13-04-23 Daily-Odisha-OPSC Current Affairs

With the beginning of the new financial year, the has revised minimum daily wages of unskilled, semi skilled, skilled and highly-skilled labourers.

According to an official notification issued by the State Labour Commissioner Dr N Thirumala Naik, the daily wages of the labourers have been increased by hiking their Variable Dearness Allowance (VDA) by Rs 12.

With the hike in VDA, the minimum daily wages for unskilled, semi skilled, skilled, and highly skilled workers have been increased to Rs 345, Rs 385, Rs 435 and Rs 495, respectively, with effect from April 1, 2023.

The State Government has been revising the daily wages as per the advice of State Minimum Wages Advisory Board, which had asked the State to adopt a system of revision of the special allowance called VDA @ 0.90 per point rise in the Consumer Price Index Number for industrial workers (base 2001-100) as admissible and shall be declared at half yearly interval (April 1 and October 1) from the date of notification of revised wages, starting from April 1, 2019.

On April 13, 1919, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre took place in Amritsar, Punjab, which is remembered as a tragic event and a symbol of the atrocities committed against the Indian people during the British colonial era. The massacre played a significant role in Indias fight for independence, as it increased the nations determination to achieve self-rule and break free from British subjugation

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre Day 2023 marks 104 years since the tragic incident that is seen as a turning point in Indian HISTORY. It was this that led to Gandhis full commitment to the cause of Indian nationalism and independence from Britain

The Urja Ganga pipeline project has taken the benefit of lower natural gas prices to the hinterland, a move that will help expand adoption of the cleaner fuel and help upcountry small towns and cities breathe easy.
The reduction in CNG (compressed natural gas) and PNG (piped natural gas) prices by state-run GAIL has brought benefit of Rs 5-7 to consumers in 20 towns and cities in the hinterland that now have access to the cleaner fuel because of the flagship project envisaging laying 3,384 km of pipeline to connect Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Assam to national gas grid.

The project has two components. The first is laying a 2,655 km pipeline connectingJagdishpurin UP, Haldia in West Bengal, Bokaro in Jharkhand andDhamrain Odisha. The second element is a 729km pipeline linking Bihars Barauni and Guwahati. The project has been commissioned till Barauni.

Over 38,000 km of national highway (NH) stretches are under construction across states with an of nearly Rs 8. 24 lakh crore, official data show. Around one-third of these projects fall inMaharashtra,Uttar Pradesh,BiharandKarnataka.

According to highway ministrys data, Maharashtra has the maximum of 6,026 km under construction entailing total investment of around Rs 1 lakh crore, followed by UP (2,527 km), Bihar (2,361 km) and Karnataka (2,318 km) Sources said with so many projects under the implementation stage, the governments focus will be on completion of the ongoing projects during the current financial year, just before the Model Code Of Conduct kicks in for the 2024 general election. They added that a lot of the emphasis will be on completing delayed works.

The railways is also focusing on rolling out more modern trains and taking up station redevelopment and upgradation projects. Works done in roads and railways are the most visible projects.

The Asian (ADB) has announced its plans to invest in non-convertible Debentures valued at Rs 150 crore in Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd (TPDDL). The Investment aims to improve Delhis power distribution through grid enhancements. Additionally, ADB has also approved a grant of USD 2 million to assist in the acquisition and integration of a pilot battery energy storage system (BESS). The Manila-based funding institution issued a statement confirming the developments

The proceeds from the senior secured financing will be utilized to establish a new 66/11-kilovolt grid, expand transformers, substations, feeder lines, and switching stations, install smart meters, and replace outdated electrical equipment and meters. In addition, the funding will also contribute to the development of a groundbreaking 10-megawatt-hour (MWh) battery energy storage system (BESS), which will be the first of its kind in South Asia when it comes to the distribution transformer level