Andhra Pradesh Paper Mills
Current affairs 26 October 2012
Current affairs 26 October 2012
AP
Paper Mills plants its billionth tree
Andhra Pradesh
Paper Mills Ltd., achieved the milestone of planting one billion trees in India
through its farm
forestry
initiative. The International Paper’s group company planted its ceremonial
billionth tree at its
manufacturing
facility in Rajahmundry. The farm forestry initiative was established by APPM
in the early
1980s when it
recognised the growing concern of non-availability of fibrous raw material for
the paper
industry.
ICRISAT
scientist bags global award
Dr. C.L.Laxmipathi
Gowda, scientist of the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid
Tropics
(ICRISAT),
received the 2012 International Crop Science award for his contribution to
agriculture in the dry
land areas of Asia
and sub-Saharan Africa. He received the award during the annual meeting of Crop
Science Society of
America (CSSA) on October 23 at Cincinnati, USA. According to an ICRISAT
release
Dr.Gowda is known
for significant contribution in developing improved chickpea cultivars with
high yield and
resistance to
pests and diseases. Shared as international public goods with scientists and
national
programmes
globally, 68 high-yielding chickpea cultivars have been selected, tested and
released in 30
countries
globally.
Sharmila
Tagore honoured by Edinburgh University
Sharmila Tagore
was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Arts by the Edinburgh Napier University
for her
outstanding
contribution to Indian cinema. The university’s Principal and Vice-Chancellor,
Dame Joan
Stringer, hailed
her as an “excellent ambassador’ for Indian culture.” Ms. Tagore described it
as a “humbling
moment” and said
the honour conferred on her underlined the global significance of Indian films.
Waheeda
Rehman honoured
Waheeda Rehman was
conferred with the life achievement award at the closing function of the 14th
Mumbai
Film Festival. The
weeklong festival, during which over 200 films were screened, concluded with
the
screening of Pablo
Berger’s Blancanieves . Ms. Rehman accepted the award from director
Shyam Benegal.
She dedicated the
award to her colleagues in the film industry. Ms. Rehman has acted in 84 films
in a career
spanning six
decades and has been awarded the Padma Bhushan.
PM
sets up National Committee on direct cash transfers
Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh constituted a high-power National Committee on Direct Cash
Transfers in a
bid to reduce
corruption at the cutting edge. The committee is expected to facilitate the
introduction of direct
cash transfers to
individuals eligible for benefits flowing out of the government’s many welfare
programmes.
The Prime Minister
will chair the National Committee himself: its other members will be 11 Cabinet
Ministers,
two MoSs with
independent charge, the Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, the
Chairman of the
UIDAI and the
Cabinet Secretary. The Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister will be the
convenor. The
Prime Minister may
invite any other Minister, officer or expert to any meeting of the Committee.
Centre
clears National Policy on Electronics
The Cabinet
cleared the National Policy on Electronics 2012, which aims to make the
domestic electronic
hardware
manufacturing segment a $400-billion industry by 2020. The draft National
Policy on Electronics
was released for
public consultation and it has now been finalised based on comments from
various
stakeholders.
Under the policy, the government has set an objective to create an eco-system
for a globally
competitive ESDM
[Electronic System and Design and Manufacturing] sector in the country to
achieve a
turnover of about
$400 billion by 2020 involving investment of about $100 billion and employment
to around
28 million people
at various levels. The government also approved a Rs. 3,150-crore package for
the
development of
backward regions in Bihar, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
NHRC
notice to Punjab
The National Human
Rights Commission took suo motu cognisance of a report published in The Hindu
on
the condition of
bonded labourers in Punjab. Stating that the article raised serious issue of
violation of human
rights, the
commission has issued a notice to the Patiala District Magistrate, directing
him to inquire into the
allegations of
bonded labour and the circumstances.
Revised
rail route to Imphal approved
The Centre widened
the scope of the broad gauge railway project, extending the proposed “Jiribam-Imphal
Road (Tupul)
scheme” to connect Imphal and make it accessible to the rest of the country.
The Cabinet
Committee on
Infrastructure cleared the restructured cost for the extended project, which is
now expected to
incur an outgo of
Rs. 4,444 crore. The Centre will fund 75 per cent and the rest will be met from
the general
budgetary support
for the Railways. Expected to be completed by March 2016, the project will
bring Imphal
East, Tamenglong,
and Senapati districts of Manipur under the railway map.
A.U.
readmits Mali with 2013 poll plan
Mali was
readmitted into the African Union (A.U.) after a meeting of the A.U. Peace and
Security Council
[AUPSC]. The A.U.
had suspended the West African nation after a coup in March this year saw a
military
junta seize power
even as two thirds of Mali slipped into the control of a coalition of armed
groups and
organised gangs.
The soldiers behind the coup had claimed that the existing dispensation was
unable to
tackle the
insurgents in the north.
Joginder
Singh to head Ford India
Michael Boneham,
President and Managing Director, Ford India, has decided to retire effective
December
31, 2012 after a
successful career spanning over 27 years at Ford. He will be succeeded by
Joginder Singh.
Mr. Singh will as
the President and Managing Director effective December 1, 2012.
Cabinet
clears 10 per cent disinvestment in NMDC
The Cabinet Committee
on Economic Affairs (CCEA) cleared a 10 per cent stake sale of the Centre’s
equity
holding in NMDC
through the ‘offer for sale’ route. The transaction is likely to fetch about
Rs.7,000 crore. The
CCEA has approved
the disinvestment of 10 per cent paid-up equity capital of NMDC out of the
government’s
shareholding of 90 per cent through ‘Offer for the sale of shares through stock
exchange’
(OFS) method, as
per SEBI Rules and Regulations.
East
Zone keeps Duleep Trophy
East Zone’s
immunity to damaging blows and the will to tenaciously defend low scores helped
it emerge
Duleep Trophy
champion after defeating Central Zone in the final for the second consecutive
season at
Chennai.
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