BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS)

Why in NEWS ?

• China completes BeiDou Navigation Satellite System(BeiDou-3) that could rival the US' GPS.

About

• Beidou navigation satellite system is ready to provide global services, joining an elite group providing space-based systems comprising the US’s GPS, Russia’s GLONASS and the European Union’s Galileo.
• More than 100 countries including Pakistan and countries part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) are already using the system.

BeiDou Navigation System (BNS)

• BeiDou-3 is 3rd generation of the Chinese navigational system seen as rival to the US's Global Positioning System (GPS).
• Beidou is named after the Big Dipper constellation which means magnetic Compass which was one of the Chinese major invention in the history which had revolutionized the sea voyages.
• The system comprises total 35 satellites.
• Applications:

1. Civilian services: navigation, messaging, transportation and weather forecasting sectors.
2. Military applications: ensure privacy for its military communications and missile launches by reducing the dependence on US operated GPS.

India’s Navigation Satellite

• India is developing its own navigation satellite system called the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System.
• IRNSS is an independent regional navigation satellite system being developed by India.
• It is designed to provide accurate position information service to users in India as well as the region extending up to 1500 km from its boundary, which is its primary service area.

Core Sector Industries

Why in NEWS ?

• Output of eight core infrastructure industries shrank by 15 % in June 2020 due to fall in the production of coal, crude oil, natural gas, steel, cement and electricity amidst Covid-19.

About

• Barring fertilizer, all seven sectors - coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, steel, cement, and electricity - had recorded negative growth in May.
• The output of eight core sector industries shrank for the fourth straight month in June 2020, although the contraction eased to 15%, showing some recovery from the 22% fall in May.

Core Sector Industry

• It includes coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity.
• These eight industries account for 40.27 per cent in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
• The eight Core Industries in decreasing order of their weightage: Refinery Products(28.04%)> Electricity(19.85%)> Steel(17.92%)> Coal(10.33%)> Crude Oil(8.98%)> Natural Gas(6.88%)> Cement(5.37%)> Fertilizers(2.63%).

Myanmar Pushes Back Against BRI

IN NEWS

• Myanmar has decided to involve international partners in the Chinese funded mega Yangon City Project, a key pillar of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in the Southeast Asian country, marking another pushback against China.

ABOUT

• The Myanmar government has decided to open up the project for other foreign firms besides China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), as it is not keen that one single company dominates the mega project.
• During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Myanmar early this year, the two sides had inked a letter of intent on the development of Yangon City, including the new city project.
• The Yangon regional government-backed New Yangon Development Company (NYDC) initially signed a $1.5-billion framework agreement in 2018 with Beijing-based CCCC
• The New Yangon City project is an element of the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), which is part of the BRI.

Belt and Road Initiative

• The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) formerly known as One Belt One Road or OBOR for short, is a global infrastructure development strategy adopted by the Chinese government in 2013 to invest in nearly 70 countries and international organizations.
• It is considered a centerpiece of Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping's foreign policy. It was incorporated into the Constitution of the People's Republic of China in 2017

Smart India Hackathon

IN NEWS

• PM Modi to interact with Smart India Hackathon finalists .

ABOUT

• Smart India Hackathon is a nationwide initiative to provide students with a platform to solve some of the pressing problems we face in our daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving. It has proved to be extremely successful in promoting out-of-the-box thinking in young minds.
• This time, the Hackathon will focus on post Covid world and creating ways for Aatma Nirbhar Bharat.
• THEME for SIH-2020- ‘No problem is too big... No idea is too small’.

SMART INDIA HACKATHON

• World’s biggest open platform for the innovators or entrepreneurs of tomorrow to start today towards a smarter India.Smart features of SIH-
• INGENIOUS: Harnessing creativity and expertise of students, academicians and visionaries
• ENGAGING: Sparking institute-level hackathons, fuelling imagination
• FUTURISTIC: Building funnels for ‘Start-up India’ campaign
• COLLABORATING: Crowdsourcing intelligence for improving governance and quality of life
• EMPOWERING: Enabling possibilities and enhancing opportunities for citizens to deliver innovative solutions to India’s daunting problems

CONCLUSION

• The Smart India Hackathon has emerged as a vibrant forum to ideate and innovate. Naturally, this time our youth would be focussing on the post-COVID world in their innovations, along with ways to create an Aatmanirbhar Bharat.