General Knowledge Archives - Page 21 of 24

Minerals are Mined for their Potential Use or Intrinsic Value

Minerals are homogenous, naturally occurring, inorganic solids, each having their own characteristic chemical composition and highly ordered atomic structure. Essentially, if a material is not grown, it must be mined. Minerals are an economic commodity, mined for their potential use or their intrinsic value. It is estimated that there are some 4,000 mineral types:

Copper and diamond are examples of naturally-occurring minerals made up of only one element.
All other mineral groups are made up of one or more metallic elements combined with another element.
The largest group is silicates which contain varying amounts of silicon and oxygen; quartz and feldspar are two examples; other important groups include sulfides which combine with sulfur; and oxides which combine with oxygen, water, or hydroxyl. These three groups are vital as they form many of the ores from which valuable metals can be extracted, including iron, lead and bauxite.

Mineral resources are abundant in use in our daily life; pencils to computers are made from minerals and other materials that have been extracted from the Earth. And, despite concern over the last few decades that some minerals resources would become scarce, the supply of most major minerals is not actually an immediate concern. In fact, known reserves of most major minerals have increased over the last two decades despite population growth, which has led to both increased demand and consumption.

Extraction, processing, and transport of minerals do have impacts on the environment, as well as on the potential health and safety of those working in the industry. Mitigating the disruption of landscapes and ecosystems, while continuing to ensure supplies of critical minerals, is constant technological challenge. In addition, use of cyanide by some mining operations such as gold, and release of gases, dust, and other particulates can impact soils, water, and the air. Water quality can also be affected by metal contamination or sedimentation; yet, the largest problem facing the mining industry is considered to be acid drainage which can threaten aquatic ecosystems.

Current regulation prioritises mine reclamation to further initiate beneficial end-uses of the land area. In addition to minimising any residual hazards to public safety, the process includes maintaining water and air quality, minimizing flooding, erosion and damage to wildlife and aquatic habitats, and providing topsoil replacement and the introduction of appropriate plant species.

Ministry of Mines is responsible for survey and exploration of all minerals, other than natural gases, petroleum and atomic minerals, for mining and metallurgy of non-ferrous metals like aluminium, copper, zinc, lead, gold, nickel, etc. and for administration of the Mines and Minerals (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957 in respect of all mines and minerals other than coal, natural gas and petroleum.

Mining resources have not been exploited to the desired levels in India as the Mining accounts for only 2.5% of the GDP currently, while for mineral rich countries like Australia, it is 10%. The country must lay substantial focus on development of resources below the ground along with the focus on development taking place over the ground.

Exploration is the key source of value creation in the mining sector. If Indian entrepreneurs and multinationals explore these opportunities, they could do wonders. Government must craft a set of policy measures that comprehensively make India an attractive investment destination for entrepreneurs, both global and local. Regulations and adequate practices that are most value-creative must be made attractive to let entrepreneurs engage and succeed in their initiatives. This will also help in leveraging the immense potential of the natural resources sector for smooth exploration and discoveries.

Availability of reserves should not be the experience with Hindustan Zinc and Sesa Goa has proven time and again that despite low reserves, a five-time increase in production has the potential to create reserves for 20 years. Rajasthan, for instance, can garner more than Rupees one lakh crore by auctioning marble stone, potash and rock phosphate. India is the third-largest marble producer in the world. It has vast amounts of phosphate and potash reserves.

India’s minerals demand is expected to grow rapidly alongside economic development, improved infrastructure and urbanisation. Hence, a simple structure and policy need to be put in place. Additionally, the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and other oil companies must explore the block. The block could be auctioned to ensure generation of huge revenues. The same could be done for the Kolar and Bharat gold mines in Karnataka. Success in exploration of mineral resources is indispensable to keep the flow of auctionable mining blocks into the market and meet India’s internal demand for self-sufficiency.

