Current Affairs Assam – January 2018 e-Magazine
January 22
State Govt submits study report to Centre
The Assam Government has submitted a preliminary study report on construction of express highways on both sides of the river Brahmaputra to the Centre, while, administrative approval has been given for procurement of one dredger for digging up of the beds of the tributaries of the Brahmaputra in phased manner.
The ambitious plan of the Government to construct express highways on both sides of the river Brahmaputra all throughout its course in Assam has been discussed at various levels and an initial feasibility study has been conducted by a team of experts including engineers drawn from various departments of the Government.
The study report suggested that in some places, the width of the Brahmaputra would have to be reduced and flyovers would have to be constructed in places where the tributaries join the mighty river.
The construction of such highways would be massive exercise as it would also involve controlling the channel and flow of Brahmaputra river and the construction of the highways would not only improve the communication network in Assam in a big way but would also check erosion by the river. By construction of the highways, it would also be possible to reclaim land to be used for various other purposes like development of tourism, setting up of industries etc.
However, sources admitted that it would be possible to go ahead with the mega project only if the Central Government comes forward to implement it. The initial study report has been submitted to the Centre so that a competent agency can be engaged to prepare the detailed project report to start the initial works.
At present, only a project for dredging a part of the Brahmaputra for improving navigation facilities will be started and in the initial stage, the portion between Pandu to Dhubri would be taken up. Improvement of navigation facilities along the river will be of great help to the State as the cost of transportation of various items including essential items will come down drastically.
The Government of Assam has given administrative approval for buying a dredger at the cost of Rs 18 crore including maintenance cost. The dredger will be used for increasing the water carrying capacity of the tributaries of the Brahmaputra and initially it would be used in the most vulnerable locations.
Apart from dredging the beds of the tributaries, efforts will also be made to correct the courses of the rivers to reduce the problems of flood and erosion.
Different states have shown interest in buying river bed sand from Assam. Sources said that some states, particularly south Indian states like Tamil Nadu and Kerala are facing severe shortage of sand and they are forced to import from other countries. Some such states have shown interest in procuring sand from Assam and a team from Chennai already visited upper Assam to examine the sand quality.Though it is planned that sand extracted from the bed of the Brahmaputra during the dredging operation would be used for construction of the express highways on both sides of the river, sand deposition is a continuous process and the State Government is examining the feasibility to sell it to other states to earn money.
Manipur Government launches Health assurance scheme for poor & disabled people
Manipur Government has launched the Chief Minister-gi HakshelgiTengbang (CMHT), a health assurance scheme for the poor and disabled people. It was launched by Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh.
The CMHT scheme will provide cashless treatment to poor at government hospitals, health centre. The scheme will provide insurance cover up to Rs 2 lakh per eligible family in treatment of seven critical identified critical ailments – cardiovascular diseases, neurological conditions, kidney ailments, liver ailments, cancer, neo-natal diseases and burns per year.
January 23
India to grow at 7.4 pc in 2018: IMF
India is projected to grow at 7.4 per cent in 2018 as against China’s 6.8 per cent, the IMF said, making it the fastest growing country among emerging economies following last year’s slowdown due to demonetisation and the implementation of the GST.
In its latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) update released in Davos, Switzerland, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, the International Monetary Fund has projected a 7.8 per cent growth rate for India in 2019.
China, during the same period is expected to grow at 6.6 per cent and 6.4 per cent respectively, the IMF said. The aggregate growth forecast for the emerging markets and developing economies for 2018 and 2019 is unchanged, with marked differences in the outlook across regions.
Emerging and developing Asia will grow at around 6.5 per cent over 2018–19, broadly the same pace as in 2017,” it said, adding that the region continues to account for over half of world growth.
FACTFILE – International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., of “189 countries working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.”
- Formed in 1945 at the Bretton Woods Conference primarily by the ideas of Harry Dexter White and John Maynard Keynes, with 29 member countries and the goal of reconstructing the international payment system.
- Managing Director – Christine Lagarde
- It now plays a central role in the management of balance of payments difficulties and international financial crises.
- Countries contribute funds to a pool through a quota system from which countries experiencing balance of payments problems can borrow money. As of 2016, the fund had SDR477 billion (about $668 billion).
