Category Archives: Science & Technology

NATIONAL RECORDS: HEALTH & MEDICAL SERVICES: Bengaluru’s Aasra Hospital claims ‘World’s First Robotic Total Hip Replacement Surgery’ for a Polio-Patient who is now back on his feet

Aasra hospital claimed that it conducted the world’s first robotic total hip replacement surgery for a polio patient with a history of an unsuccessful girdle stone arthroplasty. A team of doctors conducted the surgery enabling the polio patient to walk after two years of being confined to a wheelchair.

The 48-year-old patient suffered from a fracture a few years ago and underwent a girdle stone arthroplasty at an orthopaedic hospital but was unable to move or walk after the surgery. A robotic total hip replacement surgery was done and a specially modified implant was placed in the hip joint. The surgery was conducted using MAKO Smart Robotics platform – one of the most advanced robotic surgery equipment available. With this precision surgery, a patient will be able to walk within a day post the procedure and return to normal life within 4-6 weeks.

Dr Jagadish Hiremath, Chairman, AASRA Hospitals, said, “There has been no documented evidence in any medical literature across the world of a total robotic hip replacement surgery conducted in such a complicated case. With conventional surgery, surgeons work based on the gut feeling and skills. With robotic surgery, everything can be planned in detail and hence perfect alignment of the implant can be achieved.”

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: DEFENCE & TECHNOLOGY: MANUFACTURING – MADE IN INDA” : Indian Air Force (IAF) Inducts First Indigenous Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) Unit ‘Dhanush’

The Indian Air Force inducts its first Unit of the indigenous Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) at Jodhpur, Rajasthan on Monday.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated the Air Force saying the role of the IAF will be more effective after this induction. “Since long the requirements of indigenous attack helicopters was felt.” He said.

Rajnath Singh said, “The LCH is capable of dodging the enemy, carrying a variety of ammunition, and delivering it to the site quickly. This LCH perfectly meets the needs of our armed forces in various terrains. In such a situation, LCH is an ideal platform for both our Army and Airforce.”

The recent Ukrainian Conflict, or the many conflicts that preceded it, teaches us that heavy weapon systems and platforms, which are unable to move rapidly in the battlefield, have low capability, and sometimes they are capable of attacking enemies. become easy targets for, Defense Minister pointed.

The Unit which will comprise of 10 Make-in-India multi-role attack helicopters based at the Jodhpur Air Force Station have been named the 143 Helicopter Unit (Dhanush). The Helicopters have been christened as Prachand. The ceremony was presided over by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in the presence of the Air Chief.

IAF Chief VR Chaudhari said the IAF’s tryst with helicopters began in 1954 when sikorsky helicopter was inducted. 

And it being the first Unit of the indigenous LCH,  “The personnel of the unit have been specially selected based on their professional competence,” said ACM Chaudhari.

The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in March this year approved the procurement of 15 Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) Limited Series Production at the cost of Rs. 3,887 crores along with Infrastructure sanctions worth Rs. 377 crores. Of these 5 LCH are to be inducted into the Indian Army.

Light Combat Helicopter Limited Series Production (LSP) is an indigenously designed, developed and manufactured state-of-the-art modern combat helicopter containing approx. 45% indigenous content by value which will progressively increase to more than 55% for SP Version, says the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The Helicopter is powered by a twin Shakti Engine and has a range of 500 km and a maximum speed of 268 kmph. It is compatible for high-altitude deployment with the capability to take off and land at about 5000 metre (16,400 feet).

The weapons onboard includes Air to Air Missile Mistral 2, Anti Tank Guided Missile Dhruvastra, and 70 MM Rockets.

Speaking on the occasion HAL CMD (additional charge) CB Anantkrishnan said that the machine has been tested thoroughly in various climatic conditions including the high altitude and cold climate of the Siachen and in the process the machine clocked 2034 flights and 1500 hrs of flying.

“145 number of LCH is expected from Indian users and also international opportunities are expected.” Anantkrishnan said.

It should be noted that the IAF is yet in the process of finalising the number of LCHs to be procured. These choppers may replace the ageing Russian Mi-25 and Mi-35 attack choppers.

In June this year, the Indian Army inducted the first LCH squadron in Bengaluru. It was on 29 September the first  helicopter was formally received by Director General Army Aviation Corps , Lt Gen A. K. Suri from  the manufacturer Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Bangalore. It will be moved to Eastern Command along the Line of Actual Control (LCH) next year. It has planned to induct 95 LCHs.