Finally, it is very important to keep safety and environmental protection at the centre of any exploration process through modern technology. Drone helicopter surveys have proven that modern day technology can help us adhere to environmental safeguards alongside conducting mining projects. Drone based data collection can also boost productivity. Surveying projects that once took weeks using traditional surveying techniques are now possible in just a few hours.

Wherever natural resources have been developed, local areas have seen a major growth and spurt in employment opportunities. The direct result of this translates into poverty eradication and skill development of the rural youth, alongside creation of small and medium-sized enterprises. The natural resources sector also holds the potential to boost India’s agricultural economy by generating revenue flow, thereby extending support to the rural communities, farmers alongside boosting the economy.

India’s true development will be realised when all the three sectors of economy; Primary or Agriculture Sector including Mining, Secondary or Industrial Sector and Tertiary or Service Sector grow together.

India Japan Civil Nuclear Cooperation Pact Essential for Bringing a Network of Nuclear Energy Cooperation for India

India – Japan Civil Nuclear Cooperation pact that was signed in Tokyo during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Japan on November 11, 2016 came into force on Thursday, July 20, 2017 when India’s Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Japanese Ambassador Kenji Hiramatsu exchanged diplomatic notes marking operationalisation of the pact. This civil nuclear cooperation deal that took over six years of negotiations provides for collaboration between their industries in the field and allows US and French nuclear firms, which have alliances with Japanese companies, to conduct nuclear commerce with India. India had signed a landmark nuclear deal with the US in 2008, clearing the path for the country to source nuclear power plants and technology from international markets but with Japanese companies in possession of critical technologies, such as steel shields covering a nuclear reactor core, an accord with Japan was pivotal for India. India and Japan have been cooperating in this area through multilateral for a including the ITER International Fusion Energy Organisation.

India-Japan cooperation in the peaceful uses of Nuclear Energy landmark pact provides for the development of nuclear power projects in India and thus strengthening of energy security of the country.
Nuclear energy provides a safe, environmentally friendly and sustainable source of energy which contributes to energy security.
India and Japan have advanced capabilities in the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology which can contribute to welfare of their respective people.
Both the nations are initial members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and have reaffirmed their support for its objectives and its applicable safeguard system and its importance in the international cooperation in the development and uses of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
They have reaffirmed their commitments to achieve the highest standards of radiation and nuclear safety based on scientific approach, operating experience and best practices followed by the nuclear industry, as well as to ensure that the use of radiation and atomic energy in all its applications is safe for the health of radiation workers, members of the public and the environment.
They have commitments to nuclear non-proliferation, nuclear safety and nuclear security in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, including effective national export controls and adequate physical protection of nuclear material.
There is desire to develop cooperation between both the nations on the basis of respect for sovereignty, equality, mutual benefit and reciprocity, and
To promote full cooperation between them in the development and uses of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes on a stable, reliable and predictable basis.
The deal allows Japan to export nuclear technology to India, making New Delhi the first Non-NPT signatory to have such a deal with Tokyo.
Non-Proliferation Treaty or NPT, is an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy
The pact opens up the door for collaboration between Indian and Japanese industries in Civil Nuclear programme.
The pact enables India to obtain high-quality components for nuclear reactors, especially ones that the country was negotiating for with Westinghouse (Electric Co.) and (French). Westinghouse Electric Company is a subsidiary of Japan’s Toshiba Corp. Areva, too, accesses key reactor components from Japanese firms.
This deal was essential for bringing a network of nuclear energy cooperation for India, especially with the U.S. as prominent American nuclear companies are owned by the Japanese nuclear majors like Toshiba.
There was political resistance in Japan against a nuclear deal with India, particularly after the disaster at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant in 2011 as Japan is the only country to suffer atomic bombings during World War II.
Japan is a major player in the nuclear energy market and an atomic deal with it will make it easier for US-based nuclear plant makers Westinghouse Electric Corporation and GE Energy Inc to set up atomic plants in India as both these conglomerates have Japanese investments.
Japan will also assist India in nuclear waste management and will undertake joint manufacturing of nuclear power plant components under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
Other nations who have signed civil nuclear deal with India include the US, Russia, South Korea, Mangolia, France, Namibia, Argentina, Canada, Kazakhstan and Australia.

