China grows rice and vegetables on the Tiangong space station

China is gradually becoming an important player in space. It regularly carries out experiments in orbit and uses its own space station the Tiangong 1. The Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) confirms that astronauts aboard their Space Station have successfully grown rice and vegetables. China wants its astronauts to enjoy meals and have access to fresh food. Growing crops in space is totally different from growing crops on Earth. China conducted its experiments with thale cress and rice in an environment of zero gravity. The astronauts proved that it is possible to grow crops in space, far away from Earth. This will have massive implications for long-term exploration missions. China successfully grows rice and vegetables on the Tiangong space station. A researcher at the CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences said - “Crops can only be grown in artificial environments that mimic Earth-like conditions. By comparing plant flowers, we can find crops more adapted to space and microgravity environments.”

The Chinese experiment began on July 29. That is when the astronauts planted the seeds of thal cress and rice on their space station. The team does not have any plan to bring the plants back home until the end of the year. Reports from the CAS mention about satisfactory progress with the plants in the short period since the beginning of the experiment. The stems of the rice seeds have grown 5 to 30 centimeters in length. Thal cress seeds have also sprouted with up to four leaves. This plant represents one specimen of a vegetable. Researchers are excited with the results and believe other crops like rapeseed, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts can successfully develop in space. Two years ago, a Chinese probe took rice seeds to the moon and back. They want to use these to grow new varieties of the staple grain on Earth. Incidentally, the International Space Station have already grown pepper, broccoli and flowers in space.

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The +ves and –ves of online shopping

The world of today is click oriented. Everything is just a click away thanks to the concept of online shopping. Once it used to be the snap of the fingers, today it is a simple click! You want groceries or veggies or any non-veg item, just log in to the relevant app, place the order and pay through plastic money. The item will land up at your doorstep. No need to move out of the comforts of your home. It saves on time, preserves your energy and avoids crowded market places. Similarly for delicious mouthwatering snacks like pizzas, burgers, biriyanis etcetera. The delivery boy of Zomato or Swiggy or Domino's arrives with the items, even at odd hours. These are a few of the +ves for some.

Now the flip side. In the good old days when one had to physically go the market to get his necessities. He would interact with the sellers, exchange greetings with known faces along the way. Such exchanges carried a lot of meaning. They meant – “I am well, so are you.” Then there was the physical touch of fresh vegetables, selecting the best fruits – depending on the size of the pocket. The brief visit to the market in the morning instead of depending to online shopping are a few of the –ves for some. Those in this category are labeled as outdated but they were fortunate to add a zing to their lives.

Vegetables exported from Calcutta rejected by European and Gulf countries because of staleness

Nearly 60 per cent of the 100-odd tonnes of vegetables that had been exported through Calcutta airport to Europe and the Gulf countries during the 11-day window before Puja had been sent back because they reached the destination in stale condition.
This is due to an unserviceable X-Ray scanner at the airport that had been lying defunct for 11 days. It is the only X-ray scanner in the airport's perishable cargo handling and it malfunctioned from September 24 to October 4. AS a result, exporters were forced to keep the vegetables in the non-perishable cargo section for a few hours till they were loaded on flights.
This has been reported in telegraphindia.com dated 19 October 2016.

The rejected cargo consisted of gourds, long beans, papayas, fresh turmeric, ridge gourds and flat beans and is worth nearly Rs 80 lakh. Heathrow airport in London had rejected 15 tonnes of vegetables that had sent before Puja. The state exports approximately 2,500 tonnes of vegetables every year and 30 per cent go to Europe.
Officials of international airlines have indicated that, at times, consignments booked for a flight during the September 24-October 4 window had to be flown out the next day because of the delay related to the X-ray scan. The airport authorities have assured that two new X-ray machines would be installed by the end of November in the perishable cargo unit and, one of these will be on stand-by, thereby such problems will be averted.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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