Current Affairs Exam

Pharma products’ approvals in Gujarat rise as firms expand portfolios

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

With a strong demand Growth in thehealthcarespace and people focusing more on preventative care after the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, pharma companies are adding more drugs and products to their existing portfolios.
As a result, there has been a substantial jump in productapprovalsgranted to manufacture medicines inGujarat.

For instance: Gujarat Food and Drug Control Administration (FDCA) in September issued 5,494 licences to make different allopathic drugs and products. Except January and April, the number of product permissions provided to pharma firms every month has hovered above the 5,000-mark this year, shows data compiled by the FDCA-Gujarat.

The issuance of fresh product licences started increasing after the pandemic and crossed the monthly mark of 5,000 in 2021. New product licences totalling 5,601, 5,324, 5,488 and 5,421 were issued by the state FDCA in April, May, June, July and August, respectively. The number stood at 5,095 in February and 5,123 in March this year. The product approvals were low at 3,981 and 3,725 in January and April, respectively, reveal the state FDCA data. As many as 48,909 product permissions have been issued by the state FDCA so far this year.

Energy Efficiency Index: Rajasthan front runner at number 2

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

Rajasthanhas bagged the second position in theState Energy Efficiency Index(SEEI)-2020 securing 61 points out of 100. AfterKarnatakawhich topped the list with 70 points, Rajasthan is the other state to have been assessed as the front runner. The index categorized 36 states and UTs under front runner, achiever, contender, and aspirant based on their EE-related efforts and achievements.

In SEEI 2019, there was no state in the front runner category. Karnataka and Rajasthan have undertaken various initiatives to upscaleenergyefficiency in the state, beyond notifications of relevant regulations, the report by theministry of powersaid.

Conservation Building Code (ECBC) cell in its Public Works Department (PWD) from the state fund. This cell operates under guidance of the chief architect ofPWD, said the report.Among the other initiatives that contributed to the states high score is that it has taken steps to set up energy saving targets for EE (energy efficiency) in street lighting, water and sewerage, and non-PAT industries. It is one of the few states that reported a measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) mechanism for evaluating demand side management programmes.

The report said that Rajasthan has appointed dedicated agencies to conduct periodic energy audits of street lighting, water and sewerage , and water treatment systems. The Rajasthan SDA organises the Rajasthan Energy Conservation Awards (RECA) every year for five sectors and 50 sub-sectors.

The index developed theBureau of Energy Efficiency(BEE) in collaboration with Alliance for an Energy Efficient economy (AEEE) aims to help drive energy efficiency policies with implementation at the state and local level, highlight best practices, encourage healthy competition among states and track progress in managing energy footprint.

SEEI 2020 assessed states performance in energy efficiency through 68 indicators across six sectors such as buildings, Industry, municipalities, transport, Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture and distribution companies (discoms), and cross sector initiatives.

The indicators assess states performance in policy and regulation, financing mechanisms, institutional capacity, adoption of energy efficiency measures, and energy Savings.

Indias first indigenously developed lithium-ion cell

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

Old Electric recently uncovered Indias first indigenously developed lithium-ion cell called NMC 2170.

NMC 2170 is a high nickel cylindrical Ola cell. It comprises of Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt (NMC) on cathode side while graphite & silicon on anode side. It makes use of specific chemistry and materials, which helps the cell in packing more energy in a given space. It also improves overall life cycle of the lithium-ion cell. The cell has been developed by considering indigenous conditions at the core.

NMC 2170 was built in-house. Mass production of the cell will start at its upcoming Gigafactory by 2023.

The Centre on Thursday signed an agreement with eight tribal militant organisations based inAssamto bring a lasting peace in some areas of the state.The tripartite agreement among the central and state governments and the eight groups, including All Adivasi National Liberation Army, Adivasi Cobra Militant of Assam, Birsa Commando Force, Santhal Tiger Force, and Adivasi People’s Army, was signed here in presence ofUnion HomeMinisterAmit Shahand Assam Chief MinisterHimanta Biswa Sarmaamong others.

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

The groups are in ceasefire since 2012 and living in designated camps.

Thirty four new courts to come up in Odisha

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

A committee led by finance minister Niranjan Pujari has given its nod to establish 34 new courts16 civil, 10 commercial and eight sessions courtsin the state, law minister Pratap Jena said here on Monday. Jena said the new courts will help reduce pendency and take the delivery system closer to people.

