IIT Madras Researchers have booted up ‘MOUSHIK,’ an indigenously-made Microprocessor, that can cater to the rapidly-growing IoT devices, an integral part of Smart Cities of a Digital India.  MOUSHIK is an Indigenous RISC-V Microprocessor and is the third chip of the SHAKTI family, all of which were conceptualized and developed by this Centre and were first time ‘silicon successes.’ The Field Applications of ‘MOUSHIK’ include:

• Smart cards including Credit cards, ID Cards, Debit cards, Travel Cards for Metros and Driving Licenses

• Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs)

• Office Management Systems including Attendance, surveillance cameras and safe locks

• Personalized Health Management Systems

• Consumer Electronics including but not restricted to Washing Machines and Water pump monitoring systems

The Climate Centre for Cities (C-cube) within the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA), instituted by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), has partnered with Integrated Research & Action for Development (IRADe), for developing climate-smart cities across India

Should India achieve its 2030 electric vehicle ambition and targets, it would present a market opportunity worth nearly $206 billion in the course of this decade, says an independent study released by the CEEW Centre for Energy Finance (CEEW-CEF). The study also estimates a cumulative investment need of over $180 billion in vehicle production and charging infrastructure until 2030 to meet India’s EV ambition. While India is yet to officially spell out its electrification targets for 2030, the aspiration as stipulated by NITI Aayog-government’s primary think tank, states that 70% of all commercial cars, 30% of private cars, 40 % of buses, and 80% of two-wheeler (2W) and three-wheeler (3W) sales would be electric by the end of this new decade. 

In a move aimed at a wider adoption of alternative clean fuel for transportation, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways allowed the use of Hydrogen-enriched compressed natural gas (H-CNG, which is an 18 % mix of hydrogen, in CNG engines. The ministry has been notifying various alternative clean fuels. BIS has also developed specifications of H-CNG as a fuel for automotive purposes. Certain CNG engines were tested to understand the emission reduction using H-CNG as compared to ‘neat’ CNG

Department of heavy industries extended the deadline for the localisation of several components under its phased manufacturing programme (PMP) for electric vehicles (EV) from October 1 to April 1 2021, offering a breather to the industry. Compliance with the PMP is a condition for availing subsidies. The move is expected to help the fledgling EV industry as the localisation plans of several companies were derailed due to the disruption from the pandemic.