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By admin: June 24, 2022

14th summit of BRICS countries organised

Tags: Popular Summits

The 14th BRICS Summit was held in virtual mode on 23rd June, 2022 which was presided over by the President of China, Xi Jinping.

• During this meeting, the Heads of State discussed inter-BRICS cooperation in areas such as trade, terrorism, traditional medicine, health, environment, reform of multilateral institutions and combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The summit was attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro.

• The BRICS grouping has become a forum for all developing countries to discuss and deliberate on issues of common concern.

• Ahead of the summit, China held several preliminary meetings, including the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Meeting and the National Security Advisors' meeting.

• The BRICS Summit 2022 was held under the theme “Foster High-Quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development” . 

• The 13th BRICS summit was held in India in the year 2021 which was presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

• India hosted the BRICS summit for the third time in 2021 after 2012 and 2016.

• About BRICS

• The full form of BRICS is Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

• Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill coined the term BRIC (without South Africa) in 2001.

• He claimed that by 2050, the four BRIC economies would dominate the global economy by 2050.

• South Africa was included in the list in 2010.

• The presidency of the Forum is rotated annually among the members.

• BRICS accounts for about 40% of the world’s population. 

• It accounts for 30% of the world's GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

• In the year 2014, during the 6th BRICS Summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, the BRICS leaders signed an agreement to establish a New Development Bank (NDB).

J&K to host G20 summit in 2023

Tags: Latest Summits

The summit of the G-20, an influential grouping of the world's major economies, will be organised by the Government of India in 2023 in Jammu and Kashmir next year.

• 20 countries including China, USA, Canada, Germany, Turkey will participate in this conference.

• India will chair the G20 from December 1, 2022 and will host the G20 leaders' summit for the first time in the year 2023.

• The Government of India has approved the formation of a committee for all coordination of the G-20 Summit to be held in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The chairman of this committee will be the Principal Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department of the Union Territory.

• Along with this, the members of the committee will include Commissioner Secretary (Transport), Administrative Secretary (Tourism), Administrative Secretary (Hospitality and Protocol) and Administrative Secretary (Culture).

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been leading India's representation at the G20 summit since 2014.

• India has been a part of the G-20 group since 1999. At the same time, from 1 December 2021 to 30 November 2024, India is also a part of the G-20 Troika.

• Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal was appointed Sherpa of India for G20.

• G-20 Group 

• Group of 20 or G-20 is a multilateral organisation which was set up in 1999.

• It consists of the world's major developed and developing countries.

• It consists of 19 countries and the European Union. The member countries are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.

• The presidency of the G20 rotates every year among its members, with the country that holds the presidency working together with its predecessor and successor, also known as Troika, to ensure the continuity of the agenda. Currently Italy, Indonesia, and India are the Troika countries.

• Italy was the President of the G-20 in 2021. Indonesia is the President for 2022 and India will be the President in 2023. 

• The first Summit meeting of the leaders of the G-20 was held in 2008 at Washington, United States.

• The G20 has no permanent secretariat.

• G-20 members constitute 60% of the world population, 80% of the World economy and 75% of world trade.

Passport service day

Tags: Important Days

Every year, Passport Seva Divas is celebrated on 24th June.

• The day is observed to commemorate the enactment of the Passport Act on June 24, 1967.

• On Passport Seva Divas, the Government of India clarified that the process of production of chip-enabled e-passports is underway which will help strengthen the security of Indian travel to a great extent.

• The personal details of the applicants will be stored in the chips and they will be digitally signed.

• It will have 64 KB of memory space. About 30 international trips will be stored in this chip.

• Passport act

• The Passport Act describes the procedures for obtaining an Indian passport.

• This Act replaced the British Indian Passport and Passport Act, 1920.

• As per Article 9 of the Indian Constitution, this Act does not allow dual citizenship.

• According to this act, if a person has acquired foreign citizenship, he has to surrender his passport.

• The passports to be issued under the Passport Act are as follows -

• official passport

• ordinary passport

• diplomatic passport

• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

• India ranks 84th in the list of the world's strongest passports.

• According to the 'Henley Passport Index', people holding an Indian passport can travel to 59 countries without a prior visa.

• According to the 'Henley Passport Index', the most powerful passports are those of Singapore and Japan. People holding passports of these two countries can enter about 192 countries without a visa.

• At the bottom of this index is the passport of Afghanistan.

World Bank approves project to promote rainfed farming in Uttarakhand

Tags: National News

The World Bank has approved a Rs 1,000 crore project to take rainfed farming to new heights in the hilly regions of Uttarakhand.

