Morning Current Affairs: 8 January 2018

Uttar Pradesh govt curbs unauthorised loudspeaker use at religious places
The Uttar Pradesh government has banned the unauthorised use of loudspeakers and public address systems at religious places in the state.
The Uttar Pradesh government, in a bid to curb noise pollution caused by loudspeakers, has directed the administration to remove all loudspeakers present in public and religious places that have been installed without permission.
The directives came after the Allahabad High Court, asked the UP government in last month whether the loudspeakers or public address systems installed at mosques, temples, churches, gurdwaras, etc., were installed after obtaining written permission from the concerned authorities.

Defence innovation hub to come up in Coimbatore
As per the Defence Ministry, a Defence Innovation Centre would be set up in Coimbatore by industry body CODISSIA to assist small industries in manufacturing components for the defence sector. The Defence Ministry would release Rs. 20 crore as an initial funding to the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association (CODISSIA) to set up the innovation centre, she told reporters here after discussions with the association office-bearers.

International kite festival begins in Gujarat
The International Kite Festival was inaugurated by Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at the Sabarmati Riverfront in Gujarat. Since 1989, Ahmedabad has hosted the International Kite Festival as part of the official celebration of Uttarayan, which brings kite makers and flyers from all over the world to demonstrate their unique creations. The festival will end on January 14.

BRPL's solar rooftop consumer programme launched
Aiming to promote clean energy, BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL) launched the "country's first" solar rooftop consumer aggregation programme for residential buildings, which seeks to provide installations at a single point for an entire apartment complex.
Taking its commitment to promote renewable to the next level, BSES Rajdhani Power Limited (BRPL), in partnership with United States Agency for International Development (USAID) - PACE-D and Indo-German Collaboration (GIZ) launched the ambitious initiative.