June 2017 Harf Facts - Final

Raj Malhotra’s IAS Study Group 

June, 2017 | Hard Facts | Volume 6 / 17 

Hard Facts 

With the civil services examination over, we understand 

the anxiety amongst many of you regarding your 

performance would have increased. But now is the time 

when past should be left in the past. Start preparing for the 

mains examinations. Many of you would be in a dilemma 

as to what would be the cut-off, and if you would make 

that cut-off or not. 

Content 

Polity & Governance 

… Pg. 2 

International Relations 

…Pg. 6 

We believe that whatever the result, you should start 

preparing for the mains examinations. Time is of the 

essence. The earlier you start, the farther you will be from 

your competition. In assisting you with your preparation 

we are proud to present the new Edition of the Hard Facts 

Magazine for the Current Affairs of the Month of June 2017 

Security 

Economy 

Social Issues 

…Pg. 11 

…Pg.15 

…Pg. 19 

We sincerely hope that this consolidation of resources 

would benefit you all who hail from the elementary to the 

professional level of training at this stage and bring parity 

in your preparation by insinuating a spirit of confidence 

and dedication towards this expedition of unpredictability. 

Environment & Ecology 

…Pg. 21 

Science & Tech 

Art & Culture 

…Pg. 25 

…Pg. 29 

Wishing you all the best, 

Capt. Munish Kishore 

1 | P a g e # 1 1 1 0 , A d j a c e n t Y M C A , S e c t o r 1 1 - C , C h a n d i g a r h P h : 9 8 1 4 7 - 1 1 6 6 1


Indian Polity & Governance 

India’s biggest municipal bonds programme launched in Maharashtra 

To finance its 24x7 water supply project, the Pune 

Municipal Corporation launched India’s biggest 

municipal bonds programme.The project looks to raise 

Rs 2,264 crore in five years. Pune’s bond programme is 

the first since the publication of the Issue and Listing of 

Debt Securities by Municipalities Regulations, 2015, by 

the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). In its 

first part, the corporation raised Rs200 crore through 

the Bombay Stock Exchange’s bond trading platform at a 

coupon rate (a fixed security amount) of 7.59% for 10 years. The issue received a good response with bonds 

being over-subscribed by six times. 

Municipal bonds are debt instruments through which a corporation or municipality raises money from 

individuals or institutions. The civic body floating the bonds returns the principal amount on a maturity date 

with a specific amount of interest. There are usually two kinds of bonds – general bonds, where money is raised 

without mentioning the cause in particular, and revenue bonds, where funds are raised for income-generating 

projects and revenue from the projects is used to repay the buyers. 

Quality of life in 116 major cities to be assessed; City Liveability Index launched 

Ministry of Urban Development launched the ‘City Liveability Index’ for 

measuring the quality of life in 116 major cities including smart cities, 

capital cities and cities with a population of above one million each. The 

Index, a Common Minimum Reference Framework to enable the cities 

know where they stand in terms of quality of life and the interventions 

required to improve the same was today launched by the Minister of 

Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu here today at a National Workshop on Urban Transformation. 

Stating that cities are now moving on a well thought out course of infrastructure development under new urban 

missions launched during the last three years, Shri Naidu said “Time has now come to measure life quality in 

cities and rank them accordingly”. In a first of its kind Index to be introduced in the country, cities will be 

assessed on a comprehensive set of 79 paratmeters to capture the extent and quality of infrastructure including 

availability of roads, education and health care, mobility, employment opportunities, emergency response, 

grievance redressal, pollution, availability of open and green spaces, cultural and entertainment opportunities 

etc. After selecting the agency for undertaking this assessment next month, data collection will be completed in 

the next about six months. The Ministry of Urban Development disbursed Rs.500 cr as incentive to 16 States 

that performed well in implementing urban reforms during 2016-17. Progress in respect of reforms like e- 

governance, Audit of accounts, Tax revision policies and extent of tax revenue collection, Energy and Water 



Audit, Establishing State Level Financial Intermediaries for resource mobilization, Credit Rating etc., was taken 

into account. 

Andhra Pradesh topped the list scoring 96.06% marks. Others who received the incentive fund in order of merit 

were; Odisha (95.38%), Jharkhand (91.98%), Chattisgarh (91.37%), Madhya Pradesh (90.20%), Telangana 

(86.92%), Rajasthan (84.62%), Punjab (77.02%), Kerala (75.73%), Goa (75.38*), Mizoram (75.00%), Gujarat 

(73.80%), Chandigarh (72.73%), Uttar Pradesh (70.67%) and Maharashtra (70.52).Marks scored by these States 

was considered for deciding the quantum of incentive with high scorers getting more. 

K. Kasturirangan to head panel on National Education Policy 

The committee for preparation of final draft of National 

Education Policy has been constituted under the 

chairmanship of eminent scientist Padma Vibhushan Dr K. 

Kasturirangan. The Kasturirangan committee will supersede 

the Subramanian committee. The Subramanian committee 

had advocated a new civil service cadre for the education 

sector, abolition of the University Grants Commission, 

continuation of a no-detention policy till Class V, and the 

teaching of English at the primary school level. The 

Kasturirangan committee has been mandated to make Indian education contemporary, improve its quality, and 

internationalize it. It could also provide a roadmap for the entry of foreign universities into India. The ministry 

said the new committee would take into account the ground work done over last 30 months and inputs received 

from the Subramanian committee and start work with “immediate effect.” 

Government launches VAJRA scheme to attract Indian scientists abroad 

In a bid to bring together Indian scientists abroad and India-based researchers for conducting joint research in 

India, the Department of Science and Technology on Thursday launched a scheme named “Visiting Advanced 

Joint Research Faculty (VAJRA)”. Launching the web portal, Minister of Science and Technology Harsh Vardhan 

said the initiative would boost research and lead to newer, cutting-edge technologies, which India needed. 

“Under this scheme, scientists or senior researchers abroad, of Indian origin or otherwise, can collaborate with 

faculties here. Prime Minister during the 14thPravasiBharatiya Divas Convention at Bengaluru on 8th January 

2017 had announced the launching of VAJRA (Visiting Advanced Joint Research) Faculty scheme by the 

Department of Science and Technology which enables NRIs and overseas scientific community to participate and 

contribute to research and development in India. The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), a 

Statutory body of the Department will implement the Scheme. 

VAJRA faculty will undertake research in S&T priority areas of nation wherein the capability and capacity are 

needed to be developed. The VAJRA faculty will engage in collaborative research in public funded institutions. 

The residency period of the VAJRA Faculty in India would be for a minimum of 1 month and a maximum of 3 

months a year. The VAJRA Faculty is provided a lump-sum amount of US$ 15000 in the first month of residency 

in a year and US$ 10000 p.m. in the other two months to cover their travel and honorarium. While no separate 

support is provided for e.g. accommodation, medical / personal insurance etc. the host institute may consider 

providing additional support. The Indian collaborator and the overseas faculty will jointly frame a research plan 

and the application duly endorsed by the Head of the Institution will be submitted online by the Indian 

collaborator. A Selection Committee of eminent scientists will evaluate the applications. The Committee will 



meet twice a year in January and July and make recommendations. SERB will announce the results in the month 

of April and September. 

Public funded academic institutions and national laboratories are eligible to host the VAJRA Faculty. These 

institutions should appoint them as Adjunct / Visiting Faculty and involve them in co-guiding and mentoring of 

students and developing collaborative programs. The Faculty can also be allowed to participate in other 

academic activities as agreed to by the host institution and the Faculty. 

Union Government launches new training programme COMMIT for State Government 

officials 

The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region 

(I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & 

Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh launched 

a new training programme Comprehensive Online Modified 

Modules on Induction Training (COMMIT) for State Government 

officials, here today. The objective of this training programme is 

to improve the public service delivery mechanism and provide 

citizen centric administration through capacity building of 

officials who interact with the citizens on day-to-day basis. 

Dr. Jitendra Singh said that the new training programme will supplement the earlier training programme and the 

advantage of COMMIT is that it is cost effective and has the potential to cover about 3.3 lakh officials annually, 

compared to 10,000 officials under existing 12-Day Induction Training Programme (ITP). The Minister said that 

citizens can be easily accessible when we go digital. He said that to achieve maximum Governance, it is 

necessary to equip the officials with the best possible tools to perform best to their ability. COMMIT will be 

launched in 6 States of Assam, Haryana, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal initially on pilot 

basis during the current financial year 2017-18 and within next year it is expected to cover all India level. He said 

that the COMMIT has been designed in such a way that it allows to translate the content in local/regional 

languages. 

The COMMIT programme, developed by DoPT in collaboration with United Nations Development Programme 

(UNDP), will supplement the existing 12-Day ITP launched in 2014-15 for newly recruited state Government 

officials to develop in them Generic & Domain specific competencies. The programme will cover approximately 

74,000 State Government officials in the financial year 2017-18. It will be of 28 hours duration which will include 

e-Modules for 20 hours and face-to-face training for 8 hours. The 20 hours e-training would be imparted 

through specifically developed 12 Generic and 3 Domain specific e-Modules. The modules on soft skills will be 

delivered as e-Modules & through face-to-face training and the domain modules will be covered through e- 

Modules only. The programme will be implemented through State Administrative Training Institutes (ATIs). 

