Current Affairs 21st May 2018

Current Affairs 21st May 2018 - Important Points

• Russia unveils world’s first floating nuclear power plant - Akademik Lomonosov
• India’s first advisory centre for energy in - IIT Kanpur
• PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Zojila tunnel project in Leh on - 19th May 2018
• India drags US to WTO over - Imposition of duties
• Home Minister to commission anti-Naxal Bastariya battalion on - 21st May 2018

Current Affairs 21st May 2018 - Details

Russia unveils world’s first floating nuclear power plant - Akademik Lomonosov

Russia revealed world’s 1st floating nuclear power plant at port city of Murmansk. It will be equipped with nuclear fuel at Murmansk and will be dragged to port of Pevek in autonomous Chukotka area in Russia’s far northeast in Arctic Circle area.
More about Akademik Lomonosov

• Akademik Lomonosov was built by Russian state nuclear power corporation Rosatom. It has length of 144m and width of 30m. It has supplanting of 21,500 tonnes and crew of 69 persons.
• For power generation, it has been loaded with 2 modified KLT-40 naval propulsion nuclear reactors, together providing about 70 megawatts of electricity and 300 megawatts of heat. It is termed after Russian Academician Mikhail Lomonosov.
• It has modern security systems and is measured as one of safest nuclear installations in the world.
  However, environmentalists have named it as ‘nuclear Titanic’. It will be mainly utilised to power oil rigs in remote areas of Artic region where Russia is assertive to drill for oil and gas.
  Significance
• The low-capacity, floating nuclear power station can generate sufficient electricity to power town of 200,000 inhabitants residing in Russia’s far-flung northernmost Artic region.
• Here large percentage of electricity is not needed’ and building of conventional power plant grounded on coal, gas and diesel is difficult and expensive.
• It can save about 50,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year.
• The project is part of Russia’s greater goals to secure rich sums of oil and gas in North Pole region in Artic.
• Due to climate changes, fresh shipping-routes are opening in Russia’s north and as a result, it is solidifying its military position in the region.

India’s first advisory centre for energy in - IIT Kanpur

IIT-Kanpur has formed India’s 1st Centre for Energy Regulation with the assistance of Government of
UK. The 1st of its kind centre in India goals at delivering independent advisory on policy and regulatory
issues in the power and energy sector.
Centre for Energy Regulation

• It is initiative of Department of Industrial and Management Engineering of Indian Institute of
  Technology-Kanpur to improve regulatory research and networking in Indian power segment.
• Centre for Energy Regulation and identified activities under it are sponsored by Department for International Development, Government of UK.
• Centre for Energy Regulation aims on requirement for India specific forward seeking research in
  teamwork of regulatory institutions and relevant shareholders to deliver solutions to matters including growth of Indian economy, rising energy needs, energy efficiency, security and electricity access.
• It inspires interaction between regulatory and academic institutions. It focuses for suggestion research in developing areas of power sector regulation and policy.
• Its core research segments consist of regulatory and policy alterations in power and energy segment, energy finance, energy sector modelling and operative planning in energy markets and many more.

PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Zojila tunnel project in Leh on - 19th May 2018

PM Narendra Modi revealed a plaque to spot the commencement of work on the Zojila Tunnel in Jammu and Kashmir’s Leh district on May 19th , 2018. This project, value Rupees 6,809 crores, will be India’s longest and Asia’s longest and strategic two-directional tunnel, which will deliver all-weather connections among J&K’s Srinagar, Kargil and Leh districts. It will be completed within 5 years. Talking on the occasion, the PM Modi said that he has asked the related Ministry to find out the ways to decrease the time for the completion of the project.
Key Features of Zojila Tunnel

• The tunnel goals to deliver safe, quick and cost-effective connectivity. It will decrease the time of travelling among Srinagar and Leh to fifteen minutes from the present 3.5 hours.
• It will deliver all-weather connectivity to the area. The project has strategic and socio-economic significance and shall be a tool for the development of the economically backward districts in J&K.
• It will be the longest two-directional tunnel in Asia and the edifice of the tunnel will take about 5 years due to the difficult topography, because in few areas the temperature drops to -45 degree Celsius.
• The project goals at building 14.15 kilometres long bi-lane two-directional single tube tunnel with a parallel 14.2 kilometres long tunnel without tactics between Baltal and Minamarg in the state.
• It is being executed by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways through the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited.

India drags US to WTO over - Imposition of duties

India has pushed US to the Dispute Settlement Mechanism of World Trade Organisation over obligation
of import duties on steel and aluminium. India informed that provision will of obligaton of import duties
impact its exports of steel and aluminium products to United States and is not in compliance with global
trade guidelines.
Key Points

• India has sought consultations with United States as 1st step of disagreement settlement process under the World Trade Organisation’s dispute settlement process.
• If the 2 countries are not capable to reach mutually settled solution through consultation, India may appeal for World Trade Organisation dispute settlement panel to review the issue.
  Did you know?
• In March 2018, United States President Donald Trump had levied heavy import duties on imported steel and aluminium products, an initiative that has sparked fears of global trade war. He had inked 2 announcements that imposed 25 per cent duties on steel and 10 per cent duty on aluminium imported from all nations excluding Canada and Mexico. India had sought exclusions from the heavy duties.
• United States conclusion had not only impacted India’s export of these goods but also affected global business.
• India’s exports of steel and aluminium products to United States was about US $1.5 billion per year. India and United States are already complicated in disputes at World Trade Organisation, which is a global trade organisation.
• The disagreements are in the areas of poultry, solar and steel. United States freshly had expressed disagreements against India on export incentives measures damage its workers by creating an uneven playing field.

Home Minister to commission anti-Naxal Bastariya battalion on - 21st May 2018

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh will commission into service the Bastariya battalion of the CRPF, in Raipur, on May 21st , 2018. The anti-Naxal battalion, formed for the 1st-time with above 534 tribal youth from Chhattisgarh, has 33% depiction of women combatants with 189 women constables. The Passing out Parade will be organised at a training centre at Ambikapur, a city in Surguja district of
Chhattisgarh.
Key Highlights

• The localised battalion of the young fighters will be instantly deployed for anti-Naxal actions in few of the wickedest Naxal affected areas including Sukma, Dantewada and Bijapur.
• The battalion was known as Bastariya, as its associates were recruited from Sukma, Dantewada, Narayanpur and Bijapur districts of non-divided Bastar region in southern Chhattisgarh, bordering AP, Odisha and Telangana.
• The fresh recruits were proficient for approximate 44 weeks in forest warfare, weapons firing, map reading, police laws and unarmed combat.
• The troops will be issued their ranks of constables and engage in arms against the Naxals, like steady security forces staffs.
• Rajnath Singh would be bestowing the best performers of the fresh unit after they bestowed him with a guard of honour and a military parade.

Deployment

The final strength of the Bastariya battalion will be 743 personnel, as it will have some of the young and regular combat personnel apart from officers to make sure a blend of both young troops and experience. These new personnel will be positioned as small hit teams, along with regular Central Reserve Police Force and CoBRA battalions, for procedures and other duties in south Bastar.