#Earthquake Prone Zone

Bureau of Indian Standards, based on the past seismic history, grouped the country into four seismic zones, viz. Zone-II, -III, -IV and –V. Of these, Zone V is the most seismically active region, while zone II is the least. The Modified Mercalli (MM) intensity, which measures the impact of the earthquakes on the surface of the earth, broadly associated with various zones, is as follows: Seismic Zone Intensity on MM scale II (Low intensity zone)                                   VI (or less) III (Moderate intensity zone)                         VII IV (Severe intensity zone)                              VIII V (Very severe intensity zone)                       IX (and above) Broadly, Zone-V comprises of entire northeastern India, parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, parts of North Bihar and Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Zone-IV covers remaining parts of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh, Union Territory of Delhi, Sikkim, northern parts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal, parts of Gujarat and small portions of Maharashtra near the west coast and Rajasthan. Zone-III comprises of Kerala, Goa, Lakshadweep islands, and remaining parts of Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal, parts of Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu and Karnataka. Zone-II covers remaining parts of the country. Further, as part of pre-disaster preparedness measure, Government of India has also completed seismic microzonation studies of some of the major cities in the country such as, Jabalpur, Guwahati, Bangalore, greater Bharuch in Gujarat, Jammu in J & K, Shillong in Meghalaya, Chennai in Tamilnadu and sikkim state. These studies involving preparation of geological, geomorphological and land use maps followed by drilling, geological logging, standard penetration test and geophysical studies to demarcate the zones of least to most damage prone areas within the urban areas helps the respective town and country planning agencies to formulate perspective planning within the overall earthquake impact minimization efforts.

3685 Monuments/Sites in the Country Declared as of National Importance till Date

3685 monuments/sites in the country have been declared as of national importance till date. During the year 2013-14, an amount of Rs. 16963.86 lakhs was allocated for the protection and maintenance of monuments declared as of national importance. As per the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, ancient monuments or archaeological sites and remains, as the case may be, which are of historical, archaeological or artistic interest, and have been in existence for not less than 100 years, may be declared by the Central Government as of national importance. The protection and maintenance of monuments, declared as of national importance is taken up by Archaeological Survey of India by way of structural repairs, chemical preservation and environmental development around the monument which is a regular and ongoing process and the required works are taken-up on need basis as per the established principles of conservation, subject to availability of resources. In addition, creating of tourist related amenities (e.g. drinking water, toilet blocks, facilities for physically challenged, pathways, cultural notice boards/signage, vehicle parking, cloak rooms, etc.) at the centrally protected monuments/sites are also the regular activities which the ASI undertakes as per needs and availability of resources.  Proposal to Include ‘Delhi’s Imperial capital cities’ in World Heritage List of UNESCO The State Government of Delhi has proposed UNESCO to include ‘Delhi’s Imperial Capital Cities’ among the World Heritage Cities. The nomination dossier of ‘Delhi’s Imperial Capital Cities’ had been forwarded to UNESCO in 2014 for the purpose of its inscription in the World Heritage List. As per the UNESCO Guidelines, after the submission of the nomination dossier, UNESCO sent their own evaluation mission. In October, 2014 an ICOMOS evaluation mission came to evaluate the site. They had asked for some additional information in respect to the property which was forwarded to UNESCO by November 2014. ICOMOS team had called for a meeting on 19th of January 2015 in France and Prof. A.G.K.Menon, Convenor, INTACH Delhi chapter attended the meeting.

Share of US, Russia, China And Japan in Foreign Trade

Percentage Share of countries like Japan, USA, China, Russia in India’s foreign Trade is as follows: 2013-14 2014-2015(Apr-Dec) Countries Export Import Total Trade Export Import Total Trade Japan 2.17 2.11 2.13 1.72 2.23 2.03 USA 12.45 5.00 8.06 13.76 4.63 8.31 China 4.72 11.34 8.61 3.88 13.12 9.40 Russia 0.67 0.87 0.79 0.70 0.94 0.85 India, based on its economic interests, explores possibilities of Free Trade Agreements with various countries, as a way to enhance trade and investment. During 2014-15 (Apr-Feb), Government has taken several steps to improve trade relations with other countries. Details of some of the activities /events are as under:- (i)        27th International Pharmaceutical R&D and Manufacturing Expo/Conference was held on 2ndJuly, 2014 in Tokyo. (ii)      Meeting of WTO was held in Geneva on July 2nd   2014. (iii)    ASEAN Economic Minister’s (AEM) meeting was held on 26th August, 2014. (iv)    7th Indian-Oman Joint Commission meeting was held on 29th October, 2014. (v)      2nd India – CLMV (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) Business Conclave was held on 10th December, 2014 in New Delhi. (vi)    Meeting of India – Vietnam Sub-Commission on Trade was held on 21st January 2015. (vii)  7th India-Kenya Joint Trade Committee Meeting was held on 12th February, 2015 in New Delhi. (viii)   5th India-Myanmar Joint Trade Committee Meeting was held in Nay Pai Taw on 17th February, 2015.