SATH program launched by NITI Aayog 

Furthering the agenda for cooperative federalism, NITI Aayog has launched SATH, a 

program providing ‘Sustainable Action for Transforming Human capital’ with the 

State Governments. The vision of the program is to initiate transformation in the 

education and health sectors. The program addresses the need expressed by many 

states for technical support from NITI . SATH aims to identify and build three future 



‘role model’ states for health systems. NITI will work in close collaboration with their state machinery to design 

a robust roadmap of intervention, develop a program governance structure, set up monitoring and tracking 

mechanisms, hand-hold state institutions through the execution stage and provide support on a range of 

institutional measures to achieve the end objectives. The program will be implemented by NITI along with 

McKinsey & Company and IPE Global consortium, who were selected through a competitive bidding process. To 

select the three model states, NITI defined a three-stage process – expression of interest, presentations by the 

states and assessment of commitment to health sector reforms. NITI invited all states and UTs to participate in 

the program. Sixteen states expressed prima facie interest, of which fourteen made their presentations. Andhra 

Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, 

Punjab, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh presented their project proposal to a Committee headed by Member of 

NITI Aayog, Shri Bibek Debroy and comprising of CEO, Amitabh Kant as well as a representative from the 

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. 

Of these fourteen states, five have been shortlisted. Subsequently, three will be selected on the basis of further 

evaluations and objective assessment of criteria affecting the potential for impact and likelihood of success. 

Metrics such as MMR, IMR, incidence of malaria and others have been considered for determining potential 

impact while density of doctors and nurses, compliance to IPHS norms are some of the metrics used to 

determine likelihood of success. The program will be launched in the three selected states after the signing of 

MoUs. 

Odisha to have first automatic coastal warning for disasters in India 

Odisha can warn the vast population residing along its 480 

km-long coast by pressing a single button from a control 

room in the State capital in the event of the occurrence of 

natural disasters like a tsunami or a cyclone.The State 

government is all set to commission the ambitious Early 

Warning Dissemination System (EWDS) that would enable 

loud sirens go off simultaneously from towers at 122 

locations by July. Odisha is the first State in India to have 

developed an automatic public address system that can be 

activated along its entire coast. Neighbouring Andhra Pradesh is also building up such capability to face natural 

calamities.“The sound emanating from the towers can be heard in localities up to a radius of 1.5 km. As many as 

122 alert towers have already been constructed. The project is nearing completion. It will be commissioned in 

July,” said Pradipta Mohapatra, Managing Director of the Odisha State Disaster Management Authority 

(OSDMA) on Thursday. 

The 122 locations include tourist destinations, fish landing centres and coastal habitations.The new system will 

also enable authorities to alert people in smaller pockets, depending on the severity of the disaster. At present, 

the meteorological prediction has improved considerably and authorities handling disasters are able to know 

the intensity of cyclones two to three days in advance. But what would happen if the tsunami alert is to be 

disseminated in the dead of the night? Then the siren alert system would come handy. The protocol, which will 

be developed in due course of time, will help people understand the gravity of situation depending on the 

number of sirens that would go off from towers.The EWDS comprises of technologies like Satellite-Based Mobile 

Data Voice Terminals (SBMDVT), Digital Mobile Radio (DMR), Mass Messaging System (MMS) and Universal 

Communication Interface (UCI) for inter-operability among different communication technologies.The project, 

which is being implemented with assistance from the World Bank, will have towers in 22 blocks under six coastal 



districts such as Balasore, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Puri and Ganjam at an estimated cost of 82 

crore. 

Narendra Modi US visit highlights 

International Relations 

President Donald Trump described US as a “true friend” to India and 

said both the countries are working towards eradicating radical 

Islamic terrorism. Trump also congratulated India for being the 

fastest growing economy and said that he looks forward to invest 

more US energy in India. Prime Minister Modi expressed his gratitude 

to Trump and invited him and his family to visit India. 

Arc of cooperation: Besides claiming that both leaders were “world leaders in social media”, Mr. Trump’s Rose 

Garden statement spoke of both countries working together to create jobs and grow their economies (a 

foundational ideology for Mr. Trump which is not antithetical to priorities in Mr. Modi’s India) and ensuring a 

trading relationship that is fair and reciprocal. Mr. Trump announced that the U.S. will sign major contracts with 

India for the sale of natural gas, although he was trying “to get the price up a little bit”. 

Sale of 22 Guardian unmanned aerial systems: The US has cleared the sale of 22 unmanned Guardian 

drones to India, with the deal being termed as a “game changer”. The deal, estimated to be worth $2-3 billion, 

has been approved by the State Department. 

Maritime security and data sharing: The talks between the two leaders also touched on the topic of 

maritime security. Mr. Modi and Mr. Trump announced their intention to ‘build on the implementation of the 

“White Shipping” data sharing arrangement. The agreement allows countries to share data on maritime traffic 

and domain awareness. They also spoke about the upcoming MALABAR naval exercise. “Noting the importance 

of the upcoming MALABAR naval exercise, the leaders determined to expand their engagements on shared 

maritime objectives and to explore new exercises. 

U.S. LNG for India: Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar told reporters that from next year liquefied natural gas 

(LNG) from the U.S. will start flowing to India. Expect in the next many years the Indo-U.S. LNG trade will be in 

excess of $40 billion, he said. 

Climate change not on the agenda: Climate change, which was a major component of Mr. Modi’s 

engagement with Mr. Obama, did not come up in the joint statement with Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump had 

announced that the US would be pulling out of the landmark Paris accord, pointing fingers at India and China. 

“India will be allowed to double its coal production by 2020. Think of it: India can double their coal production. 

We’re supposed to get rid of ours,” he had said. Mr. Modi, for his part, had said that India was committed to 

going “above and beyond” the Paris deal. 

Ivanka in India: The President’s daughter, Ivanka Trump, will lead the U.S delegation to Global 

Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) later this year. GES is a key foreign policy initiative of former President Barack 



Obama to bring together global entrepreneurs and innovators, and India will be hosting its next edition. The 

event was expected to be a show of camaraderie between the two countries, and with Ms. Trump’s 

participation, it would be gaining gravitas. “I’m excited to report that the Prime Minister has invited my 

daughter, Ivanka, to lead the U.S. delegation,” said Mr. Trump. 

Pulling up Pakistan: The joint statement by Mr. Trump and Mr. Modi on Monday went beyond the earlier 

American position while pulling up Pakistan. “The leaders called on Pakistan to ensure that its territory is not 

used to launch terrorist attacks on other countries. They further called on Pakistan to expeditiously bring to 

justice the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai, Pathankot, and other cross-border terrorist attacks perpetrated 

by Pakistan-based groups,” said the joint statement. 

Astana Summit: India and Pakistan to become Full members of SCO 

Capping a two-year-long process, India and Pakistan 

today became full members of the Shanghai Cooperation 

Organisation (SCO), a China-dominated security grouping 

that is increasingly seen as a counterweight to 

NATO.India’s membership was strongly pushed by Russia 

while Pakistan’s entry into the grouping was backed by 

China. With the expansion of the grouping, the SCO will 

now represent over 40% of humanity and nearly 20% of 

the global GDP. As an SCO member, India is expected to 

have a bigger say in pressing for concerted action in dealing with terrorism as well as on issues relating to 

security and defence in the region. India, one of the largest energy consuming countries in the world, is also 

likely to get greater access to major gas and oil exploration projects in Central Asia as many of the SCO countries 

have huge reserves of oil and natural gas. The SCO was founded at a Summit in Shanghai in 2001 by the 

Presidents of Russia, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India, Iran and Pakistan 

were admitted as observers at the 2005 Astana Summit.The Tashkent SCO Summit in June 2010 had lifted the 

moratorium on new membership, paving the way for the expansion of the grouping that is increasingly seen as a 

counterweight to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) India feels that as an SCO member, it will be 

able to play a major role in addressing the threat of terrorism in the region. 

India is also keen on deepening its security-related cooperation with the SCO and its Regional Anti-Terrorism 

Structure (RATS) which specifically deals with issues relating to security and defence. India has been an observer 

at the SCO since 2005 and has generally participated in the ministerial-level meetings of the grouping which 

focus mainly on security and economic cooperation in the Eurasian region. 

Trump pulls US out of Paris climate pact, hits out at China, India 

The Paris climate agreement gives undue advantage to 

India and China at the cost of the Unite States' interests, 

President Donald Trump said, announcing America’s 

withdrawal from the pact. “China will be allowed to build 

hundreds of additional coal plants. So we can’t build the 

plants, but they can, according to this agreement. India 

will be allowed to double its coal production by 2020. 

We’re supposed to get rid of ours,” the President said, 



adding that the agreement “is less about the climate and more about other countries gaining a financial 

advantage over the U.S.” According to Mr. Trump, the Paris agreement would lead to a redistribution of 

American wealth to other countries and transfer of American jobs abroad. 

The announcement concluded intense internal debate in the Trump administration and ignoring protests from 

American closest allies in Europe and Canada. Anticipating American withdrawal, European leaders who met the 

President at the G-7 summit recently had urged him to reconsider his move. Other than China and India, Mr. 

Trump picked on European leaders also for pointed criticism. United States will cease all implementation of the 

non-binding Paris Accord and the draconian financial and economic burdens the agreement imposes on our 

country,” the President said. Carbon reduction targets that American set under Paris commitment aimed to 

reduce emissions by 26-28% in a decade. America has stopped contributing to the Green Climate Fund set up 

under the Paris agreement to support developing countries meet their commitment. The Obama administration 

had committed $ 3 billion to the fund of which $1 billion has been transferred. 

