Current Affairs from The Hindu DATE: 30-03-16

S.NO. / NEWS ITEM / SYLLUBUS / ESSENCE OF THE ARTICLE
1. / Pakistan probe team visits Pathankot airbase (Page 12) / a) I.R / a) Pakistans Joint Investigation Team traversed nearly 100 km in the interiors of Pathankot district of Punjab on March 29, in a bid to collect evidence regarding the JeM terrorists who were killed at the Pathankot Air Force base after a fierce gun battle on January 2.
2. / India, EU to discuss sensitive bilateral issues in Brussels (Page14) / a) I.R / a) India and EU will seek to resume talks on the proposed free trade agreement at the Brussels Summit on March 30.
3. / Japan promised to hand over Andaman & Nicobar to India (Page 9) / a) I.R / a) Among the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose files released on March 29 is a speech delivered by Japanese PM Hideki Tojo during World War II, saying Japan supported Indian independence and would hand over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (then under Japanese occupation) to the Provisional Government of Free India (headed by Bose) soon.
4. / Reliance Defence in weapon systems JV with Israels Rafael (Page 16) / a) I.R
b) Economy / a) Anil Ambani-led Reliance Defence Ltd, and Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd of Israel agreed to partner to make weapons including air-to-air missiles, air defence systems and large aerostats.
5. / Indias case on its solar policy (Page 10) / a) International / a) The Centre is without doubt justified in saying it will contest the ruling in the World Trade Organisation against Indias policy of local sourcing of components as part of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission.
6. / Sri Lanka to go ahead with housing project (Page 14) / a) International / a) The Sri Lanka government has decided to go ahead with the plan to build 65,000 houses in the civil war-hit Northern and Eastern Provinces.
7. / 10 convicted, 3 acquitted in 2002-03 Mumbai blasts cases (Pages 1, 9) / a) National
b) Polity / a) A special Prevention of Terrorism Act court convicted 10 persons and acquitted three others in the case of triple blasts that occurred in the city between December 2002 and March 2003 claiming 12 lives.
8. / Haryana passes Jat quota Bill (Pages 1 and 12) / a) National
b) Polity / a) The Haryana Assembly passed the Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Bill 2016, to provide reservation for Jats and five other communities in government jobs and education.
9. / Towards military self-reliance (Page 10) / a) National / a) The Defence Procurement Policy 2016 made public this week is a step forward in increasing the participation of Indias private sector in military manufacturing.
10. / Centre gives nod for 100 percent FDI in e-commerce retail (Pages 1 and 12) / a) National
b) Economy / a) The govt allowed 100 percent FDI through the automatic route in the marketplace model of e-commerce retailing, bringing in long overdue clarity on FDI policy for the sector as well as definition of marketplace format.
S.NO. / NEWS ITEM / SYLLUBUS / BACKGROUND / IMPORTANT POINTS
1. / Pakistan probe team visits Pathankot airbase (Page 12) / a) I.R / a) India – Pakistan relations
b) Terrorism
c) Pathankot terror attack
d) Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM)
e) Joint Investigation Team (JIT)
f) National Investigation Agency (NIA) / a) Pakistans JIT traversed nearly 100 km in the interiors of Pathankot district of Punjab on March 29, in a bid to collect evidence regarding the JeM terrorists who were killed at the Pathankot Air Force base after a fierce gun battle on January 2.
b) A senior govt official claimed that the JIT was convinced with the kind of evidence presented before them regarding JeMs involvement in the attack. He said the field visit added further weight to Indias claims.
2. / India, EU to discuss sensitive bilateral issues in Brussels (Page 14) / a) I.R / a) India – EU relations
b) Free Trade Agreement (FTA)
c) Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA)
d) UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
e) EU-India Agenda for Action 2020 / a) India and EU will seek to resume talks on the proposed free trade agreement at the Brussels Summit on March 30. Talks on the Broadbased Trade and Investment Agreement have become a real casualty of the ongoing diplomatic tensions between the two sides.
b) The EU is Indias largest trading partner, with bilateral trade amounting to $126 billion. It is also the largest export destination for India, and a source of $69 billion in FDI.
c) The summit will also provide an opportunity for leaders to raise more sensitive bilateral issues such as the ongoing international arbitration under the UNCLOS in regard to the case of two Italian marines, as well as the case of fourteen Estonian and six UK Guards sentenced to prison by an Indian court.
d) In addition to the BTIA, the leaders are expected to endorse an EU-India Agenda for Action 2020, which will set strategic priorities for the next five years. Several of the expected joint declarations specifically address pet projects of the government of PM Modi.
e) There will also be a declaration on clean energy and climate. A Common Agenda on Migration and Mobility, addressing regular and irregular migration as well as trafficking, and a joint declaration on terrorism are expected to be adopted.
f) The counter-terrorism declaration was already on the cards prior to March 22 terror attack in Brussels, but has come into sharp focus since then.
