ACHIEVERS IAS ACADEMY IMPORTANT NEWS ANALYSIS FOR UPSC 2016 (29-04-2016) 1 India, Papua New Guinea sign four agreements Giving a major boost to the bilateral relations between the two countries, India and Papua New Guinea today signed four MoUs in myriad sectors at capital Port Moresby. The MoUs were signed in the presence of the visiting President Pranab Mukherjee and the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O Neil. AIR special Correspondent accompanying the President, reports that the MoUs relate to Agriculture, Health, Information Technology and Infrastructure. Under the first MoU, India will provide a Line of Credit of 100 million dollars for specific projects in Transport and infrastructure sectors. The MoU on Health covers areas such as Public Health, Health Research, Human Resources and Training, Medical Services, Disease Control and Prevention, Drug and Health Care Technologies and Environmental Health. Yet another MoU envisages establishment of a Centre of Excellence in Information Technology in Papua New Guinea. The Fourth MoU delineates all round cooperation in agricultural research and training. Later, addressing the India- Papua New Guinea Business Association, Mr Mukherjee said the world sees the Indian economy as a bright spot in an otherwise bleak economic environment.
He said India today stands poised for another leap forward in its journey of economic development, riding on a growth rate predicted to be around 7.6% in the current financial year. President Mukherjee visited the University of Papua New Guinea and addressed the students and faculty. Mr Mukherjee said Papua new Guinea has a key role in India s extended Act East Policy and India views this nation as a gateway to closer cooperation with all the Pacific Island Countries. Mr Mukherjee paid his respects at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the University and said in a world that is increasingly vexed by intolerance and extremism, the life and message of this great soul remain an inspiring example of the power of truth and universal brotherhood. Mr Mukherjee is scheduled to address the Indian Community before his departure for New Zealand tonight. About Papua New Guinea: Papua New Guinea occupies the eastern part of the world's second largest island and is prey to volcanic activity, earthquakes and tidal waves. Linguistically, it is the world's most diverse country, with more than 700 native tongues.
Some 80% of Papua New Guinea's people live in rural areas with few or no facilities of modern life. Many tribes in the isolated mountainous interior have little contact with one another, let alone with the outside world, and live within a non-monetarised economy dependent on subsistence agriculture. The Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is an Oceanian country that occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean north of Australia. Its capital, located along its southeastern coast, is Port Moresby. The western half of New Guinea forms the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua. A very small proportion of the land can sustain cash crops, including coffee and cocoa. Abundant rainforests provide the raw material for a logging industry, which is dominated by Malaysian-owned companies. Conservation groups have criticised the social and environmental impact of the activity. Mineral deposits - including gold, copper and nickel - are extensive, but the difficult terrain and poor infrastructure make exploitation slow. There are significant reserves of oil and natural gas and the country has pinned its hopes on becoming a significant energy exporter. The separatist struggle in the neighbouring Indonesian province of Papua, formerly known as Irian Jaya, prompted the flight of thousands of Papuans into Papua New Guinea from the mid-1980s onwards. Many of them remain in border-area jungle camps. Although there is strong public concern in Papua New Guinea over the treatment of indigenous people in the western part of the island, the Papua New Guinean government is keen not to let the issue undermine relations with Indonesia, and has said it will not tolerate the use of its territory for separatist attacks on the Indonesian army. Papua New Guinea had to deal with separatist forces of its own on the island of Bougainville in the 1990s. Up to 20,000 people were killed in the nine-year conflict which ended in 1997. A peace deal signed in 2001 provided the framework for the election in 2005 of an autonomous government for Bougainville. Papua New Guinea has strong ties with its southern neighbour, Australia, which administered the territory until independence in 1975. Canberra's substantial aid programme aims to relieve poverty and to boost development. Australia has also despatched police officers and civil servants to support their local equivalents.
Concerns have been raised over high levels of crime and violence in the country, especially gender-based violence. The incidence of HIV/Aids is extremely high, and diseases such as cholera and malaria are endemic. There has also been criticism of Papua New Guinea's human rights record. Refugees in the country have been the targets of xenophobic attacks, and police brutality is commonplace. Though the death penalty has not been used since 1954, in May 2013 legislation extending it to cover a wider range of crimes was passed. Corruption is rife, with Transparency International rating the country one of the most corrupt in the world in 2012. Analysts see political corruption as being a product of the patronage system of governance, and the fact that many politicians are also businessmen has exacerbated the problem. 2. 25 declassified files related to Netaji released Government today released third set of 25 files related to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in New Delhi today. Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma released the files at a programme in the National Archives. Speaking on the occasion, Dr Sharma said, Government will build a magnificent memorial in the honour of Netaji in the National Capital. He also said, the release of these files will further meet the continued public demand to access these files and this will also facilitate scholars to carry out further research on the doyen of the freedom movement. First lot of 100 files relating to Netaji was put in the public domain by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23rd January this year on the 119th birth anniversary of Netaji. Last month, Dr Sharma had released 50 files.
