Tag Archives: Bharat First

GLOBAL: POPULATION: With 177 million, India Largest Contributor to the Global Population Milestone of 8 billion: UN. Expected to Surpass China as the World’s Most Populous Nation Next Year.

India is expected to surpass China as the world’s most populous nation by next year.

India’s population 1,414,815,318 as on 14.11.2022

As the world population touched 8 billion on Tuesday, India was the largest contributor to the milestone, having added 177 million people, while China, whose contribution to the next billion in the global population is projected to be in the negative, the UN said.

India is expected to surpass China as the world’s most populous nation by next year.

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA), in a special graphic to mark the global population reaching eight billion, said Asia and Africa has driven much of this growth is expected to drive the next billion by 2037, while Europe’s contribution will be negative due to declining population.

The world added a billion people in the last 12 years. UNFPA said that as the world adds the next billion to its tally of inhabitants, China’s contribution will be negative.

“India, the largest contributor to the 8 billion (177 million) will surpass China, which was the second largest contributor (73 million) and whose contribution to the next billion will be negative, as the world’s most populous nation by 2023,” UNFPA said.

The UN said that it took about 12 years for the world population to grow from 7 to 8 billion, but the next billion is expected to take about 14.5 years (2037), reflecting the slowdown in global growth.

World population is projected to reach a peak of around 10.4 billion people during the 2080s and is expected to remain at that level until 2100.

For the increase from 7 to 8 billion, around 70 per cent of the added population was in low-income and lower-middle-income countries.

For the increase from 8 to 9 billion, these two groups of countries are expected to account for more than 90 per cent of global growth, the UN said.

Between now and 2050, the global increase in the population under the age 65 will occur entirely in low income and lower-middle-income countries, since population growth in high-income and upper-middle income countries will occur only among those aged 65 or more, it said.

The World Population Prospects 2022, released in July this year said that India’s population stands at 1.412 billion in 2022, compared with China’s 1.426 billion.

India is projected to have a population of 1.668 billion in 2050, ahead of China’s 1.317 billion people by the middle of the century.

According to UNFPA estimates, 68 per cent of India’s population is between 15-64 years old in 2022, while people aged 65 and older were seven per cent of the population.

The report had said that the global population is growing at its slowest rate since 1950, having fallen under 1 per cent in 2020.

The world’s population could grow to around 8.5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion in 2050.

China is expected to experience an absolute decline in its population as early as 2023, the report had said.

At the launch of the report in July, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs Liu Zhenmin had said that countries where population growth has slowed must prepare for an increasing proportion of older persons and, in more extreme cases, a decreasing population size.

“China provides a clear example. With the rapid ageing of its population due to the combined effects of very low fertility and increasing life expectancy, growth of China’s total population is slowing down, a trend that is likely to continue in the coming decades,” Liu said.

The WHO pointed out that China has one of the fastest growing ageing populations in the world.

“The population of people over 60 years in China is projected to reach 28 per cent by 2040, due to longer life expectancy and declining fertility rates,” the WHO said.

In China, by 2019, there were 254 million older people aged 60 and over, and 176 million older people aged 65 and over.

In 2022, the two most populous regions were both in Asia: Eastern and South-Eastern Asia with 2.3 billion people (29 per cent of the global population) and Central and Southern Asia with 2.1 billion (26 per cent).

China and India, with more than 1.4 billion each, accounted for most of the population in these two regions.

More than half of the projected increase in the global population up to 2050 will be concentrated in eight countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and the United Republic of Tanzania.

Countries of sub-Saharan Africa are expected to contribute more than half of the increase anticipated through 2050, the report added.

PTI

source/content: telegraphindia.com (headline edited)

GLOBAL: LEADERSHIP / G20 Presidency Handed Over to India by Indonesia as Bali Summit ends

Prime Minister Narendra Modi while taking over said the Presidency of the grouping is a matter of pride for every citizen in India.

Indonesia on Wednesday handed over the G20 presidency to India for the coming year at the Bali summit here with Prime Minister Narendra Modi terming it a matter of pride for every Indian citizen.

