FEATURED TOPIC: COMMONWEALTH GAMES

FEATURED TOPIC: COMMONWEALTH GAMES

About the Commonwealth Games
  • It is held every 4 years, involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations
  • Typically involves around 5000 athletes
  • The Commonwealth Games Federation is responsible for administration of the Games
  • The 19th edition of the Games will be held in New Delhi 03 – 14 Oct 2010
  • The 2014 Games will be held in Glasgow (Scotland)
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
History of the Commonwealth Games
  • The first Games, called the British Empire Games, was held in Ontario, Canada in 1930
  • The name of the Games changed to British and Commonwealth Games in 1954, to British Commonwealth Games in 1970, and to Commonwealth Games in 1978
  • Only six teams have attended every Games: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, England, Wales and Scotland
  • Australia has been the highest scoring team in 10 tournaments and England in 7
  • At the first Games, there were 6 sports: athletics, aquatics (swimming and diving), boxing, lawn bowls, rowing and wrestling
  • Women competed for the first time in 1930 in swimming, in 1934 they started competing in athletics too. This was the first time women’s athletics was given full recognition on the international stage
  • India participated for the first time in 1934, in London
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
The Commonwealth Games 2010
  • This is the first time the Commonwealth Games will be held in India, and the second time in Asia (Kuala Lumpur, 1998)
  • The opening ceremony will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on 03 Oct 2010
  • The Games will be opened by President Pratibha Patil
  • The closing ceremony will be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on 14 Oct 2010
  • Motto of the Games: Come Out And Play
  • Mascot of the Games: Shera (Tiger)
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
Preparations for the Games
  • The total estimated budget for hosting the Games is around USD 1.6 bn, making it the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever
  • Infrastructure projects for the Games include
    • Better transportation facilities regarding roads, the airport, high capacity bus systems and the Delhi Metro
    • Better security facilities by deploying additional forces specifically trained in tourism related security
    • Better power production and distribution facilities to assure adequate supply of power to Delhi
  • The Thyagaraj Stadium, the venue for Netball, is being constructed as a model Green Stadium. It is being built with the latest Green technologies solar power, rainwater harvesting etc. Once functional, the Stadium is expected to feed electricity to the power grid.
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
Participation at the Games
  • There will be 71 teams at the tournament, representing the 53 member nations of the Commonwealth
  • The four constituent countries of the UK send separate teams to the tournament: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. However, the UK sends a single team to the Olympics
  • Separate teams are also sent from the British Crown Dependencies – Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man – and many British Overseas Territories
  • The Australian external territory of the Norfolk Island also sends a separate team. The Cook Islands and Niue states in free association with New Zealand, also send separate teams
  • Tokelau (a territory of New Zealand) is expected to participate for the first time in 2010
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
Recognized sports at the Games
  • Three sports played in the Commonwealth Games but not at the Olympics are lawn bowls, rugby sevens and netball
  • There are a total of 31 sports, two multi-disciplinary sports and 7 para-sports approved by the Commonwealth Games. However, only 17 sports are competed in any edition of the Games
  • There will be 17 streams at the Games in 2010: Archery, aquatics, athletics, badminton, boxing, cycling, gymnastics, hockey, lawn bowls, netball, rugby sevens, shooting, squash, table tennis, tennis, weightlifting and wrestling
  • Elite Athletes with Disabilities will compete in 15 events across 4 sports namely athletics, swimming, powerlifting and table tennis
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
Queen’s Baton Relay
  • The relay began on 29 Oct 2009 when the Queen handed over the baton to the first relay runner – Abhinav Bindra from India
  • The baton will be handed back to the Queen at the opening ceremony on 03 Oct 2010
  • The relay will travel some 170000 km across the world, and an additional 20000 km in India. In India, it will travel to every state and its capital
  • The baton for the 2010 Games was designed by a consortium of Foley Designs, Titan Industries and Bharat Electronics, under the leadership of Michael Foley
  • The baton has been coated with red, black and yellow soils, as a symbol of India’s diversity
  • The technology features of the baton include
    • Ability to capture images and sound as it travels through the Commonwealth
    • GPS technology though which the exact location of the baton can be tracked on the Games’ website
    • Embedded LED’s that will display the colours of a country’s flag whilst in that country
    • Text messaging facility so people can text their congratulations and encouragements to baton runners
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth

RECENT NOTEWORTHY DEVELOPMENTS

DOMESTIC
  1. Government to re-introduce Bills in Parliament
    1. Government seeks to re-introduce the Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill 2009 and Land Acquisition (Amendment) Bill 2009
    2. Both Bills were earlier passed by the Lok Sabha in Feb 2009. However they lapsed due to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha
    3. Seeks to rehabilitate and resettle people affected by land acquisition for public projects
    4. Land required for major projects would not be acquired if 70% of farmers don’t give assent
    5. Farmlands where more than one crop is grown per year would not be affected
Keywords: ias, study material, general studies, current affairs, commonwealth
INTERNATIONAL
  1. IAEA censures Iran
    1. The IAEA castigated Iran for blocking enquiries into its nuclear program
    2. The resolution condemning Iran passed 25-3
    3. India, China and Russia voted in support of the resolution
    4. Current IAEA chief Dr. Mohamed El Baradei is preparing to step down after 12 years at the head of the UN agency
  2. Dubai defaults on debt
    1. Dubai World, the centerpiece of Dubai’s economy announces a 6-month suspension on debt repayments
    2. Dubai World has a debt of almost USD 60 bn, a large portion of Dubai’s total debt of USD 80 bn
    3. Dubai World is a conglomerate that sets the direction for Dubai’s economy. Its subsidiary Nakheel was the builder of the landmark palm tree shaped development islands off Dubai
    4. Dubai does not have oil resources (unlike neighbouring Abu Dhabi) but relies on tourism, shipping and real estate to fuel its economy
    5. The primary cause of Dubai’s default seems to be rampant speculation in the real estate market
    6. Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi are part of the United Arab Emirates
    7. Dubai is ruled by the Al Maktoum family since 1833
    8. The current ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum is also the Prime Minister of the UAE
  3. US, China pledge hard targets on emissions
    1. China proposes to reduce carbon intensity (i.e. the amount of carbon dioxide emitted per unit of economic output) by 40-45% compared to 2005 levels
    2. US proposes to reduce total tonnage of greenhouse emissions by 17% compared to 2005 levels by 2020
    3. China’s proposal will not decrease the amount of greenhouse emissions but merely reduce the rate of increase of emissions
    4. China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases, the US is the second largest
    5. Canada has also pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions: 20% compared to 2006 levels by 2020
  4. Commonwealth summit opens in Trinidad
    1. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) was inaugurated in Trinidad by Queen Elizabeth II
    2. The top items on the agenda are expected to be climate change and communicable diseases
    3. In an unusual move, three non-Commonwealth world leaders are attending this year: French President Nicholas Sarkozy, Danish Prime Minister Lars Rasmussen and UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon
    4. Rwanda (a French-speaking former Belgian colony) is trying to join the Commonwealth as its 54th member
    5. Zimbabwe may be re-admitted after its suspension in 2002
    6. Established in 1949, the Commonwealth primarily consists of States belonging to the former British Empire
    7. It comprises some of the world’s largest, smallest, richest and poorest nations
    8. Representing around 2 billion people (one third of world human population), the Commonwealth is the second largest international organization of nations (after the UN)
  5. India, Canada reach civil nuclear agreement
    1. The agreement was signed on the sidelines of the Commonwealth summit in Trinidad
    2. Canada has become the eight country with which India now has civil nuclear agreements
    3. The other seven countries with which India has agreements are: the US, France, Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Argentina and Namibia
    4. Canada is the world’s largest exporter of uranium, and has the second largest proven reserves (the first is Australia)
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