“2015 – Year of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients” launched

“2015 – Year of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients” launched; Chemicals & Fertilizers Minister assures Pharmaceutical Industry of reforms to make India self-sufficient in Bulk Drugs

The Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers Sh. Ananth Kumar has assured the Pharmaceutical Industry that appropriate decisions will be taken soon so that India becomes self-sufficient in the Bulk Drugs. Speaking at the launch ceremony of “2015 – Year of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients” here today he said that the Government is committed to usher in reforms and good governance, and promote the concept of “Make in India”. He said that the Government had set up Katoch Committee to look into various issues concerning the bulk drugs, and its recommendations have been received which will be implemented expeditiously after taking the Cabinet’s approval. Sh. Ananth Kumar said that the Bulk Drugs constitute the backbone of the Pharmaceutical Industry and the sector needs to be incentivized so as to take on the challenge from cheap imports. The Minster said that there can be no compromise with the quality, environmental requirements or regulatory necessities but the issues hampering the growth of the industry have to be addressed. He said over-dependence on imports from one country for bulk drugs is detrimental to the country’s interest and hence, paradigm shift is necessary. Sh. Ananth Kumar said that in formulations, India is a world leader and there is no reason why we should not be in the bulk drugs sector also. He said the Government is committed to support the bulk drug industry and revival of Public Sector Undertakings of the sector is on the anvil. Discussions with State Governments are also going on to solicit their cooperation for setting up Mega Pharma Parks. He called upon the industry to tap the skilled manpower and potential of the country and come up with an action plan for strengthening the Bulk Drugs Sector. Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State for Chemicals & Fertilizers Sh. Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said that more research and development activities need to be taken in this sector. He called for industry-government cooperation to give boost to the Bulk Drugs Industry. Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals Dr. V.K. Subburaj said that there is an urgent need to bring about self-sufficiency in the field of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API). He said that the Government is taking steps to reduce dependence on imports and initiate good policy measures to support the industry. India is very much dependent on import from a single source for basic chemicals, intermediates and APIs for many commonly used medicines. To avoid the price and supply risks associated with such situation and ensure assured and sustained availability of these basic inputs to formulation sector, there is a felt need to focus the attention to promote the manufacturing of API in India. This is also consistent with the avowed objective of the government regarding ‘Make in India’. In recognition of the situation, Department of Pharmaceuticals has declared the Year 2015 as the Year of API. The Government will take measures to facilitate the growth of the sector and also interact with the industry on a more regular basis to improve G2B interactions and promote better and more coordinated efforts to achieve the objective of ‘Make in India’, especially for the API sector.

