1. Govt forms cabinet secretary-led panel to monitor Mission Karmayogi
Tags: committee National News
Anapex panel comprising seven secretaries has been constituted under the leadership of Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba to oversee the implementation of the Karmayogi programme, the government's ambitious mission for training government employees.
An overview of the news
It is the coordination committee of the Cabinet Secretariat that will oversee Mission Karmayogi.
It will review the progress of the program and guide the government to train and upgrade the competencies of all civil servants to match the role.
A Cabinet Secretariat Coordination Unit (CSCU) was recently set up under the National Program for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB) or Mission Karmayogi.
The CSCU will have nominees from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), Secretary (Coordination), Cabinet Secretariat, Department of Personnel and Training Secretary, Home Secretary, Expenditure Secretary, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Secretary, Higher Education Secretary and Revenue Secretary as members.
About Mission Karmayogi Scheme
Mission Karmayogi Yojana was launched on 2nd September 2020.
This scheme is operated under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The main objective of the Mission Karmayogi scheme is to develop the capabilities of government employees.
Under the Mission Karmayogi scheme, a budget of Rs 510.86 crore has been set by the government for a period of 5 years for about 46 lakh central employees.
For the successful operation of the scheme iGOT Karmayogi platform has also been formed through which online contact is made available.
2. Pangong Tso lake marathon registered as world's highest Frozen Lake Marathon in the Guinness Book
Tags: National National News
The Frozen Lake Marathon at Pangong Tso Lake in the Union Territory of Ladakh has been officially included in the Guinness Book of World Records as the Highest Frozen Lake Marathon for the first time.
An overview of the news
It was organised on 20 February at the world-famous Pangong Lake, situated at an altitude of 4,350 metres above sea level.
The Frozen Lake Marathon is being organised for the first time in the country and is considered to be one of the toughest because of the high altitude and cold.
The theme of this marathon is 'The Last Run' and it is organised with the aim of creating awareness about climate change in Ladakh and promoting border tourism.
It was organised under the Vibrant Village Program to accelerate the pace of development in border villages.
The 21 km long marathon that started at Luking village was organised by the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councilin association with the Adventure Sports Foundation of Ladakh.
Pangong Tso lake
It is a long narrow, deep landlocked lake situated at an altitude of over 14,000 feet in the Himalayas.
The western end is located 54 km to the south-east of Leh.
This salt water lake freezes in winter.
It is about 135 km long, of which more than two-thirds is under Chinese control.
The Line of Actual Control passes through the middle of this lake.
3. Pangong Tso lake marathon registered as world's highest Frozen Lake Marathon in the Guinness Book
Tags: National National News
The Frozen Lake Marathon at Pangong Tso Lake in the Union Territory of Ladakh has been officially included in the Guinness Book of World Records as the Highest Frozen Lake Marathon for the first time.
An overview of the news
It was organised on 20 February at the world-famous Pangong Lake, situated at an altitude of 4,350 metres above sea level.
The Frozen Lake Marathon is being organised for the first time in the country and is considered to be one of the toughest because of the high altitude and cold.
The theme of this marathon is 'The Last Run' and it is organised with the aim of creating awareness about climate change in Ladakh and promoting border tourism.
It was organised under the Vibrant Village Program to accelerate the pace of development in border villages.
The 21 km long marathon that started at Luking village was organised by the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Councilin association with the Adventure Sports Foundation of Ladakh.
Pangong Tso lake
It is a long narrow, deep landlocked lake situated at an altitude of over 14,000 feet in the Himalayas.
The western end is located 54 km to the south-east of Leh.
This salt water lake freezes in winter.
It is about 135 km long, of which more than two-thirds is under Chinese control.
The Line of Actual Control passes through the middle of this lake.
4. India and Singapore launch joint digital payment mechanism
Tags: Economy/Finance International News
India and Singapore on 21 February launched a joint digital payment mechanism to enable residents of both countries to make easier and faster cross-border transactions.
An overview of the news
The facility was jointly launched by Shaktikanta Das, Governor of the Reserve Bank of India and Ravi Menon, Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Singapore's PayNow have entered into an agreement in this regard to facilitate these transactions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong participated in the virtual launch of Real Time Payment Linkage.
