India launch the indigenously developed warship “INS Chennai”
• Mr. Antony launch the “INS Chennai,” the third missile destroyer of Project-15A, being built for the Navy at the Mazagon Docks.(Mumbai)
• When commissioned into the Navy in 2013, it will be the most potent vessel with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, along with its predecessors — “Kolkata” and “Kochi.”
• 95 per cent of the country's trade was through sea lanes.
• “Chennai,” the third and last Kolkata class warship is a 6,700-tonne destroyer, 163 metres long and 16 metres wide. It is propelled by four gas turbines, and is designed to achieve speeds in excess of 30 knots. This indigenously designed ship will have state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, stealth features, an advanced action information system, a comprehensive auxiliary control system, world class modular living spaces, sophisticated power distribution system and a host of other advanced features.
• It will be fitted with the indigenous supersonic BrahMos surface-to-surface missile system.
India-Singapore naval exercises begin
• The navies of India and Singapore will hold annual exercises this year, in the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal. The 2010 edition of the Singapore Indian Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX) will go on till April 16. Eight platforms — five Indian and three Singaporean — will take part in the exercise, besides fixed and rotary aircraft.
• The cooperation was formalised in 1994, when the Singaporean naval ships started training in the anti-submarine warfare with the Indian Navy.
• This year's exercise will be the 17th in the SIMBEX series. The units from the Indian Navy that will take part include INS Batti Malv (fast attack craft) and INS Mahish (landing ship tank) from the Andaman & Nicobar Command, INS Ranvir (destroyer), Jyoti (tanker) and a submarine from the Eastern Fleet. The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) is sending RSS Intrepid (formidable class frigate) and RSS Victory (Victory class missile corvette). These ships will also call at Port Blair and Visakhapatnam.
Work apace for GSLV-D3 launch
• Things are getting set for the lift-off of the GSLV-D3 (Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle – Development flight 3) from Sriharikota on April 15 around 4.30 p.m. The three stages of the gigantic vehicle have already been stacked up in the sophisticated Vehicle Assembly Building in the second launch pad on the seashore. It will put in orbit an advanced communication satellite called GSAT-4.
• The significance of the mission is that the GSLV will be powered for the first time by India's own cryogenic upper stage. This stage with its engine, electronics and fuel tanks was built at the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) at Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu. The previous five GSLV missions from Sriharikota were propelled by the Russian cryogenic engines.
• Cryogenic engines that use liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen at very low temperatures are needed to put heavier, communication satellites in a geosynchronous transfer orbit with an apogee of 36,000 km. and a perigee of 200 km.
• The VSSC has built GSLV-D3 which is 49 metres tall and weighs 419 tonnes. The 2,200-kg GSAT-4 has been built by the ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore.
• Mr. Veeraraghavan said three highlights of the GSAT-4 were its communication system in Ka-band; its GAGAN payload which would help in the landing accuracy of commercial aircraft at airports in India; and the satellite's electric propulsion system which would help in correcting the spacecraft's attitude and ensuring a longer life in orbit.
• (GAGAN stands for GPS-aided Geo-augmented Navigation System. GPS is short for Global Positioning System. The Ka-band will help in relaying more information).
• The ISRO achieved a big breakthrough in the “exotic” cryogenic technology when it fully qualified its own cryogenic stage with a 720-second full duration test at Mahendragiri on November 15, 2007.
• ISRO officials said it was not easy to handle liquid oxygen at minus 183 degrees Celsius and liquid hydrogen at minus 260 degrees Celsius; putting them on fire from such low temperatures; and burning the hydrogen in a controlled manner.
Discovery lifts off successfully with three women crew members
• The Discovery space shuttle blasted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Carrying a crew of seven astronauts as well as equipment and supplies, it took off on a 13-day mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
• The shuttle, a multi-purpose logistics module, carries three women-mission specialists — Dorothy Metcalf-Lindenburger, Stephanie Wilson and Naoko Yamazaki.
• The ISS, which orbits the Earth at a height of some 400 km, is due to be finished next year and is about 90 per cent complete.
Majuli island will be made eco-sensitive zone: Jairam
• The Union government will soon declare the world's largest river island of Majuli an eco-sensitive zone, Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh said
• It will request the Bombay Natural History Society to take up a comprehensive study to suggest ways of protecting birds, fish and Ganges River Dolphins there.
