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India and World: April 2011

Top SAARC police officers discuss drug trafficking and terrorism

Top police officers from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC) countries discussed terrorism and drug traffic-related problems in the region,

among other policing issues, at a two-day conference in Colombo.

The fourth meeting of the focal points of SAARC terrorist offences monitoring desk(STOMD) and the fourth meeting of focal points of SAARC drug offences monitoringdesk (SDOMD), consumed a major part of the deliberations at the ninth SAARC

conference in Police Matters. While SDOMD has made some progress treading oncommon ground, the terrorist offences monitoring desk is yet to achieve the same amount

of success.

Since last year, India had been offering training programmes at the National Institute ofCriminology and Forensic Science.

Jahangir portrait sold for Rs. 10 crore at London auction

A six-foot high, life-size portrait of Mughal emperor Jahangir, billed as one of the rarestand most desirable 17th century paintings ever to go under the hammer, sold for a

whopping 1.42 million (Rs. 10 crore) at an auction in London.

The portrait, attributed to Abu'l Hasan, Nadir al-Zaman and dated 1617 AD, was one ofthe top lots at the Indian and Islamic Art Sale at Bonhams.

India signs chemicals test data-sharing pact

India took another step towards quality parity with international standards in the realm ofnon-clinical chemicals manufacturing when it joined the system for the Mutual

Acceptance of Data (MAD) in the Assessment of Chemicals, a multilateral agreementsupported by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

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Its decision to join the OECD pact makes India the third key emerging economy to get onboard the platform for ensuring that the results of its non-clinical chemical safety testing

will be accepted in all other participating countries, the OECD said in a statement.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurra said: India's engagement in OECD's work onchemical safety and its membership in our MAD system is indicative of the mutual

benefit of the ever-closer relationship between OECD and major emerging economies. Ensuring that OECD and partner countries share and trust each other's chemical safety

test data would also open the possibility for producers in OECD countries to have safety

tests for their chemicals undertaken in adhering partner economies, officials said, notingthat provisional adherents to the MAD system are currently Argentina, Brazil, Malaysia

and Thailand.

West Asia imparts political colour to BRICS summit

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived at Sanya coastal resort town in China for thefirst-ever summit of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) nations.

While two summits of the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) were held inRussia and Brazil, this summit has South Africa as the new entrant.

India will host the next summit.Chernobyl-like rating for Fukushima accident

The nuclear radiation crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan was reclassified as amajor accident with the same worst-case rating as the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

The level of the Fukushima crisis was now provisionally raised from five' to theworst-possible seven' on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES).The previous rating of five', assigned on the basis of radiation readings one week after

the March 11 temblor and tsunami, was the same as that of the 1979 civil-nuclearaccident in the U.S.

The Vienna-based IAEA said a score of seven' under the INES framework would implythe occurrence of a major release of radioactive material, with widespread health andenvironmental effects, requiring the implementation of planned and extended

countermeasures.

BRICS panel to intensify economic links

The Economic and Trade Ministers of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and SouthAfrica) nations have decided to set up a liaison group to intensify cooperation andpledged to oppose trade protectionism.

This will mean examining the current state of economic cooperation and trade among thefive countries and evaluating future trends.




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BRICS nations make the first move with local currencies

The BRICS nations inked a pact to use their own currencies instead of the U.S. dollar inissuing credit or grants among each other and pushed for the early conclusion of an India-

initiated U.N. comprehensive anti-terror law.

Our designated banks have signed a framework agreement on financial cooperation,which envisages grant of credit in local currencies and cooperation in capital markets andother financial services, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said.

The decision came after a restricted session that deliberated on the international situation,financial situation, climate and security.

Foothold for India in oil-rich Kazakhstan

India finally got a foothold in the ongoing rush for hydrocarbons in Central Asia with thesigning of a clutch of agreements during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's maiden visit

to Kazakhstan. A package of three agreements signed between the national companies of

both countries will give India access to the North Caspian Sea region which is in closeproximity to major discoveries. The block contains two prospective structures Satpayev and Satpayev Vostochni (East) with estimated hydrocarbon reserves of 256

million tonnes.

The agreements will enable ONGC Videsh (OVL) to acquire 25 per cent equity fromKazmunaigas (KMG), define how OVL will pay KMG, repayment in case of commercial

discovery and development of the discovered fields. Although OVL has been trying togain a foothold in Kazakhstan for over 15 years, the efforts got a boost only with the

inking of an MoU in 2005. Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs SanjaySingh said the move would add to India's efforts to diversify its sourcing of oil. It imports

67 per cent of oil from the Middle East and North Africa.

India, Kazakhstan sign pact on nuclear cooperation

In restricted and delegation level talks that lasted 100 minutes, Prime MinisterManmohan. Singh and Kazakhstan President Nazarbayev by and large concentrated onbilateral issues by putting flesh on various areas of collaboration, . Secretary in the

Ministry of External Affairs Sanjay Singh said.

With most initiatives having been time consuming so far, Dr. Singh and KazakhstanPresident agreed on a three-year Joint Action Plan. It details specific milestones in

hydrocarbons, civilian nuclear energy, space, IT & cyber security, high-tech andinnovative technology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, agriculture and cultural exchanges.

The two countries moved a step towards more intensive collaboration in nuclear energywith the signing of the Agreement on Cooperation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energybut this is subject to both sides adhering to their existing obligations under multilateral

nuclear regimes.

They also inked a memorandum in the area of information security and India agreed toset up an Indian-Kazakhstan Centre of Excellence in the Eurasian University in Astana.




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Speaking at a luncheon, Dr. Singh noted that Kazakhstan was one of the first CentralAsian States with which India established diplomatic ties. He also pointed out that Mr.

Nazarbayev's visit in 2009 (when he was Chief Guest at the Republic Day celebrations)launched the strategic partnership and paved the way for solid and substantive outcomes

in sectors where we have complementary strengths.

TAPI talks deadlocked on gas price, transit fee issues

Talks for putting together the TAPI peace pipeline remained deadlocked asrepresentatives of the four nations Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India

could not reach an agreement on the issues of gas price and transit fee.

Although the terms of the Gas Sale and Purchase Agreement (GSPA) were agreed at theMinisterial meeting of the TAPI countries, the issues of the price of fuel and the transitfee remained unresolved. All four nations decided to meet next month for further

negotiations.

Both India and Pakistan did not agree to the price of gas proposed by Turkmenistan.There was also a disagreement on the transit fee that India has to pay to Pakistan andAfghanistan to allow passage of gas.



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