India currently has 5.7 gigawatts (GW) of nuclear power generation capacity. This accounts for 2% of the total power capacity, but this is expected to change with a sharp increase in power generation from atomic plants over the next 16 years as Asia’s third largest economy moves away from fossil fuels for its energy needs. India’s Department of Atomic Energy’s target is to have 63GW of nuclear power capacity by 2032.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi after signing the pact had said, “The memorandum we signed on civil nuclear energy cooperation is more than just an agreement for commerce and clean energy, it is a shining symbol of a new level of mutual confidence and strategic partnership in the cause of peaceful and secure world. No friend will matter more in realising India’s economic dreams than Japan. We have made enormous progress in economic cooperation as also in our regional partnership and security cooperation.”

According to the External Affairs Ministry, “This Agreement is a reflection of the strategic partnership between India and Japan and will pave the way for enhanced cooperation in energy security and clean energy. It seeks to promote full cooperation between the two countries in the development and uses of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes on a stable, reliable and predictable basis.”

Fukushima India – Japan

S Jaishankar & Kenji Hiramatsu Nuclear Power Plant

Impact of Global Meltdown on Agriculture Sector

As Global Meltdown or the Global Financial Crisis followed the Global Food Crisis, countries affected by the increase in food prices had to cope up with twin crises. The increase in food prices during 2007-08 caused much more adverse effect on the developing countries, compared to developed countries, due to the high share of food in total consumer expenditure and due to already existing vulnerabilities like hunger and malnutrition in the former. The global meltdown caused a slowdown in the economic activities and consequent loss of employment opportunities.

As per the World Development Report on Agriculture (World Bank, 2008), the slowdown in general economic activity would adversely affect the domestic and overseas demand for agri-food products which in turn causes an adverse effect on farm output and prices. Similarly, the economic slowdown could affect public investment in agriculture due to diversion of resources for economic stimulus to financial, manufacturing, and services sectors. Global financial crisis and economic slowdown affected the agricultural sector as under:

A slowdown in the demand for agricultural products in the overseas markets affected the prices of agricultural commodities and the profitability of agricultural production.
The growth of agricultural output dropped very sharply when there was a slowdown in global economy. The patterns of growth rates impact the demand for agricultural products, and therefore for all commodities. The solid growth posted in 2006 and 2007, combined with more structural changes in some economies, such as China, have put upward pressure on agricultural prices. Conversely, the frequent recessions in 2008 and 2009 generated a drop in demand for basic products, and led to a sharp decline in agricultural prices that had repercussions for French and European farmers. In the absence of continued demand, the global imbalance between supply and demand increased during 2009, giving rise to declining agricultural prices.
Due to the global meltdown there was a deceleration in the growth of the overall economy and that had an effect on the resources available with the Governments for various sectors. This could be seen from agricultural advances from commercial banks and public investment in agriculture both of which lead to a decline due to slowdown in GDP growth.
The global meltdown did lead to fierce trade competition – difficulty to export and to compete with imports.
The crisis in addition to a shift in the global order of nations, illustrates how an economic sector such as agriculture is incorporated into economic channels and globalization.

Addressing Agrarian Crisis

“Due to the unfortunate erratic monsoon behaviour, farmers are facing problems of severe drought for the past few years. Though there’s a bumper crop this year, farmers are dissatisfied with procurement price and are unable to repay institutional and private loans. Without repaying debts, farmers won’t get fresh kharif credit. This is why they want loan waivers as well as remunerative procurement price.”

The above tweet of M. S. Swaminathan eminent Agriculture scientist and Chairman of National Commission on Farmers, popularly known as the Father of Green Revolution, throws some light on the plight of farmers. He also stated that though loan waivers are temporarily necessary but don’t provide long-term solution. He added that the Centre has implemented several recommendations of the Farmers’ Commission which intend to improvise the incumbent state of agricultural affairs in the nation and these include providing improved seeds, soil health cards, improved insurance, irrigated area increase and farmer’s welfare, among others. However, the 2006 farmers commission report had called for fixing the minimum support prices (MSP) for crops at levels at least 50 per cent more than the weighted average cost of production but that formula of minimum 50 per cent profits remains a mirage for the farming community.

