Daily Currentaffairs: 23 Sept 2020

Tables of contents

1.  Passage Exercise (PASSEX)

2.Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020

3.ABHYAS-High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT)

4.Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)-UDAN

5. Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

1.Passage Exercise (PASSEX)

Recently, the Passage Exercise (PASSEX) between the Indian Navy (IN) and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has commenced in the East Indian Ocean Region.

Key Highlights

• The exercise would involve participation of HMAS Hobart from the Australian side and Indian Naval Ships Sahyadri and Karmuk.

• It reflects the growing strength of Indo-Australian bilateral relations as comprehensive strategic partners, particularly in defence cooperation in the maritime domain.

• It would involve the advances surface and anti-air exercises such as weapon firings, seamanship exercises, naval manoeuvres, and Cross Deck Flying Operations.

About Passage Exercise (PASSEX)

• PASSEX is a naval exercise which is regularly conducted by Indian Navy with units of friendly foreign navies, whilst visiting each other’s ports or during a rendezvous at sea.

• It is aimed at enhancing interoperability, improving understanding and imbibing best practices from each other.

• In July 2020, India conducts PASSEX with Japan and US.

• In September 2020, India conducts PASSEX with Russia.

AUSINDEX

It is a major biennial bilateral exercise between Indian Navy and Royal Australian Navy.

The exercise was first held in India in 2015.

INDRA NAVY

It is a biennial bilateral maritime exercise between Indian Navy and Russian Navy.

It was started in 2003 with an aim to enhance understanding and procedures for multi-faceted maritime operations.

INS Sahyadri

It is the Shivalik-class advanced, stealth-minded, guided-missile frigate warship.

It is built by the Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai.

INS Karmuk

It is a Kora-class corvette.

It is equipped with state-of- the-art navigation, communication and radar systems and boasts of contemporary Surface-to-Surface missiles.

Source: All India Radio

2.Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020

Recently, Parliament passes the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020.

Key Features of Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020

• Removal of items from Essential Commodities list: It provides provisions to remove commodities like cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion and potatoes from the list of essential commodities.

• Elimination of fear of private investors: It aims to remove fears of private investors of excessive regulatory interference in their business operations.

  • The freedom to produce, hold, move, distribute and supply will lead to harnessing of economies of scale and attract private sector/foreign direct investment into agriculture sector.

• It allows the central government to regulate the supply of certain food items only under extraordinary circumstances (such as war and famine).

• It requires that imposition of any stock limit on agricultural produce must be based on price rise.

  • A stock limit may be imposed only if there is a 100% increase in retail price of horticultural produce and a 50% increase in the retail price of non-perishable agricultural food items. 

Significance of the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020

• It will create a positive environment not only for farmers but also for consumers and investors.

• It will strengthen the overall supply chain mechanism of the agriculture sector.

• It will also help to achieve the government’s promise to double the farmer’s income by promoting investment in this sector and promote ease of doing business.

• It will help drive up investment in cold storages and modernization of food supply chain.

• It will help both farmers and consumers while bringing in price stability.

• It will create a competitive market environment and also prevent wastage of agri-produce that happens due to lack of storage facilities.

Source: PIB

3.ABHYAS-High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT)

Recently, the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully conducted the flight test of ABHYAS-High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT) from the Interim Test Range, Balasore in Odisha.

About ABHYAS-High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT)

• It is designed & developed by Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), DRDO.

• The air vehicle is launched using twin underslung booster and is programmed for fully autonomous flight.

• It is powered by a small gas turbine engine and has a MEMS-based Inertial Navigation System (INS) for navigation along with the Flight Control Computer (FCC) for guidance and control.

• The check-out of air vehicles is done using a laptop-based Ground Control Station (GCS).

• It is a drone that is designed to offer a realistic threat scenario for the practice of weapon systems.

• Abhyas's radar cross-section (RCS), as well as its visual and infrared signatures, can be augmented to simulate a variety of aircraft for air-defense weapon practices.

• It can also function as a jammer platform and decoy.

