CURRENT UPDATE: CHIEF MINISTER OF MAHARASHTRA

DEVENDRA FADNAVIS SWORN-IN AS CHIEF MINISTER OF MAHARASHTRA

Devendra Fadnavis has been sworn in as the first BJP Chief Minister of Maharashtra along with nine Ministers on Friday.

The swearing-in ceremony was held at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.

Maharashtra Governor, C Vidyasagar Rao administered the oath of office and secrecy to Fadnavis and his Cabinet in the shadow of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s image that was projected through a LED screen.

Apart from Fadnavis, seven Cabinet Ministers and two Ministers of state were also sworn-in.

The Cabinet Ministers sworn-in today included Messrs Eknath Khadse, Sudhir Mungantiwar, Vinod Tawde, Prakash Mehta, Chandrakant Patil, Pankaja Munde and Vishnu Sawra while Dilip Kamble and Vidya Thakur were sworn-in as Ministers of State.

Addressing his first press conference in Mumbai after taking over as Chief Minister, Fadnavis said that he will strive to provide a transparent and efficient government that will remain totally focussed on inclusive development.

Outlining a step in that direction, Fadnavis said the government has decided to introduce a citizen’s charter or Right to Service.

He said that the state cabinet in its first meeting has decided to provide a legal recourse to all citizens who fail to get government services in a time bound manner.

He said that a Committee headed by the Chief Secretary will submit a detailed report and proposal in this regard.

Showcasing his practical side, the Chief Minister declined to state any 100 day targets for the government.

Fadnavis said that he would rather use his first 100 days to study the state of affairs and then use the rest of his 5 year term for development goals.

He said that the government will review most of the decisions taken by the previous government in its last days and see if implementing all of them will be feasible without causing much trouble to the exchequer.

He said that the BJP led government will try to fulfil all its promises regarding removal of toll and bringing out a white paper on irrigation scam as soon as possible.

Saying that he was happy as Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray was present to attend the swearing-in ceremony, the Chief Minister indicated that the alliance between the two parties will be announced soon.

On the issue of a separate Vidarbha, a region from which Fadnavis belongs, the Chief Minister said that the initial focus will be on the development of all backward regions including Vidarbha and Marathwada.

CURRENT UPDATE : BRADMAN HALL OF FAME

SACHIN TENDULKAR, STEVE WAUGH ENTER BRADMAN HALL OF FAME

Sachin Tendulkar added another feather to his cap today when the Indian batting legend was inducted as one of the latest honorees in the Bradman Foundation. At a gala dinner held at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground, former Australian captain Steve Waugh was the other cricketer to enter the Bradman Hall of Fame along with Tendulkar. 

Tendulkar's appearance at the annual Bradman Foundation dinner is fitting as the late Aussie great once famously said that the Indian's technique reminded him of his own. 

Tendulkar, who had the honour of meeting Bradman on his 90th birthday at his Adelaide home, was later listed in an all-time XI prepared by the batting genius himself.

CURRENT UPDATE : WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM'S 2014 GENDER GAP INDEX

INDIA SLIDES IN WEF'S GENDER EQUALITY INDEX, RANKS 114

India has performed poorly in removing gender-based disparities, ranking 114 out of 142 countries in World Economic Forum's 2014 gender gap index, scoring below average on parameters like economic participation, educational attainment and health and survival.

India slipped 13 spots from its last year's ranking of 101 on the Gender Gap Index by the World Economic Forum. India is part of the 20 worst-performing countries on the labour force participation, estimated earned income, literacy rate and sex ratio at birth indicators. 

On the other hand, India is among the top 20 best- performing countries on the political empowerment subindex. The index was first introduced by the World Economic Forum in 2006 as a framework for capturing the magnitude of gender-based disparities and tracking their progress. 

The index benchmarks national gender gaps on economic, political, education and health criteria. On the criteria of economic participation and opportunity, India was ranked 134. Its female to male ratio in labour force participation was 0.36.

The disparity in estimated earned income was high with women earning USD 1980 compared to USD 8087 earned by their male counterparts. On educational attainment, India ranked 126 with female to male ratio in literacy rate at 0.68.

India was the second-lowest performing country on health and survival, ranking 141 just ahead of Armenia. However, on political empowerment subindex, India ranked an impressive 15. It is the highest-ranked country on the years with female head of state (over the past 50 years) indicator. 

There is also some evidence from India to suggest that women in local government roles make decisions with better outcomes for communities than men do when charged with budget decisions. They also appear to be more competent representatives than men, obtaining more resources for their constituencies despite having significantly lower education and relevant labour market experience. 

The report said that India has the highest difference between women and men on the average minutes spent per day on unpaid worka difference of 300 minutes. It is also among the countries with the highest difference in the female and male percentage of total R&D personnel. India has one of the lowest percentages of firms with female participation in ownership.

