Current Affairs Assam – April 29 - 30, 2019
( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of April 29 – 30, 2019 )
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April 29, 2019
Assam govt done commendable job against measles, rubella
- Assam has been able to do a commendable job vis-à-vis Measles Rubella (MR) campaign of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHF). A coverage evaluation by the Government of India has rated Assam’s performance as high – with the State being credited with achieving the highest increase in coverage with 31 per cent points compared to the earlier low percentage of 66.
- This turnaround has been possible largely due to the painstaking efforts of grassroots health workers (ASHAs and ANMs), who braved the hostile terrain and weather conditions in remote, hilly and forested areas to ensure that every child was vaccinated. The number of ANM and ASHA workers engaged was 10,854 and 31,955, respectively.
- The MR campaign, which concluded recently in the State, achieved a coverage of 98.04 per cent with the figure being of 90,28,321. The total enrolment estimation done by ASHA workers was 92,09,059.
- The campaign mandated vaccination of all children between the ages of 9 months to 15. A shot of this vaccine prevents the two diseases, measles and rubella.
- Assam also topped the special programme ‘Indradhanush’, which was aimed at ensuring foolproof coverage by the MR campaign.
Indian ships join FTX joint exercise with South Korea
- Indian naval ships Kolkata and Shakti arrived at South Korea’s Busan to participate in the ADMM-Plus Maritime Security Field Training Exercise (FTX) as part of deployment of the Eastern Fleet to the South China Sea.
- The Indian ships will have professional interaction with ADMM-Plus Navies towards further enhancing co-operation between the navies.
- The Indian ships are scheduled to undertake Maritime Security Exercise with the participating navies and, later, to sail to Singapore to participate in the International Maritime Defence Expo IMDEX-19 and the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise, SIMBEX-19.
ADMM-Plus
- The ADMM-Plus is a platform for ASEAN and its eight dialogue partners to strengthen security and defence cooperation for peace, stability and development in the region.
- The ADMM-Plus countries include ten ASEAN Member States and eight other countries, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the United States.
CSIR-CCMB and IPC MOU to facilitate regulatory process for biosimilars
- Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s constituent laboratory, the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, and the Indian Pharmacopeia Commission (IPC), Ghaziabad, have joined hands to facilitate the regulatory process for biosimilars and herbal drugs.
- The scope of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between CSIR-CCMB and the IPC is the development of biopharmaceutical reference standards and impurities therein, development of monographs for important Monoclonal Antibodies and identification of herbal drugs based on DNA Barcode analysis.
- Use of biologics – biological products that function as drugs against diseases – also known as biosimilars, are expanding their presence rapidly in the healthcare sector, including in
- The agreement was signed by CSIR-CCMB Director Rakesh Mishra and IPC’s Secretary-cum-Scientific Director G.N. Singh.
- This collaboration, which has come into force with immediate effect, is very important in the current scenario owing to the increase in use of therapeutic proteins and herbal drugs for various diseases.
- This collaborative project will be executed at par with pharmacopeia standards of other countries.
ISRO plans to launch radar imaging satellite RISAT 2BR1
- India is planning to launch its radar imaging satellite RISAT 2BR1 by the end of May 2019 on one of the variants of its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket. The rocket that would carry RISAT 2BR1 is designated as PSLV-C46 as per ISRO’s numbering system and will blast off from the first launch pad at the country’s rocket port in Sriharikota.
- ISRO will send up a cartography satellite Catosat-3. India will also launch two more defence satellites sometime in July or August with its new rocket Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV).
April 30, 2019
ONGC gets environmental nod for drilling at Trishna sanctuary in Tripura
- The ONGC to start exploration drive at the Trishna Wildlife Sanctuary in South Tripura district, as the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Central Wildlife Board (CWB) have cleared the long-pending proposal of the oil major.
- The Trishna Wildlife Sanctuary has immense potential as far as natural gas reserves are concerned but exploration is not allowed in such a protected area leading to a stalemate for a long time.