As per the MoD, “This helicopter is equipped with requisite agility, manoeuvrability, extended range, high altitude performance and around-the-clock, all-weather combat capability to perform roles of Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR), Destruction of Enemy Air Defence (DEAD), Counter Insurgency (CI) operations, against slow-moving aircraft and Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPAs), high altitude bunker busting operations, Counter Insurgency operations in jungle and urban environments and support to ground forces and would be a potent platform to meet the operational requirements of Indian Air Force & Indian Army.”

State-of-the-art technologies and systems compatible with stealth features such as reduced Visual, Aural, Radar and IR signatures and crashworthiness features for better survivability have been integrated in LCH. Several key aviation technologies like Glass Cockpit and composite airframe structures have been indigenised.

The future Series Production version will consist of further modern & indigenous systems.

Production of LCH will reduce import dependence for Combat helicopters in the country. Light Combat Helicopters are already in the import embargo list.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / TELECOMMUNICATIONS: Prime Minister Modi Inaugurates the ‘6th India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022’ , Launches India’s First 5G Telephony Services leading a New Era of Opportunities via Ultra High-Speed Internet Services

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched the 5G telephony services that promise to provide ultra high-speed internet on mobile phones, saying it marks the beginning of a new era and presents a sea of opportunities.

The Prime Minister launched 5G services in select cities at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 conference. The services will progressively cover the entire country over the next couple of years.

“5G marks the dawn of a new era and presents a sea of opportunities,” he said. While the nation was dependent on foreign countries for technology for 2G, 3G and 4G telecom services, India has created history with 5G, he said.

The Prime Minister said his government’s vision for ‘Digital India’ was founded on four pillars — the cost of devices, digital connectivity, data cost and digital-first approach. This approach has led to mobile manufacturing units in India increasing from just two in 2014 to over 200 now, bringing down the cost of handsets.

Stating that India now has the world’s lowest data charges, he said from Rs 300 per 1 GB of data in 2014, tariffs have come down to Rs 10 per GB. Going by the average consumption of 14 GB of data per month, the data cost has come down from Rs 4,200 to Rs 125-150, he said.

From zero exports, the country is now shipping phones worth crores of rupees. Also, digital payments have increased, he pointed out. Technology has truly now become democratised, he said.

Taking a dig at the previous Congress-led UPA government, he said this was possible because of the right intentions of his government.

“2G ki niyat and 5G ki niyat mein yehi farak hai (this is the difference between the intentions during 2G era and 5G era now),” he said in reference to the alleged 2G spectrum allocation scam.

Capable of supporting ultra-high-speed internet, the fifth generation or 5G service is expected to unleash new economic opportunities and societal benefits, serving as a transformational force for Indian society.

After the launch, all three major telecom operators demonstrated one use case to show the potential of 5G technology in India.

ALSO READ | Jio 5G across India by December 2023, says Mukesh Ambani 

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio connected a teacher from a school in Mumbai with students in three different locations in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Odisha. This demonstrated how 5G will facilitate education by bringing teachers closer to students, obliviating the physical distance between them.

It also demonstrated the power of Augmented Reality (AR) on screen and how that is being used to teach children across the country, remotely, without the need of an AR device.

Modi interacted with school children in the demo case, asking them about their favourite subject and how the use of technology has helped in learning.

The Vodafone Idea test case demonstrated the safety of workers in an under-construction tunnel of Delhi Metro through the creation of a ‘digital twin’ of the tunnel on the dias. The digital twin will help give safety alerts to workers in real-time from a remote location. Modi interacted with Lt Governor of Delhi V K Saxena as well as the workers in the tunnel.

In the Airtel demo, a girl from Uttar Pradesh witnessed a lively and immersive education experience to learn about the solar system with the help of virtual reality and augmented reality. The girl shared her experience of learning with the Prime Minister by appearing on the dias through a hologram.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / TELECOMMUNICATION: Bharti Airtel India’s 2nd Largest Telco, Launches 5G in Eight Cities, to Cover Entire Country by March 2024 

Bharti Airtel Chairman Sunil Mittal on Saturday said Airtel will launch its 5G services in eight cities from today. These cities include Mumbai, Varanasi, Bangalore and Mumbai. 