At a brief ceremony, Indonesian President Joko Widodo handed over the G20 presidency to Prime Minister Modi at the conclusion of the two-day G20 Summit here.

“Together with every country’s efforts, we can make the G20 summit a catalyst for global welfare,” Modi said.

The handing-over ceremony came as the member states finalised the joint declaration.

Earlier, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said that India has contributed ‘constructively’ to drafting of G20 ‘outcome document’.

Delegations from the member states had differences on how to characterise the Russia-Ukraine war, with Ukraine’s western allies said to be seeking outright condemnation of Moscow.

There were fears earlier that the member states may not agree to a final document. G20 declarations require consensus of all members.

The declaration was not immediately released. Though the main business of the Summit ended in the afternoon, heads from some countries including India had scheduled bilateral talks on its sidelines for later in the day.

Modi was scheduled to leave Bali in the evening.

The G20 comprises 19 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, the US and the European Union.

Prime Minister Modi has promised a presidency that will be “inclusive” and a voice of the developing countries.

The next summit will be held in New Delhi on September 9-10.

Foreign Secretary Kwatra said the Indian delegation guided by the prime minister played a “key role” in the successful resolution of differences over the “outcome document.”

He said the “particular global context” was reflected in the consensus documents.

He said Modi’s observation that this is not an era of war and his advocacy of diplomacy and dialogue helped in reaching a “successful” outcome.

His message helped in consensus building, Kwatra said.

Modi met French President Macron Emmanuel in the morning. After the closing ceremony he was scheduled to have bilateral meetings with leaders from Indonesia, the UK, Australia, Germany and Singapore before leaving for Delhi.

On Tuesday, he had brief formal meetings with US President Joe Biden and Indonesian President Widodo.

The foreign secretary characterised the handshake between Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a dinner on Tuesday evening as an exchange of pleasantries.

The two leaders had talked briefly and shaken hands, sparking interest as they have not held a bilateral meeting after a border clash in 2019.

source/content: telegraphindia.com (headline edited)

WORLD: RECORDS: World Record Created by Nandan Choubey, a Climber from Bihar as he Unfurled the 328ft Tallest Tricolour in Lahaul-Spiti’s -Mount Kanamo peak

Nandan Choubey, a resident of Sarenja village of Bihar’s Buxar district created a world record by hoisting the tallest Tricolour of 328-feet on the top of Mount Kanamo.

He made a world record in August by conquering Mount Yunam located between Manali and Leh and Mount Kanamo located in Lahaul Spiti district of the Himalayas.

Choubey says that mountains seem small when one has the spirit and will to make the right efforts to reach the destination. He is the only mountaineer from Bihar to have achieved this success.

He added that conquering the peak, which has scarce oxygen, is considered to be very difficult.

“Carrying a flag weighing 10 kilograms is a big deal,” Choubey said.

Elated on his achievement, the mountaineer added that he is passionate about climbing mountains, exploring and taking up new adventures.

His success has been included in the World Book of Records and International Book of Records.

Choubey in a conversation with IANS said that he visited Kedarnath and Kedarkantha for the first time in 2017. His passion for mountaineering gained momentum after seeing the Himalayan Range from close.

He trained from Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering (JIM) in Jammu & Kashmir and the National Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) in Uttarakhand.

Choubey’s journey from the Sarenja village to the mountain tops has been special and difficult too. His morale has increased by this success.

The mountaineer considers Reinhold Messner and Jimmy Chin as his idols.

He said that he has climbed many high peaks, including Kedarkantha, Kalanag, Yunam peak, Kanamo, Stok Kangri, Kang Yatse II, Dzo Jongo, Rudragaira, Friendship peak, Satopanth peak and Nun.

He dedicated the record to the country and other mountaineers. When asked about his upcoming plans, he said that he wants to hoist the Tricolour on Mount Denali in Alaska, North America.

He added that the biggest goal for him is to reach Mount Everest for which he is working exceptionally hard.

