Appointments :
Resignations/Retirements
Obituaries
- Malli Mastan Babu, Indian mountaineer, was found dead in the Andes mountain ranges in Chile in South America.Mastan Babu had the distinction of setting a Guinness Book record by surmounting seven peaks in seven continents in 172 days in 2006.
Awards
Sports
International
- The Mount Sinabung volcano in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province erupted.Mount Sinabung is among over 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, which is prone to seismic upheavals owing to its location on the “Pacific Ring of Fire”.
- “The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050,” by the Pew Research Center : World population of Hindus grow rapidly from now to 2050.But muslims tend to surpass all religion by 2050.Fertility rate : Muslims : 3.1 Children per women , Hindus : 2.4 per woman then Jews then buddhism.India will surpass indonesia in Muslim population by 2050.
- IS works with al-Qaeda to seize most of Palestinian camp in Damascu.
- Russia has decided to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)
- Forbes Middle East has released the names of the 100 richest Arab personalities in the world, the first position going to Saudi Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Al Saud with an estimated fortune of $22.6 billion.Bill Gates presides over the ranking this year, with $79.2 billion.
- Malaysia's lawmakers passed an anti-terrorism bill that reintroduces detention without trial, three years after it was revoked.
National
- The Navy has dispatched its destroyer INS Mumbai and stealth frigate INS Tarkash and patrol vessle INS Sumitra for evacuation of Indians from Aden in Yemen. : Operation RAAHAT
- Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and PepsiCo chairperson and chief executive officer Indra Nooyi jointly inaugurated the company’s largest unit of Greenfield production unit at Sri City in Chittoor district.
Polity
- National Democratic Alliance government re-promulgated the land acquisition ordinance just a day before it lapsed.Though the government had passed the Right to Fair compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Resettlement and rehabilitation (Amendment) Bill, 2015, (LARR) in Lok sabha during budget session, it was not able to get it push it through Rajya Sabha where the Bharatiya Janata Party is in minority.President Pranab Mukherjee signed the ordinance. If the amendment comes into effect, public-private partnership projects, including private health and educational institutions, defence manufacturing projects, land purchase for affordable housing projects, industrial corridors and rural infrastructure will not require consent from land owners/farmers; SIA will also not be mandatory.
Economics
The core infrastructure industries of coal, crude oil, oil refining, natural gas, steel, cement, electricity and fertilisers account for 37.9 per cent of the industrial output.Five of the eight sectors have shown negative growth rates.8 sectors showed a marginal growth of 1.4 per cent in February.
Env & Ecology
- Super typhoon Maysak slows down,earlier hit Micronesia region ,east of the Philippine.
- Recent warming of the Pacific Ocean may signal an El Nino weather event is forming.Such climatic conditions would prove a blow for Australian wheat production, which is reliant on rains in winter and spring.
- Kerela scientists have reported the discovery of a rare species of plant Named Oldenlandia dineshi, the plant is a shrub with long linear tapering leaves and dark blue flowers, from the Palakkad gap region of the Western Ghats, highlighting the floral diversity.
- The Russian Federation has submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs). It has committed to cutting anthropogenic (human activity-led) greenhouse gas emissions by 25-30 per cent by 2030 over 1990 levels. This makes it the 32nd developed nation to submit its climate action plan. These countries represent nearly 80 per cent of total emissions from industrialised nations.In all, 35 countries have formally submitted INDCs, including Mexico as the first developing country and Gabon as the first African country to give their climate plans
Science & Tech
Darbha (Desmotachya bipinnata) is a tropical grass considered a sacred material in Vedic scriptures and is said to purify the offerings during such rituals.Traditional tropical grass, Darbha, has been identified as an eco-friendly food preservative. - A recent study by Indian and Austrian scientists has led to the discovery of the cause of the ‘Blood Rain’ phenomenon to be dispersal of spores of micro algae. Since 1896, reports have been coming in of sporadic instances of red coloured rain over parts of Kerala and Sri Lanka. The latest one was in 2013 over Kerala.
- Armed with an asteroid hunter, lunar flashlight and DNA kit, NASA will launch the unmanned Orion spacecraft using the Space Launch System (SLS) — its largest, most powerful rocket booster ever built — in 2018.
- The secondary payloads are Near—Earth Asteroid (NEA) Scout, Lunar Flashlight and BioSentinel.
