Telangana Affairs
3 startups bag 1st edition of AI for social good awards
TheTelangana AI Mission(T-AIM) announced the winners of the inauguralAI for Social Good Awards. It also launched a compendium of 15 success stories of social sector innovation using artificial intelligence called From Code to Compassion.
The awards, which were given away to AI startups in three categories health & sanitation, skill development & livelihoods, and sustainable environment received 128 nominations.
The winning startups bagged a seed funding of 7 lakh each to scale up their innovations. Dharwad-based Sparcolife Digital Health Technologies emerged winner in the health and sanitation category for benefiting over 350 women with their solution for womens well-being, reproductive health and fertility care.
In the skill development and livelihoods category Ahmedabad-based startup Learn & Empower, which helped over 1,200 hearing impaired children in 67 schools across seven states improve learnability of through fun-based interactive games, was adjudged winner.
National and International Affairs
The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) Scheme, launched in 2019, aims to enhance energy security for farmers in India and promote the use of clean energy in the agriculture sector. The scheme seeks to achieve Indias commitment to increasing the share of non-fossil fuel sources in the countrys installed capacity of electric power. In a bid to boost the implementation of solar projects on agricultural lands, the central government is considering linking thePM-KUSUM schemewith the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF). This move aims to provide farmers with access to cheaper loans for setting up solar projects and procuring equipment.
Individual farmers, groups of farmers, cooperatives, panchayats, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), and Water User Associations (WUAs) can set up solar power plants with capacities ranging from 500 kW to 2 MW.
India stands as a net exporter of steel witnessing an export of6.72 MTof finished steel against the import of 6.02 MT in the year 2022-23.
In the financial year 2022-23 alone,total finished Steel Production was 122.28 MT which is a increase of 49 % as compared to 81.86 MT in financial year 2014-15.
Under the PLI(Productive linked Incentive) scheme, the Government has approved Rs. 6322 crores to give a new impetus to the Steel sector. Shri Scindia said that the PLI scheme is expected to generate an investment of about Rs. 30,000 Crores and additional capacity creation of about 25 Million Tonnes of specialty steel in the next 5 years.
Ukraines Nova Kakhovka Dam Disaster
In recent events, theNova Kakhovka Damin Ukraine has suffered a catastrophic blow, leading to concerns of devastating flooding. Ukraines military command has accused Russia of causing the explosion, given the dams strategic significance.
The Nova Kakhovka Dam is situated on theDnipro Riverin southern Ukraine. Constructed in 1956 as part of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant, it holds back a massive reservoir of water, estimated to contain 18 cubic kilometers, similar in volume to Utahs Great Salt Lake. The dams destruction would have severe repercussions locally and affect Ukraines broader war effort.
According to data released by theFederal Statistical Office, Germanysgross domestic product (GDP)decreased by 0.3 percent between January and March.
This follows a 0.5 percent decline in the previous quarter, making it the largest economy in Europe to experience a downturn.