Month: June 2018

Education should not be used as tool for exploitation, says Javadekar

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Education should be used for the benefit of humanity and not as a tool of exploitation, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said here today.

The minister stressed that education is an indispensable instrument for social change and national development and should be designed to empower the minds of students to generate new ideas.

Delivering his address at the 44th annual convocation of Guru Nanak Dev University here, the minister said that investment in education is largely aimed at bringing economic prosperity for the nation and its people.

“The design of education should be such that students are able to develop life skills and professional skills which empower their minds to generate new ideas and take decisions that are good for them and for the nation at large,” he said.

Talking about his Ministry of Human Resource Development, he said that 20 schemes are running at present to cater to the needs of a diverse range of learner at various levels.

Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan are a step forward towards universalization of school education, he said.

He said that SWAYAM (study webs of active learning for young aspiring minds) is a new programme introduced by his ministry to deliver massive open online courses.

These are aimed to achieve access, equity and quality and to bring the best teaching and learning resources to everyone’s doorstep, including the underprivileged.

He said that swayam prabha, a group of 32 DTH channels which are devoted to the telecast of high-quality educational programmes 24×7, is another successful effort.

New content is added on daily basis with a repeat telecast five times a day, allowing the learner to choose the time at their convenience, he said.

Javadekar told students to get ready to face the challenges of the outside world with the values imparted by the varsity.

He said education should be used for the benefit of humanity and not as a tool of exploitation and control.

Jagdish Singh Khehar, former Chief Justice of India, and former Army chief Bikram Singh were honoured with degree Honoris Causa.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

OPEC May oil output hits new low on Nigeria, Venezuela

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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OPEC oil output fell to a 13-month low in May due to declining Venezuelan production, Nigerian outages and strong compliance with a supply-cutting deal, a Reuters survey found.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries pumped 32.00 million barrels per day in May, the survey found, down 70,000 bpd from April’s revised figure. The May total is the lowest since April 2017, according to Reuters surveys.

OPEC is reducing output by about 1.2 million bpd as part of a deal with Russia and other non-OPEC producers to get rid of excess supply. The deal began in January 2017 and, in theory, runs until the end of 2018.

With the supply glut largely cleared and oil topping $80 a barrel this month for the first time since 2014, OPEC and Russia are now shifting policy and discussing pumping more, although analysts expect any boost to be cautious.

“OPEC’s bias to err on the side of tightening remains intact,” said Konstantinos Venetis, senior economist at TS Lombard. “Easing the restrictions just means that its ‘line in the sand’ moves slightly back.”

For now though, adherence by producers in the deal to agreed levels remains strong. Compliance slipped to 163 percent of agreed cuts in May from 166 percent in April, the survey found, meaning they are still cutting far more than agreed.

The biggest decrease in supply came from Nigeria due to unplanned outages. Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian venture declared force majeure on Bonny Light crude exports, while loadings of another crude, Forcados, are facing delays.

The second-biggest decline came from Venezuela, where the oil industry is starved of funds because of economic crisis. Output dropped to 1.45 million bpd in May, the survey found, a new long-term low.

Production in Libya, which remains unstable due to unrest, edged lower because AGOCO, an eastern Libyan producer, had to curb output as unusually hot weather led to power problems.

Iranian output, expected to decline as the U.S. re-imposition of sanctions discourages companies from buying the country’s oil, edged lower in May but there was no evidence yet of a sizeable drop, sources in the survey said.

OPEC’s two largest producers, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, both pumped slightly more in May but not enough to offset the declines elsewhere.

Saudi Arabia’s output edged up due to more crude being used in domestic power plants, sources in the survey said, but remained below the kingdom’s OPEC target.

Iraq, the second-largest, pumped more because of an increase in exports from the south, the outlet for most of the country’s crude, following a decline in April.

Output in the country holding the OPEC presidency this year, the United Arab Emirates, was steady in May as it continues to show higher compliance than in 2017, sources close to the matter said. Kuwait also maintained full compliance.

Nigeria and Libya were originally exempt from cutting supply because their output had been curbed by conflict and unrest. For 2018, both told OPEC that output would not exceed 2017 levels.

OPEC has an implied production target for 2018 of 32.73 million bpd, based on cutbacks detailed in late 2016 and taking into account changes of membership since, plus Nigeria and Libya’s expectations of 2018 output.

According to the survey, OPEC pumped about 730,000 bpd below this implied target in May, not least because of the decline in Venezuela and a similar involuntary drop in Angola, where the survey found output was flat in May.

The Reuters survey is based on shipping data provided by external sources, Thomson Reuters flows data and information provided by sources at oil companies, OPEC and consulting firms.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Delhi govt issues advisory, asks people to be careful in consuming fruits

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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In the wake of the spread of Nipah virus in Kerala, the Delhi government today issued an advisory asking people to be cautious, but said that no human infection from the deadly virus has been reported in the national capital.

The government has asked people to “stop consumption of raw date palm sap” and take special precaution when it comes to consuming mangoes that have fallen off trees and lying under them this season.

It is “not a major outbreak” of the disease and only a local occurrence, limited to a few districts in Kerala — Kozhikode and Malappuram, the advisory said.

Available data suggests that “there is no need for the general public to be apprehensive about the safety of individuals and their family members,” the advisory said.

“No human infection of the Nipah virus has been reported in Delhi till date,” it said.

Meanwhile, the death toll due to Nipah virus in Kerala rose to 16 today.

“Its is a zoonotic disease (spreads from animals to humans) and its transmission can happen through infected bats by their bite or indirectly by consuming fruits like mangoes or date palm sap contaminated by their saliva, close contact with infected pigs or patients of Nipah virus infection,” the Delhi government said.

The illness commonly presents as brain fever. In some cases during early part of illness it may also present with fever with persistent cough and difficulty in breathing.

“By and large there is no travel advisory. However unnecessary travel to the affected districts of Kerala can be avoided for time being,” the advisory said.

The advisory has also asked people not to consume any fruit which are partially eaten or having a bite marks by bats or any other animal.

People are also supposed to report to health care facility immediately if someone is having viral fever-like symptoms with neck rigidity.

The advisory has also asked people to not go for self-medication.

“Maintain respiratory hygiene (avoid spiting) and coughing etiquettes (use clean handkerchief). Wash hands with soap and water before and after meals, and after coming back from markets after buying fruits and vegetables.

“Healthcare workers are advised to use full barrier personal protective equipment before examination of patients,” it said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow