Centre clears road project in Arunachal Pradesh

It is the country’s longest road project under PMGSY

Ø The Centre has cleared the 157 km Miao-Vijaynagar road project that will connect the remote Vijaynagar circle in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh along the India-Myanmar border, 100 km of it passing through the Namdapha National Park.

Ø Touted to be the longest road project under the Prime Minister’s Gram Sadak Yojana, it will have altogether 25 bridges along its stretch.

Ø At present, there is no road to this border area with 13 recognised villages and one unrecognised settlement. For over 5,000 people of these villages, the only alternative to air transport is a six-day walk from Vijaynagar to the nearest town Miao through the dense jungles of Namdapha. There is no electricity in Vijaynagar.

Ø The Miao-Vijaynagar road was motorable till 1976 and has fallen into disrepair since then. The project, estimated to cost about Rs. 160 crore, is targeted to be completed in four years. When completed, it will directly link the Advanced Landing Ground of Vijaynagar, considered to be one of the toughest ALGs in the country at an altitude of 4,200 feet, and also an Assam Rifles post that was opened in 1962 in this remote and strategic frontier.

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

‘Iran-Pakistan pipeline unviable’

Ø The report by Sustainable Policy Development Institute (SDPI), titled “Rethinking Pakistan’s Energy Equation: Iran-Pakistan Gas Pipeline”, indicated that since the price of the gas purchased under the Iran-Pakistan pipeline project is linked to crude oil prices, it is unfortunate that the country blatantly ignored the energy dynamics and its pricing while going for this deal.

Ø  The Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project is not the panacea for Pakistan’s energy problem, but more of a bailout plan. The country will have to look at creative options that are not limited to unconventional and alternate energy sources. Almost 50 per cent energy needs are met through natural gas.

Ø According to the 2013 agreement with Iran, Pakistan will import an amount of one billion cubic feet a day (BCFD). This would last for 20 years with an option to extend it for another five years. Iran has already constructed more than 900 km (out of 1100 km) of the pipeline on its territory at a cost of $700 million. The  country had not taken any substantial step to initiate the process of tapping the country’s shale gas potential except developing a framework.

Ø The agreement with Iran stipulates construction of Pakistan’s side of the pipeline by December 2014. If Pakistan fails to meet this deadline it will be liable to pay heavy daily penalties, which can run into a million dollars per day.

Dubai airport, set to be world’s largest, opened to passengers

Ø The Gulf emirate of Dubai on Sunday (27 October 2013)  opened passenger operations at its second airport, Al-Maktoum International, touted to be the world’s largest once it is completed.

ECONOMY

The tortuous road to new bank licences

Ø The process for issuing new bank licences is gathering pace. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan has said that a few licences will be issued by January 2014.

Ø  A committee headed by former RBI Governor Bimal Jalan is set to  vet the 26 eligible applications, after the RBI has scrutinised them initially.

Ø Stringent norms

Ø The applicants, drawn from the public and private sectors, had to meet the RBI’s stringent norms for setting up new banks.

Ø These, as set out in the RBI’s notification of February 22, include a minimum capital of Rs.500 crore and have sound credentials and financial track record of 10 years. Foreign capital will be allowed to an extent of not more than 49 per cent.

Ø Controversial issues

Ø A very large number of respondents to RBI’s discussion paper were not in favour of awarding licences to big business houses.

Ø However, such policy issues have been decided. A few large industrial houses will be given permission to start banks. Amidst the riveting interest on the subject, two related developments merit attention.

Ø Role for foreign banks

Ø Dr. Raghuram Rajan  hinted  at a larger role for foreign banks in India. In a speech in the U.S. he had said that foreign banks will be allowed in India, provided they incorporate themselves under Indian laws. Equally importantly, their governments must follow the principle of reciprocity, meaning that they must allow Indian banks to open branches there. Further, these banks will be allowed to buy a few local banks.

TNPSC GROUP-1 OCT 2013 ,MAINS GS PAPER-3

TNPSC GROUP-1 OCT 2013 MAINS GS PAPER 2

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TNPSC GROUP-1 OCT-2013 MAINS, GENERAL STUDIES QUESTION PAPER-1

Friends I will take short break till 28th October 2013.

Will update my blog from 29 October 2013.

Science and Tech

Dazzling comet ISON ‘may be dying’

One of the brightest comets of the century may actually be disintegrating. Astronomer Ignacio Ferrin, from FACom, Universidad de Antioquia after analysis, has identified clear signatures of its “impending demise”. “The light curve of the comet exhibited a slowdown event characterised by a constant brightness with no indication of a brightness increase tendency,” Mr. Ferrin said, adding that it began in January this year and continued up to the latest available observations at the end of September. The brightness remaining practically constant for nine months is a behaviour without any precedent in cometary Astronomy. These have led him to conclude that it is probably that the “comet is dying”. 

PERSONS IN NEWS

Japan’s Prime Minister              : Shinzo Abe          

Pakistan’s Army Chief                : General Ashfaq parvez Kayani

Argentina’s President                 : Cristina Fernandez

Libya’s Prime Minister               : Ali Zeidan

Science and Tech

MOM ( MARS ORBITER MISSION ) SET TO LAUNCH ON 28 OCTOBER    2013

Ø MOM is set to launch from Satish Dhawan Space Center at Srharikota on 28 October 2013.

Ø MOM has 5 ISRO instruments which is devised to study the Atmosphere, Surface and Chemicals of Mars,just 372 km from the red planet’s surface.

Ø It is expected to reach the Martian zone in mid-september 2014 and it will orbit it for at-least 6 months.

Ø Il will be launched from the launcher PSLV-C25( Extended XL version of PSLV)

Science and Tech

Science and Tech

Water vapour in stratosphere plays role in climate

Ø Water vapour changes in the stratosphere contribute to warmer temperatures and likely play an important role in the evolution of Earth’s climate.

Ø Stratosphere water vapour is a greenhouse gas.

Biological link between diabetes and heart disease

Ø A biological pathway is activated when blood sugar level are abnormally high and causes irregular heart beats, a condition known as cardiac arrhythmia that is linked with  heart failure and sudden cardiac death.

PERSONS IN NEWS

Italian Prime Minister                : Encirco Letta

Malaysia’s Prime Minister        : Najib Razak

Philippine President                   : Benigno Aquino III

Israel Prime Minister                  : Benjamin Netanyahu