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(Current Affairs For SSC Exams) International India and World |January 2015

India & the world

January -2015

U.S. looks forward to working with new Sri Lankan President

The U.S. looks forward to working with Sri Lankan president-elect Maithripala Sirisena, Secretary of State John Kerry said, as he commended outgoing President Mahinda Rajapaksa for accepting the election results.
“I look forward to working with President-elect Maithripala Sirisena as his new government works to implement its campaign platform of a Sri Lanka that is peaceful, inclusive, democratic, and prosperous,” Mr. Kerry said in a statement soon after Mr. Rajapaksa conceded defeat.
“I commend President Rajapaksa for accepting the results of the election in the proud tradition of peaceful and orderly transfers of power in Sri Lanka. His words about accepting the verdict of the people and moving forward are important,” Mr. Kerry said.
Mr. Rajapaksa had called the election two years ahead of schedule, hoping to win a record third six-year term before the defeat of the Tamil Tigers fades in the memory of the people of the island which saw a three decades war over the demand of a separate Tamil Eelam.
There was an unusual high voter turn-out for the elections held. “The Sri Lankan people deserve great credit on the successful conclusion of their elections. They turned out in great numbers to exercise their democratic rights and every vote was a victory for Sri Lanka,” Mr. Kerry said.
“The United States applauds the Sri Lankan Elections Commissioner, the security forces, Sri Lankan civil society, and the candidates themselves for making sure this election was not marred by unrest and for ensuring a significant drop in campaign-related violence. It will be important for that effort to continue in the coming days,” he added.

South Africa & India discuss UNSC reforms

Engaging in diplomacy on the sidelines of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) event, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had substantive meetings with Donald Ramotar, President of Guyana; Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, South Africa; and Showkutally Soodhun, Vice Prime Minister Mauritius.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is set to visit South Africa in the first quarter of this year to pursue opportunities for economic ties particularly in infrastructure and mining.
India and South Africa discussed the need for UN Security Council reforms especially when 2015 marks the 70th anniversary of the international body, Syed Akbaruddin, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs told a press conference.
In his discussion with Mr. Ramotar, Mr. Modi assured a line of credit worth $ 60 million to Guyana for two road and ocean ferry projects in the Caribbean country.
The Centre also decided to include Guyana in the list of countries whose citizens will get a visa-on-arrival facility. The facility of Electronic Travel Authorization (e-Visa) has also been introduced to save time.
A deeper engagement with Mauritius is also on the cards with the country inviting Mr. Modi to pay a visit on March 12. Mr. Modi took a tour of ‘Dandi Kutir’ – a conical three-storey museum dedicated to Gandhiji – constructed in Gandhinagar. Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel said it was the biggest exhibition in Asia.
At the occasion, two stamps of Rs. 25 and Rs. 5 and two coins of Rs. 100 and Rs. 10 denominations were released in the memory of Gandhiji. This years PBD will honour 16 NRIs with ‘Samman Awards’. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who is among those awarded this year, will not attending the awards function.

John Kerry heads for India to attend ‘Vibrant Gujarat Summit’

US Secretary of State John Kerry headed for India to attend the Vibrant Gujarat Summit during which he will address investors to boost economic ties and meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss a broad range of bilateral and global issues, including climate change.
“The Secretary would be emphasising the importance and future potential of our economic partnership with India, State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki told.
“Obviously the discussion would be on everything from continuing to do more economically and technologically, given that United States and India, we believe, can reach greater level of prosperity together than we would achieve alone,” she said.
The three-day Vibrant Gujarat Summit will begin tomorrow in Ahmedabad. “He would also be reiterating throughout the trip, our shared commitment to address the challenge of climate change, promoting clean energy in the future. Prime Minister Modi has a strong track record in this regard,” she said, adding that the Obama administration sees this trip as a pivotal point in India-US relationship.
After a brief stopover in Munich to meet the Sultan of Oman, Kerry leading a high-level US delegation is scheduled to arrive in Ahmedabad. Soon after his arrival, he is expected to visit the Gandhi Ashram, meet members of the civil society and visit the Ford plant, which is expected to open shortly. He would address the Vibrant Gujarat Summit and hold a round table with top Indian CEOs.
Kerry is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Modi and hold another round-table with American CEOs participating in the summit.
Referring to the multi-fold increase in bilateral trade in the last 10 years, which stands now at about USD 100 billion, Psaki said the summit is an opportunity to further the goal that US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Modi have talked about in terms of increasing trade five-fold to USD 500 billion.