Sunil Bharti Mittal said, Airtel will cover most parts by March 2023 and the entire country by March 2024.

While speaking at the launch of 5G technology in the county at the India Mobile Congress, Mittal said that Airtel would roll out 5G services in most cities by March 2023 and the entire county by March 2023.

“Airtel will deploy 5G services across most cities by March 2023 and across the country by March 2024,” said Mittal.

Mittal further said Airtel started 4G in India, but Mukesh’s (Jio) gave tremendous speed to countrywide 4G proliferation and forced us to run fast to catch up.

Weeks back, in a letter to the customer, CEO of Airtel  Gopal Vittal said the telco is expected to cover all of urban India by 2023. “We expect to launch our 5G services within a month.

By December, we should have coverage in the key metros. After that, we will expand rapidly to cover the entire country. We expect to cover all of urban India by the end of 2023,” said Vittal in a letter.

India’s second-largest telco, Airtel spent Rs. 43,040 crores in a 5G spectrum auction to acquire a 19867.8 MHz spectrum in 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100MHz, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz frequency bands.

Unlike its competitor Reliance Jio, Airtel gave a miss to the coveted 700 MHz airwaves, which can provide 6-10 kilometres of signal range with one tower, and forms a good base for 5G. 

The country’s largest telco, Reliance Jio will roll out its 5G services in India by Diwali. The company pledged to invest 2 Lakh crore for 5G services. The debt-laden Vodafone Idea Limited is yet to spell its 5G plans.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: RAIL TRANSPORT & INNOVATION / SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY: Rs 10 crores and Gleaming: First Made in India Diesel-Fired Steam Engine Manufactured in Golden Rock Railway Workshop, Flagged off in Tamil Nadu

A diesel-fired steam engine manufactured in the Golden Rock railway workshop in Ponmalai for the Nilgiri Mountain Railway (NMR) was flagged off by Southern Railway general manager BG Mallya on Tuesday. Railway sources said this is the first diesel-fired steam engine manufactured in the country.

Mallya appreciated the efforts by the team in manufacturing the vintage steam engine. “This is a workshop that has a history of almost 100 years. The steam loco will be given to the NMR in the coming days and it is a totally indigenous effort,” said Mallya.

Last year, the workshop manufactured a coal-fired steam engine for NMR.

In the past, the workshop had done several vintage projects like overhauling the popular steam loco Fern Queen and repairing a century-old clock tower in Tiruchy district court building.

Officials said the Golden Rock is one of the few workshops in the world that still manufactures vintage steam engines. The manufacturing of this vintage loco started last August and sources said railways spent about Rs 10 crore on it.

“We have experience of manufacturing and conducting overhauling works on steam engines. But, it is for the first time that we are manufacturing a diesel-fired steam engine. Most of the steam engines are either oil-fired or coal-fired. So, this is a unique loco and it might be the only diesel-fired steam engine in the world,” a senior official said.

The diesel-fired loco was rolled out through a dedicated track in the workshop.

“We are glad that everything went on well. In the coming days, this loco will offer a historic voyage to hundreds of tourists visiting the Nilgiris,” a worker said.

In addition to this steam engine, Mallya also flagged off the 606th Public Sector Undertaking loco and modified high-speed goods coaches at the workshop.

He inaugurated new projects, including Bheema Bamboo Garden, a renovated canteen and other facilities at the workshop.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / AEROSPACE : Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd’s (HAL) integrated Cryogenic Rocket Engine Facility to be Inaugurated by President Murmu in Bengaluru

The President of India, Droupadi Murmu will inaugurate Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL’s) state-of-the-art Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing Facility (ICMF) in Bengaluru on Tuesday which will boost self-reliance in manufacturing of High-thrust Rocket engines.

As per the HAL the facility will cater to the entire Rocket Engine Manufacturing under one roof for Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). HAL in its statement said, “The Aerospace Division entering into manufacture of Cryogenic Engines is a major step in technology up-gradation cum modernization. Indigenous cryogenic technology is important as it will assist India to further develop its rocket programme for launching heavy satellites.

