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By admin: Jan. 5, 2023

Ghaziabad-Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyay section becomes the longest fully automatic block signalling section of Indian Railways

Tags: National News

Ghaziabad-Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyay section (762 KM) becomes the longest fully automatic block signalling section of Indian Railways. 

An overview of the news

• After commissioning of automatic signalling system in Satanraini-Rasulabad-Faizullapur section of Prayagraj division, 762 kilometre long Ghaziabad-Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyay section has become fully automated.

• With this it has also become the longest Automatic Block Signalling section of Indian Railways.

• Indian Railways is introducing Automatic Block Signalling on a mission mode.

• ABS has been commissioned on 268 RKM during 2022-23.

• ABS has been provided on 3706 route kms of Indian Railways till 31st December 2022.

• With the implementation of automatic signalling, there will be an increase in capacity resulting in the introduction of more train services.

• Electronic interlocking is being adopted on a large scale to take advantage of digital technologies in train operations and to enhance safety.

What is Automatic Block Signalling (ABS)?

• It is automatic and works in conjunction with track circuiting or other means to detect the presence of a train in a block section.

• To increase line capacity to run more trains on existing high density routes of Indian Railways, Automatic Block Signalling (ABS) is a cost effective solution.

• Electronic interlocking systems have been introduced at 347 stations during 2022-23.

• Electronic interlocking has been provided to 2888 stations covering 45.5% IR by 31st December 2022.

Varanasi Cantt Railway Station awarded ‘Eat Right Station’ with a 5-star rating certification by FSSAI

Tags: State News

The Varanasi Cantt Railway Station of the Indian Railways has been awarded the 5-Star 'Eat Right Station' certification for providing high quality nutritious food to the passengers.

What is ‘Eat Right Station’ certification?

• The 'Eat Right Station' certification is provided by FSSAI to railway stations which set the standard in providing safe and nutritious food to the passengers.

• This certificate is awarded based on the findings of an FSSAI-empaneled third-party audit agency with a rating of 1 to 5.

• The 4-star rating indicates full compliance by the station to provide safe and hygienic food to the passengers.

• This certification is part of the 'Eat Right India' initiative.

Other railway stations with this certification

• The other railway stations with this certification include Anand Vihar Terminal Railway Station (Delhi), Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (Mumbai), Mumbai Central Railway Station (Mumbai), Vadodara Railway Station, Chandigarh Railway Station.

India & France hold 36th Strategic Dialogue in New Delhi

Tags: International Relations National News

India and France held the 36th Strategic Dialogue in New Delhi on 5 January. The two sides discussed a wide range of bilateral and global issues.

An overview of the news

• National Security Advisor Ajit Doval led the Indian delegation while the French delegation was led by Emmanuel Bonne, Diplomatic Advisor to the French President.

• The last edition of the Strategic Dialogue was to be held in Paris in November 2021.

India, France bilateral relations

• France is the first country with which India started a strategic dialogue after its 1998 nuclear tests.

• Bilateral trade with France has reached US$ 10.75 billion in the last decade and is showing a steady increase.

• Both sides recognized the importance of discussing the India-EU Trade and Investment Agreement.

• There are around 1,000 French companies present in India while over a hundred Indian businesses have established a presence in France.

• In 2005, an agreement was signed to build six Scorpene submarines in India with the help of France.

• There has been an agreement between the Government of France and India for 36 Rafale aircraft.

About France

• President: Emmanuel Macron

• Prime minister: Élisabeth Borne

• Capital: Paris

• Currency : euro

Dharmendra Pradhan chairs the 3rd meeting of the steering committee of National Skill Development Mission

Tags: Government Schemes National News

Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, chaired the third meeting of the Steering Committee of the National Skill Development Mission in New Delhi on 4 January.

An overview of the news

• The progress made in the skill development efforts and the road map ahead were discussed in the meeting.

• The minister also discussed various issues such as convergence of skill development schemes, skill gap analysis and skill mapping, connecting Indian youth to global opportunities, developing a curriculum to reflect emerging trends, etc.

• He also called for greater convergence between skill development schemes of all ministries and spending on skill development by all stakeholders.

National Skill Development Mission

• It was launched in 2015 to provide a strong institutional framework to implement skill development efforts across the country and provide training to one crore youth every year.

• It has been developed to create convergence across regions and states in terms of skill training activities.

• Objective - To provide a strong institutional framework at the Center and in all States for the implementation of skilling activities in the country.

• Ministry :  Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship

Health Minister chairs a high level meeting to eliminate Kala-azar from the country by 2023

Tags: National National News

Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya on 4 January chaired a high-level meeting with four states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal governments to review the elimination of Kala-Azar from the country by the year 2023. 

An overview of the news

• Health ministers of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and senior officials of West Bengal were present during the meeting.

• India is committed to eliminate Kala-azar from the country by 2023.

• 632 endemic blocks have already achieved elimination status with less than one case of Kala-azar per ten thousand population.

• Only one block (Littipara) in Pakur district of Jharkhand is in the endemic category with 1.23 cases per 10,000 population.

• The Central Government is working holistically with the State Government and other stakeholders for the eradication of Kala-azar in Jharkhand.

• Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal have achieved the Kala-azar elimination targets at the block level.

Global status of Kala-Azar 

• About 90 percent of global cases of kala-azar in the year 2021 were found in eight countries – Brazil, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan.

• India accounts for 11.5 per cent of the total cases reported globally.

• Bihar and Jharkhand currently account for more than 90 percent of Kala-azar cases.

What is Kala-azar?

• It is also known as Visceral leishmaniasis (VL), black fever and Dumdum fever.

