ANDHRA PRADESH

Andhra Pradesh: Irrigation department goes digital to record progress of projects

In a bid to stem corruption, the irrigation department is switching over to the digital mode to record the progress of ongoing projects. Field-level engineering teams have been directed to make all entries of measurements on a dedicated web portal that has been readied by the department. Andhra Pradesh is the first state to introduce the electronic management of measurement books (e-M Book).

As per the rules, officials should enter all details of the progress of the project in the measurement book in order to make payments to the contractor. The M-Book will be the only basis even when it comes to verification of the quality and progress of a specific work.

However, it has become a practice for a number of field-level engineers and contractors to tamper the records in the manual measurement book. In many cases, the engineers make entries in the measurement book only after the contractor has met their demands for a bribe, irrespective of the progress of the work. In some instances, the field-level officers do not even check the quality parameters as per the tender conditions before making entries in the measurement book.

INTERNATIONAL

Space X Announced First All-Civilian Mission to Space

The SpaceX of Elon Musk has recently announced to launch its first all civilian mission to space.

SpaceX is planning to launch Inspiration4 on Falcon 9.

This will be the world’s first fully commercial astronaut mission.

The spacecraft will begin orbiting in the fourth quarter of this year.

The mission will be launched from the 39A Launch Complex at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NATIONAL

Sandes – An Instant Messaging Platform

An instant messaging platform called Sandes was recently launched on WhatsApp.
Launched by: National Informatics Centre

Anyone with a mobile number or email ID can use Sandes for all kinds of communications.

Its interface is similar to other applications currently available.

Species in news – Leatherback Sea Turtle

Some conservationists worry about the fate of Giant Leatherback turtles. NITI Aayog made recommendations for tourism and port development in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

NITI Aayog’s tourism vision includes a proposal to establish a mega-shipment port in Galathea Bay on Greater Nicobar Island.

In addition, the Little Andaman Plan also proposes to develop tourism in stages on this undeveloped island, which may lead to the cancellation of protection of more than 200 square kilometers of rainforest and approximately 140 square kilometers of Onge Tribal Reserve.

Pey Jal Survekshan – Jal Jeevan Mission

The Government conducted drinking water surveys in 10 cities under Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban).

The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry initiated a survey to collect drinking water data in 10 cities under the Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban).

As part of “Pey Jal Survekshan” survey, data on wastewater management and the condition of urban water bodies will also be collected.

The mission will be monitored through a technology-based platform where beneficiary’s response will be monitored.

Initially, the survey was conducted as a pilot in ten cities, namely Agra, Badlapur, Bhubaneswar, Churu, Kochi, Madurai, Patiala, Rohtak, and Surat and Tumkur.

SWAMIH Fund – Recent Development in Housing Projects

All SWAMIH Funds will deliver the first batch of finished apartments in 2021. This is a 2500 crore fund established by the Indian government. The fund was established to complete stalled housing projects. The fund provides a solution that hinders the savings of home buyers and bankrupt developers.

In the 2021-2022 financial year, the fund will hand over 16 projects, including more than 4,000 houses.

The SWAMIH Fund was announced in November 2019.

The SWAMIH stands for “Special Window for Completion of Construction of Affordable and Mid-Income Housing Projects”.

Dalai Lama pens new book ‘The Little Book of Encouragement’

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has come out with his new book titled ‘The Little Book of Encouragement’, in which he has shared quotes and words of wisdom to promote human happiness.

The Little Book of Encouragement contains 130 quotes related to how to deal with the new realities of the panic-stricken world, combat rising extremism, polarity and climate change besides Dalai Lama’s views on Tibet.

The book has been edited by Renuka Singh and published by Penguin Random House.

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