The Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science is an award given by UNESCO for exceptional skill in presenting scientific ideas to lay people. It was created in 1952, following a donation from Biju Patnaik, Founder President of the Kalinga Foundation Trust in India.
Kalinga Prize
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Award watch October 25, 2009
bladeaxe4 " Bhuvan " – India’s Very Own Google Earth READY ! September 5, 2009
As announced earlier India’s own geographic information system (GIS) dubbed ‘Bhuvan‘ is now available for download, currently under BETA release capable of Indian specific features not available in any other competing product.
Bhuvan features multiple layers of information showing topography, altitude, depth weather and other features helpful in managing public services, internal security, town planning, and infrastructure development activities.
September 5, 2009
WTO
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The World Trade Organization is an international organization which was created for the liberalization of international trade. The World Trade Organization came into existence on January 1st, 1995 and it is the successor to General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT). The World trade organization deals with the rules of trade between nations at a global level. WTO is responsible for implementing new trade agreements. All the member countries of WTO have to follow the trade agreement as decided by the WTO.
Structure of the WTO:
Following is the structure of WTO.
Highest Level: Ministerial Conference
The Ministerial Conference is the top most body of the WTO, which meets in every two years. It brings together all the members of WTO.
Second Level: General Council
The General Counsel of the WTO is the highest level decision making body in Geneva, which meets regularly to carry out the functions of WTO.
Third Level: Councils for Trade
The Workings of GATT, which covers international trade in goods, are the responsibility of the Council of Trade.
Fourth Level: Subsidiary Bodies
There are subsidiary bodies under the various councils dealing with specific subjects such as agriculture, subsidies, market access etc.
Benefits Of WTO
- It helps promote peace and prosperity across the globe.
- Disputes are settled amicably.
- Rules bring about greater discipline in trade negotiations, thereby reducing inequalities to a large extent.
- Free trade reduces the cost of living and increases household income.
- Companies have greater access to markets and consumers have wider range of products to choose from.
- Good governance accelerates economic growth
India and WTO
India is one of the founding members of WTO along with 134 other countries. India’s participation in an increasingly rule based system in governance of International trade, would ultimately lead to better prosperity for the nation. Various trade disputes of India with other nations have been settled through WTO. India has also played an important part in the effective formulation of major trade policies. By being a member of WTO several countries are now trading with India, thus giving a boost to production, employment, standard of living and an opportunity to maximize the use of the world resources.
India is one of the founding members of WTO along with 134 other countries. India’s participation in an increasingly rule based system in governance of International trade, would ultimately lead to better prosperity for the nation. Various trade disputes of India with other nations have been settled through WTO. India has also played an important part in the effective formulation of major trade policies. By being a member of WTO several countries are now trading with India, thus giving a boost to production, employment, standard of living and an opportunity to maximize the use of the world resources.
Latest in news
WTO lauds India’s efforts to push forward Doha trade talks
These ppl died in Aviation accidents September 5, 2009
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Sanjay Gandhi 
IND1980 son of Indira Gandhi Pitts S-2A Special India Jayan IND1980 entertainer: Malayalam film actor accident whilst performing a film stunt. Madhavrao Scindia IND2001 Indian politician Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy IND2009 Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, India Bell 430 Nallamala, India Soundarya IND2004 Kollywood (Tamil) actress Ganapathi Thanikaimoni IND1986 Palynologist Pan Am Flight 73 G. M. C. Balayogi IND2002 politician helicopter Kaikalur, West Godavari district ?? Neerja Bhanot IND1986 flight attendant who saved lives during a hijacking Pan Am Flight 73 Karachi, Pakistan Hijacking Subhash Chandra Bose IND1945 Indian politician and Freedom fighter Taiwan (alleged) Cause disputed
National income September 3, 2009
Concept of national income PER CAPITA INCOME = NATIONAL INCOME/ POPULATION PPP PURCHASING POWER PARTY INDEX IS CONSTRUCTED BY TAKING INTO ACCOUNT WHAT A UNIT CURRNCY CAN PURCHASE IN ITS OWN COUNTRY PLANNING IN INDIA HISTORICAL BACKGROUND 1. 1934 M.VISVESHVARYA WROTE THE BOOK PLLANED ECONMY 4 INDIA 2. 1938 NATIONAL PLANNING COMMETEE SET UP 3. 1944 BOMBAY PLAN BY 8 INDUSTRIALIST IN BOMBAY 4. 1945 PEOPLE’S PLAN BY MN ROY 5. 1950 SARVODYA PLAN BY JP NARAYAN PLANNING COMMISSION
Pokhran-II September 3, 2009
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pokharan-II refers to test explosions of five nuclear devices, three on 11 May and two on 13 May 1998, conducted by India at the Pokhran test range. These nuclear tests resulted in a variety of sanctions against India by a number of major states. On 18 May 1974 India exploded its first nuclear device code named Smiling Buddha. After about a quarter century, on Buddha Jayanti, 11 May 1998, Operation Shakti was carried out. Shakti (शक्ति in Sanskrit meaning ‘Strength’), is also the name of the Hindu Goddess of strength. Shakti was the codename for Pokhran-II.
