1. Global Leaders Commit US$ 2.6 Billion At World Health Summit To End Polio
Tags: Summits National News
Global leaders announced USD 2.6 billion funding for the 'Global Polio Eradication Initiative' (GPEI) 2022-2026 strategy to eradicate polio at the World Health Summit in Berlin.
World Health Summit (WHS)
It is an international health conference.
It aims to strengthen exchanges, promote innovative solutions to health challenges, establish global health as a major political issue, and promote dialogue on global health in the spirit of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
What is Polio?
Polio is a potentially fatal viral infectious disease that affects the nervous system.
There are three types of polio virus-
Wild Polio Virus 1 (WPV1)
Wild Polio Virus 2 (WPV2)
Wild Polio Virus 3 (WPV3)
All three types are similar depending on the symptoms and can cause paralysis and death.
The virus spreads from person to person mainly through the 'faecal-oral route' or through contaminated water or food.
2. Dehradun to host 3-day “Akash for Life” Space Conference in November
Tags: Environment place in news Summits State News
The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh said that the 3-day “Akash for Life” Space Conference will be held in Dehradun, Uttarakhand from 5-7 November 2022.
ISRO and all major scientific ministries and departments of the government of India in collaboration with Vijnana Bharati will organize this National conference. Vijnana Bharati is a dynamic Science Movement with a Swadeshi Spirit, interlinking traditional and modern sciences on the one hand, and natural and spiritual sciences on the other hand.
The Government of India is organizing a campaign “Sumangalam'' across the country for finding solutions to the environmental issues with an Indian perspective based on traditional knowledge .
Panchmahabhoot
In a blend of the modern and the traditional knowledge, the government of India is going to organise five national conventions across the country on the Panchmahabhoot- the five elements for solving environmental issues for the betterment of society.
In the traditional knowledge system the human body or the universe is made of Panchmahabhoot. It consists of Aakash, Vaayu Jal, Prithvi and Agni.
The government of India is organising the first conference based on Panchmahabhoot-Akash or Space in Dehradun.
3. Government to organise Kashi-Tamil Sangamam in Varanasi
Tags: place in news Summits State News
The government of India will organize ‘Kashi-Tamil Sangamam’ from 16th November to 19th December 2022 in Varanasi (Kashi). This was announced by the Union Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship Minister Dharmendra Pradhan along with the Minister of State, Information and Broadcasting , Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying L. Murugan in New Delhi
Aim of the Kashi-Tamil Sangamam’
The main aim of the ‘Kashi-Tamil Sangamam is to rediscover, reaffirm and celebrate the age-old links between Tamil culture and Kashi that have existed since centuries.
The broader objective is to bring the two Knowledge and Cultural traditions closer, create an understanding of our shared heritage and deepen the people-to-people bond between the regions.
The Sangamam to be organised under the overall framework and spirit of “Ek Bharat, Shrestha Bharat” will create a bridge between ancient India and contemporary generation.
Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat
It has been launched by the Government of India to enhance interaction & promote mutual understanding between people of different states/UTs through the concept of state/UT pairing.
The states carry out activities to promote a sustained and structured cultural connection in the areas of language learning, culture, traditions & music, tourism & cuisine, sports and sharing of best practices, etc.
The Union Ministry of Education is the nodal ministry for the programme.
4. 10th Heads of Missions Conference starts in Kevadia, Gujarat
Tags: place in news National Summits
The Ministry of External Affairs is organizing its 10th Heads of Missions Conference in Kevadia, Gujarat, from 20-22 October 2022. The Conference will bring together 118 Heads of Indian Missions (Ambassadors and High Commissioners) from all over the world.
The conference is always presided over by the Union External affairs Minister and this year S.Jaishankar presided over the meeting.
The event is a platform for the government to brief the country's top diplomats on ways to promote India's interests abroad.
This year Prime Minister Modi who was on a two day (19-20) Visit to Gujarat also participated in the meeting.
Difference between Ambassador and High Commissioner
Every country appoints a senior diplomat to a foreign country to represent the government in that country. The senior diplomat is called Ambassador or High Commissioner.
High Commissioner
If the country is a member of the Commonwealth and sends its diplomat to a fellow Commonwealth country then the senior diplomat will be called as High Commissioner. For eg. India’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, as both the countries are members of the Commonwealth.
Ambassador
If the senior diplomat is appointed to a non-commonwealth country then he/she is called as Ambassador. For eg. India’s ambassador to Russia, United States of America, and France etc. These countries are not members of the Commonwealth.
Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth is an association of Independent countries who were once part of the British Empire. However there are some countries like Rwanda, Mozambique, Gabon and Togo who were never part of the British Empire but still are the members of the Commonwealth.
