Prime Minister Manmohan Singh inaugurated National Waqf Development Corporation (NAWADCO) in New Delhi. Government has established NAWADCO for the development of waqf properties for the benefit of the Muslim community.
This Corporation has been established with an authorized share capital of Rs.500 Crore. It will facilitate and mobilize financial resources for setting up of facilities like schools, colleges, hospitals on waqf properties for community purposes in a transparent manner.
NAWADCO will facilitate and mobilize financial resources for the development of Waqf properties for community development purposes in a joint venture with the State / Union Territory Waqf Boards and the Mutawallis. The Waqf Boards and the Muthawallis were not having the financial resources to develop the properties leading to encroachments.
There are more than 4.9 lakh registered waqf properties in India today which fetch an annual income of about Rs.163 crore. Many of these properties have the potential of generating considerable returns, which in turn could be used for the socio-economic development of the Muslim community. As per the estimates of the Sachar Committee, if these properties are properly developed, they could fetch an annual income of about Rs. 12000 crore, assuming an annual return of 10 percent on the value of the property. It is this vast potential that NAWADCO will strive to realize.
Government has also recently amended the Waqf Act. The amendments are expected to bring transparency in administration of waqf properties and provide an enabling environment for the development and utilization of waqf lands to the benefit of the Muslim community.
The amended Act has particularly strengthened the role of Central Waqf Council (CWC), which was established to advise the Government on matters pertaining to the working of State Waqf Boards and proper administration of waqf properties. The Council is now empowered to issue directives to State Waqf Boards on their performance, particularly on their financial performance, survey of waqf properties, maintenance of waqf deeds, and prevention of encroachment of waqf properties.
Keeping in view the need to prevent their alienation, ‘Sale’, ‘Gift’, ‘Mortgage’ and ‘Exchange’ of waqf properties have been made void ab initio. The process of leasing of waqf properties has been made transparent.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
UNESCO released 11th EFA Global Monitoring Report 2013-14
UNESCO released the 11th Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2013 – 14 on 28 January 2014. The theme of the report was Teaching and Learning: Achieving quality for all.
The report warns that despite advances made in education, not a single goal laid down in Dakar, Senegal in 2000 will be achieved globally by 2015.
The report warns that despite advances made in education, not a single goal laid down in Dakar, Senegal in 2000 will be achieved globally by 2015.
The EFA Global Monitoring Report 2013-14 vividly underlines the fact that people in the most marginalized groups have continued to be denied opportunities for education over the decade. The Report has advocated to put in place a robust global post-2015 education framework to tackle unfinished business while addressing new challenges.
It further said that post-2015 education goals will only be achieved if they are accompanied by clear, measurable targets with indicators tracking that no one is left behind, and if specific education financing targets for governments and aid donors are set.
The Main Highlights of the Report
Goal 1: Pre-primary Education: Despite improvements, far too many children lack early childhood care and education. In 2012, 25% of children under-5 suffered from stunting. In 2011, around half of young children had access to pre-primary education, and in sub-Saharan Africa the share was only 18%.
Goal 2: Universal Primary Education: Universal primary education is likely to be missed by a wide margin. The number of children out of school was 57 million in 2011, half of whom lived in conflict-affected countries. In sub-Saharan Africa, only 23% of poor girls in rural areas were completing primary education by the end of the decade. If recent trends in the region continue, the richest boys will achieve universal primary completion in 2021, but the poorest girls will not catch up until 2086.
Goal 3: Lower Secondary Education: Many adolescents lack foundation skills gained through lower secondary education. In 2011, 69 million adolescents were out of school, with little improvement in this number since 2004. In low income countries, only 37% of adolescents completed lower secondary education, and the rate is as low as 14% for the poorest. On recent trends, girls from the poorest families in sub-Saharan Africa are only expected to achieve lower secondary completion in 2111.
Goal 4: Adult Literacy: Adult literacy has hardly improved. In 2011, there were 774 million illiterate adults, a decline of just 1% since 2000. The number is projected to fall only slightly, to 743 million, by 2015. Almost two-thirds of illiterate adults are women. The poorest young women in developing countries may not achieve universal literacy until 2072.
Goal 5: Primary Education Gender Disparity: Gender disparities remain in many countries. Even though gender parity was supposed to be achieved by 2005, in 2011 only 60% of countries had achieved this goal at the primary level and 38% at the secondary level.