Sri Lanka’s new government to probe Rajapaksa’s ‘coup’ bid

Sri Lanka's new government accused former President Mahinda Rajapaksa of having tried to stage a military coup to remain in power following presidential polls, which saw his chief rival and former minister Maithripala Sirisena elected president.
Mangala Samaraweera, a top aide of President Sirisena, told reporters that the coup was averted because the army chief “did not want to do anything against democracy at that decisive time.”
This, he said, was despite orders from Mr. Rajapaksa and his brother Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, then the defence secretary to deploy troops to centres where the votes were being counted late on January 8.
The new cabinet, to be sworn in soon, would initiate an investigation into the pre-dawn “conspiracy” as one of its first tasks, he added. The allegations come just days after sections hailed Mr. Rajapaksa for “stepping down gracefully” and ensuring a smooth transition of power .
“The truth is it was not a smooth transition of power,” said Mr. Samaraweera, who earlier served as Foreign Minister and is tipped to be a key member of President Sirisena’s cabinet.
When contacted, Army commander Lieutenant General Daya Ratnayake told: “I have not seen those allegations yet, so I cannot respond.” Referring to earlier concerns over the army being deployed in the north and east to allegedly disrupt elections, he said: “You saw that there was no such incident. The transition was very smooth,” he said.
On whether Mr. Rajapaksa or his brother gave him orders to stage a coup, General Ratnayake said: “I can’t comment on that, it is very sensitive. You have to check with the politicians.” However, should the government initiate an enquiry, the army would cooperate in the process, he said.

Taiwan confirmed the H5N8 strain of bird flu

Taiwan’s agriculture authority confirmed that the strain of bird flu found in a goose breeding facility in the Chiayi County was the H5N8, which is not considered to be highly pathogenic.
This follows the discovery of the highly pathogenic H5N2 strain of the bird flu virus at a chicken farm in the southern Taiwanese county of Pingtung.
Agriculture council chief, Chen Bao-ji, said that this was the first time that the H5N8 strain has been detected in Taiwan, adding that it was suspected to have been spread by migratory birds, according to a Xinhua report.
The Chiayi County government began culling more than 1,500 geese at the farm on Sunday and a ban on the movement of poultry in Pingtung, Tainan and Yunlin counties was imposed.
The culling of 120,000 chickens on a farm in Pingtung was completed after poultry was found to be infected with the H5N2 strain. Avian influenza, known informally as avian flu or bird flu, refers to influenza caused by viruses adapted to birds.
It has caused a global concern because of its possible transmission to humans and the threat of a pandemic if it mutates to a form that can be easily passed from birds to humans and then, from human to human.

Emerging economies must help combat climate change: U.N. Chief

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that while respecting the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, emerging economies such as India, China, South Africa and Brazil should take necessary action to combat climate change.
Interacting with presspersons after visiting a canal-top solar power project, he said the developed countries had caused much more impact on climate than the developing nations and they had different capacities to tackle impacts.
India was taking necessary action by projects such as the canal-top power project, a creative and impressive one which all developing countries should emulate.
To questions, he said climate finance was the most important aspect to make combating climate change a success. India could play a vital role as one of the fastest growing economies.
He was catalysing funds into the Green Climate Fund, which had topped $10 billion last year. He was optimistic about arriving at a new, robust climate treaty in Paris.

India must help foster peace in the region says U.N. Secretary

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on India to play a leadership role in ensuring peace in the region. He was speaking at the Sapru House-UN Lecture: India and the United Nations in a Changing World.
Calling on Indian leaders to take up a proactive role in helping the region, including Pakistan and Afghanistan that are rocked by violence, to stabilise, the UN Secretary General said, “The world is looking to India to help advance peace, prosperity and security in the region… As the world’s largest democracy India has an important role.”
He added that India, as well as other countries in the region, need to take a stand on nuclear disarmament as the growing stockpile of nuclear weapons in the region is a cause for concern, even as other nuclear states have announced limitations and end to production of nuclear materials.
“It is urgent in our era of rising terrorism,” he said. Further, he added that the fruits of development need to reach all groups in India.
India has lifted millions out of poverty but it must do more, he said, adding that the other facets of development, such as discrimination against minority groups, such as religious as well as gender, need to be ensured in the country.
“Education is key,” he said, adding that schools have to foster equality and harmony and “shouldn’t be a battleground of divisive ideologies.”
On sustainable development, too, Ban said India has a huge role to play. While lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for ‘Make in India’, he said, “I want to add two words to it. Make it green in India.”
“Climate action can power growth, increase energy security, deliver better health and many others,” he said. “Challenges here mirror global challenges – poverty, gender inequality, discrimination, environmental degradation.”

