Daily Current Capsules

28th October 2022

Defence

C-295MW transport aircraft

 

What's the NEWS

 

• In a major boost to ‘Make in India' and domestic aviation manufacturing, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of a transport aircraft manufacturing project for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at Vadodara, Gujarat on October 30, 2022.

 

Know! about the agreement

 

• The Cabinet Committee on Security had, on September 08, 2021, approved the procurement of 56 C-295MW transport aircraft from M/s Airbus Defence and Space S.A., Spain.
• On September 24, 2021, Ministry of Defence signed a contract with M/s Airbus Defence and Space S.A. for acquisition of the aircraft with associated equipment.
• As part of the contract, 16 aircraft will be delivered in flyaway condition and 40 will be manufactured in India by the Indian Aircraft Contractor, TATA Consortium of Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) led by TASL.
• This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company.
• The total cost of the project is Rs 21,935 crore. The aircraft can be used for civilian purposes as well.
• The first 16 fly-away aircraft are scheduled to be received between September 2023 and August 2025.
• The first Made in India aircraft is expected from September 2026.

 

 

Know! about C-295MW

 

• C-295MW is a transport aircraft of 5-10 tonne capacity with contemporary technology that will replace the ageing Avro aircraft of IAF.
• It has a rear ramp door for quick reaction and para dropping of troops and cargo. Short take-off/land from semi-prepared surfaces is another of its features.
• The aircraft will strengthen the logistic capabilities of the IAF.
• All 56 aircraft will be fitted with indigenous Electronic Warfare suite of Indian DPSUs - Bharat Electronics Ltd and Bharat Dynamics Limited.
• After completion of delivery of 56 aircraft to IAF, M/s Airbus Defence & Space will be allowed to sell the aircraft manufactured in India to civil operators and export to countries which are cleared by the Government of India.

 

 

India's first indigenous Overhauser Magnetometer

What's the NEWS

 

• Indian scientists have developed an Overhauser Magnetometer, one of the most accurate magnetometers extensively used by all magnetic observatories around the world
• The sensor installed at Alibag Magnetic Observatory (MO) can absolve India's dependence on commercial OVH magnetometers for performing geomagnetic field measurements.

 

Overhauser Magnetometer

 

• OVH magnetometers are known for their higher accuracy, higher sensitivity, and efficient power consumption and hence find applications in all magnetic observatories worldwide as well as in international space programs.
• It has so far been imported for such purposes in India.
• In order to reduce dependence on imports, the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism (IIG), an autonomous research institution under DST, Government of India, has developed the magnetometer as part of its technology development program.

 

Magnetometer

 

• A magnetometer is a device that measures magnetic field or magnetic dipole moment.
• Different types of magnetometers measure the direction, strength, or relative change of a magnetic field at a particular location.
• An Overhauser geomagnetic sensor is a precise instrument commonly employed for geomagnetic field observation, magnetic surveys, and so on.
• The Overhauser system is a super-charged Proton magnetometer that uses a special mixture for energization and measurement.
• The Overhauser magnetometer has the advantages of high precision, high sensitivity, low power consumption, absolute measurement to the external magnetic field

 

 

9th edition of the India-Sweden Innovation Day

 

What's the NEWS

 

• Union Minister for Science & Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh said, Indo-Swedish companies must support start-ups from both sides, and undertake collaborative research and human resource exchange.

 

India and Sweden - Highlights

 

• In 2020, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, and Vinnova, Government of Sweden announced grant funding to implement projects aimed at producing new solutions which, aided by artificial intelligence (AI), have significant potential to improve public health.
• In April 2019, India and Sweden announced the India-Sweden Collaborative Industrial Research & Development Programme.
• The Joint programme co-funded by the Indian Department of Science & Technology (DST) and Sweden's Innovation Agency - Vinnova brings together the world class excellence of Sweden and India to address challenges in the area of Smart Cities and Clean Technologies and Digitalization / Internet of Things (IoT).
• The partnership covers several areas, including smart cities, transportation and eMobility, energy, clean technologies, new materials, space, circular and bio-based economy, and health and life sciences.
• The India-Sweden Innovation Partnership bridges institutions, R&D intensive industries and creative entrepreneurs to address global challenges in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

 

 

 

United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee

 

What's the NEWS

 

• The UNSC's counter-terrorism meeting will be hosted in Mumbai and Delhi on 28 and 29 October, respectively.

Know! about the meeting

 

• This will be the first such meeting of the UNSC-CTC in India since its establishment in 2001.
• The Permanent Representative of India to the UN serves as the Chair of the CTC for 2022.
• The overarching theme of the meeting would be 'countering the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes'.