Agriculture in India has been facing many issues such as:

Fragmented land holding
Depletion of water table level
Deteriorating soil quality
Rising input costs and less output
Low productivity or the output prices may not be remunerative
Vagaries of monsoon or the natural calamity

Farmers in such circumstance face grim options and may be unable to repay loans. Indebtedness is a key reason for the many farmer suicides in the country. Swaminathan is of the view that though loan waivers are temporarily necessary that provide some relief to farmers in such situations of rural distress but believes that instead of waiving loans the deep rooted problems related to farmers should be addressed. The money waived could be invested for strengthening agriculture infrastructure that makes farmers independent of cartel of traders and help them to reap maximum economic benefit of their produce.

Agrarian Crisis can be addressed by:

Reducing inefficiencies
Increasing income
Reducing costs
Providing protection through insurance schemes
Boosting agricultural productivity
Revamping irrigation and canal network
Improving rural and district roads
Investing in cold chains
Making available formal credit links and liberal access to credit to farmers
Removing restrictions on market freedoms in agriculture
Linking various national agricultural markets
Making functional the Futures and options markets
Enabling food processing and climate-controlled storage with in interrupted power supply
Promising minimum support price
Enabling better risk management and more efficient agricultural markets
Directing subsidies towards farmers not companies

India needs massive investment in areas such as irrigation, water conservation, better storage facilities, market connectivity and agricultural research to make agriculture sustainable. The problems in Indian agriculture are structural. There are many dimensions of the present agrarian crisis in India. The search for a solution therefore needs to be comprehensive by taking into consideration all the factors that contribute to the crisis. Furthermore, both short- and long-term measures are required to address the numerous problems associated with the agrarian crisis.

Important Facts Related to Indian Economy: – (Economic Planning)

With reference to the need for planning in India, a book entitled ‘Planned Economy for India’ was published in 1934. The author of this book was Sir M. Vishweshwarya.
The Indian National Congress constituted a National Planning Committee in 1938 to discuss the requirement and possibility of planning in India. The President of this Committee was Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru.

NITI Aayog Replaces Planning Commission

65-year-old Planning Commission has been dissolved and a new institution named Niti Aayog has been constituted by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government. Like Planning Commission the newly established Niti Aayog will also be chaired by the Prime Minister. Niti Aayog or National Institution for Transforming India will serve as a government think tank and is meant to reflect changes required in India’s governance structures and provide a more active role for the state governments in achieving national objectives. The newly constituted institution will provide governments at the central and state levels with strategic and technical advice across the spectrum of policy making. As per official declaration, this institution includes matters of national and international import on the economic front, dissemination of best practices from within the country as well as from other nations, the infusion of new policy ideas and specific issue-based support. Niti Aayog will be headed by the Prime Minister, who will be the chairperson.

In 1994, a plan called ‘Bombay Plan’ was presented by eight industrialists of Bombay. There-after, in the same year, ‘Gandhian Plan’ by Mr. Mannaragan, in 1945 the ‘People’s Plan’ by labour leader M.N. Rai and in 1950 the ‘Sarvodaya Plan’ by Mr. Jai Prakash Narayan were presented.
The Planning Commission was constituted in India in 1950 as a non-constitutional, non-statutory and advisory corporation.
The Prime Minister of India was the exofficio Chairman of the Planning Commission.
The National Development Council was formed on August 6, 1952.
The First Five Year Plan of India began on April 1, 1951.
The period between the Third Five Year Plan (1961–66) and the Fourth Five Year Plan (1969–74)