• Making the river island an eco-sensitive zone would be the first step towards recognising the rich bio-diversity and unique eco-system of Majuli.
Indigenous cryogenic technology to take wing
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set to launch its advanced communication and navigation satellite next week. This will put to test its first indigenously developed Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS).
• It is slated for launch at 4.27 p.m. on April 15 from the space centre at Sriharikota.
• Having mastered this “complex technology,” India will now join an elite group of space-faring nations, including the United States, Europe, Russia, Japan and China.
• The GSLV-3D, the third developmental mission of India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle GSAT-4, was shifted to the launch pad morning.
• The cryogenic programme, which scientists have been working on since 1994, cost around Rs.335 crore.
• The ISRO built the cryogenic engine from scratch after the U.S. pressured Russia in April 1992 and July 1993 into agreeing not to sell cryogenic technology to India. In January 1991, India and the erstwhile Soviet Union had reached an agreement, under which the Soviet space agency, Glavkosmos, would sell cryogenic stages and transfer the cryogenic technology to India.
• Under U.S. pressure, Russia in July 1993 went back on its agreement to transfer the cryogenic technology. In lieu of the technology, it agreed to sell two additional cryogenic stages to India. The last five flights of the GSLV from Sriharikota were powered by the Russian cryogenic stages. A cryogenic stage includes the engine, propellant tanks, motor casing and wiring.
• The Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, and the Liquid System Propulsion System, Mahendragiri, took the lead in this project,
• Another key experiment aboard the mission is the use of a regenerative transponder payload that operates in the advanced Ka frequency band. Scientists said this is a step forward in the field of communications technology as it will allow for smaller ground terminals at the user end and increase productivity.
• Future implications of this experiment include the development of applications in the field of wide-band multimedia services, mobile information systems and e-commerce. This could also be a significant step towards the realisation of high bandwidth internet in the country.
UAVs may be deployed for surveillance
• Sources in the government said the deployment of UAVs, first in Chhattisgarh, would take place on a trial basis. the UAVs would provide the “real time” information needed for conducting anti-naxal operations.
• The UAVs, mainly of Israeli origin, can be stationed at 5,000 feet above the ground, cover an area of about 20 sq. km, and provide information to the ground forces for taking necessary action.
WiMAX ready for deployment
• Just ahead of the auction for broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum, the WiMAX Forum said the industry was ready for roll out of advanced WiMAX networks in India that would help the Centre meet its goal of providing over 10-crore broadband connections by 2014.
• WiMAX is the only 4G technology available today that is two to five times cheaper than existing technologies.
Radiation poisoning a reminder of need for better ‘nuclear security'
• Though far less dangerous than plutonium or enriched uranium — the raw material for making nuclear bombs — the cobalt isotope which leaked when a worker cut open a piece of metal in a Delhi market his employer had acquired this as scrap .
• Cobalt-60 is used for medical purposes, industrial radiography for non-destructive testing and in the food processing industry for irradiation purposes. Like other radioactive material with industrial applications, the isotope is normally housed in a sealed container with lead shielding within whatever equipment it forms a part of.
• The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) is meant to maintain a ‘cradle to grave' system to keep track of such equipment, including through on-site inspections. But given its manpower
limitations, radioactive material does get ‘orphaned', eventually finding its way to the scrap market.
• India is not alone in facing this problem. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has reported losing track of over 1,500 sealed sources since 1996, with more than half that number untraceable.
.Air Marshal Barbora suggests national technology plan for aeronautics
• Air Marshal P.K. Barbora, Vice-Chief of the Air Staff, has suggested that a national technology plan for aeronautics be formulated to provide a framework for the development of the industry in India.
• Air Marshal Barbora said that though India made a commendable progress in aeronautics, “it has missed out on mid-level technologies.” “The progress in indigenisation of aircraft
has been far from satisfactory.” While Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) makes parts of aircraft, Chinese companies produce the whole aircraft, he said. “The IAF buys billions of dollars worth of equipment every year, why can this not be produced in India?” “The Light Combat Aircraft has taken a long time coming.”
