1. India and Sweden sign a MoC to strengthen cooperation & promote research networking
Tags: International News
A Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) was signed between India and Sweden to strengthen cooperation and promote research networking between research institutions from both countries.
News Overview
The MoC was signed by Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, Secretary, SERB and Dr. Andreas Gothenburg, Executive Director, STINT.
Its main objective is to promote opportunities for money mobility in both the countries.
The MoC aims to encourage academic collaboration through organising various mobility activities, such as exchange programmes, seminars, workshops and conferences.
About Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB)
Establishment -2009
Secretary - Dr. Akhilesh Gupta
Headquarters - New Delhi
About Sweden
Prime Minister - Mr. Ulf Christerson
Capital - Stockholm
Official language - Swedish
Currency - Swedish Krona
2. BIS Launches ‘Learning Science via Standards’ Series
Tags: National National News
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has announced the launch of 'Learning Science through Standards', a unique initiative for students to learn science through standards.
'Learning Science through Standards' initiative
The initiative focuses on a range of lesson plans aimed at using scientific concepts, principles and rules.
It helps the students to understand their practical applications in manufacturing, working and testing the quality characteristics of various products as stated in the respective Indian Standards. ,
The topics of the lesson plans are largely related to products used in daily life and are selected on the basis of their relevance to education as part of the curriculum as well as industrial applications.
BIS officials and resource personnel will administer the lesson plans to the students for an interactive learning experience.
About Bureau of Indian Standards
Bureau of Indian Standards is thenational standards body of India under the Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Government of India.
Headquarter- Manak Bhawan, Old Delhi
Director General- Pramod Kumar Tiwari
Established- 23 December 1986
3. 3 lakh 61 thousand crore rupees loan given to MSMEs under Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme
Tags: Economy/Finance Government Schemes National News
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Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have so far been given a loan of Rs 3 lakh 61 thousand crore under the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS).
An overview of the news
Minister of State for Finance Dr. Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad gave this information in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on March 14.
He informed that this scheme covers all sectors of the economy.
About Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme
It was announced as part of the Atma Nirbhar Bharat Package in 2020.
Its objective is to help businesses including MSMEs to meet their operational liabilities and resume business in view of the distress caused by the COVID-19 crisis.
It provides 100 percent guarantee to lending institutions for any losses incurred due to non-payment of ECLGS funding by borrowers.
The scheme is under the operational domain of the Ministry of Finance, Department of Financial Services (DFS).
4. IREDA gets ‘Infrastructure Finance Company’ status from RBI
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted an ‘Infrastructure Finance Company (IFC)’ status to Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) on 13 March.
An overview of the news
It was earlier classified as ‘Investment and Credit Company (ICC)’.
With IFC status, IREDA will be able to take higher exposure in renewable energy financing.
The IFC status will help the company access a wider investor base to raise funds, resulting in competitive rates for raising funds.
This will boost investor confidence, enhance brand value and create a positive outlook in the market.
The awarding of IFC status is recognition of IREDA's 36 years of infrastructure financing and renewable energy development.
With IFC status, IREDA will contribute to the government's target of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel installed capacity by 2030.
Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA)
It was incorporated as a Public Limited Company in the year 1987 as a 'Non-Banking Financial Institution'.
It is a Miniratna (Category 1) type company functioning under the administrative control of 'Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India.
Its function is to encourage projects related to new and renewable energy sources and to provide them financial assistance for their development.
It has been notified as a 'Public Financial Institution' under section 4'A' of the 'Companies Act, 1956'.
Chairman and Managing Director - Pradip Kumar Das
5. High Level Committee approves Rs 1,816.162 crore of additional Central assistance to five States
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
A High Level Committee meeting, chaired by Union Home Minister, Amit Shah on 13 March approved Rs 1,816.162 crore of additional Central assistance to five States.
An overview of the news
This additional central assistance has been given under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to five states affected by floods, landslides, cloud bursts during 2022.
This additional assistance is in addition to the funds released by the Center to the states in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
During the financial year 2022-23, the central government has released Rs 15,770.40 crore to 25 states in their SDRF and Rs 502.744 crore to 4 states from NDRF.
Additional central assistance to five states
Rs 520.466 crore to Assam
Rs 239.31 crore to Himachal Pradesh
Rs 941.04 crore to Karnataka
Rs 47.326 crore to Meghalaya
Rs 68.02 crore to Nagaland
National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF)
It is a fund managed by the Central Government.
It is used to meet the expenses of emergency response, relief and rehabilitation for any disaster situation.
It was earlier called National Disaster Contingency Fund (NCCF).
In 2005, the Disaster Management Act was enacted and its name was changed to National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).
NDRF was established in accordance with Section 46 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
In June 2020, the Finance Ministry approved a proposal to allow individuals and institutions to contribute directly to the NDRF.
State Disaster Response Funds (SDRF)
It has been constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.
It was constituted on the recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission.
It is the primary fund available with the State Governments to meet the expenditure for providing immediate relief for the response to notified disasters.
The Centre contributes 75% of the SDRF allocation for general category States and Union Territories.