In October last year, Mr Modi had met the family members of Netaji and announced that the government will declassify the files relating to the leader whose disappearance 70 years ago remains a mystery. While two commissions of inquiry had concluded that Netaji had died in a plane crash in Taipei on August, 1945 and a third probe panel, headed by Justice MK Mukherjee, had contested it and suggested that Bose was alive. 3 Swachh Bharat Mission loses its momentum: Parl Panel A Parliamentary Panel has observed that the Swachh Bharat Mission has lost its momentum though drive had begun with great enthusiasm. Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture in its report on demands for grants of Tourism Ministry for 2016-17 tabled in Parliament today said the general public did not give up their habit of littering in public places and throwing garbage here and there at tourist places. The Committee recommended creation of awareness and imposition of mild penalties on offenders to make the drive a success. On campaign for encouraging domestic tourists, the Committee said that the ministry has not made any concrete plan for the activities undertaken on the overseas
promotion. The Committee felt that India has vast potential of domestic tourist market which should be given top priority. 4 Uma calls for removal of misconceptions about interlinking of rivers: Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti has called for removal of misconceptions about inter-linking of rivers. Chairing the ninth meeting of the Special Committee for Inter-Linking of Rivers at New Delhi today the Minister said that keeping in view the recent drought in some parts of the country the need for quick implementation of inter-linking of rivers has become more necessary. She said inter-linking of rivers will not affect flow of sweet water in the rivers. Ms Bharti said we are not stopping the flow of sweet water of the rivers, but will only be transferring the extra water of these rivers which comes during monsoon and floods to those rivers which have less water. This will not affect the flow of water of any river in the country.
5 Gujarat govt decides to provide 10 % reservation to economically backward of higher castes: Gujarat Government will issue an ordinance on 1st May to provide 10 per cent reservation to economically backwards of higher caste. This decision was taken in BJP's core committee meeting presided by party's National President Amit Shah. Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel and senior Ministers and senior party leaders were present in the meeting. Bringing the media persons at BJP state headquarters in Gandhinagar, state BJP President Vijay Rupani has said that the new reservation will not affect the present reservation available to SC, ST and OBCs. He said that 10 percent reservation for economically backwards will be available to those, whose total family income is less than 6 lakh annually. Replying to media queries that the decision is fallout of reservation demand by Patidar community, State BJP president Mr.Rupani has said that the issue is widely debated in the country to give reservation to the people of economically backward class. The 10 percent reservation for economically backwards of higher caste will apply in government jobs as well as admission to the educational institutions. Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel has called cabinet meeting this evening to discuss this issue. It is likely that state cabinet will approve the decision of party s core committee and also discuss the process to issue the ordinance on 1st May- the foundation day of Gujarat.
Meanwhile, State Congress has criticized the decision terming it as inadequate. Leader of Congress legislative party, Mr.Shankarsinh Waghela has said that Government should allot at least 20 percent reservation to the economically backwards of the higher castes. After the long quota agitation by Patidar community in the state and reservation demand by other higher communities, BJP Government today announced 10 percent quota for economically backwards. BJP national president Amit Shah has played key role in this crucial decision. This 10 percent reservations for economically backwards of higher caste will apply in government jobs as well as admission to the educational institutions. Any persons, whose monthly family income is less than Rs.50 thousand will entitle for this new quota. There will be no change in reservations presently available to SC, ST and OBCs in the state. Ordinance will be issued on 1st May - the state foundation day and implemented with immediate effect. According to sources, the ordinance will be drafted in a way that constitution provisions regarding reservations would not be violated. 6 Swat activist Tabassum Adnan wins 2016 Nelson Mandela Award A women's rights activist from Swat valley of Pakistan, Tabassum Adnan, became the recipient of yet another prestigious award yesterday when she was bestowed with the Nelson Mandela Graça Machel Innovation Award 2016 in Bogota, Colombia. Talking to Dawn from Colombia soon after receiving her award, Adnan said she dedicates her award to her country, Pakistan. She won the award for the individual
activist category on the concluding day of the International Civil Society Week held from April 25-28. A victim of child marriage, Tabassum Adnan was married at the age of 13. The marriage which was marked by frequent domestic abuse, ended after 20 years when she gathered the courage to divorce her abusive husband. 7 Removing cotton export subsidies to help developing nations: India India has said, removing cotton export subsidies by developed nations would help the Indian farmers and also prevent dumping of the subsidized natural fibre in India. The World Trade Organization in its meeting in Nairobi last December had decided on elimination of export subsidies on cotton by the developed countries. The decision will create a level playing field for domestic farmers in the poorest countries, the commerce ministry said in a statement. Noting that India is not a major user of the export subsidies, the statement said, India's push has helped in the Nairobi decision. It added that the government has been taking every step to protect the cotton- growers which includes procurement through Cotton Corporation at minimum support prices.