1. Union Agriculture Minister lays foundation stone of NSC organic seed farm in Morena, MP
Tags: National State News National News
The Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar, on 25 September laid the foundation stone of an organic seed farm of the National Seed Corporation (NSC) at Morena.
Important facts
The Central Government has decided to set up a farm at Morena (MP) for the production of organic seeds by reclamation of the land in the rough area.
For this, the Government of Madhya Pradesh has allotted 885.34 hectares of land in 4 villages of Morena (Gadora, Jakhauna, Rithora Khurd and Gorkha) to the Union Agriculture Ministry.
This land is a rough area of Chambal and farming was not possible due to the ravines in the area.
On completion of this, new organic seeds of oilseeds will be available to the farmers of Madhya Pradesh.
With this farm farmers will be introduced to modern technology, they will get high yielding seeds and their socio-economic status will improve.
De-notification of 207 hectares of land
He said that the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has taken a major decision to recommend de-notification of 207 hectares of land in the National Wildlife Sanctuary of Chambal.
Due to de-notification, this area will be outside the sanctuary area, due to which sand will be available at cheap prices for construction/development works at the local level and this will also create new employment opportunities.
National Seed Corporation (NSC)
NSC is a Schedule ‘B’-Miniratna Category-I company.
It is wholly owned by the Government of India under the administrative control of Department of Agriculture Cooperation & Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
It was established in March-1963 to undertake production of foundation and certified seeds.
Presently, it is producing certified seeds of about 621 varieties of 80 crops.
2. INS Sunayna in Seychelles
Tags: Defence International News
INS Sunayna entered Port Victoria Seychelles on 24 Sep 22 to participate in the annual training exercise Operation Southern Readiness of Combined Maritime Forces (CMF).
Important facts
This reaffirms the commitment of the Indian Navy to maritime security in the Indian Ocean region.
It also marks the first participation of an Indian Navy ship in the CMF exercise.
The ship is scheduled to participate as an associate participant in the capacity building exercise organized by the CMF.
Representative delegations from USA, Italy, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and ships from UK, Spain and India are participating in the joint training exercise.
INS Sunayna
It is the second Saryu-class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy.
It was designed and constructed indigenously by the Goa Shipyard Limited.
It is designed for fleet operations, coastal and offshore patrol, maritime surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communication, and offshore asset and maintenance work.
In June 2018, it was deployed as part of "Operation Nistar", a HADR mission to evacuate Indian citizens from cyclone-hit Socotra islands.
About Combined Maritime Forces (CMF)
It is a multi-national naval partnership to promote security, stability and prosperity across approximately 3.2 million square miles of international waters.
Its main focus areas are counter-narcotics, counter-smuggling, suppressing piracy, encouraging regional cooperation etc.
3. Significant positive impact on India-UAE trade from India-UAE CEPA
Tags: International Relations International News
The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) that came into force on 1 May 2022 is creating a significant positive impact on India-UAE trade.
Important facts
Indian exports to the UAE, excluding petroleum products, grew from US$ 5.17 billion during June-August 2021 to US$ 5.92 billion during June-August 2022.
It denotes an increase of 14% of Indian exports.
India’s global non-petroleum exports during the same period (Jun-Aug 2022) grew by 3% on an annual basis.
This implies that the growth rate of India's non-petroleum exports to UAE is about 5 times that of India's non-petroleum exports to the world.
According to the Commerce and Industry Ministry Indian imports from the UAE during the same period also grew from 5.56 billion dollar to 5.61 billion dollar.
India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA)
It was signed on 18 February 2022, during the India-UAE Virtual Summit.
It came into force on 1 May 2022.
It provides for an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve trade between the two countries.
CEPA is a type of free trade agreement that covers trade in services and investment and negotiations on other areas of economic partnership.
4. Significant positive impact on India-UAE trade from India-UAE CEPA
Tags: International Relations International News
The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) that came into force on 1 May 2022 is creating a significant positive impact on India-UAE trade.
Important facts
Indian exports to the UAE, excluding petroleum products, grew from US$ 5.17 billion during June-August 2021 to US$ 5.92 billion during June-August 2022.
It denotes an increase of 14% of Indian exports.
India’s global non-petroleum exports during the same period (Jun-Aug 2022) grew by 3% on an annual basis.
This implies that the growth rate of India's non-petroleum exports to UAE is about 5 times that of India's non-petroleum exports to the world.