• Referring to the recent acquisition of a large number of aircraft by the National Aviation Company of India Ltd. (NACIL) from Boeing and Aerospace, Air Marshal Barbora said: “We could have used this large order as a lever to bargain for better terms for technology transfer as China does. Why cannot we do reverse engineering as some of our neighbours do?”
Europe wants content agreement at climate talks
• The European Union is taking a two-step approach to global climate negotiations. It is aiming for agreement on “content” at this year's U.N. summit in Cancun, Mexico, and wants to shunt off the
controversy over the legally-binding “form” of any treaty to the 2011 summit in South Africa.
• E.U. Commissioner for Climate Action, Connie Hedegaard, discussing the new European strategy during a visit to India
• Developing countries have been wary of agreeing to a legally-binding treaty that would force them to take on legal emission reduction obligations as well. Instead, they want rich countries to first agree on fresh legal obligations during a post-2012 second commitment period for the Kyoto Protocol. Disagreement about the legal nature of any new treaty was among the factors that caused a breakdown in U.N. talks at Copenhagen last year.
• Ms. Hedegaard now says the Cancun negotiations should ignore this controversy on the legal nature of the treaty, and instead focus on incorporating the elements of the Copenhagen Accord, an unofficial political agreement, into the formal U.N. negotiating process. The discussions on forestry, adaptation and technology also need to be finalised at Cancun, she said.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis genome mapping released
• The government's Open Source Drug Discovery (OSDD) initiative released the results of its ‘Connect 2 Decode' (C2D) project to re-annotate the biological and genetic information relating to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis ( Mtb) genome.
• This is the first time that a comprehensive mapping of the Mtb genome has been compiled, verified and made publicly available. C2D's findings may contain critical data
to unlock previously undiscovered details of tuberculosis (TB); resulting in development opportunities for urgently needed new TB drugs in India and other developing countries.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 1.7 million people die annually from TB and that in some parts of the world, one in four people with TB has a form of the disease that can no longer be treated with standard drugs regimens.
• Under the C2D project, researchers and students pooled their time and skills using online tools to provide insights into 4000 genes of the deadly pathogen. The researchers also mapped the genes as they relate to functional interactions and pathways. Their work is held in a shared database, which the OSDD will share through a globally accessible database with any research institutions involved in TB research, through its open portal.
• The OSDD was launched in September 2008 by the CSIR. It is a $35 million (Rs. 146 crore) collaborative research effort that focuses primarily on TB. Its objective is to accelerate R&D for TB drugs. With a global community of nearly 3,000 members from 74 countries, the OSDD brings together scientists, doctors, students, policy experts, software professionals and others to work on TB research.
• It is the first project of its kind by any government.
India developing sub-sonic missile
• India is developing a sub-sonic 1,000-km range cruise missile, ‘Nirbhay,' DRDO chief V.K. Saraswat said.
‘Radioactive gas can detect nuclear tests'
• In a breakthrough, scientists have isolated an exotic radioactive gas which, they claim, would make it easier to detect underground nuclear tests from air samples.
• A global network of monitoring stations constantly samples the air for signs of underground nuclear tests. One thing the stations look for is the radioactive gas xenon-133.
• Nuclear explosions produce an excited form called xenon-133m, in which the atomic nucleus is boosted to a higher-energy state, but it is not known exactly how sensitive detectors are to this form as there has been no way to make pure samples of xenon-133m with which to test them.
Wildlife panel rejects four industry proposals
• A wildlife committee headed by Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh issued four rejections and two postponements to industry proposals .
• The proposal to build a port at Poshitra in the Jamnagar district of Gujarat was among the proposals rejected by the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wild Life at its meeting. The proposed project site lies within the Gulf of Kutch Marine National Park, an ecologically fragile region rich in marine biodiversity.
• The committee also rejected the Ambuja Cement proposal to lay a pipeline to withdraw water from the Majthal wildlife sanctuary in Himachal Pradesh for a cement plant expansion project. The committee noted that while it appreciated the water needs of the local people, it could not permit the withdrawal of water for commercial purposes, in violation of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
• This could spell trouble for the Adani group's proposal to draw water from the Pench Tiger Reserve for its coal thermal power project in Madhya Pradesh.