Goal 6: Lower Secondary Education Gender Parity: Poor quality of education means millions of children are not learning the basics. Around 250 million children are not learning basic skills, even though half of them have spent at least four years in school. The annual cost of this failure is around 129 billion dollars. The key to improve gender parity in lower secondary education is investing in teachers. In around a third of countries, less than 75% of primary school teachers are trained according to national standards. And in a third of countries, the challenge of training existing teachers is worse than that of recruiting and training new teachers.
Global Monitoring Report and India
According to the Report, in India there are two issues i.e. access and quality. While the Right to Education (Act) has almost taken care of the access part, the government next target is to now focus on improving quality.
The main highlights of the Report in context of India are:
• In India, education accounts for 10.5% of the total government expenditure which is 3.3% of the GNP (gross national product).
• The expenditure on education was below the target of 6%. In fact the spending on education has declined over the period 1999 – 2011. The decline was witnessed in both terms, that is, as a percentage of budgeted expenditure an as a percentage of GNP. In 1999, the spending on education was 13% of the total budgeted expenditure and 4.4% of the GNP.
• India has the highest population of illiterate adults, 287 million which is 37% of the total population of such people across the world.
• In India, even after completing four years of school, 90% of children from poorer household remain illiterate.
• The UN body has advised countries including India to improve their tax regimes so as to provide more funds to the education sector.
• In India, rich young women have already achieved universal literacy but the poorest will only do so around 2080.
• Allocation for education in India varies widely across states. The expenditure of Kerala on education on per pupil was about 685 dollar per year while in Himachal Pradesh it was 542 dollar. In contrast, in West Bengal it was 127 dollar and in Bihar 100 dollar.
• The expenditure on education was below the target of 6%. In fact the spending on education has declined over the period 1999 – 2011. The decline was witnessed in both terms, that is, as a percentage of budgeted expenditure an as a percentage of GNP. In 1999, the spending on education was 13% of the total budgeted expenditure and 4.4% of the GNP.
• India has the highest population of illiterate adults, 287 million which is 37% of the total population of such people across the world.
• In India, even after completing four years of school, 90% of children from poorer household remain illiterate.
• The UN body has advised countries including India to improve their tax regimes so as to provide more funds to the education sector.
• In India, rich young women have already achieved universal literacy but the poorest will only do so around 2080.
• Allocation for education in India varies widely across states. The expenditure of Kerala on education on per pupil was about 685 dollar per year while in Himachal Pradesh it was 542 dollar. In contrast, in West Bengal it was 127 dollar and in Bihar 100 dollar.
An Analysis
This 11th EFA Global Monitoring Report provides a timely update on progress that countries are making towards the global education goals that were agreed in 2000. It also makes a powerful case for placing education at the heart of the global development agenda after 2015. In 2008, the EFA Global Monitoring Report asked – ‘will we make it?’ With less than two years left before 2015, this Report makes it clear that we will not.
In this light Report calls on Governments to redouble efforts to provide learning to all who face disadvantages – whether from poverty, gender, where they live or other factors. Besides, governments must step up efforts to recruit an additional 1.6 million teachers to achieve universal primary education by 2015. Consequently the Report has identified four strategies to provide the best teachers to reach all children with a good quality education.
First, the right teachers must be selected to reflect the diversity of the children they will be teaching.
Second, teachers must be trained to support the weakest learners, starting from the early grades.
Third, overcome inequalities in learning by allocating the best teachers to the most challenging parts of a country.
Fourth, governments must provide teachers with the right mix of incentives to encourage them to remain in the profession and to make sure all children are learning, regardless of their circumstances.
But teachers cannot shoulder the responsibility alone. The Report shows also that teachers can only shine in the right context, with well-designed curricula and assessment strategies to improve teaching and learning.
These policy changes have a cost. This is why we need to see a dramatic shift in funding. Basic education is currently underfunded by 26 billion dollars a year, while aid is continuing to decline. At this stage, governments simply cannot afford to reduce investment in education – nor should donors step back from their funding promises. This calls for exploring new ways to fund urgent needs.
About the Global Monitoring Report
The Education for All Global Monitoring Report was established in 2000 at Dakar in Senegal. The main objective of the Report is to inform, influence and sustain commitment to achieving the Education for All goals by 2015.
At the UNESCO Summit in April 2000, 1100 participants from 164 countries adopted the Dakar Framework for Action, Education for All: Meeting Our Collective Commitments. These participants agreed upon six wide-ranging education goals to be met by 2015.
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DAILY DOSE
India ranked lowest in International Intellectual Property Index
US Chamber of Commerce released the International Intellectual Property (IP) Index on 28 January 2014. In the IP Index, India has scored a low seven point out of maximum 30 points. India continues to have the weakest IP environment of all countries included in the GIPC Index for the second consecutive year.
