Tantalum
Central Government notified Tantalum as a Critical and Strategic Mineral under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
- A rare metal which is grey, heavy, hard, and corrosion-resistant.
- When pure, tantalum is ductile (can be stretched, pulled, or drawn into a thin wire).
- Extremely high melting point.
- Uses – As capacitors in electronic devices, surgical equipment & implants, components for chemical plants, nuclear power plants, aeroplanes and missiles etc
Lake Turkana
First comprehensive survey held in 50 years regarding Lake Turkana.
- Located in – Kenya and Ethiopia.
- Africa’s 4th largest lake and the largest permanent desert and alkaline lake in the world.
- Lake Turkana National Parks site was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997.
Exercise Mitra Shakti
Exercise Mitra Shakti conducted.
- Held between – India and Sri Lanka.
- Aim – To improve the operational proficiency of both armies by facilitating the exchange of skills, experiences, and best practices.
KAVACH
Indian Railways is rolling out tenders for equipping 10,000 locomotives with Kavach 4.0
- A set of electronic devices and Radio Frequency Identification devices, to prevent accidents due to human error
- Developed by – Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO)
- Key features –
- Centralised live monitoring of train movements
- Prevention of Signal Passing at Danger (SPAD)
- Automatic braking for prevention of overspeed
e-Sankhyiki portal
e-Sankhyiki portal designed to create a comprehensive system for managing and sharing data
- Aim – To provide timely and valuable data inputs for policymakers, researchers, and the general public.
- Launched by – Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI)
- Comprises 2 modules –
- Data Catalogue Module which enables searching within datasets and tables, downloading relevant data, and enhancing its value and reusability.
- Macro Indicators Module which provides time series data on key macro indicators, featuring tools for filtering and visualising data.