Annual Global Risks Report

As per the annual Global Risks Report published by Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF), the biggest global risk in terms of likelihood is 'severe income disparity' for the next 10 years, while 'major systemic financial failure' will be the topmost risk before the world in terms of impact. The report said that Switzerland is best placed among the world's 10 major economies for adapting to or recovering from global economic and environmental risks. While India is ranked ninth in terms of its ability to tackle global economic risks, it comes last at tenth position for environmental risks. Italy is ranked lowest at tenth position for economic risks. The rankings of the 10 major economic of the world -- Brazil, China, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Switzerland, Russia, the UK and the US -- are based on a Global Risks Perception Survey of over 1,000 experts from across the world.

Threat to Water and Food Security

A new report, released by The Stockholm International Water Institute, “Feeding a thirsty world: Challenges and opportunities for a water and food secure world”, outlines major threats and opportunities for water and food security.

The report provided official input into the discussions that took place at the 2012 World Water Week in Stockholm, on August 26-31.

Authored by a dozen experts from SIWI, the Food and Agriculture Organizations of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), the report provides new evidence that shows how continuing current trends in food production could lead to increased shortages and intense competition for scarce water resources in many regions across the world.

The report notes that 900 million people are hungry and two billion more people are under nourished in spite of the fact that per capita production continues to increase. With 70 per cent of all water withdrawals used in agriculture, growing more food to feed an additional 2 billion people by 2050 will place greater pressure on available water and land.

“Feeding everyone well is a primary challenge for this century. Overeating, under-nourishment and waste are all on the rise and increased food production may face future constraints from water scarcity,” said report editor Dr. Anders Jägerskog. “We will need a new recipe to feed the world in the future.”

The authors spotlight a number of essential and largely overlooked challenges where dedicated action can help ensure food security to a growing global population with available water resources. These include improvements in on-farm water efficiency, reductions in losses and waste in the food supply chain, enhanced response networks to early warning systems for agricultural emergencies, and increased investment to close the gender gap in agricultural production.

The report also investigates the impact of the recent surge in foreign direct investment to lease land in developing countries on local and regional water resources, a phenomenon that requires more stringent regulation to ensure that the water and land rights of local farming communities are upheld.

Apple-Samsung Patents dispute

A US court jury has ordered Samsung to pay USD one billion to Apple Inc. for ripping off Apple technology.

The Silicon Valley jury found that some of Samsung’s products illegally copied features and designs exclusive to Apple’s iPhone and iPad. The verdict was narrowly tailored to only Samsung, which sold more than 22 million smartphones and tablets that Apple claimed used its technology, including the “bounce-back” feature when a user scrolls to an end image, and the ability to zoom text with a tap of a finger.

According to analysts, the popular zooming and bounce-back functions the jury said Samsung stole from Apple will be hard to replicate.

The companies could opt to pay Apple licensing fees for access to the technology or develop smarter technology to create similar features that don’t violate the patent—at a cost likely to be passed onto consumers.

Apple lawyers are planning to ask that the two dozen Samsung devices found to have infringed its patents be barred from the US market. Most of those devices are “legacy” products with almost non-existent new sales in the United States. Apple lawyers will also ask that the judge triple the damage award to $3 billion since the jury found Samsung “wilfully” copied Apple’s patents.

A loss to the Android-based market would represent a big hit for Google as well. Google relies on Android devices to drive mobile traffic to its search engine, which in turn generates increased advertising revenue. Android is becoming increasingly more important to Google’s bottom line because Apple is phasing out reliance on Google services such as YouTube and mapping as built-in features on the iPhone and iPad.

Some experts cautioned that the decision might not be final, noting the California lawsuit is one of nine similar legal actions across the globe between the two leading smartphone makers.

Samsung has vowed to appeal the verdict all the way to the US Supreme Court, arguing that Apple’s patents for such “obvious” things as rounded rectangle were wrongly granted.

The $1 billion represents about 1.5 percent of Samsung’s annual revenue. Jerome Schaufield, a technology professor at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute said the verdict wouldn’t upend a multibillion-dollar global industry.

The dispute also centres on Apple’s dissatisfaction with Google’s entry into the phone market when it released Android operating system and announced any company could use it free of cost.