According to the Commerce and Industry Ministry Indian imports from the UAE during the same period also grew from 5.56 billion dollar to 5.61 billion dollar.
India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA)
It was signed on 18 February 2022, during the India-UAE Virtual Summit.
It came into force on 1 May 2022.
It provides for an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve trade between the two countries.
CEPA is a type of free trade agreement that covers trade in services and investment and negotiations on other areas of economic partnership.
5. Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry (MoHUAM) launch Swachh Toycathon
Tags: National Government Schemes National News
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On 26 September, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched Swachh Toycathon, a unique competition to make toys from waste.
Important facts
The competition will be open to individuals and groups to bring innovation to the design of toys using dry waste.
The focus will be on the design of those toys, on the basis of which a large number of toys can be made.
These toys will have to comply with the minimum safety standards.
The competition will be hosted on MyGov innovate India portal.
Center for Creative Learning IIT-Gandhinagar will be the knowledge partner of this competition.
Due to the economic development, income growth and many innovations in the country, the demand for toys has increased tremendously.
The National Toy Action Plan-2020 has been launched to establish India as a global toy hub and promote traditional handmade toys.
National Toy Action Plan-2020
The government has prepared a National Toy Action Plan involving 14 ministries to make the domestic toy industry competitive.
It aims to make India self-reliant in the toy sector and increase the presence of domestic toys in the global market.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and 14 Ministries are implementing various aspects of the scheme.
6. Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry (MoHUAM) launch Swachh Toycathon
Tags: National Government Schemes National News
On 26 September, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched Swachh Toycathon, a unique competition to make toys from waste.
Important facts
The competition will be open to individuals and groups to bring innovation to the design of toys using dry waste.
The focus will be on the design of those toys, on the basis of which a large number of toys can be made.
These toys will have to comply with the minimum safety standards.
The competition will be hosted on MyGov innovate India portal.
Center for Creative Learning IIT-Gandhinagar will be the knowledge partner of this competition.
Due to the economic development, income growth and many innovations in the country, the demand for toys has increased tremendously.
The National Toy Action Plan-2020 has been launched to establish India as a global toy hub and promote traditional handmade toys.
National Toy Action Plan-2020
The government has prepared a National Toy Action Plan involving 14 ministries to make the domestic toy industry competitive.
It aims to make India self-reliant in the toy sector and increase the presence of domestic toys in the global market.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and 14 Ministries are implementing various aspects of the scheme.
7. Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurates ‘Arogya Manthan’ to mark the anniversary of flagship health scheme of the government
Tags: place in news National Government Schemes Person in news
The Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the two days (25-26 September 2022) Arogya Manthan 2022 programme in New Delhi on 25 September 2022.
The Arogya Manthan has been organised by the National Health Authority (NHA) to celebrate the 4 years of Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) and 1 year of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
NHA under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare is the implementing agency of AB PM-JAY and ABDM.
Speaking on the occasion the minister said that presently 4.5 lakh Ayushman cards are being issued per day and the target is to increase it to 10 lakh Ayushman Cards every day. Ayushman card is issued to the beneficiaries of the AB PM-JAY.
Achievements of the AB PM-JAY
The minister released the annual report, National Health Authority 2021. The main points of the report regarding the two health schemes are as follows:
- The scheme is presently being implemented in 33 states and Union Territory;
- Over 19 crore cards have been issued to the individuals till date of which 52 per cent of them were males and 48 per cent females.
- Under the AB PM-JAY scheme, 3.8 crore of patients were admitted in hospitals across the country with 46% of them in public hospitals and 54% in private hospitals. As much as 52% of these patients were males and 48% were females.
Performance of the states in enrolling patients under AB PM-JAY
- Goa, Kerala, Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra were the top five states in which empanelled hospitals admitted the highest number of patients as per the AB PM-JAY.
- Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Manipur and Mizoram were the top Northeast/Hilly states.
- Puducherry, Chandigarh, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep and Ladakh were the top Union Territories.
Performance of the ABDM
The health minister also said that more than 24 crore ABHA (Ayushman Bharat Health Account) has been generated in India.
One crore health records have been linked digitally under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
National Health Protection Scheme or Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY)
- Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23rd September, 2018 in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
- It is the largest health assurance scheme in the world which provides a health cover of Rs. 5 lakhs per eligible family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization.
Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM)
- The Prime Minister launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) via video conferencing on 27th September 2021.