The facility is set up over an area of 4500 sq mts housing over 70 hi-tech equipment and testing facilities for manufacturing Cryogenic (CE20) and Semi-cryogenic (SE2000) Engines of Indian Space Launch Vehicles. The commissioning of all the critical equipment for the manufacturing and assembly requirement is completed. The pre-production activities which involve preparation of the process plans, drawings, quality plan etc. has also commenced. HAL will start realising the modules by March 2023.

HAL said, “HAL Aerospace Division manufactures liquid propellant tanks and launch vehicle structures of PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle), Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) MK-II, GSLV Mk-III and also stage integration for GSLV Mk-II.”

In 2013, an MOU was signed with ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) for establishing the facility for manufacturing of Cryogenic Engine modules at HAL, Aerospace Division. The MOU for the Cryogenic Engine facility was subsequently amended in the year 2016 for setting up of Integrated Cryogenic Engine Manufacturing Facility (ICMF) with an investment of R208 crores.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: HEALTH & MEDICAL SERVICES / SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / CANCER RESEARCH: IIT-Guwahati Develops Chemo Strategy for Cancer Patients that ‘reduces side effects’

Researchers at IIT-Guwahati have developed a new strategy to deliver chemotherapeutic drugs directly to the infected cells of a cancer patient, thereby significantly reducing side effects.

Explaining it, professor Debasis Manna of the Department of Chemistry said the researchers had two needs in the development of chemotherapy drugs — it must be targeted at the cancer cells and must be released by an external trigger whenever it is required.

“The problem with existing chemotherapeutic drugs is that they kill healthy cells of the body in addition to cancerous cells, leading to numerous undesirable side effects,” IIT-Guwahati said in a statement on Monday.

In fact, it is believed that cancer deaths are as much due to the side effects of chemotherapy as the disease itself, it added.

“There is worldwide research to overcome the drawbacks of secondary toxicity of chemotherapeutic drugs. Some strategies that are being explored include target-specific delivery of the drugs and on-demand delivery of appropriate drug doses to cancerous cells and tissues,” it said.

The molecules developed by the IIT-Guwahati researchers self-assemble as capsules to hold the drug, which then attaches only to cancer cells, the statement said.

“When infrared light is shone on it, the shell breaks and releases the encapsulated drug into the cancerous cell. The IIT-G scientists rightly believe that their approach would allow the development of drug carriers for chemotherapy with enhanced efficacy and negligible side effects,” it added.

The research papers have been co-authored by Manna, along with his research scholars Subhasis Dey, Anjali Patel, and Biswa Mohan Prusty among others.

Anti-cancer activities were carried out in collaboration with professors Siddhartha Sankar Ghosh and Plaboni Sen of IIT-Guwahati, and professors Arindam Bhattacharyya and Soumya Chatterjee of Calcutta University.

“The path-breaking results of this research have been published in prestigious journals of The Royal Society of Chemistry, including ‘Chemical Communications’ and ‘Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry’,” the statement said.

The premier technical institute said that the societal impacts of this work cannot be overstated given the number of cancer patients in India anticipated to be 30 million by 2025.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: HEALTH & MEDICAL SERVICES / INNOVATION: Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Scientists Develop Gold-Coated Vesicles to Fight Tuberculosis (TB)

The spherical vesicles, which can be delivered to immune cells, are expected to potentially trigger an immune response.

To combat tuberculosis, researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have designed a new method under which a vaccine candidate for the disease can be delivered by making use of Outer Membrane Vesicles (OMVs). These spherical vesicles, which can be delivered to immune cells, are secreted by bacteria coated on gold nanoparticles. The deliverance is expected to potentially trigger an immune response to offer protection against TB.

Across the world, TB, which is caused by a bacterium called Mycobacterium tuberculosis, claims the lives of over a million people every year. Currently, BCG is the only effective vaccine against TB. It contains a weakened form of the disease-causing bacterium, which when injected into the bloodstream, produces antibodies which can help fight the disease.

However, the scientists have said that the BCG vaccine does not protect adolescents and adults as effectively as it does children. Prompted by this, Rachit Agarwal, Assistant Professor at the Centre for BioSystems Science and Engineering (BSSE), IISc, and his group worked on developing a potential subunit vaccine candidate that contains only parts of the infectious bacterium to stimulate an immune response.

Although other scientists had developed subunit vaccines based on a handful of proteins from the disease-causing bacteria earlier, they had not been effective in the treatment. Agarwal’s group decided to take a slightly varied approach and made use of OMVs — which are spherical membrane-bound particles released by some bacteria, and contain an assortment of proteins and lipids which could induce an immune response against the pathogen.