India and Burundi signed 3 Major Agreements

President of the Republic of Burundi visited India from 17 to 19 September 2012. During this visit, India and Burundi signed three agreements-(i) Exchange Programme for Cooperation in the field of Education, (ii) Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the field of Rural Development and (iii) Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the field of Health and Medicine.  Besides, India also announced a Line of Credit of 42.38 million US dollars for Farm Mechanisation and Integrated Food Processing Complex in Burundi.
India and Burundi issued a joint statement on that occasion. The major highlights of the joint statement are as following:
• India and Burundi agreed to further enhance the bilateral cooperation in view of the considerable untapped potential.
• Burundi thanked India for approval of a concessional line of credit of 80 million US dollars for the Kabu – 16 Hydro-electric project.
• Both nations agreed to continue strengthening cooperation in the areas of economy, trade and investment, finance, human resource development, culture, etc. while striving to expand cooperation into other potential areas such as agriculture, food processing, ICT, science & technology, health, mining etc.
• Burundi conveyed its support for India’s candidature for Permanent Membership in an expanded United Nations Security Council.

Russia joins WTO after 18 years of talks

After 18 years of negotiation, Russia  entered the World Trade Organization (WTO), which restricts import duties and subsidies in an attempt to create a level-playing field for international trade.

Analysts and politicians hope that Russia, which has long proven a formidable market to foreign investors because of its byzantine bureaucracy and protectionist tariffs, would be transformed by its entry into the WTO. Russia is one of the last major global economies to enter the group, which has long included other developing nations such asChina.

While consumers here will benefit from the lower cost of imported goods, some worry that struggling industries long coddled by state subsidies, such as agriculture or the automobile industry, will suffer because of foreign competition.

Russians often complain about the burdensome cost of Western-imported consumer products, which range from refrigerators to jeans. With its entry into the WTO, the country will cut its average import tariff by 5.9 per cent, making those imports cheaper.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenavi passed away

Meles Zenavi, the Ethiopian Prime Minister, passed away on 20 August 2012 following prolonged illness. He was 57. Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who is also Ethiopia's foreign minister, will assume the charge as the acting Prime Minister of the country.
Born into a middle-class family in Adawa, Tigray, in Ethiopia's northern highlands, Meles Zenavi joined the politics when he was still studying in the university. He later dropped out of university to take full participation in the insurrection against the Syrian military regime.
In 1991 when Mengistu Haile Mariam led Military Council was finally thrown out of power, Meles assumed the charge as the president in a transitional government. Later in 1995 he took over as the prime minister of the country. He went on to lead the African country for nearly 20 years and influenced the Ethiopian public life until his death.

US imposed Fresh Sanctions on Belligerent Iran

In pursuit of its goal to debilitate Iran’s oil exporting economy, the US government on 2 August 2012 announced to impose some fresh sanctions on Iran. Sanctions, imposed under Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (CISADA), put punitive regulation on those who continued to maintain ties with Iran.
Under the sanction Bank of Kunlun in China and Elaf Islamic Bank in Iraq faced cut off from transactions with US institutions. The two banks were punished for facilitating transactions worth millions of dollars on behalf of sanctioned Iranian banks. The new sanctions categorically target the Iranian energy and petrochemical sectors.
The sanctions are aimed at preventing Iran from establishing payment mechanisms for the purchase of Iranian oil to circumvent existing sanctions, and utilises the existing structure of our sanctions law, including exceptions for significant reductions in the purchase of Iranian oil.
Earlier this year India, China and a host of other nations had opposed US’ dictate to cut down their oil imports from Iran. US and European Union have come down heavily on Iran’s nuclear programme seeking all possible diplomatic methods to stop the belligerent nation to carry on its nuclear programme. Though the heavy sanctions imposed by the US and EU over Iran have not yielded them the desired result as Iran has thus far not gave up its plan to build nuclear armaments.

World to have 440 rising global cities in 2025

Urbanisation will lead to the creation of one billion new city consumers by 2025, according to a study by McKinsey Global Institute (MGI). The study said these will live in some 440 dynamic emerging market cities (the ‘Emerging 440’), that are set to generate close to half (47 per cent) of expected global GDP growth between 2010 and 2025. Among these, 36 cities are from India.

