Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying visited Norway

 A high-level delegation led by Shri Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India along with Dr. L. Murugan, Minister of State, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Ms. Neetu Kumari Prasad, Joint Secretary visited Norway today.

 

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As the fisheries and aquaculture sector is being recognised for its contribution to the global economy, the Government of India is cognizant of the numerous global prospects that could enable it grow further. Hence the Norway visit was envisioned in order to strengthen the bilateral cooperation between India and Norway in the field of fisheries and aquaculture.

The delegation attended the Opening Ceremony of the Aqua Nor 2023 trade show today at Trondheim Spektrum (Mendelsohn Conference Hall), Klostergata. Aqua Nor is one of the world's largest trade shows for aquaculture technology and innovation and is a biannual aquaculture exhibition and trade fair.

After attending the opening ceremony of the Aqua Nor 2023, exhibition and perusing the latest developments and solutions for sustainable aquaculture, the delegation visited AquaGen, a research-oriented breeding company that develops, manufactures, delivers genetic starter material and fertilized eggs to the global aquaculture industry. Shri Parshottam Rupala, and Dr. L. Murugan, discussed opportunities for joint collaboration with Mr. Knut Roflo, CEO, AquaGen. A presentation on salmon breeding was made by Shri Matias Medina, Director of breeding R&D at AquaGen.

 

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ISRO updates status and readiness of Chandrayaan-3 for the moon landing on Wednesday

 Chairman, ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) and Secretary, Department of Space, Dr S. Somnath called on the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh in New Delhi today and apprised him of the status and readiness of Chandrayaan-3 for the moon landing scheduled on 23rd August 2023 in the evening.

Chairman ISRO briefed the Minister on the health status of Chandrayaan-3 and said that all systems are working perfectly and no contingencies are anticipated on Wednesday. In the next two days, the health of Chandrayaan-3 will be continuously monitored. The final sequence of landing will be loaded two days ahead and tested out, he said.

Dr Jitendra Singh expressed his confidence in Chandrayaan-3 making a soft landing this time and hoped that it will script a new history of planetary exploration under the guidance of the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

ISRO said the Chandrayaan-3 is set to land on the moon on August 23, 2023, around 18:04 hours IST. While the Chandrayaan-2 mission was only partially successful since the lander lost contact after a hard landing, the ISRO successfully established two-way communication between the Chandrayaan-3 Lander Module and the still orbiting Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter. Earlier today, the ISRO shared new images of the Lunar far side area captured by the Chandrayaan-3.

India will be the fourth country in the world to achieve this feat after the United States, Russia, and China, but India will be the only country in the world to land on the lunar South Pole.

The primary objectives of Chandrayaan-3 mission are threefold, (a) to demonstrate Safe and Soft Landing on Lunar Surface; (b) to demonstrate Rover roving on the moon, and (c) to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.

Dr Jitendra Singh recalled that the first in the series of Chandrayaan, namely Chandrayaan-1, is credited for having discovered the presence of water on the surface of the Moon, which was a new revelation for the world and even the most premier Space agencies like the USA’s NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) were fascinated by this discovery and used the inputs for their further experiments.

Chandrayaan-3 mission was launched on 14 July 2023 via the GSLV Mark 3 (LVM 3) heavy-lift launch vehicle from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota at 2:35 PM.

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EFFICIENT MANAGEMENT OF WATER IS THE KEY TO WATER SECURITY AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

 he officers of Central Water Engineering Services called on the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan today (August 21, 2023).

Addressing the officers, the President said that water is the fundamental need for life and water resources management has always been an important and challenging task for all generations. She added that contribution of officers of Central Water Engineering Services towards the water infrastructure development by providing Engineering solutions will make the country more resilient against natural and manmade water crises.

The President said that sustainable development of water resources and efficient management of water is the key to water security and economic growth. She added that with greater economic growth and increasing urbanization and development, there will be need for optimum utilisation of available resources. She stated that the changing trend of climate has already started affecting the water sector and our country has different topographical and climatic patterns in different regions. She highlighted that Central Water Engineering Services officers are expected to play a key role in adopting a holistic approach to address existing and upcoming challenges. She advised them to emphasise on the development and management of water resources in a sustainable manner.

 

Please Click here to see the President's Speech

 

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Eklavya Model Residential School students

 Eklavya Model Residential School (EMRS) students will visit Rashtrapati Bhavan and meet President Smt. Droupadi Murmu as part of educational tour organized by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs & NESTS on 22nd August 2023.

Later in the day, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs & NESTS is organizing a conference for interaction of EMRS students with Union Minister Shri Arjun Munda; Minster of State, Tribal Affairs, Shri Bishweswar Tudu and Smt. Renuka Singh. Around 500 Eklavya Model Residential School students from 6 states, namely Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh shall be visiting Dr Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi on 22nd August, 2023 to participate in the program.