“They’re safer compared to a live bacterium, and since they are membrane-derived, they contain all kinds of antigens,” explained Agarwal, the senior author of the paper published in  Biomaterials Advances. The researchers further explained that while subunit vaccines typically only contain a limited number of antigens — bacterial proteins that can elicit an immune response in the host, the OMVs contain a variety of antigens, which can induce a better immune response.

“Mycobacterium-derived OMVs are usually unstable and come in different sizes, making them unsuitable for vaccine applications. But the OMVs coated on gold nanoparticles (OMV-AuNPs) by the IISc team were found to be uniform in size and stable. The researchers also found that human immune cells showed a higher uptake of OMV-AuNPs (gold nanoparticles) than of OMVs or gold nanoparticles alone”, said an IISc press release. 

According to Avijit Goswami, a former postdoctoral fellow at BSSE and one of the first authors of the study, the most challenging part was the production and scaling up of OMVs as it was a complex process. “To synthesise OMV-AuNPs, the OMVs and the gold nanoparticles are forced together through a 100 nm filter. The OMVs break up in the process and encapsulate the gold nanoparticles,” explained Edna George, a former postdoctoral fellow at BSSE, and co-first author of the study.

During this study, the immune cells, which were cultured in the lab, were treated with OMVs derived from a related bacterial species which does not cause disease in humans, called as Mycobacterium smegmatis. Furthering their research, the team plans to develop gold-coated OMVs derived directly from Mycobacterium tuberculosis. They will then test the same on animal models and carry the results forward for clinical applications.

“Such efforts could open up new avenues for the development of vaccines for other bacterial diseases as well”, the release said.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / GREEN ENERGY:Nxtra to be the First Data Center Company in India to Install Low Environment Impact Fuel Cell Technology

Fuel cell technology converts chemical energy from hydrogen and other fuels into electricity through an electrochemical reaction, not combustion, thereby reducing carbon footprint.

Bharti Airtel’s subsidiary Nxtra Data Limited to deploy low environmental impact fuel cell technology at its data center in Karnataka.

It will be the first data center company in India to deploy this technology.

The hydrogen-ready fuel cell unit will supply much cleaner energy to Nxtra’s data center in the state of Karnataka and is said to reduce emissions.

The company plans to start the unit on non-combusted natural gas and then switch to 50% hydrogen. The natural gas-powered cells will be used for primary generation with utility electrical grid and generators as backup sources.

Fuel cell technology converts chemical energy from hydrogen and other fuels into electricity through an electrochemical reaction, not combustion, thereby reducing carbon footprint.

Nxtra has already invested in developing renewable energy power plants across India and aims to achieve 50% of its power requirements through renewable energy sources in the next 12 months.

The Carlyle Group-backed company offers data centres in India to leading enterprises, hyperscalers, start-ups, SMEs and governments.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

NATIONAL: TELECOM/SPACE: INFRASTRUCTURE: India gets its First High Throughput Satellite(HTS) Broadband Service Powered by ISRO Satellites and launched by Hughes Communications (HCI)

The new HTS service will extend broadband connectivity to the most remote locations.

Hughes Communications India (HCI), a satellite internet service provider launched India’s first high throughput satellite (HTS) broadband service powered by ISRO satellites on Monday

HTS is a communication satellite that provides more throughput than conventional communication satellites or Fixed Satellite Service. Higher-throughput refers to higher data processing and transfer capacity than conventional satellites, when using the same amount of orbital spectrum.

The new HTS service will extend broadband connectivity to the remotest locations, difficult to reach otherwise, and create economic opportunities to boost the local economy, said Dr. S. Somnath, Secretary, Department of Space, and Chairman, Indian Space Research Organization.

The service will support applications like Wi-Fi hotspots for community internet access, managed SD-WAN solutions, backhaul to extend mobile network reach, and satellite internet for small businesses.

It will also support the high bandwidth requirements of government organisations, financial companies, cellular operators, mining and energy companies, among other businesses, HCI said in a release.

The HTS broadband service from Hughes combines Ku-band capacity from ISRO GSAT-11 and GSAT-29 satellites with Hughes JUPITER Platform ground technology to deliver high-speed broadband.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)