28-12-21 Daily-Himachal Pradesh-HPPSC Current Affairs

Exploring the possibility of generating and using green hydrogen as fuel and promoting power storage projects like pump storage and battery energy storage system are the key features in the draft of the New Power Policy of the state. The policy, which is likely to be revealed soon, will replace the Policy that was notified way back in 2006.

Green hydrogen is at an early stage of entering the Energy sector in India. Its good that the State Government is keen on exploring the possibilities of using hydrogen as fuel in power sector and energy storage projects. All stakeholders in power sector will be happy with this initiative, said a power sector expert. The draft of the New Power Policy was distributed among various stakeholders on November 6, and they were asked to revert with suggestions by November 30.

Hydrogen is emerging as an important Source Of Energy since it has zero carbon footprints. Given the abundant availability of water, the state is in an advantageous position as far as the generation of green hydrogen is concerned, said the expert.

Also, theres a lot of thrust on promoting and enhancing solar power. The state has set a target of generating 1995 MW energy through solar projects by 2030. The other key objectives put forth in the draft include harnessing and commissioning 10,000 MW of hydro energy by 2030 and have an operation capacity of 20,948 MW, expediting development of hydro-electric projects, promoting and establishing a power trading entity in the state, to protect the rights of local inhabitants for Irrigation and drinking water, etc.

The INS Khukri (P49), India’s first indigenously built missile corvette, was decommissioned on December 24, 2021, after 32 years of service at Visakhapatnam.

Highlights:

The , decommissioning pennant, and naval ensign were all lowered at sunset during the decommissioning ceremony.

On August 23, 1989, the Mazagon Dock shipbuilders completed the INS Khukri.

It was unique in that it served in both the Western and Eastern Fleets.

The ship was commanded by 28 commanding officers during her service with the INDIAN NAVY.

It traveled over 6,44,897 nautical miles, which is the equivalent of 30 times around the world or three times the distance between the Moon and the Earth. The ship was assigned to the Indian Army’s Gorkha Brigade.

The Indian Army has launched ASIGMA, a modern messaging app that stands for “Army Secure IndiGeneous Messaging Application.”

Highlights:

The AWAN (Army Wide Area Network) messaging application will be replaced by ASIGMA. For the past 15 years, AWAN has been in operation.

On Army-owned hardware, the ASIGMA app has been distributed. It will serve the army from now on, and it will be able to provide lifetime support with future upgrades.It has been designed to meet all future requirements for the Indian army while also providing a better user experience.

The app includes a number of modern features, such as multi-level security, message prioritization and tracking, a dynamic global address book, and to meet the army’s current needs.

It will meet the Army’s real-time data transfer and messaging needs, especially given the current geopolitical security Environment.

The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kesari arrived in Maputo, Mozambique, on December 25 with 500 tonnes of food aid as part of the SAGAR Mission.

Highlights:

500 tonnes of food aid were sent to Mozambique to aid the government’s efforts to combat the ongoing drought and the covid-19 pandemic.

India is also committed to assisting Mozambique’s Armed Forces in their capacity-building efforts.

INS Kesari also carried two Fast Interceptor Craft and self-defense equipment, which will be handed over to the Mozambican Armed Forces.

In accordance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of SAGAR, aid was extended to Mozambique for the eighth time.

After 22 years, Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) discovered a rare pink handfish near the Tasmanian coast. The last time the fish was seen was in 1999.

Highlights:

In February 2021, Australian marine researchers used an underwater camera to photograph the seabed in Tasman Fracture Marine Park. They discovered the pink handfish later while reviewing the footage.

The Taman Fracture Marine Park is known for its deep crack in the earth’s crust, which allows scientists to study marine life up to 4,000 meters below the surface.

Pink handfish was previously thought to only live in shallow waters. This time, however, it was discovered at a depth of 150 meters.