• The disease is the second largest parasite killer in the world after Malaria.

• It is a Neglected Tropical Disease affecting about 100 countries including India.

Symptoms

• Fever, weight loss, fatigue, anaemia, and swelling of the liver and spleen.

• Transmission

• It is caused by protozoan parasites of the Leishmania genus.

• It migrates to the internal organs such as the liver, spleen and bone marrow.

• The study warns that kala-azar patients can infect others even after treatment.

National Kala-azar Eradication Program

• India's National Health Policy, 2002, set a target of eliminating Kala-azar by 2010, which was revised in 2015.

• Under Kala-azar eradication in India, a target of 1 case per 10,000 population was set at the sub-district level.

• All the activities related to this program are being implemented through the National Vector Borne Disease Control Program.

• India signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bangladesh and Nepal to eliminate Kala-azar from the South-East Asia region.

Government approves Rs 28.11 crore to provide relief to tobacco farmers of Andhra affected by Cyclone Mandus

Tags: National News

Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal has approved Rs 28.11 crore for giving a special interest-free loan of Rs 10,000 to each member of Tobacco Board's Grower Welfare Schemes under southern regions.

An overview of the news

• This will directly benefit over 28,000 tobacco farmers affected by Cyclone Mandus in Andhra Pradesh.

• The interest-free loan to eligible FCV tobacco farmers will be administered by the Tobacco Board, a statutory body under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

• This measure will help FCV tobacco farmers to recover from the damage caused by Mandus cyclonic rains and will greatly help the growers to take immediate damage reduction measures.

About FCV Tobacco 

• FCV (Flu Cured Virginia) tobacco is a major commercial crop grown in 10 districts of Andhra Pradesh with an annual production of 121 million kg (2021-22) in an area of 66,000 hectares.

• It is a major exportable tobacco variety of the total unmanufactured tobacco exports from India.

• Of the total unmanufactured tobacco exports (excluding tobacco waste) during FY 2021-22, FCV tobacco exports constituted 53.62% in volume terms and 68.47% in value terms.

• Tobacco farmers sell their produce through an e-auction platform developed and operated by the Tobacco Board through a transparent process that ensures fair and remunerative prices.

Cyclone Mandous

• Mandus is a slow moving cyclone.

• It often absorbs a lot of moisture, rains heavily and is powerful with wind speed.

• The name of Mandous has been suggested by the United Arab Emirates.

• This cyclone affected a large number of tobacco farmers in Andhra Pradesh in early December 2022.

PM to chair second National Conference of Chief Secretaries in Delhi

Tags: Summits National News

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the 2nd National Conference of Chief Secretaries on January 6 and 7, 2023 in Delhi.

An overview of the news

• This will be an important step towards further enhancing the partnership between the Central and State Governments.

• The first conference of Chief Secretaries was to be held in Dharamshala in June 2022.

• The conference will focus on achieving rapid and sustained economic growth in partnership with the states.

• It will see participation from representatives of the Central Government, Chief Secretaries and senior officers from all States/UTs and more than 200 domain experts.

• The conference will lay the groundwork for achieving a developed India with emphasis on growth and employment generation and inclusive human development.

• The best practices of the States/UTs under each theme will also be presented in the conference so that the States can learn from each other.

Six identified themes of the conference

• Thrust on MSMEs 

• Infrastructure and Investments 

• Minimising Compliances

• Women's Empowerment

• Health and Nutrition

• Skill Development

Three special sessions

• Viksit Bharat: Reaching the Last Mile

• Five Years of Goods and Services Tax (GST) – Learnings and Experiences

• Global Geopolitical Challenges and India’s Response

• Besides, focused deliberations would be held on four topics, viz Vocal for Local, International Year of Millets, G20: Role of States and Emerging Technologies. 

First G-20 meeting to take place in Puducherry on Jan 31

Tags: State News

Lieutenant Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan said Puducherry would host the first G20 meeting on January 31.

An overview of the news

• The Lt Governor released stickers, badges and posters with the G20 logo and also inaugurated a selfie booth in the presence of Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy at an event.

• Representatives of different countries will participate in the meeting and many important decisions will be taken.

• These programs will be organised in different parts of the country in different segments. Kolkata will host the first meeting on the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion.

• A working group meeting will be held on health in Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai will host a meeting on education, while Guwahati will host the first sustainable financial meeting and Chandigarh will host the first financial architecture meeting. 

Last surviving NASA's Apollo 7 astronaut Walter Cunningham dies at 90

Tags: Person in news

Walter Cunningham, the last surviving astronaut from the first successful crewed space mission in NASA's Apollo program, died at the age of 90 on 3 January.

An overview of the news

• Walter Cunningham was the last surviving astronaut of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Apollo mission, the first successful manned space mission crew.

• NASA confirmed Cunningham's death, and said that he was "instrumental in the success of our Moon landing program".

• Cunningham was born in Creston, Iowa, and earned a master's degree in physics from the University of California, Los Angeles.

• Cunningham was the lunar module pilot on the space flight, which launched from Cape Kennedy Air Force Station, Florida, on October 11 and splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean, south of Bermuda.

Apollo 7 Mission 

• Apollo 7 was the first crewed flight of an Apollo spacecraft, carrying astronauts Walter Schirra, Jr., Don Eisele, and Walter Cunningham.

• Walter Cunningham was one of the crew members of the Apollo-7 mission sent to space by NASA in 1968.

• The mission was for a total of 11 days and its launch was telecast live.

• It was only through the Apollo-7 mission that it was possible for astronauts to land on the surface of the Moon later.