26th March 2021 irrigation updates, Corona updates, farmers protests live

26 March 2021

• Government schemes on irrigation

  Government has announced and worked on a number of schemes for irrigation in all farming areas, rain fed or areas with water shortage. Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) was launched to assist the small and marginal farmers in rain fed areas. Over 1700 crores have been released to 12 states under this scheme. Per drop more crop, part of the PMKSY scheme, focuses on water conservation and precision irrigation. Jal shakti Abhiyan was launched for both rural and urban areas, again focusing on water conservation. Sahi Fasal scheme has been launched for areas with water shortage. This scheme suggests growing crops which do not need much irrigation.

• Less water per person in India

  Water is an important resource for human survival. Water available per capita is getting lower and lower in terms of quantity. There are two reasons for it, one is that the amount of water available is same and the population has increased and the other factor is lowering of fresh water availability due to global warming  and pollution. In 2011, 1545 cubic meters of water was available to a person over a year while in 2021 this has been reduced to 1486 cubic meters.

• Indian rivers among the most polluted in the world

  Dumping unwanted elements into the rivers is the main reason for river water pollution  in India. Not only factories but individuals dump waste into rivers which then becomes  unfit for use by other people. We not only have to treat our rivers to purify the water they provide but also bring laws to control pollution or educate everyone about the impact of polluting the river water.

• Other infectious diseases should be tackled like Corona

  Tuberculosis and polio should be treated just like the Corona virus. People should be educated about the effects and how to quarantine or vaccinate themselves to guard against these diseases. Some scientists believe that other infectious diseases can be rooted out completely with measures similar to handling Corona Pandemic.

• Bharat Bandh called by agitating farmers effective mostly in Northern India

  The agitating farmers have called for "Bharat Bandh" today. And to implement it they have again blocked a number of railways and roadways paths thus not allowing transport facilities in these areas. The effect of this bandh has been seen mostly in Northern India.

• Chinese authority deny existence of forced labour

  The Chinese authorities have denied the existence of forced labour in its Xinxiang region. Reports on social media suggested that the major brands of clothes were selling items made by forced labour. Chinese authorities investigated but found no existence of such forced labour.

• CEOs of Social Media Companies questioned over US Capitol riots

  CEOs of the major Social Media companies were questioned openly if they believe that their organization was responsible for the occurring of riots. The CEOs did not give direct answers implying that they were not responsible. Content on Social media is created by the users and they have full freedom in the way they use the technology. Social media companies will have to be extremely active and will have to create software with artificial intelligence which can detect rowdy elements, if they are to guard themselves against these blames.

• Heavy rainfall expected in North-East

  Flood like situations are expected in North-East from 29th March to 3rd April. Winds from Bay of Bengal will be responsible for this heavy rainfall. On the other hand heat wave conditions are expected over the next two days in Gujarat.

• Nepal confiscates gift Corona Vaccines

  A Bahrain prince planning a mountaineering trip in Nepal, brought 1,000 COVID vaccines as a gift for the village they were planning  to stay in. At the airport this consignment was confiscated by the Airport authorities telling the tourist that unauthorized vaccines cannot be brought to Nepal.