JHARKHAND

The idea was to somehow provide electricity to every household with at least six hours of power supply that became daunting when it reached to hilly, difficult and inaccessible terrains of Jharkhand, dotted with proscribed outfits.

At the same it also presented an opportunity for the authorities to grab and show their mettle. And, the Jharkhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (JREDA) accomplished the job of electrifying every single village of Jharkhand and thus making the State without any powerless village.

As many as 250 such hamlets scattered at forested and hilly areas of Chatra, Latehar, West Singhbhum, Sahibganj, Pakur district were so far on the fringe for the want of proper location and hostile situation required for traditional grid connected power supply. However, the status quo was beyond the acceptance.

Under the instructions of the Government of India in the field of power supply, every household has to be provided with electricity for at least six hours daily. When it became clear that traditional way of connectivity is not possible in those about 250 villages located not only very remotely and are inaccessible but also marred with naxal activities

JREDA went for standalone solar panel systems providing 200 watt of power for a home and also for micro grid of 8-10 kw for slightly bigger hamlets. Now done with installations of the power source at all such villages.

INTERNATIONAL

· UNESCO Enters Turkey’s Endangered ‘Bird Language’ in Intangible Cultural Heritage List

The unusual and very efficient whistle language commonly called “bird language”used as a means of communication by villagers in remote northern Turkey entered the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
UNESCO accepted the “bird language” of Black Sea villagers as an endangered part of world heritage in need of urgent protection.

· Pakistan State Bank Allows use of Chinese Currency Yuan for Bilateral Trade & Investment Activities

Pakistan allowed Chinese currency Yuan for exports and financing transactions.
According to Pakistan, external affairs ministry, both public and private sector enterprises of Pakistan and China are free to choose Yuan for bilateral trade and investment activities.
As per current foreign exchange regulations, Chinese Yuan is an approved foreign currency for denominating foreign currency transactions in Pakistan.

NATIONAL

The Government is implementing a Scheme, namely the Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS) that provides grant-in-aid to non-governmental organizations for various projects relating to rehabilitation of persons with disabilities.
The objective of the scheme is to enable persons with disabilities to reach and maintain their optimal, physical, sensory, intellectual, psychiatric or social functional levels.

According to the Finance Ministry, RBI Bonds Schemeclosed but the interest rate on such papers lowered to 7.75 percent.
The 8 percent Savings Bonds Scheme, also known as RBI Bonds Scheme, is not being closed but is being replaced by 7.75 percent Savings Bonds Scheme.
These taxable bonds are meant for individual other than Non-Resident Indians with no maximum limit for investment.

India an attractive cruise tourist destination the central government has exempted cruise tourists arriving with e-visa from the requirement of biometric enrolment for a period of three years i.e. till 31.12.2020.
The decision was taken by Ministry of Home Affairs on request of the Ministry of Shipping.
This will make immigration clearance of such passengers faster, leaving them with more time to spend on shore.
This is also an important factor that helps cruise lines decide whether or not to include a destination in their itinerary.
The Ministry of Shipping has been working towards simplifying the immigration clearance procedure and providing passengers with a customer friendly and hassle-free logistics process when they embark on or disembark from their cruise at the Indian ports. E-Visa has been in place in the five major ports of Mumbai, Mormugao, New Mangalore, Cochin, and Chennai.
Till now biometrics of passengers were required at a port of the first arrival for immigration clearance.

The citizen of Assam witnessed the release of the first draft of National Register of Citizens (NRC)containing the first batch of 19 million names of genuine Indian citizens in compliance with the Supreme Court ‘s orders.
Registrar General of India Sailesh released the document.
The first draft has listed 19 million people out of the 32.9 million applicants from within the state as legal Indian citizens.

The Hindus from all over the world reach the confluence of the Ganges at Sagar Sangamsituated in southern part of West Bengal in India during Gangasagar Mela.
It is often said that one visit to Gangasagar is worth lifetime.
To control the rush of pilgrimages to Gangasagar, Eastern Railway announced 13 special trains.
The island of Gangasagar is among the most popular Hindu pilgrimage places in the country.
Each year on Makar Sankranti (mid-January), the large number of devotees from all over the nation, congregate at Gangasagar for a sacred dip at the convergence of the river Ganga and the Bay of Bengal.
After the sacred dip, the pilgrims offer ‘Puja’ at the Kapil Muni Temple or Ashram.

G Sathiyan becomes India’s highest-ranked player in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF)
He surpasses his compatriot the legendary Sharath Kamal.
The current ranking of Sathiyan is 49, pushing Kamal to the second spot at 51.
As for the women, Manika Batra is topping the world chart among Indians at 62th.