Current Affairs - 8 December 2014

India's GSAT-16 launched

• India’s communications satellite GSAT-16 was on Sunday, put on a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) by the European launcher Ariane 5 VA221, from the Kourou space port in French Guiana. Bad weather had delayed the flight by two days.
  GSAT-16's 48 transponders - 12 in the C band, 12 in the extended C and 24 in the Ku band - cover the entire country and the Andaman & Nicobar islands.
  The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) briefly said the 3,181 kg GSAT-16 was put in orbit.
  It was delivered on an Ariane 5 rocket along with US broadcast satellite DIRECTV-14, launch company Arianespace said.
  GSAT-16 will be used by television, telephone, Internet, public and private operators. It replaces the INSAT-3E — which expired in April this year — at 55 degrees East longitude.
  The cost of the satellite, built by ISRO in Bengaluru, and Arianespace's launch fee are put at around Rs. 880 crore.
  ISRO last launched a communication satellite in January this year.
  The satellite now goes around Earth in a temporary elliptical one about 36,000 km at one end and it must be adjusted gradually into a circular one.

India does not support an ex-ante review INDCs

• Lima: With the two-week annual climate summit here reaching its half-way mark, India on Sunday said that it does not support an ex-ante review of its intended nationally determined contributions as it is an issue of sovereignty. 
  One major issue to be resolved is the structure of countries' intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs), which are their domestic plans of action to combat climate change. The text of the elements to go into the INDCs is under discussion as India and other developing countries are negotiating for more of an adaptation focus, including solid financial commitments, and technology sharing points. 
  Susheel Kumar, additional secretary in the ministry of environment who is the interim head of the Indian delegation, said the report on India's INDCs is set to be submitted to the UN in June 2015 but the timeline for all countries has not yet been discussed. Questions of a review process for these INDCs is a sticking point to be worked out in the negotiations. Kumar said India does not support an ex-ante (before the event) review of its INDC because it is an issue of sovereignty. 
  The EU and South Africa are among parties who support implementing some sort of review mechanism into the 2015 Paris agreement. They have demanded that the actions submitted by nations under the 2015 agreement be reviewed for their adequacy and equity-based burden-sharing; and if need be, reviewed to meet the requirements of keeping global temperatures under check. Regarding the status of the talks at the end of this week, Kumar said, "It's a work in progress." 

Indian Navy the First to Respond in Maldivian Crisis

• The island nation of Maldives is facing a national contingency that occurred due to fire on 04 Dec 14 in its desalination plant. This plant produces drinking water for Male. Responding to Maldives’ urgent request for assistance, INS Sukanya, on patrol off Kochi, was diverted pronto to arrive Male PM 05 Dec 14. The ship carried 35 tonne of fresh water and has the capability to produce 20 tonnes of water every day. The ship has already transferred approximately 65 tons of fresh water till this evening. 
  Additionally INS Deepak, a large fleet tanker with 900 tonnes of water was also sailed from Mumbai and has reached Male this evening (07 Dec 14). Indian Navy warships have the capability to produce drinking water using their desalination plants (INS Deepak is capable of producing 100 Tons water every day).. The IN ships will continue to produce and supply potable water to Male even whilst at anchor. The responsiveness, unique capabilities, flexibility and versatility of warships in meeting various contingencies has yet again been demonstrated. 

Saudi Arabia opposes gender equality in climate change policy

• The Saudi Arabia delegation made a strong pitch to exclude the recognition of gender equality in the recommendations for the draft agreement for Paris in 2015 which is under discussion in Lima. A delegate who was part of the meeting of the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI), on Saturday said that it was only Mexico which fought till the end to retain gender as being paramount in the implementation of climate change policy.
  The SBI is one of the two permanent subsidiary bodies to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and provides recommendations for the Conference of Parties through assessment and review of the effective implementation of the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol.
  The delegate said that earlier the gender aspect was woven into the entire text but now a compromised language has been formulated and gender is only in the preamble. One country has bullied the rest of the world and it even got support from the European Union (EU), the delegate pointed out. Saudi Arabia was against any language on gender equality and incorporating gender in climate change policies.