3. / Japan promised to hand over Andaman & Nicobar to India (Page 9) / a) I.R / a) India – Japan relations
b) Provisional Government of Free India
c) World War II
d) Andaman and Nicobar Islands / a) Among the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose files released on March 29 is a speech delivered by Japanese PM Hideki Tojo during World War II, saying Japan supported Indian independence and would hand over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (then under Japanese occupation) to the Provisional Government of Free India (headed by Bose) soon.
b) He said that the Indian fellow people have laid the foundation of the Provisional Government of Free India and under this govt are rising for achieving their purposes with one consent, I would like to make it known the decision to return soon the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
4. / Reliance Defence in weapon systems JV with Israels Rafael (Page 16) / a) I.R
b) Economy / a) India – Israel relations
b) Defence ties
c) Python missile
d) Derby missile
e) Barak missiles / a) Anil Ambani-led Reliance Defence Ltd, and Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Ltd of Israel agreed to partner to make weapons including air-to-air missiles, air defence systems and large aerostats. The Indian joint venture expects to oversee projects worth $10 billion in ten years.
b) The new venture will be located at Dhirubhai Ambani Land Systems Park at Indore in Madhya Pradesh and will generate more than 3000 highly skilled jobs.
c) Rafael has products like Python and Derby among air-to-air missiles, the Spyder range in air defence systems and the Barak family of surface-to-air missiles in the short and medium-range. Rafael has already provided large aerostat systems to the Indian Air Force for meeting its surveillance, reconnaissance, communication and intelligence needs.
5. / Indias case on its solar policy (Page 10) / a) International / a) Indias solar dispute with US
b) WTO
c) General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
d) Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission
e) Make in India imitative / a) The Centre is without doubt justified in saying it will contest the ruling in the WTO against Indias policy of local sourcing of components as part of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission.
b) The US had taken to WTO its case against Indias policy of favouring domestic inputs in solar cells and solar modules, arguing that it amounted to a discriminatory trade practice and distorted the game.
c) The verdict (which came last month) is a setback for Indias Solar Mission, seen as the bedrock of efforts aimed at ensuring energy security and meeting countrys commitment to the collective global plan to limit global warming. In fact, over the last year India has scaled up its solar power ambitions, with the Modi govt increasing fivefold the target set in 2009 to 100,000 MW.
d) The WTO ruling obviously threatens the financial viability of the plan. India did offer to modify its stand on the issue, and agreed to apply domestic content requirement only for buying solar panels used for govt sector consumption. It even assured Washington that power generated from such subsidised panels would not be sold for commercial use.
e) However, the US did not agree. The challenge before the govt is to sort out trade practice concerns in a manner that keeps the Solar Mission firmly on track. How it resolves the issue will have repercussions not only on the countrys green energy aspirations, but also on its capacity to negotiate sectoral roadblocks to its global-level Make in India lobbying.
f) As countries across the world race to take steps to limit climate change, concerns like these will test international organisations and rule-making to work out solutions that do not obstruct these efforts. The world indeed requires a spirit of accommodative co-existence for the larger global good.
6. / Sri Lanka to go ahead with housing project (Page 14) / a) International / a) Sri Lankas housing project / a) The Sri Lanka government has decided to go ahead with the plan to build 65,000 houses in the civil war-hit Northern and Eastern Provinces.
b) This year, 11,000 houses had been planned with 18,000 houses annually for the next three years.
c) On issues such as durability and servicing of houses, the Minister said the executing agency of the project (ArcelorMittal Construction, France) would open an office in Jaffna to address the issues.