The report says that while China is right in the middle of its sweeping urbanisation, India is in the early stages of the process.

The study pointed out that growing consumer classes will accelerate growth in demand for many goods and services. It explained that many large emerging economies, including China and India, were seeing higher shares of their populations moving into income segments where the consumption of many goods and services takes off rapidly. Indian cities alone are expected to contribute nearly 10 per cent of global growth in residential and commercial floor space demand to 2025.

To cater to their new urban consumers’ needs, cities will have to invest heavily in infrastructure. “Cities will require annual physical capital investment to more than double from nearly $10 trillion today to more than $20 trillion by 2025.”

By 2025, municipal water demand in large cities is expected to have to rise by 40 per cent from today’s level—a rise of almost 80 billion cubic meters, more than 20 times what New York consumes today. The top two cities by expected growth in municipal water demand between 2010 and 2025 globally are Mumbai and Delhi.

The report said companies need to take a more scientific approach to locating the most promising markets for their businesses and then allocating resources pro-actively to capture the opportunities they offer. Identifying fast-growing segments in emerging cities not currently on the radar will be a necessary skill.

Drug abuse kills two lakh people a year
Some 27 million people worldwide are problem drug users, with almost one percent of them dying every year from narcotics abuse, according to the 2012 World Drug Report of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).

Global production and use of illegal drugs remained relatively stable in 2011, the report found. However, this masked shifts in trafficking and consumption that were “significant and also worrying... because they are proof of the resilience and adaptability of illicit drug suppliers and users,” the UNODC warned.

Cannabis remained the most widely used drug with up to 224 million users worldwide, although production figures were hard to obtain.

Europe was the biggest market for cannabis resin, most of it coming from Morocco, although Afghanistan is becoming a major supplier and domestic production in Europe is also rising.

Opium production in Afghanistan, the world’s biggest producer with 90 percent of the global share, meanwhile jumped by 61 per cent in 2011, to 5,800 tonnes, from 3,600 tonnes in 2010, when the crop was hit by disease.

China, Russia Vetoed UN Resolution : Situation intensified in Syria

Russia and China vetoed on the UN Security Council resolution on Syria on 19 July 2012.Though Russia and China vetoed it, India was amongst the eleven countries that voted in favour with Pakistan and South Africa abstaining.
The resolution against which Russia and China vetoed, could have brought new sanctions against President Bashar Al Assad's regime. This is the third time in a tenure of nine months that Russia and China used their powers as permanent members of the UN Security Council to block resolutions on Syria.The resolution also would have imposed economic sanctions on the Syrian government under Chapter seven of the United Nations Charter.
United States reaction on the Veto
The Obama Administration was grossly against the decision of Russia and China to veto the UN Security Council resolution on Syria,  and tagged the countries stating that, they are on the wrong side of history.
However, the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, stated that the end game of the Assad regime has just begin.
U.S also stated that the Security Council has failed miserably on Syria and it would now work outside of the council to confront Assad's regime.
Present Situation in Syria
The situation in Syria is very vulnerable at the moment , post the killing of the Defence Minister and the Deputy Defence Minister. The Syrian army has given the residents a tenure of forty eight hours to leave the areas of the capital, where clashes are taking place between security forces and rebels.
he medical and humanitarian situation in Damarcus is getting worst from worse. As per the observatory figures, huge number of hundred and seven people were killed in violence on 19 July 2012. The Security Council vote has now left the future of a 300-member United Nations mission in Syria to monitor the peace plan in jeopardy.
What is the Veto Power?
A veto is a power excercised to stop an official action, not to adopt them. The veto therefore conveys to its holder an ability to protect the status quo.
Amongst the permanent members, China, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and the United States of America can block any resolution to pass.