• The Climate Responsive Rain-fed Farming Project will be implemented by the Watershed Department of Uttarakhand.

• The Uttarakhand government had proposed the project which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions for funding by the World Bank.

• The project will be financed by the World Bank.

• Additionally, it will encourage eco-friendly agricultural practices so that youth and farmers have an economically viable option.

• About World Bank

• The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the International Monetary Fund were established together in 1944 during the Bretton Woods Conference in New Hampshire, USA.

• The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development is also called the World Bank.

• At present, 189 countries are members of the World Bank.

• Its headquarter is in Washington DC, the capital of America.

• The World Bank Group is a group of the following five international organisations that provide economic-financial assistance and financial advice to member countries-

• International Bank for Reconstruction and Development

• International Finance Corporation

• international development association

• International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes

• Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency

• President- David Malpass 

• CEO- Anshula Kant 

PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Centre for Brain Research at IISC Bengaluru

Tags: National

The Centre for Brain Research (CBR) has been inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.

• IMPORTANT FACTS -

• The Centre for Brain Research is a one-of-a-kind research facility focused on conducting groundbreaking research to provide evidence-based public health interventions for the management of age-related brain disorders.

• The Centre for Brain Research was established as a non-profit, autonomous research organisation.

•   It was a generous gift from Gopalakrishnan and his wife Sudha Gopalakrishnan which is funded by donations made by them and research grants from several grant agencies to conduct specific projects.

• Gopalakrishnan has provided funds for the construction of a state-of-the-art building.

• During the event, the Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of Bagchi Parthasarathy Multispecialty Hospital which is an 832 bedded hospital.

• Bagchi Parthasarathy Multispecialty Hospital will be developed at IISc Bengaluru campus.

• This hospital will help in integrating science, medicine and engineering into a prestigious institution.

India-Nepal India gaurav Tourist Train

Tags: Popular National News

The first India-Nepal Bharat Gaurav tourism train has been flagged off from Delhi's Safdarjung Railway Station.

• This tourist train will connect India and Nepal for the first time.

• 500 Indian tourists are on board this train.

• The Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train between India and Nepal will provide an opportunity to people across the country to visit the country's architectural, historical and cultural sites.

• The first journey of this train (Ramayana Circuit) covered the religious destination of Janakpur (in Nepal) apart from other popular destinations like Ayodhya, Nandigram, Varanasi, Sitamarhi, Chitrakoot, Prayagraj, Hampi, Panchavati (Nashik), Rameshwaram and Bhadrachalam.

• Bharat Gaurav Trains is an attempt to showcase the rich spiritual, cultural and historical heritage of India to its people.

• This unique idea was conceived by the Ministry of Railways.

• This train will return to Delhi after completing an 18 days journey.

• It will cover a distance of about 8000 km in the entire Ramayana tour.

• The theme of Bharat Gaurav Train is 'Dekho Apna Desh'.

• IRCTC has fixed a fee of Rs 62370/- per person for this 18 days journey.

• About Bharat Gaurav Scheme

• In November 2021, Indian Railways introduced Bharat Gaurav trains which will be operated by private operators and will run on theme-based circuits.

• Through this scheme operators have the “Right of Use” of railway rakes and infrastructure. 

• Under this scheme, private players and tour operators can buy trains on lease from the Railways and operate them on any circuit of their choice and decide the fares, route and quality of services.

• Till now, railways used to operate the passenger section and goods section but now the tourism section has also been added under this scheme.

• The scheme has been developed after extensive discussions with several state governments including Odisha, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and stakeholders.

• The first train to be operated between Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) and Shirdi (Maharashtra) by a private operator under the "Bharat Gaurav" scheme was flagged off on June 14.

IOC unveils indoor solar cook top Surya Nutan

Tags: Science and Technology

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has unveiled its patented indigenous solar cook top, "Surya Nutan".

• It is a patented product designed and developed by IndianOil's R&D Centre, Faridabad.

• Surya Nutan will help drastically reduce India's CO2 emissions and protect our citizens from the uncertainty of high international fossil fuel prices.

• The product was showcased at the residence of Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Puri.

• About Surya Nutan -

• Surya Nutan is an indoor solar cooking system installed at one location, rechargeable and always connected to the kitchen.

• Surya Nutan operates in hybrid mode, which means it can run on both solar and auxiliary power sources simultaneously. The solar cook top's insulation design minimises radiative and conductive heat loss.

• Surya Nutan's insulation design minimises radiation and conductive heat loss.

• Surya Nutan is available in three different models: Surya Nutan's premium model (Breakfast + Lunch + Dinner) can cook a complete meal for a family of four.

