31 Jan 2022: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. National Commission for Women (NCW)
2. Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI)
3. Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala
4. Services E-Health Assistance And Teleconsultation (Sehat)
5. Perovskite solar cells
6. Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE)

1. National Commission for Women (NCW)

Syllabus: GS 2, Polity and Governance: Statutory, Regulatory & Various Quasi-Judicial Bodies

Prelims: National Commission for Women (NCW); 30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day

Context: 

The Prime Minister addressed the 30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day programme via video conference. 

30th National Commission for Women Foundation Day

• The event was organized to celebrate the achievements of women in different fields. 
• Theme of the programme: ‘She The Change Maker’ 

Know More About National Commission for Women (NCW).

2. Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI)

Syllabus: GS 3, Economy: growth and development

Prelims: Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) 

Mains: Performance of Core Industries

Context: 

The Office of Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) released the Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) for the Month of December 2021. 

Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) for December 2021: 

• The combined Index of Eight Core Industries stood at 141.3 in December 2021.
• It is an increase of 3.8 per cent (provisional) as compared to December 2020. 
• The production of Coal, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Cement and Electricity industries increased in December 2021 over the corresponding period of 2020.
• The Eight Core Industries comprise 40.27 percent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). 

Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI): 

• ICI measures combined and individual performance of production in selected eight core industries viz. Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity.
• Know More About  Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI).

3. Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala

Syllabus: GS 1, Indian culture – Architecture 

Prelims: Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala; UNESCO World Heritage List

Context: 

The Hoysala Temples of Belur, Halebid and Somnathapura in Karnataka have been finalized as India’s nomination for consideration as World Heritage for the year 2022-2023. 

Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala: 

• The ‘Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala’ have been on UNESCO’s Tentative List since 2014.
• The sacred ensembles of the Hoysalas were built in the 12th-13th centuries and represented here by the three components of Belur, Halebid and Somnathapura.
• The Hoysala temples have a basic Dravidian morphology. They also show strong influences of the 
  • Bhumija mode widely used in Central India, 
  • the Nagara traditions of northern and western India, 
  • the Karnataka Dravida modes favoured by the Kalyani Chalukyas. 
• The Hoysala architecture made selections of features from other temple typologies which were modified and complemented with their own particular innovations.
• This gave birth to a completely novel ‘Hoysala Temple’ form.

Channakeshava Temple, Belur:

• Belur, situated on the banks of river Yagachi, is famous for the 12th century Chennakeshava Temple.
• The temple was consecrated by the famous Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana to mark his victories in 1116 AD against the Cholas and called the Vijaya Narayana.
• Enclosed by a Prakara with a Gopura built in the Vijayanagara style, the temple stands on a platform or Jagati and looks like a huge casket.

Hoysalesvara Temple, Halebidu:

• Halebeedu (formerly known as Dwarasamudra) was the ancient capital of the Hoysalas just 17 km away from Belur. 
• In the 14th century, the armies of Alauddin Khilji and Muhammad Tughlak defeated the Hoysalas and raided their empire. Halebeedu means “old house/old ruins“. 
• The Hoysaleswara Temple poised on a star-shaped base on the lawn is an architectural marvel. This twin-shrined temple is perhaps the largest Shiva temple built by the Hoysalas.
• Apart from Hoysaleshwara Temple, Halebeedu is also known for Kedareshwara Temple and multiple Jain temples. Kedareshwara Temple was built by King Veera Ballala, the second and Queen Ketaladevi.

Keshava Temple, Somanathapura:

• The Keshava temple at Somanathapura is another magnificent Hoysala monument, perhaps the last. 
• This is a beautiful Trikuta Temple dedicated to Lord Krishna in three forms – Janardhana, Keshava and Venugopala.
• The Keshava Temple at Somanathapura was constructed by a commander of the Hoysala Army, Somanatha.
• Hoysala King Narasimha III gave permission and resources to undertake the project of building the magnificent temple. 
• The Keshava temple is built on a raised platform with an outer Pradakshina pathway. The temple has a stellar plan with three shrines and Vimanas. 

4. Services E-Health Assistance And Teleconsultation (Sehat)

Syllabus: GS 2: Polity and Governance: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors 

Prelims: Services E-Health Assistance And Teleconsultation (Sehat)

Context: 

• As part of the Government’s commitment to Digital India and e-Governance, the Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched SeHAT.

What is Services E-Health Assistance And Teleconsultation (Sehat)?

• SeHAT is the tri-services teleconsultation service of the MoD designed for all entitled personnel and their families. 
• SeHAT stay home OPD is a patient-to-doctor system where the patient can consult a doctor remotely through the internet using his Smartphone, laptop, Desktop or Tablet. 
• It aims to provide quality healthcare services to patients from the comfort of their homes. 

5. Perovskite solar cells

Syllabus: GS 3, Science and Technology: Achievements of Indians in science & technology

Prelims: Perovskite solar cells; What are Nanorods?

Context: 

Indian scientists have devised a new process for increasing the efficiency and stability of Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanorods based on Perovskite Solar Cells (PSC). 

Perovskite solar cells 

• Perovskites are a family of materials with a specific crystal structure, named after the mineral with that structure. 
• When used to create solar cells, they have shown potential for high performance and low production costs. 
• While perovskite solar cells have become highly efficient in a very short time, a number of challenges remain before they can become a competitive commercial technology.
• It will help develop solar cells with stable light-harvesting active layers.

What are Nanorods?

• Nanorods are one-dimensional structures that provide a directed path for electrical transport.
• They are used to control the band gap by varying the radius of rods and using the quantum size effect. 
• Nanorods are nanostructures that are the object of fundamental and applied research. They may be prepared from carbon, gold, zinc oxide, and many other materials.

6. Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE)

Syllabus: GS 2: Polity and Governance: Statutory, Regulatory & Various Quasi-Judicial Bodies

Prelims: Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE)

Context: 

A virtual function was held to mark the launch of the Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE) in Karnataka.

Global Center of Excellence in Affordable and Clean Energy (GCoE-ACE) 

• The GCoE-ACE aims to establish equipment for skill development, fabrication, and R&D.
• The centre is supported by the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) donation from HHSIF. 
  • The Honeywell Hometown Solutions India Foundation (HHSIF) is a not-for-profit organization that deploys efforts in several critical areas.
• Aim: To encourage innovation to support the solutions to the grass-root problem statements in the affordable and clean-energy domain.

Read previous PIB here.

January 31st, 2022, PIB:- Download PDF Here