Pilot Projects for Hydrogen-Fueled Buses and Trucks

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The government has initiated five pilot projects for using Hydrogen in buses and trucks under the National Green Hydrogen Mission.

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• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has sanctioned five pilot projects of 37 vehicles (buses and trucks) and 9 hydrogen refuelling stations with a total financial support of 208 Crore.

• These 37 vehicles include 15 hydrogen fuel-cell-based vehicles and 22 hydrogen internal combustion engine-based vehicles.

• The above projects are awarded to major companies like TATA Motors Ltd, Reliance Industries Limited, NTPC, ANERT, Ashok Leyland, HPCL, BPCL, and IOCL.

• The projects primarily aim to develop commercially viable hydrogen-based transport technologies focusing on buses and trucks.

• These pilot projects are likely to be commissioned in the next 18-24 months.

National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM)

• It was launched in 2023 to make India a Global Hub for the production, utilisation and export of Green Hydrogen and its derivatives with an outlay of Rs. 19,744 crores up to FY 2029-30.
• The Mission will lead to significant decarbonization of the economy, reduced dependence on fossil fuel imports, and enable India to assume technology and market leadership in Green Hydrogen.

The 97th Academy Awards

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Recently, the 97th Academy Awards were presented by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, United States of America. 

Key Highlights of the 97th Academy Awards 

• Sean Baker’s ‘Anora’ wins the top prize at this year’s Academy Awards, earning a total of five awards.
• Anora was the top winner of the night. 
• The movie Emilia Pérez’enters had 13 nominations — the most ever for a non-English language film.

Winners of the 97th Academy Awards

About the Academy Awards

• The Oscars are widely regarded as the most prestigious awards in the film industry. 
• The main award categories, called the Academy Awards of Merit, are presented during a live ceremony in Hollywood, usually in February or March. 
• It is the oldest entertainment awards ceremony in the world.
• The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was incorporated in 1927.
• The very first Academy Awards, held in 1929, awarded Wings (1927), a silent World War I epic, the honour of Best Picture. It remains the only silent film to win the category until The Artist in 2012.
• Winners receive a gold-plated statuette commonly called an “Oscar”.
• The 97th Academy Awards were given in 23 categories. 

Key ingredient in Coca-Cola, M&M's is smuggled from war-torn Sudan

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Gum arabic, a key ingredient used in products like Coca-Cola and M&M's, is increasingly being smuggled from rebel-controlled areas of war-torn Sudan. 

About Gum Arabic

• Gum Arabic is the natural gum exuded by various species of Acacia. 
• The main source of commercial Gum Arabic is Acacia Senegal L. willd.
• Its distinct qualities and water solubility make it useful across a range of sectors, including pharmaceuticals, food and beverages, and personal care industries.
• It is an ingredient in processed meals, soft drinks and confections, a thickening agent in chewing gums, a binder in watercolour paints, as an additive in ceramic glazes and an adhesive in the rolling papers used in cigarettes. 
• It is a well-known emulsifier, an additive which helps two liquids mix. It’s also used in textiles and medicines.

Distribution: 

• The trees are native of North Africa and grow mainly in the sub. 
• Sahara or Sahel zone of Africa and also in Australia, India, and South America. 
• A. Senegal is found in some parts of India mainly in the dry rocky hills of south east Punjab, in the northern Aravalli hills and other drier parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Sudan produces about 80% of the world's gum Arabic.

ASI finds ancient rock art and inscriptions in Lankamalleswara Sanctuary

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The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) recently surveyed the Sri Lankamalleswara Wildlife Sanctuary, uncovering three rock shelters, rock paintings and 30 inscriptions.

Key Findings

• One of three rock shelters contained beautiful prehistoric art work of humans, animals, and geometric designs.

• These paintings, dating back to the Megalithic (Iron Age) and early historic periods (2500 BCE – 2nd century CE).

• The paintings were made using red ochre, kaolin, animal fat, and crushed bones.
• Crushed bones were used as a binding material, which helped preserve the pigment for thousands of years.

• The inscriptions dating from the 4th to the 10th century CE. 

• These inscriptions were written in Brahmi, Nagari, and Telugu scripts, and some were in shell characters. 
• The languages used included Sanskrit, Prakrit, and Telugu.

• The Sri Lankamalleswara Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh. 

• It is an ecologically and historically significant area, forming part of the catchment area for the Pennar River and connected to the Telugu Ganga Canal.
• The sanctuary is home to Jerdon’s Courser, a critically endangered bird that was rediscovered in 1986 after being thought extinct for a century.

National Convention on Model Women-Friendly Gram Panchayats

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Recently, the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj organized the National Convention on Model Women-Friendly Gram Panchayats in New Delhi, India.

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• The convention aims to establish at least one Model Gram Panchayat in each District in the country that is both women and girl friendly.
• Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj announced the selection of 770 Model Women-Friendly Gram Panchayats.  
• These model panchayats will serve as a beacon for gender-sensitive and girl-friendly governance practices, thus contributing to the larger goal of achieving a Viksit Bharat through Viksit Panchayats. 

• The convention was held as part of the International Women’s Day 2025 celebrations.

• International Women's Day (March 8) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. 

• The convention unveiled initiatives including Virtual Training Programs for Model Women-Friendly Gram Panchayats and a comprehensive Real-Time Monitoring Dashboard for gauging the progress of these women-friendly gram panchayats in India.

• Additionally, a nationwide Mahila Gram Sabha is also scheduled to be organized on International Women’s Day 2025 in all Gram Panchayats across the country to further the objectives of the Model Women-Friendly Gram Panchayat initiative.