Latest news with #JagdambikaPal
India Gazette
24-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
"PM Modi has said that peace is the solution, not war": BJP MP Jagdambika Pal
New Delhi [India], June 24 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Jagdambika Pal on Tuesday stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had spoken with Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, followed by a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, emphasising that peace is the solution, not war. 'India's Prime Minister held talks with Iran's President, followed by talks with Israel's Prime Minister and clearly said that peace, and not war, is the solution...' Pal told ANI. Meanwhile, former Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police (DGP) SP Vaid welcomed the ceasefire between Israel and Iran, calling it a positive step for global peace and humanity. His statement came after an agreement between the two nations following 12 days of escalating conflict. While speaking to ANI, Vaid said the ceasefire would be beneficial for both countries and the international community. 'I think we should all welcome all across the world. It's good for humanity, it's good for the people of Iran. It's good for the people of Israel. It's good that some agreement has been reached, as US President Trump mentioned in his tweet,' he said. He further added that he had always hoped for a peaceful resolution, saying, 'I only wished that this war should not escalate. People all across the world were wishing that it should not escalate, and we are all glad that, ultimately, some kind of agreement/ceasefire has been reached.' Highlighting India's diplomatic approach, the former top cop noted that the Indian government would welcome the truce. 'I think India, as a nation, will welcome it, our government will welcome it because we have good relations with both Iran and Israel. Our PM and Foreign Minister have been pressing that negotiation is the solution - not war, and this is not an era of war,' he told ANI. He further reiterated that such peace efforts are in line with India's global vision. 'I think India as a nation will welcome such a move. Good that some agreement has been reached for ending this 12-day war between Israel and Iran,' Vaid said. (ANI)
Mint
12-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Food-tech is here to feed the world without devouring it
Picture this: 295 million people face severe hunger right now. Meanwhile, traditional farming consumes 70% of global freshwater, emits 11 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide annually and is responsible for 90% of deforestation worldwide. Every year, we lose about 12 million hectares, roughly the size of Greece, to drought and erosion. With an expected 10 billion mouths to feed by 2050, the current food supply trajectory simply isn't sustainable. But there is hope. Also Read: Jagdambika Pal: Minimize food loss and waste for the sake of our planet and its people Technology breakthroughs in food production are now a science fiction writer's envy. Remember 2013's $330,000 lab-grown burger? Today, cultivated meat pioneers like Upside Foods have slashed costs to about $20 (under lab conditions), a staggering reduction. Singapore became the first country to approve cultivated chicken commercially in 2020, followed by the US in 2023. Yet, production remains minuscule. Eat Just's pilot facility currently produces only about 3kg of lab-grown chicken per week, compared to 4,000-5,000kg at a regular shop. Although meaningful scale is years away, cultivated meat's environmental potential is compelling: studies on beef show it could cut emissions and land use by up to 90% and reduce water use by around 80% compared to conventional beef (in a best-case scenario, assuming the use of renewable energy). Also Read: Food security: Let clean-tech innovation lead the way While lab-grown meat captivates imaginations, plant-based alternatives have already reshaped supermarket shelves. The global plant-based meat market, led by brands like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods, reached $16 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $100 billion by 2033. These alternatives currently cost around 77% more than animal meat. Yet, the environmental benefits are undeniable. For example, pea protein emits just 0.4kg of carbon dioxide per 100g protein compared to beef's staggering 35kg. Israel's Redefine Meat pushes the envelope, using advanced 3D printing to create plant-based steaks realistic enough to impress Michelin-starred chefs across Europe. India's Blue Tribe Foods creates carbon-neutral, plant-based meats, highlighting the global nature of this wave. But why only mimic meat when we can completely rethink protein production? Enter precision fermentation. Companies like Perfect Day craft dairy proteins without cows, using genetically engineered micro-organisms, slashing water use by 99% and greenhouse gas emissions by 97%. Nature's Fynd has gone further, creating nutritious proteins from microbes; its products are now stocked across hundreds of stores. And molecular farming transforms plants themselves into factories, producing everything from life-saving vaccines to spider silk proteins inside spinach leaves. Also Read: Gene editing: Is humanity ready to rewrite the book of life? NASA-inspired technology is also revolutionizing protein production. Here, Solar Foods' Solein wins for sheer audacity. It makes protein 'from thin air" using carbon dioxide, water and renewable electricity. Its first commercial facility, which opened in April 2024, expects to produce protein with far greater efficiency than traditional farms. Air Protein uses bacteria first developed for astronauts to produce protein potentially 10,000 times more efficiently per land area than soyabeans. Similarly, spirulina algae—another NASA astronaut staple—produces protein at 50 times the rate of soyabeans, actively absorbing carbon dioxide in the process. Finally, biofortification is engineering crops to tackle global nutritional deficiencies directly. Golden Rice, engineered with beta-carotene to prevent blindness, has finally reached farmers after decades-long development. In Rwanda, iron-rich beans have increased dietary iron intake by 11% within two years. Zinc-enhanced wheat now spans 1.8 million hectares in India, addressing a 'hidden hunger' that silently affects billions worldwide. Food-tech innovations hint at greater possibilities. For instance, Japan's plans for space-based solar power could potentially revolutionize agriculture by enabling farming in deserts, underground chambers or even Mars. Also Read: Food and fertilizer subsidies should be climate-adapted and aimed better Investment trends tell their own story. After a sharp decline following a peak of $51.7 billion in 2021, food-tech funding rebounded in the first half of 2024. If scaled effectively, these innovations could slash agricultural emissions by about 80%, potentially freeing land twice the combined area of China and India. Our food system is undergoing an extraordinary transformation—proteins from thin air, 3D-printed steaks, astronaut-tested algae and nutrient-rich biofortified crops. While these ideas might seem 'moonshotish' today, remember that smartphones were pure science fiction not long ago. The technology exists, the environmental benefits are clear, and the path forward is illuminated by science and imagination. We humans are ready to 'cook up' a food system that nourishes the world and proves Thomas Malthus's dismal outlook wrong again—without devouring the planet in the process. The author is a technology advisor and podcast host.