Test team
The main technical personnel involved in the operation were:
Project Chief Coordinators
- Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (later, President of India), Scientific Adviser to the Prime Minister and Head of the DRDO.
- Dr. R. Chidambaram, Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and the Department of Atomic energy.
Development and test teams
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC)
- Dr. Anil Kakodkar, Director of BARC.
- Dr. Satinder Kumar Sikka, Director; Thermonuclear Weapon Development.
- Dr. M.S. Ramkumar, Director of Nuclear Fuel and Automation Manufacturing Group; Director, Nuclear Component Manufacture.
- Dr. D.D. Sood, Director of Radiochemistry and Isotope Group; Director, Nuclear Materials Acquisition.
- Dr. S.K. Gupta, Solid State Physics and Spectroscopy Group; Director, Device Design & Assessment.
- Dr. G. Govindraj, Associate Director of Electronic and Instrumentation Group; Director, Field Instrumentation.
Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO)
- Dr. K. Santhanam; Director, Test Site Preparations.
- Dr. M.Vasudev; Range Safety Officer.
A total of five nuclear weapons were detonated at Pokhran during Operation Shakti. They are:
Shakti I
A two stage thermonuclear device with a boosted fission primary, its yield was downgraded from 200 KT(theoretical) to 45 KT for test purposes. The thermonuclear device tested at Pokhran was not an actual warhead. It was a device that was designed mainly to produce data to analyze the performance of India’s Hydrogen bomb technology for future computer simulations and actual weaponisation. Dr. K. Santhanam, has disputed the claimed yield of this test, by stating that the Hydrogen Bomb was a fizzle. This has lead to an uproar in Indian nuclear and defense circles with arguments and counterarguments in favor of a re-test series.
Shakti II
A pure fission device using the Plutonium implosion design with a yield of 15 KT. The device tested was an actual nuclear warhead that can be delivered by bombers or fighters and also mounted on a missile. The warhead was an improved, lightweight and miniaturized version of the device tested in 1974. Scientists at BARC had been working to improve the 1974 design for many years. Data from the 1974 test was used to carry out computer simulations using the indigenous Param supercomputer to improve the design. The 1998 test was intended to prove the validity of the improved designs.
Shakti III
An experimental boosted fission device that used reactor grade Plutonium for its primary with a yield of 0.3 KT. This test device was used to test only the primary stage. It did not contain any tritium required to boost the fission. This test was designed to study the possibility of using reactor grade plutonium in warheads and also to prove India’s expertise in controlling and damping a nuclear explosion in order to achieve a low (sub-kiloton) yield.
Shakti IV
A 0.5 KT experimental device. The test’s only purpose was to collect data about the explosion process and to study the performance of various bomb components.
Shakti V
A 0.2 KT experimental device that used U-233, an isotope of uranium not found in nature and produced in India’s fast breeder reactors that consume Thorium. This device too was used to collect data.
The Shakti I thermonuclear device being lowered into the test shaft
Production and Preparation of Devices
Three laboratories of the DRDO were involved in designing, testing and producing components like advanced detonators, the implosion systems, high-voltage trigger systems. They were also responsible for weaponization, systems engineering, aerodynamics, safety interlocks and flight trials. The nuclear devices were moved from their vaults at the BARC complex in the early hours of 1 May, around 3 a.m., by four Indian Army trucks under the command of Col. Umang Kapur. They were transported to Mumbai airport and flown at dawn in an Indian Air Force AN-32 transport plane to the Jaisalmer military base. An Army convoy of four trucks transported the explosive devices to Pokhran. Three trips were required to complete the delivery of the devices and associated equipment. The devices were delivered directly to the device preparation building in the range which was designated as the ‘Prayer Hall’.