CURRENT UPDATE : WORLD BANK'S - EASE OF DOING BUSINESS REPORT 2014

INDIA RANKS 142 IN LATEST "EASE OF DOING BUSINESS" REPORT: WB

India ranked 142 among the 189 countries surveyed for the latest World Bank's "Ease of Doing Business" report released on Wednesday, a drop by two places from the last year's ranking, as Singapore topped the list.

The fall in India's ranking from the last year's 140 is mainly because other nations performed much better, Bank officials said. In the 2014 report, India had 52.78 points and this year it scored 53.97 points. 

The latest ranking, however, does not take into account a slew of measures taken by the Modi Government to make India a business friendly destination. 

"We do not want to send the impression that the drop in India's ranking is connected in any way with the current political situation (government)," said Augusto Lopez-Claros, Director, Global Indicators Group, Development Economics of the World Bank Group. 

"It is absolutely true that the new government of Mr Modi has made it very clear that they see the creation of a better investment climate and a more business friendly environment in India a top priority. However, it is important to remember that the new Government did not come into office until the second half of May," he said. 

Noting that the cut-off of ease of doing business is 31st May, Lopez said whatever the government would do and whatever is in the pipeline is going to have an impact on these indicators only next year. 

Appreciative of the steps taken by the new Indian Government, World Bank officials said that there was a very high likelihood of India significantly jumping up the ladder in the next report. 

Singapore with 88.27 points occupies the top position in the ease of doing business followed by New Zealand, Hong Kong, Denmark and South Korea respectively. 

Among other major countries, the US has been ranked seventh, Britain (eight), China (90), Sri Lanka (99), Nepal (108), Maldives (116), Bhutan (125), and Pakistan (128). 

When asked about the ambition of the new Indian Government to move up the ladder and gain a ranking within top 50 countries, Lopez said: "There is no reason, why not?". 

"Absolutely, it can be done. There are many examples of countries who through focused efforts, through intelligently designed reforms have managed to make very substantial improvement," he said. 

Though India did drop a little bit in terms of its ranking, the ease of doing business has improved over the last 12 months, he said. 

Rita Ramalho, lead author of the Doing Business report, said India's ranking dropped, despite improvement in its business environment, because other countries improved. 

"There is a continuous improvement across the world. India improved, but others improved at a faster pace," Ramalho said.

CURRENT UPDATE : NEW HARYANA CHIEF MINISTER

MANOHAR LAL KHATTAR TAKES OVER AS NEW HARYANA CM

NINE MINISTERS ALSO TAKE OATH

Senior BJP leader Manohar Lal Khattar has been sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Haryana today.

Khattar and his ministerial colleagues were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki at a ceremony at Panchkula which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah, party veterans L K Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi.

Several Union Ministers including Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj, Venkaiah Naidu, the Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states, Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal, LJP chief and Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan also attended the ceremony. 

Those sworn-in as Cabinet Ministers were: Ram Bilas Sharma, Capt Abhimanyu, O P Dhankar, Anil Vij, Rao Narbir Singh and Kavita Jain. 

Those who took oath as Ministers of State were: Vikram Singh Thekedar (Independent), Krishan Kumar Bedi and Mr Karan Dev Kamboj. 

BJP created history by coming to power for the first time in the history of Haryana since its inception in 1966 at its own. 

In the 90 member Haryana Assembly, BJP bagged 47 seats.

Khattar, who chose to remain a bachelor to work as RSS 'pracharak', is the tenth chief minister of the state.

This is the first time that the state has got a BJP chief minister. He will be the fifth non-Jat Chief Minister of Haryana. 

Khattar, 60, who won the Assembly polls from Karnal, in his maiden electoral appearance, administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki at around 1120 hrs at the ceremony held at HUDA Ground in Panchkula near Chandigarh.

Considered close to the Prime Minister, Khattar, a Punjabi, has been an active RSS pracharak for more than 40 years. He had joined the BJP about two decades back.

In Khattar, Haryana will get a non-Jat CM after about 18 years. 

CURRENT UPDATE : INDIA'S THIRD NAVIGATION SATELLITE IRNSS-1C

PSLV-C26 SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHES 

INDIA'S THIRD NAVIGATION SATELLITE IRNSS-1C

ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C26, successfully launched IRNSS-1C, the third satellite in the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), in the early morning hours of today (October 16, 2014) at 01:32 hours IST from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. This is the twenty seventh consecutively successful mission of PSLV. The 'XL' configuration of PSLV was used for this mission. Previously, the same configuration of the vehicle was successfully used six times.