Time Magazine dubbed Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as Underachiever

Leading American magazine Time on the cover of its latest Asian edition dubbed Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the Underachiever. The magazine which hit the stand on 16 July 2012 carried three stories including the cover story to describe the gloomy economic scenario in the country. The magazine insisted that Indian Prime Minister has been starkly unable to reverse the pessimistic economic environment in the country.
Once widely regarded as a staunch reformer, Manmohan Singh has come under severe criticism over his failure in beefing up the economy. Earlier US President Barack Obama had urged Indian government to introduce some much needed reforms in the country to reinvigorate the investment sentiment among the global investors.
Earlier Time magazine in its June 2002 edition had termed the then Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpeyee 'asleep on the wheel.Time sells 264000 copies in entire Asian continent, while, the Indian subcontinent accounts for the sell of as many as 47000 copies, accounting for almost 18 percent of the sales.

India-South Korea met for Second Foreign Policy and Security Dialogue in New Delhi

India and South Korea decided to cooperate in the areas of civil nuclear energy and space, including the launch of Korean satellites by India. Both of them met in New Delhi on 28 June 2012 during their second foreign policy and security dialogue.
The Indian delegation was led by Sanjay Singh, secretary (east) external affairs ministry, while the Korean side was led by Ahn Ho-young, first vice minister in the ministry of foreign affairs and trade.
Both the sides have decided to encourage enhanced engagement in civil nuclear energy cooperation apart from the launch of Korean satellites by India. The other discussion was a cluster of regional and global issues, including the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
Both India and South Korea also agreed to accelerate work on upgrading their comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) to ensure that it reflected current realities.

The India-South Korea Bilateral trade and CEPA

The  Bilateral trade soared up by 70 percent to $20.5 billion in 2011 since the implementation of the CEPA since the last two years.
South Korea expressed interest in opening a new consulate general in Chennai while welcoming India's decision to open a new defence Office at its embassy in Seoul before the end of the year,2012.

The world’s tallest tower

The world’s tallest tower and Tokyo’s biggest new landmark is the Tokyo Sky Tree, which opened to the public on May 22, 2012.It is recognized by Guinness World Records as the tallest tower (634 metres), beating out the Canton Tower in China (600 meters). The world’s tallest structure is Dubai’s Burj Khalifa (828 meters). The Sky Tree will serve as a broadcast tower for television and radio, along with being a tourist attraction.

SAARC Countries Reaffirm Commitment to end Violence Against Children

The SAARC countries reaffirmed their determination and renewed their commitment to end violence against children in all forms and all settings at the meet of the member countries at Colombo. They countries unanimously adopted the South Asia Call for Action on Ending Violence against Children. Representatives from SAARC countries were meeting as follow up on regional consultation on the UN study on violence against children, which was held at Colombo between 26-31 May, 2012.

The Colombo declaration signed by the member countries take stock of progress made since the Regional Consultation on Violence Against Children in South Asia, Islamabad, Pakistan, 19-21 May 2005 and the endorsement of the UN Study on Violence against Children by the General Assembly in 2006, in order to strengthen measures and processes aimed at ending violence against all children in all settings. Held under the aegis of SAIEVAC, the South Asian Initiative to End Violence Against Children, an apex body of SAARC, the regional follow up reaffirmed their commitment made by Governments to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its Optional Protocols, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the SAARC Social Charter, the SAARC Convention on Regional Arrangements for the Promotion of Child Welfare, the SAARC Convention on Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Women and Children for Prostitution, the SAARC Framework for the Protection, Care and Support of Children Affected by HIV/AIDS, the SAARC Development Goals (SDGs) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). They also renewed the commitment made by the Ministers in the Rawalpindi Resolution on Children of South Asia (1996) and the Colombo Statement on Children of South Asia (2009), and the recommendations endorsed at the Ministerial Meeting of SAIEVAC in June 2010 in Kathmandu.

The countries also recalled recommendations from the Regional Consultation on Violence Against Children in South Asia (2005) and the subsequent Recommendations from the UN Study on Violence against Children; the South Asia Forum (SAF) Regional Preparatory Consultation for the World Congress III against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents (2008), the Kathmandu Commitment to Action for Ending Violence against Children (2010); the Technical Consultations on Legal Reform and Corporal Punishment (2010) and Child-friendly Services and Care Standards (2011) including those made by children; the Beijing Declaration on South-South Cooperation for Child Rights in the Asia Pacific Region (2010) and the Assessment of Progress in the SAARC Decade of the Rights of the Child (2001-2010) presented at the 17th SAARC Summit in Addu City (2011).

