the State Government
  
• Land acquisition process could not be started during the last two working days due to bad weather conditions
  
• A huge number of anti-Posoc activists formed human chains in the outskirts of Gobindpur to protest the forceful land acquisition
  
• Posco: South Korean steel giant
  

A Detailed National Inventory of Wetlands by ISRO

• A detailed national inventory of wetlands prepared by ISRO
  
• Prepared on the basis of satellite imagery
  
• Highlights areas of serious ecological worth and those which are in front of extreme risk due to developmental actions
  
• First time in India that the city-based Space Application Centre (SAC), a part of ISRO, has arranged such a register and atlas of all the wetlands that exist in the country
  
• Wetlands are the most productive ecosystems which play crucial role in hydrological cycle like helping in water supply, storm and flood control, providing food, fiber and raw materials and in recreational benefits. They support huge number of migratory birds coming from colder regions of the world in summers, apart from diverse local flora and fauna
  
• The very existence of these exclusive resources is under risk due to developmental activities and population pressure
  

DTA with Mauritius to be reviewed

• DTA: Double Tax Avoidance (DTA)
  
• India to review DTA treaty with Mauritius
  
• However no time frame allotted for the same
  
• Government may impose capital gains tax on investments through Mauritius
  
• At present, under the DTA, investments from Mauritius are exempted from tax in India
  
• As a result of it a large amount of FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) as also investment in the stock market come through companies registered in Mauritius
  

Mixed Model to be proposed by the Nepal Task Force

• In Nepal , the Nepal Task Force formed to settle disputes in the New Constitution
  
• It decided to propose a Mixed Model with both the President and Prime Minister
  to share executive powers in the new constitution
  
• Taskforce led by Sadbhawan party leader Laxman Lal Karna
  
• The Executive power rests upon the President and is aided by the PM with limited powers to run the day to day administration
  
• President: To be directly elected from the people
  
• Prime Minister: To be elected by the Parliament
  
• The task force will submit its report to the sub-committee of the Constitutional Committee in its next meeting
  

Conference of State Finance Ministers to be inaugurated by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee

• Pranab Mukherjee (Finance Minister of India) to inaugurate a conference of the State Finance Ministers
  
• Agenda: To Plan on the operational guidelines for Financial Reporting under accrual based accounting system
  
• Other Participants will be the Secretaries to the Government of India, State Finance Secretaries, Financial Advisors from key ministries and State Accountant Generals
  
• Mukherjee also to release the operational guidelines for shifting to accrual accounting

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Month: Current Affairs - June, 2011