The Indian Army has decided to support an initiative of the veterans which is aimed to promote adventure tourism and is expected to create jobs for the locals in the state of Uttarakhand.

 

‘Soul of Steel’ challenge on the lines of the ‘Ironman triathlon’ long-distance triathlon challenge in Europe which tests an individual physically is set to be launched in India but with an added challenge of high altitude endurance.

 

The first edition is set to be formally launched on 14th January 2023 and the effort is spearheaded by a venture CLAW Global run by veterans and is being supported by the Indian Army.

 

Speaking about the idea Major Vivek Jacob (Retd) of CLAW Global said, “The idea behind Soul of Steel is pooling of skill sets and creating a challenge that will unlock the human ability to survive, stabilise and thrive in high altitude areas.” It is an endurance challenge at high altitudes for civilians.

 

Initially, there would be 12 Indian participants plus six international teams and the age profile to apply is 18 to 30 years. “The challenge will be spread over three months. It will also enable life skill training, youth development, global promotion of adventure tourism in Uttarakhand and also display the skillset of veterans, he stated.

 

The challenge is divided into four stages :

Stage 1 : Jungle and mountain training over 40 days;
Stage 2 : High altitude training over 30 days;
Stage 3 : Refresher course for international teams over 15 days;
Stage 4 : The challenge over seven days.

 

Informing about the screening process, Jacob said participants would be screened from March 01 and instructor orientation programmes from March 15. The final participant screening would be done on the ground at Nainital on March 27. Training would be imparted during April-May 2023.

 

The locations selected are generally in the area of the Nanda Devi national park which has several 7000 feet plus peaks. In addition, there would be improvised challenges on the ground for the participants...

Source : New Indian Express

India`s first Centre of Excellence for online gaming will be set up in Shillong on 13th Jan 2023, said the Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology "Rajeev Chandrasekhar".

Digital India Startup Hub through the Software Technology Parks of India shall set up India`s first Centre of Excellence in Online Gaming in Shillong by March 2023.

The Centre of Excellence in Meghalaya`s Shillong is expected to catalyse startups and entrepreneurs to build the Next Gen Online Gaming ecosystem.

"It is the vision of PM Shri Narendra Modi ji that the next wave of startups and entrepreneurs must come from Shillong, Kohima and other parts of the Northeast", Chandrasekhar was quoted as saying during an interaction with journalists in Shillong on Friday (13th Jan 2023).

 

The minister also highlighted the importance of Digital Skills post Covid, as the rate of digitalisation of products, services, and devices continues to increase worldwide.

The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) recently circulated Draft amendments to the IT Rules 2021 in relation to online gaming for public consultation. The ministry further released draft amendments to the IT intermediary rules 2021, pertaining to online gaming for public consultations..

Source : Zee News

American singer, Lisa Marie Presley and the only child of Elvis and Priscilla Presley, has died at the age of 54, after suddenly being hospitalised on Thursday (12th Jan 2023).

She was married to a number of people, including the late singer Michael Jackson and actor Nicolas Cage. She married Michael in 1994, but their marriage terminated two years later. Lisa began her career in 2003 with the album “To whom it may concern”..

Source : The Hindu

Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited (TPREL) will set up India’s first group captive solar plant for a residential society in Mumbai.

 

According to the report, the plant will exclusively generate solar power for the housing society located at Mahalaxmi, Mumbai, a senior official from Tata Power said on January 11.

 

“We will be generating 3 MW (megawatt) solar power at a plant which will be situated at Himayatnagar in Nanded, Maharashtra, which will be wheeled to Mumbai to cater exclusively to this housing society,” he said.

 

He added that the first-of-its-kind project in the city will result in 40 percent savings in electricity bills for consumers (cheaper than grid) as 65 percent solar power will be supplied to meet the requirement of the society. The remaining 35 percent will be normal supply for the consumer, the report stated..

Source : Money Control

Odisha government’s state-level steering committee for CAMPA (Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management & Planning Authority) has approved an annual plan of Rs 1,086 crore action plan for 2023-24 to reduce man-animal conflict.