• The committee also rejected two mining projects in Goa as the proposals were near wildlife sanctuaries.
• A proposal to carry out a 2-D seismic survey within the Narayan Sagar Sanctuary in Gujarat was also rejected.
• In the case of proposals to reduce the area of the Kolleru Lake Sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh, and to divert some forest land from the National Chambal River Sanctuary in Rajasthan for lift irrigation and hydro power projects, the committee directed that further studies were necessary before a decision could be taken.
INS Betwa deployed in Gulf of Aden
• The Navy has deployed INS Betwa with an armed helicopter and marine commando team for anti-piracy patrol in the Gulf of Aden.
• INS Betwa, 16th Indian Navy ship deployed in the area since October 2008, has replaced INS Beas. Warships of several other countries are also deployed in the Gulf of Aden. On average, 16-18 warships are there at any given time.
Oil spill threatens turtle nesting site
• Spillage of oil from a ship at the Gopalpur port in Orissa has threatened the nesting site of Olive Ridleys near the Rushikulya rookery.
• The authorities of the Gopalpur Ports Limited (GPL), Forest Department, and environmental activists are making efforts to reduce the impact of the spill on the coast.
• A barge lost control due to rough weather and hit the Indonesian ship MV Malavika anchored near the port. A storage chamber on its side cracked and oil started to spill out.
Gujarat tops in hazardous waste generation
• Gujarat, which is considered to be the most progressive State in terms of investment and infrastructural development, has been declared as the top contributor to the total hazardous waste generation in the country.
• According to a report released by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Gujarat generates almost 29 per cent of the 62 lakh metric tonnes of hazardous waste generated every year. It is followed by Maharashtra (25 per cent) and Andhra Pradesh (9 per cent).
Army agrees to acquire indigenous Akash missile
• The Army has finally agreed to acquire the indigenous two-stage ramjet ‘Akash' missile.
• Induction will depend on the delivery schedule Bharat Dynamics Limited, which makes the missile, is able to maintain.
• In 2008, the IAF placed orders for two squadrons of the Akash Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile (MR-SAM) for Rs. 1,222 crore. This was the first-ever contract from the defence services for an indigenous tactical weapon system of this class.
India's own cryogenic rocket launch fails
• India's ambitious quest to achieve total independence in cryogenic technology for launching satellite launch vehicles suffered a setback, with the indigenous cryogenic engine in a Geo-synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3) failing to ignite and the vehicle tumbling into the sea.
• The mission to put communication satellite GSAT-4 in orbit thus ended in failure.
• The cryogenic technology is crucial to put heavy satellites in geo-synchronous transfer orbit at an altitude of 36,000 km.
GSLV-D3 failure will not affect Chandrayaan-2”
• The failure of the GSLV-D3 mission will not have an impact on the Chandrayaan-2 mission scheduled for 2013, according to K. Radhakrishnan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• The GSLV-D3, which was launched amidst high hopes, having been powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine for the first time, ended in failure after the cryogenic engine failed to ignite. As per the ISRO's plans, it is a GSLV powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine that will put Chandrayaan-2 in orbit. The Chandrayaan-2 mission will also put a lander-cum-rover on the lunar soil.
• The GSLV-D3 mission had three objectives: to develop and launch an indigenous cryogenic stage with the engine and associated systems; to evaluate the performance of the indigenous cryogenic stage and engine; and to put the communication satellite GSAT-4 into orbit. Only the first objective was achieved, the ISRO Chairman said.
UAV tested in Bastar
• In a first trial, a U.S.-made Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) successfully flew over the dense forests of Bastar at night. It will be deployed in anti-Maoist operations.
Obama sets Mars target for NASA
• U.S. President Barack Obama set the National Aeronautical and Space Administration on a firm trajectory to a Mars landing when he said: “By the mid-2030s, I believe we can send humans to orbit Mars and return them safely to Earth. And a landing on Mars will follow.”
• In a speech on space exploration in the 21st century, delivered at the John F. Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, Mr. Obama said that by 2025, he expected to see new spacecraft designed for long journeys that would allow the United States to begin “the first-ever crewed missions beyond the Moon into deep space”.
Cartosat 2B leaves for Sriharikota
• After the failure of the GSLV-D3 launch, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) morning flagged off the Cartosat 2B high resolution satellite's journey to Sriharikota.