India ranks 137th in Global Peace Index 2017, Bhutan most peaceful in South Asia 

India has been considered as one of the most peaceful nations in 

South Asia in 2017 and ranked at 137th globally in a latest survey. 

The Global Peace Index 2017 was prepared by the Australia-based 

Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP). Bhutan, which ranked 13, 

has been named as the most peaceful country in South Asia, 

followed by Sri Lanka 80th, Bangladesh 84th, India 137th, Pakistan 

152nd and Afghanistan 162nd. The global level of peace has 

slightly improved this year by 0.28 percent, with 93 countries 

improving, while 68 countries deteriorated,” it said. Since 2008, 

the global level of peace deteriorated by 2.14 percent, with 80 

countries improving while 83 deteriorated. One of the major trends recorded over the last decade has been the 

growing inequality in peace between the most and least peaceful countries. The GPI shows the difference in 

score between the least peaceful and most peaceful countries has been increasing. "The GPI measures the level 

of peace in various countries with help of authentic qualitative and quantitative indicators of peace. The IEP is 

an independent non-profit making organisation oriented to focus world's attention on peace. 

One Million Dollar Fund Established for BRICS Media 

The Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) grouping has signaled its intent to expand its footprint in the 

global media space, with the injection of a one million dollars fund. During an inaugural session of the BRICS 

Media Forum in the Chinese capital, Cai Mingzhao, president of Xinhua News Agency and executive president of 

the Forum, announced that the news agency will invest 1million U.S. dollars for boosting media cooperation in 

the five-nation grouping. The plan will promote six objectives, including “balanced reporting”— a view shared by 

several speakers at the forum who called for alternative media narrative, which did not take the cue from 

Washington or London. The proposal would also focus on joint development of BRICS digital media, financial 

information services and promoting people- to-people contacts. 

The BRICS media forum is the result of a joint initiative by Xinhua News Agency, Brazil's CMA Group, Russia’s 

Sputnik News Agency and Radio, The Hindu group of publications from India, and South Africa's Independent 

Media. The theme of a BRICS-driven alternative media was also highlighted by Mukund Padmanabhan, editor of 



“The Hindu”. Mr. Padmanabhan welcomed the Action Plan, and the “very specific proposals” aired by the 

Xinhua President. 

VLADIMIR KAZBEKOV, the Vice President of the New Development Bank —the multilateral lender for the BRICS 

— concurred that the media from the emerging economies must expand its influence in the “global media 

space” in order to challenge, the often “highly biased content” of the current mainstream media. He pointed out 

that the NDB aspired strongly to network with the media, academia and the Non-Govern mental Oraganisations 

(NGO) in the BRICS countries, in order to establish a feedback mechanism that would support the bank’s 

transparent functioning. He hoped that the media will provide the analytical feedstock, during the debate on 

the NDB’s upcoming publication of a five-year strategy paper. 

India, UNOSSC launch partnership 

India and the UN Office for South- South Cooperation have launched a partnership fund on 9 June that will 

support sustainable development projects across the developing world. The India-UN Development Partnership 

Fund will implement country-level projects that are catalytic towards achieving the 17 sustainable development 

goals of the 2030 Agenda. The collaborative initiative is aimed at reducing poverty and hunger, improving 

health, education and equality, and expanding access to clean water, energy and livelihoods. The fund was 

launched on th occasion of the World Oceans Day. 

In a message, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres congratulated the government of India on its 

"strengthened partnership" with the United Nations system through the partnership fund. South-South 

cooperation is a powerful tool as we advance, together, towards the Sustainable Development Goals and fulfil 

the promise to leave no one behind. Addressing representatives of Member States, United Nations 

organisations and non-governmental partners at the launch, Akbar said this is first time India is entering into a 

partnership with the UN in a triangular cooperation with fellow developing countries. 

India gets re-elected in UN’s Economic and Social Council 

The General Assembly (UNGA) re-elected India on 

Thursday to another three-year term on the 

Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) with the 

backing of the Asian and Pacific group of nations. 

India received 183 of the 188 votes to serve again 

on the 36-member UN body that guides 

sustainable development policies and coordinates 

the activities of several UN units and 

organisations working development and social 

and economic issues. India’s electoral victory 

came a day after another a day earlier when 

Neeru Chadha was elected a judge of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in a measure of its 

influence at the UN. 

Pakistan received just a single vote for the ECOSOC. Japan received 185 votes, the highest number of votes for 

the three seats from the Asia-Pacific region, and the Philippines, 182. India will retake its seat in January when 



its current term ends. The Economic and Social Council is the ‘United Nations’ central platform for reflection, 

debate, and innovative thinking on sustainable development.’ EcoSoc is one of the six main UN organs which 

were established by the UN Charter. EcoSoc is the ‘principal body for coordination, policy review, policy dialogue 

and recommendations on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as for implementation of the 

internationally agreed development goals.’ It supervises ‘the subsidiary and expert bodies in the economic, 

social and environmental fields 



Security 

Shri Rajnath Singh highlights achievements & key initiatives of MHA in the last 3 years 

Lowest insurgency incidents in the last 20 years in North East, says Union Home Minister 

Surrender of LWE cadres recorded 185% increase during last 3 years, says Shri Rajnath Singh 

The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh briefed the 

media on the achievements and key initiatives taken by 

the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) during the last three 

years. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Rajnath Singh said 

that the Government has taken various initiatives for 

tackling the menace of Left Wing Extremism, problem in 

the North Eastern areas, Jammu and Kashmir and others. 

The security and development have been the utmost 

priority of the Government, he added. The Minister said 

that the Government has taken various effective 

measures to bring peace and stability in the North 

Eastern Region of the country. Sustained security 

initiatives during the last three years have brought peace 

and stability to the North-Eastern region of the country 

after decades of insurgency. The year 2016 has witnessed 

the lowest insurgency incidents in the last 20 years. The 

insurgency incidents have reduced from 824 in the year 2014 to 484 in the year 2016. The number of incidents 

was 574 in 2015 which was the lowest since 1997 and has further reduced in 2016. The number of civilian 

casualties in the North East has also come down drastically in the last three years. 

To tackle the menace of Left Wing Extremism (LWE), Shri Rajnath Singh said that in January, 2015, the 

Government has launched the National Policy and Action Plan comprising of security, development and ensuring 

rights & entitlements of the local communities. As a result, there has been a decline of 25% in LWE related 

incidents of violence and casualties to Security Forces dropped by as much as 42% during the period May 2014- 

April 2017 as compared to May 2011-April 2014. Also, the elimination of LWE cadres rose by a sharp 65% and 

the surrenders by LWE cadres recorded 185% increase. During a review meeting of the LWE-affected States, 

presided over by the Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh on May 08, 2017, the Home Minister enunciated 

an operational doctrine ‘SAMADHAN’ to fight Left Wing Extremism. The elements of this strategy are S for Smart 

Policing and Leadership, A for Aggressive Strategy, M for Motivation and Training, A for Actionable Intelligence, 

D for Dashboard-based Key Result Areas and Key Performance Indicators, H for Harnessing Technology, A for 

Action Plan for Each Theatre and N for No Access to Financing. 

The Minister said that in Jammu & Kashmir, after Surgical Strikes in September 2016, infiltration incidents have 

dropped significantly by as much as 45%. Under Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP 2015) 

amounting to Rs. 80,068 crore, Rs. 61,112 crore has been sanctioned for 63 Major Development Projects and Rs. 

19,961 crore released. The remunerations of Special Police Officers enhanced from Rs.3000.p.m. to 



Rs.6000/p.m. and 10,000 additional SPOs sanctioned in addition to the existing 25,474 SPOs. There are several 

welfare schemes for displaced families from Pak occupied J&K, transit accommodation for Kashmiri migrants, 

monthly cash relief of Rs.2,500 per person and up to Rs.10,000/ per family for Kashmiri migrants and same 

relief sanctioned for the first time for Jammu migrants. Five new India Reserve Battalions have been sanctioned 

and also asked the State Government to provide 33% reservation for women. Nodal officer in MHA and State 

Nodal officers also appointed to assist the students of J&K studying in their states. 

Shri Rajnath Singh said that the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired the 11th meeting of Inter State 

Council on July 16, 2016, which was held after a gap of 10 years. The Government also revived the Zonal 

Councils with the Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh having chaired 8 meetings of Zonal Councils, where 199 

items were discussed and 87 resolved. In pursuit of the SMART policing initiative laid out by the Prime Minister 

Shri Narendra Modi during the 2015 Annual DGPs conference, Shri Rajnath Singh said that the MHA has shared 

online nearly 28,000 best practices for replication by other states. The Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks 

and Systems (CCTNS) project is fast towards completion with the number of states/UTs sharing FIR data rising to 

33, while this figure was nil in March 2014.The Total number of FIRs registered using CCTNS has leaped from less 

than 1.5 lakhs in March 2014 to about 1.25 crores, registering a jump of almost 100 times. 

