National:
Justice T. S. Thakur sworn in as 43rd Chief Justice of India
Justice Tirath Singh Thakur was sworn in as 43rd Chief Justice of India (CJI). He was administered oath to the office by President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. Justice Thakur succeeded incumbent Justice H L Dattu who retired on 2 December 2015 and shall have the tenure till 4 January 2017 i.e. till he attains 65 age.
About Justice T. S. Thakur
He was born on January 4, 1952 and is the son of D.D. Thakur, who was a renowned advocate and eminent judge in the J&K High Court and later served as Union Minister.
Judicial career: Justice Thakur had enrolled as a Pleader in October 1972. Later, he started practising in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.
He also had worked in Karnataka High Court, Delhi High Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court. He had worked as Chief Justice (CJ) of both Delhi High Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court. He was elevated as a judge of the Supreme Court in 2009.
In Supreme Court, Justice Thakur had headed of the bench which dealt with IPL spot-fixing scam. He also had headed of the bench which is monitoring the probe in the Saradha chit fund scam case.
First India International Science Festival begins at IIT-Delhi
The first India International Science Festival (IISF) has begun at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Delhi campus.
It has been organized by Union Ministry of Science and Technology. The IISF is expected to be the country’s biggest ever Technology and Industrial Expo. Around 4,000 delegates from India and abroad are expected to take part in the festival.
Fact Punch:
The five day festival (from 5th to 8th December) will showcase the achievements of Indian scientists and institutions.
It will provide a single platform to explore ways for translating academic research into industrial applications benefiting the common man.
It also seeks to encourage culmination of scientific temperament among youngsters, especially school children.
The festival will provide common platform for scientists to interact with each other for sharing ideas and knowledge.
On the occasion of this festival, Union Ministry of Science and Technology has organized a mass event in which 2,000 students are going to conduct an experiment at the same venue.
Union Government releases postage stamp to mark centenary year of ZSI
Union Government has released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the Centenary year of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI).
The postage stamp was released by Union Communication and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in the presence of Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi.
They also released publications of ZSI- the Centenary Souvenir, Centenary Directory and A Glorious 100.
Zoological Survey of India (ZSI)
ZSI is the apex institution on animal (fauna) taxonomy in India.
Established: 1 July 1916.
Objective: To promote the survey, exploration, research and documentation on various aspects of animal taxonomy in the Indian subcontinent. It also seeks advancement of knowledge on animal taxonomy.
Headquarter: It has 16 regional centres located in different parts of the country. Functions under the aegis of Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC). It activities are coordinated by the Conservation and Survey Division of MoEFCC.
It has been declared as the designated repository for the National Zoological Collection as per section 39 of the National Biodiversity Act, 2002 Activities.
Undertaken:Study of the fauna of states, of conservation areas, of important ecosystems.
It also undertakes status survey of endangered species, fauna of India and ecological Studies & Environmental impact assessments.
Lok Sabha passes The Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015
Lok Sabha has passed The Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015 by a voice vote to establish Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
The Bill replaces the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986 and establishes BIS as a national standard body for development of standardization and assessment and quality assurance of goods, articles, services, processes and systems.
The Bill seeks to broaden ambit of BIS and empower Union Government to make it mandatory to carry the standard mark for certain notified goods, articles, processes, etc.
Salient features of The Bureau of Indian Standards Bill, 2015
Establishment of the BIS: The Bureau would be a national body which will formulate, certify and implement certain standards of quality for goods, articles, processes, etc.
Technical committees of experts will be constituted by the Bureau for the purpose of formulating such standards. Governing Council of BIS would be responsible for the general superintendence, management and direction of the Bureau.
Certification of goods, articles, services etc: BIS would be a licensing authority for quality standards which may issue a license or certificate of conformity to the item that conforms to the Indian standard as set by the Bureau.
For quality assurance and conformity assessment of goods, articles, services, etc. the Bureau will establish and maintain testing laboratories.
Certification of precious metals: For certification of precious metal articles including gold, silver, platinum and palladium or their alloys a hallmark will be used.