The objective behind organizing such conference is to provide students a platform for meaningful interaction to exchange ideas, insights and experiences on matters related to education, career, and scholarship schemes.

The students will also   embark on a visit to Parliament House on the morning of 23rd August, 2023. The visit to this prestigious institution shall provide students a unique opportunity to familiarize with workings of Parliament House and form an overall understanding of roles and responsibilities associated with Parliament.

The whole programme shall act as a conglomeration of different experiences bind together for EMRS student community. This educational visit intends to be immensely contributing towards students’ overall development providing them a platform to thrive and at the same time leaving an indelible mark etched for life.

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Digital Governance Plan

 Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh called on the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Saturday, 19 August 2023. In their meeting lasting over an hour, they discussed threadbare the Digital Governance Plan for Uttar Pradesh.

It was informed that the Uttar Pradesh District Good Governance Index (DGGI) 2022, the first of its kind survey of districts undertaken by any state in the country, is ready for release.

The Good Governance Index (GGI) Report, 2021, prepared by DARPG, says that Uttar Pradesh has shown an incremental growth of 8.9 % over GGI 2019 performance. Among the sectors, UP has secured top position in Commerce & Industry sector and has also shown increase in Social Welfare & Development and Judiciary & Public Safety. Uttar Pradesh has also performed well in citizen centric governance including public grievance redressal.

Dr Jitendra Singh proposed that the State Administration should design DGGI-based performance incentive system to reward the Best Practices and institute the Chief Minister’s Awards for Good Governance / Practices on the pattern of PM Awards being managed by DARPG, GoI.

Dr Jitendra Singh also congratulated the UP CM for two districts, - Rampur and Chitrakoot, bagging the Prime Minister’s Awards on Civil Services Day, 2023. Several other innovative practices have also been recipients of the PM awards for excellence in Administration and E-Governance, including district Chandauli for Black Rice, district Siddharthnagar for ODOP- Kala Namak rice, Varanasi district for Swamitva Yojana and the state’s Mines and Mineral Management System.

Dr Jitendra Singh lauded Yogi Adityanath for providing as many as 714 Government Services online in Uttar Pradesh. He urged the UP Chief Minister to bring more services onboard the Unified Services Portal and hoped the state would soon catch up with Madhya Pradesh, which tops the rankings providing 1,000 services online. It was mentioned that Uttar Pradesh has the potential to provide e-services of at least 20 types in Tourism sector, 9 types of Environment and 14 types in Education.

As per the National e-Governance Service Delivery Assessment (NeSDA) 2021 index released by DARPG biennially, Uttar Pradesh ranked 2nd in assessment of portals and service portals among the large states with a compliance of more than 85%. Uttar Pradesh was among the forerunners in implementing mandatory services covered in NeSDA 2021 assessment. An exemplary initiative from UP on an integrated portal named "Nivesh Mitra" was also covered in the 2021 assessment.

Dr Jitendra Singh appreciated the fact that the state has consistently performed exceptional in the Grievances Disposal rankings.

As per the Grievance Redressal and Assessment Index (GRAI) monthly report of States/UTs, released by the DARPG, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh topped the rankings among the large States continuously in the months of May, June and July 2023. Uttar Pradesh received and disposed maximum number of grievances during 01.01.2023 to 15.08.2023 among all States and UTs. Uttar Pradesh, with an average closing time of 23 days, is the only large State which has average closing time of their grievances within the standard redressal time of 30 days.

The State Govt has developed a very robust Integrated Grievance Redressal System popularly termed as IGRS or the ‘UP Jansunwai Samadhan’. The CM Helpline is at the heart of this system. Common citizens can register their grievances through toll free number 1076, which is backed by a call centre staffed with 500 strong work force. The IGRS is fully integrated with Govt of India’s PG portal (CPGRAMS) as well as those received in various offices like the Governor’s office, CMO and down to the level of districts/tehsil and police stations. The impact of the IGRS has been highly positive. On an average, 80 lakh public grievances are being received and disposed of every year through this system. Receipt of a large number of grievances or references from the citizens reflects their growing confidence in the system and the enhanced credibility of administration. The average disposal time has been reduced drastically.

Dr Jitendra Singh suggested that the DARPG can conduct the 2nd National Workshop on SEVOTTAM in Uttar Pradesh. SEVOTTAM is a capacity building programme for the Grievance redressal officers registered under the CPGRAMS.  The programme is implemented through State Administrative Training Institutes (ATIs).  19 ATIs including UP have joined DARPG in implementing SEVOTTAM. A grant of Rs 20 lakh was released to UP ATI in 2022-23. They have conducted 11 training programmes for 658 officers.