India Gazette
03-06-2025
- General
- India Gazette
"Big step": BJP MP Jagdambika Pal praises UP govt for announcing 20% reservation to ex-Agniveers in state police force
New Delhi [India], June 3 (ANI): BJP MP Jagdambika Pal on Tuesday praised the Uttar Pradesh government's decision to give 20 per cent reservation to ex-Agniveers in direct recruitment to several posts in the state police force. Speaking to ANI, Pal termed it as 'a big step' in the direction of what Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said when the Agniveer scheme was implemented. 'When the Agniveer scheme was implemented, even at that time the Prime Minister had said that this is a scheme through which we will prepare people for the Army but after the armed forces, if they want to work in their states, they will be given priority and today the Uttar Pradesh government has taken a big step in that direction. Agniveers will get 20 per cent reservation in UP Police,' Jagdambika Pal said. This announcement was made by Uttar Pradesh Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna, who said that today it was decided to give 20 per cent horizontal reservation to Ex-Agniveers. Addressing a press conference after the Cabinet meeting, Khanna stated, '... the Government of India had introduced a very ambitious scheme, Agneepath, under which the age limit for employing Agniveers and to strengthen them in every way was kept between 17.5 to 21.5 years for 4 years, and after that they were sent off after giving incentives... Today, it has been decided to give 20% horizontal reservation to is a big decision in itself. A provision for 3 years relaxation has also been made for them...' Praising the decision, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath said that 'Agniveers', determined to serve Mother India, are the invaluable treasure of the nation. 'For their respectable adjustment after 4 years of service @UPGovt has decided to provide 20% horizontal reservation to former Agniveers in the state police recruitment and 3 years relaxation in the age limit,' CM Yogi said on X. 'Uttar Pradesh has become the first state in the country to provide 20% reservation to Agniveers. This reservation will be applicable in the direct recruitment of Police Constable, PAC, Horse Mounted Constable and Fireman. Trained, disciplined and dedicated former Agniveers will now participate in achieving the concept of 'Safe Uttar Pradesh - Prosperous Uttar Pradesh,' the UP CM added. (ANI)
India Gazette
11-05-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
"Whole world has seen valour, courage of our army": BJP's Jagdambika Pal
Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 12 (ANI): Highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's commitment against future terror activities, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Jagdambika Pal stated that the entire world witnessed the 'valour and courage' of the Indian Armed Forces (IAF) during Operation Sindoor. Speaking to ANI, Pal said that terrorists had to be taught a lesson after a Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed 26 lives, including one Nepali national. 'After the Pahalgam incident, terrorists had to be taught a lesson... The whole world has seen the valour and courage of our army. We feel that now terrorists from Pakistan will stop coming to India because Prime Minister Modi has made it clear that if a terrorist incident takes place here, we will treat it as a war,' the BJP told ANI. Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK). This operation was a retaliatory response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam On Sunday, Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai asserted that the tensions between India and Pakistan since the last three to four days are no less than a war. He paid homage to five fallen jawans of the armed forces and civilians who lost their lives due to Pakistani shelling across the Line of Control (LoC). He said that the Pakistan Army might be involved in infiltration across the LoC, trying to harm the army posts. 'The activities that have been going on for the last 3-4 days are no less than a war. Under normal circumstances, the air forces of the countries do not fly in the air and attack each normal circumstances, infiltration across the Line of Control is done by terrorists. We have information that the Pakistani army may also be involved in infiltration across the Line of Control, which is trying to harm our posts,' Ghai said in a presser here. 'I pay my solemn homage to my five fallen colleagues and brothers from the armed forces and civilians who tragically lost their lives in Operation Sindoor. Our hearts go out to the bereaved sacrifices shall always be remembered,' he added. The DGMO warned that India has exercised immense restraint while focusing only on non-escalatory actions. Any threat to the country's sovereignty would be met with decisive force. (ANI)
Hans India
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Zero tolerance for terrorism: Jagdambika Pal on Operation Sindoor
In the aftermath of tensions between India and Pakistan, sparked by the Pahalgam attack, BJP MP Jagdambika Pal came out strongly in support of the Indian government's firm response against cross-border terrorism. Pal hailed the recent military action taken by India, stating, 'We destroyed nine of their major terrorist base camps. In the future, too, we will take this to its logical end. There is zero tolerance for terrorism." He emphasised that India's emergence as a global economic power has enabled it to act decisively despite threats, including warnings of nuclear retaliation from Pakistan. 'We know that war brings destruction and losses. But despite their threats, even of a potential nuclear war, we went ahead and destroyed their terror bases. I believe everyone will welcome this move,' Pal added. Highlighting the need for preparing India's youth to face future security challenges, Pal also underscored the importance of military training. 'No matter how much the world progresses, such challenges will continue to exist. Therefore, in India, it is important that our younger generation receives at least some form of military training.' Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora echoed similar sentiments, applauding the government's firm stance under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 'Firstly, let me congratulate the Government of India… I also pay tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives and to the brave soldiers from the Indian Air Force, the Indian Army, and the Navy who stood firm to protect India at any cost.' Deora also targeted opposition parties for what he termed their inconsistent responses. 'The opposition first was saying we must be more aggressive with Pakistan. Then, when our brave jawans demonstrated their bravery and courage, those same opposition members were saying de-escalate and say no to war. So the opposition's job is to politicise,' he said.