Hopes to start uranium exports to India in 2 years: Rio Tinto

Australian diversified mining giant Rio Tinto group expects to start shipping the nuclear fuel (uranium) to India in another year or two.
"The memorandum of understanding for civil nuclear co-operation was signed last year but there is still work that needs to be done on certain safeguards about the end use of the uranium.
It is an elaborate process and though both sides are committed, I think it will take another year or two before we start exporting uranium to India," said Sam Walsh, group Chief Executive Officer, Rio Tinto.
He said that the group has expressed interest in bidding for coal blocks during discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Commercial mining of coal is still some way off, but we are open to opportunities," he added. The group currently has a two-way trade with India of about $2 billion.
Rio Tinto is still awaiting environment clearances for its $2 billion iron ore project in Odisha and $500 million diamond mining project in Madhya Pradesh. “The Madhya Pradesh project is an important one.
It has the potential to create 30,000 jobs. We hope that approvals for this and the Odisha iron ore project will come through soon," said Walsh. He added that over the three meeting with Modi in the last six months, the issue of pending approvals has been raised by Rio Tinto.

India-U.S. to jointly fight cancer & Ebola

India and the United States are expected to sign memoranda of understanding on cancer research and Ebola control when U.S. President Barack Obama arrives later this month.
Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare J.P. Nadda said the two countries had agreed to jointly fight Ebola. Under the agreement, Indian health care personnel will be trained in Ebola control and treatment procedures.
“The Indian Council of Medical Research is already working on producing a vaccine for Ebola. But this MoU will focus on capacity building in areas of Ebola control,” a senior official of the Ministry said.
Though India has had no reported cases of Ebola, the disease has so far claimed over 7,000 lives in the affected countries. A 26 year-old, who had travelled from Liberia to India and was found carrying the virus in his semen, remains in isolation.
Another MoU is to be signed between the National Cancer Institute, U.S., and the upcoming National Cancer Institute in Jhajjar, for sharing of treatment plans, expertise and research.
The NCI in the United States coordinates the National Cancer Programme, which conducts and supports research, training, health information dissemination, and other programmes with respect to the cause, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of cancer, rehabilitation and the continuing care of cancer patients and their families.
At the institute in Jhajjar being developed by the AIIMS, cancer research will be the area of focus apart from patient care and management. India reports 11 lakh new cases of cancer every year, with a mortality rate of 5.5 lakh per year.
Cancer treatment facilities in India are inadequate, compared to WHO standards, which requires one radiotherapy machine per million population. India at present has 0.41 machine per million population.

Leading U.K. papers reproduce “survivors’ issue” cover

Newsrooms in publications across the United Kingdom saw fierce debates over whether to reproduce the cover of the latest issue of Charlie Hebdo — the “survivors’ issue” as it has been called — which went into a record 5 million print run on January 14.
The latest issue of the satirical magazine carries a cartoon of Prophet Muhammad on its cover that is a tearful and forgiving depiction of the founder of Islam.
While some publications have opted to publish the page in their regular reportage on developments around the weekly magazine — that lost six of its editorial leadership and three others to terrorist bullets last week — others have declined to do so.
The Guardian; Times; Independent; Financial Times and the BBC have published the cartoon, as have major websites like Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and the news sites of Yahoo and Google.
The magazine — sold out in France, and selling at astronomical prices on ebay — will be available in Britain at select outlets. Bookshops and magazine distributers are cagey about the number of copies that they are likely to receive.
The Muslim Council of Britain has responded to the publication with restraint. A statement signed by 53 imams of mosques from across Britain, said that although most Muslims will be “hurt, offended and upset” by the re-publication of the cartoon, the “best and immediate” response is to emulate the “enduring patience, tolerance, gentleness and mercy as was the character of our beloved Prophet.”