- Through the fund, and other activities such as the gathering of statistics and analysis, surveillance of its members’ economies and the demand for particular policies, the IMF works to improve the economies of its member countries.
- The organisation’s objectives stated in the Articles of Agreement are: to promote international monetary co-operation, international trade, high employment, exchange-rate stability, sustainable economic growth, and making resources available to member countries in financial difficulty.
- The World Economic Outlook (WEO) is a survey conducted and published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It is published biannually and partly updated two times a year. It portrays the world economy in the near and medium context, with projections for up to four years into the future.
- WEO forecasts include key macroeconomic indicators, such as GDP, inflation, current account and fiscal balance of more than 180 countries around the globe. It also deals with major economic policy issues.
First International Dam Safety Conference held at Thiruvananthapuram
The first International Dam Safety Conference-2018 was held in Kovalam, Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) from January 23-24, 2018. It was inaugurated by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and was presided over by Union Minister of State for Water Resources Arjun Ram Meghwal.
AYUSH Minister lays foundation stone for Homeopathy Research Institute in Jaipur
The Minister of State (IC), for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik laid the foundation stone for Central Research Institute (CRI) in Jaipur on 22nd January 2018. This will be the third CRI under the aegis of Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), an autonomous body of Ministry of AYUSH for undertaking scientific research in Homoeopathy, with 23 institutes across the country.
In his address during the stone laying ceremony, Sh. Naik said that Ministry of AYUSH is determined towards a focused infrastructural push to Homoeopathy and other systems of AYUSH. He further said that strengthening of infrastructure of research institutes meant more quality research, and therefore, more evidence-based information on Homoeopathy. With this aim, homoeopathy research institutes at Shimla in Himachal Pradesh, Lucknow in UP and Siligudi in West Bengal are in the pipeline the Minister disclosed. The Minister complimented the state of Rajasthan for being the leading state in the field of Homoeopathic education. He further hoped that Rajasthan will soon be leading in terms of homoeopathy research too.
The institute is also contributing to the Swasthya Rakshan Program at five adopted villages i.e. Chharsa, Kumbhawas, Sakatpura, Khoraladkhani, Hanutpura. Under National Health Mission, 19 villages under Amber block are being catered to for the program “Healthy Teething in Children through Homoeopathy”.
On this occasion, Shri Vaidye Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, also expressed his solidarity towards further development of homoeopathy. Dr. Girendra Pal, Project officer RRI (H), Jaipur and Dr. Raj Kumar Manchanda, Director General CCRH, Dr. S. Bhuvaneswari, Research Officer(H), Scientist – 4, Dr. J.D. Daryani, Chairperson Drug Proving Committee, CCRH, Prof. C.B. Nayak, Vice Chancellor, Homoeopathy University were also present on this occasion.
January 24
Two climate change-resilient muga silkworm breeds developed
In its bid to develop climate change-resilient muga silkworm breeds, the Central Silk Board has already developed two breeds with higher shell weight and fecundity. Multi-locational trial of these breeds is under progress.SilkBoard sources told this correspondent that these two breeds of muga silkworm have been named as CMR-1 and CMR-2.
Also, a project on oxidative stress is under progress to identify the beneficial heat shock on muga silkworm. Another new project has also been formulated to study on carbon dioxide accumulation and the climate change-induced rise in the temperature and its consequential impact on muga silkworm rearing.
Besides, preponing and postponing of muga rearing to avoid climatic hazard has been initiated in different muga growing regions of the State.
Since muga silkworms are wild, domestication process for this species of silkworms and rearing it with artificial food in indoors is also taken up as a regular programme and research project.
The Silk Board has been making collaborative efforts too with IIT Guwahati, IIT Kharagpur, Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) of Hyderabad, Seribiotechnology Research Laboratory (SBRL) of Kodathi and Jorhat-based North East Institute of Science and Technology (NEIST) with the aim at developing climate change-resilient muga silkworm breeds applying the genetic engineering technology.
The Silk Board is also trying to develop disease-resistant muga silkworm breed. However, here in this area, the main problem it is facing has emerged from the mono race peculiarity of the muga species of the silkworms.