Giving push to border infrastructure and developmental works, the Minister said that the Government has 

sanctioned Rs. 5,188 crore worth projects in the last three years, of which Rs. 2,138 crore has been released for 

Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Pak border projects. This includes 200 kms fence, 430 kms long border roads, 

floodlights spreading across 647 kms long borders and 110 composite border outposts. As regards to Indo-China 

border, out of 27 border roads sanctioned in 2008, first 8 roads have been completed during the period 2014-16 

and while another 9 roads are due to be completed by this year end. Shri Rajnath Singh said that a new initiative 

has been undertaken for creation of Model Villages in border areas for which more than Rs. 92 crore has been 

released to 7 states for development of 41 Model Villages, including 24 in J&K. To facilitate the border trade and 

passenger movement at land border crossings, the Government has been promoting the setting up Integrated 

Check Posts (ICPs). ICP at Raxaul was operationalised in June, 2016 and at Jogbani in November 2016. While the 

cargo terminal at ICP, Petrapole was inaugurated by Prime Minister of India and Bangladesh in July last year, 

foundation stone for an ICP at Dawki, Meghalaya was laid in January 2017. 

To facilitate legitimate foreign travellers, Shri Rajnath Singh said that the Visa regime has been liberalised, 

simplified and rationalised during the last three years. E-visa facility has been extended to nationals of 162 

countries. The duration of stay on e-visa has been increased from 30 days to 60 days. The Visa-on-Arrival 

scheme has been introduced for Japanese nationals from March 2016, while the duration of multiple entry 

tourist Visa for senior citizens from Bangladesh has been extended from one to five years. 

The Minister said that India is playing a leading role in Disaster Management in the south Asian region. The 

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has released the National Disaster Management Plan in June 2016, which is 

the first such plan in the world to integrate the four priority areas of Sendai framework. India also hosted the 

first South Asian Disaster Management Exercise in Delhi NCR while the city also hosted the 7th Asian Ministerial 

Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in November 2016 where the Prime Minister announced the 10-point 

plan for DRR. The Government also raised two additional battalions of NDRF in the year 2015, for better 

coverage of Uttar Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh. 

Shri Rajnath Singh said that women’s empowerment and women’s safety have been a priority of the 

Government. The MHA has approved the 33% posts at Constable Level for being filled up by women. The 33% 

reservation of Constable level posts in CRPF & CISF and 14-15% posts at Constable level in border guarding 

forces i.e. BSF, SSB & ITBP will start immediately to begin with. The Government has also set in motion the 



setting up of National Emergency Response System (NERS) website and Mobile App which will be launched by 

October this year. 

Shri Rajnath Singh said that on the occasion of Valour Day of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the web portal 

and mobile application named “Bharat Ke Veer” was inaugurated on 9th April, 2017. The portal is an IT based 

platform, with an objective to enable willing donors to contribute towards the family of a braveheart who 

sacrificed his/her life in line of duty. The amount so donated will be credited to the account of ‘Next of Kin’ of 

those Central Armed Police Force/Central Para Military Force soldiers. The portal is getting good response from 

public. The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh also launched the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) Mobile 

Application for grievance redressal of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) personnel on May 11, 2017. The 

Mobile application has a provision for MHA to continuously monitor the action taken by various CAPFs on 

grievances of personnel and regulate the process for further improvement in the Grievance Redressal System. 

INSV TARINI Maiden Visit to Mauritius 

Indian Naval Sailing Vessel Tarini entered Port Louis harbour, Mauritius on her maiden visit to the island nation 

since induction in the Indian Navy in Feb 17. Tarini is the sister Vessel of Indian Navy's first sailing Vessel INSV 

Mhadei, that has numerous accomplishments to her name. INSV Tarini is 55 feet in length and built in India in 

line with the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Indian Navy, fructified by M/s Aquarius Shipyard, Goa. The Vessel is 

skippered by Lieutenant Commander Vartika Joshi (a Naval Architect) and the all-women Naval officers crew 

comprising Lieutenant Commander Pratibha Jamwal, Lieutenants P Swathi, Vijaya Devi, Payal Gupta and B 

Aishwarya. Tarini has begun a new chapter in the history of ocean sailing by Indian women, wherein the first 

Indian all-women crew of IN would endeavour to circumnavigate the globe in Aug 2017. Tarini aims to promote 

a spirit of adventure and camaraderie amongst the young Naval personnel in the years ahead. 

INS Sahyadri on Overseas Deployment to Papua New Guinea 

In pursuance of India’s Act East policy, Indian Naval Ship 

Sahyadri is on an overseas deployment to the South 

East Asia and Southern Indian Ocean. The ship would be 

on a port visit to Moresby from 12 June to 15 June 

2017. The visit of the Indian Naval Ships seeks to 

underscore India’s peaceful presence and solidarity with 

friendly and harmonious countries towards ensuring 

good order in the maritime domain and to strengthen 

existing bonds between Papua New Guinea and India. 

During the state visit of the Hon’ble Indian President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee in April 2016, a number of 

constructive discussions were held on the shared desire to enhance the ties of friendship and cooperation that 

defined the relationship between the two countries. 

During the stay in harbour, various activities such as official calls, formal reception on board ships, ships open to 

visitors, guided tours for Indian naval personnel, professional interaction between naval personnel of both the 

nations and Community Welfare activities have been planned. Indian Naval assets have been increasingly 

deployed in recent times to address the main maritime concerns of the region. In addition, as part of the Indian 

Government’s vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), the Indian Navy has also been 

involved in assisting countries in the Indian Ocean Region with EEZ Surveillance, Search and Rescue, and other 

capacity-building and capability- enhancement activities. The current deployment will contribute towards the 



Indian Navy’s efforts to Consolidate inter-operability and forge strong bonds of friendship across the seas. Over 

the past few decades, India has made substantial advances in terms of designing and building warships 

indigenously and the visiting ships bear testimony to these capabilities. INS Sahyadri, a multi-role stealth frigate 

is commanded by Captain Anil Jaggi. 

Indian warships arrive in Australia for bilateral maritime exercise 

Three Indian warships sailed into Fremantle to participate in a week-long naval exercise off the Western 

Australian coast. Exercise Australia India (AUSINDEX) is a regular bilateral maritime exercise aimed at developing 

a deeper understanding and cooperation between the two navies. Commander Australian Fleet, Rear Admiral 

Stuart Mayer, said AUSINDEX 17 was a concrete example of India and Australia working more closely together to 

increase maritime security. "Australian and India share a commitment to a stable and prosperous Indian Ocean 

region," Rear Admiral Mayer said. "AUSINDEX is a terrific opportunity to increase our interoperability and 

enhance the professional interaction of two great navies. "Amidst a very busy operational program for the 

Indian Navy, I am pleased to welcome their ships to Fremantle and look forward to a challenging and rewarding 

sea program. 

"AUSINDEX is the centrepiece naval exercise held between Australia and India and is an important component 

of this year's fleet program," Rear Admiral Mayer said. The exercise will integrate Indian Navy Ships Shivalik, 

Jyoti and Kamorta into Royal Australian Navy operations of increasing complexity. The Royal Australian Navy is 

represented by HMA Ships Newcastle, Waller and Clearance Diving Team Four. 



Government launches INAM-Pro: The Web Platform for Sale and Purchase of 

Construction Material and Service 

The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Shri Nitin Gadkari launched INAM-Pro + in New Delhi. 

INAM-Pro+ is an upgraded version of INAM-Pro, the web portal designed by National Highways and 

Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (NHIDCL) and launched by the Ministry two years back as a 

common platform to bring cement buyers and sellers together. More than 700 construction companies have 

used INAM-Pro during the last two years. With 37 Cement companies registered on it, the portal facilitated 

comparison of price, availability of materials etc. and made it very convenient for the prospective buyers to 

procure cement at reasonable rates in a transparent manner. This reduced the time and effort in preparation of 

proposals and bid submissions, and helped increase efficiency in procurement of construction materials as one 

could place orders, obtain price quotes and track them in swift manner on this portal 

The publicly visible prices have promoted transparency and enhanced ease of doing business. The companies 

registered on INAM-Pro have a committed supply of 27 million metric tons of cement at a price restricted by 

predefined ceiling values. INAM-Pro has thus been successful in matching demand with supply, cutting down 

delays by timely supply of material and providing for online payments , mitigating cost overruns due to price 

hedging through ceiling price mechanism which allows maximum increment of 10% Year on Year basis and 

promoting transparency in the market due to publicly visible Prices. 

INAM-Pro has been highly acclaimed by the construction industry and IT sector and has also been recognized 

and listed in the Book-on-Innovations "New Beginning" released by Hon'ble PM on the Civil Services Day. 

Following the success with cement, the portal has recently been upgraded as INAM-Pro+ to include the A to Z of 

construction materials, equipments/machinery and services like purchase/hiring/lease of new/used products 

and services in the domains of Construction Materials viz, cement, steel, bitumen, stone aggregates, concrete, 

bricks, wood, sanitary items, paint etc. ; Infrastructure Machinery viz.HMP, Paver Finisher, Backhoe Loaders etc.; 

Intelligent Transport System Equipment viz. VMS, CCTV, ECB, Boom Barriers etc. ; Road Furniture viz. road 

signage, road studs, etc. ; Haulage Vehicles Viz. Tippers, Backhoe Loaders, Cranes ; Road Safety and Protection 

Works viz. Crash Barriers, Hazard markers, Delineators etc. and Services viz. Road Marking, Ambulance, Route 

Patrolling, Tree plantation / Transplantation. The portal allows stake holders to seek operational guidance, give 

their feedback and submit suggestions through Toll Free No. 1800 200 3399 (10.00 A.M. to 6.00 P.M, Monday to 

Friday) or www. www.inampromic.in. 

