Vinod Khosla, Indian-American technology guru and entrepreneur, has pledged $10 million towards providing oxygen supplies to India amid the worsening second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country
Category: Amazing Feats
** This woman-run startup uses crop residue to create bio-batteries
Solving three problems at once, Odisha startup Nexus Power uses crop remnants to create bio-organic, fast-charging batteries for electric vehicles.
An old Biochemistry book from their grandfather’s library was the inspiration for Odisha-born sisters Nikita and Nishita Baliarsingh to create an electric vehicle (EV) battery from crop residue.
Odisha
** Oxygen Express trains so far delivered 2,067 tonnes of medical oxygen across India
The Railways’ Oxygen Express trains have delivered around 2,067 tonnes of medical oxygen across the country over the last 16 days with Delhi getting the highest 707 tonnes, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 641 tonnes.
** ‘An icon of India’s legal system’: Tributes pour in for Soli Sorabjee
Serving as a legal professional for nearly seven decades, Sorabjee occupied the office of the Attorney General of India twice — first from 1989-90 and then from 1998-2004.
** Chandigarh Diary: All that is happening in the ‘Land of Five rivers’
PGIMER professor wins public health award
While a PGIMER professor won a public health award by the American Thoracic Society, the Panjab University Senate elections scheduled for May 3 have been postponed.
Professor Digambar Behera, senior professor and head, Department of Pulmonary Medicine at Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education & Research (PGIMER) has been awarded the ‘ATS Public Service Award-2021’ by the American Thoracic Society.
** On this day in 2010: Suresh Raina became first Indian player to smash T20I hundred
02nd May 2010
The attacking left-hand batsman achieved the feat against South Africa in the T20 World Cup in 2010. In the match, South Africa had won the toss and opted to bowl first.
** IIT-Bombay finds innovative way to generate oxygen
An official statement claimed that initial tests conducted at the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay have shown “promising results”.
Amid the shortage of medical oxygen for treating COVID-19 patients, the IIT-Bombay has come up with an ingenious solution to help address the issue by converting a nitrogen unit into an oxygen generating unit, the institute said on Thursday.
The pilot project, which has been tested successfully, relies on a simple technological intervention of converting a Pressure Swing Adsorption nitrogen unit into a PSA oxygen unit, according to an official statement.
** Herpetologist Deepak Veerappan has a snake named after him
Xylophis deepaki has iridescent scales and is just 20 cm long
In the first four months of 2021, the Western Ghats presented new butterflies, frogs, fruit flies, and even a freshwater crab. Joining the list is a tiny snake of just 20 cm length with iridescent scales – Xylophis deepaki, first stumbled upon in a coconut plantation in Kanyakumari, is now reported to be an endemic species of Tamil Nadu and has been sighted in a few locations in the southern part of the Western Ghats. The species is named in honour of Indian herpetologist Deepak Veerappan for his contribution in erecting a new subfamily Xylophiinae to accommodate wood snakes. The team suggests the common name Deepak’s wood snake.
** RIL emerges as the largest producer and supplier of medical grade oxygen
“I am proud of our engineers at Jamnagar who have worked tirelessly.”
The country’s largest refiner and petrochemical giant Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has ramped up its production of medical grade oxygen from ZERO to 1000 MT per day, constituting more than 11% of the country’s total medical grade liquid oxygen production.
This oxygen is being provided free-of-cost to several State Governments across the country to bring immediate relief to over 1 lakh patients on a daily basis, the company said in a statement.
“Our plants at our Jamnagar refinery have been repurposed overnight to produce medical grade liquid oxygen that is being distributed across India. Our thoughts and prayers are with our fellow countrymen and women. Together, we will overcome these difficult times,” said Nita Ambani, chief of Reliance Foundation, philanthropic arm of the RIL.
** IGCAR scientists develop ‘breakthrough’ technology for paint, water and other industries
Scientists at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) in Kalpakkam have come out with a ‘breakthrough’ technology which could help the water-based solutions industry in the country to cut down on costs and enhance quality by real time monitoring of electrical conductivity of aqueous solutions in industrial plants and field applications, said Prabhakar Rao, head of the Security, Innovation and Sensor division in IGCAR.