11 Indian and 13 foreign satellites launched during January 2012-February, 2015

During the last three years (January 2012-Februrary, 2015), India has successfully launched 24 satellites consisting of 11 Indian satellites and 13 foreign satellites. The details of the satellites are as follows: a)      11 #Indiansatellites: RISAT-1, Satellite for Argos and Altika (SARAL), IRNSS-1A, IRNSS-1B, IRNSS-1C, INSAT-3D, Mars Orbiter Mission Spacecraft, GSAT-14, GSAT-10, GSAT-7 and GSAT-16; b)      13 foreign satellites: SPOT-6 (France), PROITERES (Japan), SAPPHIRE (Canada), NEOSSat (Canada), NLS 8.1 (Austria), NLS 8.2 (Austria), NLS 8.3 (Denmark), STRaND-1 (UK), SPOT-7 (France), NLS 7.1 (Canada), NLS 7.2 (Canada), AISat (Germany) & VELOX-1 (Singapore). The expenditure incurred on the launching of each of these eleven Indian satellites into the space is given below:  (` in crores) SN Name of the Satellite Launched by Expenditure incurred on  Launching 1 RISAT-1 PSLV-C19 90.00 2 SARAL PSLV-C20 85.00 3 GSAT-10 Procured Launch 406.82 4 IRNSS-1A PSLV-C22 90.00 5 Mars Orbiter Spacecraft PSLV-C25 108.34 6 GSAT-14 GSLV-D5 173.00 7 GSAT-7 Procured Launch 485.29 8 INSAT-3D Procured Launch 485.15 9 IRNSS-1B PSLV-C24 90.00 10 IRNSS-1C PSLV-C26 90.00 11 GSAT-16 Procured launch 581.00 There was no satellite failure in the process of launching during the above mentioned period. 27 satellites operational in the country and action has been taken towards developing 26 indigenous satellites There are 27 satellites that are operational in the country currently. This information was provided by MoS in the Prime Minister’s Office and Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, PG & Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh in a reply to Lok Sabha today. These are as follows: (i) 11 Communication Satellites namely, INSAT-3A, INSAT-3C, INSAT-4A, INSAT-4B, INSAT-4CR, GSAT-7, GSAT-8, GSAT-10, GSAT-12, GSAT-14 and GSAT-16. (ii) 12 Earth Observation Satellites namely, Resourcesat-2, RISAT-1, RISAT-2, Cartosat-1, Cartosat-2, Cartosat-2A, Cartosat-2B, Oceansat-2, SARAL, Kalpana-1, Megha-Tropiques and INSAT-3D. (iii) 3 Navigational Satellites namely, IRNSS-1A, IRNSS-1B and IRNSS-1C (iv) 1 Mars Orbiter Mission (a) As part of XII Five Year Plan (2012-17), action has been taken towards developing 26 indigenous satellites, which includes (i) 6 Communication satellites namely GSAT-15, GSAT-9, GSAT-6, GSAT-6A, GSAT-7A and GSAT-11 (ii) 13 Earth observation satellites namely, Resourcesat-2A, Cartosat-2C, Cartosat-2D, Cartosat-2E, GISAT-1, GISAT-2, INSAT-3DR, INSAT-3DS, Cartosat-3A, Cartosat-3B, Technology Demonstrator Micro Satellite (TD-MS), Hyperspectral Imaging Satellite and RISAT-2A; (iii) 4 Navigation satellites namely IRNSS-1D, IRNSS-1E, IRNSS-1F and IRNSS-1G; (iv) 3 Space science satellites namely Astrosat, Chandrayaan-2 and Aditya. 95 Ku-band (a part of K band) transponders onboard indigenous communication satellites are being utilized for various communication applications. Replying to the discussion, the minister said that the government is also working on resolving the connectivity issues in the hilly areas.

Agreement on the New Development Bank and the #BRICS Contingent Reserve Agreement

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today gave its approval for establishing the New Development Bank (NDB) and the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA). The New Development Bank will mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS and other emerging economies and developing countries, to supplement existing efforts of multilateral and regional financial institutions for global growth and development. The establishment of the Bank will help India and other signatory countries to raise and avail resources for their infrastructure and sustainable development projects. It would also reflect the close relations among BRICS countries, while providing a powerful instrument for increasing their economic cooperation. The BRICS CRA proposes to provide short-term liquidity support to the members through currency swaps to help mitigating BOP crisis situation, in case such a situation arises. The BRICS CRA will help India and other signatory countries to forestall short-term liquidity pressures, provide mutual support and further strengthen financial stability. It would also contribute to strengthening the global financial safety net and complement existing international arrangements (from IMF) as an additional line of defence. The Agreement will enter into force and the Bank will begin operations only after all member countries deposit their instruments of ratification with Brazil. It will also provide the force of law to the commitments made by India in the inter-governmental agreement of the NDB including privileges and immunities that are to be extended to the Bank and its employees as specified in the Articles of Agreement. Central Banks of the member countries will also have to finalize an Inter-Central Bank Agreement containing the operational details of swap transactions and the Standing Committee`s Operational Procedures (SCOP) before the arrangement can be operational. Signing of the Agreement for the establishment of the New Development Bank is expected to allow India to raise and obtain more resources for the much needed infrastructure development, the lack of which is coming in the way of inclusiveness and growth as of now. Besides, the governance structure and decision making in the Bank will be equitable unlike the existing multilateral development banks. So far infrastructure financing in India has been done from two public sources: Government and existing multilateral development banks. These have been supplemented by private sector contributions through Public-Private Partnership projects. However, in the context of fiscal consolidation, declining resources of existing MDBs and risk-averse private sector, the New Development Bank to be established by BRICS countries will make available additional resources thereby recycling the savings accumulated in emerging countries which are presently being locked up in Treasury bonds having much lower returns. Signing of the Agreement is the first step towards economic cooperation of BRICS countries for pursuance of common goals. BRICS CRA will ensure equity and inclusiveness by providing a backup safety net arrangement in place that will allow the Government of India to go ahead with its necessary and bold policy decisions without being concerned about the international economic development that may lead to domestic imbalances and worsen BOP position. The BRICS CRA is expected to serve the needs of our emerging economy in boosting access to additional foreign exchange reserves, should such situation arise. So far IMF support is the primary safety net that is available to India in case any BOP crisis situation arises. Pending the IMF governance reforms, India does not have much say in the IMF decisions. The proposed CRA will provide an alternative approach. This will also provide yet another window for our economy to engage with the BRICS in a more fruitful manner.

