Floating solar power plant.
Cochin
International Airport Limited (CIAL) commissioned one of the biggest floating
solar power (FSP) plants in the State with a capacity of 452 KWh. The project
is part of the company’s efforts to sustain the power-positive airport by using
green energy.
The
total installed capacity of the airport has gone up to 40 MWp, helping it
generate around 1.60 lakh units of power a day. The daily consumption stands
around at 1.30 lakh units.
CIAL’s
tryst with experiments in generating green energy achieved yet another
milestone with the installation, as the company has introduced cost-effective
high-density polyethylene floats using French technology.
A
total of 1,300 photovoltaic panels were mounted and laid over two artificial
lakes located in the 130-acre CIAL golf course.
The
plants covering a total area of one acre are connected to the KSEB grid which
is to be banked on when needed.
The
world’s largest FSP (600 MW solar energy) will be constructed at Omkareshwar
dam on Narmada river inKhandwa, Madhya Pradesh.
It
will begin power generation by 2022-23.FSP doesn’t take up valuable space on
land, however it is 25-30% costlier.
FSP in India include a 10 kW plant in Kolkata, a 100 kW by NTPC in Kerala and a 2 MW project by GreaterVisakhapatnam Smart City Corporation Limited (GVSCCL) in Visakhapatnam.New AnubhavaMantapa.
Karnataka
Chief Minister laid the foundation stone for the ‘New AnubhavaMantapa’in
Basavakalyan, the place where 12th century poet-philosopher Basaveshwara lived
for most of his life.
He
promised completion of the ₹500-crore project within two years on a 7.5-acre
area and said it would be inaugurated by P M Modi.
The
project to highlight the teachings of Basaveshwara (an icon of
Veerashaiva-Lingayat community) was first proposed back in 2016 when
Siddaramaiah was the Chief Minister and a committee led by Go. Ru.
Channabasappa was set up to draw a plan.
Political significance;
Basavakalyan,
an important pilgrim centre for Lingayats.
The New AnubhavaMantapa project is also expected to bolster Mr. Yediyurappa’s image as an undisputed Lingayat strongman, especially when leadership issue has emerged prominently within the BJP and there is one-upmanship to claim the community’s support.Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0.
The
Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has recently said
that the third phase of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY 3.0) will be
launched soon in 600 districts across all states of India focussing on new-age
and COVID -related skills.
About PMKVY 3.0:
•
Skill India Mission PMKVY 3.0 envisages training of eight lakh candidates over
a scheme period of 2020-2021.
• The 729 Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKKs), empaneled non-PMKK training centres and more than 200 ITIs under Skill India will be rolling out PMKVY 3.0 training to build a robust pool of skilled professionals.
•
On the basis of the learning gained from PMKVY 1.0 and PMKVY 2.0, the Ministry
has improved the newer version of the scheme to match the current policy
doctrine and energize the skilling ecosystem affected due to the COVID-19
pandemic.
About PMKVY:
•
Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), launched in 2015, is the flagship
scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE)
implemented by National Skill Development Corporation.
•
The objective of this Skill Certification Scheme is to enable a large number of
Indian youth to take up industry-relevant skill training that will help them in
securing a better livelihood.
•
Individuals with prior learning experience or skills will also be assessed and
certified under
Recognition
of Prior Learning (RPL).
•
Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 2.0 (PMKVY 2.0) 2016-20
•
After the Successful Implementation of pilot PMKVY (2015-16), PMKVY 2016-20 was
launched by scaling up both in terms of Sector and Geography and by greater
alignment with other missions of Government of India like Make in India,
Digital India, Swachh Bharat, etc.
Objectives of PMKVY 2016-20:
•
Enable and mobilize a large number of youths to take up industry designed
quality skill training, become employable and earn their livelihood.
✓ Encourage
standardisation of the Certification process and put in place the foundation
for creating a registry of skills.
✓ Benefit 10 million
youth over the period of four years (2016- 2020).
What is Skill India Mission?
