The World Intellectual Property Organization has notified a declaration referring to the deposit by the Government of the Republic of India of its instrument of ratification on the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works 1886.
Berne Convention, is an international agreement governing copyright, which was first accepted in Berne, Switzerland, in 1886.
The Convention is open to all States and Instruments of ratification or accession must be deposited with the Director General of WIPO.
The Convention deals with the protection of works and the rights of their authors.
It is based on three basic principles
principle of national treatment
principle of automatic protection
principle of independence of protection
It contains a series of provisions determining the minimum protection to be granted, as well as special provisions available to developing countries that want to make use of them.
The Appendix to the Paris Act of the Convention also permits developing countries to implement non-voluntary licenses for translation and reproduction of works in certain cases, in connection with educational activities.
In these cases, the described use is allowed without the authorization of the right holder, subject to the payment of remuneration to be fixed by the law.
Uranium Contamination in Rajasthan
Many parts of Rajasthan may have high uranium levels in their groundwater.
The main source of uranium contamination was “natural,” but human factors such as groundwater table decline and nitrate pollution could be worsening the problem.
The WHO has set a provisional safe drinking water standard of 30 micrograms of uranium per liter.
Despite of this, uranium is not yet included in the list of contaminants monitored under the Bureau of Indian Standards’ Drinking Water Specifications.
Coral fertility treatment
A coral fertility treatment designed to help heal damaged parts of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is showing signs of success.
The experimental process known as “coral IVF” is working on a small scale that showed the result.
The program is one of a number of experimental projects underway in Australia to try to find ways to save what’s left of one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
In April, the Australian government announced a funding package of nearly $400 million which will be spent on different projects working towards reef preservation and protection.
Paraben Levels in Water
A project is initiated to identify parabens and triclosan in water bodies to help develop measures to correct their harmful effects.
Parabens are a group of organic compounds used as preservatives in cosmetics and hygiene products.
They are harmful for human health and when they end up in water bodies with urban and hospital waste, they become a threat to corals and may cause hormonal disruptions in dolphins and other marine animals as well.
Use of cosmetics with parabens could pose a risk of breast cancer in women.
Multiple studies have linked chlorinated parabens to endocrine disrupting functions, specifically mimicking the effects of Estrogen.
World Oceans Day 2018
The UN General Assembly designated 8 June as World Oceans Day.
On World Oceans Day, people around our blue planet celebrate and honor the ocean, which connects us all.
The concept of a 'World Oceans Day' was first proposed in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro as a way to celebrate our world’s shared ocean and our personal connection to the sea.
It is to raise awareness about the crucial role the ocean plays in our lives and the important ways people can help protect it.
The UN Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea is actively coordinating different activities of he World Oceans Day.
UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) sponsors the World Ocean Network, which has since 2002 been instrumental in building support for ocean awareness events on 8 June.
This year’s theme for World Oceans Day will be preventing plastic pollution and encouraging solutions for a healthy ocean.
