The state recorded a 5.26% increase in enrolments in higher education during 2019-20 to 2020-21, data released by the state higher education department said.

Though enrolments jumped from 11.96 lakh to 12.59 lakh, Growth rate fell from 7.18% (2019-20) to 5.26% (2020-21).

Experts have called the rise an achievement since lockdown led to student dropout in huge numbers across the state. The credit for growth goes to the for repeatedly extending the admission deadlines followed by continuing the Scholarship programme and opening new colleges when the nation was in the midst of uncertainty, said Puneet Sharma, a higher Education expert.

The growth rate would have crossed the previous year mark had the girls enrolment matched that of the boys. The girls enrolment registered a growth of 2.61% as against 8.21% of the boys. In absolute numbers, girls are still leading in the enrolments with 6,46,378 in 2020-21 while boys are at 6,13,103. Experts believe that those girls who have been left out in the pandemic years should be given special provisions to admit them in colleges. The exception to the trend is found in communities registered underScheduled Tribeswhere girls registered a higher growth rate than the boys.

The data shows that communities under theScheduledCaste have recorded the highest growth of 14.36% while the lowest growth of 4.86% as compared to the 2019-20 figures was recorded by general category. When underprivileged communities outperform the privileged communities it means that programs related to special assistance are working in the right direction, said KB Kothari, former policy planner, Unicef (New York). He believes that the state should run a special assistance program by motivating those who were not able to take admission in 2019-20.

Gati Shakti Scheme Announced by PM

PM Narendra Modi has announced a Rs 100 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Gatishakti scheme while addressing the kingdom on the 75th Independence Day from Red Fort.

Highlights:

The Pradhan Mantri Gatishakti scheme aims to adopt a holistic and built-in method in the boom and create EMPLOYMENT opportunities for the youth of the country.

The government will soon announce the Master Plan for the scheme, to help improve the productivity of industries, and raise the economic boom of the country, except developing job possibilities for lots of youths.

Gati Shakti will be a national infrastructure grasp layout for our country that will lay the foundation of holistic infrastructure and will lead to a built-in and holistic pathway to our economy.

The PM Gati Shakti scheme is aimed at breaking the silos between road, rail, air and waterways to reduce travel time, enhancing industrial productivity, making manufacturing globally competitive, facilitating future financial zones and creating employment.

Launch of National Hydrogen Mission

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the National Hydrogen Mission on August 15, 2021, from Lal Quila at the event of the 75th Independence Day. This mission was launched to push for the electricity protection of India.

Highlights:

This mission was introduced in the backdrop of India spending Rs 12 trillion annually to meet its strength needs.

The mission seeks to make India a world hub for inexperienced hydrogen production and exports.

India presently imports 85% of its oil and 53% of its gas demand.

On the occasion, PM said that, for India to progress and become self-reliant, it becomes important to turn out to be electricity independent.

In the line, India is thinking about making it mandatory for fertilizer flowers and oil refineries to purchase inexperienced hydrogen below its plans to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Green hydrogen is produced by splitting water Molecules into hydrogen and Oxygen with the assist of an electrolyzer which is powered through electricity from renewable electricity sources like wind and solar.

Meeting of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

The fifty-fifth assembly of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee (CSMC) was held below Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U).

Highlights:

In this meeting, proposals for the development of 16,488 homes have been approved.

The homes are proposed to be developed underneath Beneficiary-Led Construction (BLC) and Affordable Housing in PARTNERSHIP (AHP) verticals of PMAY-U.

Progress beneath PMAY-U: Construction of PMAY-U homes is in a range of levels

With this, the quantity of sanctioned homes beneath PMAY-U is now 113.06 Lakh; 85.65 Lakh have been grounded for building and extra than fifty one Lakh have been carried out and delivered to the beneficiaries.

Inauguration of National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources

The Union Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture Minister inaugurated the worlds second-largest refurbished gene financial institution at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources.

Highlights:

The National Gene Bank used to be mounted in 1996 to maintain Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) seeds for future generations. It has the potential to maintain about one million germplasm in the shape of seeds.

Presently it is defending 4.52 lakh accessions, of which 2.7 lakh are Indian germplasm and the relaxation has been imported from different countries.

The NBPGR was installed in 1976 as the National Bureau of Plant Introduction and it received its existing identity 12 months later.

Its origins, however, can be traced again to the late Forties as the ICAR Scheme for plant introduction.

NBPGR is an institute below the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR).

It is headquartered in New Delhi with 10 Regional Stations placed in specific phytogeographical zones of the country.

Launch of Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme

The Central Government launched the DEFENCE Testing Scheme in May 2020.

About the Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme:

The Scheme was once launched with an outlay of Rs four hundred crore for developing ultra-modern checking out infrastructure in PARTNERSHIP with the personal Industry.

The chief purpose of the Scheme is to enhance Home defence and aerospace manufacturing.

The Scheme would run for 5 years and envisages putting up of 6-8 Greenfield Defence Testing Infrastructure amenities required for defence and aerospace associated production.

The initiatives below the Scheme will be furnished with up to seventy-five per cent Government funding in the structure of Grant-in-Aid. The ultimate 25 per cent of the assignment fee will have to be borne with the aid of the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) Elements which will be Indian personal entities and nation governments.

The SPVs below the Scheme will be registered underneath the Companies Act, 2013 and shall additionally function and hold all belongings below the Scheme in a self-sustainable manner by amassing consumer charges.

The target of the Scheme is to promote indigenous defence production, with a distinct center of attention on participation of MSMEs and Start-Ups through bridging gaps in defence trying out infrastructure in the country.

Setting up defence trying out infrastructure will furnish handy get admission to and meet the trying out wants of the home defence industry.

Doodle for Subhadra Kumari Chauhan – Google

Google paid tribute to Subhadra Kumari Chauhan on her 117th delivery anniversary by way of dedicating a creative doodle to her.

Subhadra Kumari Chauhan was an Indian activist, freedom fighter, and poet.

Google doodle was once illustrated with the aid of Prabha Mallya who is a New Zealand-based guest artist.

Doodle signifies Chauhan dressed in a saree, sitting & keeping a pen with various notes.

Doodle additionally indicates Jhansi Ki Rani and countless freedom fighters.

Google additionally described Chauhan as a trailblazing author and freedom fighter who earned national prominence for the duration of the time when literature was once dominated by using men.