At present 56 countries are its members and the monarch of Britain is the head of the Commonwealth.
5. National Conference on Tourist Police Scheme held in New Delhi
Tags: place in news Summits
The Union Ministry of Tourism in coordination with the Ministry of Home Affairs and Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) organised the National Conference on Tourist Police Scheme in New Delhi on 19 October 2022.
The conference was addressed by the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Union Minister for Tourism G. Kishan Reddy and others.
Status of Tourism in India
According to the Tourism Statistics 2022 released by the Union Ministry of Tourism;
- The total number of domestic tourists in 2021 was 677.63 million as compared to 610.22 million in 2020, an increase of 11.05 percent.
- Tamilnadu received the maximum number of domestic tourists (140.65 million) followed by Uttar Pradesh (86.12 million).
- Due to restrictions related to COVID-19, the number of Foreign Tourists visiting India during 2021 decreased to 1.52 million as compared to 2.74 million in 2020, registering a negative growth of 44.5%.
- The favourite destination of the foreign tourists in 2021 was Tamilnadu (1.26 million tourists) followed by Maharashtra (1.23 million).
- India received maximum foreign tourists from the United States of America followed by Bangladesh, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Nepal.
- In 2021, foreign exchange earnings from tourism were US $ 8.797 billion as compared to US$ 6.959 billion in 2020, registering a positive growth of 26.4%.
6. 14th World Spice Congress to be held on 16-18 February in Maharashtra
Tags: Summits National News
The 14th World Spice Congress (WSC), organised by Spices Board India in association with various trade and export farmers will be held on 16-18 February at CIDCO Exhibition and Convention Centre, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Important facts
Organised by Spice Board India, this biennial event is the premier forum that brings together the global spice industry to deliberate on the problems and prospects in the spice sector.
The event will deliberate on aspects such as production, processing, value addition, quality and safety, trade and supply chain management of spices in the new normalcy.
The Spice Board is organising the World Spice Congress as G20 during India's G20 Presidency for the period from December 2022 to November 2023, with a greater focus on further strengthening India's trade ties with the G20 countries.
14th World Spice Congress Theme - ‘Vision 2030: SPICES’ (Sustainability– Productivity – Innovation – Collaboration- Excellence and Safety)."
About World Spice Congress
It is a conglomerate of the global spice industry, which in its three decades long presence has become the most appropriate forum to deliberate upon the concerns and views of the sector.
It is organised under the leadership of the Spices Board, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India.
It was established in 1990.
Spices Board (Ministry of Commerce and Industry) is the premier organisation for the development and worldwide promotion of Indian spices.
7. Jyotiraditya Scindia chairs the Conference of the Ministers of Civil Aviation of States and Union Territories
The Union Minister for Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia chaired the two-day (17-18 October 2022) Conference of the Ministers of Civil Aviation on 18 October 2022. The conference was and co-chaired by Minister of State, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Gen. (Rtd.) Vijay Kumar Singh.
The Conference of the Ministers of Civil Aviation has been organised by the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation in New Delhi.
The objective of the two day conference series was to promote greater collaboration and synergy between State Civil Aviation departments and Ministry of Civil Aviation to augment and develop the civil aviation sector.
Speaking on the occasion Scindia stated that the cost of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) remains a challenge as it constitutes 45-50% cost in airline operations. He thanked 28 States, which have brought down Value Added Tax (VAT) on ATF to 1-4%. He also urged the remaining 8 States to bring down the VAT so that the barriers to growth are removed.
Expansion of Airports
On the issue of airports, the Minister said that in next four years, about Rs 95,000 crore are likely to be invested by the Government and the private sector, which includes greenfield as well as brownfield airports.
The Airports Authority of India is working on expansion of about 40 airports and setting up of 3-4 new Greenfield airports. Similarly, private sector is also working on 60 brownfield and 3 Greenfield airports.
In last 8 years, the number of airports has gone up from 74 to 141 (including helipads and waterdromes) and the number is likely to cross 200 in next 4-5 years.
8. Conference of the Secretaries of Civil Aviation
Tags: National Summits National News
The Conference of Civil Aviation Secretaries of all States and Union Territories was organised by the Ministry of Civil Aviation on 17 October 2022 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
Important facts
The inaugural session was presided over by Rajiv Bansal, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India.
Presiding over the inaugural session, Rajiv Bansal said that a lot of progress has been made in the aviation sector in the last year.
He said domestic air traffic is almost near the pre-Covid level, many new airports have been inaugurated and new routes have been started.