Japan approves its largest defence budget

Japan approved its largest-ever defence budget for the next fiscal year, as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe looks to strengthen surveillance of territorial waters in the face of a continuing spat with China.
For the year to March 2016, Tokyo will spend 4.98 trillion yen ($41.97 billion), the government said, rising for the third straight year.
“This is the largest budget ever,” said a defence ministry official, adding the highest allocation previously was 4.96 trillion yen earmarked in 2002.
The trend reflects Mr. Abe’s wish to build a more active military, with an eye on a possible escalation of tensions with China.

Global economy to expand by 3% in 2015

Noting that the global economy is still struggling to gain momentum while many developing economies are less dynamic than they were in the past, the World Bank has projected that it would expand by three per cent this year.
The global economy grew by an estimated 2.6 per cent in 2014, and is projected to expand by 3.3 per cent in 2016 and 3.2 per cent in 2017, the bank said in a report.
Developing countries grew by 4.4 per cent in 2014 and are expected to edge up to 4.8 per cent in 2015, strengthening to 5.3 and 5.4 per cent in 2016 and 2017, respectively, it said.
Following another disappointing year in 2014, developing countries should see an uptick in growth this year, boosted in part by soft oil prices, a stronger US economy, continued low global interest rates, and receding domestic headwinds in several large emerging markets, it added.
“In this uncertain economic environment, developing countries need to judiciously deploy their resources to support social programmes with a laser–like focus on the poor, and undertake structural reforms that invest in people,” said World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.
“It’s also critical for countries to remove any unnecessary roadblocks for private sector investment. The private sector is by far the greatest source of jobs and it can lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty,” he added.
Underneath the fragile global recovery lie increasingly divergent trends with significant implications for global growth, the World Bank report said.
Activity in the United States and the United Kingdom is gathering momentum as labour markets heal and monetary policy remains extremely accommodative. But recovery has been sputtering in the Euro area and Japan as legacies of the financial crisis linger.
The oil price collapse will result in winners and losers. “Worryingly, the stalled recovery in some high–income economies and even some middle–income countries may be a symptom of deeper structural malaise,” said Kaushik Basu, World Bank Chief Economist and Senior Vice President.
“As population growth has slowed in many countries, the pool of younger workers is smaller, putting strains on productivity. But there are some silver linings behind the clouds.
The lower oil price, which is expected to persist through 2015, is lowering inflation worldwide and is likely to delay interest rate hikes in rich countries,” he said.
“This creates a window of opportunity for oil–importing countries, such as China and India. What is critical is for nations to use this window to usher in fiscal and structural reforms, which can boost long–run growth and inclusive development,” Mr. Basu said.

U.S. think tank flags readiness of Pak nuclear weapons

Evidence has emerged this week suggesting that Pakistan may have accelerated its covert nuclear weapons development programme and rendered operational a nuclear reactor structure located near a heavy water reactor, in a complex that is likely geared toward the production of plutonium.
High-resolution satellite imagery dated January 15, 2015, shows that external construction of the Khushab complex’s fourth reactor is complete and it has “become operational.”
If, as the evidence suggests, Pakistan is accelerating its nuclear weapons programme, it may heighten tensions with New Delhi, where the subject is likely to come up when Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets U.S.

President Barack Obama during Republic Day celebrations next week.

In a report that included the satellite photographs by Digital Globe, Washington think-tank Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) said that the assessment of reactor completeness and operation was “based on the presence of a very specific signature: steam is venting from the reactor’s cooling system.”
The Khushab reactor complex was originally constructed and became operational in the 1990s, at that time comprising primarily of a heavy water production plant and an estimated 50 megawatt-thermal (MWth) heavy water reactor.
Following the nuclear tests in India and Pakistan in 1998, Islamabad initiated the construction of a second heavy water reactor between the year 2000 and 2002, ISIS notes, a third one in 2006, and a fourth one in 2011.
ISIS, which has closely tracked the progress on the construction of the reactor complex, noted that a January 2011 image showed the building, similar in layout to the second and third reactors at the same site, early in its construction but by April 2011, the frame of the reactor building and the main reactor hall were visible.

PIA closure will snap vital link between India, Pakistan

Official Pakistani sources said they were worried that the Enforcement Directorate notice to the Pakistan International Airlines on its offices in Delhi, had political overtones.
The move, they feared, would “cut off a vital link between both countries.” PIA runs the only flights between India and Pakistan, with two flights a week on the Delhi-Lahore sector and once a week on the Mumbai-Karachi sector.
Pakistani officials insisted that the PIA service to India which started in 1976, would not be cancelled, despite all the problems. However, one official said
there were apprehensions that the action came after Foreign Secretary talks were cancelled last July, and indicated other actions could follow “causing a further rift in ties.”

