Danger from Zika virus to the world

Danger from Zika virus to the world

Zika virus is spread to people through mosquito bites. The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes). The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon. In the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) issued an alert regarding the first confirmed Zika virus infection in Brazil. The outbreak in Brazil led to reports of Guillain-Barre syndrome and pregnant women giving birth to babies with birth defects and poor pregnancy outcomes.

The Zika virus, an alarming and disturbing infection that may be linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains, is spreading through the Americas. This is the same mosquito that transmits dengue fever and chikungunya. The illness is similar to dengue fever and is generally mild and self-limiting, lasting four to seven days. Zika is commanding worldwide attention because of an alarming connection between the virus and microcephaly, a neurological disorder that results in babies being born with abnormally small heads. This causes severe developmental issues and sometimes death.

 Almost our entire counrty is in the Red zone and given the frequent endemics of Dengue which we run into every year, we really can't rule Zika out! For now all we have to say is that stay safe, keep your surrounding free from garbage and mosquitoes. No Zika case has been reported in the country so far and the government’s strategy is meant to prevent the virus being carried from abroad as was done to counter Ebola earlier. The transmission of the virus mostly takes place when the infected person has a fever. India needs to focus on stopping the entry of the virus in the country because of its enormous childbirth rate as Zika affects foetuses the most.

Benefits in UDAY scheme approved by GOI recently

Benefits in UDAY scheme approved by GOI recently

UDAY is a path breaking reform for realizing the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of affordable and accessible 24x7 Power for All. It is another decisive step furthering the landmark strides made in the Power sector over the past one and a half years, with the sector witnessing a series of historic improvements across the entire value chain, from fuel supply, to generation, transmission and consumption. Financially stressed DISCOMs are not able to supply adequate power at affordable rates, which hampers quality of life and overall economic growth and development. Efforts towards 100% village electrification, 24X7 power supply and clean energy cannot be achieved without performing DISCOMs. Power outages also adversely affect national priorities like “Make in India” and “Digital India”. In addition, default on bank loans by financially stressed DISCOMs has the potential to seriously impact the banking sector and the economy at large.

UDAY assures the rise of vibrant and efficient DISCOMs through a permanent resolution of past as well as potential future issues of the sector. It empowers DISCOMs with the opportunity to break even in the next 2-3 years. This is through four initiatives (i) Improving operational efficiencies of DISCOMs; (ii) Reduction of cost of power; (iii) Reduction in interest cost of DISCOMs; (iv) Enforcing financial discipline on DISCOMs through alignment with State finances. Operational efficiency improvements like compulsory smart metering, up-gradation of transformers, meters etc., energy efficiency measures like efficient LED bulbs, agricultural pumps, fans & air-conditioners etc. will reduce the average AT&C loss from around 22% to 15% and eliminate the gap between Average Revenue Realized (ARR) & Average Cost of Supply (ACS) by 2018-19.

Reduction in cost of power would be achieved through measures such as increased supply of cheaper domestic coal, coal linkage rationalization, liberal coal swaps from inefficient to efficient plants, coal price rationalization based on GCV (Gross Calorific Value), supply of washed and crushed coal, and faster completion of transmission lines. NTPC alone is expected to save Rs. 0.35 / unit through higher supply of domestic coal and rationalization / swapping of coal which will be passed on to DISCOMs / consumers.

UDAY is optional for all States. However, States are encouraged to take the benefit at the earliest as benefits are dependent on the performance.

We use helium in balloons

We use helium in balloons

Helium is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2.Helium is a colorless, tasteless and odorless gas. Helium is the second most common element in the Universe (after hydrogen), making up around 24% of its mass. Helium is part of a group of chemical elements called noble gases, the other five that occur naturally are neon, argon, krypton, xenon and radon. Under normal conditions they share similar properties, including being less likely to participate in chemical reactions due to their outer shell of electrons being full. Helium is the second least reactive element after neon. French and English astronomers Pierre Janssen and Norman Lockyer are jointly credited with discovering helium after spectral analysis of sunlight following a solar eclipse in 1868. The word helium comes from the Greek word meaning sun (helios). It was named by Lockyer and English chemist Edward Frankland. The USA is the world’s largest supplier of helium, with many reserves found in large natural gas fields.

The rate at which helium is currently being used by humans is much faster than the rate at which the reserves are being replenished. New technologies for obtaining or recycling helium are one way for gas companies to help slow this problem. Because helium is lighter than air it is commonly used to fill airships, blimps and balloons. While hydrogen is 7% more buoyant than helium it has a much higher fire risk. You might notice the helium balloon you got from the amusement park slowly falling to the ground after a few days, this happens as the helium gradually leaks from the balloon.

Because helium is less dense than normal air, when inhaled from a source such as a helium balloon it briefly changes the sound of a person’s voice, making it much sound much higher. However, breathing in too much helium can be very dangerous, potentially choking people due to a lack of oxygen. Helium can be in a liquid and even solid state but they can only occur at temperatures near absolute zero. Liquid helium is used to cool metals for superconductivity use. The European Organization for Nuclear Research’s (CERN) Large Hadron Collider uses liquid helium to maintain an extremely low temperature. Helium is often used in space programs, displacing fuel in storage tanks and having other rocket fuel applications.

other scientists have warned that helium is becoming so scarce that research that makes use of its cooling power may have to be limited or stopped. Although it is the second most abundant element in the universe, helium cannot be manufactured, and once released into the atmosphere is lost for ever. Most of our supplies are extracted from the earth's crust.

Terrorism anywhere is terrorism everywhere

Terrorism anywhere is terrorism everywhere.

Dr. Martin Luther King once said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”  The violent attacks against Israelis are no different, no less unjust than the shootings of innocent civilians in France or anywhere else.

Currently terrorism has been most commonly and systematically employed as a tactic in conflicts. Terrorism is the form of violence against civilians and asymmetric confrontation against a stronger opponent. Terrorism occurs when ideological motivation meets with operational capability. The way in which a terrorist group shapes its radical worldview and disseminates it to audiences worldwide plays an important role in the public interface between the group and its target audience. Using terrorist propaganda, a group can successfully radicalize and indoctrinate public into terrorist sympathizers, mobilize terrorist supporters, and recruit terrorist members.  

Terrorist organizations target the disaffected members of a population by attempting to convince them that there is an alternative way of thinking that will make their lives more meaningful and simpler. If the population has a large number of disaffected individuals susceptible to the ideology, enough of them can be recruited. Once recruited, they soon take part in terrorist actions that validate and strengthen the ideology they share. Thus, the war on terror ought to be called ‘the ideological battle against radical extremists who happen to use terror as a weapon to disrupt the conscience of the free and peaceful world. Terrorist actions conducted on the territory of more than one state or involving citizens of more than one state as victims or perpetrators bring an international element.

An effective and multipronged approach for an ideological response to fight with terrorism should conceptualize counterterrorism, not only as a military or law enforcement problem but as a war of ideas as well. Governments which develop foreign policies that strengthen this network will find themselves with improved security at home. Who have come to the point where terrorism anywhere is terrorism everywhere. If terrorists maintain a network of networks, then governments must do the same. Once equally common, piracy, slavery, and genocide have been systematically diminished through collective efforts overtime. Most importantly, such efforts destroyed the ideologies that legitimated these behaviors. Governments must go after ideologically motivated terrorists with the same kind of collective approach.