- The ONGC had taken up the issue with the Ministry and other statutory bodies to get clearance for undertaking exploration drive at Trishna, one of the best managed bison sanctuaries in the country. Finally, the Ministry, CWB and Eco Sensitivity Board cleared the proposal to start drilling at the sanctuary.
- Currently, Tripura produces 5 MMSCMD of gas, which is more than what the ONGC has planned for the 2018-19 financial year. ONGC was committed to push industry in Tripura and has made attempts to break the jinx.
Oil and Gas Reserves in India
- In terms of proven oil reserves, India is 24th country in the world. Venezuela and Saudi Arabia are largest countries in terms of proven reserves.
- India’s major oil producing states / UTs are Assam, Tripura, Manipur, West Bengal, Mumbai, Gujarat, Jammu &Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Coastal Kerala, Andaman & Nicobar.
- The oil and gas industry in India dates back to 1889 when the first oil deposits in the country were discovered near the town of Digboi in the state of Assam.
- As on 31 March 2018, India had estimated crude oil reserves of 594.49 million tonnes (MT) and natural gas reserves of 1339.57 billion cubic meters (BCM).
- India imports 82% of its oil needs and aims to bring that down to 67% by 2022 by replacing it with local exploration, renewable energy and indigenous ethanol fuel.
- India was the third top net crude oil (including crude oil products) importer of 205.3 Mt in 2018.
Assamese entrepreneur Pallavi Hazarika awarded the India Business Award
- Assamese entrepreneur Pallavi Hazarika has been honoured with the India Business Award for her innovative work on Assamese traditional jewellery.
- She was presented the award by Bollywood actress Diya Mirza at a function at Bengaluru.
- The title of her award was ‘most creative Assamese jewellery collection in Assam.
- Hazarika, who was a government employee earlier, gave up her job to dedicate herself wholeheartedly to her passion of jewellery making.
India, China mark first anniversary of Wuhan summit
- India and China are marking the first anniversary of the icebreaking meet between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in Wuhan, by holding a week-long celebration in the central Chinese city.
- To commemorate the event “Colors of India” a week-long exposition of Indian culture, together with business and tourism-related events, will be held in Wuhan, Hubei, from April 29 to May 3.
- India’s envoy Vikram Misri held consultations with Jiang Chaoliang, Communist Party Secretary of the Hubei province to discuss activities and ideas to take forward India-China relations and further strengthen the role of the province in this endeavor.
- It’s being jointly organised by the Indian embassy, Beijing, and the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), New Delhi, in association with the Hubei provincial government and the Wuhan municipal government and supported by the China Arts Association.
- A business event to encourage Chinese companies to invest in India is also lined up. A tourism roadshow is also scheduled.
India to Buy Israeli Anti-Tank Missiles, Russian Igla-S VSHORAD
- The Indian Army is likely to procure Spike-LR Anti-Tank Missiles from Israel and Igla-S Very Short Range Air Defence Systems (VSHORAD) from Russia through a set of new emergency financial powers sanctioned by the Defence Ministry.
- Under the latest emergency financial powers, armed forces have been given a free hand to procure equipment worth up to ₹300 crore on a priority basis.
- The Request For Proposal (RFP) for the two deals have been issued and negotiations are ongoing.
- Under the emergency route, the Army is looking to procure about 12 launchers and around 250 missiles for each system. Deliveries have to be completed in three months, but extendable to six months.
Spike
- Spike is an Israeli anti-tank guided missile and anti-personnel missile with a tandem-charge HEAT warhead, currently in its fourth-generation developed by Israeli firm Rafael.
- It is available in man-portable, vehicle-launched, and helicopter-launched variants. It is a fire-and-forget missile with lock-on before launch and automatic self-guidance.
- It has a range of about 4 kilometres. The missile is equipped with an imaging infrared seeker.
Igla-S
- The Russian Igla-S man-portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile is newest variant.
- It has an improved variant with longer range, more sensitive seeker, improved resistance to latest countermeasures, and a heavier warhead.
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