• The remote sensing satellite is now en route to Sriharikota from where it will be launched by PSLV-16, along with four other satellites,
• The 700 kg. Cartosat 2B will carry a state-of-the-art panchromatic camera with a spatial resolution less than one metre — high enough to spot a car, for instance – and will have applications in urban and rural infrastructure development and management, Geographical Information System (GIS) and other areas where detailed mapping is required.
• StudSat, the first-ever ‘PICO' (small) satellite, designed in India by a consortium of 13 students from seven colleges in Bangalore and Hyderabad, weighs less than a kilogram. The payload of the satellite consists of a CMOS camera that has a ground resolution of approximately 90 metres. The mission life of the satellite is around six months and the total development cost was around Rs. 55 lakh.
India's first anti-submarine warfare corvette launched
• Launching the country's first Anti Submarine Warfare Corvette (ASWC) for the Indian Navy at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) Limited .M.M. Pallam Raju, Union Minister of State for Defence, said three more such P-28 Corvettes will be launched by the GRSE by 2015.
• Named Kamorta, after an island in the Andaman Sea, the ASWC is indigenously built and is designated as a frontline warship with anti-submarine warfare capabilities and a very low signature of radiated underwater noise.
• The ASWC Kamorta will be docked at the Eastern Naval Command.
Navy to have air enclave at CIAL
• With an eye on its future aviation requirements, the Navy plans to carve out an air enclave on the sprawling campus of the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL).
• The enclave would house maintenance hangars capable of sheltering the Navy's future air assets, especially the medium range maritime reconnaissance aircraft that it is scouting for. The hangars would also have the capacity to provide back-end support to the operation of a squadron from the enclave.
• They will also be equipped to back up full-load operation of the long range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, Boeing P8-I, if required. As per the contract that the Navy has signed with Boeing for the purchase of eight P8-I aircraft, the delivery of the first would take place in 2013.
Saras crash probe report cites dozens of lapses
• The report of the investigation into the crash of Saras, the light transport aircraft, near here on March 6, 2009 that killed all three crew members on board, enumerates dozens of lapses, including an insufficient pre-flight debriefing, a poor telemetry system and “lack of crew coordination.”
• The report, prepared by a board constituted by the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)
Power from first Kudankulam unit by December
• It is indeed a good news for the energy managers of power-starved Tamil Nadu. Electricity will start cascading from the first unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) by December. The mandatory pre-commissioning milestone event of loading of ‘dummy fuel assembly' into the reactor core of the first of the 2 X 1,000 MWe unit began.
India-US naval exercise begins
• Navies of India and the United States have begun annual war exercises involving anti-submarine warfare surface firings, visit board, search and seizure and submarine operations.
• The 14th edition of MALABAR in the Arabian Sea will see frontline units of the U.S. Navy's 7th Fleet and Indian Navy's Western Fleet taking part in the 10-day exercise.
• During MALABAR CY10, the U.S. Navy will be represented by ships from CTF 70 of its 7th Fleet, based at Yokosuka, Japan. The CTF will include the Cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67), Destroyers USS Chaffee (DDG 90), USS Lassen (DDG 82) and Frigate USS Curts (FFG 38). In addition, one Los Angeles class nuclear powered submarine, USS
Annapolis (SSN 760), two P3C Orion aircraft and a 28 member US Navy Special Forces team will also participate in the exercise.
• The Indian Navy will be represented by INS Mysore, an indigenous Delhi Class guided missile destroyer and three guided missile frigates, INS Godavari, INS Brahmaputra and INS Tabar.
• In addition, one Shishumar class submarine, INS Shankush, Sea Harrier fighters, other fixed and rotary wing aircraft are also scheduled to participate in the bilateral exercise. Naval cooperation epitomises the long-term strategic relationship between them.
Hubble turns 20
• The Hubble Space Telescope celebrated the 20th anniversary of its launch.with NASA releasing a new photograph from the orbiting observatory of a cosmic pillar of gas and dust in the Carina Nebula galaxy.
• Three light years tall towers of cool hydrogen laced with dust rise from the wall of the nebula, said the U.S. space agency, reminiscent of Hubble's classic “Pillars of Creation” photograph from 1995.
