Short Takes / December 24, 2021

Indian Army launches in-house messaging app called ASIGMA

• The Indian Army launched a new messaging application called ASIGMA for in-house communication.

• ASIGMA, which stands for Army Secure Indigenous Messaging Application, has been developed entirely in-house by a team of officers of the Corps of Signals.

• The new application is being deployed on the Army’s internal network as a replacement of Army Wide Area Network (AWAN) messaging application which has been in service for the past 15 years. 

• ASIGMA has been fielded on Army-owned hardware and lends itself to lifetime support with future upgrades.

• The bespoke messaging application meets all futuristic user requirements and boasts of an enhanced user experience.

• ASIGMA has a variety of contemporary features, including multi-level security, message prioritisation and tracking, dynamic global address book and various options to meet the Army's requirements.

• This future ready messaging application will meet real time data transfer and messaging requirements of the Army, especially in the backdrop of the current geopolitical security environment and is in line with the government of India’s Make in India initiative.

***************************

DRDO successfully conducts flight test of indigenous expendable aerial target ‘Abhyas’

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted a flight test of indigenously-developed high-speed expendable aerial target ‘Abhyas’ off the Chandipur coast in Odisha.

• Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru based DRDO laboratory, along with other DRDO laboratories has developed this indigenous unmanned aerial target system to meet the requirement of aerial targets of Indian Armed Forces.

• During the flight trial, a high subsonic speed trajectory (of Abhyas) at a very low altitude with high endurance was demonstrated.

• Two boosters provided initial acceleration during launch and a small turbo jet engine was used to sustain high subsonic speed with long endurance.

• The indigenous data link designed by a Bengaluru-based industry partner has been successfully flown and tested during the flight.

• The performance of ‘Abhyas’ during the entire flight duration has been confirmed from the data captured by various instruments deployed.

***************************

Karnataka Assembly passes ‘anti-conversion’ Bill 

• The Karnataka Legislative Assembly passed Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021.

• The Bill can become a law only after it is passed in the Legislative Council where the ruling BJP does not have a clear majority.

• The Bill provides for protection of right to freedom of religion and prohibition of unlawful conversion from one religion to another by misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by any fraudulent means.

• It proposes an imprisonment from three to five years with a fine of Rs 25,000, while for violation of provisions with respect to minors, women, SC/ST, the offenders will face imprisonment from three to ten years and a fine of not less than Rs 50,000.

• The Bill also makes provisions for the accused to pay up to Rs 5 lakh as compensation to those who were made to convert, and with regards to cases of mass conversion there shall be a 3-10 year jail term and a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh.

***************************

Maharashtra Assembly passes Shakti Bill 

• The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly unanimously passed the Shakti Criminal Laws (Maharashtra Amendment) Bill that provides for stricter punishment including death penalty for crimes against women and children. The Bill also provides for speedy trial in such cases. 

• It will now be placed before the Legislative Council. 

• The Bill, modelled on the Disha Act of Andhra Pradesh, was first tabled in the Maharashtra legislature in the 2020 winter session, but the government then referred it to a joint committee for scrutiny. The committee held 13 meetings and submitted some recommendations which were presented in the legislature. 

• The  Bill provides for capital punishment for certain crimes against women and children and prescribes a period of 30 days to complete probe once a complaint is lodged. 

• It puts the onus on social media platforms and Internet service providers to provide data, if needed, for investigation's purposes. 

***************************

Govt signs €140 mn euro loan agreement with KfW

• The Indian government and the German development bank KfW signed agreements for a €140 million reduced interest loan and €2 million grant for an energy reform programme in Madhya Pradesh.

• The project will contribute to a more stable, secure and climate and environmentally friendly energy supply in India by upgrading and strengthening distribution networks in Madhya Pradesh.

• It will contribute to an effective, technically and economically efficient as well as socially and ecologically sustainable energy supply.

The project comprises two components:

1) Implementation of smart meters and Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI). 

2) Separation of agriculture and non-agriculture feeders. 

***************************

India, European Investment Bank ink pact for Agra Metro Rail project

• A loan agreement has been signed between the Indian government and European Investment Bank (EIB) for first tranche loan of €250 million for the Agra Metro Rail project.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated construction work of the Agra Metro project in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, last year through video conference.

• EIB has approved a total loan of €450 million for the project.

• The financing from EIB will help to fund construction of 29.4 km metro corridor, comprising Corridor-1 from Sikandra to Taj East Gate (14 km) and Corridor-2 from Agra Cantt to Kalindi Vihar (15.4 km).

• Further, the project will enhance economic productivity of the city and catalyse job creation.

***************************

Odisha’s longest bridge over Mahanadi inaugurated

• Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the state’s longest bridge over Mahanadi river at Gopinathpur in Cuttack district.

• The 3.4-km-long bridge, connecting Singhanath Pitha and Baideswar in Cuttack district, will reduce the distance by 45 km, benefitting around five lakh people.

• The bridge, constructed in T-shape, is built at a cost of Rs 111 crore.

• Patnaik had laid the foundation stone of the bridge on February 28, 2014.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store