GUJARAT

Gujarat govt braces up to improve state ranking in Panchayati Raj, rural development

Chief minister Vijay Rupani-led Gujarat BJP government has decided to improve the state’s poor all India rank in the implementation of the Panchyayati Raj Institutions(PRIs) schemes and rural development, besideing strengthening rural public administration. On day two of the Chintan Shibir at Vadodara, chief minister Vijay Rupani, cabinet ministers and other senior and junior IAS officers had a brainstorming session on the topic.
With Gujarat ranking 10th in the implementation of the Panchayati RajInstitution(PRIs), the government discussed possible ways and action to improve that.
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj, government of India, has evolved a Devolution Index and ranks the states with regard to devolution of funds, functions and functionaries to the PRIs. As per the latest Devolution Index of the government of India, Gujarat stands at No. 10. Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Sikkim, WB, Odisha, and Tripura are ahead of Gujarat as per the Devolution Index.
Before the 73rd amendment of the Constitution of India and after the inception of the PRIs, 14 of the important 29 subjects listed in the 11th Schedule of the Constitution stood transferred to the PRIs and were very much within their jurisdiction. These includes agriculture including agriculture extension, minor irrigation, animal husbandry, rural housing, drinking water, roads, culverts, bridge, ferries, water ways, Fuel (energy) and fodder, minor forest produce, poverty alleviation programmes, Market and fairs, health and sanitation including PHCs and dispensaries, Family welfare, women and child development, welfare of the weaker sections and in particular of the SCs and STs.

INTERNATIONAL

11th World Hindi Conference to be Held in Mauritius

The 11th World Hindi Conference (WHC) is being organized from 18-20 August 2018 in Mauritius by the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India in association with the Government of Mauritius.

The main theme of the Conference is “Hindi Vishwa Aur Bharatiy Sanskriti”.

The first World Hindi Conference was held in 1975 in Nagpur, India. Since then, ten such Conferences have been held in different parts of the world.

NATIONAL

India’s first lithium ion cell factory to come up in Andhra Pradesh

Munoth Industries Limited will set up India’s first lithium ion cell production project by investing Rs 799 crore in three phases in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh.

It will provide a trigger for enabling mobile component manufacturing in India that will also lead to value addition in overall mobile phone manufacturing.

In the first phase, Rs 165 crore will be invested to produce li ion cells having total storage capacity of 200,000 Ah (Ampere hour) per day.

Gk bit- Batteries

There are two main categories of batteries:

PRIMARY BATTERIES, sometimes also called single-use, or “throw-away” batteries because they have to be discarded after they run empty as they cannot be recharged for reuse.Primary batteries can produce current immediately on assembly. Disposable batteries are intended to be used once and discarded.

Primary Batteries include-

a) Carbon Zinc (aka. ‘Heavy Duty’) — The lowest cost primary cell (household) is the zinc-acidic manganese dioxide battery. They provide only very low power, but have a good shelf life and are well suited for clocks and remote controls.

b) Alkaline — The most commonly used primary cell (household) is the zinc- alkaline manganese dioxide battery. They provide more power-per-use than Carbon-zinc and secondary batteries and have an excellent shelf life.

c) Lithium Cells — Lithium batteries offer performance advantages well beyond the capabilities of conventional aqueous electrolyte battery systems. Their shelf-life can be well above 10-years and they will work at very low temperatures. Lithium batteries are mainly used in small formats (coins cells up to about AA size) because bigger sizes of lithium batteries are a safety concern in consumer applications.

d) Silver Oxide Cells – These batteries have a very high energy density, but are very expensive due to the high cost of silver. Therefore, silver oxide cells are mainly used in button cell format for watches and calculators.

e) Zinc Air Cells – These batteries have become the standard for hearing aid batteries. They have a very long run time, because they store only the anode material inside the cell and use the oxygen from the ambient air as cathode.

SECONDARY BATTERIES, mostly called rechargeable batteries because they can be recharged for reuse. They are usually assembled with active materials in the discharged state. Rechargeable batteries orsecondary cells can be recharged by applying electric current, which reverses the chemical reactions that occur during its use. Devices to supply the appropriate current are called chargers or rechargers.

Secondary batteries include-

Rechargeable Alkaline – Secondary alkaline batteries, the lowest cost rechargeable cells, have a long shelf life and are useful for moderate-power applications. Their cycle life is less than most other secondary batteries, but they are a great consumer’s choice as they combine the benefits of the popular alkaline cells with the added benefit of re-use after recharging. They have no toxic ingredients and can be disposed in regular landfills (local regulations permitting).

b) Nickel-Cadmium – Secondary Ni-Cd batteries are rugged and reliable. They exhibit a highpower capability, a wide operating temperature range, and a long cycle life, but have a low run time per charge. They have a self-discharge rate of approximately 30% per month. They contain about 15% toxic, carcinogenic cadmium and have to be recycled.

Nickel-Metal Hydride – Secondary NiMH batteries are an extension of the old fashioned NiCd batteries. NiMH batteries provide the same voltage as NiCd batteries, but offer at least 30% more capacity. They exhibit good high current capability, and have a long cycle life.

d) Lithium Ion– Secondary Li-Ion batteries are the latest breakthrough in rechargeable batteries. They are at least 30% lighter in weight than NiMH batteries and provide at least 30% more capacity. They exhibit good high current capability, and have a long cycle life. The selfdischarge rate is better than NiMH at approximately 20% per month. Overheating will damage the batteries and could cause a fire. Li-Ion cells contain no toxic cadmium, but they still contain either cobalt oxides or nickel oxides, which are known human carcinogens and should be recycled.

e) Lead-Acid — Secondary lead-acid batteries are the most popular rechargeable batteries worldwide. Both the battery product and the manufacturing process are proven, economical, and reliable. However, because they are heavy, Lead-Acid batteries are not being used in portable, consumer applications. Lead is a toxic, carcinogenic compound and should not enter the regular waste stream. Recycling of Lead-Acid batteries is the environmental success story of our time, approx. 93% of all battery lead is being recycled today in reused in the production of new Lead-Acid batteries.

· Central Government Launches ‘Rail MADAD’, ‘Menu On Rails’ Mobile Apps

The Ministry of Railways launched two mobile applications to ease the traveling experience.
The two apps, ‘Rail MADAD’and ‘Menu on Rails’, were launched by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State (MoS) Manoj Sinha during a press conference organized to highlight the achievements of the Ministry in the last four years.
While Rail MADAD will enable travelers to lodge complaints, Menu on Rails will facilitate seamless ordering of food.
The Minister stated Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh has been created with a corpus of one lakh crore rupees for making additional funds available for safety-related works.

· National Green Tribunal directs hill states to file report on forest fires

TheNational Green Tribunal directed the hill states to file a report on the steps taken by them to control recurring forest fires.
The bench headed by acting NGT Chairperson Jawad Rahim impleaded the Ministry of Environment and Forests as well as the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Sikkim, Jammu and Kashmir and West Bengal in the case.
The green tribunal issued notices to the hill states and asked them to file an affidavit stating measures taken by them with regard to National Action Plan to check forest fires, which cause considerable damage to the environment.
The process has to be done within two weeks.

The matter is now listed for next hearing on July 30.

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