Pluto-bound spacecraft ends hibernation to start mission

• After nine years and a journey of 4.8 billion km, NASA's New Horizons robotic probe awoke from hibernation on Saturday to begin an unprecedented mission to study the icy dwarf planet Pluto and sibling worlds in its Kuiper Belt home.
  A pre-set alarm clock roused New Horizons from its electronic slumber at 3 p.m. EST (2000 GMT), though ground control teams didn't receive confirmation until just after 9:30 p.m. (0230 GMT on Sunday).
  New Horizons is now so far away that radio signals travelling at the speed of light take four hours and 25 minutes to reach Earth.
  The scientific observation of Pluto, its entourage of moons and other bodies in the solar system's frozen backyard begins January 15, program managers said. The closest approach is expected on July 14.

First week of UNEP talks ends on optimism in Lima

• As the first week of the U.N. climate talks draws to a close, the initial despair has turned to optimism, but there is still a long way to go in terms of finalising key elements for contributions from countries or a draft agreement for Lima.
  While the text of the key elements of the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) and the draft for a Paris agreement are under discussion, developing countries are opposing the mitigation-centric approach of the developed world.
  India and other countries are saying that National contributions cannot be mitigation-centric and have to include finance, technology and adaptation aspects. India is also opposed to an external mechanism to review targets it sets under the INDC. The tussle will spill over to the ministerial or high level segment next week. The timeframe of these pledges each country makes is also crucial and has not been debated.
  There is controversy over a proposed review mechanism to determine if all pledges by countries were enough to ward off the devastating impacts of a warming world.

India, Russia to hold talks on FGFA aircraft project

• NEW DELHI: Ahead of President Vladimir Putin's visit here, Indian and Russian officials will be holding talks on the multi-billion dollar fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) joint project. 
  Defence sources said talks would be held before Putin's visit on December 10 as both India and Russia are keen to go ahead with the FGFA. 
  However, there are issues on which both sides have not arrived at a consensus. 
  "There are issues that exist. Talks were held earlier too but nothing concrete has emerged so far," the sources said, adding another round of talks will be held on December 9. 
  The preliminary design agreement on FGFA had been signed in 2010 between HAL and Russian Sukhoi Design Bureau to build the jet for use by both countries. 
  But the final R&D contract, which was to be signed by 2012, is still to be finalized. The contract would pave the way for prototype development and flight testing. 

Most CMs favour restructuring of Planning Commission

• A meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the future of the Planning Commission on Sunday saw most Chief Ministers favouring restructuring of the body but there was no consensus on disbanding the existing set-up.
  Mr. Modi, who has announced in his Independent Day speech that the Planning Commission would be replaced by a new body which is in sync with the contemporary economic world, invoked former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who had said on April 30, 2014 that the current structure has “no futuristic vision in the post-reform period“.
  Mr. Modi pushed for an effective structure which strengthens “co-operative federalism” and the concept of ‘Team India’.
  Indications from the day-long meeting suggested that the government is looking at a structure which will have the Prime Minister, some Cabinet Ministers and some Chief Ministers along with technocrats and experts in various fields.
  The Chief Ministers could be included in the body on rotation basis and the States could be given liberty to spend funds according to their needs..

In world first -convert sunlight to electricity with over 40 percent efficiency

• UNSW Australia's solar researchers have converted over 40% of the sunlight hitting a solar system into electricity, the highest efficiency ever reported.
  The record efficiency was achieved in outdoor tests in Sydney, before being independently confirmed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at their outdoor test facility in the United States.
  The work was funded by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and supported by the Australia-US Institute for Advanced Photovoltaics (AUSIAPV).
  "This is the highest efficiency ever reported for sunlight conversion into electricity," UNSW Scientia Professor and Director of the Advanced Centre for Advanced Photovoltaics (ACAP) Professor Martin Green said.
  "We used commercial solar cells, but in a new way, so these efficiency improvements are readily accessible to the solar industry," added Dr Mark Keevers, the UNSW solar scientist who managed the project.
  The 40% efficiency milestone is the latest in a long line of achievements by UNSW solar researchers spanning four decades. These include the first photovoltaic system to convert sunlight to electricity with over 20% efficiency in 1989, with the new result doubling this performance.
  "The new results are based on the use of focused sunlight, and are particularly relevant to photovoltaic power towers being developed in Australia," Professor Green said.

