National
Two new tourist attractions at Kevadia - Maze Garden and Miyawaki Forest
⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi dedicated Maze Garden and Miyawaki Forest in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat on 30 October 2022.
- He inaugurated the new admin building, Vishram Gruh and OYO houseboat. The Prime Minister also walked through the maze garden.
» Miyawaki forest and Maze Garden are new attractions at the Statue of Unity.
About Maze Garden:
- The Maze Garden is spread over 3 acres of land, making it the largest maze garden in the country.
- It consists of a total of about 2.1 Km of pathway.
- The Maze Garden at Kevadia has been designed in the shape of a ‘Shriyantra’, which is believed to bring positive energy to the place.
- It has been developed in a short span of eight months.
- The key objective for choosing this design was to bring about symmetry while focusing on building an intricate network of pathways.
- Winding through the puzzling roads of this garden will be challenging for the tourists’ minds, bodies and senses while giving them a feeling of triumph over hurdles while instilling a sense of adventure.
- As many as 1,80,000 saplings have been planted near this Maze Garden which includes Orange Gemini, Madhu Kamini, Glory Bowar and Mehndi.
About Miyawaki Forest:
- The Miyawaki Forest will be another tourist attraction for people visiting Ekta Nagar.
- The Miyawaki Forest has been developed in an area of about 2 acres. It has been developed using the technique pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki.
- This forest is named after the technique developed by a Japanese botanist and ecologist Dr Akira Miyawaki to plant saplings of various species that are planted close to each other which develops into a dense urban forest.
- The growth of plants is ten times faster using this method and as a result, the forest developed is thirty times denser.
- Through the Miyawaki method, a forest can be developed in just two to three years while it takes at least 20 to 30 years through the traditional method.
- The Miyawaki Forest will include the following divisions: A native Floral Garden, a Timber Garden, a Fruit Garden, a Medicinal Garden, a Miyawaki section of mixed species and a Digital Orientation Centre.
» Other major tourist destinations at Statue of Unity include Tent City; Theme based Parks such as Arogya Van (Herbal Garden), Butterfly Garden, Cactus Garden, Vishwa Van, The Valley of Flowers (Bharat Van), Unity glow garden, Children Nutrition Park, Jungle Safari (state-of-art zoological park) among others.
AMPRI, Bhopal Converts Red Mud into X-ray shielding tiles
⇒ CSIR- Advanced Materials and Processes Research Institute (AMPRI), Bhopal has converted red mud into X-ray shielding tiles in a green and economically viable manner through a ceramic route by adding a certain weight percentage of high Z material and binder with it.
Key Points:
- The 12 mm thick tiles possess an attenuation equal to 2.1 mm lead at 100 kV.
- Moreover, the developed tile has a flexural strength of 34 N/mm2 and a breaking strength of 3369 N.
Use:
These tiles can be used to build radiation shielding structures in diagnostic X-rays, CT scanner rooms, Cath labs, bone mineral density, dental X-rays, etc., instead of the toxic lead sheet to protect the public from radiation hazards.
Approved by:
The developed tiles are tested and approved by the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) of India. The product is commercialized and the first instalment has been initiated at INS Kattabomman, Tamilnadu.
About Red Mud:
- Red Mud is the waste generated in the Bayer process of alumina production from bauxite. It is also known as bauxite residue.
- Red Mud is defined as a “High Volume Low Effect Waste”.
- The red mud contains 30 – 55% of Fe2O3, which is suitable for attenuating high-energy ionizing radiations like X- and gamma rays.
- Nearly 1 to 1.5 tonnes of RM is being generated while producing one tonne of alumina from the bauxite ore through the Bayer process. It is considered to be toxic due to its extreme alkalinity and heavy element leaching.
- Annually about 175 million tonnes of red mud have been generated globally and stored in a specially designed clay-lined pond. Among that India is producing nearly 9 million tonnes of red mud every year.
International
Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise ‘Simbex’ - 2022
⇒ The annual Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX), conducted by the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) and the Indian Navy (IN) from 26 to 30 October 2022 concluded successfully.
Host:
The Indian Navy hosted the 29th edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) from 26 to 30 October, 2022 at Visakhapatnam.
Participation of Ships:
» Two ships from Republic of Singapore Navy, RSS Stalwart (a Formidable Class Frigate) with an embarked S-70B Seahawk naval helicopter, and RSS Vigilance (a Victory Class Corvette) participated in the exercise.
» The IN participated with a Rajput-class destroyer INS Ranvijay, a Kamorta-class corvette INS Kavaratti with an embarked Alouette III helicopter, a kilo-class submarine, P-8I and Dornier maritime patrol aircrafts, as well as Hawk-132 fighter aircrafts.
SIMBEX-2022 was conducted in two phases:
Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam from 26 to 27 October 2022 followed by the Sea Phase in Bay of Bengal from 28 to 30 October 2022
» The Harbour Phase witnessed extensive professional and sporting interactions between the two navies including cross deck visits, Subject Matter Expert Exchanges (SMEE) and planning meetings.
» During the exercise, the two navies conducted gunnery firings, replenishment-at-sea approaches, as well as naval warfare serials in the air, surface and underwater domains, before concluding with a sail-past of all the participating ships.
Background:
- SIMBEX series of exercises began in 1994 and were initially known as Exercise Lion King.
- The scope and complexity of the exercise has risen substantially over the past two decades to include advanced naval drills covering a wide spectrum of maritime operations.
- The exercise exemplifies the high level of cooperation between India and Singapore in the maritime domain. It also highlights the commitment and contribution of the two nations towards enhancing maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region.
G-20 Research Ministers Meeting
⇒ Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST) Dr Srivari Chandrasekhar represented the Minister for Science and Technology at the G-20 Research Ministers meeting at Jakarta in October 2022.
- He said, “India is committed to implementing G-20 Research Innovation Initiative Gathering (RRIG) deliverables and seek support on the G-20 research and innovation agenda for India’s G-20 presidency next year”.
- He elaborated on India’s evolution into a country with major global contributions in research and innovations and highlighted the country’s participation in international scientific collaborations.
» Dr Chandrasekhar highlighted that Materials for sustainable energy, Scientific challenges & opportunities to achieving a sustainable blue economy, Biodiversity, and Economy would be the major themes and topics of the Research Innovation Initiative Gathering during India’s presidency. India’s presidency started from 1st December 2022.
- He informed that discussions would be centered on developing the science for innovation and sustainable growth, connecting science and society, science for culture & heritage, traditional knowledge, and medicine.
» The Research Ministers meeting has been planned to be held in 1st week of July 2023.