Biofuel : Hope For Future Biofuel can be broadly defined as solid, liquid, or gas fuel consisting of, or derived from recently dead biological material, most commonly plants. This distinguishes it from fossil fuel, which is derived from long dead biological material. Biofuel can be theoretically produced from any (biological) carbon source. The most common by far is photosynthetic plants that capture solar energy. Many different plants and plant-derived materials are...

Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle : India’s Jump Into Space   The PSLV (Polar Space Launch Vehicle) was developed to permit India to launch its own IRS-class satellites into sun-synchronous orbits, a service until recently procured commercially via the USSR/CIS. The design orbital capacity for the PSLV is one metric ton into a 900 km, 99 degree inclination orbit. This significant increase in lift is achieved using a 5-stage design similar to...

Nuclear Deal The Indo-U.S. Civilian Nuclear Agreement is the name commonly attributed to a bilateral agreement on nuclear co-operation between the United State of America and the Republic of India. On August 1, 2008 the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) approved the safeguards agreement with India. The 45 nations NSG granted the waiver to India on September 6, 2008 allowing it to access civilian nuclear technology and fuel from other countries....

Dengue And Chikungunya (Deadly Mosquito Borne Diseases) Dengue—Dengue is a viral infection that leads to fever and in some cases bleeding. When a person starts bleeding he is said to suffer from dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF). The infection is caused by four different but related strains of dengue virus. Hence a person can contact dengue more than once as infection by one strain of virus gives no immunity against infection from...

Water Crisis   “Water, water everywhere, And all the boards did shrink; Water, Water everywhere, Nor any drop to drink” Today, in a country where water and it perennial source, the river is worshiped as Mother Goddess”, it has become a subject of crisis. Water, a tree gift of nature is fast becoming a precious commodity for the common man. This rapidly depleting resource has turned out to be a matter...

India: Land of Monuments, Pilgrimages & Buildings   Agra Fort—Agra was the capital of the Great Mughals. The Agra Fort lies on a bank of the river Yamuna. The fortress was built by the Great Mughal Emperor Akbar in 1566. Char Minar —It was built in 1591 which dominates Hyderabad sky line even today. Golden Temple—Located in Amritsar in the Punjab, the Golden Temple serves as the most important place of...

Pota : Prevention of Terrorism Act The Indian Parliament met in a joint session on March 26, 2002, only the third time in the history of independent India, to pass the controversial Pota (Prevention Of Terrorism Ordinance) aimed at tackling the growing menace of terrorism in the country. The move for convening a joint session of both houses of parliament was meant to propel the ordinance into the statue books since...