India fastest solar electric boat launched (GS Paper 3, Environment)
Why in news?
- ‘Barracuda’, said to be India’s fastest solar-electric boat, was launched recently at the yard of Navalt Solar and Electric Boats, located off Aroor in Alappuzha.
Key Highlights:
- Named after the swift, long fish, Barracuda was designed by Navalt and can be deployed even in the rough seas as a workboat to ferry up to 12 passengers and cargo.
- The 14-metre-long, 4.4-metre-wide vessel can attain a top speed of 12.5 knots (23 kmph) and has a range of seven hours on a single charge.
- It has twin 50 kW electric motors, a marine-grade LFP battery, and 6 kW solar power.
- It is engineered to navigate through waves as tall as four metres and operates without noise, vibration and air pollution.
Navalt Solar and Electric Boats:
- It won the world’s best start-up award in the mobility and transportation category at the Berlin Start-up Energy Transition Awards 2023.
- The firm that operates from Kochi has also received various prestigious awards, including the Gustave Trouve Awards twice.
Rajya Sabha Passes Central Universities (Amendment), Bill, 2023
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
Why in news?
- The Rajya Sabha recently passed the Central Universities (Amendment), Bill, 2023 further to amend the Central Universities Act, 2009 for establishment Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University at Mulugu in the State of Telangana.
- The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on 7th December, 2023.
Key Highlights:
- The University will be established at a cost of Rs. 889.07 crore. In the University, there will be graduate, postgraduate and Doctoral level courses under the five schools having 11 departments.
- A total of 2790 UG and PG students are proposed for the initial seven years of operation of this Tribal University.
- The establishment of this University will create direct employment in the form of faculty and non-faculty positions. Besides, it will also create employment avenues through outsourcing/ contractual basis.
- It will result in developing surrounding areas through several services and commercial activities which in turn will generate indirect employment opportunities.
Named after:
- The University has been named “Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University” on the mother and daughter, Sammakka and Saralamma (commonly known as Sarakka), who are believed to be manifestations of Adi Parashakti sent to protect the tribal communities of Telangana.
Activist Ali Abu Awwad and pianist Daniel Barenboim win Indira Gandhi Peace Prize
(Miscellaneous)
Why in news?
- Classical pianist Daniel Barenboim and peace activist Ali Abu Awwad have been named the winners of the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2023.
- They have been awarded for their efforts in bringing together the youth and people of Israel and the Arab world for a non-violent resolution of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
- They have fostered meaningful, mutual social and cultural understanding, and peaceful public cooperation through the tools of music, dialogue, and people’s participation.
Barenboim:
- Mr. Barenboim is an Argentine-born classical pianist and conductor, renowned for performing with and directing some of the leading orchestras in the world.
- Apart from his musical achievements, he is known for his efforts to use music to foster harmony in West Asia.
- His friendship and partnership with renowned Palestinian literary scholar Edward Said shaped his vision of a peaceful resolution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict through respect, discourse and dialogue.
- For his humanitarian efforts in cultural education and integration, Barenboim was awarded several accolades, including Germany’s Great Cross of Merit, Spain’s Prince of Asturias Award, and France’s Commander of the Legion of Honour.
Award:
- Mr. Awwad is a Palestinian peace activist who has been working tirelessly with the people of Palestine and Israel for a peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict.
- Born in 1972, he was raised in a politically-active refugee family. Unable to meet each other while in prison for three years, he and his mother undertook a 17-day hunger strike, which resulted in achieving permission for a visit.
- This success was a watershed moment in Abu Awwad’s realisation that non-violent action along Gandhian principles could be the way forward for achieving one’s goals of freedom and dignity.
- In 2014, Mr. Awwad co-founded a local Palestinian-Israeli initiative called Roots, promoting understanding, non-violence and transformation.
- His peace-building efforts led to the creation of a Palestinian non-violence movement called Taghyeer which was launched by more than 3,000 Palestinians across the West Bank in September 2016.
About Indira Gandhi Peace Prize:
- The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament, and Development was instituted in the memory of the former prime minister by a trust in her name in 1986.
- It consists of a monetary award of 25 lakh rupees along with a citation.
- The award is given to individuals or organisations that work towards ensuring international peace and development, ensuring that scientific discoveries are used to further the scope of freedom and better humanity, and creating a new international economic order.