The continued use of compulsory licenses, patent revocations, and weak legislative and enforcement mechanisms raise serious concerns about India’s commitment to promote innovation and protect creators.
Other highlights of the IP Index:
• The United States received the highest (28.5 percent) overall score, but came in third after the United Kingdom and France in the enforcement category.
• China IIP environment continued to see challenges (trade secret protection and enforcement) and it shows improvements in certain aspects of its patent regime.
• Canada’s treatment of pharmaceutical patents, copyright laws, and unwillingness to ratify international IP treaties resulted in significantly lower scores than other upper-income economies.
• China IIP environment continued to see challenges (trade secret protection and enforcement) and it shows improvements in certain aspects of its patent regime.
• Canada’s treatment of pharmaceutical patents, copyright laws, and unwillingness to ratify international IP treaties resulted in significantly lower scores than other upper-income economies.
International IP Index is prepared by the Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) of the US Chamber of Commerce which maps the IP environment of 25 countries from around the world utilising 30 factors, which are indicative of an IP environments that fosters growth and development.
Comment:
In 2010, the then-President of India declared the next 10 years to be India’s “Decade of Innovation.” Promoting innovation means protecting domestic innovators and creators, attracting world-class research and development, and creating and sustaining high-quality future jobs through a robust intellectual property (IP) system. However, recent policy, regulatory, and legal decisions have deteriorated IP rights in the country, making India an outlier in the international community.
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DAILY DOSE
Monday, January 27, 2014
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Padma Awards 2014
The President of India has approved conferment of 127 Padma Awards including one duo case (counted as one) as per the list below. The list comprises two Padma Vibhushan, 24 Padma Bhushan and 101 Padma Shri Awardees. 27 of the Awardees are women and the list also includes 10 persons from the category of foreigners, NRIs, PIOs and Posthumous Awardees.
Padma Awards, the country’s highest civilian awards, are conferred in three categories, namely, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri. The Awards are given in various disciplines/ fields of activities, viz- art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, etc. ‘Padma Vibhushan’ is awarded for exceptional and distinguished service; ‘Padma Bhushan’ for distinguished service of high order and ‘Padma Shri’ for distinguished service in any field. The awards are announced on the occasion of Republic Day every year. The awards are conferred by the President of India at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhawan sometime around March/ April.
Padma Vibhushan
Sl No.
|
Name
|
Discipline
|
State/ Domicile
|
1.
|
Dr. Raghunath A. Mashelkar
|
Science and Engineering
|
Maharashtra
|
2.
|
Shri B.K.S. Iyengar
|
Others-Yoga
|
Maharashtra
|
Padma Bhushan
Sl No.
|
Name
|
Discipline
|
State/ Domicile
|
Prof. Gulam Mohammed Sheikh
|
Art - Painting
|
Gujarat
| |
Begum Parveen Sultana
|
Art - Classical Singing
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri T.H. Vinayakram
|
Art - Ghatam Artist
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Shri Kamala Haasan
|
Art-Cinema
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Justice Dalveer Bhandari
|
Public Affairs
|
Delhi
| |
Prof. Padmanabhan Balaram
|
Science and Engineering
|
Karnataka
| |
Prof. Jyeshtharaj Joshi
|
Science and Engineering
|
Maharashtra
| |
Dr. Madappa Mahadevappa
|
Science and Engineering
|
Karnataka
| |
Dr. Thirumalachari Ramasami
|
Science and Engineering
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Vinod Prakash Sharma
|
Science and Engineering
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Radhakrishnan Koppillil
|
Science and Engineering
|
Karnataka
| |
Dr. Mrityunjay Athreya
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Ms. Anita Desai
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Dhirubhai Thaker
|
Literature and Education
|
Gujarat
| |
Shri Vairamuthu Ramasamy Thevar
|
Literature and Education
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Shri Ruskin Bond
|
Literature and Education
|
Uttarakhand
| |
Shri Pullela Gopichand
|
Sports - Badminton
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Shri Leander Paes
|
Sports - Tennis
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri Vijayendra Nath Kaul
|
Civil Service
|
Delhi
| |
Late Justice Jagdish Sharan Verma
|
Public Affairs
|
Uttar Pradesh #
| |
Late Dr. Anumolu Ramakrishna
|
Science and Engineering
|
Andhra Pradesh #
| |
Prof. Anisuzzaman
|
Literature and Education
|
Bangladesh*
| |
Prof. Lloyd I. Rudolph
|
Literature and Education
|
USA*$
| |
Prof. Susanne H. Rudolph
|
Literature and Education
|
USA*$
| |
Dr. (Smt.) Neelam Kler
|
Medicine - Neonatology
|
Delhi
|
Padma Shri
Sl No.