Choubey has received awards like ‘Iconic personality of India’, ‘Kalam Youth Leadership award’ and ‘Global Bihar Excellence award’ among others.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

GLOBAL: RESEARCH RANKING: Dr Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga of Mangalore Institute of Oncology in Top 2% Scientists for Exceptional Research in the World in a study by Stanford University and Published by Elsevier BV

Dr Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga, senior radiobiologist, in-charge of research and chief operating officer (COO) of Mangalore Institute of Oncology, has featured again in the global Top 2% for exceptional research work.

Dr Baliga’s current global ranking in all fields of research is 64,930; while in his specialized area of Cancer (Oncology & Carcinogenesis) is 2,786. In the 2019 report, Dr Baliga was also ranked in the top 2% with 3188th. Among Indian researchers working on cancer, his current ranking is 7th and second in the state of Karnataka.

The study was conducted by Prof John PA, Loannidis of Stanford University and published by Elsevier B V, and considered the contribution of 200,409 scientists from 1960 until the end of September 1, 2022 in 22 scientific fields and 176 sub-fields. The Stanford team focused on impact (citations) and analyzed the research citation in the “Scopus database”, considered to be the “benchmark” by the scientific community around the world.

Dr Baliga is the eldest son of popular travel’s proprietor Prabhakar Baliga and Prema Baliga. He did his schooling and undergraduate studies at St Aloysius College and Masters in Biosciences from Mangalore University. He did his doctoral studies in radiation biology from Kasturba Medical College, Manipal with research on anticancer and radio modulatory properties of novel agents in 2003. He received advanced training at Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai and post – doctoral fellowship at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, USA and a second post doctorate from the University of Illinois, Chicago in areas of cancer prevention and metastasis.

Dr Baliga also has adjunct degrees in Masters of business administration in education management, from Alagappa University and Masters in Psychology and Psychotherapy from Kuvempu University. In addition to this Dr Baliga has been one of the founding members of the UNESCO Bioethics in India and has been active in studies on ethical issues in health care and Oncology in specific. He has done advanced research training in pharmacogenomics at University of Delhi, South Campus under the prestigious Indian National Academy of Sciences fellowship. Dr Baliga was inducted as a fellow in “The International Institute of Organizational Psychological Medicine (IIOPM), Melbourne Australia in 2019 for his work in health and work place psychology.

In his three decades long scientific career, Dr Baliga has carried out studies in the areas of cancer epidemiology, cancer prevention, radiation-modulation, Onco-psychology, cancer ethics, cancer education, health economics and pharmacovigilance. Till date he has published around 202 scientific articles and 92 text book chapters in the above said areas in national and international journals and books. Dr Baliga has mentored 61 students till date and most of his students are in premier institutes of Europe, USA and Australia.

Dr Baliga’s current research at Mangalore Institute of Oncology is focused on aspects important to local society, like cancer trends in Dakshina Kannada, effective integration of Ayurveda and Yoga in post treatment recovery and health economics in cancer care. These areas have been highly neglected and Dr Baliga’s emphasis is towards bridging the gaps for the benefit of the local society and country at large.

source/content: daijiworld.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: PLANETARY SCIENCE: Dr. Arshia M Jacob, Winner of the prestigious ‘German Astronomical Society Award’

Dr Arshiya M Jacob is currently living the life of her dreams. Interested in science since childhood, she is now a research scholar at the iconic Max Planck Society in Germany. Moreover, she won the German Astronomical Society Award for the best research thesis.

Hailing from Maradu in Ernakulam district, Arshiya completed her B.Sc (Hons) in Physics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi. In the second year, she was associated with the PSLV project at ISRO as part of her internship. This attracted her to astronomy.

After completing her degree in 2015, Arshia did her post-graduation at Bonn University in Germany. The thesis she submitted as part of the course impressed the director of the Max Planck Institute of Radio Astronomy. After that she got an opportunity to do research at the Max Planck Institute. Her research can be described, in simple terms, as the study of how clouds transform into stars.

Arshia studies matter and radiation in the galaxy. She also discovered some information about the chemical origin of the Milky Way. As part of the studies, Arshia Sofia also flew in the research plane.

Arsia’s research won the Otto Hahn Award, established by the Max Planck Society. The prestigious Otto Hahn Award is given to thirteen scientists who have made impressive research in the fields of physics and chemistry.