Odisha currently has more than 700 Subordinate Courts. According to a reply given by Union law ministerKiren RijijuinLok Sabhaon March 25, total 15.45 lakh cases are pending cases in lower courts in Odisha. They include 12.38 lakh criminal cases and 3.07 lakh civil cases. Similarly, 1.89 lakh cases are pending in theOrissaHigh Court.

The law department has asked the registrar of the Orissa high court for staff pattern and revised cost estimates for establishment of the different courts. As per the current estimate, the government would spend Rs 21.26 crore on Infrastructure.

Web tool introduced to help farmers mitigate climate risk

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

A free online tool – AgriAdapt – was launched on Tuesday to helpfarmersand Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture value-chain entities understand risks and make Climate-smart decisions.

The World Resources Institute (WRI), in collaboration with the National Agro Foundation (NAF), developed the tool. chief general managerT Venkatakrishnasaid the tool would help farmers mitigate risk of Climate Change.

It will help farmers understand risks, exposure, vulnerabilities and challenges related to climate change and guide them and other entities in the value-chain to take better decisions.

Kerala state-run schools to provide high-speed connectivity

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

The southernmost stateKeralatook a technological leap by collaborating with BSNL, a government-owned telecommunications service provider to provide 100Mbpsbroadband Internet connectivity in high schools, higher secondary schools, and vocational higher secondary schools that are run by the state. For this Kerala and Technology for Education (KITE) partnered withBSNLunder the Hitech classroom scheme of Kerala. Now the state-run schools of Kerala will have high-speed internet connectivity.

The 100 Mbps internet connectivity will be beneficial for 45,000 classrooms of 4,685 schools covered under the Hi-Tech school project, with upgraded ICT-enabled education. TheSamagra Resourcesportal and Sahitham mentoring portal which were available to all the classrooms in offline mode will now become easier to use effectively in online or digital mode with the availability of 100 Mbps internet connectivity. This will also enable the availability of KITE VICTERS educational channels meant for students in the classrooms.

Karnataka authority to push govt to ensure official language status

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

It has got the to table theKannadalanguage bill in the legislative assembly, the Kannada Development Authority (KDA) has set its sights even higher.

It is now seeking Official Language status for Kannada, besides other regional languages, at the national level and wants the state to take up the issue with the Union Government. KDA is exerting pressure on chief minister Basavaraj Bommai to pass a resolution, seeking official language status for Kannada and the 21 other languages listed under the 8th Schedule of the Constitution. Currently, onlyHindiand English have been identified as official languages, which means all communications and correspondences from the Centre are in these two languages.

The authority has already started work on a draft resolution with inputs of constitutional experts and languageluminaries. The government is apparently willing to take the initiative forward.

Telangana climbs to 2nd spot in NITI Innovation Index

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

Telanganamoved up two places up to grab the second spot on the ‘s India Innovation Index-2021, with an overall score of 17.66 and just behindKarnataka(18.01). In 2020, Telangana was placed in fourth position behind Karnataka,MaharashtraandTamil Nadu.

The icing on the cake, however, for Telangana is that it has been ranked numero uno in the performers category with a score of 15.24 this year. In the enablers category, however, the state, with a score of 20.08, has been rated at No. 4 behindHaryana, Karnataka and Punjab.

Telangana, which has a gross state domestic product (GSDP) per capita of 1,73,672, performed within the expected range in parameters of business Environment (36.54), Human Capital, Investment, knowledge workers in the enablers category and in knowledge output in the performance category.

Andhra Pradesh logs 90% success rate in tuberculosis treatment

June 14, 2024 by rawan239

Andhra Pradeshis reporting about 60,000 to 80,000 tuberculosis cases a year. The national TB elimination programme, which was rechristened in 2020, has set a target of 90% treatment success rate.

Andhra Pradesh has consistently achieved over 90% success rate in the last three years. It was 92% up to August this year for the 62,781 cases notified in the first eight months of the year.

When the patient is diagnosed with TB of any organ other than the lungs, such as lymph nodes,pleura, genitourinary tract, intestines, etc., it is called an extra-pulmonary tuberculosis case. It is diagnosed with microbiological, histological, radiological, or strong clinical evidence. The symptoms of the extra-pulmonary tuberculosis mostly depend on the affected site, but the general symptoms include unexplained weight loss, fever, and malaise.