Planwise Selected Indicators of Development in India Sectoral Growth Rates (1997–2002 to 2016-17)
Indicators		IX Plan (1997–2002)	X Plan (2002–07)	XI Plan (2007–12)	XII Plan (2012-17) (Target)
Average Growth Rate
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing	2·5		2·3	3·7	4·0
Mining and Quarrying	4·0		6·0	3·2	5·7
Manufacturing	3·3		9·3	7·7	7·1
Elect. Gas and Water Supply	4·8		6·8	6·1	7·3
Construction	7·1		11·8	7·7	9·1
Trade, Hotels and Restaurant	7·5		9·6	8·3	7·4
Transport, Storage and Commu-nications	8·9		13·8	12·0	11·8
Trade, Hotel etc. + Transport, Communications, Storage	8·0		11·2	NA	NA
Financing Insurance, Real Estate and Business Services	8·0		9·9	11·1	9·9
Community, Social and Personal Services	7·7		5·3	8·3	7·2
Total GDP	5·5		7·8	8·0	8·0
Industry	4·3		9·4	7·2	7·6
Services	7·9		9·3	9·7	9·0

is called the ‘Plan Holiday’. During this period three Annual Plans were implemented.

The Fifth Five Year Plan (1974–79) was terminated a year before its due schedule by Janata Government one year prior to its schedule and introduced Sixth Plan for 1978–83 period, which was again dropped in 1980 by Indira Gandhi Government.
The Sixth Plan introduced for 1978–83 was called Rolling Plan. (This plan was dropped in 1980).
After coming back into power at the Centre in 1980, the Congress Government implemented the modified Sixth Five Year Plan (1980–85) in place of 1978–83 Plan.
In the Eighth Five Year Plan (1992–97), the target was to achieve the annual growth rate of 5·6%, while the actual growth-rate was 6·8%.
The Eighth Five Year Plan was delayed for two years from its normal schedule. The Seventh Plan (1985–90) was over on March 31, 1990.
The Ninth Five Year Plan period began on April 1, 1997 and ended on March 31, 2002.
During the Ninth Five Year Plan, the revised target of annual growth rate in GDP was set at 6.5%. But actual growth rate has been recorded to be 5·4%.
‘Growth with Equity and Distributive Justice’ was determined as the main target of the Ninth Five Year Plan.
The target growth rate per annum for 10th plan (2002–07) was fixed at 8% but estimated achieved annual growth rate stood at 7·8%.
The target annual growth rate for 11th plan (2007–12) was reduced to 8·1% but the actual achieved growth rate stood at 7·8%.
12th Plan (2012–17) has target of real GDP growth at 8·0% p.a. The Vision of Twelfth Plan is “Rapid, sustainable and more inclusive growth”.

HEERA- the Cleanest & Most Sweeping Reform in Higher Education

Higher Education Empowerment Regulation Agency (HEERA) will be the new higher education watchdog that will replace the current regulators, the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE). This will be the cleanest and the most sweeping reform in higher education that will eliminate all overlaps in jurisdiction and also do away with regulatory provisions that may no longer be relevant. Although, the inception of idea to replace the multiple regulatory authorities in education with a single and streamlined one had been recommended by the Yashpal Committee & the National Knowledge Commission of the UPA era; and TSR Subramanian committee & the Hari Gautam Committee set up by the present NDA government, but the reform did not take place. The decision to go ahead with this radical change was taken after a meeting on education chaired by the prime minister Narendra Modi in March, 2017; as his government has been keen for freeing up higher education and this Big-bang education reform is now on its way as the human resource development (HRD) ministry in consultation with the NITI Aayog is working on the new law and contours of HEERA:

Objective of HEERA and the main motive behind scrapping of UGC and AICTE by a single regulator is to eliminate all overlaps in the jurisdiction and do away with regulatory provisions that may no longer be relevant.
HEERA is aimed to put an end to the inspector raj and harassment that the UGC regime is associated with.
The new body will also be empowered to take strong penal action when necessary.
The separation of technical and nontechnical education is outmoded and out of sync with global practices
Greater Synergy will be ushered in a by single regulator among institutions and in framing curricula.

