National
PM inaugurates and lays foundation stone of multiple development projects in Varanasi
⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of multiple development projects worth more than Rs 12,100 crores in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh on 07 July 2023.
Multiple development projects in Varanasi:
Pt. Deendayal Upadhyaya Junction – Son Nagar railway line of Dedicated Freight Corridor:
» The Prime Minister dedicated Pt. Deendayal Upadhyaya Junction – Son Nagar railway line of Dedicated Freight Corridor.
- Built at a cost of more than Rs 6760 crores, the new line will facilitate faster and more efficient movement of goods.
Nation three railway lines in UP:
» PM also dedicated to the nation three railway lines whose electrification or doubling has been completed at a cost of more than Rs 990 crores.
- These include Ghazipur city – Aunrihar rail line, Aunrihar- Jaunpur rail line and Bhatni- Aunrihar rail line.
- These projects have helped in achieving 100 percent electrification of railway lines in Uttar Pradesh.
» The Prime Minister dedicated to the nation, the four-lane widening of the Varanasi – Jaunpur section of NH-56, which has been completed at a cost of more than Rs 2750 crore making travel from Varanasi to Lucknow easier and faster. PM also inaugurated the multiple projects in Varanasi.
Foundation stone of Projects:
» The projects whose foundation stones were laid by the Prime Minister include the construction of 3 two-lane rail over bridge (ROB) near Chaukhandi, Kadipur and Hardattpur railway stations; the construction of Vyasnagar – Pt. Deendayal Upadhyay Junction rail flyover; and construction and renovation of 15 PWD roads. These projects will be developed at a cumulative cost of about Rs 780 crores.
» The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of 192 rural drinking water schemes, to be built at a cost of more than Rs 550 crores under the Jal Jeevan Mission. It will provide pure drinking water to 7 lakh people in 192 villages.
» The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for redesigning and redevelopment of Manikarnika and Harishchandra Ghats. PM also laid the foundation stones of other projects.
» During the programme, the Prime Minister also distributed the loans of PMSVANidhi, keys of PMAY Rural houses and Ayushman Bharat cards to the beneficiaries in Uttar Pradesh.
- This will kickstart the Grih Pravesh of 5 lakh PMAY beneficiaries, the distribution of 1.25 lakh PMSVANidhi loans to eligible beneficiaries and the distribution of 2.88 crores Ayushman cards.
PM flags off two Vande Bharat Trains from Gorakhpur Railway Station
» Prime Minister Shri Narendra visited Uttar Pradesh on 7th July, 2023.
» The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi addressed the closing ceremony of the centenary celebrations of the historic Gita Press in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.
- He also released the Chitramaya Shiva Purana Granth during the programme.
Two Vande Bharat Express Trains:
» The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi also flagged off two Vande Bharat Express trains from Gorakhpur Railway Station in Uttar Pradesh.
- The two Vande Bharat trains are Gorakhpur – Lucknow Vande Bharat Express and Jodhpur – Ahmedabad (Sabarmati) Vande Bharat Express.
About Train:
- Jodhpur – Sabarmati Vande Bharat Express is the India’s 24th Vande Bharat Express train. It enhances the connectivity to famous places such as Jodhpur, Abu Road, and Ahmedabad, while boosting socio-economic development in the region.
- Gorakhpur – Lucknow Vande Bharat Express is the India’s 25th Vande Bharat Express train. It passes through Ayodhya and improves connectivity with important cities of the state while promoting tourism.
» The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of Gorakhpur Railway Station at the cost of around Rs 498 crores and inspected the model of the proposed Gorakhpur Railway Station. It will provide world-class amenities to the passengers.
International
7th IN-USN Salvage and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Exercise - SALVEX - 2023
⇒ The Seventh edition of Indian Navy – US Navy (IN – USN) Salvage and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) exercise, SALVEX was conducted from 26 Jun – 06 Jul 23 at Kochi.
- IN and USN have been participating in joint Salvage and EOD exercises since 2005.
Participation:
The exercise saw participation from both the navies which included the ships – INS Nireekshak and USNS Salvor in addition to Specialist Diving and EOD teams.
Key Points:
- Spanning over 10 days, the Diving teams of both the countries shared experiences on Maritime Salvage and trained together in various facets of EOD Operations on land as well at sea.
- SALVEX also saw conduct of joint training exercises towards enhancing interoperability, cohesiveness and gaining from best practices mutually in Maritime Salvage and EOD operations.
The constructive engagements on operational terms enhanced the skill-sets of the Diving teams in a number of diverse disciplines such as mine detection and neutralisation, wreck location and salvage.
First ever IIT campus to be set up outside India
⇒ The Memorandum of Understanding for setting up of campus of IIT Madras in Zanzibar- Tanzania was signed on 06 July 2023 between the Ministry of Education, Govt of India, IIT Madras and Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MoEVT) Zanzibar- Tanzania.
- The MoU was signed in the presence of Dr. S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India and Dr. Hussein Ali Mwinyi, President of Zanzibar.
- This is the first ever IIT campus to be set up outside India.
Key Points:
- This unique partnership will bring the top-ranked educational expertise of IITM to a prime destination in Africa and serve the imperative current needs of the region.
- The academic programs, curricula, student selection aspects and pedagogical details will be by IIT Madras, whereas the capital and operating expenditure will be met by the government of Zanzibar-Tanzania.
- IIT Madras degrees will be awarded to the students enrolled in this campus.
- The state-of-the-art interdisciplinary degrees are expected to attract a diverse cohort and will include students from Tanzania and other countries as well. Indian students are also eligible to apply to these programs.
- IIT campus in Zanzibar- Tanzania is envisioned as a world class higher education and research institution with a broader mission to develop competencies in response to emerging global requirements, deepen ties between the nations, and support research and innovation in the region.
9th BRICS Environment Ministers Meeting
⇒ The 9th BRICS Environment Ministers Meeting was held on 28 June 2023 through video conferencing under the Presidency of South Africa.
Prior to this meeting, a meeting of the senior officials took place on 27th June to finalize the outcome documents, to be adopted during the BRICS Environment Ministerial.
Theme:
The meeting was held under the theme “Advancing Environmental Cooperation amongst BRICS towards the attainment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.
Discussion:
- The environment ministers of BRICS countries conducted in-depth discussions on topics such as continuing to promote ecological and environmental cooperation, realizing the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development, and addressing climate change.
- They heard the report of the 8th meeting of the BRICS Environmental Working Group, reviewed and approved the Memorandum of Understanding on BRICS Environmental Cooperation Implementation Plan (2023-2027); and the Joint Statement of the Ninth BRICS Environmental Ministerial Meeting, and clarified the cooperation roadmap for the next stage.
» Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav represented India during the meeting.
- He stated that the Implementation Plan of the BRICS Environment MoU signed in July 2018 can be a platform for exchange of knowledge, information, ideas, best practices, etc among the BRICS nations.