Good delivery of public services is essential to escape the dependence on bad public services

Good delivery of public services is essential to escape the dependence on bad public services.

Our founding fathers wanted political freedom for the people of India – freedom to determine who we would be governed by, as well as freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith, and worship. They wanted justice and equality, of status and opportunity. And they wanted us to be free from poverty. One widely held hypothesis is that our country suffers from want of a “few good men” in politics. This view is unfair to the many upstanding people in politics.

One improves the quality of public services to increase the resources devoted to the service, and to change.  A number of worthwhile efforts are underway to improve the quality of public education and healthcare. But if resources leak or public servants are not motivated, which is likely in the worst governed states, these interventions are not very effective.

Some have argued that making a public service a right can change delivery. It is hard to imagine that simply legislating rights and creating a public expectation of delivery will, in fact, ensure delivery. After all, is there not an expectation that a ration card holder will get decent grain from the fair price shop, yet all too frequently grain is not available or is of poor quality.

Information decentralization can help. Knowing how many medicines the local public dispensary received, or how much money the local school is getting for mid-day meals, can help the public monitor delivery and alert higher-ups when the benefits are not delivered. But the public delivery system is usually most apathetic where the public is poorly educated, of low social status, and disorganized, so monitoring by the poor is also unlikely to be effective.

Some argue that this is why the middle class should enjoy public benefits along with the poor, so that the former can protest against poor delivery, which will ensure high quality for all. But making benefits universal is costly, and may still lead to indifferent delivery for the poor. The middle class may live in different areas from the poor. Indeed, even when located in the same area, the poor may not even patronize facilities frequented by the middle class because they feel out of place. And even when all patronize the same facility, providers may be able to discriminate between the voluble middle class and the uncomplaining poor.

Iran will open up possibilities for India and also will have challenges.

 "Lifting of sanctions on Iran will open up possibilities for India and also will have challenges."

The strategic map of Iran’s immediate neighborhood will change dramatically following the landmark nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1. Given the tremendous geostrategic stakes involved, Iran has already begun to explore greater opportunities for economic and security cooperation in the region. This has implications for both India and Pakistan, which are tied to Iran strategically but bitterly opposed to each other.

India-Iran Interactions 

India and Iran have always shared deep social, cultural, economic and political connections and relations that have enriched both civilizations. The use of the Persian language at the Mughal courts is just one example of Iranian cultural influence in north India. With the creation of Pakistan in 1947, India and Iran lost the geographical contiguity they had enjoyed for centuries. Bilateral relations also remained extremely cordial during Iran’s years of global chastisement for its nuclear program, with the exception of a short period during which India was unable to deal with the dynamic of Iran-U.S. divergence.

India’s diplomacy with Iran has been rooted in economic interests and buttressed by civilization links. India and Iran also share many similarities: Extra-regional ambitions and a strong sense that they pursuing an independent foreign policy are common traits in the diplomatic behavior of both countries.

For India, energy pipelines have always been an attractive prospect whose advantages are seemingly tangible but always just out of reach.”Lifting of western sanctions on Iran throws up a great opportunity for India to transport natural gas from Iran to Porbandar port in Gujarat, bypassing Pakistan – the main sticking point for other multilateral projects of Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) and Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI).” India needs to remind Iran that Pakistan has become a country where political stability remains very fragile. Even though Pakistan is being ruled by a democratically elected government, security and foreign policy is utterly dominated by the military. Where rival Taliban factions are fighting for supremacy and regional support for the reconciliation process is moving onto the back burner. The Taliban still represents a grave threat to regional stability and security. 

The Amendment of Nepal Constitution. satisfy the demands of Madhesis.

The Amendment of Nepal Constitution. satisfy the demands of Madhesis.

Nepal is governed according to the Constitution of Nepal, which came into effect on Sept 20, 2015, replacing the Interim Constitution of 2007. The Constitution was drafted by the Second Constituent Assembly following the failure of the First Constituent Assembly to produce a constitution in its mandated period.[1] The constitution was endorsed by 90% of the total lawmakers. Out of 598 CA members, 507 voted in favor of the constitution while 25 voted against and 66 others did not take part in the election process.

The promulgation of the new constitution was immediately followed by virtual blockade of all checkpoints at Nepal-India border. Various Human Rights Activists and some ethnic groups in lowland Nepal have accused the Constitution of being gender discriminatory especially in regards to citizenship provisions. They allege new constitution makes it difficult for woman to pass on citizenship to their children as compared to men. Similarly, Madhesi and indigenous population view that the new constitution fails to address demands of marginalized communities and support status-quo of the ruling groups.

The amendments were passed with two-third majority, four months after the new constitution was promulgated. Three articles—42, 84 and 286—were amended. The amendments aim to resolve the ongoing agitation by the Madhesis. It includes provisions such as proportionate and inclusive representation of all marginalised communities, including the Madhesis, in all state mechanisms and allocation of seats in Parliament on the basis of population.

Madhesis, who share strong cultural and family bonds with India, have been demanding demarcation of provinces, fixing of electoral constituencies on the basis of population and proportional representation. Fifty-five people have been killed in violent protests by the Madhesis since last year. The protests of the Madhesis had sparked tensions between India and Nepal with Nepal’s government viewing India as supportive of the Madhesi stance, which they felt was fuelling the agitation and encouraging the sit-down demonstrations that led to blockage of supply routes between the two countries.

The lawmakers of the agitating parties had boycotted the voting, saying the amendment was “incomplete”, as it fell short of addressing their concerns, including redrawing of federal boundaries.

Projective technique

Effectiveness of projective technique in the measurement of personality.  

Projective techniques which originated in a clinical setting are indirect measures of personality. In their tech the individual is given unstructured situation to which he responds. By unstructured situation is meant a situation, whose meaning and interpretation varies from the individual to individual. The most important assumption of projective techniques is that while responding to an unstructured situation an individual projects his own needs feelings, emotion, motives etc(which are mostly latent and conscious) Without being aware of doing so. As the individual is not aware of these relevations, he does not resort to any defensive reactions. Such latent and concealed experiences are generally incapable of expose by questionnaire.

The two distinguishing features which set projective techniques apart from other personality assessment measures are. Projective technique always uses an unstructured and indirect situation for assessing the personality traits. Projective techniques characterized by global approach in projective techniques attention is focused upon measurement of personality as a whole. Projective techniques requires no observer hence subject to a greater extensive, an objective report as he does not fear that e is being observed.

Important Projective Tests

• Rorschach Test given by Herman Rorschach.
• Thematic Apperception Test(TAT) by Murray.
• Children Apperception Test (CAT) by Bellak.

Advantages of tests:

• Faking and malingering is minimum.
• Good measures of diagnostic purposes.
• Easy to administer and they retain interest in subjects.
• They use global holistic app to measure personality.
• Measures deep and unconscious aspect of personality, besides conscious aspects.