There was unanimous recognition of the fact that despite the progress made across South Asia to address violence against children, children continue to experience serious forms of violence and child protection challenges, including child labour, corporal punishment, sexual abuse and exploitation, child trafficking, migration and displacement, imprisonment, discrimination related to HIV/AIDS, disability, minorities, orphans, street children and children in need of care and protection, as well as various forms of harmful practices such as child marriage.

Working towards a vision of a region free from all violence against children in all forms, the representatives from SAARC countries therefore collectively deliberated, along with civil society organizations, experts on child rights and violence against children, professionals, and academicians, and called for the following actions-

1. Develop and strengthen equitable national and local child protection systems including laws, policies and standards; that prevent, mitigate and respond timely and appropriately to all forms of violence and to ensure that mechanisms and services are accessible to all children.

2. Develop and implement laws and policies that focus on safeguarding children from potential harm and that ban all forms of violence against children in all settings, including home and family, schools and educational settings, care and justice systems, work settings and the community;

3. Address social norms and practices that are harmful to children by promoting social change to end violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect of children;

4. Consolidate and validate a national system for disaggregated data collection, analysis , dissemination, and a systematic research agenda to inform policy development and resource mobilisation to protect children from violence;

5. Review/adopt and implement a national plan of action to integrate the recommendations of the UN Study on Violence against Children and SAIEVAC work plan and develop a baseline to be able to measure progress;

6. Invest in and evolve policies and processes to strengthen the participation of children in decisions, through supporting and strengthening child-led organizations/forums;

7. Cooperate through structure, processes and resources in the best interest of children to address cross-border issues, such as trafficking, missing children, HIV and AIDS and drug abuse and repatriation;

8. Develop mechanisms to address the safety of children with reference to the use and engagement with digital technologies;

9. Share lessons and good practices and explore new opportunities for Cooperation to advance the protection of children through establishing a SAIEVAC centre of excellence on violence against children;

10. Strengthen regional and country-level cooperation and coordination between governments, NGOs, CSOs, children and young people, academia, independent human/child rights institutions, Parliamentarians, religious leaders, media, private sector as well as bilateral and multilateral agencies including UN agencies/INGOs;

11. Expedite the establishment of National SAIEVAC Chapters to accelerate existing efforts to end violence against children; and

12. Contribute to the establishment and implementation of an operational framework/ mechanism for monitoring and accountability at all levels to stimulate and accelerate effective realisation of the above mentioned actions.

Dr. Vivek Joshi, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, head of the delegation made presentation on the legislative steps taken by the Government of India to eliminate violence against children, the programs and schemes of the Ministry of Women and Child Development towards this aim. He also made a special presentation on the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Bill, 2012.

Medvedev replaces Putin as ruling party chief

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev succeeded President Vladimir Putin as head of the ruling party, United Russia, in a follow up to their job swap in the Kremlin.

Mr. Putin stepped down as the party’s chairman following his return to the presidency earlier this month. He argued that President in Russia by tradition is not affiliated with any party.

United Russia, which has dominated the Russian Parliament since its establishment in 2003, has recently been losing support. It lost a quarter of its seats in Parliament in December elections, which were marred with massive falsifications and sparked the biggest anti-Kremlin protests in 20 years.

Mr. Medvedev called for democratisation of the ruling party to enable it to deal with the growing competition from other political forces.

“The party must be more open, it must be seen by people as their own, not as a party imposed from high up… but as a party representing the interests of the broad masses,” Mr. Medvedev told a party congress on May 26.

He said all party functionaries must henceforth be elected by contested secret ballot and be replaced after five years. Mr. Medvedev himself was elected unopposed by a show of hands.

Serbian Progressive Party Leader Tomislav Nikolic won the Serbia’s Presidential Election

The Serbian Progressive Party leader Tomislav Nikolic won the Serbia’s presidential election on 20 May 2012. Nikolic beat his centrist opponent, the incumbent Boris Tadic in a closely contested election. Nikolic accounted for 50.21% of the total vote, against 46.77% for Tadic, with 40% of votes counted.
Nikolic, during his previous stints in power worked as a deputy prime minister under the former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, who was put on trial for genocide at The Hague. He was also the part of the government when Nato forces attacked Serbia in 1999. Nikolic, an ultra-nationalist, has widely been considered as anti-European Union given his vocal opposition of the bloc. He, however, in a bid to recapture the power toned down his antipathy towards the European Union and vowed to not deviate from its European path, after winning the elections.

