The executive meeting of Samajwadi Party in Kolkata

The Samajwadi Party will organise its two-day national executive meeting in Kolkata from March 18 to discuss the party's policies and strategies for assembly elections in the three Hindi heartland states later this year and the Lok Sabha polls next year, party vice-president Kiranmoy Nanda said.

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The Samajwadi Party will organise its two-day national executive meeting in Kolkata from March 18 to discuss the party’s policies and strategies for assembly elections in the three Hindi heartland states later this year and the Lok Sabha polls next year, party vice-president Kiranmoy Nanda said.

The party’s national executive will be held in Kolkata after a gap of 11 years. Samajwadi Party founder, the late Mulayam Singh Yadav had flown down to the city to chair the previous meeting in the eastern metropolis.

“Our party president Akhilesh Yadavji will come to Kolkata on March 17 and address workers who meet here. From March 18, our two-day national executive will be held. We will discuss the party’s strategies for the upcoming elections later this year in Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, and then the Lok Sabha polls in 2024,” Nanda, the party’s national vice-president said.

When asked about any possibility of a meeting between Akhilesh and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, he said nothing has been fixed yet. “As of now, nothing has been fixed. If she is in town, then obviously, both the leaders will meet,” he said.

Indian Navy gets first-ever privately made Indian anti-sub rocket

In what is being seen as a major success for the “Make in India” initiative in the defence sector, the Indian Navy has received a fully indigenised fuse for an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) underwater rocket, manufactured for the first time by a private Indian industry.

“In order to provide a major boost to Aatmanirbharta in armament and ammunition, the Indian Navy received for the first time a fully indigenised fuse YDB-60 for underwater anti-submarine warfare (ASW) rocket RGB-60 used from major warships, through a private manufacturer, Economic Explosives Limited (EEL), Nagpur,” Indian Navy has said in a statement.

It is a rocket used to hit submarines. It is 212 mm in diameter and 1830 mm in length. The range of RGB-60 is 300m to 5,500m. It operates with a two-stage motor. It is charged with Torpex. Torpex is a mixture of RDX, aluminium, and TNT. Torpex is mainly used in underwater firings.

ISRO successfully tests cryogenic engine of its rocket for the moon mission

The Indian space agency has successfully conducted a hot test of its CE-20 Cryogenic Engine for the soon-to-be third mission to Moon, Chandrayaan-3. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is in the midst of carrying out some of the most crucial tests for the upcoming lunar mission.  

It is designed by the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre, in collaboration with Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, ISRO Propulsion Complex and Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The tanks can carry over 27,000 kg of fuel and fire for at least 720 seconds. 

Cryogenic engines are highly efficient rocket propulsion systems and suitable for the upper stages of a rocket since they have a higher specific impulse (a measure of the efficiency or thrust) which enhances its payload capacity. 

Major components of a cryogenic rocket engine include an igniter, combustion chamber (thrust chamber), fuel cryo pumps, fuel injector, oxidiser cryo pumps, gas turbine, cryo valves, regulators, fuel tanks and a rocket engine nozzle.

India is one of the only six countries including the US, France (European Space Agency), Russia, China, and Japan which have developed their own cryogenic engines. However, the Indian journey to become a part of this exclusive group was marked by global politics and decades of hard work spearheaded by ISRO. 

In the early 1990s, the erstwhile Soviet Union Space Agency had agreed to transfer the cryogenic technology held by the five aforementioned countries except for India. But the US, Japan, Europe and China were against it. It was seen as an aspect of Cold War politics prevalent at the time.

Mukesh Ambani to relaunch iconic 1970s Indian Coca-Cola rival Campa Cola

Asia’s richest man Mukesh Ambani, has announced plans to relaunch an iconic 1970s soft drink brand that once rivalled Coca-Cola and Pepsi, prompting a wave of nostalgia on social media among the millions of Indians who grew up drinking the beverage.

Ambani’s Reliance Group said it would reintroduce Campa Cola to India’s multibillion-dollar non-alcoholic drinks market this summer in three flavours: cola, lemon, and orange.

The brand filled a void in the south Asian country at a time when its more famous American rival Coca-Cola was not available. The news of its return has prompted a flurry of interest from middle-aged Indians who remember drinking it in their youth.

Shailesh Desai, 60, from Mumbai, told CNN he remembered how drinking Campa Cola “would drown the apprehension” when he needed to tell his father about a bad grade on his report card, and provide a boost of confidence when he wanted to ask a girl on a date.

Sukant Khurana wrote on Twitter that he could remember pestering his grandfather to buy him the drink. “So many childhood memories… If it tastes anything like it did, Campa Cola will sell on nostalgia,” he wrote.

While Coca-Cola was introduced in India in the 1950s it withdrew from the market just over two decades later when the Indian government introduced a regulation that would have required it to reveal its formula.

In its absence, the Indian alternative Campa Cola became immensely popular and soon grew to lead the country’s soft drink market.