Portal:Asia/2006 Featured article archive



September

The People's Republic of China (PRC; Simplified Chinese: 中华人民共和国, Traditional Chinese: 中華人民共和國; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó ), or China, is a state in East Asia. The PRC is home to over 1.3 billion people, which makes it the most populous country in the world.

Since its founding in 1949, the PRC has been led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) under a one-party system. Though constitutionally a socialist state, the PRC has extensively privatized its economy in the past three decades under "Socialism with Chinese characteristics." Nonetheless, it retains significant political control over the remaining state-owned enterprises and the banking sector. These economic reforms have succeeded in creating jobs and spurring economic growth, lifting much of the populace from poverty and leading to a growing Chinese global influence in economic, political, military, scientific, technological, and cultural affairs.

In an ongoing dispute, the PRC claims sovereignty over Taiwan and some neighboring islands, whose control was never relinquished by the Republic of China. The PRC asserts the Republic of China to be an illegitimate and supplanted entity and administratively categorizes Taiwan as a province of the PRC. The term "mainland China" is sometimes used to denote the area under the PRC's rule, usually excluding the two Special Administrative Regions, Hong Kong and Macau.

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October



The National Flag of India was adopted in its present form during an ad hoc meeting of the Constituent Assembly held on the 22 July 1947, a few days before India's independence from the British on the 15 August, 1947. It has served as the national flag of the Dominion of India between the 15 August 1947 and the 26 January 1950 and that of the Republic of India thereafter. In India, the term "tricolour" [Tirangā – तिरंगा (in Hindi)] almost always refers to the Indian national flag.

The flag is a horizontal tricolour of saffron at the top, white in the middle, and green at the bottom. In the centre, there is a navy blue wheel with twenty-four spokes, known as the Ashoka Chakra, taken from the Ashoka pillar at Sarnath. The diameter of this Chakra is three-fourths of the height of the white strip. The ratio of the height of the flag to its width is 2:3. The flag is also the Indian Army's war flag, hoisted daily on military installations.

The Indian National Flag was designed by Pingali Venkayya. The official flag specifications require that the flag be made only of "khadi," a special type of hand-spun yarn. The display and use of the flag are strictly enforced by the Indian Flag Code.

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November



Sir Syed Ahmed Khan Bahadur (Urdu:سید احمد خان بہا در) (October 17, 1817 – March 27, 1898), commonly known as Sir Syed, was an Indian educationalist and politician who pioneered modern education for the Muslim community in India by founding the Muhammedan Anglo-Oriental College, which later developed into the Aligarh Muslim University. His work gave rise to a new generation of Muslim intellectuals and politicians who composed the Aligarh movement to secure the political future of Muslims in India.

Born into Mughal nobility, Sir Syed earned a reputation as a distinguished scholar while working as a jurist for the British East India Company. Personally affected by the turmoil of the Indian rebellion of 1857, he penned the booklet Asbab-e-Bhaghawath-e-Hind (The Causes of the Indian Mutiny) &mdash; a daring critique, at the time, of British policies that he blamed for causing the revolt. Believing that the future of Muslims was threatened by their orthodox nature and outlook, Sir Syed began promoting Western-style scientific education by founding modern schools, journals and organising Muslim intellectuals. Inspired by the functioning of British colleges, Sir Syed founded the Muhammedan Anglo-Oriental College in 1874 with the aim of promoting social and economic development of Indian Muslims.

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December



The Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited (BOCHK, 中國銀行(香港)有限公司) (sehk: 2388) is the second-largest commercial banking group in Hong Kong in terms of assets and customer deposits, with more than 300 branches in Hong Kong. It was established on October 1, 2001 from a merger of 12 subsidiaries and associates of the Bank of China in Hong Kong, and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in October 2002. As of the end of 2003, the bank had HK$763 billion in assets and earned net profit of HK$8 billion in 2003.

BOCHK is one of the three banks which issue banknotes for Hong Kong, the biggest member and a founder of the JETCO ATM and payment system, and the designated clearing bank in Hong Kong for transactions involving the renminbi, Mainland China's currency. It is legally separate from its parent, Bank of China (BOC), although they maintain close relations in management and administration and cooperate in several areas including reselling BOC's insurance and securities services. It also shares its Hong Kong headquarters, the Bank of China Tower, with its parent; completed in 1988, this was the first building outside of North America to exceed 1,000 feet.

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