SEBI forms committee on corporate governance 

Economy 

Aiming to improve the standards of corporate governance of 

listed companies, markets regulator Sebi on Friday set up a 

committee under the chairmanship of Uday Kotak, chief of 

Kotak Mahindra Bank. The panel includes representatives of 

Corporate India, stock exchanges, professional bodies, 

investor groups, chambers of commerce, law firms, 

academicians and research professionals, and Sebi. The 

panel headed by Kotak, the executive vice chairman and 



managing director of Kotak Mahindra Bank, would have to submit the report within a period of four months, 

Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has said in a statement. The committee would make 

recommendations to Sebi on ensuring independence in spirit of independent directors and their active 

participation in functioning of the company and steps for improving safeguards and disclosures pertaining to 

related party transactions. 

Besides, the panel would suggest measures for addressing issues faced by investors on voting and participation 

in general meetings and ways for improving effectiveness of board evaluation practices. Further, it will also 

suggest Sebi on issues pertaining to disclosure and transparency. Earlier in April, Sebi had come out with 

detailed corporate governance norms for listed companies providing for stricter disclosures and protection of 

investor rights, including equitable treatment for minority and foreign shareholders. The new rules, which would 

be effective from October 1, require companies to get shareholders’ approval for related party transactions, 

establish whistle blower mechanism, elaborate disclosures on pay packages and have at least one woman 

director on their boards. 

SEBI is the statutory regulator for the securities market in India established in 1988. It was given statutory 

powers through the SEBI Act, 1992. SEBI’s headquarters is in Mumbai, Maharashtra. SEBI’s mandate is to 

protect the interests of investors in securities, promote the development of securities market and to regulate 

the securities market. The Key functions of SEBI are as follows: Regulating stock exchanges and other securities 

markets; Registering and regulating the working of intermediaries who are associated with securities markets in 

any manner; Registering and regulating the working of venture capital funds and collective investment schemes 

including mutual funds; promoting and regulating self-regulatory organizations and prohibiting fraudulent and 

unfair trade practices relating to securities markets. 

India overtakes China to top global retail index: GRDI 

India has surpassed China to secure the top position among 

30 developing countries on ease of doing business, 

according to a study that cited India’s rapidly expanding 

economy, relaxation of FDI rules and a consumption boom 

as the key drivers. The 2017 Global Retail Development 

Index (GRDI), now in its 16th edition, ranks the top 30 

developing countries for retail investment worldwide and 

analyses 25 macroeconomic and retail-specific variables. 

India’s rapidly expanding economy, easing of foreign direct investment (FDI) rules and a consumption boom are 

the key drivers for India’s top ranking in the GRDI. The GRDI, titled ‘The Age of Focus’, ranks China in second 

place. Despite its slower overall economic growth, the market’s size and the continued evolution of retail still 

make China one of the most attractive markets for retail investment. “The study is unique in that it not only 

identifies the markets that are most attractive today, but also those that offer future potential,” said the 

management consulting firm A T Kearney in a statement. 

India’s retail sector has been growing at an annual rate of 20 per cent. Total sales surpassed the USD 1 trillionmark 

last year and the sector is expected to double in size by 2020. Rapid urbanisation and a growing middle 

class with higher income levels is driving up consumption across the country, the consultancy group said. The 



government’s continued support to relax FDI regulations in key areas of the retail sector have provided further 

boost to its growth, it noted. In the past year, the government has allowed 100 per cent foreign ownership in 

B2B e-commerce businesses and for retailers that sell food products. India’s retail sector has also benefited 

from the rapid growth in e-commerce. It is projected to grow 30 per cent annually and reach USD 48 billion by 

2020. Retailers have been quick to seize the opportunity with 86 per cent of e-commerce dominated by pureplay 

online retailers in 2016. 

India ranks 10th in FDI inflows: UNCTAD report 

India continues to be among the top ten countries in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows globally 

and the fourth in developing Asia, as per the World Investment Report 2016 by the United Nations Conference 

for Trade and Development (UNCTAD). India’s FDI inflows have increased to $44 billion in 2015 as compared to 

$35 billion in 2014, and the growth has been across the board, the report said. A surge in investments in the first 

four months of 2016 is mainly on account of the Make in India initiative, along side liberalization measures and 

reforms initiated by the National Democratic Alliance, which make India an attractive investment decision, 

according to Nagesh Kumar, who heads the South, South-West Asia office of the United Nations Economic and 

Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP). 

The huge potential offered by India, the fastest growing major economy, is also one of the main reasons, he 

added. To be sure, China with more than three times India’s FDI at $136 billion in 2015 is ranked third in terms 

of FDI flows among all countries, as per the report. In terms of outflows, there has been a decline in most 

developing and transition regions. However, China is one of the exceptions. According to Devendra Kumar Pant, 

chief economist and senior director (head, public finance) at India Ratings and Research, “The declining trend in 

India’s outflows can be explained by the collapse in the commodity side. In the past most of the corporates used 

to buy assets outside and that too commodities such as coal and oil. Their own good performance aided to this.” 

Globally, FDI activity has increased by 38%, in a signal that a revival in investment sentiments is on the cards. 

The report also talked about striking the right balance between liberalization and regulation to promote 

investment for sustainable development. Liberalization measures have been applied by relaxing or eliminating 

entry requirements in aviation, financial services, mining and real estate. 

Global Innovation Index 2017 

Released jointly by WIPO, Cornell University, INSEAD and 

the 2017 GII Knowledge Partners, the Confederation of 

Indian Industry, PwC’s Strategy& and the National 

Confederation of Industry (CNI) and Brazilian Micro and 

Small Business Support Service (Sebrae). Switzerland, 

Sweden, the Netherlands, the USA and the UK are the 

world’s most-innovative countries, while a group of 

nations including India, Kenya, and Viet Nam are 

outperforming their development-level peers, according 

to the Global Innovation Index 2017 co-authored by 

Cornell University, INSEAD and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). 



Key findings show the rise of India as an emerging innovation center in Asia, high innovation performance in 

Sub-Saharan Africa relative to development and an opportunity to improve innovation capacity in Latin America 

and the Caribbean. 

Each year, the GII surveys some 130 economies using dozens of metrics, from patent filings to education 

spending providing decision makers a high-level look at the innovative activity that increasingly drives economic 

and social growth. In a new feature for the GII, a special section looks at “invention hotspots” Video around the 

globe that show the highest density of inventors listed in international patent applications. Now in its tenth 

edition, the GII 2017 notes a continued gap in innovative capacity between developed and developing nations 

and lackluster growth rates for research and development (R&D) activities, both at the government and 

corporate levels. 

World Bank says India will grow 7.2% in FY18, GST will deliver substantial gains 

The World Bank said the government’s November decision to 

withdraw high-value currency notes may have disproportionately 

high impact on the poor and vulnerable while its decision to 

implement the goods and services tax (GST) will be equitable 

without any negative impact on the poor. 

“Demonetization affected poor and vulnerable households, in all 

likelihood having an impact on construction and informal retail, 

where many poor and vulnerable individuals work. While limited 

data is available, there has been an increase in demand for 

guaranteed employment, and indicators of rural consumption 

contracted sharply in November. 

Although the informal economy may account for only 40% of 

GDP, it employs 90% of India’s workers, and the disproportionate 

impact of demonetisation on India’s informal sector suggests that 

it would have affected those workers the most. The poor and 

vulnerable are more likely to work in informal sectors and less 

able to move to non-cash payments,” the World Bank said. 

However, it said if the government takes complementary 

measures, in the long-term, demonetization has the potential to 

accelerate formalization of the economy, increase tax collection and allow greater digital financial inclusion. 

The Bank has projected economic activity to accelerate to 7.2% in 2017-18 against the government’s estimate of 

7.1%. The Central Statistics Office will release the revised GDP estimate for 2017-18 on Wednesday, including 

the new industrial production and wholesale price inflation series data. 



Social Issues 

Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) under Universal Immunization Programme 

(UIP) Introduced 

Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) in the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) was introduced 

recently in Himachal Pradesh and parts of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the first phase. PCV protects children 

against severe forms of pneumococcal diseases, such as pneumonia and meningitis. Pneumonia kills more 

children under five years of age in India than any other infectious disease. Pneumococcal disease is the leading 

cause of vaccine preventable deaths in children under five years of age globally and in India. 

Darwaza Band for open defecation 

The centre launched an aggressive new campaign titled 'Darwaza Band' to promote toilet use and freedom from 

open defecation across the country's villages. The campaign produced by the Ministry of Drinking Water and 

Sanitation under Swachh Bharat Mission was launched in the presence of Amitabh Bachchan, Union Minister for 

Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar, Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Devendra 

Fadnavis, Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Parameswaran Iyer. The Union Minister and 

the State Chief Minister also reviewed the working of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) programme in 

Maharashtra ahead of the event. Champion functionaries from the State of Maharashtra were awarded during 

the event. An exhibition displaying various toilet technologies was also put up. 