Disadvantages:

• No consistent meaningful and testable theories underlie the projective technique.
• There are no empirical evidences for most of the postulated relationships between projective test indicators and personality traits.
• There is no standardized measure of administrating them.
• They can’t be easily applied on the people with average or superior intelligence.
• The scoring method is given but yet they dependent to a great extent on the subjective understanding of the examiner.
• Ample evidences are available to show that projective techniques have methodological flaws, are full of statistical errors and are ill designed.
• There is no evidence that conflicts motives and fantasies diagnosed  by projective technique will yield congruent results when interpreted by different psychologists or the same psychologist at different time.
• Projective Technique have poor ability to predict faliure in different fields of life as they have low reliability and variable validity.

Sykes-Picot agreement, Threats to it till now.

Sykes-Picot agreement, Threats to it till now.

In the Sykes-Picot agreement, concluded on May 19, 1916, France and Britain divided up the Arab territories of the former Ottoman Empire into spheres of influence. In its designated sphere, it was agreed, each country shall be allowed to establish such direct or indirect administration or control as they desire and as they may think fit to arrange with the Arab State or Confederation of Arab States. Under Sykes-Picot, the Syrian coast and much of modern-day Lebanon went to France; Britain would take direct control over central and southern Mesopotamia, around the Baghdad and Basra provinces. Palestine would have an international administration, as other Christian powers, namely Russia, held an interest in this region. The rest of the territory in question—a huge area including modern-day Syria, Mosul in northern Iraq, and Jordan—would have local Arab chiefs under French supervision in the north and British in the south. Also, Britain and France would retain free passage and trade in the other’s zone of influence.

‘Smashing Sykes-Picot’ is what IS (so-called ‘Islamic State’) tweeted to its followers last month when it bulldozed a barrier on the Iraq-Syria border. The Sunni jihadist group has been fighting a spectacularly successful campaign against the Shia-led Iraqi government. And its well-run propaganda campaign on social media has used Sykes-Picot as a rallying cry to reignite the anger many Arabs feel about the agreement. After the First World War it was the blueprint used to carve up the defeated Ottoman empire into separate Arab states.

Now IS controls a great swathe of territory in both Syria and Iraq. In a video posted on YouTube called ‘The End of Sykes-Picot’ it announced that this was a new caliphate, an Islamic state run according to Sharia law. They claim they are removing the artificial boundaries created by Britain and France.

Fiscal policy reforms can help boost countries’ long-term growth prospects.

Fiscal policy reforms can help boost countries’ long-term growth prospects.

The study finds that fiscal reforms, especially when complemented with supportive changes in other economic policies (structural reforms), can support strong and equitable growth. It draws on the lessons from nine country case studies (Australia, Chile, Germany, Ireland, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Poland, Tanzania, and Uganda), as well as an analysis of growth accelerations (defined as increases of at least 1 percentage point in five-year average growth following fiscal reforms).

Higher public spending now would make it longer before India returns to the 65% “suitable” ballpark. But more importantly, if unexpected macro shocks strike during this period, debt ratios could remain “unsuitable” for the foreseeable future. India has two key priorities for 2016—preserving hard won macro stability and reviving growth. Macro stability can mean different things at different times. On the growth front, with private investment largely absent from the scene and prospect for exports unexciting, government spending may need to lend a helping hand. The problem here is that while on good days the twin objectives of higher growth and lower public debt can fall into a virtuous cycle, on a bad day, any one of them derailing can drag down the other. India’s public debt ratio has risen from 65.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) in financial year (FY) 2013-14 to 67% in FY15 and is likely to rise further in FY16, thanks to falling inflation and lacklustre growth.

Fiscal reforms needed:

So is there a way out for a government that wants to support growth via higher public spending and yet maintain macro stability. If the government is able to undertake a few important fiscal reforms, it can generate enough funds over a short period of time to finance the extra spending.

• Food and fertilizer subsidy reforms: Unlike oil subsidy, these have not seen any significant rationalisation. Using the unique identity, Aadhaar platform, in the delivery of these subsidies and moving from product to cash subsidies will not just bring fiscal savings, but also growth gains if the savings are used to finance government investment.
• Government stake sales: There are large gains to be had by outlining a clear roadmap for disinvestments and allowing independent market experts to decide on timing. SUUTI (Specified Undertaking of UTI) sales alone can provide 0.35% of GDP worth of funds, and lowering government ownership across other companies can provide a further boost. Over the last few years, there has been a dismal below expected 0.2% of GDP in disinvestment receipts, which can be easily notched up.
• Tax revenue improvements: Removing concessional rates and special exemptions from excise and custom duties would not only reduce market distortions, but also add to the tax kitty. Strengthening tax administration by plugging gaps in collection or reporting procedures, strengthening data-warehousing infrastructure, increasing manpower and fast tracking tax disputes are potential reforms.

These reforms alone can provide an extra 0.4% of GDP worth of resources each year for the next few years. Using these savings to nudge up public investment will not only help keep debt levels in check, but also make the economy more resilient in the face of macro shocks. It would provide those extra funds to boost public investment without having an adverse impact on interest rates. And finally it will allow the government to stick to its fiscal consolidation path.

Causes of Forgetting. Necessary aspect of learning process

Causes of Forgetting. Necessary aspect of learning process.

Forgetting can be defined as partial or complete loss of information of the previously learned material. It is the loss of information already stored and encoded in long term memory. By suggestion of Herman Ebbinghaus  gave classical curve of forgetting. This curve suggest that maximum forgetting is immediately after learning and it slows down with passage of time forgetting and retention are two sides of the coin.

Factors effecting forgetting:

• Amount of material: Longer list is difficult to learn but once learned is retained better than shorter list.
• Pattern of material: Material which is highlighted or made distinct from the rest is remembered well.
• Method of learning: (a) Part vs. whole. (b) Distributed vs. Massed. Whole learning is useful when material is of moderate length, subjects are intelligent and material is abstract. Part learning is useful when material to be learnt is very long some pats are of special difficulty an material can easily be split into subunits. In general Distributed practice is superior to massed practice because it prevents fatigue from hampering performance, reduces interference and prevents boredom from selling in.
• Personality factors: Age, Motivation, Sex, Intelligence
• Over learning: Learning that is carried out after one or two perfect recalls of the material to be remembered. Is called as Over learning. Over learning is best way to prevent forgetting.
• Feed back: Knowledge of how  well one is doing helps to improve performance on retention test.
• Nature of material: Logically organized and meaningful material is better remembered than N.S.S

 Quantitative methods of measuring memory

• Recall: The subject is asked to reproduce previously learned material within an specified time period. The technique of recall places greatest emphasis on the simple availability of the material. Recall tests may be given immediately after complete presentation of the list or less often sometime when it suits experimenter purpose. Those are two types of recall(A) Free Reoall, (B) Serial Recall 
• Recognition: It is an experiment method used in measurement of memory and in this method subject is required to respond to a series of test stimuli by stating whether or not these were among the stimuli presented in a learning session held earlier.
• Reconstruction: It is an quantitative method of memory measurement. This method involves rearranging of the parts of the task as they originally were.
• Saving method or Relearning: In which is a quantative method memory is measured by comparing the amount of time taken or so of trails required to relearn the same matter with the time and trails it took an original learning.
• Anticipating or Prompting method: In which subjects are exposed to the list in something like the familiar flash card technique.
• Qualitative method: Barlett had subjects read a folk tale silently and then 15 minutes later asked the subjects to write the tale as they remembered. Later subject were again asked to write out the story and several additional writing were required over period of time. 