Source: Hindustan Times

4.Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)-UDAN

Recently, the implementing agency Airport Authority of India (AAI) has finalised the awarding of 78 routes identified in first phase of round 4.0 of Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)-UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) to the Selected Airline Operators (SAOs).

About Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)-UDAN

• Demand driven: The Scheme is market driven where airline operators assess demand on routes and bid for it through a transparent bidding mechanism.

• Affordability: One of the objectives of the Scheme is to make air travel affordable for the general public.

• • The airfare is indexed to change in CPI-IW, US-INR exchange rate, and ATF prices.

• Viability Gap Funding (VGF): VGF support is a monetary assistance that is provided by Ministry of Civil Aviation to the airline operator to enable them to successfully run the routes.

  • VGF per seat is also indexed to change in CPI-IW, US-INR exchange rate, and ATF prices.

• Minimum performance level: The airline operators are required to conform to certain specification for operating routes under the Scheme such as:-

  • Providing 50% of the RCS Flight Capacity as RCS seats, with minimum of 9 and maximum of 40 RCS seats in an aircraft.

  • The number of RCS flights to be operated in a week shall be minimum of 3 and a maximum of 7.

  • The operator is obligated to operate at least 70 % the total scheduled flight in a period of one year.

• The exclusivity of operation: The airline operators are provided exclusivity to operate the RCS route for a period of three years.

• Tenure of the Scheme: The scheme to be applicable for a period of 10 years, subject to periodic review.

  • The VGF support for the RCS route is available for a period of three years only.

• Type of aircraft/helicopter: The Scheme allows operation through various types of aircraft including seaplanes and helicopters.

  • Two heliports-Geleki & Misa & two water aerodromes-Kavaratti & Minicoy have been identified for operation of RCS flights under RCS-UDAN 4.0.

• Eligible operators: The operator should have Schedule Operator Permit (SOP) / Schedule Commuter Operator (SCO) permit to operate the routes covered under the Scheme.

  • The operation through Non-Scheduled Operator Permit (NSOP) is also allowed as a temporary measure, but only for helicopter and sea-plane operations.

Source: PIB

5.Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

Recently, the Department of Atomic Energy has informed that the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor is expected to get commissioned by October 2022.

About Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

• It is India’s first prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) which is being constructed by Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (BHAVINI).

• It is a nuclear power reactor currently under construction at the Madras Atomic Power Station in Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu.

• The fast breeder reactors, in general, produce more fissile material than they consume.

• It will be a sodium-cooled, pool-type reactor with a 500MWe capacity and a lifespan of 40 years.

• The PFBR in Kalpakkam will use a mixed oxide of plutonium-239 which is derived from reprocessed spent fuel from the thermal pressurized heavy water reactors and uranium-238 as fuel to generate energy in a nuclear reaction.

  • Unlike the Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR) that uses mixed carbide fuel, PFBR will utilize a 30 percent plutonium oxide and 70 percent uranium oxide mixed fuel.

Working of the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor

• The reaction in FBRs will also produce or ‘breed’ more plutonium-239 because the reaction converts both uranium-238 in the fuel mix as well as a blanket of depleted uranium surrounding the core into plutonium.

• The plutonium produced will then be processed and used as nuclear fuel in a chain of commercial FBRs that constitutes stage II of the nuclear program.

• The stage will also include FBRs that will use thorium-232, mined in India, like a blanket.

• Thorium will get converted to uranium-233, which will serve as the fuel for advanced reactors in stage III.

• The FBRs will burn uranium-233 and convert thorium-232 to more uranium-233, creating a self-sustaining cycle of nuclear power generation.

Atomic Energy Regulatory Board

 

It was constituted in 1983 by the President of India by exercising the powers conferred by the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 to carry out certain regulatory and safety functions under the Act.

 

The regulatory authority of AERB is derived from the rules and notifications promulgated under the Atomic Energy Act and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

 

The mission of the AERB is to ensure the use of ionizing radiation and nuclear energy in India does not cause undue risk to the health of people and the environment.

 

It was established by the government through a notification and not through an Act of Parliament.

 

Its powers and functions are therefore amendable by the Department of Atomic Energy through executive orders.

 

Source: PIB

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