The government has taken several steps to promote drones, helicopter medical emergency services and fractional ownership, he said.
During the conference, requested the states to reduce VAT on Aviation Turbine Fuel, ATF and appreciated the states which have already done so.
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia addressed the Conference.
Objective of the conference
The objective of the conference is to promote greater cooperation and synergy between the State Civil Aviation Departments and the Ministry of Civil Aviation to enhance the development of the civil aviation sector.
Government Initiatives in Civil Aviation sector
National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016
UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) Scheme
The Government has allocated INR 10,667 crore for the Ministry of Civil Aviation in Union Budget 2022-23.
The government has allowed 100% FDI under automatic route for greenfield projects, while 74% FDI is allowed under automatic route for brownfield projects.
9. 12th Defence Expo dedicated to Indian defence companies to be held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat from 18 October to 20 October
Tags: place in news Defence Summits
India’s flagship exhibition on Land, Naval and Homeland Security systems, Defence Expo 2022 will be held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, from 18-22 October 2022. Earlier the 12th Defence expo was proposed to be held in the month of March 2022 but was postponed due to the logistics problems being experienced by participants. The 11th Defence expo was held in Lucknow in 2022.
Theme of the Defence Expo 2022
The theme of the 12th Defence Expo is Path to Pride
Defence Ministers explains the theme of the defence expo 2022
Speaking at the curtain raiser press conference in Gandhinagar on 17October 2022 ,Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that 'Path to Pride' was not just a theme of DefExpo 2022, but a ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ vision of a ‘New India’.
He said that the DefExpo 2022 during ‘Amrit Kaal’ reflects India's resolve to be among the leading nations in the defence & aerospace sectors in the next 25 years.
First time defence expo exclusively for Indian companies
For the first time only Indian companies have been invited for the defence expo. Foreign defence companies which have set up a joint venture with Indian companies can also participate in the expo. A record 1340 companies are participating in the expo.
For the first time, States/Union Territories (UTs) have been invited to set up pavilions at the event.
International participation
Seventy five (75) countries have confirmed their participation in the DefExpo 2022.
The defence minister will host the second India-Africa Defence Dialogue (IADD) on October 18, while the Indian Ocean Region plus (IOR+) conclave will take place on October 19.
More than 53 African countries have been invited for IADD and 44 for IOR+ conclave.
Defence Expo
It is organised by the Union Ministry of Defence. The main purpose behind the expo is to promote defence exports from India as well as invite foreign companies to explore defence tie-ups and business in India.
Traditionally, the Defence expo has been held in New Delhi every two years
Later it was shifted to Panaji, Goa (2016), Chennai (2018) and Lucknow (2020).
10. Nirmala Sitharaman returns to India after a six day visit to the United States
Tags: Economy/Finance Summits Person in news
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman returned to India after a successful 6 days (11-16 October 2022) visit to the United States of America. She was in America to attend the 46th Annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank meeting held at Washington D.C. from 10-16 October 2022.
The minister also attended G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting. India will take over the chairmanship of the G-20 from Indonesia after a summit meeting in November 2022.
She also met the US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and World Bank President David Malpass.
Annual Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group meeting
The Boards of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group (WBG) normally meet once a year to discuss the work of their respective institutions. The Annual Meetings, which generally take place in September/October, have customarily been held in Washington for two consecutive years and in another member country in the third year.
The 2023 Annual meeting will be held in Marrakech, Morocco.
The Annual Meetings include meetings of the Development Committee, the International Monetary and Financial Committee, the Group of Ten, the Group of Twenty-Four, and various other constituencies.
The Inaugural Meeting of the Boards of Governors was held in Savannah, Georgia, USA in March 1946. The first Annual Meetings were held in Washington in 1946.
International Monetary Fund and World Bank
The International Monetary Fund and World Bank were set up in 1944 after an International conference held at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, United States in 1944.
Both the international financial institutions are also called Bretton Woods twins or Bretton Woods’s sisters.
Both the institutions were set up to perform different functions.
The IMF was set up to provide loans to the member countries facing a balance of payment crisis.
The World Bank provides loans to the member countries for development purposes.
At present 189 countries are members of the IMF. Country which is a member of the IMF, automatically becomes a member of the World Bank.
Both the institutions headquarters are at Washington D.C, United States of America
World Bank Group
The World Bank was initially called the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). It was set up to provide loans to the countries for economic development purposes. Later on the World Bank created new institutions according to the emerging different needs of the member countries.
At present the World groups includes five institutions:
- International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD),
- International Financial Corporation(IFC),
- International Development Assistance (IDA),
- Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and
- International Center for Settlement of International Dispute (ICSID).