•
“Skill India Mission” has Gained Tremendous Momentum through launch of its
flagship scheme PMKVY to unlock the vision of making India the ‘Skill Capital’
of the world.
Government of India strengthens cargo handling capacity of Chabahar Port,
Iran.
India
has supplied a consignment of two Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHC) to Iran’s
Chabahar port, with a total contract value of over USD 25 Million under a
contract agreement for supply of 6 MHC.
Key highlights:
With
140 metric tons lifting capacity, multipurpose equipment and accessories like
Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHC) will enable India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) to
provide seamless services for Container, Bulk and General Cargo at Shahid
Beheshti Port of Chabahar.
This
is a step towards India’s commitment towards infrastructure development of
Shahid Beheshti Port of Chabahar.
The
delivery of consignment of heavy equipment, including cranes shows India’s
commitment to the strategic connectivity of Chabahar port project that will
provide access to markets in Central Asia.
Development
of Chabahar port is the anchor for the expansion of economic and mutual
relations between India and Iran and it will give a further boost to the
maritime trade between both the countries.
About:
Government
of India is strengthening cargo handling capacity of Chabahar Port.
Chabahar
Port is jointly being developed by India, Iran and Afghanistan for multi-modal
transport of goods and passengers.
It is located in the Gulf of Oman.
It
gives India a sea-land access route into Afghanistan and Central Asia through
Iran's eastern borders.
It is seen as a counter to Pakistan's Gwadar Port, which is being developed with Chinese investment and is located at a distance of around 80-km from Chabahar.
World food price index rises for seventh straight month in Dec.
World
food prices rose for a seventh consecutive month in December, with all the
major categories, barring sugar, posting gains last month, the United Nations
food agency said.
The
Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which measures
monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and
sugar, averaged 107.5 points last month versus 105.2 in November.
For
the whole of 2020, the benchmark index averaged 97.9 points, a three-year high
and a 3.1% increase from 2019.
It
was still down more than 25% from its historical peak in 2011.
Vegetable
oil prices continued recent strong gains, jumping 4.7% month-on-month in
December after surging more than 14% in November. For the whole of 2020, the
index was up 19.1% on 2019.
The
cereal price index posted a more modest 1.1% rise in December from the month
before. For all of 2020, the index averaged 6.6% above 2019 levels.
The
dairy index climbed 3.2% on the month, however, over the whole of 2020, it
averaged some 1% less than in 2019. Bucking the rises in other indices, average
sugar prices dipped by 0.6% in December.
The
FAO revised down its harvest forecast for the 2020 cereal season for a third
month running, cutting it to 2.74 billion tonnes from a previous 2.75 billion
tonnes.
Fiscal
deficit of 7-8 per cent of gross domestic product in 2020-21, the Centre may
follow a glide path which will bring down the budget deficit to 4 per cent of
GDP by 2025-26.
This
means that the long-standing medium-term fiscal deficit target of 3 per cent of
GDP, as mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, no
longer holds. The above-mentioned changes will require amendments to the FRBM
Act through the Finance Bill, 2021. Though the FRBM Act came into being in
2003, the medium target has never been met.
About:
Fiscal
deficit or budget deficit is the difference between a government’s expenditure
and revenues.
When
revenue is higher, the budget is seen as fiscal surplus. Fiscal deficit is
measured as a percentage of real GDP and is the most important measure of the
health of a government’s balance sheet.
It
is tracked keenly by investment banks, economists markets, rating agencies and
sovereign bond investors.
It
is understood that a relaxed fiscal roadmap for the Centre in light of the
pandemic has been suggested by the Fifteenth Finance Commission.
The
Commission, whose report for 2021-22 to 2025-26 will be tabled in Parliament
along with the budget, is learnt to have given the Centre breathing space till
2025-26, and may have recommended a fiscal deficit target range for each year
of its award period, till 2025-26, instead of a single number.
The markets have factored in a fiscal slippage this year and next financial year, with an expectation that the finance minister, in her budget, will spell out a new fiscal roadmap for the medium term.Alternative anti-cancer therapy using transgenic zebrafish.