It needs mention here that muga silkworm is a mono race species with slight morphological variations it undergoes due to the variable climatic condition in different locations of the northeastern region. These variations are not genetic and may not be sustained throughout a long period. Therefore, while developing such breeds the Silk Board has to backcross the muga silkworms with their parental stock to obtain their desired characters.
A maximum temperature ranging between 26 degree Celsius and 28 degree Celsius is ideal for the growing and maturing of the muga silkworms. But in the last five to six years, the summer crop of muga faced a lot of climatic variability. High temperature, and, sometimes untimely rainfall, cause larval mortality and thereby affect the overall production and productivity of muga.
Similarly, the winter crops are also facing heavy fog, which causes occurrence of fungal infection. The favourable temperate autumn season for Katia crop rearing is becoming warmer, affecting its desired harvest. Similar developments are also observed in the case of the Jethua crop rearing during the early summer period.
The adverse impact of climate change on the muga sector has led to shortage of quality seed cocoon, deformed moth emergence, false coupling or pairing, occurrence of depressed and unfertilized eggs, poor hatching and occurrence of protozoan, viral, bacterial and fungal diseases, among others, due to temperature fluctuation and humidity and high percentage of Uzi fly infestation.
To adapt to the changes brought about by climate change in the weather condition, the muga silkworms should be disease-resistant and acclimatise with variations in the climatic condition. The muga breeds should be high-yielding and have the quality silk producing capacity, sources asserted.
Separate industrial policy for NE likely
Assam Government is expecting that the Centre would soon announce a separate industrial policy for the North East region to give a boost to industrialization in the region, particularly in view of the ensuing Global Investors’ Summit.
Meanwhile, the State Government is also chalking out a plan to construct a cargo warehouse near the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport for the benefit of the industrialists.
Assam Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said that the State Government held series of meetings with the Union Commerce Ministry and NITI Aayog on formulation of separate industrial policy for the North East to give boost to the investors. He said that the Centre would soon come up with a separate policy for the region, which would be a bit different from the earlier one.
Patowary revealed that the State Government has identified key areas where the investors would be willing to invest. These areas include agro-processing, information technology, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, tourism and hospitality industry. He said that the State has immense potential in these sectors and the investors should be keen on investing in these sectors.
Assam Government has requested the Centre for introduction of flights to the capitals of the South East Asian Countries from the Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport while, a new terminal building would soon be constructed by the Centre at the cost of Rs 1,200 crore. Expansion of the airport would facilitate landing of more cargo flights in Guwahati. He also said that the State Government is constructing a cargo warehouse near the airport, which would be of immense benefit for the industrialists to stock their products.
River communication would also be a key factor for industrial development in Assam. Government of Bangladesh has already agreed to allow India the use of Chittagong port, which would be beneficial not only for Assam but also for the entire North East region. Dredging of the Barak River has already started to improve navigational facilities, while, the Government of India has provided Rs 250 crore to Bangladesh to improve the navigational channels.
Reliance (RIL) become India’s 1st company to cross Rs.6 Lakh Crore Market Cap
Reliance Industries (RIL) become the first Indian company to cross the Rs6-lakh crore mark in market capitalisation as its shares touched a 52-week high of Rs974.5.RIL is owned 40% by its chairman MukeshAmbani, making him the richest Indian with the personal wealth of $40.7 billion and the twenteeth richest globally, according to Bloomberg’s billionaire index.
Top 10 Indian Companies by Market Capitalisation
- RIL
- TCS
- HDFC Bank
- ITC
- HDFC
- HUL
- Maruti Suzuki
- Infosys
- SBI
- ONGC
India to host 16th International Energy Forum
The 16thInternational Energy Forum meeting will be hosted by Government of India in New Delhi in April 2018, which will be co-hosted by the Government of China and South Korea.
This year theme is “The Future of Global Energy Security: Transition, Technology, Trade and Investment”.
FACTFILE – International Energy Forum
- The International Energy Forum is the world’s largest recurring gathering of energy ministers.
- It is unique in that participants not only include IEA and OPEC countries, but also key international actors such as Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia, and South Africa.
- The IEF countries account for more than 90 percent of global oil and gas supply and demand.