• Hubble, named after the astronomer Edwin P. Hubble (1889-1953), was launched into low-Earth
orbit on April 24, 1990. Since then, it has been sending back some of the most spectacular images of galaxies — helping scientists place the age of the universe at 13.7 billion years, learn that black holes are at the centre of most galaxies, monitor planetary formation and discover that the universe is expanding at an ever-faster pace.
YouTube turns five
• In the scant time since the first video was uploaded to YouTube on April 23, 2005, the website has rocketed to global stardom and become a key player in a shift to Internet television.
• Google is planning a series of celebratory events for closer to the fifth anniversary of the public launch of YouTube in October 2005.
• Google bought YouTube in a $1.65-billion deal about 19 months after the online video-sharing service was founded in February of 2005.
• San Bruno, California-based YouTube was the brainchild of then PayPal co-workers Steve Chen and Jawed Karim.
AERB's directive to Delhi University on radiation sources
• The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has asked the Delhi University to suspend all activities involving the use of radiation sources.
• The board said on its website that the radioactive material (Cobalt-60) originated from an old gamma cell model 220 that was made by Atomic Energy Canada Limited with decayed Cobalt-60 sources.
• The AERB said the incident was caused by the unauthorised disposal of the gamma cell by the university as scrap, in violation of the Atomic Energy (Safe Disposal of Radioactive Waste) Rules and Atomic Energy (Radiation Protection) Rules.
Kaziranga has the world's highest tiger density: report
• The Kaziranga National Park, famous for one-horned rhino, has the highest density of tigers in the world.
• This was revealed in a report titled ‘Monitoring of Tigers and Prey Animals of Kaziranga National Park,' released by Assam Forest and Environment Minister Rockybul Hussain at the State Zoo. The report says that the density of tigers at Kaziranga is 32.64 tigers per 100 sq.km., the highest in any known tiger habitat.
• Previously, this status was held by the Corbett Tiger Reserve in northern India which had 19.6 tigers per 100 sq.km. The usual density varies from three to12 tigers per 100 sq.km. in different tiger reserves throughout the country, the report states.
• One of the key reasons for the high density in Kaziranga is the abundance of prey, including the hog deer ( Axis porcinus), the sambar ( Rusa unicolor), the swamp deer ( Cervus duvauceli Cuv) and the wild buffalo ( Bubalis arnee), according to the report.
First indigenous stealth frigate commissioned
• INS Shivalik, India's first indigenous stealth frigate, which is commissioned at Mazagon Dock Limited.
• The 143-metre long vessel, with 6,100 tonne displacement, has been designed and built in India. More than 60 per cent of its value was met within the country. MDL is building two other warships in the Shivalik series under Project-17: INS Sayahdri which will be commissioned by the end of this year, and INS Satpura by the middle of next year.
• Explaining the salient features of INS Shivalik, its Commanding Officer Captain M.D. Suresh said the warship was a generation ahead of the frigates that the country had. It operated on a leaner crew; its stealth features helped it generate less noise, reducing underwater detection, while the design deflected signatures.
• The frigate is armed with missiles, has helicopter support, mounted guns and a combat management system that can effectively coordinate all weapons and sensors onboard, giving it the ability to deal with multiple threats. The warship can be on a voyage for three-four weeks without fuel replenishment.
Hi-tech equipment for reactor handed over to AEC chief
• Marking a milestone in the development of sophisticated technology for India's ambitious nuclear power programme, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K. Rosaiah handed over a fuelling machine head for the Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (300 MWe) to Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) chairman Srikumar Banerjee .
• Receiving the gigantic equipment manufactured by Hyderabad-based MTAR Technologies Private Ltd. for Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mr. Banerjee described it as a “marvel of engineering, which is the first of its kind in the world.”
• BARC conceptualised and carried out the detailed design of the fuelling machine head and subsequently entrusted the task of manufacturing the prototype to MTAR. The 65-foot machine
weighs 40 tonnes and is a vital component of the AHWR.
• NPCIL chairman S.K. Jain said that with plans afoot to increase nuclear generation to 63,000 MWe in the next 25 years, nuclear reactors would not be imported on a turnkey basis. Major components would be sourced.
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