24-11-22 Daily-Punjab-PPSC Current Affairs

To ramp up while utilizing natural sources optimally, Punjab Government has decided to install Solar Power Photovoltaic (PV) projects with a total capacity of 300 megawatt (MW) in the State, including 200 MW canal top solar PV power projects and 100 MW floating solar PV power project on the reservoirs and lakes.

The state New and Renewable Energy Sources Minister Aman Arora, taking the decision in a high-level meeting, said that the proposed 200 MW Canal Top Solar Project would be installed in a phased manner, under which 50 MW would be installed in the first phase, while projects of remaining capacity would be installed in subsequent phases.

These projects will be executed in Build, Operate and Own (BOO) mode by Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA), he added.

The canal top solar power projects will be installed on small distributaries having less width, which will involve less civil works. The cost of the Canal Top Solar PV Projects is expected to be around Rs five crore per MW after taking in consideration of 20 per cent VGF. The 200 MW Canal Top Solar PV Projects will save at least 1000 acres of precious agricultural land, besides, generating local EMPLOYMENT and preventing water Evaporation from canals, he added.

Similarly, Floating Solar PV Projects are also a new emerging idea being implemented in the country for using the potential area on lakes and reservoirs, which will also lead to saving thousands acres of precious agricultural land. The cost of Floating Solar PV Projects would be around Rs 4.80 crore per MW after considering 20 per cent VGF.

Union Minister for Commerce and , Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal today said that India is a bright shining spot in the world economy amidst global economic uncertainty. He was addressing the 21st World Congress of Accountants in Mumbai.

Union Commerce Minister said that India has demonstrated that despite the prevailing volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity in the world, our country has the Leadership, capabilities and the skill that is required to navigate the economic recovery. Despite the pandemic challenges, very reasonable measures were taken to sustain the Indian economy where a strong focus was on the macroeconomic fundamentals. Our Government focussed on inclusive well-being of all sections of Society.

Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting and Youth affairs & Sports, said that his vision is to make India the most sought after destination for film shoots and post-production backed by the talent of our people and innovation of our industry leaders. He was inaugurating the 53rd edition of International Film Festival of India at Panaji, Goa in a star studded ceremony interspersed with inspiring speeches and scintillating performances.

The Minister elaborated that his vision for IFFI is not limited to one event, but what IFFI should be when India celebrates its 100th year of Independence once we transition from Amrit Mahotsav to Amrit Kaal. We aim to make India a powerhouse of content creation, especially regional cinema by scaling up regional festivals. India can be the post-production hub of the world by leveraging the immense tech talent amongst our skilled youth, he added.

Chiranjeevi. Yes, the IFFI Indian Film Personality of the Year Award for 2022 goes to megastar and actor-producer Chiranjeevi Konidela. The announcement has been made by the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Singh Thakur, at the grand opening of the 53^rdedition of IFFI, the International Film Festival of India, in Goa.

In an illustrious film career spanning more than four decades, Chiranjeevi starred in more than 150 feature films in Telugu, as well as some films in Hindi, Tamil and Kannada. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential actors of Telugu cinema.

He captured the imagination of the masses with his performance inInitlo Ramayya Veedilo Krishnayyain 1982. He is admired for his zestful dance performances and fight sequences brimming with power. His influence has claimed him the title of a Megastar!

In 2006, he was honoured with the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award, for his contributions to Indian Cinema.

The Network Readiness Index 2022 was released by the US-based non-profit Portulans Institute. This report assesses the network-based readiness landscape of 131 economies based on their performances in four different pillars technology, people, Governance and impact. It encompasses 58 variables.

The United States is the top performer in the index, with a total score of 80.3. The second and third positions are held by Singapore (79.35) and Sweden (78.91) respectively.

Singapore is the biggest climber in this index, since it climbed from the 7^thposition to the second by pushing Denmark (6th) and Finland (7^th) out of the top five.

Other five countries that are top 10 performers are Netherlands (4^th), Switzerland (5^th), Germany (8^th), South Korea (9^th) and Norway (10^th).

Asia Pacifics top performer is Singapore, followed by South Korea and Japan.

The three-day apex-level regional strategic dialogue of the INDIAN NAVY, the Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue 2022 (IPRD-2022) began in New Delhi on Wednesday, 23 November 2022. The IPRD is an annual international conference that seeks to foster exchange of ideas and promote deliberations on maritime issues relevant to the Indo-Pacific which, for India, stretches over a vast, predominantly maritime expanse from the eastern shore of Africa to the western shore of the Americas.

The inaugural session was followed by two thematic sessions onWeaving the Fabric of Holistic Maritime Security in the Indo-Pacific: Multilateral andConstructing Holistic-Security Bridges across the Western and Eastern Maritime Expanse of the Indo-Pacific. In these sessions, globally renowned subject-matter experts presented a variety of multilateral and national perspectives on building maritime security cooperation that could best stitch the Indo-Pacific together.

The 19th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP 19) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild and Flora (CITES) is being held at Panama City from 14^thNovember to 25^thNovember 2022.

At CoP 19, Indias proposal for induction of fresh water turtle Batagur kachuga earned wide support of the parties in CoP 19 of CITES. It was widely appreciated by the parties and well accepted when introduced.

CITES lauded and recorded the works done by the India in the area of conservation of tortoises and fresh water turtles and efforts made in combating wildlife crime and illegal trade of turtles in the country. The resolution documents submitted by the CITES Secretariat on tortoises and fresh water turtles specifically mentioned the commendable result achieved by the country in operations such as those initiated by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau namely Operation Turtshield, which resulted in nabbing many criminals involved in poaching and illegal trade of fresh water turtles and substantial seizures made by the agencies in different part of the country.

CITES is an international agreement to which States and regional economic integration organizations adhere voluntarily. Although CITES is legally binding on the Parties in other words they have to implement the Convention it does not take the place of national laws. Rather it provides a framework to be respected by each Party, which has to adopt its own domestic legislation to ensure that CITES is implemented at the national level.