The Centre contributes 90% for special category States and Union Territories (northeastern States, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir).
Disaster covered under SDRF are Cyclone, drought, earthquake, fire, flood, tsunami, hailstorm, landslide, avalanche, cloudburst, pest attack, frost and cold waves.
6. Over 38 crore loans provided since launch of Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana
Tags: National Economy/Finance Government Schemes National News
In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha on March 14, Minister of State for Finance Dr. Bhagwat Kisanrao Karad said that since the launch of the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana in April 2015, more than 38 crore loans have been disbursed so far.
An overview of the news
He informed that out of this, more than 26 crore loans have been given to women entrepreneurs.
About 20 crore loans have been disbursed to SC, ST and OBC borrowers.
The Ministry of Labor and Employment had conducted a large sample survey at the national level to assess the employment generation under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana.
According to the results of the survey, 1 crore 12 lakh net additional employment has been generated in the country from2015 to 2018 by this scheme.
Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana
It was launched on 8 April 2015.
Under the scheme, the people of the country are given loans up to a maximum of 10 lakhs to start their own small business.
Any person who wants to further his business can take a loan under this scheme.
People are issued a Mudra card to avail loans under this scheme.
The loans are provided through Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), Micro Financial Institutions (MFIs), and other financial intermediaries.
More than64 per cent of the loan accounts opened under the scheme are of women.
Three types of loans under Mudra Yojana
Shishu- Loans up to Rs.50,000.
Kishor - Loans above Rs.50,000 and less than Rs.5 lakh.
Tarun- Loans above Rs.5 lakh and up to Rs.10 lakh.
7. Centre signs Rs 934 crore deal with HSL to Refit INS Sindhukirti Submarine in Visakhapatnam
Tags: Defence National News
In a further boost to achieve 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', the Ministry of Defense on March 13, 2023 signed a contract for General Refit of Sindhukirti Submarine at Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam at a total cost of Rs 934 crore .
Overview of the News
Sindhukirti is the third Kilo class Diesel Electric Submarine.
The project involves over 20 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and will generate employment of 1,000 man-days per day for the project duration.
INS Sindhukirti Submarine
It is a diesel-electric submarine.
It was commissioned on June 7, 1990 and since then has been serving the nation in various capacities.
It has a displacement of 1860 tonnes when submerged and is 67.5 metres in length.
The submarine has a maximum speed of 20 knots (about 37 km per hour) when submerged and can dive to a depth of 300 metres.
It is armed with six 533 mm torpedo tubes and can carry up to 18 torpedoes or missiles.
About Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL)
The shipyard 'Hindustan Shipyard Limited' is located in Visakhapatnam.
It is the country's first shipbuilding yard.
Establishment - 21 June 1941
Construction - Walchand Hirachand
8. First meeting of Supreme Audit Institution (SAI20) begins
Tags: Summits National News
The 1st Supreme Audit Institution 20 (SAI20) Senior Officers' Meeting (SOM) began on 13 March 2023 in Guwahati, Assam.
Overview of the News
The themes of this meeting are 'Blue Economy' and 'Responsible Artificial Intelligence'.
SAI20 aims to bring together an ecosystem wherein SAIs are active participants in governance, promoting transparency and accountability.
The SAI-20 meeting will be chaired by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Girish Chandra Murmu and also attended by senior representatives of equivalent institutions from G-20 countries.
Around 44 delegates from G-20 member countries, guest countries and other international organisations participated in the SAI-20 event.
Countries like Australia, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Oman, Republic of Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and UAE participated individually.
The SAI-20 meeting will conclude on March 15.
9. International conference on “Shared Buddhist Heritage”
Tags: Summits National News
An international conference on "Shared Buddhist Heritage" will be held on March 14-15 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
An overview of the news
The conference will focus on India's civilizational connection with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) nations 2023.
It is the first of its kind event under India's leadership of SCO (for a period of one year - from September 17, 2022 to September 2023).
It will bring Central Asian, East Asian, South Asian and Arab countries on a common platform to discuss the "Common Buddhist Heritage".
Conference organiser
The two-day event is being organized by the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of External Affairs and the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC-as a grantee body of the Ministry of Culture).
Many Indian scholars of Buddhism will also participate in this program.
Aim of the Conference
To re-establish the trans-cultural link between Buddhist art, art styles, archaeological sites and antiquity of Central Asia in the collections of various museums in SCO countries.
10. Chinese parliament appoints Li Qiang as the country's new prime minister
Tags: Person in news International News
Li Qiang was appointed as the new Premier or Prime Minister of China by the Chinese Parliament on March 11, 2023.
Overview of the News
Li Keqiang, who had held the position for the past ten years, was replaced by Li Qiang.
Li Qiang's nomination was approved at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress (NPC), the official body that adopts the resolutions of the Communist Party of China (CPC).
About China
it is an east asian country
It is the third largest country in the world in terms of total land area.
President – Xi Jinping
Capital - Beijing
National language - Mandarin
Currency - Renminbi
