Malavath Purna- Girl from Andhra becomes youngest woman to climb Everest
In a historic achievement, Malavath Purna (13) became the youngest female mountaineer to scale the Mount Everest. Purna was accompanied by Sadhanapalli Anand Kumar (16), a Class IX student from the Khammam district o fAndhra Pradesh. Anand and Purna are both students of Andhra Pradesh Social Welfare Educational Society.
In a historic achievement, Malavath Purna (13) became the youngest female mountaineer to scale the Mount Everest. Purna was accompanied by Sadhanapalli Anand Kumar (16), a Class IX student from the Khammam district o fAndhra Pradesh. Anand and Purna are both students of Andhra Pradesh Social Welfare Educational Society.
T.R Zeliang take oath as Nagaland CM
T.R. Zeliang, leader of Naga Peoples Front (NPF), was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Nagaland following the resignation of Neiphio Rio, who has been elected to Lok Sabha. The NDF-led ruling Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN-III) government was formed in March 2013. Mr. Rio resigned from the office after serving Chief Minister of the state for over 11 years following his victory in the recent Lok Sabha polls.
T.R. Zeliang, leader of Naga Peoples Front (NPF), was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Nagaland following the resignation of Neiphio Rio, who has been elected to Lok Sabha. The NDF-led ruling Democratic Alliance of Nagaland (DAN-III) government was formed in March 2013. Mr. Rio resigned from the office after serving Chief Minister of the state for over 11 years following his victory in the recent Lok Sabha polls.
ONGC starts drilling in Palar basin in Tamil Nadu
The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has begun drilling its first-ever well in the Palar basin at Chinnapuliyur village near Gummidipoondi, about 55 km from Chennai.
ONGC had already started exploration in six out of seven sedimentary basins inIndia. The Palar basin was the seventh.
The Palar basin, spanned over an area of 1,800 sq.km., lies between the two petroleum-bearing Krishna-Godavari and Cauvery basins. The ONGC hopes to discover significant columns of hydrocarbons in the basin.
The block called PR-ONN-2005/1, where Chinnapuliyur is located, was a joint venture with the ONGC and Tata Petrodyne Limited (TPL). TPL holds 20% stake in the joint venture.
The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has begun drilling its first-ever well in the Palar basin at Chinnapuliyur village near Gummidipoondi, about 55 km from Chennai.
ONGC had already started exploration in six out of seven sedimentary basins inIndia. The Palar basin was the seventh.
The Palar basin, spanned over an area of 1,800 sq.km., lies between the two petroleum-bearing Krishna-Godavari and Cauvery basins. The ONGC hopes to discover significant columns of hydrocarbons in the basin.
The block called PR-ONN-2005/1, where Chinnapuliyur is located, was a joint venture with the ONGC and Tata Petrodyne Limited (TPL). TPL holds 20% stake in the joint venture.
India’s OVL and Russia’s Rosneft ink pact to explore hydrocarbons
The overseas subsidiary of the state-owned explorer ONGC- ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), has struck a deal with Russia’s largest oil and gas producer Rosneft to jointly explore hydrocarbons in the offshore Arctic. The agreement will facilitate the OVL’s cooperation in subsurface surveys, exploration and appraisal activities and hydrocarbons production in Russia’s offshore Arctic. Rosneft is also considering supplying crude oil to Indian refineries.
India does not have a firm contract to import crude oil from Russia. It receives small volumes occasionally from OVL’s Sakhalin-1 project in Far East Russia. OVL has a 20% stake in the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas field in the Russian Pacific Ocean.
The overseas subsidiary of the state-owned explorer ONGC- ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), has struck a deal with Russia’s largest oil and gas producer Rosneft to jointly explore hydrocarbons in the offshore Arctic. The agreement will facilitate the OVL’s cooperation in subsurface surveys, exploration and appraisal activities and hydrocarbons production in Russia’s offshore Arctic. Rosneft is also considering supplying crude oil to Indian refineries.
India does not have a firm contract to import crude oil from Russia. It receives small volumes occasionally from OVL’s Sakhalin-1 project in Far East Russia. OVL has a 20% stake in the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas field in the Russian Pacific Ocean.
NASA designs high-tech cages to transport rats to ISS
The US space agency has developed high-tech cages to transport rodents from Earth to the International Space Station (ISS) to enable researchers to study the long-term effects of microgravity on mammalian Physiology. These Rodent Habitat modules will first fly in August 2014 aboard an unmanned SpaceX Dragon cargo ship.
The newly designed habitats allow carrying the animals to the space station as well as provide for their long-term accommodation. Each habitat module accommodates 10 mice or six rats with all of the basics they need to live comfortably aboard the station including water, food, lighting and fresh air. A visible light and infrared video system enables the crew in space and researchers and veterinarians on the ground to monitor behaviour and overall health of the rodents on a daily basis.
Since rodents physiology matches with that of humans and the former develop and age much faster than humans, studying rodent model organisms will speed up the understanding of diseases that may take years or decades to develop in humans. Furthermore, rodents may be studied in space during different developmental stages of life. Spaceflight rodent studies are important for developing countermeasures — procedures, drugs or devices — to protect health during spaceflight.