|
Name
|
Discipline
|
State/ Domicile
|
Shri Mohammad Ali Baig
|
Art - Theatre
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Ms. Nayana Apte Joshi
|
Art -
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri Musafir Ram Bhardwaj
|
Art - Instrumental Music - Pauna Manjha
|
Himachal Pradesh
| |
Ms. Sabitri Chatterjee
|
Art - Film
|
West Bengal
| |
Prof. Biman Bihari Das
|
Art - Sculptor
|
Delhi
| |
Shri Sunil Das
|
Art - Painting
|
West Bengal
| |
Smt. Elam Endira Devi
|
Art - Manipuri Dance
|
Manipur
| |
Shri Vijay Ghate
|
Art - Instrumental Music - Tabla
|
Maharashtra
| |
Smt Rani Karnaa
|
Art - Kathak
|
West Bengal
| |
Shri Bansi Kaul
|
Art - Theatre
|
Jammu & Kashmir
| |
Ustad Moinuddin Khan
|
Art - Instrumental Music-Sarangi Player
|
Rajasthan
| |
Ms. Geeta Mahalik
|
Art - Odishi Dance
|
Delhi
| |
Shri Paresh Maity
|
Art - Painting
|
Delhi
| |
Shri Ram Mohan
|
Art - Film Animation
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri Sudarsan Pattnaik
|
Art - Sand Artist
|
Orissa
| |
Shri Paresh Rawal
|
Art - Cinema and Theatre
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri Wendell Augustine Rodricks
|
Art - Fashion Designing
|
Goa
| |
Prof. Kalamandalam Sathyabhama
|
Art – Mohini Attam
|
Kerala
| |
Shri Anuj (Ramanuj) Sharma
|
Art - Performing Art
|
Chhattisgarh
| |
Shri Santosh Sivan
|
Art - Film
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Ms. Supriya Devi
|
Art-Bengali Cinema
|
West Bengal
| |
Ms. Sooni Taraporevala
|
Art- Script Writing
|
Maharashtra
| |
Ms. Vidya Balan
|
Art-Cinema
|
Maharashtra
| |
Smt. Durga Jain
|
Social Work
|
Maharashtra
| |
Dr. Rama Rao Anumolu
|
Social Work
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Dr. Brahm Dutt
|
Social Work
|
Haryana
| |
Shri Mukul Chandra Goswami
|
Social Work
|
Assam
| |
Shri J.L. Kaul
|
Social Work
|
Delhi
| |
Shri Mathurbhai Madhabhai Savani
|
Social Work
|
Gujarat
| |
Shri Tashi Tondup
|
Public Affairs
|
Jammu and Kashmir
| |
Dr. Hasmukh Chamanlal Shah
|
Public Affairs
|
Gujarat
| |
Shri Sekhar Basu
|
Science and Engineering
|
Maharashtra
| |
Shri Madhavan Chandradathan
|
Science and Engineering
|
Kerala
| |
Prof. Sushanta Kumar Dattagupta
|
Science and Engineering
|
West Bengal
| |
Dr. Ravi Bhushan Grover
|
Science and Engineering
|
Maharashtra
| |
Prof. Eluvathingal Devassy Jemmis
|
Science and Engineering
|
Karnataka
| |
Shri Ramkrishna V. Hosur
|
Science and Engineering
|
Maharashtra
| |
Dr. Ajay Kumar Parida
|
Science and Engineering
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Dr. Malapaka Yajneswara Satyanarayana Prasad
|
Science and Engineering
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Shri Kiran Kumar Alur Seelin
|
Science and Engineering
|
Gujarat
| |
Dr. Brahma Singh
|
Science and Engineering
|
Delhi
| |
Prof. Vinod Kumar Singh
|
Science and Engineering
|
Madhya Pradesh
| |
Dr. Govindan Sundararajan
|
Science and Engineering
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Ramaswamy R. Iyer
|
Science and Engineering
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Jayanta Kumar Ghosh
|
Science and Engineering
|
West Bengal
| |
Shri Ravi Kumar Narra
|
Trade and Industry
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Shri Rajesh Saraiya
|
Trade and Industry
|
Maharashtra
| |
Ms. Mallika Srinivasan
|
Trade and Industry
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Shri Pratap Govindrao Pawar
|
Trade and Industry
|
Maharashtra
| |
Dr. Kiritkumar Mansukhlal Acharya
|
Medicine - Dermatology
|
Gujarat
| |
Dr. Balram Bhargava
|
Medicine - Cardiology
|
Uttar Pradesh
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Indra Chakravarty
|
Medicine - Health & Hygiene
|
West Bengal
| |
Dr. Ramakant Krishnaji Deshpande
|
Medicine - Oncology
|
Maharashtra
