National
Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM) System
⇒ In a significant boost to India’s defence capabilities, DRDO handed over the first deliverable Firing Unit of Medium Range Surface to Air Missile (MRSAM) System to Indian Air Force at Air Force Station, Jaisalmer in Rajasthan on 09 September 2021.
Developed by:
The MRSAM (IAF) is an advanced network centric combat Air Defence System developed jointly by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) in collaboration with the Indian industry comprising of private and public sectors including MSMEs.
About MRSAM:
- MRSAM provides air defence against aerial threats like fighter aircraft, UAVs, guided and unguided munitions & cruise missiles etc.
- Capable of engaging multiple targets at ranges up to 70 kilometres
- The missile is powered by indigenously developed rocket motor and control system for achieving high manoeuvrability during the terminal phase.
- The firing unit comprises of Missiles, Combat Management System, Mobile Launcher Systems, Advanced Long Range Radar, Mobile Power System, Radar Power System, Reloader Vehicle and Field Service Vehicle.
India's first indigenously High Ash Coal Gasification based methanol production plant
⇒ India’s first indigenously High Ash Coal Gasification based methanol production plant has been designed at BHEL R&D Centre at Hyderabad.
Inauguration:
The High Ash Coal Gasification based Methanol Production Plant was inaugurated on 08 September 2021 in the presence of Member of NITI Aayog Dr V K Saraswat, Chairman BHEL Shri Nalin Shinghal.
Project supported by:
BHEL R&D centre at Hydrabad began working on Indian high ash coal gasification in 2016 with support from the NITI Aayog to produce 0.25 ton per day methanol. The project was supported by the Department of Science and Technology with a Rs 10 crore grant.
Methanol as a Motor Fuel:
Methanol is utilized as a motor fuel, to power ship engines, and to generate clean power all over the world.
Methanol is also used to generate di-methyl ether (DME), a liquid fuel that is very similar to diesel — existing diesel engines simply need to be minimally changed to use DME instead of diesel.
India Rankings 2021
⇒ Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan released the India Rankings 2021 instituted by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) on 09 September 2021. This is the sixth consecutive edition of India Rankings of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in India.
In the Overall Rankings Category:
Indian Institute of Technology Madras has retained the first position in overall category, followed by Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai at second and third position respectively.
Read More About India Rankings 2021
Visvesvaraya Best Teacher Award, Dr. Pritam Singh Best Teacher Award, Chhatra Vishwakarma Award and Clean and Smart Campus Award
⇒ Union Minister of Education Shri Dharmendra Pradhan conferred AICTE- Visvesvaraya Best Teacher Award to 17 faculty members in Engineering and Technology whereas 3 faculty members were awarded the AICTE-Dr Pritam Singh Best Teacher Award in Management Education, on 05 September 2021.
He also conferred Chhatra Vishwakarma Award and Clean and Smart Campus Award, 2020 to the winners.
The aim of AICTE Visvesvaraya awards is to honour meritorious faculties and encourage them to update themselves to the ever-changing needs of higher education at global level and thereby becoming an effective contributor to the knowledge society.
Official Link to Read Complete List of Awardees
International
13th BRICS Summit
⇒ As part of India’s ongoing Chairship of BRICS in 2021, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired the 13th BRICS Summit on 9 September 2021.
During the Summit, PM Modi highlighted the leading role that BRICS countries can play in the post-COVID global recovery. The Prime Minister also called for enhanced BRICS cooperation under the motto of ‘Build-back Resiliently, Innovatively, Credibly and Sustainably’.
- This was the second time Prime Minister Modi chaired the BRICS Summit. Earlier he had chaired the Goa Summit in 2016.
Theme:
The theme of the Summit, chosen by India, was, BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus.
India’s four priority areas for Chairship:
India had outlined four priority areas for its Chairship.
These are four priority areas:
- Reform of the Multilateral System
- Counter Terrorism
- Using Digital and Technological Tools for achieving SDGs
- Enhancing People to People exchanges
Participants:
The Summit saw the participation of all other BRICS Leaders – President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, President Vladimir Putin of Russia, President Xi Jinping of China, and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa.
Discussion:
- The BRICS leaders discussed important regional and global issues, including recent developments in Afghanistan.
- There was convergence of views on the threat posed by growth of terrorism and extremism, and all BRICS partners agreed to accelerate implementation of the BRICS Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism.
- In the summit, the leaders called for an “inclusive intra-Afghan dialogue” for stability, civil peace, law and order in Afghanistan.
- The “New Delhi Declaration” adopted at the end of the summit also emphasized the need to “address the humanitarian situation and to uphold human rights, including those of women, children and minorities”.
Revamped US-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership launched
⇒ Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri co-chaired a virtual Ministerial meeting with US Secretary of Energy Ms. Jennifer Granholm to launch the revamped US-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership on 09 September 2021.
The Strategic Clean Energy Partnership (SCEP) is launched in accordance with US-India Climate and Clean Energy Agenda 2030 Partnership announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joe Biden at the Leaders Summit on Climate held in April this year.
Minister Puri emphasized that the revamped clean energy partnership will intensify the efforts from both sides to take advantage of the complementarities that exist between US and India-advanced US technologies and rapidly growing India’s energy market.
The SCEP organizes inter-governmental engagement across five pillars of cooperation:
- Power and Energy Efficiency
- Responsible Oil and Gas
- Renewable Energy
- Sustainable Growth
- Emerging Fuels
Highlights:
- The two sides announced addition of a fifth Pillar on Emerging Fuels. A new India-US Task Force on Biofuels was also announced to build on the scope of work on cooperation in biofuels sector.
- Both sides will strengthen the electric grid in India to support large-scale integration of renewables, including through smart grids, energy storage, flexible resources, and distributed energy resources.
- The two sides also announced rechristening of the Gas Task Force to India-US Low Emissions Gas Task Force.
- Both sides have initiated institutionalization of India Energy Modeling Forum with the constitution of Six Task Forces for carrying out research and modeling in different areas.
- Joint Committees have been set up to deliberate on Energy Data Management, Low Carbon Technologies and Just Transition in Coal Sector.
- The meeting also reviewed the progress on the India-US Civil Nuclear Energy cooperation.