The UGC has on many occasions impeded institutional autonomy at top notch universities and institutions such as in its handling of the Delhi University’s four-year undergraduate programmes (FYUP). The criticisms of the programme aside, the UGC initially allowed the programme to run for a year before scrapping it. Performance of both AICTE and UGC with respect to upholding educational standards is reflected in the less than stellar ranks Indian institutes and varsities UGC has three primary functions, and it has failed on all three counts, namely:

Regulation of universities and certain higher education institutions such as deemed universities and autonomous colleges
Disbursal of grants
Deciding on and maintenance of education higher education (non-technical) standards

HEERA will largely be expected to maintain a distant oversight of the semi-autonomous universities and institutions, while regulating the lowest-rung ones. It might also fit into the scheme of things of the present government that has talked of a graded regulation system, with near-complete autonomy for the top-rung institutions, followed by tempered autonomy for middle-rung ones with government regulation earmarked for the lowest-rated institutions. The government has also proposed a quality assessment and ranking of universities and colleges by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council.

There are developed economy templates of regulation of higher education that the government could draw from while designing HEERA. In the US, for instance, regulation is based on a system of self-reporting by institutions and monitoring by regional accreditors. Accreditors evaluate institutions based on the latter’s assessment of themselves, this means a one-size-fits, all approach is shunned. Institutions failing to earn accreditation are not given support for research, infrastructure and other needs.

As far as the function of funding institutes goes, it is not clear yet whether HEERA will have to do this or not. Given how the government has announced the formation of Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA) to fund development of infrastructure in premier institutes, it looks likely that at least part of the funding functions of the new higher education regulator will be hived off.

Shangri-La Dialogue Dominates on North Korea’s Nuclear & Missile Programme, Religious Extremism and South China Sea Disputes

Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s premier defence summit, launched in 2002 by British think tank the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) and the Singaporean government, is the most important annual gathering of defence professionals in the Asia-Pacific region. It gets its name from the location of the meeting, the Shangri-La hotel in Singapore where it has been held since 2002. In Shangri-La Dialogue military representatives from some of the world’s most powerful countries discuss pressing and significant defence and security issues. Government delegations make the best out of the meeting by holding bilateral meetings with other delegations on the sidelines of the conference. The legislators, academic experts, journalists and business delegates from around the globe attending the summit make it a vehicle for public policy development and discussions on defence and security in the Asia-Pacific.

16th Asia Security Summit, the Shangri-La Dialogue, a unique meeting of ministers and delegates, took place on June 2 to 4, 2017 in Singapore with over 500 delegates representing 32 nations from across the Asia-Pacific and beyond; deliberated on the region’s most enduring security challenges. Arun Jaitley who handles both the finance and defence portfolios, did not attend the three-day security forum due to his busy schedule, besides Prime Minister Narendra Modi being on four nation tour during the period; but representatives from Indian High Commission, members of BJP foreign cell and some think tanks participated on India’s behalf. The Chinese side also did not participate at the defence minister level.

The 16th Asia– Pacific Security Summit deliberated on the following agenda:

Cooperation key to prosperity
Strengthening alliances for regional stability
No room for complacency in regional order.
Forging collective responses to crises
Holistic approaches to transnational problems
Laying the foundations for growth

The IISS Shangri-La Dialogue saw panelists offer varied approaches on addressing the region’s most challenging security questions, with North Korea’s nuclear and missile programme, religious extremism and South China Sea disputes dominating the debate.

The fight against extremist groups was one of the main topics discussed at the Shangri-La Dialogue, in the wake of the Manchester and London attacks, pipe bombs in Bangkok, suicide bombings in Jakarta, and a besieged city in the southern Philippines; with participants admitting that the Southeast Asian nations harbor few doubts about the likelihood of more terrorism ahead.