Angiogenesis
is critical in the growth of cancer because tumors need blood supply to grow.
Inhibition
of tumor angiogenesis has become a popular anti-cancer strategy after
chemotherapy.
However,
the clinically approved anti-angiogenic drugs are ineffective due to parallel
activation of various compensatory mechanisms involving a cascade of molecules,
which aids tumor angiogenesis and investigation of these mechanisms are
essential for developing anti-angiogenic therapies.
The
research team is further working to develop transgenic zebrafish (which have
exogenous genes added to their genome) model by use of the CRISPR/Cas9
gene-editing tool to further study the compensatory angiogenesis mechanism in
tumor microenvironment.
Differential
expression of biomolecules between two types of angiogenesis (sprouting
angiogenesis and intussusceptive angiogenesis) and their molecular mechanism
will be analysed using transgenic zebrafish models in tumor microenvironment.
The
transgenic or CRISPR/Cas9 edited Zebrafish platform (TZP) can be used for
studying the efficacy of a drug as anti or pro-angiogenesis in the next phase
of the project.
The
transgenic zebrafish model has been selected for the intussusceptive
angiogenesis study because of its rapid development, optically transparent,
high yield in offspring, and easy techniques for forward and reverse gene
manipulation.
The CRISPR/Cas9 edited zebrafish platform will also be used for studying the efficacy of a drug as anti or pro-angiogenesis in the next phase of the project.
Forest Fires are in Himachal Pradesh.
Himachal
Pradesh recently witnessed Forest fires, which is Frequent during Dry Weather Conditions.
About the News:
•
Recently, a Forest fire which started near Kullu raged for several days before
being brought under control.
•
Forest fires were also Reported in Shimla and other parts of the state.
What
is the Forest Cover of Himachal Pradesh?
•
Although two-thirds of the total geographical area of Himachal Pradesh is
legally classified as forest area, much of this area is permanently under snow,
glaciers, cold desert or alpine meadows and is above the tree line.
•
As per the Forest Survey of India, the effective forest cover is around 28
percent of the total area which amounts to 15,434 square kilometres.
•
Chir, Pine, Deodar, Oak, Kail, Fir and Spruce are some of the common trees
found here.
How
is Fire Prone in these Forests?
•
Except for periods of precipitation in monsoon and winter, the forests remain
vulnerable to wildfires. In the summer season, forest fires occur frequently in
the low and middle hills of the state, where forests of Chir Pine are common.
•
During the post-monsoon season and in winters, forest fires are also reported
in higher areas, including parts of Shimla, Kullu, Chamba, Kangra and Mandi
districts, where they Usually occur in Grasslands.
Causes of the Fire:
•
Natural causes such as lightning or rubbing of dry bamboos with each other can
sometimes result in fires, but forest officials maintain that almost all forest
fires can be attributed to human factors.
•
Setting up of temporary hearth to cook food by the herdsman and minor forest
produce gatherer may leave behind a smouldering fire, it can develop into a
forest fire.
•
Also, when people burn their fields to clear them of stubble, dry grass or
undergrowth, the fire sometimes spreads to the Adjoining Forest.
• A spark can also be produced when dry pine needles or leaves fall on an electric pole.
What is done to Prevent and Control
Forest Fires?
•
To prevent and control forest fires the following can be done:
•
Forecasting fire-prone days using meteorological data.
•
Clearing camping sites of dried biomass.
•
Early burning of dry litter on the forest floor.
•
Growing strips of fire-hardy plant species within the forest, and
•
Creating fire lines in the forests are some of the methods to prevent fires
(fire lines are strips in the forest kept clear of vegetation to prevent the
fire from spreading).
Way Forward:
•
In 1999, the state government notified forest fire rules which restrict or
regulate certain activities in and around forest areas such as lighting a fire,
burning agricultural stubble or undergrowth (Ghasnis) and stacking inflammable
forest produce such as dried leaves and firewood.
•
For such activities, the state Forest Department has a fire Protection and Fire
Control Unit.
No comments:
Post a Comment