Taxation that help in building up good investment climate.

The features of taxation that help in building up good investment climate.

Investors identify the tax system as one of the most important parameters in making an investment decision. Cumbersome tax structures are a drain on investor time and resources and act as a disincentive to participation in the formal economy. A badly designed or executed tax system negatively impacts investment and economic growth suffers. Traditional technical assistance has focused on the implementation of revenue-generating mechanisms, while largely neglecting the impact of the tax system on investment and economic growth.

World Bank Group teams advise governments in creating and administering effective, fair, and inclusive tax systems that foster investment, economic growth, and political stability in developing countries. The state of a country’s business and investment climate is a key factor in that country’s ability to attract foreign investment and develop small and medium enterprises. Transnational enterprises prefer to invest in enterprises in countries with a healthy business climate – where cost, delay, and risk are minimized. In addition, SMEs are more likely to flourish in a climate where they are not overburdened by taxes and regulations.

Across the globe and within the OSCE, it is the wealthier countries that tend to have more favourable business and investment climates Many of the Eastern European countries without major energy or raw material reserves have transformed their economies into some of the most attractive global FDI destinations through reform of their business and investment climate. Governments often downplay the importance of the business climate when inviting foreign direct investment. They tend to focus on market size, availability of natural resources and costs. While all these factors are important, the investment climate is a critical factor and should not be underestimated.

Generate advancements in the following areas:

• Investment and competition: Enhancing country competitiveness and investment potential by fostering a transparent and predictable tax system that is equally applied to all.
• Transfer pricing in developing countries: Implementing transfer pricing frameworks (legal, regulatory, and supervisory) for audit of multinationals and related parties; employing assessment tools to identify tax evasion risks; introducing simplified approaches to ease compliance burdens and develop safe harbors; and building sector-specific capacity in tax administrations.
• Investment incentives: Developing diagnostic tools to determine the cost-benefit of financial and non-financial incentives and analyzing discretionary and distorting incentive regimes to better advise on potential reforms.
• Value-added tax reform: Streamlining VAT administration systems through legislative reform and implementation regarding refund and reclaim and customs reform interface.
• Direct links with investment: Helping governments improve accounting standards to meet internationally accepted norms and ultimately eliminate reporting barriers for investors.
• Inclusion: Widening participation in the tax system at all levels, with particular focus on micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises.
• Micro, small, and medium enterprises: Designing and implementing special regimes for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises to (i) match their capacity, and (ii) reduce barriers to joining the formal tax system by widening the formal tax base to promote inclusion.
• Domestic resource mobilization: Enhancing the ability to raise revenues in the long run through more effective tax administration and tax base expansion.
• Compliance management: Targeting transparency through legal and regulatory simplification of reporting systems and business processes where appropriate; implementing risk-based assessments for audit selection, taxpayer outreach, education, dispute resolution, and appeals.
• Value-added tax: Implementing more effective processes, including better refund and reclaim systems, to generate a higher VAT yield.
• Governance: Promoting good governance through transparent systems, procedures, and effective audit.
• Process transparency: Assisting countries in accessing information and audit selection; storing and exchanging quality taxpayer information to facilitate monitoring of the flow of funds.
• Incentives reform: Eliminating mechanisms that encourage discretion, distortions, or predictability.
• Global standards and norms: Assisting countries in adopting internationally-accepted norms and standards, especially with regards to tax transparency.
• Tax transparency: Supporting countries that aim to meet international tax transparency standards set by the Global Forum for Tax Transparency and Exchange of Information, adopted by the World Bank Group, and focusing on strengthening availability of information (ownership, accounting requirements), access powers and safeguards, and exchange of information internally and internationally.

Li-Fi and it significant.

Li-Fi and it significant.

Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) is a bidirectional, high speed and fully networked wireless communication technology similar to Wi-Fi. The term was coined by Harald Haas [1] and is a form of visible light communication and a subset of optical wireless communications (OWC) and could be a complement to RF communication, or even a replacement in contexts of data broadcasting. It is so far measured to be about 100 times faster than some Wi-Fi implementations, reaching speeds of 224 gigabits per second.

Li-Fi is a wireless optical networking technology that uses light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for data transmission. Li-Fi is designed to use LED light bulbs similar to those currently in use in many energy-conscious homes and offices. However, Li-Fi bulbs are outfitted with a chip that modulates the light imperceptibly for optical data transmission. Li-Fi data is transmitted by the LED bulbs and received by photoreceptors. Li-Fi's early developmental models were capable of 150 megabits-per-second (Mbps). Some commercial kits enabling that speed have been released. In the lab, with stronger LEDs and different technology, researchers have enabled 10 gigabits-per-second (Gbps), which is faster than 802.11ad.

Li-Fi has the advantage of being useful in electromagnetic sensitive areas such as in aircraft cabins, hospitals and nuclear power plants without causing electromagnetic interference. Both Wi-Fi and Li-Fi transmit data over the electromagnetic spectrum, but whereas Wi-Fi utilizes radio waves, Li-Fi uses visible light. While the US Federal Communications Commission has warned of a potential spectrum crisis because Wi-Fi is close to full capacity, Li-Fi has almost no limitations on capacity. The visible light spectrum is 10,000 times larger than the entire radio frequency spectrum. Researchers have reached data rates of over 10 Gbit/s, which is much faster than typical fast broadband in 2013. Li-Fi is expected to be ten times cheaper than Wi-Fi. Short range, low reliability and high installation costs are the potential downsides.

By using Li-Fi in all the lights in and around a building, the technology could enable greater area of coverage than a single Wi-Fi router. Drawbacks to the technology include the need for a clear line of sight, difficulties with mobility and the requirement that lights stay on for operation.

Development of National Character and importance in present day political situation.

“Development of National Character and importance in present day political situation.”

National character is an expression which describes forms of collective self-perception, sensibility, and conduct which are shared by the individuals who inhabit a modern nation-state. It presupposes the existence of psychological and cultural homogeneity among the citizens of each country, as well as the idea that each nation can be considered a collective individual, with characteristics analogous to the empirical individuals who are its inhabitants. This behavior is sometimes considered on an abstract level, that is, as cultural behavior without actual reference to necessarily different personality modalities. It may also be considered as motivated by underlying psychological mechanisms characteristic of a given people.

National character as institutional pattern: In this approach, most common among political scientists, the national character is epitomized by the dominant, or typical and representative, institutions, particularly those concerned with politics and economics. The basic objectives of national-character studies are to examine the tensions underlying the political and social structures of modern states. Social tensions are particularly apparent in societies that are rapidly changing. For example, one type of social tension that is frequently observed results from the systematic attempts of an elite to establish particular patterns of directed social change, in spite of the unavailability of sufficient individuals whose training and social experience equip them for achieving the goals set by the elite. In one such study, Bauer attempted to demonstrate the social tension existing between the political elite in Russian society and a large number of individuals who are not motivationally involved in the same ways as the members of the Communist party hierarchy (1948).

If necessary personality traits are not forthcoming from a proportionate number of individuals within the society, the society will not function well in terms of newer values, whatever the elite controlling the society attempts to do. Even though institutional legal structures are consciously changed in accord with social planning, if characteristic changes in socialization experiences do not accompany these changes in such a manner as to facilitate the appearance of adequate motivational behavior, the sought-after change will not become stabilized and self-perpetuating.