7. / 10 convicted, 3 acquitted in 2002-03 Mumbai blasts cases (Pages 1 and 9) / a) National
b) Polity / a) Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA)
b) Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI)
c) Indian Penal Code (IPC)
d) Indian Railways Act
e) Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act
f) Arms Act
g) Explosive Substances Act / a) A special Prevention of Terrorism Act court convicted 10 persons and acquitted three others in the case of triple blasts that occurred in the city between December 2002 and March 2003 claiming 12 lives.
b) Saquib Nachan (former general secretary of the banned SIMI), who planted the bombs, and Muzammil Ansari have been convicted, along with eight others. SIMI suspects Nadeem Paloba, Haroon Rashid, and Adnan Mulla were acquitted.
c) All 13 accused have been charged with murder, attempt to murder, causing grievous injuries, waging a war against the nation and criminal conspiracy and arms possession.
d) They were booked under the Indian Penal Code, the Indian Railways Act, the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, the Arms Act, the Explosive Substances Act and the POTA.
8. / Haryana passes Jat quota Bill (Pages 1 and 12) / a) National
b) Polity / a) Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Bill 2016
b) Jats / a) The Haryana Assembly passed the Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Bill 2016, to provide reservation for Jats and five other communities in govt jobs and education.
b) CM Manohar Lal Khattar introduced the Bill to give statutory status to Backward Classes Block A, Backward Classes Block B and Backward Classes Block C.
c) The Bill proposed to give reservation to Jats and five other castes (Jat Sikhs, Rors, Bishnois, Tyagis and Mulla Jat/Muslim Jat) by constituting a new classification Block C in the Backward Classes category.
d) A government release said the Bill provides for an increase in the percentage of reservation in the Schedule I, II and III for Class I and II posts for BC A, BC B and BC C from 10 per cent, five percent and five per cent to 11 percent, six percent and six percent respectively.
e) It was also decided to increase the existing reservation for the economically backward persons in the general caste category in Class I and II posts from five to seven percent.
f) The Bill states that notwithstanding anything contained in it, the govt may provide horizontal reservation for such category or categories of persons within the Backward Classes, as it may deem necessary from time to time.
9. / Towards military self-reliance (Page 10) / a) National / a) Defence Procurement Policy (DPP) 2016
b) Indigenous Designed Developed and Manufactured (IDDM)
c) Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
d) Make in India initiative / a) The Defence Procurement Policy 2016 made public this week is a step forward in increasing the participation of Indias private sector in military manufacturing. It replaces the last DPP unveiled in 2013, and has several recommendations for improving indigenous procurement.
b) The DPP (the governing manual for all defence procurement) was part of a set of military reforms undertaken to address many deficiencies noticed during the 1999 Kargil war. Since the first one in 2002, the DPP has been revised periodically.
c) The new policy places the highest preference to a newly incorporated procurement class called Buy Indian-IDDM. This category refers to procurement from an Indian vendor, products that are indigenously designed, developed and manufactured with a minimum of 40 percent local content, or products having 60 percent indigenous content if not designed and developed within the country.
d) The policy lays stress on MSMEs and on Make in India. A 10 percent weightage has been introduced for superior technology, instead of selecting the lowest bidder only in financial terms.
e) However, DPP 2016 falls far short of the expectations raised by Modi govts ambitious Make in India push that aims to transform the country into a global manufacturing hub. India is the worlds largest importer of defence equipment, and indigenising production is key to such a plan.
f) The inability of the Centre to finalise a credible policy to radically increase indigenous military manufacturing is a sure sign that India will remain heavily dependent on defence imports. Given the countrys robust financial growth, one of its greatest leveraging points is annual spend on procurement.
g) India has all the necessary prerequisites for a robust military-industrial complex: a diverse private sector, a large base of engineering institutes, and a growing defence budget. The fact that India faces a combination of security threats from both state and non-state actors is an obvious reason why it needs to be self-reliant in military equipment.
10. / Centre gives nod for 100 percent FDI in e-commerce retail (Pages 1 and 12) / a) National
b) Economy / a) Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
b) Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) / a) The govt allowed 100 percent FDI through automatic route in the marketplace model of e-commerce retailing, bringing in long overdue clarity on FDI policy for the sector as well as definition of marketplace format.
b) As per the guidelines issued by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion on FDI in e-commerce, foreign direct investment has not been permitted in inventory-based model.
c) At present, 100 percent FDI is permitted in B2B (business-to-business) transactions under the automatic route.
d) DIPP said that the e-commerce marketplace may provide support services to sellers in warehousing, and logistics, order fulfilment, call centre, payment collection and other services.

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