1.
Global chemical watchdog OPCW wins Nobel Peace Prize
i. The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical
Weapons won this year's Nobel Peace Prize today "for its extensive
efforts" to rid the world of such arsenals, the Norwegian Nobel Committee
said.
ii. "The conventions and the work of the OPCW have defined
the use of chemical weapons as a taboo under international law," the
committee said.
iii. The organisation is overseeing the
destruction of stockpiles of chemical weapons in Syria.
iv. Based
in The Hague, Netherlands, the OPCW was formed in 1997 to enforce the Chemical
Weapons Convention, the first international treaty to outlaw an entire class of
weapons.
v. The organisation has 189 member states and today's award
comes just days before Syria officially joins and even as OPCW inspectors are
on a highly risky United Nations-backed disarmament mission based in Damascus
to verify and destroy President Bashar Assad's arsenal of poison gas and nerve
agents amid a raging civil war.
vi. The peace prize was the last of the original Nobel Prizes
to be announced for this year.
vii. The winners of the economics award, added in 1968, will be
announced on Monday.
Note: The 2012 Nobel Peace
Prize was
awarded to the European Union (EU)
2. India Signed MoUs with Seven Countries for Nalanda
University Project
i. Government
of India on 10 October 2013 signed agreements with seven countries, who pledged
their commitment to the Nalanda University project in Bihar.
ii. The Memorandums of
Understanding (MoUs) were signed with Australia, Cambodia, Singapore, Brunei,
New Zealand, Lao PDR and Myanmar in the sidelines of East Asia Summit in Brunei.
iii. These MoUs are
important to India's plans to establish Nalanda University in Bihar as an
institution of international repute.
iv. Nalanda University
will be constructed at Rajgir, which is situated around 100 km away from Patna,
Bihar. The construction of the University will take place on 446-acre plot,
which is situated 12 km away from the ruins of ancient seat of learning.
v. China has already
committed 1 million Dollars for the project, Singapore has pledged 5-6 million
Dollars and Australia about 1 million Australian dollars and all these funds
have been committed on voluntary basis.
Note: The East Asia Summit (EAS) is a forum for cooperation between
various countries of this region with ASEAN and includes Australia, China,
India, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia and the US, in addition to
the ten ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries.
3. International Day of the Girl Child observed on 11
October
i. International Day of
the Girl Child observed on 11 October 2013 across the world to recognise the
girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls face around the world.
ii. The for the year
2013 is Innovating for Girls’ Education
iii. This year’s Day focuses on innovating for girls’ education.
Smart and creative use of technology, policies, partnerships and, most of all,
the engagement of young people, themselves, are important for overcoming
barriers to girls’ learning and achievement.
iv. The United Nations
General Assembly on 19 December 19, 2011 adopted Resolution 66/170 to declare
11 October as the International Day of the Girl Child, to recognise girls’ rights and the unique challenges girls
face around the world.
4. China and EU Signed a Bilateral Currency Swap
Agreement
i. China on 10 October
2013 signed a 350 Billion Yuan (45 billion Euro) currency swap agreement with
the European Union, marking a major step in internationalising its currency.
ii. The agreement signed
between the People's Bank of China (PBOC) and the European Central Bank (ECB).
The pact aimed to support bilateral trade and protect financial stability.
iii. The agreement lasts
three years and can be extended if both parties agree.
iv. So far China has
signed currency swap deals totaling 2.2 trillion Yuan (358 billion US Dollars)
with 22 countries and regions to push the international use of its Yuan.
5. Mudgal panel submits report on Cinematograph Act
i. The
Empowered Committee led by Retired Chief Justice (High Court of Punjab and
Haryana) Mukul Mudgal submitted its report on issues concerning the
Cinematograph Act to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
ii.
The
committee has given its suggestions regarding issues such as advisory panels,
guidelines for certification and issues such as portrayal of women, obscenity
and communal disharmony. Other issues which the committee has revisited and
given its recommendations on include classification of films, piracy and
jurisdiction of appellate tribunal, among others. It has also proposed a draft
Cinematograph Bill.
iii. The committee had
meetings across cities in the past eight months since its inception and also
discussed the issues with officials of Central Board of Film Certification,
Animal Welfare Board of India, Chairperson of BCCCI, representatives of the
Film Federation of India, the Films and Television Producers Guild of India,
among others.
6. Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan abducted by Gunmen
i. Prime Minister of
Libya, Ali Zeidan was abducted by gunmen on 10 October 2013. They held him
captive for several hours. Ali Zeidan was later rescued. The incident
underscored the lawlessness gripping Libya two years after the ouster of
autocrat Moammar Gadhafi.
ii. The gunmen who
abducted Zeidan were believed to be militiamen. They did that in apparent
retaliation for a US special-forces raid that captured an al-Qaida suspect.
