UTTAR PRADESH
Rs 11,196.49 crore revenue realisation in UP in April
Finance Minister Suresh Khanna said that despite the onslaught of the second Covid wave across the state and disruption in economic activities due to partial lockdown, the state achieved a record revenue realisation of Rs 11,196.49 crore against the target of Rs 13,175 crore in April, the first month of the 2021-22 fiscal. He said that in the corresponding period in April last year, the recovery was only Rs 1,298 crore, which was less by Rs 9,898 crore.
“The positive growth in revenue recovery during the pandemic is a welcome sign for the economy of the state. Against the target of Rs 4,965.35 crore for GST, the actual revenue collection was Rs 5,157 crore in April this year. The GST collection in April 2020 was only Rs 670 crore. The collection of VAT in April this year was Rs 1,307 crore against the target of Rs 826.53 crore. VAT collection in April 2020 was only Rs 402.22 crore,” Khanna said.
The minister said that revenue collection from the Excise department in April this year was Rs 3,240 crore against the target of Rs 3,940 crore. In April last year, the collection from Excise department was only Rs 53.46 crore. Similarly, collections from Stamps and Registration department in April this year was Rs 1,218.39 crore against the target of Rs 1,854 crore while it was only Rs 17.41 crore in April last year.
INTERNATIONAL
Stratolaunch Test Flies – World Largest Airplane
The world’s largest aircraft manufactured by Stratolaunch recently completed its second test flight from the Mojave Aerospace Port in California.
The flight reached an altitude of 4,267 meters during the test flight. It got a top speed of 320 kilometres per hour. This aircraft can carry a payload of more than 220 tons. The wingspan of the aircraft is 117 meters. This is bigger than an American football field. It was named “Roc”.
The roc bird is a big bird usually mentioned in the mythology of the Middle East. It is very popular in “Sinbad the Sailor”. It uses a dual body configuration. The fuselage is the main part of the aircraft. It accommodates cargo, crew and passengers. The dual body design has two bodies.
NATIONAL
DCGI Approved 2-deoxy-D-glucose
The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has authorised the anti-COVID drug 2-deoxy-D-glucose for emergency use.
It was established in partnership with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) in Hyderabad by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), a lab of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage Production-Linked Incentive Scheme
The proposal of the Department of Heavy Industry to introduce the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme ‘National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage’ has been approved by the Union Cabinet.
With an investment of Rs 18,100 crore, achieve a manufacturing capacity of 50 GWh of ACC and 5 GWh of Niche ACC.
ACCs are a new generation of advanced storage technologies that can store electric energy as electrochemical or chemical energy and then convert it back to electricity as required.
It will also boost electric mobility, which will support three-wheelers, four-wheelers, and heavy vehicles.
NITI Aayogs Project for Great Nicobar Island
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCCEnvironment )’s Appraisal Committee (EAC) – Infrastructure I has raised serious concerns about NITI Aayog’s ambitious project for Great Nicobar Island.
The committee, on the other hand, has overcome the project’s first hurdle.
It has “recommended” that it be granted “terms of reference (TOR)” for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) studies, which will begin with three-month baseline studies.
RBI Grants PPI Authorisation to Eroute Technologies
Eroute Technologies has been given permission to operate as a prepaid payment instruments (PPI) company by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Eroute Technologies Pvt Ltd was granted a perpetual licence by the RBI to begin issuing and operating semi-closed pre-paid instruments in India.
Through developing user-friendly payment solutions that meet the unique needs of different customer segments in our society, the company aims to support the underserved segments, which number nearly 680 million people.
PPIs are financial instruments that allow the purchase of goods and services, such as financial services, remittances, and funds transfers, against the value stored in them.
Smokeless Cremation System Developed
The Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar, has produced a prototype of a moveable electric cremation device that claims to be the world’s first smokeless cremation system despite the use of wood.
It uses half of the wood required for cremation.
Because of the use of combustion air system technology, it is very environmentally friendly.
It is based on the wick furnace technology, in which the wick will turn yellow when lighted.
With the aid of a combustion air system mounted over the wicks, this is transformed into a smokeless blue flame.
The collection from Transport department was Rs 553.95 crore in April 2021 against the target of Rs 771 crore while in April 2020, it was only Rs 100 crore. From the Geology and MMining department, the revenue collection in April 2021 stood at Rs 199.74 crore against the target of Rs 338 crore while it was Rs 54.16 crore in April last year.