In another study indirectly concerned with the psychological processes underlying dynamics of social change. Hagen (1962), in a comprehensive study of economic and social change in a number of discrete societies, cogently discussed the relationship of personality variables to different economic traditions, such as colonialism or feudalism, and the manner in which they either facilitate or hamper economic development. This study is illustrative of the fact that considerations of national character are having considerable influence in augmenting theoretical approaches in economics and political science.

Education procedure in transfer of learning

Education procedure in transfer of learning

The levels of transfer are often referred to as positive and negative. In addition, there are both subtle and marked differences in types of transfer. Many of the differences lead to distinctions in how transfer is classified depending on the level of complexity of the transfer.

Positive transfer: When learning in one context improves learning or performance in another context this is called positive transfer.

Negative transfer occurs when previous learning or experience inhibits or interferes with learning or performance in a new context.

Simple versus complex transfer: Simple transfer happens when little or no effort is required to apply what has been learnedin one situation to a new situation.

Near and far transfer: Another distinction used is between near and far transfer. Usually these terms distinguish the closeness or distance between the original learning and the transfer task. Near transfer has also been seen as the transfer of learning within the school context, or between a school task and a very similar task. Far transfer is used to refer to the transfer of learning from the school context to a non-school context.

Automatic and mindful transfer: When an individual responds spontaneously within a transfer situation, which is very similar to the learning situation then this is automatic transfer. Perkins and Salomon (1996b) use the terms low and high road transfer to differentiate the mechanisms of automatic and mindful transfer. Gradually, with time and practice, the automatic transfer effect will extend or ‘reach out’ over the low road. Mindful, high road transfer is deliberate and involves conscious thought and intellectual effort, and occurs in situations where there are significant gaps or differences between the original and the transfer situations. In an education or training course participants learn about a process in a controlled environment. The problems encountered in the educational setting tend to be well defined. In the workplace it may not always be obvious when, or even desirable to use the procedure.

Scope of programmed learning

“Scope of programmed learning in curriculum of certain courses for students”

Programmed learning, educational technique characterized by self-paced, self-administered instruction presented in logical sequence and with much repetition of concepts. Programmed learning received its major impetus from the work done in the mid-1950s by the American behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner and is based on the theory that learning in many areas is best accomplished by small, incremental steps with immediate reinforcement, or reward, for the learner. This technique can be applied through texts, so-called teaching machines, and computer-assisted-instruction. No matter what the medium, two basic types of programming are used: linear, or straight-line programming, and branching programming.

Linear programming immediately reinforces student responses that approach the learning goal. Responses that do not lead toward the goal go unreinforced. Each bit of learning is presented in a “frame,” and a student who has made a correct response proceeds to the next frame. All students work through the same sequence, and a low rate of error is necessary to ensure continued positive reinforcement of correct responses.

Branching, or intrinsic, programming was initially developed in conjunction with the use of an electronic training device for military personnel. This technique provides the student a piece of information, presents a situation requiring a multiple choice or recognition response, and on the basis of that choice instructs the student to proceed to another frame, where he or she learns if the choice was correct, and if not, why not. A student who responded incorrectly will either be returned to the original frame, or routed through a subprogram designed to remedy the deficiency indicated by the wrong choice. A student who selects correctly advances to the next frame in the program. This process is repeated at each step throughout the program, and a student may be exposed to differing amounts of material depending upon errors made.

Text materials often rely on a cardboard mask that the student uses to cover the correct response until a choice is made. There are successful programmed-learning texts for primary-grade pupils, but most such texts have been designed for upper-grade and college-level subjects such as statistics, economics, and foreign languages.

Himalayan Forest Thrush

Himalayan Forest Thrush

A new species of birds has been discovered in the snow-capped mountains of the Himalayas. The new bird has been named as the Himalayan Forest Thrush. It is mostly found in the northeastern India and parts of Tibet, Nepal and China. The scientific name of the bird is Zoothera salimalii. The name 'salimalii' is commemorative of the great Indian ornithologist Salim Ali. The Himalayan Forest Thrush is a variant of the Plain Backed Thrush and the European Alpine Thrush. Professor Per Johan Alstrom, a former member of the Uppsala University in Sweden, first noticed the distinctive call of the Himalayan Forest Thrush back in 1999, during a trip to Arunachal Pradesh.

Alstrom, along with his Indian colleague Shashank Dalvi, noticed the two distinctive variants of the Plain Backed Thrush that occurred at different elevations of the mountains. One set of the bird sang a harsh tune sitting above tree line of the forest, while the other set of the bird churned out a tuneful call sitting below the tree line. Unable to find any physical distinction between the two sets of birds, Alstrom spent several years defining the difference. The alpine thrush has longer legs and a longer tail, proportionately, than the forest bird, which are adaptations to its habitat. Because longer legs are more useful in open habitats than in forest. He collected samples of birds of India and China from the 15 museums around the world and studied them for several years. The study of birds also included DNA tests that confirmed the difference between the two species. The two species evolved differently to adapt with the different conditions of the peaks and the mountain forests. During their trips to India and China, Alstrom has also found a Chinese sub-species of the Himalayan Forest Thrush and named it as the Sichuan Forest Thrush.

Recommendations of Justice RV Easwar committee.

The main recommendations of Justice RV Easwar committee.

Union Government has constituted a committee to simplify the provisions of the Income Tax Act (IT), 1961 under set up the 10-member committee under the Chairmanship of former Delhi High Court Judge, Justice R.V. Easwar to remove ambiguities in the tax laws that cause unnecessary litigation and update the laws based on various judgments. The recommendations will go a long way in reducing litigation, but it remains to be seen if the government will accept these recommendations and make changes in the budget.

Terms of reference of the Committee:

To study and identify: provisions in the IT Act, 1961, which are leading to litigation due to the different interpretations. The areas and provisions of the Act which needs simplification in the light of the existing jurisprudence. Provisions which are impacting the ease of doing business.

Suggest: modifications and alternatives to the existing provisions and identified areas in order to bring predictability and certainty in tax laws without substantial impact on the revenue collection and tax base.

Recommendations: The Committee will set up its own procedures for regulating its work and will put its draft recommendations in the public domain in batches after consulting stakeholders. The First Batch shall be submitted by 31st January, 2016 and shall contain as many recommendations as possible.

A committee set up to change direct tax laws has suggested several taxpayer-friendly measures to improve the ease of doing business, reduce litigation and accelerate the resolution of tax disputes. The committee has asked the income-tax department to desist from the practice of adjusting tax demand of a taxpayer whose tax return is under assessment against legitimate refunds due. The panel also proposed that stock trading gains of up to Rs.5 lakh will be treated as capital gains and not business income, a move that could encourage more retail investments in the stock market. The committee has recommended that TDS rates for individuals be reduced to 5% from 10%. It has also clarified that dividend income on which dividend distribution tax has been levied should be treated as part of total income. It also sought to provide an exemption to non-residents not having a Permanent Account Number (PAN), but who furnish their Tax Identification Number (TIN), from the applicability of TDS at a higher rate.