Serbia, located at the intersections between Central and Southern Europe, became a separate sovereign republic in summer 2006 after Montenegro voted in a referendum for independence from the Union of Serbia and Montenegro. The country has its unemployment rate spiraling high at 24%. The total foreign debt of the country is also piling up as the current figure stands at 24 billion euro.

Record number of Indian Americans in race for US Congress

A record number of Indian Americans -- at least 12 -- are in the fray for the November 2012 polls vying for a place in the House of Representative, reflecting the serious effort of this fastest growing ethnic community in the US to politically empower itself.

Cutting across party lines, these Indian-American candidates are spread all over the country with two each from California and Michigan.
Congressman Hansen Clare, who is half Indian, is seeking re-election from Michigan, while another candidate Tulsi Gabbard, a Hindu, is receiving massive support from Indian- Americans.
The motivation and inspiration for these Indian-American candidates numbering at least a dozen comes from the phenomenal success of two rising stars of the Republican party, Nikki Haley (Governor of South Carolina) and Bobby Jindal (Governor of Louisiana).
However, majority of the Indian-American candidates are running for the Congress on a Democratic Party ticket.
Indian-Americans have been traditional supporter of the Democratic party, an indication of which comes from a recent survey according to which as many as 85 per cent of the Indian Americans favour re-election of President Barack Obama.
Among the Indian-American candidates seeking election for the US House of Representatives on a Democratic Party ticket are Upendra Chivukula from New Jersey, Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois, K P George from Texas, Ami Bera from California, Manan Trivedi from Pennsylvania, Syed Taj from Michigan and Vipin Verma from Florida.
Darshan Rauniyar from Washington, though from Nepal, is considered Indian-American by many.
Hansen Clarke and Tulsi Gabbard are also from the Democratic Party.
Young and dynamic Ranjit "Ricky" Gill from California and Ron Bhalla from Tenesse are the two Indian-American candidates in the fray from the Republican Party.
The 2012 election cycle has beaten the record of 2010 Congressional elections when for the first time eight Indian- Americans were in the fray, of which only Clarke tasted electoral victory.
Though the elections are still six months away, if news reports are any indication chances are that Clarke could have more Indian American colleagues in US House of Representatives.
Besides Clarke, only two other Indian-Americans have been elected to the Congress so far -- Bobby Jindal and Dalip Singh Saund.

Hindi as Official Language of UN

The Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs E. Ahamed informed the Rajya Sabha on May 10 that the Government has been actively taking necessary measures for the introduction of Hindi as one of the Official Languages of the UN. A high level Committee under the Chairmanship of the External Affairs Minister was constituted on 26 February, 2003 followed by a sub-Committee under the chairmanship of the Minister of State for External Affairs in August, 2003 to look into this matter and take necessary measures. Keeping in view this objective, the 8th World Hindi Conference was organized in New York on 13 July 2007 and its inaugural session was held at the UN Headquarters, which was attended by the UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-moon. In addition, a World Hindi Secretariat has been set up in Mauritius since 11 February 2008 to promote Hindi as an international language. On several occasions, Indian leaders have delivered statements at the UN in Hindi. Necessary arrangements were made for simultaneous interpretation of these statements in English by the Permanent Mission of India in New York. The Government of India`s sustained efforts have also ensured that the United Nations offers its programmes on the UN Radio Website in Hindi also.

The introduction of Hindi as one of the official languages of the United Nations has several financial and procedural implications which require to be met before a formal proposal can be tabled at the UN. India, as the proposing country, would need to provide sufficient financial resources to the UN to cover the additional expenditure on interpretation, translation, printing and duplication of documents and related infrastructural costs. Procedurally, the UN General Assembly (the legislative body of the UN) would also need to adopt a resolution supported by a majority of the 193 UN Member States. Apart from the additional cost to India, the addition of another official language at the UN entails a significant increase in the budget of the UN (personnel, equipment, and other recurring costs). Member States have been generally reluctant to support proposals entailing any additional financial burden.

