National
KVIC's 'Khadi Rakshasoot' (Khadi-Rakhi)
⇒ The Chairman of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), Shri Manoj Kumar launched ‘Khadi Rakshasoot’ to commemorate the Raksha Bandhan in New Delhi on 23 August 2023.
- This ‘Khadi Rakshasoot’ (Khadi-Rakhi) was introduced under the aegis of Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, in his address during the ‘National Handloom Day’ event on August 7th, 2023 in Pragati Maidan New Delhi urged the citizens to wholeheartedly support rural artisans by choosing Khadi and Village Industries products for their upcoming festive celebrations, thereby ensuring optimal employment opportunities in the farthest rural parts of India.
Key Points:
- The uniqueness of ‘Khadi Rakshasoot’ lies in its creation by the dedicated spinner sisters from across the rural India, who spin multiple threads on the charkha.
- This product is entirely natural, devoid of any chemical additives. To exemplify, the Rakhi crafted by the Gramodyogik Vikas Sansthan of Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh is fashioned from the sacred cow dung of indigenous Holy Gau Mata.
- Additionally, incorporating Basil, tomato, brinjal seeds in it further enhances its composition.
- The conception behind its making is rooted in the notion that, when disposed off into the earth, it will sprout up to basil, tomato, and brinjal plants.
LCA Tejas successfully test-fires indigenous ASTRA Beyond Visual Range air-to-air missile
⇒ Tejas, Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) LSP-7 successfully fired the ASTRA indigenous Beyond Visual Range (BVR) air-to-air missile off the coast of Goa on August 23, 2023.
The missile release was successfully carried out from the aircraft at an altitude of about 20,000 ft. All the objectives of the test were met and it was a perfect text book launch.
Key Points:
- ASTRA, a state-of-the-art BVR air-to-air missile to engage and destroy highly maneuvering supersonic aerial targets, is designed and developed by Defence Research and Development Laboratory, Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and other laboratories of DRDO.
- The indigenous Astra BVR firing from home grown Tejas fighter is a major step towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
6th Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2023
⇒ The Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell at All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) announced the launch of the Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2023 on 23 August 2023. It is now in its sixth edition.
About SIH:
Smart India Hackathon is a nationwide initiative to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems we face in our daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving.
- Smart India Hackathon (SIH) is a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Education’s Innovation Cell and the All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE).
With an impressive array of 239 problem statements, including 182 software statements and 57 hardware challenges, the event has secured involvement from 26 Central Ministries, 6 State Ministries, and 4 Industry partners, making SIH 2023 a true testament to collaborative innovation.
Themes of SIH 2023:
The themes of SIH 2023 encompass a wide spectrum of societal needs.
The themes for SIH 2023 are Agriculture, FoodTech & Rural Development, Blockchain & Cybersecurity, Clean & Green Technology, Disaster Management, Fitness & Sports, Heritage & Culture, MedTech / BioTech / HealthTech, Miscellaneous, Renewable / Sustainable Energy, Robotics and Drones, Smart Automation, Smart Education, Smart Vehicles, Transportation & Logistics, Travel & Tourism and Toy.
Problem statements:
- Some of the interesting problem statements include development of a Blockchain-based e-vault system for legal records by the Ministry of Law and Justice.
- One of the current challenges being faced in the hilly areas is related to a prediction system to identify Cloudbursts by analyzing meteorological parameters and weather patterns (given by the Ministry of Power).
- A challenge in the field of cyber security and threat assessment is given by the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) to develop a Ransomware Readiness Assessment tool towards stopping/mitigating threats from ransomware attacks.
Grand Finale:
The last date for Idea Submission for senior SIH was October 31, 2023. The Grand Finale of Senior SIH 2023 was held from 19-23 December 2023.
SIH 2023 JUNIOR:
Moreover, following the success of the SIH Junior Edition in 2022, the second edition of the Junior Smart India Hackathon 2023 has also been launched in order to empower students from 6th to 12th grade.
- These young innovators have the opportunity to showcase their talents and generate out-of-the-box open innovation ideas across various themes.
- The last date for Idea Submission for Junior SIH was November 30, 2023. The tentative date for the Grand Finale of Junior SIH is in the first week of February 2024.
Launch of Invoice Incentive Scheme “Mera Bill Mera Adhikaar”
⇒ The Government of India, in association with State Governments, has launched an ‘Invoice incentive Scheme’ by the name ‘Mera Bill Mera Adhikaar’ to encourage the culture of customers asking for invoices/bills for all purchases.
Objective:
The objective of the scheme is to bring a cultural and behavioural change in the general public to ‘Ask for a Bill’ as their right and entitlement.
The details of the Scheme are as under:
- The Scheme is launched on 1st September, 2023.
- This scheme has been initially launched as a pilot in the States of Assam, Gujarat & Haryana and UTs of Puducherry, Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.
- All B2C invoices issued by GST registered suppliers (registered in the States of Assam, Gujarat & Haryana and UTs of Puducherry, Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu) to consumers are eligible for the scheme. Minimum value for invoices to be considered for a lucky draw has been kept at Rs 200.
- Invoices can be uploaded on Mobile Application ‘Mera Bill Mera Adhikaar’ available on IOS and Android as well as on web portal ‘web.merabill.gst.gov.in’.
- All residents of India are eligible to participate in this Scheme irrespective of their State/UT.
- Maximum 25 invoices can be uploaded by an individual on App/web portal in a month to be considered for lucky draw.
- For each uploaded invoice an Acknowledgement Reference Number (ARN) will be generated which will be used for the draw of prizes.
- Winning invoices will be picked by a method of random draw at regular intervals (monthly/quarterly).
- Duplicate uploads and invoices with inactive or fake GSTIN will be rejected by the system.
- Alert/Notification to the winners will be made through SMS/push Notification on the app/web portal only.
- This Pilot Scheme will run for a period of 12 months.
Actor Rajkummar Rao recognised as ECI’s National Icon for Voter Awareness and Education
⇒ Renowned actor Rajkummar Rao took on a new role – that of ‘National Icon’ for voter awareness and education for the Election Commission of India on 26 October 2023.
An MoU was signed with actor Rajkummar Rao for a period of 3 years at an event organized at New Delhi in the presence of Chief Election Commissioner Shri Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners Shri Anup Chandra Pandey and Shri Arun Goel.
Key Points:
- The signing of the MoU with Rao signifies a shared commitment to empower and educate citizens about the importance of exercising their voting rights.
- The collaboration will encompass a range of activities, including Shri Rao promoting voter awareness in various TV talk shows/ programs and digital campaigns etc, all aimed at raising awareness about the importance of voting and strengthening the roots of democracy by fostering a more engaged and informed electorate.
Background:
- ECI associates itself with renowned Indians from various fields and designates them as ECI’s National Icons to motivate voters for participation in the festival of democracy.
- The Commission recognised cricket legend and Bharat Ratna awardee Shri Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar as the National Icon in August 2023.
- Last year, the Commission recognised famous actor Mr Pankaj Tripathi as the National Icon.
- Earlier, during the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, stalwarts like M.S Dhoni, Aamir Khan and Mary Kom had been the ECI National Icons.