This will add a new chapter in fintech connectivity. Now people can make cost effective and fast money transfers from their mobile phones.
This real-time payment system will help the Indian diaspora in Singapore, especially migrant workers and students.
5. Union Minister of Food Processing Industry inaugurates India Pavillion at Dubai
Tags: International News
India Pavilion’ at Gulfood, Dubai was inaugurated by Pashupati Kumar Paras, Minister of Food Processing Industries, Government of India in the presence of Sunjay Sudhir, Ambassador of India to the UAE on 20 February.
An overview of the news
The 'India Pavilion' is the largest pavilion at Gulfood 2023.
The 'India Pavilion' has 306 companies, including leading SMEs and startups, participating on one platform.
Indian companies are exhibiting in all sectors of Gulffood including beverages, pulses, cereals, food, meat and poultry, dairy, fats and oils etc.
Major Indian companies participating include Amul, MDH, Parle, Rasna, Bikanerwala, Bikaji, Everest Foods, Markfed, Safal and Red Fort.
In the 'India Pavilion', special promotion and branding of millets superfoods will be done as the United Nations celebrates the International Year of Millets 2023.
APEDA will sign an MoU with Lulu Group International for in-store promotion of millets in its supermarkets in the UAE.
Food Processing Industry of India
India is the second largest producer of fruits and vegetables, rice, fish and tea.
India ranks first in terms of production of milk, millets, spices, pulses.
India has agricultural exports of US$ 46.1 billion and 23 operational mega food parks and 12 agro-processing clusters.
India has shown renewed interest in millets because of their nutritional value and sustainability.
6. India to host Permanent Mission Roundtables at UN Head Quarter as Chair of G- 20
Tags: National National News
India as the Chair of the G-20 will host the Permanent Mission Roundtable at the UN Headquarters ahead of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit to be held in New York this year.
An overview of the news
A series of round table conferences have been lined up for the next few months.
A roundtable titled ‘Gandhian Trusteeship: A panel discussion on Sustainable Lifestyles and Enduring Pace’ will be held.
This will be followed on March 9 by a roundtable on 'The world we women and girls want: Technology-driven social and economic advancement'.
On March 16, a roundtable on ‘Grassroots leadership and transformation: Charting the path of empowerment through technology and skill development’ will take place.
A special program has been planned to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar on 14th April.
During the event, the focus will be on India's growth story and achievements.
The 2023 SDG Summit will be held in September 2023 under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly.
7. India to host Permanent Mission Roundtables at UN Head Quarter as Chair of G- 20
Tags: National National News
India as the Chair of the G-20 will host the Permanent Mission Roundtable at the UN Headquarters ahead of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Summit to be held in New York this year.
An overview of the news
A series of round table conferences have been lined up for the next few months.
A roundtable titled ‘Gandhian Trusteeship: A panel discussion on Sustainable Lifestyles and Enduring Pace’ will be held.
This will be followed on March 9 by a roundtable on 'The world we women and girls want: Technology-driven social and economic advancement'.
On March 16, a roundtable on ‘Grassroots leadership and transformation: Charting the path of empowerment through technology and skill development’ will take place.
A special program has been planned to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar on 14th April.
During the event, the focus will be on India's growth story and achievements.
The 2023 SDG Summit will be held in September 2023 under the auspices of the United Nations General Assembly.
8. Eknath Shinde-led Sena faction gets ‘bow and arrow’ symbol
Tags: National News
-01.png)
The Election Commission of India on 17 February ordered the Eknath Shinde faction to be renamed the Shiv Sena, the commission also said that the arrow and bow would be retained as election symbols by Eknath Shinde's party.
An overview of the news
Both the Shiv Sena factions (Eknath Shinde and Uddhav Thackeray) are fighting for the party's bow and arrow symbol after Shinde (the current chief minister of Maharashtra) rebelled against Thackeray last year.
The Election Commission, in its 78-page order, said the current constitution of Shiv Sena is "undemocratic".
Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister of Maharashtra before Shinde rebelled and took over in June 2022.
