The President Mrs.Pratibha Devi Singh Patil is on a 9-day state visit to the Seychelles and South Africa. She will discuss issues of bilateral, regional and International concerns with her counterparts in the two nations. Increasing bilateral trade relations with both the African countries is high on the agenda.

NAB: National Automative Board

The government has finalized the proposal to set up NAB under the Department of Heavy Industry to support fresh initiatives for the growth of the automobile sector. NAB would be set up as an autonomous body constituting technical and domain experts to take up and synergise the ongoing and fresh go-aheads of the government for the growth of the automobile sector.

What will be the key functions of NAB?

The key functions of the board include:

Administration, regulation and synergizing the operations of the testing centres, alleviate collaborative R&D activities and issue of testing and homologation certificates based on test reports submitted to NAB by the testing centres.

Why NAB?

As part of its endeavour to encourage sustainable development of Indian automotive segment,the Government of India has decided to establish a NAB. The basic idea of setting up NATRiP is to establish new automotive testing and R&D Centres across the country, besides upgrading the existing centres.

• The NAB needs to be in position before the National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project (NATRiP) centres are commissioned and NATRiP Implementation Society (NATIS) is wound up.
• NATRiP has 3 centres across the India including The Vehicle Research and Development Establishment at Ahmednagar, Automotive Research Association of India at Pune, in western India and International Centre for Automotive Technology at Manesar, in the north Indian state of Haryana. Besides the upgradation of these three automotive testing and R&D centres, NATRiP's other roles included establishing four greenfield facilities at various major destinations pan India, including Chennai, Rae Bareilly, Indore and Silchar for the purpose of automotive testing, coupled with homologation and R&D
• NATIS is the apex body for implementation of NATRiP.

Discounting a media report on "non-notified" troop movement by army, the government informed Rajya Sabha that the exercise was undertaken for training purpose directed at refining mobilization drills and preparedness of the force. Defence Minister A K Antony held that the movement was purely for training purpose aimed at refining the mobilization drills and ascertaining operational preparedness of the Army in spite of untoward weather conditions.

As per a report by the Indian Express newspaper, the central intelligence agencies reported that on the night of January 16, there was an unanticipated and non-notified movement by key military unit around Delhi in the direction of the capital.

Nevertheless, Antony did accept in his reply that the 2 units did move from their bases. The para commando unit moved from Agra to the location of another unit in Gurgaon and the armoured division unit moved from its location (reportedly in Hisar) to Bahadurgarh on the night of January 16/17, 2012.

Earth Sciences Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh held that India is probable to experience average monsoon rains this year, thus forecasting a third straight year without drought. Deshmukh held that the rains during the June-September season are probable to be 99% of the long-term average. The state-run India Meteorological Department (IMD) considers rains between 96-104% of a 50-year average of 89 cms in the entire 4-month season as normal. The last time there was a drought with rains below this range was 2009 and before that, in 2004.

The rain forecast ardently watched by traders and policymakers. Monsoon rains, essential for agricultural output and economic growth, irrigate about 60% of farms in the world's 2nd-biggest producer of rice, wheat, sugar and cotton. The farm sector accounts for nearly 15% of India's nearly $2 trillion economy.

This most recent government forecast is also in conformity with last week's estimate of a global weather forum.

IMD held that the Monsoon is probable to have average rainfall in 2012 in spite of fears that the El Nino weather pattern may come forth in the second half of the season. In 2009, the El Nino weather pattern turned monsoon rains patchy, leading to the most terrible drought in almost 4 decades. Rains were within long-term averages in following years, assisted by La Nina. El Nino, an abnormal warming of waters in the equatorial tropical Pacific, is linked with poor rains or a drought-like situation in Southeast Asia and Australia. The La Nina weather pattern, which is linked with heavy rains in south Asia and flooding in the Asia-Pacific region and South America, and drought in Africa, finished in March. In the meantime before El Nino appears, weather officials articulate a neutral condition continues over the tropical Pacific.

The EC (Election Commission) has settled to relax the Model Code of Conduct, on an experimental basis, by permitting partial implementation of developmental schemes in those districts where by-polls will be held on June 12, 2012. 

Why this decision was taken by EC?

The EC order came after several states, where by-elections are being held, gave representations stating that the enforcement of model code affects the developmental works in the entire district, while only a part of the district may be involved in the election process.

NOT applicable to the entire districts: Thus, the EC has now decided on an experimental basis that the model code shall now be applicable only in respect of areas falling in the Assembly constituencies / Parliamentary constituency going for bye-election and not to the entire districts in which such constituency is situated.

Applicable to the entire districts: The EC yet, held that all other existing instructions on Model Code of Conduct on matters like tours of ministers, vehicles, advertisements, use of government guest houses, and all persisting Commission’s instructions including transfers of officers etc. shall persist to remain applicable to the whole districts in which the constituency having the bye-election is located.