Russia and China veto UN resolution to refer Syrian crisis to ICC
A draft UN resolution proposing Syrian crisis to be referred to the InternationalCriminal Court (ICC) has been vetoed by Russia and China. The two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) ignored the support for the measure by 65 other countries and all other members of the UNSC. It is the fourth time Russia has blocked a UNSC resolution on Syria.
The draft resolution was favored by 13 of the 15 members of the UNSC. Russia and China both cast their vetoes – the power which is restricted to the 5 permanent members (Russia, China, the US, France and the UK).
The Syrian conflict has caused an estimated loss of 160,000 lives and displaced millions of people since it started in March 2011.
65 nations had appealed to all 193 UN member states to co-sponsor the resolution, under which the ICC would be empowered to investigate allegations of heinous crimes by the Syrian government, pro-government militias, and armed opposition groups.
The draft resolution was proposed by the France before the 15-nation UN body. 13 votes were in favour and 2 voted against the proposal.
As Syria is not a state party to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, the only way to refer its case to the ICC is by the UN Security Council. So, France introduced the resolution among the council members to refer Syrian Civil war to ICC.
For a draft resolution to be adopted by the UNSC, it needs 9 votes in favour and the absence of a negative vote (veto) by any of the 5 permanent members of the Security Council.
New government, capital inflow make Rupee best performing Asia-Pacific currency
Strengthened by capital inflows and excitement about the new incoming government, the Rupee reached 11-month high which has made it the best performing currency in Asia-Pacific region against the US dollar so far in 2014.
It has gained 5.3% since the start of 2014 and has leapt ahead of its other Asia-Pacific peers, including Indonesia’s rupiah and New Zealand dollar, in terms of year-to-date increase.
The rupee, which was at 58.52 levels in recent days, has shown remarkable recovery since August 2013 when rupee fell to its life-time low of 68.80. Since the start of 2014 when rupee was at Rs.61.8 level per US dollar, it has recorded a gain of 327 paise in less than 6 months.
“Diamond Quadrilateral” for High-Speed Rail
The ruling BJP promised in the election manifestos for 2014 Lok Sabha election, introduction of High-Speed Rail (HSR) in the country. It pledged to build theDiamond Quadrilateral project – connecting four major cities of India located in four edges of the country.
If implemented properly, the ‘Diamond Quadrilateral’ HSR project has the potential to dramatically transform India much like the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Government’s‘Golden Quadrilateral’ highway project.
Current Status:
Let us compare speed of trains in China with that in India. The distance between Shanghai Hongqiao and Beijing South railway stations is 1318 kilometers; the distance between New Delhi and Mumbai Central railway stations is 1380 kilometers. While the fastest train (several of them) between the former pair of stations takes exactly 4 hours and 48 minutes, the time taken by the fastest train between the latter pair of stations takes 16 hours and 5 minutes, three times longer.
Although India has one of the largest rail networks in the world, it does not have any HSR rail tracks capable of supporting speeds of 200 km/h (124 mph) or more. High-speed corridors have been proposed but not executed.
Now, a standardization body will examine different options available and provide a common standard to be emulated in implementation across India. Though HSR is still under discussion with no official long-term implementation plan announced, but first railway lines are expected to become operational between 2030 and 2035.
Right now, India is concentrating on high-speed railway track rather than high-speed rail, so that Indian rails can run faster on the current tracks, with a maximum speed at around 160 to 200 km/h; clocking average of 130 km/h.
Indian Railways’ approach to High Speed
Indian Railways’ will exercise an approach of incremental improvement to high-speed on current conventional lines for up to 160 km/h, with a foresight of speed above 200 km/h on new tracks with state-of-the-art technology, such as Shinkansen/TGV/etc. While they do not define high-speed, Indian Railways’ approach matches the high-speed definitions of the Trans-European high-speed rail network, for upgraded lines and new lines built for high-speed.
Dedicate tracks to passenger trains
Separate corridors for freight trains will be built which will provide dedicates tracks on existing trunk lines to passenger trains. Separate tracks will also be constructed for busy suburban traffic in Mumbai and other cities where traffic is equally intense. Without slower freight and suburban traffic, fast-express trains can run at the speed limit of rolling stock, the railway track or railroad switch, whichever is lowest among those that apply.
Track-Upgrade for 250–300 km/h
The dedicated passenger tracks will be upgraded with heavier rails, and will build the tracks to a close tolerance geometry fit for 250–300 km/h. Automation will be used for maintenance and inspection of high-speed tracks. Design, manufacture and deploy railroad switches, with thick web construction and movable crossings that permit 50 km/h to alleviate this obstruction to speed.
Upgrade locomotives and coaches
The train coaches will be improved to support 160 km/h, with stainless steel bodies and crash-worthy designs, incorporating passenger and crew protection, and fire-retardant materials. Electro-pneumatic brake systems will be fitted with coaches to enhance safe operations at 160–200 km/h
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