Ordinance makes ‘gender-neutral’ restrooms compulsory

West Hollywood has joined the vanguard of places that are taking steps to make transgender people feel more welcome. Last week, an ordinance took effect that abolished the traditional designation of “men” or “women” on single-stall public restrooms, a bow to the requests of the sizable community of transgender people, who do not believe they fall into either category.
Restaurants and other places with public restrooms will not have to make any changes if the bathrooms have multiple stalls, but all single-stall public restrooms have to be labelled “gender neutral”; businesses have 60 days to comply, but can do so by simply placing a gender-neutral sign on any single-stall restroom.
This sweep of legislation reflects the growing prominence and visibility of transgender people. Amazon Studios’ streaming show Transparent has received widespread critical acclaim, and the lead actor, Jeffrey Tambor, won a Golden Globe last Sunday for his performance as a man who identifies as a woman.

Germany eager to join ‘Make in India’ initiative

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble expressed interest in working with India in the manufacturing sector, especially in the auto and solar energy industries, at a meeting with business lobby Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) .The German minister is scheduled to hold talks with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley .
Dr. Schäuble’s positive note on German manufacturing industry’s readiness to participate in the ‘Make in India’ policy comes close on the heels of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry’s voicing of the Obama administration’s worries over the initiative.
Mr. Modi is scheduled to jointly inaugurate the Hannover trade fair along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel during his visit to Germany in April 2015.

India is world’s second most trusting nation: survey

Moving up the ranks, India has emerged as the second most trusted country in the world in terms of faith reposed on its institutions even as globally trust levels have fallen, says a survey.
As the world’s rich and powerful gather in the Swiss resort of Davos, a study by public relations firm Edelman has found that general level of trust in institutions among college-educated people around the globe are at levels not seen since 2009 in many of the markets it surveyed.
Trust in institutions in India has improved sharply in 2015 with the country moving up three notches to the second place among 27 nations.
While the number of “truster” countries are at an all-time low of six in 2015 including UAE, India, China and Netherlands, the number of “distruster” countries has grown significantly to 13 including Japan, Russia, Hong Kong, South Africa and Italy.
Brazil, Malaysia, France and the US are among the 8 “neutral” nations as per the trust index, the survey said.
India, which last year saw the BJP-led NDA government storming to power at the Centre, stands tall.
According to the report, an “alarming evaporation of trust” has happened across all institutions, reaching the lows of the Great Recession in 2009.
Trust in government, business, media and NGOs in the general population is below 50 per cent in two-thirds of countries, including the U.S., U.K. and Germany, it said.
From fifth most trusted in 2014, India has now become the second-most trusted in 2015 with a score of 79 per cent in the barometer. The study has put India Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s image on the first page.

Cuba, U.S. open historic talks

The United States and Cuba opened two days of historic talks in Havana to end decades of Cold War-era animosity and re-establish diplomatic relations.
The meetings in Havana follow the historic decision by U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban leader Raul Castro in December to seek normal diplomatic relations.
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Alex Lee and Cuban Foreign Ministry official Josefina Vidal sat down for the first day of closed-door talks.
Their opening remarks were not broadcast.
The reopening of mutual embassies, closed since relations broke in 1961, will be at the centre of Thursday’s talks, which will be led on the U.S. side by Roberta Jacobson, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs.

Kerry issued summons in rights group move against RSS

A U.S. court has issued summons to Secretary of State John Kerry calling for his response within 60 days to a lawsuit demanding that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) be designated a “foreign terrorist organisation.”
Judge Laura Swain of the District Court of the Southern District of New York said in her summons that Mr. Kerry was required to answer the “declaratory lawsuit” filed by Sikhs for Justice, a human rights group that had earlier filed a case against Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleging culpability for his role in the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat, which occurred when Mr. Modi was the Chief Minister.
This week’s lawsuit, which acquires significance in the context of U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to India over the weekend to join its Republic Day celebrations, called for the Foreign Terrorist Organisation tag for the RSS “for believing in and practicing a fascist ideology and for running a passionate, vicious and violent campaign to turn India into a ‘Hindu’ nation with a homogeneous religious and cultural identity.”
In its 26-page complaint, SFJ alleged that the “crimes of the RSS” included the targeting of religious minorities of India, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians, citing incidents of violence against these groups in Gujarat, Punjab and Orissa, respectively.

