1. Packmach Asia 2022 held in Mumbai
Tags: place in news Summits
An International conference for processing and packaging “PackMach Asia Expo 2002” is being held in Mumbai from 7-9 December 2022. The “PackMach Asia Expo 2002” is being organized by the Institute of Packaging Machinery Manufacturers of India (IPMMI) and Messe Muenchen India with the support of PHD Chamber of Commerce (PHDCCI) as industry partner.
During the “PackMach Asia Expo 2002 the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises(MSME) organised a buyer seller meet with PHDCCI to promote the export of packaging solution made by MSME companies .
The exhibition showcased new-to-market products and technologies additionally hosting segments such as packaging, processing, logistics and supply chain among others.
2. U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity, COP 15 commences in Montreal, Canada
Tags: Environment place in news Summits International News
The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, known as Conference of Parties (COP-15) commenced in Montreal, Canada on 7 December 2022. The two weeklong conference (7-19 December 2022) was originally scheduled to be held in Kunming, China in October but was shifted to Montreal, Canada due to covid situation in China.
This is the second part of the COP15. The first part was hosted by China on 18 August 2021 virtually and the second part was to be held in a face to face conference but it has been shifted from China to Canada. However the host of the COP15 in Montreal is still China.
The Conference focuses on saving the nature
The Biological diversity conference focuses on nature. It is different from the UNFCCC (United Nation Framework Convention on Climate Change ) organised Conference of Parties(CoP) which focuses on the problem of global warming and climate change due to emission of greenhouse gasses.
The Biological Diversity conference will focus on nature and how to stop and reverse the degradation of our nature by 2030.
Main issues that will be discussed at the Montreal conference are;
- One of the most notable draft targets is to conserve 30% of land and sea areas globally by 2030.
- It will aim to adopt a global framework for biodiversity to halt and reverse losses of the world's plants, animals, and ecosystems.
- Fair and equitable sharing of the benefits of natural genetics resources.
United Nation Convention on Biological Diversity
It is a multilateral treaty which was signed by the countries at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. It came into force on 29 December 1993. At present 194 countries are its signatories.
It has 3 main objectives:
- The conservation of Biological diversity
- The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity
- The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.
Conferences of the Parties/COP
- Countries which have signed the conventions are called Conferences of the Parties. The meeting of the Conferences of the Parties is also called COP
- The first COP -1 was held in Nassau, Bahamas 1994.
- The 14th meeting was held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt (17-19 November 2018)
- It is held after every two years but due to covid it was held in 2021.
3. Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya Inaugurates FAI Annual Seminar at New Delhi
Tags: Summits National News
Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, and Health and Family Welfare, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated Fertiliser Association of India (FAI) Annual Seminar 2022 (Fertilizer Sector by 2030) at New Delhi on 7 December.
Important facts
Arun Singhal, Secretary Department of Fertilizers, Arvind Chaudhary, DG FAI, KS Raju, Chairman FAI and representatives of Industries and other senior officials of the Ministry were also present on the occasion.
Dr Mansukh Mandaviya stated that one of the important components for ensuring food security is fertilizers.
There has been a huge increase in the prices of fertilizers and raw materials during the last three years.
The government has made various reforms and has ensured that fertilizers are made available to Indian farmers at affordable prices.
The Government has increased the amount of fertilizer subsidy from US dollars 10 Billion for the pre-pandemic year 2019-20 to almost US dollars 27 Billion in the current year.
Government has signed various MoUs between Indian fertilizer companies and foreign suppliers to ensure stability in fertilizer supply to farmers.
On this occasion, the Union Minister also released three FAI publications and FAI Data portal.
This portal will create a uniform database and avoid manual input of data by FAI.
Theme of FAI Annual Seminar
Seminar is devoted to the theme ‘Fertilizer Sector by 2030’.
In the seminar there will be a presentation on technologies for green fertilizers, worldwide developments in sustainability area, sustainable agriculture, green financing and optimising cost of logistics.
About Fertiliser Association of India
It is a non-profit and non-trading company representing mainly the fertiliser manufacturers, distributors, importers, equipment manufacturers, research institutes and suppliers of inputs.
