On Oct. 11, 1968, three men boarded NASA's Saturn IB and had what the agency described as a "perfect launch" into space in the first crewed Apollo mission.

* On Tuesday (3rd January 2023), Walter Cunningham – the last surviving astronaut on that mission who helped pave the way for humans to walk on the moon – died in Houston. 

 

* NASA announced the 90-year-old Cunningham's death on Tuesday (3rd January 2023). In a statement provided to NASA, Cunningham's family did not confirm his cause of death. 

 

* NASA said that along with being a fighter pilot, physicist and entrepreneur, above all, "he was an explorer." 

 

* On Apollo 7, the first launch of a crewed Apollo mission, Walt and his crewmates made history, paving the way for the Artemis Generation we see today," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said. "NASA will always remember his contributions to our nation's space program and sends our condolences to the Cunningham family."

 

* After graduating from high school in California, Cunningham joined the U.S. Navy in 1951, where he served as a night fighter pilot in Korea. From there, he went on to study physics, earning his Master of Arts with distinction in physics in 1961. 

 

* Two years later, NASA made him an astronaut. 

 

* One of his first encounters, however, ended in tragedy. He, along with Walter Schirra and Donn Eisele, were backup crew members on the Apollo 1 mission in 1967 when a flash fire occurred during a launch pad test. The incident resulted in the deaths of three other astronauts. 

 

* A year later, those three backup crew members made history as they became the first human test flight of the Apollo spacecraft. They stayed in space for 11 days, traveling 4.5 million miles, with Cunningham serving as their lunar module pilot. The mission also provided the first live TV transmission of onboard activities in space. 

 

* After that mission, Cunningham became chief of the Skylab branch of the Flight Crew Directorate, NASA said, during which time he helped manage major pieces of manned space hardware, launch vehicles and dozens of experiments.

* He retired from the agency in 1971, NASA said, and went on to get his doctorate in physics with the exception of his thesis in 1974..

Source : CBS News

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik 3rd Jan 2023 directed the distribution of 5 Kg of rice per month free of cost to beneficiaries of the State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) for the 1 Year.

* The state government has decided to provide 5 kilograms of rice under State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) to the beneficiaries free of cost for a period of one year starting from January 2023 to December 2023. The total expenditure of the plan will be Rs 185 crore.

 

* The state government has been distributing 5 kgs of rice per person per month to the left-out eligible beneficiaries covered under the SFSS at Rs 1 per kg since 2018.

* The state government has announced that it will distribute 5kgs of rice free of cost to the people registered in the SFSS.

* The beneficiaries have been provided with additional rice and pulses during the last 28 months of the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic situation in the state.

* Rs 1000 cash incentive was given to each family under the National Food Security Act and State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) twice.

About State Food Security Scheme (SFSS) :

* The State Food Security Scheme was launched under the National Food Security Act 2013.

* Under this scheme, the Odisha government provides rice at a very lower price rate. The Odisha Government State Food Security Scheme will spend Rs 442 crore per year.

* The main objective of launching this SFSS Scheme is to provide food to poor families at subsidized rates.

 

* Under the State, Food Security Yojana government has covered 25 lakh people and will bear an additional Rs 221 crore from October 2018 to March 2019..

Source : ANI

A bird survey conducted at the Silent Valley National Park identified 141 species, of which 17 were new. So far, 175 species of birds have been spotted in Silent Valley.

 

* It is located in the border of Mannarkkad Taluk of Palakkad district, Nilambur Taluk of Malappuram district, Kerala, and Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu.

* This national park has some rare species of flora and fauna. This area was explored in 1847 by the botanist Robert Wight.

* It is located in the rich biodiversity of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

* Mukurthi peak, the fifth-highest peak in South India, and Anginda peak are also located in its vicinity.

* Bhavani River, a tributary of Kaveri River, and Kunthipuzha River, a tributary of Bharathappuzha river, originate in the vicinity of Silent Valley.

* The Kadalundi River has also its origin in Silent Valley.

New species spotted : Brown wood owl, Banded bay cuckoo, Malabar woodshrike, White-throated kingfisher, Indian nightjar, Jungle nightjar, and Large cuckooshrike were among the 17 species newly identified in the Silent Valley.