Salman is new ruler of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s elderly King Abdullah died and was replaced by his half-brother Salman as the absolute ruler of the world’s top oil exporter and the spiritual home of Islam.
Global leaders paid tribute to the late monarch, a cautious reformer who led his kingdom through a turbulent decade in a region shaken by the Arab Spring uprisings and Islamic extremism.
Another of the late monarch’s half-brothers, Moqren, was named the new crown prince.
In his first public statement as the new ruler, the 79-year-old King Salman vowed to maintain a steady course for the conservative kingdom.

Thai ex-Premier Yingluck impeached

Thailand’s junta-stacked Parliament voted to impeach the former Premier, Yingluck Shinawatra, hours after prosecutors announced plans to indict her for corruption in a double blow that risks reigniting the country’s bitter divisions.
The successful impeachment of Ms. Yingluck, the kingdom’s first woman Premier and the sister of former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, carries an automatic five-year ban from politics while the criminal charges could eventually see her jailed for up to a decade.
Experts say the impeachment and criminal charges are the latest attempt by the country’s royalist elite, and its army backers, to nullify the political influence of the Shinawatras, whose parties have won every election since 2001.
But the junta’s pursuit of the family could also disturb the uneasy calm that has descended on Thailand since the military took over.
Consensus on implementing 13th amendment: Ranil
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe said political parties have agreed to implement the thirteenth amendment as a solution to end the country’s over three-decade-old ethnic conflict involving the Tamil minority..

Power to Councils

He further said that all Provincial Councils will have equal powers now that the Tamil National Alliance has said that they are for a solution within an undivided Sri Lanka.
Provincial Councils became part of the Sri Lankan statute as a direct result of the landmark 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka accord, popularly known as the Rajiv-Jayawardane Accord, after its architects — Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Lankan President J. R. Jayewardene.
Mr. Wickramasinghe also blamed the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa for failing to resolve the thorny issues concerning the Tamil minority despite having ended the two-and-a-half decade-old civil war with the LTTE in 2009.
On the U.N.’s human rights investigation on Sri Lanka, Mr. Wickramasinghe said it was the result of Mr. Rajapaksa’s mishandling of the issue.
Vision statement on Asia-Pacific, Indian Ocean
After meeting for close to five hours, including an extended lunch, tea on the Hyderabad House lawns, and delegation level talks, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama issued three separate documents: a declaration of friendship with a commitment to regular summits, a joint statement called “Shared Effort, Progress for all”, and a joint strategic vision statement for the Asia-Pacific and the Indian ocean region.
The last document could raise eyebrows in China, when External Affairs minister Sushma Swaraj visits Beijing next week, as it elaborates on the clauses in their previous joint statement for the disputed maritime region, and says, “We affirm the importance of safeguarding maritime security and ensuring freedom of navigation and over flight throughout the region, especially in the South China Sea.
Conspicuous by its absence was mention of “cross-border” terrorism or India’s issues with Pakistan, although the two sides repeated their September commitment to “disrupt” terror groups including Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e- Mohammad, D Company and the Haqqani Network.
Colombia’s Paulina is Miss Universe
Colombia’s Paulina Vega was crowned Miss Universe , beating out contenders from the United States, Ukraine, Jamaica and the Netherlands among the top-five at the world’s top beauty pageant in Florida.
The 22-year-old model and business student triumphed over 87 other women from around the world, becoming only the second beauty queen from her nation to take home the prize.
The last time Colombia won the crown was in 1958, when Luz Marina Zuluaga took the title.
A beaming and tearful Vega, wearing a long silver-sequinned gown, accepted her sash and crown from the reigning Miss Universe, Gabriela Isler, from Venezuela.
She hugged first runner-up, Nia Sanchez, from the United States as the win was announced.
London-born Vega dedicated her title to Colombia and to all her supporters.

