9 SEPTEMBER 2016

Ø  A last-minute delay due to an anomaly in the indigenous cryogenic upper stage of the GSLV-F05 gave some anxious moments to ISRO officials, but this did not deter them from putting the INSAT-3DR, an advanced weather satellite with four payloads, into a precise Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).

Ø  The INSAT-3DR, which was put into orbit on Thursday by the GSLV-F05, carries a multi-spectral Imager, one of the four payloads. It will generate images of the Earth from a geostationary altitude of 36,000 km every 26 minutes and provide information on parameters such as sea surface temperature, snow cover, cloud motion winds, among others. The second payload, a 19 channel sounder, will provide information on the vertical profiles of temperature, humidity and integrated ozone while the Data Relay Transponder will provide service continuity to ISRO’s previous meteorological missions. The Search and Rescue payload can pick up and relay alert signals originating from the distress beacons of maritime, aviation and land-based users to the Indian Mission Control Centre (INMCC).

Ø  The Indian service region will cover a large part of the Indian Ocean and will also include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and Tanzania for providing distress alert services.

Ø  Sikkim has been adjudged the cleanest State while Jharkhand comes last in the list on the condition of sanitation in rural areas of 26 states. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home State, Gujarat is ranked 14th. The results of the survey carried out last year by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) was released on Thusday by Union Rural Development Minister Narendra Singh Tomar here. Following Sikkim come Kerala, Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Meghalaya among the top 10 States.

Ø  The Railways will earn Rs. 500 crore this year from surge pricing on Rajdhani, Duronto and Shatabdi trains being introduced on Friday, Railway Board Member (Traffic) Mohammad Jamshed said.

Ø  India is all set to scale up its military assistance to Afghanistan. According to officials, the stepped up assistance is likely to be announced during the visit of President Ashraf Ghani next week. India, which has shied away from supplying lethal weapons to foreign militaries, changed its policy last year with the supply of four Mi-25 attack helicopters. Following this, Afghanistan, in desperate for military hardware for firepower and support in the face of increasing violence, has sought additional assistance from India. The requirements were handed over to the Indian side last week during the visit of the Chief of Afghan National Army General Qadam Shah Shahim.

Ø  U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration has offered Saudi Arabia more than $115 billion in weapons, other military equipment and training, the most of any U.S. administration in the 71-year U.S.-Saudi alliance, a report has found. The report, authored by William Hartung of the U.S.-based Center for International Policy, said the offers were made in 42 separate deals, and the majority of the equipment has yet to be delivered. Mr. Hartung told Reuters the report would be made available publicly on Sept. 8.