11 July 2016

Second unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant gets operational

The second unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP), India’s largest nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu became operational. The 1,000 Megawatt (MW) capacity plant attained criticality after the second unit became operational. Now the power generation of Unit 2 will be stepped up to full capacity of 1000 MW in phases and will be synchronized with the grid. The criticality process of the Unit 2 was undertaken by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCI), a PSU under the Department of Atomic Energy which manages the plant. Earlier, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) had given its consent to the NPCI to begin the criticality process. Already, the first unit of the plant is generating 1000 MW power. So far it has generated 10,006 million units of electricity.


About Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP)

KNPP is a nuclear power station located in Koodankulam in Tamil Nadu. It has capacity of generating 2000 MW with 2 reactors.
The nuclear reactors of the plant have been built with Russian expertise. The construction on the plant began in 2002.
The Unit 1 of the plant was synchronised with the southern power grid in October 2013. The work on third and fourth reactors will be started 2017. Both Unit 1 and 2 are
The power generated from the plant will provide electricity to Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Karnataka.

Portugal wins 2016 UEFA European football championship

Portugal has won the 2016 UEFA European football championship (Euro Cup 2016) by defeating host France. It was Portugal’s first UEFA European Championship title. In the final match, played at Stade de France (Paris, France) Portugal defeated France by 1-0 goal score. The only goal for the Portugal team was scored by Éder at 109 minute in the 11 minutes of extra time. With this victory, Portugal has earned the right to compete at the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup hosted by Russia. Awards Golden Boot: Antoine Griezmann (France) – 6 goals, 2 assists. Silver Boot: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) – 3 goals, 3 assists. Bronze Boot: Olivier Giroud (France) – 3 goals, 2 assists. Young Player of the Tournament: Renato Sanches (Portugal) – aged 18.

India, Kenya ink seven agreements to deepen and expand cooperation

India and Kenya have signed seven agreements to deepen and expand cooperation in a wide range of areas. These agreements were signed in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta in Nairobi. PM Narendra Modi visited Kenya on the fourth and last leg of his four-nation tour of Africa viz. Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Kenya.

 Signed Agreements are

•  MoU on Defence Cooperation.
•  MoU in the field of space Technology partnership. Revised Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA). Bilateral agreement on exemption of Visa for holders of Diplomatic passports. 
• MoU on Cooperation in the field of National Housing Policy Development and Management. 
• MoU on Cooperation in the field of expertise sharing, standardisation and mutual trade between Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and Bureau of Kenya Standards (BKS). 
• Line of Credit (LoC) Agreement for US $29.95 million to Kenyan Government for upgradation of Rift Valley Textiles Factory (RIVATEX East Africa Limited) in Kenya. 
• LoC Agreement for US $15 million (first tranche of $30 million) to Kenya’s IDB Capital Limited for development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya.

51st Jnanpith Award conferred on Gujarati writer Dr. Raghuveer Chaudhari

President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the 51st Jnanpith Award on renowned Gujarati writer and litterateur Dr. Raghuveer Chaudhari at a function in New Delhi. He was awarded with the India’s highest literary honour carrying a cash prize, a citation plaque and a bronze replica of Goddess Saraswati for the year 2015. 

About Raghuveer Chaudhary

 He was born on 5 December 1938 in Bapupura near Gandhinagar, Gujarat. He is novelist, poet, critic and a Gandhian. He was a teacher at the Gujarat University until his retirement in 1998 His literary work has been influenced by works of Gowardhan Ram Tripathi , Kaka Kalelkar and Suresh Joshi.

His work: He has authored more than 80 books and some of his notable novels include Amrita, Venu Vatsala, Uparvas, Purvarang and Laagni Samjyaa Vinaa Chuuta Padvanu. He also had worked as a columnist for numerous newspapers such as Sandesh, Janmabhumi, Nirikshaka and Divya Bhaskar. 

Awards and Honours: He has received numerous accolades including Sahitya Acadmi Award for his novel Trilogy Uparvaas in 1977.

First woman Chief Justice of Nepal Sushila Karki takes oath

Sushila Karki has become the first woman Chief Justice of Nepal after taking oath of office and secrecy at a special programme organised at the Presidential Residence, Sheetal Niwas. She will head the judiciary till June 6, 2017.  The oath was administered by President Bidya Devi Bhandari. Beside Karki, President Bhandari has also administered oath of office and secrecy to newly appointed Chief Election Commissioner Dr Ayodhi Prasad Yadav.


 About Sushila Karki

•  Has done Masters in Political Science from Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi. 
• Worked as an assistant teacher in Mahendra Multiple Campus, Dharan in 1985. 
• Began legal practice in March 1979.
•  Appointed the Ad-Hoc Justice at the Supreme Court in January, 2009.
•  Known for her zero tolerance against corruption in the judiciary.
•  Promoted to the Permanent Justice in November 2010. 
• Served as an Acting-Cheif-Justice and Justice at the Supreme Court of Nepal.