Category: Business & Economy

In a first, U.S. Navy Ship arrives in India for repairs

It will undergo maintenance activities at L&T’s Shipyard in Chennai for 11 days

In a first, a U.S. Navy Ship, Charles Drew, arrived in India for carrying out repairs and allied services at Larsen & Toubro’s (L&T) Shipyard at Kattupalli, Chennai, on Sunday adding a new dimension to the fast expanding Indo-U.S. strategic partnership.

“This is the first ever repair of a U.S. Navy ship in India. The U.S. Navy had awarded a contract to L&T’s Shipyard at Kattupalli for undertaking maintenance of the ship. The event signifies the capabilities of Indian shipyards in the global ship repairing market,” a Defence Ministry statement said. 

The USNS Charles Drew will be at the Kattupalli shipyard for a period of 11 days and undergo repairs in various areas.

At the India-U.S. 2+2 in April, both sides agreed to explore the possibilities of utilising Indian shipyards for the repair and maintenance of ships of the U.S. Maritime Sealift Command to support mid-voyage repair of U.S. Naval ships.

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LIC breaks into Fortune 500 list, Reliance jumps 51 places

The list, topped by US retailer Walmart, has nine Indian companies — five of them state-owned, and four from the private sector.

Recently-listed Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) has broken into the latest Fortune Global 500 list, while Reliance Industries has jumped 51 places.

The nation’s biggest life insurer with revenue of USD 97.26 billion and a profit of USD 553.8 million, was ranked 98th on the just released Fortune 500 list.

Reliance Industries jumped 51 places to 104 on the 2022 list.

This is the first outing of LIC on the list, which ranks listed companies by sales. Reliance, with revenue of USD 93.98 billion and a net profit of USD 8.15 billion in the latest year, has been on the list for 19 years.

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10 more Indian wetlands sites get Ramsar tag, number rises to 64

Six of them are in Tamil Nadu and one each in Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha

India has added 10 more Ramsar sites, or wetlands that are of international importance, taking the number of such sites to 64, Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav said on Wednesday.

“Absolutely thrilled to inform that 10 more Indian wetlands have got Ramsar recognition as wetlands of international importance,” Mr. Yadav tweeted.

The 10 new sites — six in Tamil Nadu and one each in Goa, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha — encompass an area of 1,51,842.41 hectares, bringing India’s total wetland area to 1.2 million hectares.

The sites are Koothankulam Bird Sanctuary, Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve, Vembannur Wetland Complex, Vellode Bird Sanctuary, Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary and Udhayamarthandapuram Bird Sanctuary, all in Tamil Nadu, Satkosia Gorge in Odisha, Nanda Lake in Goa, Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary in Karnataka, and Sirpur Wetland in Madhya Pradesh.

Until 2012, India had 26 Ramsar sites, with the last decade witnessing a meteoric rise. On July 26, Mr. Yadav announced that India had added five Ramsar sites.

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Vijay Sethupathi-starrer ‘Maamanithan’ wins Gold medal in Tokyo Film Awards

Maamanithan’ won the gold in the Best Asian Film category, while Takahiro Kawabe’s ‘Love Song at 5 pm’ won the silver and Mart Bira’s ‘Nomadic Doctor’ took the bronze.

 Director Seenu Ramasamy’s critically acclaimed entertainer, ‘Maamanithan’, featuring actors Vijay Sethupathi and Gayathrie in the lead, has won a Gold medal at the Tokyo Film Awards this year.

The story of ‘Maamanithan’ is about a simple man who longs to provide good education to his children by getting them admitted to a private school. To increase his income, he enters into a deal with a real estate developer and in the process gets conned. The problems he faces is what the film is all about.

The film, which garnered huge praise from various quarters soon after its release, has ace director Shankar calling it a ‘realistic classic’. Shankar had even said that Vijay Sethupathi’s brilliant performance in the film deserved a National Award.

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Prof. receives patent for creating supercapacitors from used tyres

Professor Nand Gopal Sahu of the Rajendra Singh Nano Science and Nanotechnology Centre of Kumaun University’s Chemistry department has obtained a patent for making supercapacitors and energy storage devices from tyre waste.

Talking to Sahu, he said that Tyre waste can be used to synthesize graphene, which is a vital industrial material.