QS World University Rankings 2018 reveal dominance of US & UK in Higher Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) of USA tops the rankings for the sixth year running in the 14^th edition of the QS World University Rankings ranking over 950 universities from 84 different countries. MIT is closely followed by Stanford, Harvard and the California Institute of Technology, three other US universities at 2^nd, 3^rd & 4^th ranks respectively. Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru has achieved the highest ever ranking for an Indian university in one of the important parameters in the 2018 rankings and has been ranked number 6 among 959 universities in the QS World University Rankings for Citations per Faculty by scoring a perfect 100, it was ranked number 11 in the world in 2017 & 2015 with a score of 99.9 each year and number 18 in 2016 with a score of 99.3. However, IISc lost its position as India’s top ranking university in the QS World University Rankings, falling to an overall rank of 190 in 2018 and an overall score of 49, from an overall rank of 152 in 2017 with a 53.8 score, and a rank of 147 in 2016 with a 62 score. IIT-Delhi has replaced IISc at the top, rising to a rank of 172 in 2018 ranking from 185 in the 2017 rankings, with an overall score of 50.7. IIT-Bombay has been ranked 179 up from 219 in 2017 with a score of 49.7. For the first time Delhi University (DU) has entered the top 500 group and has been ranked among the top ten varsities in the country.

Top 10 universities in the world as per the QS World University Rankings 2018 are:

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in US
Stanford University in US
Harvard University in US
California Institute of Technology University (Caltech) in US
University of Cambridge in UK
University of Oxford in UK
UCL – University College London in UK
Imperial College London in UK
University of Chicago in US
ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Switzerland

Comparison of 2018 rankings with earlier rankings reveals that there is no change at the top and no new entrants in the global top 10. Top 4 universities are all based in the US and UK universities continue to slide down the rankings, with 51 of 76 of them falling at least one place. There are other exciting developments in the rankings with six Chinese universities featuring in the top 100 for the first time and Russian universities making big advances have benefited from increased government funding and a concerted attempt to improve student mobility.

Top 10 Universities in India as per the QS World University Rankings 2018 are:

Global Rank Institution

172 IIT Delhi

179 IIT Bombay

190 IISc Bangalore

264 IIT Madras

293 IIT Kanpur

308 IIT Kharagpur

431-440* IIT Roorkee

481-490 Delhi University

501-550 IIT Guwahati

601-650 Jadavpur University

After 400 individual ranks, QS puts institution under groups

Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) is a British company specialising in education and study abroad. The company was founded in 1990 by Nunzio Quacquarelli and Matt Symonds. It offers publications and events to broaden the scope of study abroad. Published annually, the QS World University Rankings provide an index of the world’s leading higher education institutions, based on the following six performance indicators and their weight age:

Academic Reputation 40%
Employer Reputation 10%
Faculty/Student Ratio 20%
Citations per faculty 20%
International Faculty Ratio 5%
International Student Ratio 5%

Although there are critical opinions on the weightage in QS rankings yet featuring of three Indian Institutions among the top 200 is appreciable. Indian higher education is deficient and to attain global standards the country needs to cover a huge ground, starting from primary education, to become a knowledge society. Education needs higher budgetary allocations supplemented by the private sector funding for research at our institutions of higher learning and we need more institutes of global standards.

India Pacific Islands Sustainable Development Conference

India Pacific Islands Sustainable Development Conference hosted by the Government of India in Suva, Fiji on the 25^th & 26^th May 2017, represented by all the 14 Pacific Islands nations, marked yet another crucial step in India’s pioneering initiative in engaging with the Pacific Island Countries. The objective of the meeting was to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experience and initiate partnerships and collaborations for the benefit of all participating countries. Issues discussed include blue economy, international solar alliance initiatives and climate change adaptation, mitigation and disaster preparedness:

Blue Economy with its wide range of valuable resources and potential is recognised as top priority for generating employment, food security, poverty alleviation and ensuring sustainability in business and economic models. There is commitment to establish a common vision that would make this sector a driver for balanced economic development; research and development; investment, technology transfer, with capacity building being crucial in exploring the full potential of the oceans for the socio-economic benefit in the region.