The 'Darwaza Band' campaign has been supported by the World Bank and is being rolled out countrywide 

immediately after the launch. It is designed to encourage behaviour change in men who have toilets but are not 

using them. A part of the campaign also features actor, Ms Anushka Sharma, who will be seen encouraging 

women to stand up for this issue in their villages and assume a leadership role. Behaviour change has been the 

focus of Swachh Bharat Mission, which is being pursued through a countrywide comprehensive IEC(Information- 

Education-Communication) programme. Communication campaigns have been taken up both, at the central and 

State levels, for promoting sustained use of toilets and for sustaining the Open Defecation Free status achieved. 

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare: Health Secretary inaugurates ‘Vatsalya – 

Maatri Amrit Kosh’, a National Human Milk Bank and Lactation Counselling Centre 

C K Mishra, Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) inaugurated the ‘Vatsalya – Maatri Amrit Kosh’, a National 

Human Milk Bank and Lactation Counselling Centre at the Lady Hardinge Medical College . Shri C K Mishra 

congratulated the LHMC, Delhi for this initiative and said that this would be the largest human milk bank and 

lactation counselling centre available under the public sector in North India. The Health Secretary further added 

that it is envisaged that with this donor human milk bank, all newborns in and around Delhi will have access to 

life saving human milk regardless of the circumstances of their birth. Mr Nils Ragnar Kamsvag, Ambassador of 

Norway to India, was also present at the occasion. “Vatsalya – Maatri Amrit Kosh” is established in collaboration 

with the Norwegian government, Oslo University and Norway India Partnership Initiative (NIPI). 

Shri Mishra said that even when we know the potential of mother’s milk for a child, breastfeeding rates are low 

in India. He informed the participants that the early initiation of breastfeeding is only 40%, even when the 



institutional delivery has increased to 78.9%. “In view of this, we launched Mothers Absolute Affection (MAA) 

programme to create awareness regarding breastfeeding as being the most cost-effective way of enhancing the 

child’s immunity,” Shri Mishra stated. 

The Health Secretary further said that the decline in maternal and child mortality in India is much faster than the 

global average rate of decline and thanked the frontline workers for their dedicated work. “We are poised to 

enhance Universal Health Coverage in the country and are conscious of quality issues. Several efforts are 

underway through NHM to improve affordability, quality and access to healthcare services”, Shri Mishra 

elaborated. 

“Vatsalya – Maatri Amrit Kosh” opened at Lady Hardinge Medical College in collaboration with the Norwegian 

government, Oslo University and NIPI Newborn Project, is a national human milk bank and lactation counseling 

centre that will collect, pasteurize, test and safely store milk that has been donated by lactating mothers and 

make it available for infants in need. In addition, this facility will protect, promote and support breastfeeding of 

their own healthy mothers by providing lactation support to mothers through dedicated lactation counsellors. 

This project will not only act as a dedicated centre to support breastfeeding and improve infant survival but also 

act as the teaching, training and demonstration site for other milk banks to be established under the Ministry Of 

Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. 

Also present at the function were Prof. Jagdish Chandra, Director LHMC and Dr Arvind Saili along with other 

senior faculty members of LHMC and senior officers of the Ministry and representatives from donor partners, 

and health experts. 



Government launches POSOCO-IMD Weather Portal for Power Sector & Web Portal 

‘MERIT’ (Merit Order Despatch of Electricity for Rejuvenation of Income and 

Transparency). 

Day to day weather variations have an impact on load demand and energy production, transport and 

distribution management, as well as energy prices. Extreme events such as heat waves or cold waves, wind 

storms or floods can of course have dramatic consequences on the production means or the electrical grid of a 

country including physical damage to the infrastructure. The information available in the Portal regarding 

weather forecast shall help State Discoms to take pro-active steps regarding short term and medium term 

management processes and supply planning requirements and also for better planning for infrastructure 

availability to ensure cost effective and reliable supply. 

The Portal provides the following information : 

Regional Weather Summary : This provides Weather Outlook for the Region for the current day and upto 

next 7 days. Weather stations of Meteorological department have been mapped to the nearest important 

Electrical Station/ Power Stations in each State. 

Nowcast: It is used to forecast weather for a short period ahead, updated every 3 hours 

Weather Forecast: It is provided for the current day and next 6 days 

Weather Warning: Special Nowcast warning is issued for the next 3 hours. 

Environment & Ecology 

Radar: The Doppler Weather Radar generates different displays and derived products of practical utility based 

on standard algorithms. These displays are updated every 10 minutes. 

Satellite Images: INSAT 3D is being used to monitor the Weather of Indian Origin. The image is updated every 

30 minutes. 

Meteogram- The Meteogram at Web-Portal provides plots for Meteorological variables such as Rainfall, Cloud 

Cover, Temperature, Humidity, Wind, Speed, Sea Level Pressure, Indices for Thunderstorm etc. for 10 days with 

a resolution time of three hours. Each Meteogram provides information for the 10 km radius. 

Region Specific Forecast - Fog Forecast, Metar, Bay Bulletin, Coastal Area Bulletin, Cyclone,Port Warning etc. 

During the meeting Shri Goyal launched another portal ‘MERIT’ (Merit Order Despatch of Electricity for 

Rejuvenation of Income and Transparency). This has been developed by Ministry of Power in association with 

POSOCO and Central Electricity Authority. The MERIT Web portal displays extensive array of information 

regarding the merit order of Electricity procured by State(s) such as daily state-wise marginal variable costs of 

all generators, daily source-wise power purchases of respective states/UTs with source-wise fixed and variable 

costs, energy volumes and purchase prices. The web-portal also give information regarding reasons for 

deviation from merit order such as must run conditions, transmission constraints etc. The Web Portal can be 

accessed at http://vidyutmode.in/ 



Paris agreement's 1.5C target 'only way' to save coral reefs, Unesco says 

Greater emissions reductions and delivering on the Paris climate agreement are now “the only opportunity” to 

save coral reefs the world over from decline, with local responses no longer sufficient, a report by Unesco has 

found. The first global scientific assessment of the impacts of climate change on the 29 world heritage-listed 

coral reefs, published on Saturday, found that the frequency, intensity and duration of heat-stress events had 

worsened with increasing global warming, with massive consequences for the 29 world heritage sites. Analysis 

of recent studies and newly-developed data from the US national ocean and atmospheric administration (NOAA) 

coral-reef watch showed that 13 of the 29 listed reefs had been exposed to levels of heat stress that cause coral 

bleaching, on average more than twice per decade from 1985 to 2013. 

Bleaching had occurred more frequently in recent years than in decades prior, with coral mortality during the 

third global bleaching event from mid-2014 to mid-2017 “among the worst ever recorded”. Twenty-one listed 

sites had suffered severe and/or repeated heat stress in the last three years. Compounding the devastating 

impact of bleaching – which can take coral communities at least 15 to 25 years to recover from – were more 

frequent and more severe extreme weather events, increasing ocean acidification, and pollution. 

The Great Barrier Reef, “one of the world’s most iconic coral reef systems” and among four of the total 29 listed 

located in Australia, had been “seriously affected” by back-to-back severe bleaching events this year and last, 

despite considerable investment in efforts to build resilience. The Unesco report found that local efforts to 

increase reefs’ resilience “remain necessary but are no longer sufficient” without complementary national and 

international efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels – the most ambitious 

target set by the Paris agreement, and understood to be the maximum possible to secure coral reefs’ long-term 

survival 

The report found that, if emissions were to follow their current trajectory and not decline – similar to a 

“business-as-usual scenario” – 25 of the 29 world heritage reefs (68%) would suffer severe bleaching twice per 

decade by 2040, rapidly killing most corals present and preventing successful reproduction necessary for their 

recovery. Reducing emissions so that they peak around 2040 and then decline would reduce that number of 

affected sites to 14 (48%), and allow an extra 12 years, on average, for them to recover. 

World Environment Day 2017 

Every year, June 5 is celebrated as World Environment 

Day with a new theme. This year the theme is 

"Connecting People to Nature". This theme implores 

us to go outdoors and appreciate nature's beauty and 

importance, and take forward the call to protect the 

planet Earth. Last year's theme, "Zero Tolerance for 

the Illegal Wildlife trade" encouraged a fight against 

wildlife crime. 

The day is celebrated to raise global awareness about 

the significance of a healthy environment and to solve 

various environmental issues by implementing some actions to protect nature and Earth, leading to a positive 

and healthy environment for all. World Environment Day is run by the United Nations Environment Programme 

(UNEP). 



World Environment Day is an occasion to think how we are a part of nature and how intimately and 

unequivocally we depend on it for survival. The day was established in 1972 by the United Nation, after this 

United States instituted the Earth Day, and since then, global citizens have organized thousands of events to 

bring attention to the degrading environmental conditions. 

On World Environment Day, listed are some facts and what we can do to support this day: 

This day was established by the UN General Assembly in 1972 

 

 

 

The United Nation organisation calls the holiday its "principal vehicle for encouraging worldwide 

awareness and action for the environment" 

The anniversary of the Stockholm Conference is celebrated as World Environment Day every year. The 

conference was held by UN on the Human Environment 

Each year, the emphasis on World Environment Day is placed on a certain topic of earth crisis. 

June 17: World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought 

The World Day to Combat Desertification has been observed since 

1995 to promote public awareness relating to international 

cooperation to combat desertification and the effects of drought. 

