Current Affairs April 2015

Union Government forms task force to expedite work on inter-linking of rivers

Union Government on 14 April 2015 constituted a task force on interlinking of rivers in the country. The Task Force will be chaired by former Secretary of Ministry of Water Resources B N Navalawala and comprises experts and senior officials.
Terms of References of Task Force

• Take up all issues related to expediting the work on interlinking of rivers in the country. 
• Consider alternative plans in case of infeasible links in the present National Perspective Plan (NPP) apart from examining the existing links which are laid out as per the NPP under both Himalayan and Peninsular components. 
• Facilitate interlinking of intra-basin and intra-state Rivers, along with that of inter-state and inter-basin links. Recommend time schedules for completing feasibility studies of all the river links along with implementation schedule. Suggest different means of funding mechanisms for the interlinking of rivers project. 
• Provide guidance norms of appraisal for individual projects in respect of economic viability, environmental impacts, socio-economic and preparation of resettlement plans. Device suitable mechanisms in order to bring speedy consensus among the states. 
• To implement the interlinking of Rivers, propose suitable organizational structure.

Ministry of Home Affairs renames Visa on Arrival scheme to e-Tourist visa

Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has renamed Tourist Visa on Arrival-Electronic Travel Authorization scheme (TVoA-ETA) to e-Tourist Visa with effect from 15 April 2015. With this ambiguities faced by foreign tourists especially by scheme’s nomenclature VoA, presuming that they would be granted visa on arrival upon landing will be removed. Background
About e-Tourist Visa Scheme

• e-Tourist Visa Scheme is a pre-authorization of Visa to foreigners that being given prior to travel. 
• Under the scheme, a foreign tourist is required to apply for a visa online by uploading his photograph and passport and also paying his visa fee online. 
• Then visa authorities will process his application and send him an electronic travel authorization, or simply e-visa, via e-mail within 72 hours.

TVoA-ETA was launched in November 2014. It had enabled Electronic Travel Authorization to 44 countries at nine airports across India. It also facilitated short duration international travelers. Since the launch of the scheme, around 1.10 lakh visas have been granted.

BSF launches nationwide tele-medicine programme for troops

Border Security Force (BSF) on 14 April 2015 launched nationwide satellite-based tele-medicine programme for its troops. The programme will address medical and health-related problems of its troops deployed in far-flung frontier areas and difficult regions in the hinterland in case of an emergency or illness.
Facts about Tele-medicine programme

• It will be operated and hosted from the BSF’s Kadamtala-based composite hospital in Siliguri, West Bengal. 
• The full-time team of doctors at hospital will be connected with BSF posts along the Indo-Pak and Indo-Bangla frontiers. 
• The hospital has been equipped with required technology including satellite phones and the VSAT platform to host the programme. 
• BSF’s anti-Naxal operations units in Chhattisgarh and Odisha will also be linked with the same facility.

BHEL commissions 600-MW thermal unit in Chhattisgarh

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) on 13 April 2015 commissioned 600 MW unit of a thermal power project for the Dainik Bhaskar Power Limited (DBPL) at Dhabra in Janjgir Champa district of Chhattisgarh. The commissioned unit is the second unit of DBPL’s 2 × 600 MW power project. The first 600 MW Unit was commissioned in 2014. BHEL is partner in the power development programme of the state of Chhattisgarh. With this commissioning of second unit, BHEL’s cumulative installed capacity has increased at 11,400MW in Chhattisgarh and accounts for 68 per cent share of the total installed capacity in the state.

About Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL)

• BHEL is a power plant equipment manufacturer completely owned by Union Government. 
• It is largest engineering and manufacturing company of its kind in India. 
• Established: It was awarded a Maharatna Company status in 2013.

Gujarat government launches industrial tourism to showcase development

Gujarat government has launched industrial tourism package to promote its development by showcasing its major industrial installations which have earned global acclaim for state. It is a first of its kind initiative India, offered by Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) in collaboration with Ahmedabad based Akshar Travels Pvt Ltd. 

The tour package is called as Industrial Tour of Gujarat and will cover some of the major industrial attractions of the state. It includes Tata Nano plant in Sanand, Amul Dairy in Anand, Alang ship breaking yard in Bhavnagar and Pipavav port near Amreli. It will also include Mrbi-based ceramic industry, Tata Chemicals factory in Mithapur, Asia’s biggest Ajanta clock factory, Reliance Refinery in Jamnagar. The package will also take tourists to salt pans near Okha and  Kadi in Mehsana, which has the highest number of cotton gins in Asia.

Turkey begins construction of first nuclear power plant

Turkey on 14 April 2015 began the construction of its first nuclear power plant located at Akkuyu in Mersin province on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It will be built by Akkuyu Project Company, a subsidiary of Russia’s nuclear agency Rosatom.
Key Facts

• In 2010, Turkey and Russia had signed an agreement to set up $20 billion Akkuyu nuclear project.
• Akkuyu Project Company will own, build and operate the plant that comprises four 1,200 MW VVER units. 
• The site was chosen at Akkuyu by Turkish government because it has low population density and low risk of earthquakes.

It should be noted that Akkuyu nuclear plant is the first of three nuclear power plants planned by Turkey. Second plant is due to be built in the Black Sea city of Sinop by a French-Japanese consortium and third plant’s location is not finalised yet. With these nuclear plants, Turkish government is aiming to bring greater energy self-sufficiency by reducing its dependence on energy imports from like Russia and Iran.

US President nominates Indian-American businesswoman Shamina Singh to key post

Indian-American businesswoman Shamina Singh has been nominated as the member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS). She was nominated to top most post by United States President Barack Obama for term of four year i.e. till October 2019.
About Shamina Singh

• Prior to this, Shamina was global director for government services and solutions at MasterCard Centre for Inclusive Growth. 
• Prior to joining MasterCard, she had led government and public affairs for sports brand Nike and had 5 five years with Citigroup’s Global Community Development Group. 
• She also had held senior positions within the Bill Clinton Administration and the US House of Representatives. Singh also was a Deputy Director for America Votes in 2003. 
• She also had served as a Senior Advisor to US House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. In 2002, she was the Deputy Campaign Manager for the Ron Kirk for US Senate campaign. 
• From 1999 to 2001, Singh was Executive Director for the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

Zomato acquires Delhi based data firm MaplePOS

Online restaurant guide Zomato on 14 April 2015 acquired MaplePOS, a cloud-based point of sale product for restaurants developed by Delhi based MapleGraph. After the acquisition, Zomato has renamed MaplePOS product to ‘Zomato Base’ which will help the company and its restaurant partners to manage business into online orders and payments. MaplePos, a sale product offers various features of restaurants such as inventory and menu management, and has in-built payment solution to accept debit and credit card payments. 

It should be noted that, this is the first product acquisition done by Zomato. Earlier, it had acquired 7 restaurant search and listing companies in various parts of the world. MapleGraph was founded in 2011 by Varun Tangri, Arun Tangri and Abhishek Rohilla. The company offers software solutions to manage menus, inventory, electronic receipts, recipes, and other features in restaurant management.