The importance of the national green development aspirations and national plans to provide secure, affordable, widely accessible, high quality, clean energy initiatives and incentives in nation that are commonly addressed by the Paris Declaration on the International Solar Alliance (ISA) was stressed upon with emphasis on the opportunity to look at ISA initiatives on energy development as key drivers of sustainable development in the global context of the ‘2030 Sustainable Development Agenda’ and the regional frameworks for resilient development in the Pacific Nations.

India and the Pacific region faced similar challenges in terms of natural disasters; such as floods, droughts, cyclones, tsunamis, earthquakes and in this context the government of Tonga expressed appreciation for assistance provided by the Government of India particularly in enhancing of the Tonga’s Information, Communications & Technology (ICT) Infrastructure, Disaster Early Warning system and monitoring equipment for the government’s communication sector.

Forum for India-Pacific Islands cooperation (FIPIC) launched during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Fiji in November 2014 is a multinational grouping for cooperation between India and 14 Pacific Islands nations which include Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

India’s focus has largely been on the Indian Ocean where it has sought to play a major role and protect its strategic and commercial interests. The FIPIC initiative marks a serious effort to expand India’s engagement in the Pacific region.

India May Become Top Solar Energy Producer in the World by Harnessing Power of the Sun

Solar power tariffs in India have plunged to a new low of Rs 2.44 per unit. Solar energy is cheaper than coal-based electricity in India, for the first time ever; the average price charged by NTPC for electricity generated by its coal-fired plants is Rs. 3.20. India’s solar energy generation capacity continues to rise as it has added more than 10GW of solar capacity in the last three years – starting from a low base of 2.6 GW in 2014. India may become top solar energy producer in the World as the government plans to build 175 GW in renewable energy generation by 2022 and to have renewable energy account for 40 per cent of installed capacity by 2040. Due to a combination of strong government support and increasingly attractive economics India has already moved up to the second spot from third position in this year’s ‘Renewable energy country attractiveness index’ released by EY. China has been ranked first and India has surpassed the US, which fell for the first time since 2015 to third place in the ranking of top 40 countries.

Solar Energy Corp of India recently conducted an auction that closed on May 12, 2017; for the Bhadla Solar Park, India’s largest solar park, having a capacity of 2255 MW, spread over a total area of 10000 acres in Bhadla, Phalodi Tehsil of Jodhpur District in Rajasthan. This auction proved continuing free fall in the cost of green energy after Acme Solar Holdings and SBG Cleantech, the joint venture of SoftBank, Foxconn and Bharti Enterprises, won the latest auction for 500 megawatt as solar power tariffs in India have plunged to a new low of Rs 2.44 per unit. The auction highlights India’s success in rapidly expanding renewable energy capacity at a low cost, and attracting ambitious bids from reputed companies.

Solar energy was priced at Rs 15 per unit only four years ago and it was on the initiative of Narendra Modi, the then Chief Minister of Gujrat who promoted the first 1,000 MW of solar, that kick-started this entire industry. That is how the technology cost curve evolves. New technologies are expensive in the beginning. But with continued investments and resultant ecosystem development, they stabilize over time.

A solar rooftop installation has been invented by IIT Madras that is smaller and much cheaper than present installations, costing just Rs 20000 that can run couple of tube lights, fans, charging points and a TV. This rooftop plant has been installed under CSR and government sponsorship in 15000 rural homes and was successful in facing a three-day power cut during Chennai floods in December 2015.

Rural Electrification Corporation has electrified 4,000 off grid homes in Jodhpur and Jaisalmer districts of Rajasthan and 7,500 homes in Assam. Another 12,000 more homes are being taken up in hills of Assam, while some grid-connected installations have been undertaken in Odisha, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Solar power looks great when the sun shines but stops at sunset, just as power demand soars to its evening peak. It is intermittent and fails at night and works weakly on cloudy or foggy days. Ideally, plants should store part of their generation during the day and then release it after sunset. As renewable energy penetration increase, the government will have to turn its attention to the ability of India’s grid to manage intermittent renewable, especially around the evening peak, when solar availability falls away.

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Category: General Knowledge