Uttarakhand Affairs
Uttarakhand 1st in India to have fully digitised PDS: WFP
According toUN’s World Food Programme(WFP),Uttarakhandhas become the country’s first state to have “fully digitised, GPS-tagged and cost-effective targetedpublic distribution system(PDS).”
Under this model, ration shops and godowns are geotagged and transportation of each food grain-carrying vehicle is tracked for timely delivery to the beneficiaries, resulting in prevention of adulteration and leakage of highly-subsidised food grains in the market by the transporters and warehouse keepers.
Uttarakhand has over 9,000 ration shops and 200 warehouses for storing grains presently.
The collaboration between the state and WFP has brought together innovation and automation to the existing food safety nets, thus directly benefiting 95 lakh people every month.
According to WFP officials, Uttarakhand is also the country’s first state to install a mobile storage unit (MSU) with a 500 metric ton capacity for the storage of grains in Haridwar during Kumbh and now the has taken the initiative to Rudrapur.
National and International Affairs
Digital India Awards 2022, e-NAM wins Platinum Award
e-NAM,a flagship initiative of the Ministry of <a href="https://exam.pscnotes.com/Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, has won thePlatinum Awardin theDigital Empowerment of Citizens Category in Digital India Awards 2022held in New Delhi. The President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, as Chief Guest of the event, has conferred the Digital India Awards, 2022.
e-NAM is a digital platform integrating 1260 APMC mandis across 22 States and 3 UTs to facilitate online trading of 203 agriculture and commodities to enable farmers to realize better remunerative prices for their produce. e-NAM is catalysing the digital transformation of mandi operations and e- trading of agricultural commodities. As on 31.12.2022, more than 1.74 Crore farmers & 2.39 Lakh traders have been registered on e-NAM portal. A total trade consisting of 69 million metric tonnes of worth Rs. 2.42 lakh crore has been recorded on e-NAM platform.
Indias second longest cable-stayed eight-lane Zuari Bridge opens in Goa
Union Minister of Roads Transport and HighwaysNitin Gadkarihas inaugurated the countrys second longest cable-stayed eight-laneZuari BridgeinGoa.Right-hand side (4-lane corridor) across the Zuari River and approaches from Bambolim to Verna were thrown open for vehicular traffic. Gadkari also launched the PWD Goa App for integrated operations management. Through the Insurance scheme of the Government of Goa, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has given Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the workers who died during the construction of the bridge.
The Zuari Bridge is a bridge between North Goa and South Goa, India. It carries the NH 66 over the tidal part of the Zuari River, between the villages of Agaaim and Cortalim. It is a few metres downstream of the Konkan RAILWAY Bridge. The 640-metre-long bridge and the 13.20 km roads on both sides have been built in 3 phases. The Zuari Bridge work began in June 2016.
India Deploys Its Largest Single Unit of UN Women Peacekeepers
India will deploy a platoon of Women peacekeepers toUNMission in Sudan. This will be Indiaslargest single unit of women Peacekeepersin a UN Mission since it deployed thefirst-ever all-women contingent in Liberia in 2007. The Indian contingent, comprising two officers and 25 Other Ranks, will form part of an Engagement platoon and specialize in Community outreach, though they will be performing extensive security-related tasks as well. The deployment inAbyeiwill also heraldIndias intent of increasing significantly the number of Indian women in Peacekeeping contingents. The operation has been tasked with monitoring the flashpoint border between north and south and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian aid and is authorized to use force in protecting civilians and humanitarian workers inAbyei.