World Bamboo Conference-2016

8th April, 2016

World Bamboo Conference-2016

Bamboo

Trade of 20 billion US dollar in World Bamboo Market by the end of 2015.

Uses:

The plants have been set up for rayon /cellulose fibers for the production and exports of more quality bamboo fabrics like bath robs, baby wears, T- shirts, jackets, as well as suits.

Geography:

13% forest area is comprised of bamboo. More than 137 species of bamboo is grown in the country which are used for 1500 diversified utilities.

Scheme:

National Bamboo Mission commenced in 2006 has been renamed as National Agriculture Forest and Bamboo Mission.

1436 nurseries have been established to supply the quality saplings of bamboo.

The programmes address four major areas of bamboo development as follows: Research and Development, Plantation and Development, Handicrafts Development and Marketing

India Water Week -2016

8th April, 2016

India Water Week -2016

Theme: 

“Water for All: Striving Together”

Partner country: 

Israel

Our Geography:

India represents 17% of world population, contains only 4% of renewable water resources

Govt programs:

National Water Mission

Launched in 2011,  objective of conservation, minimization of wastage and equitable distribution of water. 

Interlinking of Rivers

To address regional imbalances in water availability. 

Expected to provide water for the irrigation of 35 million hectares of land and also facilitate 34,000 MW of hydropower. 

Namami Gange

Ganga Rejuvenation by consolidating ongoing works and preparing a comprehensive 5-year action plan. 

The programme has been supported by a budgetary allocation of Rs. 20,000 crores. 

Ganga Basin is the largest river basin in India in terms of catchment area which is spread over 11 states that constitutes 26% of the country’s land mass and supports about 43% of its population.

National Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme

To identify and map aquifers at the micro level, to quantify the available groundwater resources, and to propose plans appropriate to the scale of demand and aquifer characteristics, and institutional arrangements for participatory management.

Stand Up India

6th April, 2016

Stand Up India

Ref Also: Previous Post dated 8th January, 2016

Aims to boost entrepreneurship among the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Women.

The loan shall be in the ten Lakhs to one crore rupee range.

The scheme is launched on the occassion of Babu Jagjivan Ram birth anniversary.

The government will also develop the credit histories of these under-banked sections of society and will open a refinance window through the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) with an initial amount of Rs. 10,000 crore.

The scheme will also facilitate the creation of a corpus of Rs. 5,000 crore for credit guarantee via the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company. 

National Geoscience Awards

5th April, 2016

National Geoscience Awards

Also known as the National Mineral Awards.

It was instituted by the Ministry of Mines in 1966

It honors individuals and teams of scientists for their extraordinary achievements and outstanding contributions in fundamental and applied geosciences and mining and allied fields. 

The National Geoscience Awards carries a cash prize and a certificate. 

Till date (i.e. up to NGA-2013), seven hundred twenty one geoscientists have been honoured with the National Geoscience Awards. 

NGA-2014

Thirty-three geoscientists will receive the National Geoscience Awards (NGA-2014)

Prof. A.K. Singhvi, Honorary Professor, PRL Ahmadabad will receive the Award for Excellence for his outstanding contributions in the field of Quaternary Geology

Dr. Indra Kumar Sen, Assistant professor, IIT, Kanpur will receive the Young Scientist Award for his contributions in the field of geochemical evolution of earth. 

Futures:

36th International Geological Congress to be held at Delhi, India. The event is held every four years.