Dr Jitendra Singh also urged the UP CM to direct state treasuries to tie up with the MeitY to enable Digital Life Certificate (DLC) generation of Jeevan Pramaan using face authentication technique and ensure installation of the app in pensioners’ mobile phones. This will make the DLC facility available for the pensioners drawing pension from U.P. state government treasuries. Dr Jitendra Singh said the Central Govt’s Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare will be conducting another awareness campaign in November 2023 at 100 locations across the country in collaboration with Banks, Pensioners Associations, MEITY, UIDAI and Ministry of Defence with a target of generation of DLCs for 50 lakh pensioners. This will enable the pensioner to submit the DLC every year from the comfort of their homes

As Central Minister in-charge of Science & Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh urged the UP CM to allot land for the setting up of a Biotechnology Park in Lucknow by the Centre’s Department of Biotechnology at the earliest.

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SNC/PK

NLC India Limited enters into Long Term Power Usage Agreement for 300 MW Solar Project with Rajasthan

 NLC India Limited, a Navratna Central Public Sector Undertaking under the administrative control of Ministry of Coal has entered into Long Term Power Usage Agreement with Rajasthan Urja Vikas Nigam limited for supply of 300 MW Solar Power under CPSU Scheme at Rajasthan.

NLCIL is presently having 1,421 MW of Renewable Energy Capacity. As per the Corporate Plan of the company, it contemplates establishing 6,031 MW capacity by 2030.

The company has secured 510 MW Solar Project capacity in the CPSU Scheme Phase-II Tranche-III floated by Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) through competitive bidding. 300 MW Solar project capacity is under execution at Barsingsar, Bikaner District, Rajasthan. The EPC contract for the project has been awarded to M/s TATA power solar systems through competitive bidding.

The Power usage agreement (PUA) for the 300 MW Solar project was signed between NLC India Limited and Rajasthan Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (RUVNL) on 17th August 2023 at Jaipur by Shri D.K.Jain, Director (Finance), RUVNL and Shri D.P.Singh, GM (PBD) of NLC India Ltd in the presence of Shri Bhaskar A Sawant, Principal Secretary, Energy, Govt. of Rajasthan, Shri MM Ranwa, MD, RUVNL and Shri Prasanna Kumar Motupalli, CMD, NLC India Ltd, Shri Mukesh Agrawal, ED (Finance), NLCIL, Jagadish Chandra Mazumdar, Project Head, Barsingsar Project and other Senior Officials, for supply of solar power to the state of Rajasthan for next 25 years.

 

      

 

The Power to the tune of 750 Million Units is to be generated annually from the project and total green power generated will be supplied to the State of Rajasthan. The project will help the State of Rajasthan in meeting their Renewable Purchase Obligation targets.

The power generated from the project will help in reduction of carbon emission to the tune of 0.726 Million Tonnes of Carbon dioxide emissions every year. On Renewable Energy front, in addition to present 1.40 GW capacity in Tamil Nadu, this is the first time NLCIL expanding its footprint of this capacity in other States.

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Status of Chandrayaan-3 Mission

 Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft was successfully launched onboard LVM-3 on 14th July, 2023 at 14:35 hrs from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, SHAR. The spacecraft is currently undergoing a series of orbit maneuvers with the objective of reaching the moon’s orbit and has two phases namely Earth Bound Phase and Lunar Bound Phase. The spacecraft is currently in the Earth Bound Phase.

Chandrayaan-3 components include various electronic and mechanical subsystems intended to ensure safe and soft landing such as Navigation sensors, propulsion systems, guidance & control among others. Additionally, there are mechanism for release of Rover, two way communication related antennas and other onboard electronics.

Chandrayaan-3 Lift off mass is nearly 3896 kg and the mission life of Lander and Rover is approximately one Lunar Day which is equivalent to 14 earth days. The planned landing site for lander is ~ 690S, South Pole.

The objectives of Chandrayaan-3 are:

  1. Safe and Soft Landing
  2. Rover Roving on Moon Surface
  3. In-situ Scientific Experiments.

The approved cost of Chandrayaan-3 is Rs. 250 Crores (Excluding Launch Vehicle Cost)

Chandrayaan-3 will take nearly 33 days from the launch date of 14th July, 2023 to reach the orbit of moon.

The successful soft landing on the surface of the Moon would make India the fourth country in the world to achieve such a significant technological capability. The successful soft landing is envisaged to serve as fore-runners for future landing missions and other technological progress in planetary exploration.

The soft landing of Chandrayaan-2 was planned to be carried out in multiple phases. Certain unexpected variations in performances of the Lander Module eventually resulted in higher velocities at touchdown, which was beyond the designed capability of the Lander’s legs, resulting in a hard landing.

Chandrayaan-3 has been made more robust by improvements in Lander to handle more dispersion, improvements in sensors, software and propulsion systems, full level redundancies in addition to exhaustive simulations and additional tests being conducted towards ensuring a higher degree of ruggedness in the lander.

Chandrayaan-3 in comparison to Chandrayaan-2 has been designed with the capabilities to autonomously handle wide range of dispersion in order to achieve soft and safe landing.

This information was given by the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.

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