Defence Ministry signed a contract for the construction of one Training Ship for the Indian Coast Guard with Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited at a cost of 310 crore rupees on Tuesday. This is the first dedicated training platform with integral helicopter capabilities. The Ministry said, it will provide basic sea training to 70 Coast Guards and other international under-trainee officers to prepare on the multi-dimensional maritime aspects of Coast Guard life.
 
This training ship with advanced and modern high-tech surveillance and monitoring systems will provide profound and expertise to the Indian Coast Guard cadets on the challenges at sea. The Ministry said, the majority of equipment and systems will be sourced from indigenous manufacturers, including MSMEs. The project also envisages to generate significant employment over a period of three years.

The Department of Land Resources, DOLR and National Remote Sensing Centre, NRSC signed an MoU for monitoring of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana - Watershed Development Component, WDC 2.O on Tuesday. It aims to restore the ecological balance by harnessing, conserving, and developing degraded natural resources such as soil and water.
 
The MoU was signed in the presence of Secretary, Department of Land Resources Ajay Tirkey and Secretary, Department of Space Somanath in New Delhi.  
 
Talking to Akashwani News, Somanath said this MoU will aid in better utilization of wasteland and help in ground water recharge.

President Droupadi Murmu will be on a three-day visit to Bihar from Wednesday. She will launch the fourth Krishi Road Map (2023-2028) of Bihar at Patna.

On Thursday, the President will grace the first convocation of Mahatma Gandhi Central University at Motihari. In the evening, the President will address the first convocation function of All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna. President Murmu will also visit Gaya to grace the third convocation ceremony of Central University of South Bihar.

Power and New and Renewable Energy Minister RK Singh launched the EV-Ready India Dashboard
evreadyindia.org in New Delhi on Monday. Addressing the occasion, the Minister asserted that the future is going to be electric. He expressed confidence that the price of storage will come down, and soon the diesel and petrol vehicles will be history. He said, it is imperative for India to switch to electric mobility as the country has aimed to become the third-largest economy in the coming years. He said, this aim will require self-reliance in the energy sector.

According to the Power and New and Renewable Energy Ministry, the dashboard is a free digital platform focusing on near real-time electric vehicle adoption and forecasts, associated battery demand, charging density, and market growth trends. The dashboard is expected to facilitate greater inclusion across audiences, for the industry, policymakers and end users of electric vehicles. The dashboard has forecast a 45 per cent growth in electric vehicles by 2030.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will virtually inaugurate the third edition of the Global Maritime India Summit 2023 today, October 17. The summit is scheduled to be held from 17th to 19th October at MMRDA Grounds in Mumbai. This biggest maritime event is being organised by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. 

Akashvani correspondent reports that it is expected that the inaugural session will be graced by Chief Minister of Maharashtra Eknath Shinde and Chief Minister of Goa Pramod Sawan. The session is also set to witness the participation of ministers from 12 countries, including Armenia, Bangladesh, Belarus, Comoros, Iran, Italy, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Spain, and Nepal. In addition, 16 State ministers and Lieutenant Governors from 11 Indian States and Union Territories will be present. The summit will focus on key areas of the maritime sector with sessions and discussions around ports of the future; decarbonisation; coastal shipping; shipbuilding innovation & technology maritime safety and security; and maritime tourism, among others. 

INS Sumedha made a port call at Lagos, Nigeria on 13 October 2023 as part of its deployment to Gulf of Guinea. The visit was aimed to further strengthen diplomatic relations, reinforce maritime co-operation, and boost interoperability between the two navies. Various activities including professional interactions, planning conferences in harbour and exercises at sea are scheduled for exchange of best practices.

In addition to social engagements and sports fixtures, the ship conducted a Medical Camp along with Nigerian Navy doctors for the local populace. Sumedha will also be undertaking Maritime Partnership Exercise (MPX) with NNS Unity, with the aim to augment interoperability between both navies.

This is the Indian Navy’s second deployment to the piracy prone Gulf of Guinea (GoG)patrol after the maiden GoG patrol was undertaken by INS Tarkash in Oct 22. The Indian Navy aims to partner with Regional countries in combating piracy & ensuring secure seas for unimpeded trade.

A group of scientists from India and the United Kingdom have discovered a new species of toads, the third of a genus found only in a very narrow area in northeast India.

The discovery of the new species – Bufoides bhupathyi – found in the Dampa tiger reserve of Mizoram was published in the latest issue of Biodiversitas, a journal published in Indonesia. The two earlier known species from the genus ‘bufoides’ – Bufoides meghalayanus and Bufoides kempi – were found in Meghalaya.

Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Parshottam Rupala and Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Dr. L. Murugan, will inaugurate the “International Conclave on Mainstreaming Climate Change into International Fisheries Governance and Strengthening of Fisheries Management Measures in the Indo-Pacific Region” on 17th October 2023 at Mahabalipuram, Chennai.

Union Minister Parshottam Rupala will inaugurate the International Conference; the Brainstorming Session on India’s Preparedness for Adapting to Climate Change in Marine Fisheries and the thematic exhibition wherein research and educational institutes; community organizations and entrepreneurs would display their innovations and activities related to the theme. Dr. L. Murugan will deliver the special address.

Nasa successfully launched a spacecraft from Florida, embarking on a six-year journey to explore Psyche, the largest metal-rich asteroid in our solar system. Scientists believe Psyche could be the core of an ancient protoplanet, offering valuable insights into the formation of Earth.

The Psyche probe was securely folded within the cargo bay of a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, which took off under partly cloudy skies from Nasa's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. The spacecraft, roughly the size of a small van, is now on a planned 2.2 billion-mile (3.5 billion-km) journey through space, set to reach the asteroid in August 2029.

IIT-B and Laurus Labs backed ImmunoACT announced the approval of India's first CAR-T cell therapy, NexCAR19 (Actalycabtagene autoleucel), for the treatment of r/r B-cell lymphomas and leukemia from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO).

Immunoadoptive Cell Therapy Private Limited ("ImmunoACT") received the marketing authorization approval for the first humanized CD19-targeted Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cell (CAR-T cell) therapy product for relapsed/refractory (r/r) B-cell lymphomas and leukemia in India.

NexCAR19 is an indigenously developed CD19-targeted CAR-T cell therapy. It is the first-of-its-kind, made-in-India product and is a major stride in advanced cell-and-gene therapies.