In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly declared June 17 

the "World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought" to 

promote public awareness of the issue, and the implementation of 

the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those 

countries experiencing serious drought and/or desertification, 

particularly in Africa. 

Ever since, country Parties to the Convention, organizations of the United Nations System, international and 

non-governmental organizations and other interested stakeholders have celebrated this particular day with a 

series of outreach activities worldwide. The World Day to Combat Desertification is a unique occasion to remind 

everybody that desertification can be effectively tackled, that solutions are possible, and that key tools to this 

aim lay in strengthened community participation and co-operation at all levels. This year’s theme for World Day 

to Combat Desertification and Drought is “Our Land. Our Home. Our Future“. 

Shri Piyush Goyal Launches Energy Conservation Building Code 2017 

Adoption of ECBC could lead to 30%-50% energy savings by commercial buildings. Piyush Goyal, Minister of 

State (IC) for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines launched the Energy Conservation Building 

Code 2017 (ECBC 2017). Developed by Ministry of Power and Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), ECBC 2017 

prescribes the energy performance standards for new commercial buildings to be constructed across India. 

The updated version of ECBC provides current as well as futuristic advancements in building technology to 

further reduce building energy consumption and promote low-carbon growth. ECBC 2017 sets parameters for 

builders, designers and architects to integrate renewable energy sources in building design with the inclusion of 

passive design strategies. The code aims to optimise energy savings with the comfort levels for occupants, and 

prefers life-cycle cost effectiveness to achieve energy neutrality in commercial buildings. 



The new code reflects current and futuristic advancements in building technology, market changes, and energy 

demand scenario of the country, setting the benchmark for Indian buildings to be amongst some of the most 

efficient globally.In order for a building to be considered ECBC-compliant, it would need to demonstrate 

minimum energy savings of 25%. Additional improvements in energy efficiency performance would enable the 

new buildings to achieve higher grades like ECBC Plus or Super ECBC status leading to further energy savings of 

35% and 50%, respectively. 

With the adoption of ECBC 2017 for new commercial building construction throughout the country, it is 

estimated to achieve a 50% reduction in energy use by 2030. This will translate to energy savings of about 300 

Billion Units by 2030 and peak demand reduction of over 15 GW in a year. This will be equivalent to expenditure 

savings of Rs 35,000 crore and 250 million tonnes of CO2 reduction. ECBC 2017 was developed by BEE with 

technical support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under the U.S.-India 

bilateral Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Deployment Technical Assistance (PACE-D TA) Program. 

The launch event was attended by senior officers of Ministries, State Governments, technical bodies, public 

utilities, multilateral agencies, international funding bodies, academicians and industry experts and consultants 

from across the building, infrastructure, real estate, energy and construction sectors. The event also featured a 

video on the ECBC, as well as a technical session that highlighted the salient features of ECBC 2017, international 

best practices in the building sector, as well as the presentation of case studies on energy efficient buildings. 



India's GSAT-17 Communication Satellite Launched Successfully 

Science & Technology 

GSAT-17 became India’s third communication satellite to successfully reach orbit in the past two months. GSAT- 

17 was launched in the early morning hours using the European Ariane 5 Launch Vehicle from Kourou, French 

Guiana. The 3477 kg GSAT-17 carries communication payloads in C-band, Extended C-band and S-band for 

providing various services to the country. The satellite also carries equipment for meteorological data relay and 

satellite based search and rescue services. 

GSAT-17 separated from the Ariane 5 upper stage in an elliptical Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) with a 

perigee (nearest point to Earth) of 249 km and an apogee (farthest point to Earth) of 35,920 km, inclined at an 

angle of 3 degrees to the equator. ISRO's Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan in Karnataka took over the 

command and control of GSAT-17 immediately after its separation from the launch vehicle. Preliminary health 

checks of the satellite revealed its normal functioning. 

In the coming days, orbit raising manoeuvres will be performed to place GSAT-17 satellite in the Geostationary 

Orbit (36,000 km above the equator) by using the satellite’s propulsion system in steps. During the final stages 

of its orbit raising operations, the two solar arrays and both the antenna reflectors of GSAT-17 will be deployed. 

Following this, the satellite will be put in its final orbital configuration. GSAT-17 will be positioned at its 

designated orbital slot in the geostationary orbit and will be co-located with some of the Indian operational 

geostationary satellites. Later, it is planned to turn on the communication payloads of the satellite. After the 

successful completion of all the in-orbit tests, GSAT-17 will be ready for operational use 

ISRO successfully launches GSLV MK III-D1 rocket carrying the GSAT-19 satellite 

The Indian Space Research Organisation launched the GSAT-19 satellite, one of the heaviest communication 

satellites, with the GSLV MK III-D1 rocket. The rocket became the heaviest to be launched by the Indian space 

agency ever with the heaviest single payload put in orbit as well. The rocket lifted off from the Satish Dhawan 

Space Centre at Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota at 5.28 pm. The rocket has the capability to carry a payload as 

heavy as 4,000 kg and put in into the Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. It can also carry a 10,000 kg payload and 

put in into the Low Earth Orbit. 

The launch marks another success for India’s space agency that has made record-setting launches during the 

past year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated ISRO on today’s launch success. “Congratulations to the 

dedicated scientists of ISRO for the successful launch of GSLV – MKIII D1/GSAT-19 mission,” PM Modi tweeted. 

ISRO has plans to use the rocket for manned missions in the future. The rocket is a three-stage launch vehicle 

which has two solid motor strap-ons, a liquid propellant core stage and a cryogenic stage. The rocket is 43.39 

metre in height which is roughly the height of a 12-storey building. GSLV mission is significant for India as ISRO 

had been depending on foreign launchers for orbiting communication satellites weighing more than 2,300 kgs. 

The GSLV MkIII-D1 is capable of lifting payloads or satellites weighing upto 4,000 kgs into the GTO and 10,000kgs 

into the Low Earth Orbit. It was a textbook launch as every stage of the three-stage GSLV MkIII with 

indegeneous cryogenic engine performed well. 



NASA's first mission to the star set for 2018 

Wearing a nearly 5-inch coat of carbon-composite solar shields, NASA's Parker Solar Probe will explore the sun's 

atmosphere in a mission that begins in the summer of 2018. It's not a journey that any human can make, so 

NASA is sending a roughly 10-foot-high probe on the historic mission that will put it closer to the sun than any 

spacecraft has ever reached before. 

The probe will have to withstand heat and radiation never before experienced by any spacecraft, but the 

specially designed mission will also address questions that couldn't be answered before. Understanding the sun 

in greater detail can also shed light on Earth and its place in the solar system, researchers said. 

This is NASA's first mission to the sun and its outermost atmosphere, called the corona. 

On Wednesday, the craft -- initially called the Solar Probe Plus -- was renamed the Parker Solar Probe in honor 

of astrophysicist Eugene Parker. "This is the first time NASA has named a spacecraft for a living individual," said 

Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. "It's a 

testament to the importance of his body of work, founding a new field of science that also inspired my own 

research and many important science questions NASA continues to study and further understand every day." 

The probe will eventually orbit within 3.7 million miles of the sun's surface. The observations and data could 

provide insight about the physics of stars, change what we know about the mysterious corona, increase 

understanding of solar wind and help improve forecasting of major space weather events. Those events can 

impact satellites and astronauts as well as the Earth -- including the power grid and radiation exposure on airline 

flights, NASA said. 

The mission's objectives include "tracing the flow of energy that heats and accelerates the sun's corona and 

solar wind, determining the structure and dynamics of the plasma and magnetic fields at the sources of the solar 

wind and explore mechanisms that accelerate and transport energetic particles." The probe will reach a speed 

of 450,000 mph around the sun. On Earth, this speed would enable someone to get from Philadelphia to 

Washington in one second, the agency said. The mission will also pass through the origin of the solar particles 

with the highest energy. 

The mission is scheduled to end in June 2025. 

NASA is all Set to Launch First Ever Mission to Study Neutron Stars 

NASA is set to launch the world's first mission tomorrow to study rapidly spinning neutron stars - the densest 

objects in the universe - nearly 50 years after they were discovered. The same platform will also carry out the 

world's first demonstration of X-ray navigation in space. The agency plans to launch the two-in-one Neutron Star 

Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) aboard SpaceX CRS-11, a cargo resupply mission to the International 

Space Station (ISS) to be launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket on Saturday. The launch was earlier planned for 

June 1, but was delayed due to poor weather. About a week after its installation, this one-of-a-kind investigation 

will begin observing neutron stars, the densest objects in the universe. The mission will focus especially on 

pulsars – those neutron stars that appear to wink on and off because their spin sweeps beams of radiation past 

us, like a cosmic lighthouse. 

Due to their extreme nature, neutron stars and pulsars have engendered a great deal of interest since their 

existence was proposed in 1939 and then discovered in 1967. These objects are the remnants of massive stars 

that, after exhausting their nuclear fuel, exploded and collapsed into super-dense spheres. 



Their intense gravity crushes an astonishing amount of matter – often more than 1.4 times the content of the 

Sun or at least 460,000 Earths – into city-sized orbs, creating stable, yet incredibly dense matter not seen 

anywhere else in the universe. Just one teaspoonful of neutron star matter would weigh a billion tonnes on 

Earth. 