- It aims to provide a health ID (now called as ABHA) to every citizen that will also work as their health account, to which personal health records can be linked and viewed with the help of a mobile application.
- The data will be available to doctors, hospitals, health insurance companies so that a seamless health care is provided to the patients.
- It is voluntary and no citizen can be forced to join it.
Chief Executive Officer of National Health Authority : Dr Ram Sewak Sharma
8. Government of India’s flagship programme ’Make In India’ completes 8 years
Tags: National Economy/Finance Government Schemes
The flagship program of the Government of India, 'Make in India’ completed 8 years on 25 September 2022. The programme was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014 to transform the country into a leading global manufacturing and investment destination.
The initiative is an effort of the government to attract foreign investors to invest in India.
Giving the accomplishment of the Make in India Initiative the Union Commerce Ministry highlighted the following accomplishment of the programme.
- Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme across 14 key manufacturing sectors, was launched in 2020-21 as a big boost to Make in India initiative. The PLI Scheme incentivises domestic production in strategic growth sectors where India has comparative advantage.
- Recognising the importance of semiconductors in the world economy, the Government of India has launched a USD 10 billion incentive scheme to build a semiconductor, display, design ecosystem in India.
- The Ministry highlighted that India's export of toys increased to Rs 2601.5 crore in 2021-22 as compared to Rs 1612 crore in 2018-2019, an increase of 61%.
- The Foreign Direct Investment has increased from US $ 45.15 billion in 2014-2015 to record $83.6 billion in 2021-22.
9. Piyush Goel attends G 20 ministers WTO Dispute Settlement reforms meeting in Bali
Tags: place in news Summits International News
The Indian Commerce minister Piyush Goel in a tweet said that he participated in a discussion on WTO’s Dispute Settlement Reform that was convened by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai on the sidelines of the G20 ministerial meeting in Bali, Indonesia on 21 September 2022.
The 12th World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial conference held in Geneva, Switzerland from 12-17 June 2022, had promised to revive the dispute settlement body in the next two years.
WTO Dispute Settlement System
WTO is a global body which was set up in 1995 to promote rule based trading systems in the world and it also settles trade related disputes between the member countries.
A member country can complain against another member country to the WTO if it believes that the country is not following WTO rules regarding trade.
The Dispute Settlement Mechanism is a two tier process in the WTO.
First, the member countries are encouraged to settle their dispute through consultation.
If this fails then the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body appoints a panel to look into the dispute.
The countries have the right to appeal against the ruling of the panel to an Appellate Body set up by the Dispute Settlement Body. The ruling of the Appellate body is binding on the countries of WTO.
Objection of the United States to the Dispute Settlement System
The United States government has blocked the appointment of members to the Appellate Body since 2019. The Appellate body structure is at present not working but the panel system is still functioning.
The United States wants to abolish the Appellate system of the WTO as it believes that it has become synonymous with litigation and has become prolonged, complicated and expensive.
However the developing countries are of the view that a two tier dispute settlement system is essential for the functioning of the WTO dispute settlement system.
World Trade Organisation (WTO)
- It was set up on 1st January 1995 replacing the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT).
- Its main purpose is to promote rule based trading systems in the world and it also settles trade related disputes between the member countries.
- The headquarters of WTO is in Geneva, Switzerland.
- There are 164 member countries.
- Director General of WTO : Dr Ngozi -Okonjo-Iweala of of Nigeria
- Report released by WTO : World Trade Report
10. CBI launches a nationwide crackdown against online child sexual abuse, code named Operation Megh-Chakra
Tags: National
In a major crackdown on circulation and sharing of child sexual abuse material online, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 24 September 2022, launched a major operation code named “Operation Megh-Chakra.”
Acting on a tip off from Interpol Singapore, which was alerted by the Interpol New Zealand ,CBI raided 56 locations in around 20 states and Union Territory .
A similar operation “Operation Carbon” was carried out by CBI in November 2021 when raids were conducted at 76 locations across the country against 83 persons and several persons were arrested.
64 countries including India are member of International Child Sexual Exploitation (ICSE) image and video database, of the Interpol, which allows investigators from member countries to share data on cases of child sexual abuse.
Interpol
The International Criminal Police organisation or Interpol is an inter- governmental association of 195 countries which shares and access data on crimes and criminals amongst the member countries' police force.
India is represented by the CBI in the Interpol.
Interpol was set up in 1914 and its Headquarters is at Lyons, France.