- NEA Scout, using solar sail propulsion, will fly by a small asteroid, taking pictures and making observations that will enhance the current understanding of an the asteroid environment.
- NASA’s Lunar Flashlight will scout for locations on the lunar surface that are rich in resources that, once broken down into their component molecules, could be used in future exploration.
- The BioSentinel mission will be the first time living organisms have traveled to deep space in over 40 years and the spacecraft will operate in the deep space radiation environment throughout its 18—month mission.
Health
- The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has indicted Maharashtra for generating the highest amount of solid waste in the country.
- An M3 score reflects your mental health – whether or not you are suffering from depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, or post traumatic stress disorder; and if so, how severe the problem is.
- The Rajasthan State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) has asked the government to take a fresh look at the Mines Act, 1952 to contain the alarming spread of occupational diseases and effectively deal with violators.SHRC has said it should be made compulsory for mine owners to use modern technology for extraction of sandstone and other dimensional stones.Silicosis is an incurable respiratory disease caused by inhaling silica dust and is widespread among miners.
- PM Narendra Modi released the national Air Quality Index (AQI) and health alert for public information. The Index that was launched in New Delhi will be used to inform people about daily air quality and to provide advisories on health consequences.he new AQI has been hosted on the website of the Central Pollution Control Board. The AQI has been developed for six pollutants – PM2.5, PM10, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, ozone, and carbon monoxide.India has joined the global league of countries like the US, China, Mexico, France and Hong Kong that have implemented smog alert systems
Culture
- Eeshanya was a two-day cultural festival organised by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Southern Regional Centre, an initiation towards deeper recognition of the culture of North East India.
- The troupe Nyokum Ane led by Tamar Taddar presented Rekham Pada, a tribal dance from Arunachal Pradesh. It is a Nyishi dance which is performed during the festival of Nyokum. Nyokum is defined by Nyok (land) and Kum (people).
- The J.K. Women’s Cultural group from Nagaland performed Apilo Kuwo. It is a dance performed during the festival of Tuhini and Ahuna
- Songs from the tribe of Temang or Temang Selo were danced to by Ujwala Kala Kendra from Sikkim.
- A Manipuri ensemble presented Dasa Avatharam, the ten incarnations of Vishnu and Raas Leela, a Natwari Nritya of Krishna with his Sakhis
Facts :
- Federal Reserve Chair of Borad of Directors : Janet Yellen
- India’s foreign exchange reserves increased by $4.26 billion to $339.99 billion for the week ended March 20, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed.With higher interest rates in the US, the foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are expected to be led away from the emerging markets such as India.
- National Highway 75 connecting Hassan and B.C. Road.
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| Yemen as of April 2015 |
Who are the Houthis?
The Houthis are followers of the Shia Zaidi sect, the faith of around a third of Yemen’s population. Officially known as Ansarallah (the partisans of God), the group began as a movement preaching tolerance and peace in the Zaidi stronghold of North Yemen in the early 1990s.
After some protests pitted it against the government, the group launched an insurgency in 2004 against the then ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh that lasted till 2010. Their opponents view them as a proxy of Shia Iran. The group is hostile to the United States but has also vowed to eradicate al-Qaeda. They participated in the 2011 Arab Spring inspired revolution in Yemen that replaced Saleh with Abdrahbu Mansour Hadi.Shia rebels and their allies have captured the presidential palace in Aden following heavy clashes in the commercial centre of this southern coastal city.
Who are fighting whom?
› Houthis:
The rebel group controls nine of 21 provinces as of Apr 2015
› Saudi-led coalition:
Saudi Arabia:
UAE:
Bahrain:
Kuwait:
Qatar:
Jordan:
Sudan:
Egypt:
› Yemeni security forces:
The military is now split as units that support Mr. Hadi, units that support the Houthis, and units that support a still-influential Saleh, who is in the Houthi camp for now.
› Popular Resistance
- Committees:Militia loyal to Hadi in his stronghold of south Yemen.
- AQAP: Mr. Hadi and Houthis are fighting al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which has staged several attacks in the country and is strong in the south. Active since 2009.
- IS: A new group of militants inspired by the Islamic State group has claimed major attacks.
- U.S : CIA drones have continued to target top AQAP leaders, but the campaign has suffered from Mr. Hadi’s absence.