The Association was established in 1955 with the objective of bringing together all concerned with the production, marketing and use of fertilisers.
4. NSA Doval meet counterparts from Central Asian countries in Delhi
Tags: Summits National News
NSA Ajit Doval welcomes dignitaries to the first India-Central Asia meeting of the National Security Advisers/Secretaries of Security Councils on 6 December in New Delhi.
Important facts
This was the first time that the NSAs of the Central Asian countries were in the national capital Delhi for a security meeting amid the humanitarian and security situation arising in Afghanistan.
Earlier this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually hosted the first India-Central Asia Summit on 27 January, which was attended by the presidents of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
During the Summit, Prime Minister Modi and the Central Asian Leaders discussed the next steps in taking India-Central Asia relations to new heights.
The leaders had agreed to institutionalise the Summit mechanism by deciding to hold it every two years.
They also agreed on regular meetings of Foreign Ministers, Trade Ministers, Culture Ministers and Security Council Secretaries to prepare a plan of action for the summits.
An India-Central Asia Secretariat will be set up in New Delhi to support the new mechanism.
The leaders discussed far-reaching proposals for cooperation in trade and connectivity, development cooperation, defense and security, cultural and people-to-people contacts.
These include the Round Table on Energy and Connectivity, the Joint Working Group at Senior Official Level on Afghanistan and the use of Chabahar Port, the display of Buddhist exhibitions in Central Asian countries and joint counter-terrorism exercises.
They also agreed on annual 100-member youth delegations from Central Asian countries to India and special courses for Central Asian diplomats.
5. Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurates the National Conference on Soil Health Management for Sustainable Farming in New Delhi
Tags: Summits Person in news
On the occasion of the World Soil Day, Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the National Conference on Soil Health Management for Sustainable Farming on 5 December 2022 in New Delhi. Every year 5 December is observed as World Soil Day.
The Conference was organized by the NITI Aayog in collaboration with GIZ affiliated to the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Germany.
In the conference, Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog Suman Berry, CEO Parameswaran Iyer were also present.
Speaking on the occasion, the Union minister said that due to chemical farming and other reasons, soil fertility is getting eroded and to meet this serious challenge the government is promoting natural farming.
He said that the Central government has launched the National Mission on Natural Farming as a separate scheme with an expenditure of Rs 1,584 crore.
An additional area of 4.78 lakh hectares has been brought under natural farming in 17 states.
Under the Namami Gange programme, the project of natural farming is going on along the banks of the Ganges.
To promote soil management the government has issued more than 22 crore Soil Health Cards to the farmers. Soil Health gives information to farmers about the health of the soil they are using for cultivation of crops. It tells them which types of crops are suited for their soil. It was launched in February 2015.
6. Millets- Smart Nutritious Food Conclave held in New Delhi
Tags: Summits National News
To promote the export of millets, a one-day 'Millets-Smart Nutritive Food' conclave was organised by the government on 5th December in New Delhi.
Important facts
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal was the chief guest of the conclave.
It was organised by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry through its apex agricultural export promotion body, Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).
Its purpose is to promote the export of millets.
This is the first conclave to be held in the pre-launch program of the International Year of Millets - 2023 (IYOM - 2023).
In the Conclave, Farmer Producer Organisations, startups, exporters, producers of millets based value added products participated.
In the conclave, exhibition and B2B meetings were also organized to showcase Indian millets and millet based products.
Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel was the guest of honour at the conclave.
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) announced on March 5, 2021 that 2023 will be observed as the International Year of Millets (IYOM).
The government is currently organising IYOM-2023 at domestic and international level to popularise Indian millets and its value added products across the world and make it a mass movement.
7. India’s Bio-economy has grown 8 times to over $80 billion in 2022: Jitendra Singh
Tags: place in news Economy/Finance Summits
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh has said that India's bio-economy has grown 8 times in the last 8 years under Prime Minister Modi leadership from $10 billion in 2014 to over $80 billion in 2022.
He was speaking at the “International Conference on Emerging Trends in Biosciences and Chemical Technology- 2022” in Jammu on 3 December 2022.