 After the lift-off of PSLV-C26 with the ignition of the first stage, the important flight events, namely, stage and strap-on ignitions, heat-shield separation, stage and strap-on separations and satellite injection, took place as planned. After a flight of about 20 minutes 18 seconds, IRNSS-1C Satellite, weighing 1425 kg, was injected to an elliptical orbit of 282.56 km X 20,670 km, which is very close to the intended orbit.

After injection, the solar panels of IRNSS-1C were deployed automatically. ISRO's Master Control Facility (at Hassan, Karnataka) assumed the control of the satellite. In the coming days, four orbit manoeuvres will be conducted from Master Control Facility to position the satellite in the Geostationary Orbit at 83 deg East longitude. 

IRNSS-1C is the third of the seven satellites constituting the space segment of the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System. IRNSS-1A and IRNSS-1B, the first two satellites of the constellation, were successfully launched by PSLV on July 02, 2013 and April 04, 2014 respectively. Both IRNSS-1A and 1B are functioning satisfactorily from their designated geosynchronous orbital positions.

IRNSS is an independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide position information in the Indian region and 1500 km around the Indian mainland. IRNSS would provide two types of services, namely, Standard Positioning Services (SPS) - provided to all users - and Restricted Services (RS), provided to authorised users.

A number of ground stations responsible for the generation and transmission of navigation parameters, satellite control, satellite ranging and monitoring, etc., have been established in as many as 15 locations across the country. 

In the coming months, the next satellite of this constellation, namely, IRNSS-1D, is scheduled to be launched by PSLV. The entire IRNSS constellation of seven satellites is planned to be completed by 2015.

                    Click here To know more about IRNSS-1C and PSLV - C26 

CURRENT UPDATE : THE NOBEL PRIZE 2014 WINNER

CURRENT UPDATE : INTERNATIONAL FEMALE POLICE PEACEKEEPER AWARD 2014

INDIAN COP WINS UN'S INTERNATIONAL FEMALE PEACEKEEPER AWARD

An Indian police inspector has been named recipient of a prestigious international female peacekeeper award by the UN's police division for her "exceptional achievements" in her duty with the UN mission in Afghanistan, including her efforts towards helping victims of sexual and gender-based violence.

Inspector Shakti Devi of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, currently deployed in the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), has been awarded the International Female Police Peacekeeper Award 2014.

Devi has been honoured for her "exceptional achievements" in leading the establishment of Women Police Councils in several parts of Afghanistan, the UN Police Division said in a communication to the Indian mission.

It said Devi has contributed to the improvement of the status of female police and has effectively helped the police of Afghanistan move towards achieving their goals of fully adopting democratic principles of policing. 

"In addition, her consistent engagement in improving the service for victims of sexual and gender-based violence has led to successful investigation and prosecution," the UN agency said. 

The award was delivered during the International Association of Women Police (IAWP) conference held earlier this month in Winnipeg, Canada.

The honour is a competitive award given to an outstanding female police peacekeeper serving in a UN peace operation.

The objectives of the award are to promote an understanding of police in peace operations throughout the world, highlight the efforts of female police in global peace operations, increase understanding of the roles of women officers in various countries and encourage participation in UN peace operations by all countries of the world.

It is also aimed at promoting membership in the UN International Female Police Peacekeepers Network and increasing international understanding and awareness of women in international police peacekeeping and in the network.

The award is organised in collaboration with the IAWP Awards programme and delivered during its annual conference.

India is the largest contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, having contributed more than 170,000 troops in 43 out of 69 peacekeeping missions mandated by the United Nations Security Council so far.

The UN owes India USD 110 million, the second highest outstanding payment to any country, for costs relating to peacekeeping operations and troops. 

CURRENT UPDATE : NOBEL PRIZE IN ECONOMIC SCIENCE - 2014

THE SVERIGES RIKSBANK PRIZE IN ECONOMIC SCIENCES

IN MEMORY OF ALFRED NOBEL 2014

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel for 2014 to Jean Tirole, Toulouse 1 Capitole University, France“for his analysis of market power and regulation”.

JEAN TIROLE

Born: 9 August 1953, Troyes, France Affiliation at the time of the award: Toulouse 1 Capitole University, Toulouse, France Prize motivation: "for his analysis of market power and regulation" Field: industrial organization Prize share: 1/1

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Scientific Background on the Sveriges Riksbank Prizein Economic Sciences in 

Memory of Alfred Nobel 2014

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CURRENT UPDATE: THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE 2014

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE 2014

The Nobel Peace Prize 2014 was awarded jointly to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education"

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2014 is to be awarded to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzay for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education.  Children must go to school and not be financially exploited.  In the poor countries of the world, 60% of the present population is under 25 years of age.  It is a prerequisite for peaceful global development that the rights of children and young people be respected.  In conflict-ridden areas in particular, the violation of children leads to the continuation of violence from generation to generation.