Black money: Come with proof, Switzerland tells India

• As India continues its pursuit of black money allegedly stashed abroad, Switzerland has said it would not entertain any 'fishing expedition' and authorities cannot ask for names of all Indian account holders in Swiss banks without doing their own independent investigations.
  Switzerland's Ambassador to India Linus von Castelmur also said the past cannot be undone, while promising full support of his country in cases where at least some proof is provided on tax frauds.
  He, however, agreed that all the money deposited in Swiss banks might not have always been 'taxed money' in the past, as Switzerland was a major destination for several decades when money would flow in from different sources.
  The Ambassador said cooperation by Swiss authorities cannot take place on the basis of stolen lists of account holders and would need independent probes by Indian agencies and at least a prima facie proof of tax frauds.
  "We understand and appreciate India's concerns on the matter. We need clear understanding on the issue," Castelmur told PTI in an interview.
  "I think one part of the issue is dealing with the past and Switzerland was destination for several decades where money flowed in from difference sources and that was no always a tax money," he said.

FAMOUS HISTORICAL MONUMENTS OF INDIA

• FAMOUS HISTORICAL MONUMENTS OF INDIA: General Awareness Part has a special importance in bank competitive exams. Recruitment board main intention behind this is testing the candidate’s knowledge and interest to know the ongoing things in present world as this is very important quality everyone should have. Mostly Bank Exam General Awareness Paper covers the topics from Banking Awareness Part and current affairs part. 80% of this section will contain questions from these parts and rest 20% contains questions from traditional general awareness part. In our observation we found that 1 or 2 questions from famous historical monuments of India are regularly seen in General Awareness section.
  Monuments of National Importance is made by the Archaeological Survey of India and this includes following. These are desgined based on the ancient monuments of India, The Land on which there is no fences or protective covering structures for preserving the monument, land on which there is no fences or protective covering structures for preserving the monument and finally this is also designated by the lands by means which people can freely access the monument.
  Go with the list of Monuments which we presented here. Read it twice of thrice to remember and save the list in your materials file to check in future during revising.
  

  Ajanta- Ellora Caves (Aurangabad,Maharashtra) : Gupta rulers

  Swarna Mandir (Golden Temple) (Amritsar,Punjab) : Guru Ramdas

  Tajmahal (Agra,UP) : Shahjahan

  Akbar’s Mausoleum (Sikandra,UP) : Akbar

  Bibi Ka Maqbara (Aurangabad,Maharashtra) : Aurangzeb

  Aram Bagh (Agra,UP) : Babur

  Agra Fort (Agra,UP) : Akbar
  
  Jama masjid (Delhi) : Shahjahan
  
  CharMinar (Hyderabad,Andhra Pradesh) : Quli Qutub Shah

  Deewan-e- Khas (Agra Fort,UP) : Shahjahan

  Itmad-ud-daula Fort (Agra,UP) : Noorjahan

  Moti Masjid (Delhi Fort) : Aurangzeb

  Sun Temple (Kornak,Odisha) : Narsimhadeva I

  Hawa Mahal (Jaipur,Rajasthan) : Maharaja Pratap Singh

  Humayun’s Tomb (Delhi) : Humayun’s wife

  Jama Masjid (Agra,UP) : Shahjahan

  Jagannath Temple (Puri,Odisha) : Anantvarman Ganga

  Jantar-Mantar (Delhi) : Sawai Jai Singh

  Moti Masjid (Agra Fort,UP) : Shahjahan

  Qutub Minar (Delhi) : Qutubuddin Aibak

  Gateway of India (Mumbai,Maharashtra) : British Govt.

  Elephanta’s cave (Mumbai,Maharashtra) : Rashtrakuta rulers

  Fatehpur Sikri (Agra,UP) : Akbar ??

  Ferozshah Kotla (Delhi) : Ferozshan Tughlaq

  Jim Corbett Park (Nainital,Uttarakhand) : Sir Malcom Hailley

  Jodhpur Fort (Jodhpur,Rajasthan) : Rao Jodhaji

  Makka Masjid (Hyderabad,Andhra Pradesh) : Quli Qutub Shah

  Red Fort (Delhi) : Shahjahan

  Sabarmati Ashram (Ahmadabad,Gujarat) : Mahatma Gandhi

  Shantiniketan (West Bengal) : Rabindra Nath Tagore
  
  
  Shish Mahal (Agra,UP) : Shahjahan
  
  

  Shalimar Garden (Srinagar,J & K) : Jahangir
  
  

  Vellure Math (Kolkata,West Bengal) : Swami Vivekanand