Comrade Academy for Revolution in Education

WCO in brief The World Customs Organization (WCO), established in 1952 as the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC) is an independent intergovernmental body whose mission is to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of Customs administrations. Today, the WCO represents  182 Customs administrations  across the globe that collectively process approximately 98% of world trade. As the global centre of Customs expertise, the WCO is the only international organization with competence in Customs matters and can rightly call itself the voice of the international Customs community. The WCO’s governing body – the Council – relies on the competence and skills of a Secretariat and a range of technical and advisory committees to accomplish its mission. The Secretariat comprises over 100 international officials, technical experts and support staff of some nationalities. As a forum for dialogue and exchange of experiences between national Customs delegates, the WCO offers its Me...

Does your Thanjavur have fake gold? Real glitter:Using gold foil adds to the life of a painting.R.M. RajarathinamThe Hindu   Now there is an easy way to tell without taking it apart — Raman spectroscopy People have long known that not every Thanjavur painting that glitters is gold. There was, however, no way to find out if the gold foil and gemstones used in these traditional crafts were authentic or fake – not without ruining the painting. Now there is: Raman spectroscopy. The gold foil used liberally in Thanjavur paintings serves two objectives: the glitter makes the painting more attractive, and it also prolongs the life of the artefact. Foils made of fake material look similar to genuine gold, making it difficult for consumers to tell the difference. Ramanathan Venkatnarayan from the Department of Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi, and his team of researchers from SASTRA University, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu have found ...