Both the factions are fighting to keep the original name and symbol of the party to represent the "real" Shiv Sena.
Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray said the Election Commission's order recognizing the Eknath Shinde faction as the real Shiv Sena was "dangerous for democracy", and he would challenge it in the Supreme Court.
How does EC decide who gets the symbol?
The question of a split in a political party outside the legislature is decided by para 15 of the Emblems Order, 1968.
Accordingly, the Election Commission of India (ECI) may take into account all available facts and circumstances and conduct a majority test.
The decision of the Election Commission shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups that have emerged after partition.
This applies to disputes between recognized national and state parties.
For splits in registered but unrecognised parties, the Election Commission usually advises the two factions to resolve their differences internally or approach the court.
Election Commission of India
It is a permanent and independent body established by the Constitution of India to ensure free and fair elections in India.
It was established as per the Constitution on 25 January 1950.
It administers the elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Assemblies, State Legislative Councils and the President and Vice President of the country.
It has nothing to do with elections to panchayats and municipalities in the states. For this the Constitution of India provides for a separate State Election Commission.
Basically there is only one Chief Election Commissioner in the Election Commission.
Currently it consists of two Election Commissioners.
The President appoints Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.
They have a tenure of six years, or up to the age of 65 years.
9. India, Uzbekistan hold 4th Joint Military Exercise- ‘Dustlik’
Tags: Defence National News
As part of the military-to-military exchange program between the Indian Army and the Uzbekistan Army, the fourth edition of the training exercise Dastlik (2023) began on 20 February.
An overview of the news
The exercise will be held at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand till March 5, 2023.
45-45 soldiers from both countries will participate in the exercise.
The Indian contingent in this bilateral exercise will be represented by the 14th Battalion The Garhwal Rifles, which is part of the Western Command.
The Uzbekistan Army will be represented by troops from the North Western Military District of the Uzbekistan Army.
Its purpose is to give impetus to the ever-growing military and diplomatic relations between the two countries.
This exercise shows the strong resolve of both the countries to combat terrorism.
Previous Exercises- ‘Dustlik’
The first edition of this exercise was conducted in November 2019 in Uzbekistan.
The second edition was held in India in 2021 from 10 to 19 March at Chaubatia, Ranikhet.
The third edition of the exercise was conducted from March 22 to 29 in 2022 in Yangiyarik district of Uzbekistan.
Significance
Keeping in mind the Belt and Road Initiative of China, this exercise is very important.
Both the armies share counter-terrorist operations in mountain/rural/urban scenarios under the UN mandate.
Military diplomacy to connect with Central Asia.
10. 18th World Security Congress
Tags: Summits National News
The 18th World Security Congress is being organised by the International Union of Railways (UIC) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) from 21 to 23 February in Jaipur.
An overview of the news
The 18th edition of this Congress is focused on the theme of "Railway Safety Strategy: Responses and Vision for the Future".
It will be attended by concerned officials from UIC, partner international organisations, Indian Railways, RPF and senior police officers from India besides security heads from railway organisations across the globe.
The Congress is divided into 4 sessions, which include the topics "Safety of critical assets and goods", "Human safety approaches", "Best railway safety equipment and practices around the world" and "Vision 2030".
Earlier, in 2006 and 2015, RPF India successfully organized and hosted the International UIC World Security Congress in New Delhi.
RPF Director General Sanjay Chander IPS has taken over as the Chairman of the International UIC Security Forum from July 2022 to July 2024.
About International Union of Railways (UIC)
The Union Internationale des Chemins de Fer (UIC) or International Union of Railways (UIC) is headquartered in Paris, France.
It is a professional association which has been in existence since 1922.
It represents the railway sector and promotes rail transport around the world.
UIC serves on the mission of promoting interoperability and standardisation of rail transport, increasing cooperation and sharing of best practices, supporting members in new business and new areas of activities and proposing improved technical and environmental performance of rail transport.
About Railway Protection Force of India
This is a prime security and Law Enforcement Agency in the field of Railway Security in India.
It was formed in 1957 for better protection of railway property.
It has proven itself with the additional roles of passenger safety and passenger convenience and protection of railway property.
Director General of RPF - Sanjay Chander