Taxpayers are already grappling with regulatory changes of the Companies Act, 2013, Ind-AS (Indian accounting standards) and the proposed GST (goods and services tax). Industry should be allowed more time to deal with another change of this nature. The committee understands that the taxpayers feel that many of the provisions of the ICDS are capable of generating a legal debate about which at present there is no clarity. The committee also recommended that most of the processes of the income-tax department should be conducted electronically to minimize human interface. To this effect, it suggested that processes such as filing of tax returns, rectification of mistakes, appeal, refunds and any communication regarding scrutiny including notices, questions and documents sought should be done electronically. To make it easy for small businesses, the committee recommended that the eligibility criteria under the presumptive scheme be increased to Rs.2 crore from Rs.1 crore. It also recommended launching a similar scheme for professionals. The presumptive tax is levied on an estimated income and makes life (and work) easier for small businesses.

Under the presumptive income scheme, such professionals or businesses will not need to maintain a book of accounts but just pay tax based on presumptive income calculations. For instance, for professionals it is proposed that 33.3% of their previous year’s receipts will be taken as income on which they will have to pay tax. If their profits are much lower, they will have to maintain a book of accounts clearly categorizing expenditure and pay tax accordingly.

India’s health indicators released by the Union Health Ministry

Major findings of India’s health indicators released by the Union Health Ministry recent.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare released today the results from the first phase of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4), 2015-16. National Family Health Surveys have been conducted under the stewardship of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, with the International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, serving as the nodal agency. Findings for the 13 States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand, West Bengal and two Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Puducherry show promising improvements in maternal and child health and nutrition. Data collection for the second phase States and Union Territories is currently ongoing. The results from NFHS-4 in 15 States/Union Territories indicate that fewer children are dying in infancy and early childhood. Infant mortality rates range from a low of 10 in Andaman and Nicobar Islands to a high of 51 deaths per 1000 live births in Madhya Pradesh.

Better care for women during pregnancy and childbirth contributes to reduction of maternal deaths and improved child survival. Almost all mothers have received antenatal care for their most recent pregnancy and increasing numbers of women are receiving the recommended four or more visits by the service providers. Full immunization coverage among children age 12-23 months varies widely in the First Phase States/Union Territories. At least 6 out of 10 children have received full immunization in 12 of the 15 States / Union Territories. Fewer children under five years of age are now found to be stunted, showing intake of improved nutrition. Married women are less likely to be increase in the use of modern family planning methods. Poor nutrition is less common than reported in the last round of National Family Health Survey. Indian families in the First Phase households are now more inclined to use improved water and sanitation facilities, have access to an improved source of drinking water, Use of clean cooking fuel, which reduces the risk of respiratory illness and pollution.

orange zinnia

"orange zinnia" Its significance..

A bright orange zinnia has blossomed aboard the International Space Station, marking a first flower even grown in space makes its debut, Zinnias grow easily on Earth and blossom in abundance in summer. But on the International Space Station, where they were taken to carry out experiments, they have had trouble adapting to microgravity. Growing such flowers -- zinnias are edible -- is part of a long term NASA’s little greenhouse is known as Veggie, short for Vegetable Production System. It flew to the space station in 2014.  

The whole space gardening enterprise is designed to help scientists study how plants react to being grown off Earth, and to prepare astronauts for a future trip to Mars. It is designed to produce food with an eye to long, manned missions to Mars. The prospect of a Mars trip was one reason justified in taking over the plants' care. If we're going to Mars, and we were growing stuff, we would be responsible for deciding when the stuff needed water. These are not the first plants NASA has grown on the space station, or even the first flowers to bloom in space, but they are NASA's first flower that has grown entirely, from seed to maturity, in space.  

digital technology among people is a double edged sword

"Expansion of digital technology among people is a double edged sword"

Today’s young people are exposed to digital technology to an unprecedented degree. Modern technology can become an invisible but integral part of their lives. Since mastering technology is almost a requirement for employment these days, this digital lifestyle can be often advantageous, yet technology can turn into a double-edged sword. Digital technology is indeed creative, in the sense that it enables us to do new things that were hitherto impossible, or to do old things better. In the case of the internet, for example just think of the web, Wikipedia and Skype, all instances of technology that have transformed our lives, mostly for the better.

But technology is also destructive in the sense that it destroys or undermines things that are valuable: bookshops and print newspapers, for example and – who knows? – Maybe even institutions such as the BBC. Digital technology has already resulted in a dramatic erosion of personal privacy. And it's enabling things that are potentially or actually sinister – government surveillance on a massive scale and at an unimaginably detailed level, for example; and the growth of a few mega-corporations such as Google, Apple, Amazon and Facebook that might eventually mediate most of our communicative acts.

Technology is a double-edged sword, as it has the ability to both liberate and enslave. Technology is changing the nature of work, enriching us, and as companies redefine how and where different tasks are carried out, they require new skills and new employer-employee relationships. However, jobs for others than workers 2.0, the global hyper-skilled are disappearing—this transformation is leaving many people without a job for good.

limit the definition of religion connected with ceremonials which are essentially religious.

"There is nothing extraordinary in saying that we ought to strive hereafter to limit the definition of religion in such a manner that we shall not extend beyond beliefs and such rituals as may be connected with ceremonials which are essentially religious." Dr B R Ambedkar.

Dr. B R Ambedkar as a liberal and as a humanistic-scientific thinker should have welcomed Hinduism as a non-dogmatic, catch-all hold-all of a religion. But he seems to have been influenced by the Christian/ Islamic/ Buddhist models based on rigorously worked out theological systems. On December 1948 when article 13 was under discussion in the assembly, Dr. Ambedkar again made himself clear on the question of personal law. He was of that the personal law cannot be put under the saving clause because such an act would disable the legislature from initiating any social measures whatsoever.  Ambedkar the democratic values are universal in the sense that they apply equally to everyone in principle, for all humans are individuals and all humans have or ought to have equal rights and obligations, and all humans deserve the opportunity to discover their own true talents.

            Religion becomes conceived as a body of doctrines about salvation that the individual can choose to adhere to because he finds it the best, the most rational, and the most suitable for his or her personal needs. The religious principles of equality, liberty, and fraternity make possible a ‘secular’ society in which religion becomes a matter of personal commitment and choice. Many rituals and festivals take place in public, meaning that such expressions of faith are societal as well as individual forms of human behaviour. The similarity in the general patterns of rituals and festivals across cultures and religions is striking. Ambedkar rose above the narrow barriers of religion, caste, language and region and laid emphasis on strengthening the national unity and in the absence of universal human religion these can survive neither unity nor democracy.

Economic Motive influence on Behaviour

Concept of economic motive and discuss its influence on behaviour.

Motive is an inner state that activates a person’s activities towards meeting a need. Thus it represents the energizing force that directs behavior towards a goal. Behavioral scientists consider motive as the kingpin of human behaviour. The influence of motives on consumer behavior varies from time to time. However, many different motives can influence the behavior of consumers at the same time. Therefore, the knowledge of the motives would help marketers in understanding consumer behavior.