Church of England: first woman Bishop consecrated

The Church of England ended centuries of male-only leadership as Reverend Libby Lane became its first woman bishop in a ceremony briefly disrupted by a traditionalist priest’s protest.
Around 100 bishops gathered around the 48-year-old to perform the traditional “laying on of hands” at the ceremony’s climax in the Gothic splendour of York Minster, northern England.
The congregation of some 2,000 people broke into applause and cheers and some shed tears. Highlighting the divisions which dog the Church despite a painstaking reconciliation process, a lone conservative opposed to women as bishops had earlier disrupted the ceremony.
WikiLeaks accuses Google of handing over e-mails to U.S.
Whistleblower site WikiLeaks accused Google of handing over the e-mails and electronic data of its senior staff to the U.S. authorities without providing notification until almost three years later.
Google was apparently acting in response to warrants issued by the U.S. Department of Justice, which is investigating WikiLeaks for publishing hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic files.
WikiLeaks said that Google could and should have resisted complying with the warrants, as well as immediately informing those whose data it handed over.
The information was handed over to the U.S. authorities on April 5, 2012, but Google did not inform the WikiLeaks staff until December 23, 2014, according to documents obtained by AFP.

Ajmer, Allahabad can turn into religious tourism hubs

The decision to set up task forces to push plans for the three smart cities was taken at a meeting between Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu and visiting U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker.
India and the U.S. had signed three memoranda of understanding (MoUs) for developing Ajmer, Allahabad and Visakhapatnam.
Mr. Naidu said Ajmer and Allahabad were chosen because they were centres of religious significance and drew tourists in large numbers.
Visakhapatnam was picked because being a coastal city it had the potential to develop into a tourist destination.
The Minister said Andhra Pradesh (after the bifurcation) was trying to develop itself, and the government was keen to offer aid and logistical support to it.
Each of the three task forces would formulate concrete action plans in the next three months.
Each team would have three representatives each from the Centre and respective State governments and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA). These task forces would discuss city-specific features, requirements of the project and how to raise funds.

Impeached Sri Lankan Chief Justice reinstated

Sri Lanka’s new President restored the country’s former Chief Justice after she was controversially impeached by the previous administration led by Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Lawyers welcomed Shirani Bandaranayake with bouquets of flowers at the Supreme Court in Colombo, although the decision to reinstate her will likely be largely ceremonial as she is expected to step down on Thursday.
A government official who asked not to be named said President Maithripala Sirisena had written to Ms. Bandaranayake to say her 2013 impeachment was unconstitutional and she should return to work.

Annual abortion rate doubles in Pak.

Pakistan recorded 2.25 million abortion cases in 2012, with the rate of annual abortions doubling in 10 years due to minimal use of contraception in its conservative society, according to a report.
The report titled ‘Induced Abortions and Unintended Pregnancies in Pakistan’ was carried out by Population Council in collaboration with Guttmacher Institute in U.S.

New China-Myanmar oil pipeline bypasses Malacca trap

China has taken a firm step to beef up its energy security by inaugurating a pipeline that will bring crude oil from a deep water port in Myanmar, along a transit route that will bypass the strategic Malacca Straits.
The first tanker that will offload 300,000 tons of oil is expected to arrive on Friday at Maday Island – a deep water port developed by China in the Bay of Bengal. From there, oil, mostly brought from West Asia and Africa, will be pumped into a 2402 km long pipeline that will stretch for 771 km in Myanmar and another 1631 km in China.
A gas pipeline, next to the Maday Island terminal, already runs from Myanmar’s port of Kyaukpyu. China also finalised plans to establish a rail corridor from Kyaukpyu to its Yunnan province.
The strategic oil pipeline will service China’s two major growth centres — Kunming and Chongqing, an industrial hub along the Yangtze River delta. Both cities are pivotal in the development of China’s Silk Road Economic Belt, the 21st century Maritime Silk Road. Kunming is one of the starting points of the Maritime Silk Road, because it connects with three countries belonging to the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) — Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos. Landlocked Laos in turn becomes the gateway to ports in Thailand, and a wider transportation network covering Malaysia and Singapore as well.
Significantly, the new oil pipeline bypasses the Malacca Straits — a narrow channel that connects the Indian Ocean with the Pacific. The Chinese are concerned that their access to the Malacca Straits — the main channel of their trade and energy supplies — can become compromised on account of Beijing’s growing rivalry with the United States, and maritime disputes with neighbours in the South China Sea.
As oil begins to flow, the Chinese are also building a refinery in Kunming that can process 10 million tons of crude annually.
Part of the shipments received will also be delivered to Myanmar, says the country’s Vice-President U Nyan Tun. China and Myanmar have jointly funded the project, including the construction of the Maday oil unloading terminal.
Analysts say that apart from enhancing energy security, the construction of an oil and gas pipeline from Myanmar is driven by environmental considerations, as China works to limit carbon emissions resulting from its over-dependence on coal.