National Solar Mission

Implementation of Project for setting up of 15,000 MW of Grid-connected Solar PV Power plants through NTPC/ NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited under National Solar Mission

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today gave its approval for the implementation of the scheme for setting up of 15,000 MW of Grid-connected Solar PV Power projects under the National Solar Mission through NTPC/ NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Limited (NVVN) in three tranches namely, 3000 MW under Tranche-l under mechanism of Bundling with Unallocated Coal based Thermal Power and fixed levellised tariffs, 5,000 MW under Tranche-ll with some support from Government to be decided after getting some experience while implementing Tranche-l and balance 7,000 MW under Tranche-Ill without any financial support from the Government. Successful completion of additional 15,000 MW capacity of Grid-connected solar PV power generation projects, mainly in the private sector, with largely private investment, under the National Solar Mission would accelerate the process of achieving grid tariff parity for solar power and also help reduce consumption of kerosene and diesel, which is presently in use to meet the unmet demand. In Tranche-l, which will be Batch-II of Phase-II of the National Solar Mission, 3000 MW capacity of solar PV power plants will be based on bundling of solar power (3000 MW) with unallocated thermal power (1500 MW) in the ratio of 2:1 (in MW terms), for which the required 1500 MW unallocated thermal power has been made available by the Ministry of Power. The bundled power will be allotted to various States that come forward to (i) provide land for setting up the solar power projects and (ii) purchase a major portion of the bundled solar power for consumption within the State (iii) ensure connectivity to the solar power project. The capacity allotted to each such State will be set up through developers, to be selected through international competitive bidding by NTPC /NVVN. Both private and government companies would be free to bid for projects. 1000 MW capacity out of the 3000 MW under the bundling scheme will be set up on land already identified in Andhra Pradesh. The balance 2000 MW capacity under the Bundling Scheme will be allotted in other interested States that come forward. It is estimated that implementation of Tranche-l of the scheme will entail total investment of over Rs.18,000 crore, all of which will be met by project developers, mainly private. A Payment Security Mechanism / Working Capital Fund with an estimated corpus of Rs. 2300 crore to cover 3 months payment for bundled capacity of 3000 MW of Solar Capacity with 1500 MW NTPC Coal Power, will be set up to ensure bankability of PPAs and timely payment to developers. This will be evolved through collaborative efforts of Government of India and Solar Project Developers. The modalities for setting up of Payment Security Mechanism / Working Capital Fund will be finalized subsequently. Accruals from encashment of Bank Guarantees, penalties on developers, etc. will also go into this fund. Some capacity will be earmarked out of the total procurement under this scheme with provisions of domestically manufactured solar cells as well as modules. The quantity to be fixed with Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) in each tender will be prescribed by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) based on the prevailing market conditions from time to time. Bids received under both the categories (one with DCR requirement and the other without any such requirement) will be evaluated and successful bidders selected independently. Further, this DCR will also be technology agnostic that is applied on both the crystalline silicon and thin film SPV cells and modules. Background The first Phase of the #NationalSolarMission (2010-2013) had a target of 1100 MW for Grid-connected solar power generation capacity, against which 1685 MW was set up in the country under various schemes. Further capacity addition of 9,000 MW comprising 3,000 MW under Central schemes and 6,000 MW under State initiatives/ other mechanisms was envisaged In the 2nd phase of the Mission (April 2013-March 2017). Now that sufficient experience is available in India in this field and the Government is keen to expeditiously promote solar power in the country, it is proposed to give a quantum jump to development of solar power in India through market driven approach, wherein the role of subsidies and direct Government support is gradually phased out. Specifically, it is proposed to significantly enhance capacity addition in the 2nd phase itself under Central schemes through various mechanisms.