GUJARAT

Gujarat continues to be the preferred destination for setting upwind power projectsin India. Despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Gujarat witnessed the highest addition of wind power generation capacity in the country in 2020-21.

by

Wind power projects with the cumulative generation capacity of 1,020.3MW were installed and commissioned in Gujarat from April 2020 to March 21. That was the highest capacity addition by any state in India during the period, shows data compiled byIndian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association(IWTMA).

Gujarat was followed by Nadu (303.7MW) and Karnataka (148MW). In fact, Gujarat grabbed the lions share of 68% in the new wind power capacity addition across the country in 2020-21. About 1,503.3MW of new wind power generation capacity was installed in India in fiscal 2021, IWTMA data shows.

With these new installations, Gujarats current operational capacity for generation of power from Wind Energy sources stands at 8,561.8MW as against 7541.5MW in 2019-20. At 1,468.4MW, Gujarat created the highest wind power capacity in the previous fiscal as well.

RENEWABLE ENERGY companies such asAdani GreenandReNew Powerwere among the prominent players that commissioned their power projects. Adani Green and ReNew Power commissioned 100MW and 300MW wind power projects in Kutch in March 2021.

The State Government sources, however, pegged the capacity of new wind projects commissioned in Gujarat at 890MW for the fiscal 2021.

Gujarat currently stands second after Tamil Nadu in terms of the total installed wind power generation capacity in the country.

Textile industry demands restoration of technology upgradation fund scheme

by

The technology upgradation fund (TUF) scheme for new investments in the textile ended in March 2022, with no announcement on it being renewed. TheGujarattextile industry is demanding that the scheme be implemented with retrospective effect, as new projects have become at least 35% more expensive in the absence ofTUF. Industry players also said that the Gujarat government should roll out new a scheme to promote the garments industry, as the existing one expired in October 2022.

The import duty on Cotton should be abolished because the prices of Indian cotton are higher than international levels and new capacities are in pipeline in the spinning sector.

Ahmedabad among 16 districts that use up more water: Study

by

With a few good years of rainfall and a significant rise in water distributed through the canals,Gujarat’s water security scenariois better off now than it was a decade ago.

However, even today, 16 of the 33 districts including Ahmedabad are ‘water deficient’ in terms of their demand and supply.

A study titled ‘Building Informed and Scalable Water Security solutions for Gujarat,’ carried out by Development Support Centre (DSC) and other NGOs, assessed the groundwater, surface water, crop pattern and water quality among other parameters based on both primary and secondary data to estimate the demand-supply gap and the way forward.

Gujarats famed garba mayget heritage tag of Unesco

by

Chances ofGujarats famedgetting the coveted Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (ICH) tag bestowed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) have brightened.

The government of Indias ministry of culture is preparing a dossier that will be submitted to Unesco by this month-end.

As part of the exercise, letters of Consent for nomination of garba of Gujarat for the possible inscription are being collected from all stakeholders from across the state.

Since 2008, 14 intangible cultural heritages from India have been listed by Unesco. These include Koodiyattam, a Sanskrit theatre of Kerala; Mudiyett, a ritual theatre and dance drama of Kerala; vedic chanting; Ramlila; Ramman (a religious festival and ritual theatre of Garhwal, Uttarakhand); Kalbelia folk songs and dances of Rajasthan; Chhau dance (a classical dance form of West Bengal and Odisha); Buddhist Chanting of Ladakh; Sankirtana (a ritual singing, drumming and dancing of Manipur); traditional brass and copper craft of utensil making among the Thatheras of Jandiala Guru, Punjab; and Yoga.

Shri Parshottam Rupala launches Sagar Parikrama Phase-III from Hazira Port in Gujarat

by

Shri Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of , Animal Husbandry and Dairying, starts the Sagar Parikrama Phase-III from Hazira Port, Gujarat, and proceeds towards the coastal line of Maharashtra at Satpati, Vasai, Versova, and Parikrama will end at Sasson Dock, Mumbai.

The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India, and National Fisheries Development Board, along with the Department of Fisheries, Government of Gujarat, Commissioner of Fisheries, Government of Maharashtra, INDIAN COAST GUARD, Fishery Survey of India, Gujarat Maritime Board, and fishermen representatives, takes part in the event. Shri Jatindra Nath Swain, Secretary, Fisheries, Government of India; and senior officials of the Department of Fisheries, Govt of India, National Fisheries Development Board, Fishery Survey of India, and Indian Coast Guard grace the occasion. The journey is accompanied by the State Fisheries officials, Fishermen representatives, Fish-Farmers, entrepreneurs, stakeholders, professionals, officials, and Scientists from across the nation.