Asian Development Bank September 2, 2009
Motto
Fighting poverty in Asia and the Pacific
Formation
December 19, 1966
Type
Regional organization
Legal status
Treaty
Purpose/focus
Crediting
Headquarters
Mandaluyong City, Metro Manila, Philippines
Region served
Asia-Pacific
Membership
48 countries
President
Haruhiko Kuroda
Main organ
Board of Directors[1]
Staff
2,500+
Website
http://www.adb.org
TERMS USED IN DIFFERENT GAMES & SPORTS August 28, 2009
- Badminton = Deuce ; Smash ; Drop ; Let ; Game ; Love ; Double Fault.
- Baseball = Pitcher ; Strike ; Diamond ; Bunting ; Home ; Put Out.
- Boat Race = Cox.
- Billiards = Jigger ; Break ; Scratch ; Cannons ; Pot ; Cue ; In Baulk ; In Off.
- Boating = Cox.
- Boxing = Jab ; Hook ; Punch ; Knock-out ; Upper cut ; Kidney Punch.
- Bridge = Revoke ; Ruff ; Dummy ; Little Slam ; Grand Slam ; Trump ; Diamonds ; Tricks .
- Chess = Gambit ; Checkmate ; Stalemate ; Check.
- Cricket = L.B.W ; Maiden over ; Rubber ; Stumped ; Ashes ; Hattrick ; Leg Bye ; Follow on ; Googly ; Gulley ; Silly Point ; Duck ; Run ; Drive ; No ball ; Cover point ; Leg Spinner ; Wicket Keeper ; Pitch ; Crease ; Bowling ; Leg-Break ; Hit-Wicket ; Bouncer ; Stone-Walling.
- Crocquet = Mallett ; Hoops.
- Football = Dribble ; Off-Side ; Penalty ; Throw-in ; Hat-Tick; Foul ; Touch ; Down ; Drop Kick ; Stopper ;
- Golf = Hole ; Bogey ; Put ; Stymie ; Caddie ; Tee ; Links ; Putting the green.
- Hockey = Bully ; Hat-Trick ; Short corner ; Stricks ; Striking Circle ; Penalty corner ; Under cutting ; Scoop ; Centre forward ; Carry ; Dribble ; Goal ; Carried.
- Horse Racing = Punter ; Jockey ; Place ; Win ; Protest.
- Kho-Kho = Runner ; Chaser ; Poleby ; Out ; Foul.
- Lawn Tennis = Volley ; Smash ; Service ; Back-hand-drive.
- Polo = Chukker ; Bunder ; Mallet.
- Rifle Shooting = Bull’s eyes.
- Rugby Football = Drop Kick ; Screen.
- Skiing = Toboggaining.
- Swimming = Stroke.
- Volleyball = Deuce ; Booster ; Spikers ; Service ; Love.
- Wrestling = Heave ; Half Nelson.
Land Acquisition Act 1894 August 27, 2009
This act which was enacted in 1894 is one of the remnants of the colonial legacy on independent India. Sure there have been amendments to the act but the character of the act still remains the same.
For those of us who are not aware of the exact contents of the act, I wish to briefly explain the act as I would to a layman. The act has various sections and without going deep into each section, I will try and simplify by going step wise.
The act is basically meant to acquire land for public purposes and for companies.
Step I
- appropriate govt makes a preliminary notification that land is required for public purpose or a company. This notice made under section 4(1) has to be published in official gazette and in two local news papers atleast one of them being in local language.
- Primary survey is then done to ascertain the suitability of land.
- Any interested party, meaning owner of land can within 30 days of publication of notice u/s 4(1) submit his objections to the collector who hears the objections and after making necessary enquiry submit his recommendations and report to the govt.
Step II
- The govt after considering the report of collector, the govt issues a declaration u/s 6(1) that the said land is required for public purpose or for a company. This declaration has to be made within one year of the notification u/s 4(1). This declaration is then published in official gazette and two local news papers.