They accused Zeidan’s government of colluding in the operation.
iii. Ali Zeidan is the
Prime Minister of Libya. He was appointed by the General National Congress on
14 October 2012, and took office on 14 November after Congress approved his
cabinet nominees.
7. ‘Tata First Dot’ event launched
i. The
Tata group has launched the third edition of ‘Tata First Dot powered by NEN,’ a
platform for student entrepreneurship.
ii. Tata First Dot workshops will be
held across 20 cities this year, adding five – Raipur, Guwahati, Ranchi, Nagpur
and Srinagar - to the list, said Atul Agrawal, vice-president, corporate
Affairs, Tata Services.
iii. Regional workshops
will start from September 28 at Ahmedabad and then travel to other cities.
Nominations for the Tata First Dot national competition for best student
start-ups will open December 1.
iv. K. Srikrishna,
Executive Director, National Entrepreneurship Network (NEN), said that the
organisers will mentor, showcase and support start-ups through the January
conference and beyond.
8. BioAsia 2014 to kick off on Feb 17
i. The
eleventh annual international life sciences conference, BioAsia 2014, will kick
off in Hyderabad from February 17-19.
ii. “Innovate and
Evolve”— this will be the theme for the new edition of the international meet,
as it involves the entire life sciences industry.
iii. The meet’s focus on
innovation will address the increasing disease burden and the growing need for
more efficacious and affordable healthcare solutions.
iv. An important
feature of the meet will be a parallel event, AgBioAsia, highlighting the
health and nutritious aspects of the industry.
v. The focus of this
event will be on harnessing the potential of the global nutraceutical market —
this is being hosted by the Andhra Pradesh Government, in partnership with the
International Crops Research Institute for Semi Arid Tropics and Federation of
Asian Biotech Associations.
vi. Shakthi Nagappan,
CEO BioAsia, said traditionally the Asian Life sciences businesses were centred
on established markets for their clearly defined products with little
experimentation.
9. Khurshid to co-chair India-Brazil jt commission
meeting next week
i. External
Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid will co-chair the sixth India-Brazil Joint
Commission Meeting (JCM) meeting during his visit to Brazil beginning October
14.
ii. In a statement, the
Ministry of External Affairs has said that during the meeting, both sides will
discuss the entire gamut of India-Brazil Strategic Partnership, including
political, economic and commercial, agriculture, science and technology,
defence, cultural and hydrocarbon.
iii. Brazil is an
important trading partner of India in Latin America and Caribbean. Bilateral
trade has grown significantly to $10.6 billion in 2012-13 from from $828
million in 2000.
iv. India’s exports are
valued at $6 billion and imports at $4.6 billion. Indian companies have made
significant investments in Brazil which are estimated at $ 2.5 billion in the
fields of agriculture, IT, pharma, manufacturing and hydrocarbons, among others.
10. Cyclonic Storm Phailin hit the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands
i. The
cyclonic storm Phailin in the second week of October 2013 hit the Andaman and
Nicobar islands and moved northwestwards early this morning and presently lay
centred about 800 km South East of Paradip in Odisha.
ii. It is expected to
reach the coast of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh in the next 48 to 72 hours. The
system will intensify into a severe cyclonic storm during the next 12 hours.
Fishermen have been asked not to venture into sea and those gone deep inside
the sea have been asked to return to the coast.
11.
India
beat Australia by 6 wkts in the one-off T-20 cricket match in Rajkot
i. India recorded a convincing six wicket victory over Australia
in the one-off Twenty-20 International cricket match at the Saurashtra Cricket
Association Stadium in Rajkot last night. Set to score 202 runs for a win,
India achieved victory in 19.4 overs. Man of the Match Yuvraj Singh remained
unbeaten on 77 which came off only 35 balls. Skipper M.S. Dhoni was not out on
24.
ii. Earlier, put in to bat, Australia made
201 for seven in their 20 overs.
12. Mumbai to host Tendulkar’s farewell Test
i. Mumbai’s
Wankhede Stadium is set to host the farewell Test for Sachin Tendulkar after
the legendary batsman expressed a wish to play his landmark 200th match against
the West Indies next month in front of his home crowd.
ii. “A top BCCI official
said that Mumbai is almost certain to host the historic match though it will be
made official only after the BCCI’s tours and fixtures committee meets.
iii. Kolkata’s Eden
Gardens and Wankhede were the frontrunners to host Tendulkar’s farewell Test
but the champion batsman’s letter to the board has swung it in favour of
Mumbai, the city which gave the sport the greatest cricketer of the modern era.
iv. Kolkata’s Eden
Gardens and Wankhede were the frontrunners to host Tendulkar’s farewell Test
but the champion batsman’s letter to the board has swung it in favour of
Mumbai, the city which gave the sport the greatest cricketer of the modern era.