 

* The plan was approved during a meeting chaired by Chief Secretary S. C. Mohapatra.

 

* He has also raised the issue relating to wildlife management activities that are being extensively being carried out through CAMPA funds.

The Godavari estuary in Andhra Pradesh has become a prime and safe habitat for the Indian skimmer (Rynchops albicollis).

* On 10th January 2023, as many as 250 Indian Skimmers were sighted in the southern part of the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary (Andhra Pradesh) in a day during the Asian Waterbird Census-2023.

* Indian Skimmer migrates to the Godavari estuary for feeding.

* It is found in the coastal estuaries of western and eastern India..

Source : The Hindu

Broadcaster Sony Sports Network, which will air the Australian Open this month (January 2023) across its channels and OTT app SonyLiv, said it has roped in sponsors like Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Samsonite as co-presenting sponsors and Panasonic as an associate sponsor for the upcoming open.

 

This will mark the return of the Sony Sports network’s live tennis studio show, ‘Extraaa Serve’, hosted by Arpit Sharma and the Hindi commentary for the tournament will be provided by Natekar, Manish Batavia & Atish Thukral.

 

The Extraaa Serve will feature Olympian, Commonwealth Games Gold Medalistand Indian tennis player, Somdev Devvarman, former tennis player Gaurav Natekar and Davis Cup player Purav Raja.

Sony Sports also launched its ‘Slam Of The Greats’ campaign, which pays homage to the ‘Greats of Tennis in this Era’, that includes Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Serena Williams and Ashleigh Barty and highlights the rise of new young tennis stars...

Source : Mint

Meghalaya Chief Minister "Conrad Sangma" launched the shared school bus system, prime tourism vehicles and agriculture response vehicle scheme.

 

The chief minister on Wednesday (11th Jan 2023) flagged off shared school buses and hoped that it will help to minimise traffic congestion in Shillong.

 

The buses are part of Sustainable Transport and Efficient Mobility Society (STEMS) programme focussed on mobility and overall transportation to decongest the city.

 

The chief minister said the prime tourist vehicles are a step to improve the overall tourism sector and to provide good transportation services to tourists and at the same time provide job opportunities to our entrepreneurs.

 

The Meghalaya government is providing financial assistance to tourism entrepreneurs to purchase premium tourist vehicles.

 

STEMS CEO Isawanda Laloo said the fleet of buses that is being introduced shall be used by multiple schools for school trips and the same buses maybe used by employees to commute to offices and on holidays or weekends by tourists thus creating more efficiency and ensuring that the operations of the buses are sustainable.

 

The buses are GPS enabled for real time tracking with a passenger information system and LED screens to show the routes. The NIC will develop a mobile application and website for tracking and booking of the buses while the transport department will be roped in for operations and maintenance of the buses.

 

The drivers and the caretakers of the buses will be trained by the Meghalaya Skills Development Society...

Source : Business Standard

 

Garuda Aerospace and Former cricketer, Mahendra Singh Dhoni have launched a surveillance drone named ‘Droni.’

 

MS Dhoni is an investor-cum-ambassador of Garuda Aerospace.

 

Droni is a battery-operated quadcopter surveillance drone.

 

Garuda Aerospace recently became the first-ever drone company in India to get dual DGCA approvals for both drone manufacturing type certificate and RTPO.

 

In 2022, he unveiled the camera drone called Droni at the Global Drone Expo in Chennai..

Source : India Times

Cognizant on 12 January 2022 announced the appointment of former Infosys president Ravi Kumar as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective immediately.

 

Ravi Kumar succeeds outgoing CEO Brian Humphries, who will be departing from the company on March 15, 2023.

 

The IT Giant Cognizant had previously announced the appointment of Ravi as President of Cognizant Americas, which will be given to Cognizant veteran Surya Gummadi.

 

Ravi Kumar S, most famous for his vibrant tenure at Infosys, served the company for 20 years in different leadership roles.

As the former President of Infosys from January 2016 to October 2022, Kumar led the Infosys Global Services Organisation across all global industry segments.

This included driving digital transformation services, engineering services, data and analytics, cloud and infrastructure and so on..

Source : Outlook India