She gained the fame of this award when she won the award by the German Astronomical Society.

Dr. Arshia, who is currently pursuing a post-doctoral fellowship at John Hopkins University, Baltimore, United States, may return to Germany after completing his course. At Max Planck she could continue her research work with her own team of scientists.

Founded in 1948, the Max Planck Society has produced 23 Nobel Laureates till date. Swedish geneticist Svante Pabo, who won the Nobel Prize in Medicine this year, is part of the institute.

Research in science requires patience and dedication. Researchers should not be discouraged when results are negative or inconclusive. However, they have to work persistently to get the desired results that can significantly impact humanity.

Sofia
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy is a joint project of NASA and the German Aerospace Center. The Boeing 747 SP aircraft has a reflecting telescope that can be observed under infrared lighting. The plane flies in the stratosphere – the layer of atmosphere that surrounds the Earth at an altitude of 11-13 km. Ground-based telescopes cannot make observations in the infrared field because the Earth’s atmosphere and water particles block infrared rays.

The Sophia project, which started in 2010, ended in September this year.

source/content: techbric.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL RECORDS: ARTS & CULTURE / GUINNESS WORLD RECORD: Ayodhya sets World Record by Lighting over 15 lakh diyas on Deepotsav Celebrations in Prime Minister Modi’s presence

Modi also offered prayers to Ram Lalla at Ram Janmbhoomi in Ayodhya. This is Modi’s first visit to Ayodhya after a “bhoomi pujan” for the construction of a Ram temple on August 5, 2020.

Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya set a new Guinness World Record for lighting the maximum number of earthen lamps – over 15 lakh- on the banks of the Saryu as Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the historic Deepotsav celebrations on Sunday, on the eve of the festival of Diwali.

Modi and chief minister Adityanath displayed the Guinness Record certificate on the occasion.

Beginning his speech with ‘Jai Shri Ram’, Modi addressed a gathering on the occasion of Deepotsav. “From the holy birthplace of Lord Ram, I pass on Diwali wishes to my countrymen,” Modi said.

Modi also said people have to learn as much as they can from Lord Ram.
“Lord Ram doesn’t leave anyone behind, doesn’t turn away from anyone,” Modi said.

Earlier, Modi offered prayers to Ram Lalla at Ram Janmbhoomi in Ayodhya. This is Modi’s first visit to Ayodhya after a “bhoomi pujan” for the construction of a Ram temple on August 5, 2020.

“I got the opportunity of Lord Ram’s darshan due to his blessings; happy that people across the world watching Deepotsav celebrations in Ayodhya,” Modi said.

Immediately after reaching Ayodhya for the Deepotsav celebrations, the PM went to the makeshift Ram temple and offered prayers to Ram Lalla. He lit an earthen lamp there and performed an “aarti”. Temple chief priest Acharya Satyendra Das applied vermillion on his forehead.

Modi was also briefed by officials on the construction going on for a grand Ram temple at the site. Modi also performed the Rajyabhishek of the symbolic Bhagwan Ram in Ayodhya.

“Shri Ram Lalla’s ‘Darshan’ and then ‘Rajyabhishek’ of King Ram, this good fortune is obtained only by the grace of Lord Ram. This Deepawali has come at a time when we have completed 75 years of independence. ‘Sankalp Shakti’ of Lord Ram will take India to new heights,” the PM added.

Earlier, Modi was welcomed by governor Anandiben Patel and chief minister Yogi Adityanath. He attended the Deepotsav celebrations.

Ayodhya divisional commissioner Navdeep Rinwa had earlier said more than 15 lakh earthen lamps will be lit as part of the Deepotsav celebrations by over 22,000 volunteers at Ram ki Paidi near the Saryu bank. The rest will be placed at important intersections and spots in the town.

Five animated tableaux and 11 Ramlila tableaux showcasing dance forms from different states will also be presented during the Deepotsav.

“Deepotsav of Ayodhya started 6 years ago with the guidance and inspiration of PM Narendra Modi. This festival of UP became a festival of the country. Today, it is touching new heights of success,” Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on the occasion.

source/content: hindustantimes.com (headline edited)