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Pawan Raj Goyal
|
Medicine - Chest Disease
|
Haryana
| |
Prof. Amod Gupta
|
Medicine - Opthalmology
|
Haryana
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Daya Kishore Hazra
|
Medicine
|
Uttar Pradesh
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Thenumgal Poulose Jacob
|
Medicine - Vascular Surgery
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Shashank R. Joshi
|
Medicine - Endocrinology
|
Maharashtra
| |
Prof. Hakim Syed Khaleefathullah
|
Medicine - Unani Medicine
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Dr. Milind Vasant Kirtane
|
Medicine - ENT Surgeory
|
Maharashtra
| |
Dr. Lalit Kumar
|
Medicine - oncology
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Mohan Mishra
|
Medicine
|
Bihar
| |
Dr. M. Subhadra Nair
|
Medicine - Gyneacology
|
Kerala
| |
Dr. Ashok Panagariya
|
Medicine - Neurology
|
Rajasthan
| |
Dr. Narendra Kumar Pandey
|
Medicine - Surgery
|
Haryana
| |
Dr. Sunil Pradhan
|
Medicine - Neurology
|
Uttar Pradesh
| |
Dr. Ashok Rajgopal
|
Medicine - Orthopaedics
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Kamini A. Rao
|
Medicine - Reproductive Medicine
|
Karnataka
| |
Dr. Sarbeswar Sahariah
|
Medicine - Surgery
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Prof. Om Prakash Upadhyaya
|
Medicine -
|
Punjab
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Mahesh Verma
|
Medicine - Dental Science
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. J.S. Titiyal
|
Medicine- Opthalmology
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Nitish Naik
|
Medicine- Cardiology
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Surbrat Kumar Acharya
|
Medicine- Gastroentrology
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Rajesh Kumar Grover
|
Medicine-Oncology
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Naheed Abidi
|
Literature and Education
|
Uttar Pradesh
| |
Prof. Ashok Chakradhar
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Shri Chhakchhuak Chhuanvawra
|
Literature and Education
|
Mizoram
| |
Shri Keki N. Daruwalla
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Prof. Ganesh Narayandas Devi
|
Literature and Education
|
Gujarat
| |
Prof. Kolakaluri Enoch
|
Literature and Education
|
Andhra Pradesh
| |
Prof. (Dr.) Ved Kumari Ghai
|
Literature and Education
|
Jammu and Kashmir
| |
Smt. Manorama Jafa
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Prof. Rehana Khatoon
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. Waikhom Gojen Meeitei
|
Literature and Education
|
Manipur
| |
Shri Vishnu Narayanan Namboothiri
|
Literature and Education
|
Kerala
| |
Prof. Dinesh Singh
|
Literature and Education
|
Delhi
| |
Dr. (Mrs.) P. Kilemsungla
|
Literature and Education
|
Nagaland
| |
Ms. Anjum Chopra
|
Sports - Cricket
|
Delhi
| |
Ms. Sunil Dabas
|
Sports - Kabbadi
|
Haryana
| |
Shri Love Raj Singh Dharmshaktu
|
Sports - Mountaineering
|
Delhi
| |
Ms. Dipika Rebecca Pallikal
|
Sports - Squash
|
Tamil Nadu
| |
Shri H. Boniface Prabhu
|
Sports - Wheelchair Tennis
|
Karnataka
| |
Shri Yuvraj Singh
|
Sports - Cricket
|
Haryana
| |
Smt. Mamta Sodha
|
Sports - Mountaineering
|
Haryana
| |
Ms Parveen Talha
|
Civil Service
|
Uttar Pradesh
| |
Late Dr. Narendra Achyut Dabholkar
|
Social Work
|
Maharashtra#
| |
Shri Ashok Kumar Mago
|
Trade and Industry
|
USA*
| |
Dr. Siddharth Mukherjee
|
Medicine-Oncology
|
USA*
| |
Dr. Vamsi Mootha
|
Medicine - Biomedical Research
|
USA*
| |
Dr. Sengaku Mayeda
|
Literature and Education
|
Japan*
|
Note: * indicates awardees in the category of Foreigners / NRIs/ PIOs.
# indicates awardees in the posthumous category.
$ indicates one duo case. (treated as one award.)
Labels:
CURRENT AFFAIRS 2014
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