The conference is being organized by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, School of Biotechnology, Jammu in collaboration with CSIR-IIIM Jammu and The Biotech Research Society of India, from 3rd - 5th December 2022.
Dr Jitendra Singh said that Biotech Startups have grown 100 times in the last 8 years from 52 odd startups in 2014 to more than 5300 in 2022. He said, 3 Biotech Startups were incorporated every day in 2021 and a total of 1,128 biotech startups were set up in 2021 alone, signalling the rapid growth of the sector in India.
What is Bio- Economy?
The concept of Bio-Economy was first used in Europe. The term Bio Economy generally refers to an economy using renewable natural resources to produce food, energy, products and services. The important renewable natural resources include the biomass in forests, soil, fields, bodies of water and the sea and freshwater.
The Bio- Economy covers all sectors and systems that rely on biological resources (animals, plants, micro-organisms and derived biomass, including organic waste), their functions and principles.
It includes all economic and industrial sectors that use biological resources and processes to produce food, feed, bio-based products, energy and services.
8. International conference on “J C Bose: A Satyagrahi Scientist” organized in New Delhi
Tags: place in news National Summits Person in news
The Union Ministry of Culture organised an “International conference on the contributions of J C Bose: A Satyagrahi Scientist” at the Inter-University Accelerator Centre, New Delhi on 3 December 2022 on the occasion of 164th birth anniversary of legendary Indian scientist Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose.
The aim of the conference was to acknowledge and popularize the contributions of Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose.
Jagdish Chandra Bose
JC Bose was born on 30 November 1858 in Mymensingh (Bangladesh) and died on 23 November 1937 at Giridih, Jharkhand.
He was a Plant Physiologist and physicist who invented the crescograph, a device for measuring the growth of plants. He for the first time demonstrated that plants have feelings.
He discovered wireless communication and was named the Father of Radio Science by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering.
A crater on the moon is named in his honour.
He established Bose Institute in Kolkata in 1917 which is the first interdisciplinary research centre in Asia.
9. Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane inaugurates the first Coastal Security Conference in Chennai
Tags: place in news Defence Summits Person in news
Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane inaugurated the first Coastal Security Conference organised by the Indian Coast Guard under the aegis of Colombo Security Conclave (CSC) at Chennai on 1 December 2022. Director General, Indian Coast Guard V S Pathania was also present at the occasion.
Defence Secretary called upon the member countries to take concerted measures to counter transnational crimes and address identified areas to make the seas safer.
The two day (1-2 December) conference is being attended by India, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Mauritius.
Theme of the conference: Collaborative Efforts for Coastal Security.
A range of issues including coastal security threat, collaborative response, international maritime law and role of empowered agencies, technological solutions for coastal security etc were discussed at the conference.
Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)
The CSC started as a trilateral maritime cooperation mechanism between India, Maldives and Sri Lanka in 2011. The membership of the Group was enlarged with the addition of Mauritius in March 2022.
The Secretariat of the CSC is located in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
The members have identified five pillars for cooperation, namely-
- Maritime Safety and Security;
- Countering Terrorism and Radicalization;
- Combating Trafficking and Organised Crime;
- Cyber Security, Protection of Critical Infrastructure and Technology and
- Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief.
10. NADA India to host Inclusion Conclave for the first time to focus on athletes with disabilities on 2nd December 2022
India will host an Inclusion Conclave for the first time which will focus on anti-doping education and process for athletes with disabilities. The Conclave organised by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA India) with the help of WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Asia-Oceania office, will be held on 2 December 2022 in New Delhi.
The conclave will focus on developing a policy and legal framework on anti-doping as well as on educating the disable athletes on the anti -doping process and controls.
Doping in sports means the use of unauthorized drugs by the athletes to enhance their performance in sports.
National Anti-Doping Agency or NADA
The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) is the national organization responsible for promoting, coordinating, and monitoring the doping control program in sports in all its forms in the country. It is the member of the World Anti-Doping Agency.
National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) was set up on November 24, 2005 Under the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Director General of NADA: Ritu Sain
Headquarters: New Delhi