A hallmark indicates a proportionate content of the precious metal in the metals as per the Indian standard. Such hallmarked precious metals (articles) will be sold in certified outlets.
Mandatory certification of certain goods: Empowers Union government to notify certain goods, processes, articles etc which will need to compulsorily carry a standard mark.
Such goods or articles will be notified for (i) public interest or protection of human, animal or plant health (ii) prevention of unfair trade practices (iii) safety of the ecology and environment (iv) national security.
Recall of goods, services, articles etc: Empowers the Bureau to recall a good or article which is already out for supply or sale. This will be done if good or article does not conform to the particular standard.
Penalties: For improper use of the Indian standard mark, fine of up to five lakh rupees will be imposed.
Prescribed penalties are for (i) Improper use of the standard mark by marking and testing centres (ii) manufacturing or selling goods and articles not carrying a standard mark which has been mandated to do so.
Offences by companies: It any company commits an offence under the Bill, then persons responsible (in charge) for company will be held guilty even if the offence was committed without their consent, knowledge or connivance.
Appeals: against an order regarding the granting of a certificate or license of conformity or compounding of offences shall be made to the Director General (DG) of the BIS. Further appeal against the order of DG will be made to the Union government.
International:
Paris Pact on Water and Climate Change Adaptation has been announced by a broad coalition of nations, river basin organizations, business and civil societies from across the globe.
It was announced during the on-going 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Conference of Parties (COP-21) in Le Bourget, Paris, France.
Paris Pact on water and climate change adaptation
Aims to make water systems which are very foundation of sustainable human development more resilient to climate change impacts.
It involves a wide geographic coalition of national and cross-border river basin organisations along with governments, local governments, funding agencies, companies and civil society.
Highlights other key partnerships and coalitions to make river basins, aquifers, lakes and deltas more resilient to climate change and reduce human interference with oceans.
It encompasses individual commitments to implement adaptation plans, strengthening water monitoring and measurement systems in river basins.
It also seeks at promoting financial sustainability and new investment in water systems management. It was signed by almost all countries and have committed for over one billion dollars.
India also has agreed to contribute 20 million dollars to build climate resilience through improved groundwater management.
About Lima to Paris Action Agenda (LPAA)
The LPAA on climate change is a joint undertaking of the Peruvian and French COP (conference of parties) presidencies, UNFCCC Secretariat and the Office of the Secretary-General of UN.
Aims to strengthen climate action through 2015 and beyond by mobilizing robust global action towards low carbon and more climate resilient societies.
It seeks to provide enhanced support to the existing initiatives and help to mobilize new partners by providing them a common platform for the visibility of their commitments, actions and results in the run up to COP21.
Science:
A novel mechanism of a protein secreted by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), inhibiting the infected host’s immune response by modulating certain genes has been discovered, giving rise to hopes of a targeted drug therapy.
With identification of suitable drug targets and candidate vaccines to control TB remaining a challenge and most of the studies focusing on strategies to prevent TB infection, scientists from the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) here have looked at the interaction between pathogenic mycobacteria and the human cell during infection.
Giving details of the study which was published in the prestigious journal ‘Nature Communications’, CDFD Director G. R.Chandak along with the team of scientists led by Sanjeev Khosla told reporters on Thursday that the finding could not only be a potential drug target against mycobacterial infections but also help in developing a new biomarker for identification of M.tuberculosis infection in humans.
Sports:
Amitabh Bachchan becomes co-owner of Singapore team in IPTL
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan became a co-owner of the International Premier Tennis League (IPTL) team OUE Singapore Slammers.
Bachchan will make a courtside appearance on December 20 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium on the final day of the season. He will also be interacting with fans during the course of the day.
The OUE Singapore Slammers, co-owned by the UD Group and Bachchan, are one of the five teams competing in the second edition of the IPTL. Singapore will host the final leg of the competition from December 18-20 to determine who will be the league champion for 2015.
Joining the OUE Singapore Slammers at the Singapore Indoor Stadium will be the UAE Royals, Indian Aces, Philippine Mavericks and Japan Warriors — the newest addition to the season — bringing 35 of the world’s top tennis stars into town for the three-day league climax.
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