NTPC Green Energy Ltd (NGEL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) in New Delhi for development of renewable energy based power projects to tap business opportunities in renewable energy and supply of 400 MW round the clock renewable power for requirements of HPCL.

 

The Power Ministry held that the MoU was signed by Neeraj Sharma, Head of Finance, NGEL and Shuvendu Gupta, Executive Director- BioFuels & Renewables, HPCL.

 

The agreement was signed in the presence of Gurdeep Singh, CMD NTPC, CK Mondol, Director-Commercial, NTPC, J Srinivasan, Director-Finance, NTPC, Mohit Bhargava, CEO-NGEL, DK Sharma, Executive Director-CSP&BD, HPCL, Kushal Banerjee-CGM, HPCL and Shri Rajiv Gupta, CGM-NTPC REL.

 

“This MoU marks the first step for NGE and HPCL to collaborate and cooperate in the field of development of renewable energy projects which shall help HPCL in meeting its Clean Energy Commitments,” said the statement.

 

 

In June this year (2023), issued a tender inviting bids for conducting a feasibility study for development of a 100-150 MW hybrid battery energy storage system on vacant land at Anantapuram Solar Park for captive use in Andhra Pradesh.

 

In August, 2021, HPCL issued a tender that called for bids for pre-AMC servicing & CAMC of solar plants having 628 KW capacity, in HPCL, Chennai New Terminal at NCTPS Main Road, Tamil Nadu.

 

A month earlier, the company issued a tender for the supply of solar PV power plants at three different locations of HPCL: Vadodara Terminal, Bihta in Bihar and Kanpur Terminal.

 

NTPC, on the other hand, has reached a milestone when it clocked 3 GW of renewable energy with the commissioning of 100 MW of solar capacity at its Nokhra Project in Rajasthan. With a total capacity of 3094 MW, the NTPC group now has 36 operating RE projects distributed across 12 states. NTPC increased its renewable capacity by 1242 MW during the current fiscal year..

Source : Saurenergy

The Union Government has approved the National Green Hydrogen Mission with an initial outlay of 19,744 crore rupees.

Briefing reporters in New Delhi Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said, the Mission aims to make India a Global Hub for production, utilisation and export of Green Hydrogen.

He said, this Mission will play an important role in dealing with climate change. He said, India will be the global hub of Green Hydrogen.

 

Mr. Thakur said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the launch of the National Hydrogen Mission during his Independence Day speech on the 15th of August 2021.

He said, 50 lakh tonnes of green hydrogen will be produced per year, with an associated renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 Giga Watt.

The targets by 2030 are likely to bring in over 8 lakh crore rupees investments and create over 6 lakh jobs.

 

The Minister said, annually the Mission will help save one lakh crore rupees in the import of fossil fuels. Mr. Thakur said, through this mission, 50 million metric tonnes of carbon emissions will be averted annually. .

Source : AIR

India will take over the leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) having its Headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand from January 2023.

 

The Communications Ministry said, the APPU is an intergovernmental organization of 32-member countries of the Asian-Pacific region.

 

The goal of APPU is to extend, facilitate and improve postal relations between member countries and to promote cooperation in the field of postal services.

Dr. Vinaya Prakash Singh, erstwhile Member (Personnel), Postal Services Board will take over the charge of Secretary General of the Union for a tenure of four years.

 

Secretary, Department of Posts, Vineet Pandey said, this is the first time an Indian is leading an international organization in the postal sector. He said, it is a privilege for the Department to have its officer lead the activities of the Union, especially beginning from this year of India’s G20 presidency..

Source : AIR

Fintech unicorn BharatPe has appointed current chief financial officer "Nalin Negi" as the firm’s interim chief executive officer (CEO) until its board finds a replacement for Suhail Sameer, who stepped down from the position.

 

Sameer, Who was leading the New-Delhi-based firm after it ousted co-founder Ashneer Grover, resigned as the CEO. He will take on the role of strategic advisor, effective January 7, 2023, BharatPe said, confirming the development.

 

Negi, who comes with over 28 years of experience, has previously worked at GE Capital and SBI Card. He was the CFO of SBI Card for over ten years.