NASA sounding rocket to release radiant artificial clouds 

NASA is set to launch a sounding rocket which will release blue-green and red artificial clouds. The launch of the 

Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket testing a new deployment system to support space studies was 

originally scheduled for May 31, but it was delayed due to poor weather conditions. 

The launch window on Saturday from from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility is 4:26 - 4:41 a.m. EDT ( 1:56-2.11 p.m 

India time), the US space agency said. "Clear skies are required at one of the ground stations to view blue-green 

and red artificial clouds that will be produced as part of the test. These artificial clouds may be seen from New 

York to North Carolina," NASA said. The rocket will eject 10 canisters about the size of a soft drink can between 

10 to 20 km from the rocket's main payload, and these containers will release the vapour between 4 and 5.5 

minutes after launch. The development of the multi-canister or ampule ejection system will allow scientists to 

gather information over a much larger area than previously allowed when deploying the vapour just from the 

main payload. Ground cameras will be stationed at Wallops and in Duck, North Carolina, to view the vapour 

tracers. "The vapour tracers are formed through the interaction of barium, strontium and cupric-oxide. The 

tracers will be released at altitudes 96 to 124 miles high and pose absolutely no hazard to residents along the 

mid-Atlantic coast," NASA said. 

Sounding rockets take their name from the nautical term "to sound," which means to take measurements. The 

flight of a sounding rocket is short-lived, and has a parabolic trajectory -- the shape of a frown. The total flight 

time for the current mission is expected to be about eight minutes. The payload will land in the Atlantic Ocean 

about 90 miles from Wallops Island and will not be recovered. 

China launches its first X-ray space telescope 

China successfully launched its first X-ray space telescope 

to study black holes, pulsars and gamma-ray bursts. A Long 

March-4B rocket carried the 2.5-tonne telescope into orbit 

from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest 

China's Gobi Desert at 11:00 am (3:00 GMT), according to 

the official Xinhua news agency. The Hard X-ray Modulation 

Telescope (HXMT), named Insight, will allow Chinese 

scientists to observe magnetic fields and the interiors of 

pulsars and better understand the evolution of black holes. 

It will also help scientists search for gamma-ray bursts 

corresponding to gravitational waves and study how to pulsars can be used for spacecraft navigation, Xinhua 

said. 

"Insight is expected to push forward the development of space astronomy and improve space X-ray detection 

technology in China," Xinhua said. Beijing sees its multi-billion-dollar space programme as a symbol of its rise 

and of the Communist Party's success in turning around the fortunes of the once poverty-stricken nation. In 



April, China's first cargo spacecraft successfully docked with an orbiting space lab—a key development toward 

China's goal of having its own crewed space station by 2022. Last month, China opened a "Lunar Palace" 

laboratory on Earth to simulate a moon-like environment and house students for up to 200 days as the country 

prepares for its long-term goal of sending humans to the natural satellite. 

ISRO to launch earth observation satellite, 30 Nano-Satellites 

India on Friday will launch its earth observation satellite Cartosat-2 series weighing 712 kg and 30 co-passenger 

satellites (29 foreign, one Indian) with its rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), the Indian space agency 

said on Tuesday. According to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the PSLV rocket's XL variant is 

expected to lift off on Friday morning at 9.29 a.m. from the Sriharikota rocket port. The 30 satellites will 

together weigh 243 kg and the total weight of all the 31 satellites, including Cartosat, is about 955 kg, ISRO said. 

The rocket will sling the satellites into a 505 km polar sun sunchronous orbit (SSO). The co-passenger satellites 

comprise 29 nano satellites from 14 countries - Austria, Belgium, Britain, Chile, Czech Republic, Finland, France, 

Germany, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, and the US as well as one Indian nanosatellite. 



Art & Culture 

Ministry of Culture to start implementation of ‘National Mission on Cultural Mapping 

of India’ from Goverdhan Block, Mathura 

In the year of commemoration of the birth centenary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay, who hailed from Mathura 

district in Uttar Pradesh, the Ministry of Culture, Government of India is launching the implementation of the 

‘‘National Mission on Cultural Mapping of India’ at Goverdhan Block, Mathura District, Uttar Pradesh in a day 

long, Block level mega talent hunt programme (Sanskritik Pratibha Khoj Samaroh) on 17th June, 2017. The 

programme will be inaugurated by the Minister of State (Independent charge) for Culture & Tourism Dr. Mahesh 

Sharma, in the august presence of the Ministers of Uttar Pradesh having their constituency in Mathura District, 

MP and MLAs of Mathura District, Ministry’s Senior officials and various renowned artists including Padma, 

Sangeet Natak Akademi and State Awardees. This Mission is part of the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ umbrella. 

Around 1-2 thousand artists are expected to take part in this Block level event where artists can also register 

themselves following which a registration certificate/slip/code will be provided to all the artists who register. A 

stage will be provided to the registered artists for performance and displaying their talent. A panel of renowned 

artists has also been invited for judging the participants in different art forms. Registration can also be done 

directly on the portal culturalmappingofindia.nic.in. For those artists who, for some reason, are not able to 

register themselves and their art forms, enumeration teams have been sent to all the 47 villages of Gowardhan 

Block for geo mapping of artists and their art forms. Any person who claims to be an artist can register at the 

initial level. Paving the way for the ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’ programme led by the Hon’ble Prime Minister, 

Shri Narendra Modi, the mission aims at converting the vast and widespread cultural canvas of India into an 

objective cultural map, designing a mechanism to fulfil the aspirations of the whole artist community of the 

nation and preserving the rich cultural heritage of this country in the form of a cultural repository of artists and 

art forms. 



This Mission encompasses data mapping, demography building formalising the processes and bringing all the 

cultural activities under one web based umbrella for better results. The Mission also seeks to open a direct 

channel of communication of artists with the Government and peer to peer communication among artists for 

talent honing and handholding of each other. With a vision that no cultural talent or heritage should remain 

unattended and if it is talent, it should be nurtured and if it is a heritage, it should be conserved and used as an 

icon to learn from the past, and also to propagate our cultural talent across all boundaries, the Ministry has 

planned to hold talent hunt competitions with various rounds from Block level to National level. The scheme is 

set to cover all the Blocks of Country, involving a total of 6.40 Lakh villages over the span of next 3 years. 

The Ministry is eying to launch massive cultural awareness campaigns so that no artist is left behind. The 

Artist/Organisations also may register online at www.culturalmapping.nic.in. The Cultural Mapping of India 

portal will serve as a repository/consolidated database of information about cultural assets and resources i.e. a 

cultural inventory at one place for essential planning, sustainable economic development and for preserving the 

scattered and near extinct art forms. 

Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar for Satyabrata Rout 

Satyabrata Rout has been awarded Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar for the year 2016. He is a professor from 

the Department of Theatre Arts, S N School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad (UoH). He has 

been awarded for developing a unique method of teaching and practicing direction and design achieved from 

his experience working with eminent theatre practitioners and scholars. Satyabrata Rout is considered as one of 

the pioneers of ‘visual theatre’ in India. He has a rich experience of directing a number of plays, participating in 

national and international theatre festivals and conducting a numerous theatre workshops across the globe. The 

Sangeet Natak Akademi Puraskar (Akademi Award) is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. The award 

is the highest Indian recognition given to practicing artists. The award includes a purse of Rs 50000, besides a 

Tamrapatra and Angavastram. The awards are being presented in the categories of music, dance, theatre, other 

traditional arts and puppetry. 

Pichvai paintings of Nathdwara: a 17th century art going through a contemporary 

churning 

One of the most exquisite styles in the Indian painting 

tradition, the pichvai paintings of Nathdwara, originated 

in the 17th century and flourished under the patronage 

of the Nathdwara temple. The central figure was often 

that of Shrinathji — Lord Krishna as a seven-year-old 

boy — with crescent-shaped eyes, a garland of lotus 

buds around his neck and his left arm raised up, a 

reference to when the young god lifted up mount 

Govardhan to protect the inhabitants of Vraj from Indra’s flood. This, and other episodes from Krishna’s life, 

were common subjects for artists, who dreamed up detailed compositions, often featuring delicate pink lotuses, 

white cows with red handprints on them and the gopis who flocked around Krishna. The paintings were mostly 

on large cloth pieces called pichvais, traditionally used as backdrops for the idol in Shrinathji’s haveli in 

Nathdwara. Originally, these were works of sacred art, created by the artists as an expression of their devotion 

and depicted the many moods of the lord. 



Young Indian cartoonist wins top conservation award 

Avid bird watcher, Rohan Chakravarty has turned his love for wildlife and environment into his muse by drawing 

cartoons centred on conservation issues under the banner of Green Humour, a comic strip that is being 

distributed internationally 

His cartoons make you laugh out loud. They also carry a strong message of conservation that leaves an instant 

impression in the minds of young and old alike. 

Chakravarty, a wildlife and environment cartoonist from India, has won this year’s International President’s 

Award for his efforts to change attitudes towards nature. 

The award is the top accolade given by WWF to recognise leadership in young conservationists who are under 

the age of 30 from around the world. The award ceremony was held recently in Manado, Indonesia. 

Hailing from Nagpur (also known as the tiger capital of India), Chakravarty has been an enthusiastic bird watcher 

since childhood. He was on his way to becoming a dentist when the sighting of a magnificent tigress at a 

waterhole at Nagzira Tiger Reserve threw his planned career off gear.

June 2017 Harf Facts - Final

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