US records warmest March since 1895

The US in 2012 has recorded the warmest March ever since the country started record-keeping in 1895, with more than 15,000 warm temperature records broken, America's weather monitoring agency has said.
The average temperature of 51.1°F in March 2012 was 8.6 degrees above the 20th century average for March and 0.5°F warmer than the previous warmest March in 1910, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said.
More than 15,000 warm temperature records were broken during the month, it added, as record and near-record breaking temperatures dominated the eastern two-thirds of the nation.
Of the more than 1,400 months (117+ years) that have passed since the US climate record began, only one month, January 2006, has seen a larger departure from its average temperature than March 2012, it said.
The US this year has recorded the warmest March ever since the it started record-keeping in 1895.
According to preliminary data, NOAA said there were as many as 15,272 warm temperature records broken (7,755 daytime records, 7,517 nighttime records).
Hundreds of locations across the country broke their all-time March records. There were 21 instances of the nighttime temperatures being as warm, or warmer, than the existing record daytime temperature for a given date, it said.
Warmer-than-average conditions across the eastern US also created an environment favorable for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. According to NOAA's Storm Prediction Center, there were 223 preliminary tornado reports during March, a month that averages 80 tornadoes annually.
The majority of the tornadoes occurred during the March 2nd-3rd outbreak across the Ohio Valley and Southeast, which caused 40 fatalities. Total losses from this event are estimated to exceed USD 1.5 billion dollars, making this the first event of 2012 to exceed one billion dollars in damages and losses, it said.

North Korea tests long-range missile

North Korea has been developing a new long-range ballistic missile in a separate programme from the one that led to a failed rocket launch this week, a South Korean TV station stated on April14.
   
YTN quoted an intelligence source as saying the communist state carried out four tests over 16 weeks until early this year to develop an inter-continental missile at a test facility at Musudan-ri on the northeastern coast.
   
The tests were aimed at improving engines and propellant fuel for the missile, code-named KN-08, the source said. The experiments took place amid ongoing talks with the United States that resulted in a February deal under which the North agreed to freeze its nuclear and long-range missile tests in return for food aid, YTN said.
   
AFP was unable immediately to confirm the story independently. North Korea, which admitted its long-range rocket launch failed , has been developing missiles for decades both for what it terms self-defence and as a lucrative export commodity.
   
Its launch was aimed at putting a peaceful satellite in orbit. But the United States and its allies condemned what they see as an apparent disguised test of ballistic missile technology in defiance of UN resolutions. Washington has halted plans to send food aid to Pyongyang.

Earthquake strikes Indonesia: No sign of major tsunami in Indian Ocean

A massive earthquake off Indonesia's western coast triggered a tsunami watch for countries across the Indian Ocean on April 11, clogging streets with traffic as residents fled to high ground in cars and on the backs of motorcycles.

Two hours after the quake hit, however, there was no sign of the feared wave. Damage also appeared to be minimal.

The US Geological Survey said the 8.6-magnitude quake was centered 20 miles (33 kilometers) beneath the ocean floor around 269 miles (434 kilometers) from Aceh province.

``It wasn't the strongest quake I've felt,'' said 22-year-old Tuti Rahmi, while trying to reach her brother by phone from Banda Aceh, people around her crying and screaming as they poured from their homes.

``But it seemed to last forever,'' she said, adding the ground shook for nearly four minutes.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect for Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa and Singapore.

But hours later, the threat appeared to have passed.

Roger Musson, seismologist at the British geological survey who has studied Sumatra's fault lines, says the temblor was a strike-slip quake, not a thrust quake, which causes the sea bed to flip up.

``When I first saw this was an 8.7 near Sumatra, I was fearing the worst,'' he said, noting one of the initial reported magnitudes for the quake. ``But as soon as I discovered what type of earthquake it was, then I felt a lot better.''

The tremor was felt in Malaysia, where it caused high-rise buildings to shake for about a minute, and in Singapore, Thailand, Bangladesh and India.

There was chaos in the streets of Aceh, where memories of a 2004 tsunami that killed 170,000 people in the province alone, are still raw.