Women’s 4x100m Relay Team Breaks Indian
National Record
The Indian 4x100m women’s relay team broke the 18-year-old
national record to finish in 4th position at the IAAF World Challenge held on
18 May in Beijing, China. The 4x100m women relay team, which included Dutee
Chand, Srabani Nanda, HM Jyoti and Merlin Joseph, clocked 44.03 seconds to
finish the race. The clocked time broke the 18-year-old record of 44.43s
created by the quartet of Saraswati Dey, Rachita Mistry, EB Shyla and PT Usha
on 22 July 1998 in Fukuoka, Japan.
India Successfully Test Fires Prithvi-II
Missile
India successfully test-fired indigenously developed nuclear
capable Prithvi-II missile on 18 May 2016. The short-range surface-to-surface
missile was tested from test range at Chandipur in Odisha. Inducted into
India’s armed forces in 2003, Prithvi II, it is the first missile to be
developed by DRDO under India’s prestigious IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile
Development Program) is now a proven technology.It weighs 4600 kilogram and has
a strike range of 350 kilometer. It is capable of carrying 500 kg to 1000 kg of
warheads and is thrusted by liquid propulsion twin engines.
Worlds First Zika Virus Clone Developed
Scientists from The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) have
developed world’s first genetically engineered clone of the Zika virus strain.
The development of cDNA clone, as it is called, is expected to speed up many
aspects of Zika research, including vaccine and therapeutic development. It
allows researchers to make Zika virus from test tube and cells on petri dishes.
The clone comprises of five fragments of complete zika viral genome which were
individually cloned and assembled into the full-length Zika virus clone.
World’s Largest Rooftop Solar Power Plant
Inaugurated in Amritsar
World’s largest Single Rooftop Solar Power Plant with capacity of
11.5 MegaWatt (MW) at Dera Baba Jaimal Singh at Beas, in Amritsar, Punjab. It
was inaugurated by Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal on 18 May 2016.
This is the largest Solar Power Plant spread over 82 acres of rooftop in single
campus on multiple roofs with installed capacity of 19.5 MW. The plant has been
set up with the cost of 139 crore rupees. This state-of-the-art project was
installed by the Radha Soami Satsang Beas Educational and Environmental Society
with technical collaboration of Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA).