 

Know! about the Counter-Terrorism Committee

 

• The Counter-Terrorism Committee was established by Security Council resolution 1373 adopted unanimously on 28 September 2001 in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks in the US.
• The Committee was tasked with monitoring implementation of resolution 1373 which requested countries to implement a number of measures aimed at enhancing their legal and institutional ability to counter terrorist activities at home and around the world.
• This includes taking steps to criminalize the financing of terrorism, freezing any funds related to persons involved in acts of terrorism, deny all forms of financial support for terrorist groups, suppress the provision of safe haven, sustenance or support for terrorists and share information with other governments on any groups practicing or planning terrorist acts.
• Besides, the Committee monitors steps taken to cooperate with other governments in the investigation, detection, arrest, extradition and prosecution of those involved in terror acts and criminalizes active and passive assistance for terrorism.

 

 

Infantry Day

 

What's the NEWS

 

• Infantry Day is commemorated on 27 October every year.

Know! about Infantry day

 

• It aims to acknowledge the contributions of Infantry, the largest fighting arm of the Indian Army.
• This day is commemorated to honour the brave soldiers of the infantry who fought and laid down their lives during the India-Pakistan war in 1947.
• The operation was started on October 27, 1947; to protect the people of Kashmir from the Pakistani invaders after Maharaja Hari Singh of Kashmir had signed the Instrument of Accession of Kashmir to India.
• The Indian Air force carried out the task of flying the troops of 1st Sikh Regiment into Srinagar on this day.

 

 

India's regional satellite navigation system NaVIC 

What's the NEWS

 

• India plans to expand its regional satellite navigation system NaVIC in a bid to increase its use in the civilian sector and also by ships and aircraft travelling far from the country's borders.

 

 

 

Know! about NaVIC

 

• NaVIC, earlier known as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), is designed with a constellation of seven satellites, three of which are placed in geostationary orbit, and four are placed in an inclined geosynchronous orbit.
• The system also includes a network of ground stations operating 24x7.
• NaVIC offers Standard Positioning Service (SPS), a real-time positioning and timing service, to civilian users, and ‘Restricted Service' (encrypted services) for authorised users, including the military.
• The coverage area of NaVIC includes India and a region up to 1,500 kilometres beyond the country's boundary.
• Its use is currently restricted and is now utilised for tracking and delivering information about natural disasters, providing emergency warning alerts to fishermen travelling into the deep sea, and monitoring public traffic in India.
• Currently, NavIC is only compatible with the L5 and S bands and hasn't easily penetrated into the civilian sector.
• Since several satellites belonging to the NaVIC constellation have outlived their lives, ISRO plans to replace at least five of them with the improved L-band. This would enable the satellites to offer better global positioning service (GPS) to the public.
• The current constellation of satellites which are a part of NaVIC operate in the L-5 band and S band, which are used for the transportation and aviation sectors.
• The new satellites need to be equipped with the L-1 band, which is a typical GPS band for public use, and which is not currently there in NaVIC. This is the reason why NaVIC has not penetrated into the civilian sector easily.

 

 

 

 

DMH (Dhara Mustard Hybrid)-11

What's the NEWS

 

• Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) recently approved commercial cultivation of genetically modified mustard variety DMH (Dhara Mustard Hybrid)-11.

 

 

Know! about GM Mustard

 

• The approval will make GM mustard only the second approved transgenic crop in India after Cotton, and the first such food crop that can be commercially cultivated by farmers.
• The GEAC approval is valid for the next four years.
• Though the GEAC had cleared the proposal in 2017, the Ministry had vetoed it and suggested that the GEAC hold more studies on the GM crop.
• The recommendation will now again go for the approval of the Environment Ministry.

 

Know! about Hybrid mustard

 

• Hybridisation involves crossing two genetically dissimilar plant varieties that can even be from the same species. The first-generation (F1) offspring from such crosses tend to have higher yields than what either parent can individually give.
• Scientists at Delhi University's Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP) have developed the hybrid mustard DMH-11 containing two alien genes isolated from a soil bacterium called Bacillus amyloliquefaciens.
• The CGMCP scientists have deployed the barnase-barstar GM technology to create a robust and viable hybridisation system in mustard. This system was used to develop DMH-11 by crossing a popular Indian mustard variety ‘Varuna' (the barnase line) with an East European ‘Early Heera-2' mutant (barstar).
• DMH-11 is claimed to have shown an average 28% yield increase over Varuna.
• The move is seen as giving a boost to cultivation of mustard and eventually reducing the country's edible oils import bills.

 

Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC)

 

• It is a statutory body constituted under the ‘Rules for the Manufacture, Use /Import /Export and Storage of Hazardous Microorganisms/Genetically Engineering Organisms or Cells, 1989' notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• It was formed as the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee and was renamed to its current name in 2010.
• It functions under the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change.
• The body regulates the use, manufacture, storage, import and export of hazardous microorganisms or genetically-engineered organisms and cells in India.
• The Committee has the power to take punitive action against people/body under the Environment (Protection) Act.
• The approval of the GEAC is mandatory before genetically modified organisms and products derived from them can be used commercially.

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