 

“Nalin’s extensive experience in the fintech industry makes him a natural choice to lead the company during our search process," added Kumar.

 

The development at BharatPe comes amidst a slew of high profile exits from the Sequoia-backed company, which has been stuck in controversies since January 2022 over allegations of financial irregularities.

 

In November 2022, three executives including chief technology officer Vijay Aggarwal, PostPe head Nehul Malhotra, and Rajat Jain, chief product officer for lending and consumer products, exited the company..

Source : Mint

The President of India Droupadi Murmu inaugurated Samvidhan Udyan, Mayur Stambh, National Flag Post, Statue of Mahatma Gandhi, and Maharana Pratap at Raj Bhavan, Jaipur on 3rd January 2023. 

 

* The President of India virtually inaugurated the Transmission System for Solar Energy Zones in Rajasthan and laid the foundation stone for the 1000 MV Bikaner Solar Power Project of SJVN Limited.

 

* On the occasion, President Droupadi Murmu appreciated the artists for a description of the historical journey of three years of Constitution making displayed in the Udyan.

 

* She said that a major chapter of modern history is presented at Samvidhan Udyan through elegant paintings, sculptures, and other art forms.

 

* She also said that our constitution makers created a comprehensive Constitution due to sensitivity towards each section of the society and awareness towards each level of democracy and each aspect of administration.

World Braille Day is celebrated on 4th January of every year around the world and it also marks the birth anniversary of Louis Braille; thus it is a perfect day to recognise his efforts.

 

The Braille writing system is used by people who are blind or have low vision, and they read and write using raised dots on a page.

Braille device helps blind people easily recognise letters. There is a wide range of electronic devices to meet the needs of blind people and these devices use different technologies to transmit various types of graphic information such as images, maps, graphs, text, etc.

 

There are various ways to celebrate this day like learning Braille with resources like charts and Braille translation software. You can even promote the work of blind or low-vision artists, writers, and other creative individuals.

 

 

World Braille Day 2023 Theme  :  The World Blind Union (WBU) is an international organisation that chooses the theme for World Braille Day every year and the theme for the year 2023 has not been announced yet.

 

World Braille Day History :  World Braille Day was first celebrated on 4 January 2019 on the 210th anniversary of Louis Braille. The Braille system was first published in 1829 and was adopted by the National Institute for Blind Youth.

 

Braille was invented by Louis Braille, a French educator who lost his eyesight at the age of 3 due to an accident with a sewing machine in his father’s harness shop. He developed the present-day Braille system by modifying Charles Barbie’s Night Write system.

 

World Braille Day 2023 Significance : Braille’s system was a revolutionary invention since it helped the blind and people with low vision to learn and write independently. In earlier times or before the invention of Braille, blind people had to be dependent on others to read and learn about things.

 

Now, Braille is used in many different languages and is considered a standard form of communication for people who are blind or have low vision. This day also celebrates the achievements of Louis Braille as well as the blind people, and it helps advocate for their equal rights and opportunities.

 

World Braille Day is a day to acknowledge the contribution of Louis Braille and raise awareness of the importance of Braille..

Source : The Quint

South Korean electronics major LG Electronics on Wednesday (4th Jan 2023) announced the appointment of Hong Ju Jeon as the company’s a new managing director for LG Electronics India Pvt. Ltd.

 

Jeon was previously in charge of the Gulf region as its subsidiary president. Additionally, he also held other senior positions at LG Electronics as managing director of Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria subsidiaries.

 

LG India’s previous managing director Young Lak Kim has been promoted to the position of executive vice president and will be joining as Korea sales and marketing head.

“Kim’s commitment to drive market leadership, sales and brand growth in India has been significant and LG’s market dominance has strengthened across various product categories during his tenure," the company said in a statement announcing the appointment of the new managing director.

 

LG Electronics India Pvt. Ltd. (LG Electronics), is a wholly-owned subsidiary of LG Electronics, South Korea. It was established in January 1997 in India.

It sells consumer electronics, home appliances, HVAC, and IT hardware. Its range of home appliances includes refrigerators, washing machine, AC, water purifier, microwave, fan, dishwasher and air purifiers in India. It competes with companies such as Samsung and Whirlpool..

Source : Mint