- After this the collector initiates further action like measurement etc.
Step III
- Once this is done, collector acting under section 9 directs through a public notice that any claims for compensation of the land be made to him.
- These claims are heard and then collector gives his award for compensation u/s 11.
- award has to be made within 2 years from date of declaration u/s 6.
Step IV
- The collector can take possession of the land after the order is made.
Step V
- On making the award u/s 11, the collector then makes payment of the compensation awarded by him.
- In case amount is not paid or deposited in court as the case be before taking possession of the land, the collector has to pay an interest @9% per annum for the first year and @15%per annum subsequently.
- Any body who is not acceptable to the amount of compensation can through the collector appeal to the district court. The court can only decide on the amount of compensation and not any thing else. The court can also not decrease the compensation awarded by the collector.
- In addition to the above compensation courts should award a sum of 30% on the market value ascertained by it. Further courts shall also award a sum of 12% of market value for the intervening period from date of notification u/s 4 to the date of actual taking possession of land/or date of award whichever is earlier.
Now, some interesting issues in this act that are being pointed out by activists against the act are provided below.
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- The act says compensation is payable only to interested parties which means the person has is interested in an easement affecting the land. This means that the agricultural labourers who are also dependant on the land but have no rights cannot be compensated.
- assumes that money is an adequate means of compensation.
- There is no standard and well defined process of fixing compensation.
- In case where local bodies are the interested parties, they do not even have the right to go to court. They simply have to surrender and can only represent regarding compensation to the collector.
- Under urgency provisions u/s 17, collector can do away with most of the above procedures and take possession of land. But what constitutes urgency or essential requirement has nowhere been defined.
- 45 discusses how notice should be served. In case notice cannot be served on the person named, it has to be served on any other male member of the family. It is not lawful to serve the notice to a female member of the family.
- How can govt acquire forcibly land and hand over to a company whose sole interest is making profit.
- The rules and norms of market are not followed. Normally in market, land is traded for an amount mutually agreed to after negotiations.
- entire process is very slow and due to inordinate delays causes great hardships to the people involved.
- Compensation is not immediately paid to the evicted people resulting in great hardship to them.
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However it is equally true that sometimes house owners claim astronomical amounts as compensation while refusing to pay betterment charges.
Ashoka Chakra August 27, 2009
Ashoka Chakra – The Tale Of Twenty Four Spokes
The Ashoka Chakra means the ‘wheel of the law’. It is derived from the Sanskrit word Dharma Chakra, which means wheel. It has 24 spokes.
The most prominent Indian Mauryan emperor, called Ashoka the Great, built the Ashoka Chakra during the 3rd century BC. The Ashoka Chakra is inscribed widely among the Lion Capital of Sarnath and the Ashoka Pillar. The Ashoka Chakra is placed in the center of the National Flag of the Republic of India. It was adopted on 22 July, 1947. It is rendered in a navy blue colour on a white background. In order to add historical ‘depth’ and separate the National Flag from that of the Indian National Congress (INC) Gandhian spinning wheel is replaced with the Spokes of Ashoka Chakra in the center of the Flag.
Ashoka Chakra can also be seen on the base of Lion Capital of Ashoka which has been adopted as the National Emblem of India. The Chakra signifies that there is a life in ‘Movement‘ and ‘Death‘ in stagnation. The process of the wheel stands for cycle or the self repeating process with the changing of time in our life. The Horse on the Right hand symbolizing accuracy and speed. The Bull on the Left hand stands for hard work.
Wonderful Qualities of Twenty Four Spokes:
1. Love
2.Courage
3.Patience
4.Peacefulness
5.Magnanimity
6.Goodness
7.Faithfulness
8.Gentleness
9.Selflessness
10.Self-control
11.Self sacrifice
12.Truthfulness
13.Righteousness
14.Justice
15.Mercy
16.Gracefulness
17.Humility
18.Empathy
19.Sympathy
20.Spiritual knowledge
21.Moral Values
22.Spiritual Wisdom
23.The fear of God
24.Faith or Believe or Hope
Ashoka Chakra represent the 24 Hours of the nation. Thus it governs all.