Economic motives that lead the consumer to buy a certain product without any logical approach to the buying decision are known as emotional motives. The satisfaction of the senses- touch, taste, smell, and hearing is considered as an important emotional motivator, as sensory appeals stimulate enjoyment or satisfy desires. Some time fear, rest and recreation, pride, sociability, striving and curiosity can act as emotional motives for this purpose. In economic buying motives, the consumer’s buying decision is the outcome of a systematic decision process that consider economy of purchase, movability, durability, utility, and dependability of the product, quality and operational efficiency of the product, etc. Such motives are aroused by the appeals to reason.

Endopsychic Conflicts

Endopsychic conflicts, even though they do not become conscious, draw a great deal of nervous energy which could otherwise be used for creative activities.

     Endopsychic Conflicts is a manifestation of structural differentiations of a contradictory kind. Such conflicts result from the interaction of the three parts of the personality: the id, ego, and super ego. According to Freud, there is only so much “psychic energy” available to the three parts of the personality. Therefore, all three systems are in constant competition for this energy in order to take control and dominate the personality. As the three parts of the personality compete for psychic energy, they create conflicts within the psyche, which in turn create conflicts within the psyche, which in turn create anxiety. The organism can attempt to alleviate the conflicts by creating defense mechanisms. Endopsychic conflicts always involve the ego and either or both the id or superego.

    Defense Mechanisms Freud’s concept of defense mechanisms was one of his most important theoretical achievements. Defense mechanisms develop unconsciously when the ego feels threatened by an endopsychic conflict. When this occurs, defense mechanisms can be utilized to deny, falsify, or distort reality so the ego can cope. The role of the counselor can therefore be to help strengthening can involve psycho-educational interventions that provide clients with information they can use to take a more realistic position regarding stresses in their environment. Some of the more common defense mechanisms are projection, reaction formation, fixation, regression, and repression.

• Projection is an attempt to attribute to another person one’s own thoughts or feelings.
• Reaction formation is a way of coping by creating an extreme emotional response that opposite of how one actually feels. This results in a “falsification of reality.”
• Fixation can occur if the demands of life become too threatening. In an attempt to avoid new responsibilities, a person can avoid growing up and fixate, or stand still, in terms of development.
• Regression is an attempt to cope by moving back to a point in one’s development that was less threatening.
• Repression is an attempt to cope by creating an avoidance response. The stressful situation is pushed from the conscious to the unconscious dimension of the mind.

  Nervous energy, is a combination of nervousness, with excitement. It is the feeling of excitement, anxiety, and nervousness wrapped up into one. It can give you an adrenaline rush, and put you into suspense. It usually involves some sort of waiting. Nervous energy is sometimes typical to certain individuals such as people with anxiety disorders, athletes, and people who work in certain lines of work like a police officer, and gambling!

 

Scope of application of Psychology in different fields

Scope of application of Psychology in different fields with suitable example.

Psychology is the study of mind and behavior. It is an academic discipline and an applied science which seeks to understand individuals and groups by establishing general principles and researching specific cases. The subject-matter of our science is, then, the Soul or Mind. The psychologist investigates those phenomena which we call sensations, perceptions, thoughts, volitions, and emotions; he analyzes them, classifies them, and seeks to reduce them to the smallest number of fundamental activities. He studies the nature of their exercise and the laws which govern their operations, and he endeavours to enunciate a body of general truths which will accurately describe their chief and most characteristic features.

Psychologists explore concepts such as perception, cognition, attention, emotion, intelligence, phenomenology, motivation, brain functioning, personality, behavior, and interpersonal relationships, including psychological resilience, family resilience, and other areas. Psychologists of diverse orientations also consider the unconscious mind. Psychologists employ empirical methods to infer causal and co-relational relationships between psychosocial variables. By many accounts psychology ultimately aims to benefit society.

Psychology encompasses many subfields and includes different approaches to the study of mental processes and behavior.

• Mental testing: It is a routine phenomenon for people of all ages in Western societies. It aspires to criteria including standardization of procedure, consistency of results, output of an interpretable score, statistical norms describing population outcomes, and, ideally, effective prediction of behavior and life outcomes outside of testing situations.
•  Mental health care: a specially trained therapist develops a close relationship with the patient, who discusses wishes, dreams, social relationships, and other aspects of mental life. He seeks to uncover repressed material and to understand why the patient creates defenses against certain thoughts and feelings. In which deep unconscious feelings in a patient reorient themselves and become manifest in relation to the therapist.
• Educational: how humans learn in educational settings, the effectiveness of educational interventions, the psychology of teaching, and the social psychology of schools as organizations.
• Work: study of scientific management techniques for improving workplace efficiency.
• Military and intelligence: one role for psychologists in the military is to evaluate and counsel soldiers and other personnel.
• Health, well-being, and social change: Psychologists in the field of public health use a wide variety of interventions to influence human behavior. These range from public relations campaigns and outreach to governmental laws and policies. Psychologists study the composite influence of all these different tools in an effort to influence whole populations of people.

Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of cognition

“Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of cognition that explains how mental processes are organised and function.” Explain.

The term "cognition" refers to all processes by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered, and used. It is concerned with these processes even when they operate in the absence of relevant stimulation, as in images and hallucinations, etc. It is apparent that cognition is involved in everything a human being might possibly do; that every psychological phenomenon is a cognitive phenomenon. But although cognitive psychology is concerned with all human activity rather than some fraction of it, the concern is from a particular point of view. Cognitive psychologists are often heavily involved in running psychological experiments involving human participants, with the goal of gathering information related to how the human mind takes in, processes, and acts upon inputs received from the outside world. The human brain is an amazing and powerful tool. It allows us to learn, see, remember, hear, perceive, understand and create language. Sometimes, the human brain also fails us.

Cognitive psychologist’s studies how people acquire, perceive, store and process information. This work can range from exploring how we learn language to understanding the interplay between cognition and emotion. New technologies like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allow researchers to see a picture of the brain at work — helping them to understand how a brain reacts to a particular stimulus or how differences in brain structure can affect a person’s health, personality or cognitive functioning. The main focus of cognitive psychologists is on the mental processes that affect behavior. Mental process or mental function is terms often used interchangeably for all the things that individuals can do with their minds. These include perception, memory, thinking, volition, and emotion.

A specific instance of engaging in a cognitive process is a mental event. The event of perceiving something is, of course, different from the entire process, or in other words, an instance of perceiving is different from the ability that makes those instances possible. The Cognitive Approach in psychology is a relatively modern approach to human behavior that focuses on how we think, with the belief that such thought processes affect the way in which we behave. The cognitive approach attempts to apply a scientific approach to human behavior, which is reductionist in that it doesn't necessarily take into account such differences.

National road safety and Ebola outbreak

“National road safety authority is proposed to be set up”

The Road Transport and Safety Bill, 2014 envisions proposes to set up the Motor Vehicle Regulation & Road Safety Authority of India, an independent agency for vehicle regulation and road safety which would be legally empowered and accountable to Parliament to providing a framework for safer, faster, cost-effective and inclusive movement of passengers and freight in India. The proposed bill empowers the Union government to set up a National Road Safety and Vehicle Regulation Authority of India as "a body corporate". The authority would not just advise the state and central government on road safety, vehicle design and testing matters, but will also have the power to enforce the provisions of the new Act. It also gives centre the power to increase the fine, period of imprisonment, suspension of driving license, etc., without the Parliament nod. bill aims to reduce fatalities in road accidents by two lakh in the first five years. According to government estimates, over 4,90,383 accidents occur every year in India, of which 25% are fatal. The ministry is also trying to formulate a policy alongside to address the issue of pollution by older vehicles.

