February 15. 2010

February 15, 2010

ü       Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday reviewed internal security in the wake of the Saturday’s blast in Pune. He directed the Union and Maharashtra governments to take coordinated and effective action to speedily investigate the attack.

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             Fourteen MLAs from the Telangana region handed over their resignation letters to Speaker N. Kiran Kumar Reddy here on Sunday on a call by the all-party Joint Action Committee (JAC) to protest against the terms of reference of the Srikrishna committee.

·         For a brief history of Telengana agitation, please read our article here.

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             Sixty persons were injured, one of them seriously, at a jallikattu(bull fight) organised in Idaiyathur village near Ponnamaravathy in Pudukottai district in Tamil Nadu on Sunday.

·         The Supreme Court had declined permission to hold Jallikattu in 2008 following a petition filed by Animal Welfare Board seeking a ban on the event

·         However, it was permitted by the apex court on certain conditions following the state government's plea in the face of protests against the ban.

·         The state Assembly passed legislation last year to regulate conduct of Jallikattu prescribing norms for holding such events and ensure the safety of animals, participants and spectators.

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               Preview to the budget (Defence)

·         With the country having embarked on a drive to modernise the armed forces, the allocation for Defence continues to be more.

·         It registered a 34 per cent hike in 2009-10, compared to previous financial year.

·         Of the Rs.1,41,703 crore allocated to the Defence Ministry, over Rs.54,000 crore was earmarked for capital acquisition and, considering the pace at which procurement orders were being processed, the government appears confident of spending the funds.

·         The defence market has grown in the last decade and the country is estimated to spend Rs.50, 000 crore each year over the next five years.

·         Post Mumbai terror attacks, the government put acquisitions by the Coast Guard on a fast track to increase its fleet of surveillance aircraft and helicopters, besides interceptor boats and advanced offshore patrol vessels with additional manpower to go with it.

·         The Army’s plan to modernise artillery appears to be back on track after the move to procure ultra-light howitzers, being pursued through foreign military sales.

·         Major achievements in 2009 included the launch of the first indigenously developed nuclear-powered submarine, INS Arihant, and the commissioning of INS Airavat, third Landing Ship Tank designed for amphibious operations.

·         For the Air Force, the induction of first of the three Airborne Warning and Control System was a development described as a force multiplier. Radars and Aerostat acquisitions came along, as did the modern business jets for ferrying VVIPs.

·         With the emphasis on greater indigenisation to alter the current 70 per cent dependence on imports, funds for research and development is expected to see a rise.

·         Overall, though it was a 34 per cent jump in defence allocation, in terms of percentage of gross domestic product, it has declined over the years — from hovering between 1.9 per cent (2007-08) to 2.42 per cent (2009-10).

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       The Osmania University campus and its environs witnessed renewed violence as students and police fought  pitched battles on Sunday night. Thirty persons, including 13 students, eight journalists, eight CRPF personnel and Additional Commissioner Krishna Raju were injured in repeated stone-pelting and lathi charge.

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       The carcass of a full-grown Royal Bengal tiger was found on a sand isle of the Brahmaputra to the north of the core area of the Kaziranga National Park (KNP) on Sunday.

·         Please do your bit to save our tigers. For more details, log onto http://saveourtigers.com immediately.

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              Octogenarian Tin Oo, now set free by Myanmar’s military rulers, will lead the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) as long as Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest. She has so far spent over 14 years in detention, either at her own residence in Yangon or in prison, during the past two decades.

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       Australia’s private education sector is receiving 50 per cent less enrolments from South Asian countries, particularly India, following the spate of attacks on Indian students here, industry officials have said.

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        The Central Statistical Organisation has forecast a GDP growth of 7.2 per cent in the current year (2009-10). The ‘advance estimate’ was released on February 8 and is the first stage in a long drawn out four stage process of officially estimating GDP and other national income data in the country.

·         Four sets of GDP figures are issued: advance estimate, updated advance estimate, quick estimate and revised estimate.

·         This year’s growth rate of 7.2 is higher than the 6.7 per cent for last year but below a few other official estimates for the current year.

·         The Reserve Bank of India in its recent third quarter review of the credit policy had estimated a growth rate of 7.5 per cent, sharply higher than its own earlier forecast of 6 per cent with an upward bias.

·         Earlier, the Mid-Year Economic Survey — a document of the Finance Ministry — had forecast a 7.75 per cent growth.

·         So the betting is on a strong showing in the fourth quarter.

·         In estimating a growth rate of 7.2 per cent for the year, the authorities are banking on a bountiful rabi harvest to substantially offset the fall in kharif production.

·         The economy grew by 9.5, 9.7 and 9.2 per cent, respectively, or at an average of nearly 9.5 per cent, in the three previous years leading to the last year.

·         The sharp drop in 2008-09 to 6.7 per cent has to be understood in the context of the global economic crisis.

·         The achievement of a 7.2 per cent growth rate would be particularly commendable at a time the global economy is climbing out of a deep recession.

·         Among the domestic factors, the economy has weathered one of the worst droughts in recent times.

·         Besides, delayed monsoons and floods in different parts of the country have left their mark on the farm sector.

·         In the event, the projected agricultural growth at a minus 0.2 per cent, though well below last year’s 1.6 per cent, is better than feared.

·         The marginal contraction in agriculture is estimated to come on top of a fall in the production of foodgrains and oilseeds by 8 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively, as compared to last year. That, of course, is one of the main factors behind the current spike in food inflation.

·         Economic growth during the year will be led by the strong performance of manufacturing which is expected to grow by 8.9 per cent, sharply higher than the 3.2 per cent in 2008-09.

·         Evidently, the negative factors — steep fall in domestic and global demand, high cost of raw materials — have not dragged down manufacturing and the other two sub-sectors under the broad classification of industry.

·         Mining and quarrying is expected to post 8.7 per cent growth (1.6 per cent last year) while electricity, gas and water supply is likely to grow by 8.2 per cent as compared to 3.9 per cent a year ago.

·         The services sector is expected to grow at a slower pace than the 9.8 per cent it clocked last year. Compared to last year, when it grew by nearly 14 per cent, the segment, “community, social and personal services” is estimated to grow at a slower but still impressive 8.2 per cent.

·         The strong economic growth may prompt the government and the RBI to plan for a calibrated and coordinated exit from the stimulus packages. For more information on GDP, please visit this link.