The main objectives of Sagar Parikrama are (i) to facilitate interaction with fishermen, coastal communities and stakeholders so as to disseminate information of various fisheries related schemes and programs being implemented by the Government; (ii) demonstrating solidarity with all fisher folk, fish farmers and concerned stakeholder as a spirit of Aatmanirbhar Bharat; (iii) to promote responsible fisheries with focus on sustainable balance between the utilization of marine fisheries Resources for Food Security of nation and livelihoods of coastal fisher communities and (iv) protection of marine Ecosystems.

GSECL to install largest solar project in Guj

by

The state-owned power generation utilityGujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited(GSECL) has taken up installation of pilot 35-megawatt solar PV project with 57 MWH Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at itsKutchlignite thermal power station.

The project to be executed with the support ofGujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited(GUVNL) and Energy and Petrochemicals department, Gujarat, will cost Rs 334.54 crore. L&T has been selected for the project that is the largest utility scale BESS project inGujaratas well as the western region.

Adani Power drops Rs 11,000 crore claim to settle PPA dispute

by

Adani Powerhas waived compensation claim for an estimated Rs 11,000 crore to reach an out-of-court settlement withGujarat Urja Vikas Nigam(GUVNL) in a dispute over termination of a February 2007 power purchase agreement (PPA) for supplying 1,000MW electricity.

The entities have now sought scrapping of the 2019 order, saying they have settled their dispute over the 2007 PPA and some aspects of two supplementary PPAs signed in December 2018. As part of the settlement, Adani Power will not put into effect the termination of the 2007 PPA, the main cause of the dispute, and forego compensation claim for supplying power from alternative sources.

Mandatory hallmark leads to huge gold inventory pile-up across Gujarat

by

After the new law, making hallmarking ofgoldjewellery compulsory from June 16 came into force, hallmarkingcentresacrossGujarathave been facing a huge pile up of inventory. The government has fixed the August 1 deadline to get backlogstockto get hallmarked.

Rajkot, the hub of lightweight gold jewellery design in the country, is especially facing the toughest challenges implementing the order owing to its lengthy procedure which has stalled supply to other states as well as abroad. The city manufactures around 40 kg gold jewellery every day. sources claim that 80 percent jewellers in Rajkot never got their ornaments hallmarked earlier.

8% of people in Guj are diabetic, 10.5% prediabetic: ICMR study

by

A recent study by a team from the Indian Council of Medical Research (Icmr) found that 8.1% of those surveyed inGujarat, as part of the nationwide survey, were found to be diabetic, and 10.5% were prediabetic.

The findings were part of the recently-published ‘Metabolic non-communicable disease Health report of India: the ICMR-INDIAB national cross-sectional study’ or ICMR-INDIAB-17 byRanjit Mohan Anjanaand others. The study was published in The Lancet’s Diabetes and Endocrinology journal.

The findings indicated that prevalence of hypertension was 28.5%, general obesity 23.5% and abdominal obesity 30.6% in Gujarat. All these were found to be lower than the national Average. An earlier study from 2017 covering several Indian states including Gujarat by the same team had found prevalence of diabetes to be 7%, a slight increase of 1.1 Percentage points in six years.

City-based experts said that medical practice indicates much higher prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) than the survey’s numbers. They said the disparity may be due to the methodology employed.

Gurugram gets three oxygen booster plants

by

The Health department has installed three Oxygen booster Plants across Gurugram to ensure sufficient supply in case of another Covid-19 wave.

Unlike pressure swing absorption (PSA) plants, oxygen booster units can extract the gas directly from the air and fill cylinders with it. Oxygen produced in booster plants can be transferred from one facility to another in tankers, which isnt possible atPSAplants. The booster plants installed in the city can altogether fill around 550 D-type cylinders in a day. One D-type cylinder can hold 46 litres of oxygen. At present, Gurugram has 2,600 D-type cylinders.

Gujarat wildlife board to discuss cyclone damage, proposals

After a gap of 15 months, theState Board for Wildlife(SBWL) will soon meet to discuss key matters pertaining to the impact ofcyclone Tauktaeand upcoming projects.

The board members, who last met on September 28 last year, will come together on December 16. This will be their first meeting to be held under the chairmanship ofBhupendra Patelwho recently took over as the chief minister.

The board members will focus on wildlife management and conservation action necessitated by Cyclone Tauktae. Proposals in the eco-sensitive zone will also be discussed, according to details released by Shyamal Tikadar, chief wildlife warden,Gujarat, and member secretary of the board.

The board will also deliberate on the proposal of a resort near the Gir sanctuary. In the September 2020 meeting, the board members had rejected the proposal forWildwood Resort and Realities Pvt Ltdon the grounds that it fell within the 1km radius of the sanctuary where no commercial activity is permitted.