Uttarakhand

• 07 Dec 2023

Incident Response System will work in Uttarakhand to prevent disaster

Why in News?

On December 5, 2023, Disaster Management Secretary Dr. Ranjit Sinha said in a press conference that the Incident Response System (IRS) is being prepared to quickly rescue people and provide relief in disasters.

Key Points:

• Dr. Ranjit Sinha said that Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) has started its exercise. It is being established under the rules of National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
• USDMA has issued a tender for this. Incident Response Team (IRT) will also be formed from block to district and state level. These teams will also work according to the disaster.
• IRS guidelines have been prepared. Software is being made to implement this. After this, relief and rescue work can be done in a better way in disaster management.
• It should be noted that every year disasters in the state prove to be a challenge for the government. Be it the recent Silkyara tunnel accident or a disaster like the Joshimath landslide before that. To overcome these, the IRS system is now being prepared under the rules of NDMA. With this, immediate prevention and solution can be done according to the intensity or risk of the disaster.
• There will be three sections of IRS. There will be an operation section. The second will be the planning section and the third will be the logistics section. With the coordination of all three, disaster relief work can be done more quickly.
• After receiving the initial warning, the Responsible Officer (RO) will activate the Incident Response Team (IRT) of the concerned area. The local IRT will operate in the event of a disaster without any warning. If necessary, he will contact the RO for assistance.
• IRT will be pre-defined at all levels, i.e. State, District, Sub-Division and Tehsil, Block. If the disaster is complex and beyond the control of the local IRT, the higher level IRT will be informed. After this, the high level IRT will take over the responsibility of rescue from this entire disaster.

MoUs worth more than Rs 40 thousand crore signed in Energy Conclave

Why in News?

MoUs worth more than Rs 40 thousand crore were signed in the presence of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami in the Energy Conclave held at the Secretariat under the Destination Uttarakhand Global Investors Summit on December 5, 2023.

Key Points:

• Representatives of various companies reached the Energy Conclave at the Secretariat under the Destination Uttarakhand Global Investors Summit. About 33 companies have signed these agreements for investment in the fields of solar energy, hydroelectric energy and gas based energy in the state.
• MoUs worth Rs. 40,423 crore were signed in the presence of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. Out of these, grounding of Rs. 21,522 crore has been done, while new MOUs worth Rs. 18901 crore have been made.
• Chief Minister Dhami said that there are immense possibilities for work in the energy sector in the state. The government is continuously making efforts to increase investment. Based on the suggestions of people associated with the industrial world, 27 new policies have been made and many policies have been simplified.
• The companies present on this occasion gave proposals to build solar power projects, hydro power projects, pump storage plants, CNG plants, solar parks. THDC-UJVNL joint venture has signed the maximum MoU worth Rs. 16370 crore. Whereas GMR has signed MoUs worth Rs. 10,800 crore, UJVNL Rs. 3220 crore, Evolve Energy Rs. 1184 crore and Kundan Group and Bhilangana Hydro Power have signed MoUs worth Rs. 1000-1000 crore.

Uttarakhand is the 1st state in the country to get maximum 18 GI tags in a single day

Why in News?

On December 4, 2023, Uttarakhand became the 1st state in the country to get GI certificates for a maximum of 18 products in a single day. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami distributed GI certificates in a program organized at Chief Sevak Sadan located at the Chief Minister's residence.

Key Points:

• Till now, a total of 27 products of Uttarakhand have received GI tag.
• The 18 products of the state which have received GI (geographical Indication) certificates include Uttarakhand Chola, Jhangora, Mandua, Red Rice, Almora Lakhori Chilli, Berinag Tea, Burans Sharbat, Ramnagar (Nainital) litchi, Ramgarh Aadu, Malta, Pahari Tor, Gahath, Kalah Bhatt, Bichhubati Fabric, Nainital Mangbatti, Rangoli Pichoda, Chamoli Raman Masks and Kitai Wood Carving.
• It may be noted that 9 products of Uttarakhand - Tejpat, Basmati rice, Aipan art, Munsiyari white kidney beans, Ringal craft, Thulma, Bhotiya dan, Chura oil and copper products have already received GI certificate.
• For the 1st time in the 20-year journey from the enactment of the GI law in 2003 to 2023, GI certificates have been issued to 18 products of a state simultaneously in a single day.
• The Chief Minister has expressed hope that the export of GI tagged products from Uttarakhand will increase rapidly.
• The Chief Minister said that with the aim of promoting local products in all the 13 districts of the state, work on the 'One District, Two Products' scheme is going on at a fast pace.
• The main objective of the scheme is to identify the local products in all the districts and develop traditional industries accordingly. Due to this, self-employment opportunities are increasing for local farmers & craftsmen and local products of every district are getting world class recognition.
• Describing this as an important achievement, Agriculture and Horticulture Minister Ganesh Joshi said that a state level GI Tag Mahotsav will be organised in Dehradun from January 12 to 18, 2024.