9 septdmber 2014: Scientist 2 take class in schools- Modi mantra of the day

Ø  For the first time, Naval commandos joined the nearly 20,000 armed forces personnel in the rescue mission even as the death toll inched up to 200. Despite the better weather, the flood situation remained critical in Kashmir because of the swirling waters of the Jhelum and the overflowing Dal Lake in Srinagar. The situation in Jammu, however, improved a little. The miseries of the people in south Kashmir and Srinagar were compounded by the scarcity of food, drinking water, clothes and medicines.

Ø  Following complaints raised by US companies on India's intellectual property rights (IPR) regime, the Modi Government has decided to come out with a policy framework on by early 2015. It has also at decided to disallow foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said.

Ø  German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi

Ø  The Centre has decided to make it mandatory for scientists and researchers of the Departments of Science and Technology, Earth Sciences and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research to undertake 12 hours of lecture classes in schools and colleges in an academic year. A special promotion scheme for women scientists, KIRAN (Knowledge and Involvement in Research Advancement through Nurturing), would allow public sector institutions to make alternate offers to women who have had a break in their career or a change of residence.

Ø  R. Kamal Bawa, president, the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), India, and Distinguished Professor, University of Massachusetts, Boston, is among the three winners of the MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity, 2014. The winners were announced on Monday in Tokyo and Montreal. The other two who bagged the prize are Alfred Oteng-Yeboah, Chair, Ghana National Biodiversity Committee, and Bibiana Vila, principal researcher, National Research Council and Director, Vicunas, Camelids and Environment (VICAM), Argentina. The MIDORI prize is a biennial international prize given by the AEON Environmental Foundation and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to honour individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity at global, regional or local levels. According to a press release, each recipient will be given a wooden plaque, a commemorative gift and $100,000 to support their work in safeguarding biodiversity.