• Surya Nutan is a modular system and can be designed in different sizes as per the requirement.

• The starting cost of the product is Rs 12,000 for the base model and Rs 23,000 for the top model. However, costs are expected to come down significantly with economies of scale.

• Presently, pilot projects are being conducted at around 60 locations like Leh (Ladakh) to explore various operational and commercial aspects related to its application.

• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

• About Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) -

• Indian Oil Corporation Limited is the largest integrated oil refining and marketing public sector company of the Government of India.

• Indian Oil has been accorded Maharatna status by the government.

• Establishment- 1959

• Headquarters- New Delhi, India

• President- Shrikant Madhav Vaidya

Union Minister Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the National Conference on Bajra

Tags: Summits

The Union Minister of State for Food Processing Industries, Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the National Conference on Bajra in New Delhi.

• The theme of the conference is 'The Future Super Food for India'.

• The conference has been organised by industry body ASSOCHAM in association with the Ministry of Food Processing Industries.

• The conference has been organised to discuss the opportunities and challenges of ensuring food and nutrition security.

• The production of coarse cereals in the country has increased to 17.96 million tonnes in 2020-21 from 14.52 million tonnes in 2015-16 and the production of bajra (pearl millet) has also increased to 10.86 million tonnes in the same period.

• Bajra is one of the oldest food items of the country which can be grown in dry areas or even on low fertility lands.

• It is known as the superfood of India.

• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

• India is the 5th largest exporter of millet in the world.

• The year 2023 will be the International Year of Millet which will promote value creation and sustainable products in food choices.

• Major millet producing states in India include Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

• Rajasthan is the largest producer of millet.

IPS Dinkar Gupta appointed as Director General of National Investigation Agency (NIA)

Tags: Person in news

The Personnel Ministry has appointed senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Dinkar Gupta as the Director General of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

• Dinkar Gupta is a 1987 batch IPS officer of Punjab cadre.

• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved his appointment as Director General of NIA till March 31, 2024, i.e. the date of his retirement.

• Dinkar Gupta has held the post of DGP of Punjab.

• Gupta was awarded two Police Gallantry Medals in 1992 and 1994.

• He was also awarded the Police Medal for Meritorious Services and the President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service (2010) by the President.

• About National Investigation Agency (NIA)-

• Its real name is National Investigation Agency, commonly known as National Investigation Agency. It was constituted under the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008.

• Realizing the need for a central agency to investigate terrorism and some other criminal acts after the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack, the NIA was formed.

• It acts as the central counter-terrorism law enforcement agency.

• The cases are assigned to the NIA by the Central Government in accordance with Section VI of the NIA Act, 2008.

• It is headquartered in New Delhi and has branches in Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur and Jammu.

• The founding director general of NIA was Radha Vinod Raju.

Announcement to ban single use plastic (SUP) from July 1

Tags: Popular National News

Recently, the central government has prepared a list of single-use plastic items that will be banned from July 1, 2022.

• The manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of notified single-use plastics, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene, shall be prohibited with effect from July 1, 2022.

• A gazette notification was issued in 2021 by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and the ban was announced.

• Single use plastic

• Single use plastic refers to plastic items that are used once and are discarded.

• Single-use plastic products such as plastic bags, straws, coffee bags, soda and water bottles, and plastics used mostly for food packaging.

• single use plastic parts

• According to the Minderoo Foundation's 2021 report, single-use plastics account for a third of global production, with 98% being made up of fossil fuels.

• Single-use plastics are responsible for most of the 130 million metric tons of plastic waste globally in 2019, all of which is burned, landfilled or released directly into the environment.

• Single use plastic waste generation in india

• The report found that India is among the top 100 countries producing single-use plastic waste - rank 94 (the top three are Singapore, Australia and Oman).

• With domestic production of 11.8 million metric tonnes annually and imports of 2.9 MMT, India's net production of single use plastic waste is 5.6 MMT and per capita production is 4 kg.

• Which items will be banned in India?

• The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has announced a ban on items like earbuds, candy, balloon sticks and ice cream sticks.

• Cutlery items including plates, glasses, cups, spoons, knives, forks, trays will also be banned.

• It has also been reported to ban sweets cans, invitation cards, cigarette packs, PVC banners of less than 100 microns as well as polystyrene for decoration.

• ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

• Plastic ban countries

• Bangladesh- Bangladesh became the first country to ban thin plastic bags in the year 2002.

• New Zealand- New Zealand became the latest country to ban plastic bags in July 2019

• China- China issued a ban on plastic bags with a phased implementation in the year 2020

• US - Eight states in the US have banned single-use plastic bags, beginning with California in 2014.