The National  Road safety authority shall provide  technical  advice  and  assistance  to  the Central Government,  and advise  the  Central  Government  and  the  State  Governments  on administration of the provisions relating to safety as contained in this Act. It advise  the  State  Government,  urban  local  bodies, municipalities, panchayati  raj  institutions  on matters  relating  to  or  arising  out  of  traffic management on  roads  and  the use of motor vehicles  for  the purposes of ensuring road safety. Issue guidelines for establishing and operating  trauma facilities and Para- medical  facilities  for  dealing  with  traffic  related  injuries  on  roads  and highways.

The National Authority regulates to provide the  standards  for  the  design,  construction,  operation  and maintenance  of motor  vehicles,  its  parts,  trailers,  semi-trailers,  mobile  machinery. These  standards  for  the  design  and  construction  of  passenger  transport vehicles  for  promoting  the  safety  and  comfort  of  the  passengers  and drivers of such vehicles, including for bus body. The road safety authority will also monitor the enforcement of fuel efficiency norms. In consultation with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency, it will issue regulations for necessary improvements in engine efficiency. It might also regulate, recommend and monitor issues related to the manufacture, maintenance, registration, licensing and working of drivers, maintenance and standards of road safety, control of traffic, public-private partnership schemes and promotion of new technologies.  

“World health organization declared an end to Ebola out break”

The most widespread epidemic of Ebola virus disease (commonly known as "Ebola") in history began in Guinea on December 2013 and continued with significant loss of life for over two years. Ebola virus disease was first described in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreaks in South Sudan and Democratic Republic of the Congo; this is the first Ebola outbreak to occur in the West African subcontinent. The outbreak began in Guinea in December 2013 and then spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone. Small outbreaks occurred in Nigeria and Mal, and isolated cases occurred in Senegal, the United Kingdom and Sardinia. The World Health Organization (WHO) and respective governments have reported a total of 28,638 suspected cases and 11,315 deaths, though the WHO believes that this substantially understates the magnitude of the outbreak. The WHO has also cautioned that further small outbreaks of the disease may occur in the future, and vigilance should be maintained.

This is the first Ebola outbreak to reach epidemic proportions; past outbreaks were brought under control within a few weeks. Extreme poverty, a dysfunctional healthcare system, a mistrust of government officials after years of armed conflict, and the delay in responding to the outbreak for several months all contributed to the failure to control the epidemic. Other factors included local burial customs of washing the body after death and the spread to densely populated cities. A study published in December 2014 found that transmission of the Ebola virus occurs principally within families, in hospitals and at funerals. The data showed that the third person in any transmission chain often knew both the first and second person. The authors estimated that between 17 percent and 70 percent of cases in West Africa were unreported – far fewer than had been estimated in prior projections. The study concluded that the epidemic would not be as difficult to control as feared if rapid, vigorous contact tracing and quarantines were employed.

The WHO announced "an extremely promising development" in the search for an effective vaccine for Ebola disease. While the vaccine has shown 100% efficacy in individuals, more conclusive evidence is needed on its capacity to protect populations through herd immunity. After substantial progress in reducing the scale of the epidemic, the WHO held a meeting to work out a "Comprehensive care plan for Ebola survivors" and identify research needed to optimize clinical care and social well-being. Saying "the Ebola outbreak has decimated families, health systems, economies, and social structures", the WHO called the aftermath "an emergency within an emergency." Of special concern is recent research that shows some Ebola survivors experience so-called Post-Ebola Syndrome, with symptoms so severe that survivors may require medical care for months and even years. 

Promote inland waterway transport in India

 The Indian government’s ambitious plans to develop 101 rivers into an integrated Inland Water Transport (IWT) system have triggered fierce debate. Transport and shipping minister, Nitin Gadkari, recently introduced a new National Waterways Bill 2015 in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, in an attempt to gain legislative sanction for the initiative. India’s waterways are underdeveloped. Its share of overall cargo transport remains abysmally low: 0.4% compared to 42% in Netherlands, 8.7% in China and 8% in the US. The country has over 14,500 kilometers of inland waterways — comprising rivers, lakes, canals, creeks and backwaters. Developing an integrated network of rail, road and waterways could also significantly boost India’s economy. The initiative will open up business opportunities and generate employment in the area of dredging, barge construction and operation and terminal construction.

Five stretches of river have already been declared as national waterways, including the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system (Allahabad-Haldia-1620 km); the Brahmaputra River (Dhubri-Sadiya-891 km). The shipping ministry is seeking to attain a 10% share for coastal shipping in India’s overall transport modal mix by 2020.

To achieve this , the cargo shipped through the coastal routes needs to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 23% from about 172 mt a year to around 600 mts by 2020. This requires significant changes in the product mix, vessel-type mix and port-wise traffic distribution, in addition to expanding the coastal cargo-carrying fleet to about 950 vessels, with an average capacity of 3,000 tonnes. The development of coastal shipping and inland waterways will provide a huge spin-off benefit for related maritime sectors. The financial incentive scheme is a significant step also from the point of view of checking environmental degradation, reducing carbon emissions and addressing concerns over social costs arising from the congestion of existing road and railway networks.

Indian Education System

Climate Resilient Agriculture

“Need for climate resilient agriculture in India today”       

National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA) was launched during February 2011^[1] by Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) with the funding from Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. The mega project has three major objectives of strategic research, technology demonstrations and capacity building. Assessment of the impact of climate change simultaneous with formulation of adaptive strategies is the prime approach under strategic research across all sectors of agriculture, dairying and fisheries. Evolving climate resilient agricultural technologies that would increase farm production and productivity vis-à-vis continuous management of natural and manmade resources constitute an integral part of sustaining agriculture in the era of climate change. The four modules of NICRA – natural resource management, improving soil health, crop production and livestock – is aimed making the farmers self-reliant.

The need for a climate resilient approach to agriculture is critical for India where more than 80 percent agriculturists are small-holder farmers. The insights, lessons, and experiences gained from WOTR’s climate change adaptation project are formulated into a series of Position Papers on various themes. The strong trends in climate change already evident, the likelihood of further changes occurring, and the increasing scale of potential climate impacts give urgency to addressing agricultural adaptation more coherently. There are many potential adaptation options available for marginal change of existing agricultural systems, often variations of existing climate risk management. Hence, more systemic changes in resource allocation need to be considered, such as targeted diversification of production systems and livelihoods, and also to achieve increased adaptation action will necessitate integration of climate change-related issues with other risk factors, such as climate variability and market risk, and with other policy domains, such as sustainable development. Dealing with the many barriers to effective adaptation will require a comprehensive and dynamic policy approach covering a range of scales and issues, for example, from the understanding by farmers of change in risk profiles to the establishment of efficient markets that facilitate response strategies. Science, too, has to adapt. Multidisciplinary problems require multidisciplinary solutions, i.e., a focus on integrated rather than disciplinary science and a strengthening of the interface with decision makers. A crucial component of this approach is the implementation of adaptation assessment frameworks that are relevant, robust, and easily operated by all stakeholders, practitioners, policymakers, and scientists.