GOA
Agri research institute gives farmers seeds, fertilizer, plants
To provide relief to marginal farmers, the ICAR – Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Old Goa has distributed seeds, medicinal plants, fertilizers and feed among farmers in the state.
Under the tribal and schedule castes’ sub-plan, ICAR-CCARI annually distributes farm requisites among farmers at a mela at the institute’s campus in Old Goa. This year the mela was not organized due to lockdown restrictions and social distancing to slow the spread of Covid-19, sources said. Instead, scientists from the institute have been visiting individual farmers and sharing their knowledge as well as agrarian feed with them.
INTERNATIONAL
World Day Against Child Labour: 12 June
Every year on June 12, the World Day Against Child Labour is observed on June 12 in almost 100 countries all around the globe.
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), there are about 152 million children globally who are engaged in child labour, 72 million of whom are in hazardous work.
The ILO launched World Day Against Child Labour in 2002
As per the United Nation’s website, World Day Against Child Labour 2020 focuses on the impact of the crisis on child labour.
India’s economy to contract by 3.2 per cent in fiscal year 2020-21: World Bank
The World Bank expects India’s economy to contract 3.2% in the current fiscal year, a sharp downgrade from its April projection of 1.5%-2.8% growth.
The Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report released said the lockdown would severely curtail activity despite fiscal and monetary stimulus.
The latest report expects the economy to make a modest recovery to 3.1% growth in the next fiscal year.
A number of firms including Goldman Sachs and Nomura have projected a contraction of as much as 5% for India in FY21.
NATIONAL
Centre allocates highest ever funds of Rs 1,01,500 crore under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme during 2020-2021
A provision of one lakh one thousand 500 crore rupees has been made under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in the current financial year 2020-2021.
It is the highest ever provision of funds under the programme.
A sum of 31 thousand 493 crores has already been released in 2020-2021, which is more than 50 percent of the budget estimate of the current Financial Year.
Average number of persons to whom work offered in May this year has been 2.51 crore per day, which is 73 percent higher than the work offered in May last year.
Indian Air Force designs, develops & manufactures ARPIT
The Indian Air Force has designed, developed and manufactured an Airborne Rescue Pod for Isolated Transportation (ARPIT).
This pod will be utilised for evacuation of critical patients with infectious diseases including COVID-19 from high altitude areas, isolated and remote places.
Requirement of an air evacuation system with facility to prevent spread of infectious aerosol from a COVID-19 patient during air travel was felt by IAF when COVID-19 was declared as a pandemic.
This indigenously designed system has been developed at a cost of Rs. 60,000 only, which is very less as compared to the imported systems costing up to Sixty Lakh.
The system has been developed as a lightweight isolation system made from aviation certified material.
Puducherry plans to provide tap connections to all rural households by 2020-21 year
GoI approved the Annual Action Plan of Puducherry for Financial Year 2020-21. The plan was approved by National Jal Jeevan Mission. Puducherry Union Territory plans to provide household tap connections to remaining households in 2020-21.
To implement the plan, village-level planning has involved the local community despite COVID-19. Gram Sabhas are conducted in villages maintaining social distancing.
As per the plan, the local community will play a pivotal role in the planning, implementation, management, operation, and maintenance of water supply systems in villages to ensure long-term sustainability.
Local communities have been directed to provide due care also on greywater treatment and re-use.
Under Jal Jeevan Mission, water quality testing laboratories at different levels are being established in the UT.
The UT has been advised to focus on 24*7 service delivery in rural areas so that the villages can act as ‘utilities’ with a focus on ‘service delivery’.
It has been also planned to conduct Internet of Things (IoT) based sensor monitoring for water supply in villages.
ISRO signs MoU with ARIES for space situational awareness
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Aryabhatta Research Institute (ARIES) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the field of Space Situational Awareness (SSA) and Astrophysics.
This MoU will make the way for future collaborations between ISRO and ARIES in setting up optical telescope observational facilities for space object tracking, R&D studies in space weather, astrophysics and Near-Earth Object (NEO).
The main objective of the MoU is to shield the Indian Space assets from the space debris’s conjunction threats and R&D of Astrophysics, solar sciences and space environment are the base for future space exploration projects and the key to progress in the Indian Space sector.