16-11-21 Daily-Kerala-KPSC Current Affairs

The public works department (PWD) has approached the ministry of Environment and forests (MoEF) seeking clearance for the proposed 8km-longmega tunnel road projectbetweenKozhikodeandWayanadin the Western Ghat region.

The Rs 2,080-crore four-lane tunnel project aims at reducing the travel time, mainly for interstate motorists betweenKeralaandKarnataka, by half an hour. Government documents submitted to the MoEF show that around 63% of the land required for the project go through forest land. Of the 54.62 hectares of geographical area that will be acquired for the project, 33.72 hectares fall under the ambit of forest.

Meanwhile, ecologists have raised the fundamental question that how can such a mega project be undertaken without conducting a detailed study on the impact of the of the region.

The Centre decided to release an additional Rs 47,500 crore to states as their share of taxes in order to boost capital spending, especially for . The Centre said the reduction in excise duty on petrol and diesel would not impact transfers to states.

The Centre, which has seen healthy revenue collections, has already stepped up fund transfer for GST compensation and is now pushing more funds to states, which were sitting on cash balance of nearly Rs 2.7 lakh crore at the end of October. Only four states had a negative cash balance.

The Ministry of Commerce and announced its Wholesale Price Index (WPI) statistics.

Highlights:

Provisional Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based Inflation increased to a five-month high of 12.54 percent in October 2021, compared to 66 percent in September.

An increase in gasoline and manufacturing prices was blamed for the increase.

The benchmark inflation has been in double digits for seven months in a row. The benchmark inflation rate in October 2020 was 1.31 percent.

When compared to the same month the previous year, the high rate of inflation in October 2021 was driven by a surge in the costs of mineral oils, basic metals, crude petroleum and natural gas, food, chemicals, and chemical products, among other things.

Every year on November 16th, National Press Day is held to honour India’s free and responsible press.

Highlights:

The Press Council of India began working as a moral watchdog on this day, ensuring that the press maintains high standards and is neither influenced or threatened.

It also marks the establishment of the Press Council of India.

The First Press Commission was established in 1956 with the goal of forming a Press Council to preserve India’s press freedom.

The Press Council of India was created on July 4, 1966. It went into effect on November 16, 1966.

The Asian (ADB) has agreed to lend $61 million to the Indian Govt. to enhance living conditions, stimulate new developments in Agartala.

Highlights:

A loan agreement was reached between India and the Asian Development Bank for the Agartala City After Urban Development Project.

This initiative is in line with the Smart City Mission’s objective of improving urban Infrastructure Services.

It will improve Agartala’s liveability by improving road connectivity, implementing flood-resilient measures, and enhancing the appeal of tourism attractions.

Through this project, the ADB hopes to catalyse synergies with smart city components that are being implemented in Agartala.

The world’s largest solar power park is located in Rajasthan’s Bhadla Solar Park.

Highlights:

The solar park is located in Bhadla, Rajasthan, which is an arid and sandy Environment.

It covers a total of 14,000 acres.

The park contains a total of ten million solar panels. These solar panels contribute to a total capacity of 2245 MW of operating capacity.

Bhadla Solar Park will be the world’s largest solar park by 2020. It is located in Bhadla, Rajasthan’s Jodhpur district, and covers an area of 5,700 hectares.

The park has a total capacity of 2245 megawatts (MW). At Rs 2.44 per kilowatt-hour, it had received the lowest solar power bid in India.

It now has a total capacity of 2,245 MW, making it the world’s largest solar park, with a total of Rs 100 billion.