This graphene is used to make supercapacitors that can be used for the manufacture of a variety of devices, including electric vehicles.

Sahu acknowledges Professor AB Melkani, research scholars Gaurav Tatari, Dr Chetna Tiwari, Dr Sandeep Pandey, Dr Manoj Kadakoti, and Dr Himani Tiwari for their contributions to the study.

Nainital, Uttarakhand

thetimesbureau.com

ISRO earns $279 million in foreign exchange through satellite launches

In a written reply to a question, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said ISRO in association with its commercial arms has successfully launched 345 foreign satellites from 34 countries on-board Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), through its commercial arms, has earned $279 million in foreign exchange by launching satellites for global clients, Union Minister Jitendra Singh told the Lok Sabha on July 27.

In a written reply to a question, Mr. Singh said ISRO in association with its commercial arms has successfully launched 345 foreign satellites from 34 countries on-board Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV).

“Total foreign exchange revenue earned through launching of foreign satellites amounts to $56 million (one million=10 lakh) and 220 million Euros approximately,” Mr. Singh said, without mentioning any time-frame for such launches. As per current exchange rates, 220 million euros are equivalent to 223 million dollars.

The latest PSLV mission was on June 30 when ISRO’s warhorse launch vehicle placed three Singaporean satellites into orbit. PSLV-C53 mission by ISRO, successfully launched three Singapore customer satellites namely DS-EO, NeuSAR and SCOOB-1.

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Chennai Chess Olympiad updates | Declaring open the 44th Chess Olympiad, PM Modi says TN is chess powerhouse of India

A gala opening ceremony of the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad took place at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on July 28, 2022. The international event was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.

The world’s biggest team chess championship, featuring players from 187 countries, takes place at Hotel Four Points by Sheraton, Mamallapuram, starting July 29 and is to conclude on August 10. The Olympiad is being held in India for the first time ever, after being moved out of Moscow in Russia following the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi who declared open the 44th FIDE Chess Olympiad said that in a short period of time, the organisers had made outstanding arrangements.

The grand inaugural was also attended by the Union Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Anurag Thakur, Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan and Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi.

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Navy gets two MH-60R choppers from US

The Indian Navy received delivery of two MH-60R multi-role helicopters manufactured by USA’s Lockheed Martin Corporation at Kochi airport on Thursday.

The MH-60R is one of the most advanced maritime helicopters in the world and is designed to operate from frigates, destroyers and aircraft carriers. The MH-60R has advanced features for anti-submarine warfare and will replace the ageing fleet of British Westland Seaking anti-submarine helicopters.

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Zenara Pharma gets CDSCO panel nod to manufacture Covid drug

The approval by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has been granted under the emergency authorisation route, Zenara Pharma said in a statement.

Zenara Pharma on Thursday said it has received the CDSCO approval to manufacture and sell combination packs of Nirmatrelvir and Ritonavir tablets, indicated as an option for patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms.

The tablets will be sold under the brand ‘Paxzen’ and are being manufactured at the company’s USFDA-approved facility in Hyderabad, it added.

The combination pack of Nirmatrelvir and Ritonavir tablets is the generic equivalent of Pfizer’s Paxlovid, which has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for COVID-19 treatment, it added.

“We expect to launch Paxzen in the next couple of weeks and are in talks with multiple institutions and several hospitals in India to ensure that the product is readily available for patients in need,” Zenara Pharma CEO Srinivas Arutla said.

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Hyderabad theatre, Nishumbita enters ‘India book of records’ for performing 27 plays in record time of 24 hours

The marathon featured 27 plays in Telugu, Hindi and English with a crew of over 85, which included actors aged between four and 35 years.

Dr Ram Mohan Holagundi can’t get the numbers 27-24-27 out of his head. What started as a grand thought earlier this year turned into a record-breaking feat in the history of Indian theatre. Ram, founder and director of the Hyderabad-based Nishumbita Ballet and Theatre Group, is the force behind the 27 plays staged back-to-back for 24 hours on March 27, in the group’s auditorium in Hyderabad. This June, he was officially recognised by the India Book of Records (June 2022 edition) for this triumph.” My mother was apprehensive about my career choice. She felt that only those who fail in life choose theatre. Now, when she sees Nishumbita, she is proud of me,” he says. 

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