Showing great personal courage, Kailash Satyarthi, maintaining Gandhi’s tradition, has headed various forms of protests and demonstrations, all peaceful, focusing on the grave exploitation of children for financial gain.  He has also contributed to the development of important international conventions on children’s rights.

Despite her youth, Malala Yousafzay has already fought for several years for the right of girls to education, and has shown by example that children and young people, too, can contribute to improving their own situations.  This she has done under the most dangerous circumstances.  Through her heroic struggle she has become a leading spokesperson for girls’ rights to education.

The Nobel Committee regards it as an important point for a Hindu and a Muslim, an Indian and a Pakistani, to join in a common struggle for education and against extremism.  Many other individuals and institutions in the international community have also contributed.  It has been calculated that there are 168 million child labourers around the world today.  In 2000 the figure was 78 million higher.  The world has come closer to the goal of eliminating child labour.

The struggle against suppression and for the rights of children and adolescents contributes to the realization of the “fraternity between nations” that Alfred Nobel mentions in his will as one of the criteria for the Nobel Peace Prize.

KAILASH SATYARTHI	MALALA YOUSAFZAI
Born: 11 January 1954, Vidisha, India Residence at the time of the award: India Prize motivation: "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education" Prize share: 1/2	Born: 12 July 1997, Mingora, Pakistan Residence at the time of the award: United Kingdom Prize motivation: "for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education" Prize share: 1/2

CURRENT UPDATE : THE NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE 2014

NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE 2014

The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2014 is awarded to the French author Patrick Modiano “for the art of memory with which he has evoked the most ungraspable human destinies and uncovered the life-world of the occupation”.

PATRICK MODIANO

Born: 30 July 1945, Paris, France Residence at the time of the award: France Prize motivation: "for the art of memory with which he has evoked the most ungraspable human destinies and uncovered the life-world of the occupation" Prize share: 1/1

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CURRENT UPDATE : NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY 2014

THE NOBEL PRIZE IN CHEMISTRY 2014

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has decided to award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2014 to Eric Betzig (Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA),  Stefan W. Hell (Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, and German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany) and William E. Moerner (Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA)  “for the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy”

ERIC BETZIG	STEFAN W. HELL	WILLIAM E. MOERNER
Born: 1960, Ann Arbor, MI, USA Affiliation at the time of the award: Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA Prize motivation: "for the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy" Field: physical chemistry Prize share: 1/3	Born: 1962, Arad, Romania Affiliation at the time of the award: Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany, German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany Prize motivation: "for the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy" Field: physical chemistry Prize share: 1/3	Born: 1953 Affiliation at the time of the award: Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Prize motivation: "for the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy" Field: physical chemistry Prize share: 1/3

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Scientific Background on the Nobel Prize inChemistry 2014

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CURRENT UPDATE : NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS 2014

THE NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS 2014

The Nobel Prize in Physics 2014 was awarded jointly to Isamu Akasaki, Hiroshi Amano and Shuji Nakamura "for the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources".

ISAMU AKASAKI	HIROSHI AMANO	SHUJI NAKAMURA
Born: 1929, Chiran, Japan Affiliation at the time of the award: Meijo University, Nagoya, Japan, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan Prize motivation: "for the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources" Prize share: 1/3	Born: 1960, Hamamatsu, Japan Affiliation at the time of the award: Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan Prize motivation: "for the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources" Prize share: 1/3	Born: 1954, Ikata, Japan Affiliation at the time of the award: University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA Prize motivation: "for the invention of efficient blue light-emitting diodes which has enabled bright and energy-saving white light sources" Prize share: 1/3

 For more details about the Nobel Prize in Physics 2014 - Click the link below :

Scientific Background on the Nobel Prize in Physics2014

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CURRENT UPDATE : 2014 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE

 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE

The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has today decided to award The 2014 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with one half to John O´Keefe and the other half jointly to May-Britt Moser and Edvard I. Moser for their discoveries of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain.

JOHN O'KEEFE	MAY-BRITT MOSER	EDVARD MOSER
Born: 1939, New York, NY, USA Affiliation at the time of the award: University College, London, United Kingdom Prize motivation: "for their discoveries of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain" Field: physiology,spatial behaviour Prize share: ½	Born: 1963, Fosnavåg, Norway Affiliation at the time of the award: Centre for Neural Computation, Trondheim, Norway Prize motivation: "for their discoveries of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain" Field: physiology, spatial behaviour Prize share: 1/4	Born: 1962, Ålesund, Norway Affiliation at the time of the award: Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Trondheim, Norway Prize motivation: "for their discoveries of cells that constitute a positioning system in the brain" Field: physiology, spatial behavior Prize share: 1/4