16 April 2020: PIB Summary & Analysis

April 16th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Software Technology Parks of India (STPI)
2. International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)
3. All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE)
4. Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO)
5. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)
6. Chitra GeneLAMP-N
7. Heavy Metal Detection in Water

1. Software Technology Parks of India (STPI)

Context:

Government of India gives 4 months’ rental waiver to the IT companies operating from Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) centres.

Details:

• In light of the current coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has decided to provide rental waiver to IT companies housed in STPI premises in the country from March to June, i.e., for 4 months period as of now.

About the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI):

• Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) is an autonomous society under the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India.
• It was established in 1991 with the objective of encouraging, promoting and boosting the export of software from India.
• STPI maintains internal engineering resources to provide consulting, training and implementation services.
• Services cover Network Design, System Integration, Installation, Operations and maintenance of application networks and facilities in varied areas.
• The STPI’s major functions are to establish software technology parks in various locations in India, and to perform various financial management functions related to it.
• It has 60 centres across India.
• The STPI’s Governing Council’s Chairperson is the Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology.

STPI Objectives:

• To promote the development and export of software and software services including Information Technology Enabled Services/Bio-IT.
• To provide statutory and other promotional services to the exporters by implementing Software Technology Park/Electronics and Hardware Technology Park Schemes and other such schemes which may be formulated and entrusted by the Government from time to time.
• To provide data communication services including value added services to IT/IT Enabled Services related industries.
• To promote micro, small and medium entrepreneurs by creating conducive environment for entrepreneurship in the field of IT/IT Enabled Services.

2. International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)

Context:

The Union Finance Minister attended through video-conference the Plenary Meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee.

About the IMFC:

• The IMFC is the Ministerial-level committee of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• It has 24 members and monitors developments in global liquidity and the transfer of resources to developing countries.
• The IMFC meets twice a year, once during the Fund-Bank Annual Meetings in October, and again during the Spring Meetings in April.
• The Committee discusses matters of common concern affecting the global economy and advises the IMF on the direction of its work.

To learn more about the IMF, click on the linked article.

3. All India Council For Technical Education (AICTE)

Context:

AICTE gives instructions to colleges/institutions to ensure safety and academic welfare of students.

To know more about the AICTE, click on the linked article.

4. Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO)

Context:

As part of PMGKY package, the EPFO settles 3.31 Lakh COVID-19 claims in 15 days.

To know more about the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation, click on the linked article.

5. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)

Context:

Over 1.51 Crore free LPG cylinders distributed so far to the PMUY beneficiaries under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY).

To know more about the PMUY, click on the linked article.

6. Chitra GeneLAMP-N

Context:

Chitra GeneLAMP-N makes confirmatory tests results of COVID-19 possible in 2 hours.

Details:

• Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, an Institute of National Importance, of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), has developed a diagnostic test kit that can confirm COVID-19 in 2 hours at a low cost.
• The confirmatory diagnostic test, which detects the N Gene of SARS- COV2 using reverse transcriptase loop-mediated amplification of viral nucleic acid (RT-LAMP), will be one of the world’s first few if not the first of its kind in the world.
• The test kit, funded by the DST called Chitra GeneLAMP-N, is highly specific for SARS-CoV-2 N-gene and can detect two regions of the gene, which will ensure that the test does not fail even if one region of the viral gene undergoes mutation during its current spread.
• The tests performed at National Institute of Virology (NIV) Alappuzha (authorized by ICMR) show that Chitra GeneLAMP- N has 100% accuracy and match with test results using RT-PCR.
• This has been intimated to ICMR, the authority to approve COVID-19 testing in India, following which license needs to be obtained from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for manufacture.
• Benefits of GeneLAMP-N:
  • Current PCR kits in India enable detection of E gene for screening and RdRp gene for confirmation. Chitra GeneLAMP-N gene testing will allow confirmation in one test without the need for a screening test and at much lower costs.
  • The detection time is 10 minutes, and the sample to result time (from RNA extraction in swab to RT-LAMP detection time) will be less than 2 hours.
  • A total of 30 samples can be tested in a single batch in a single machine allowing a large number of samples to be tested each day.
  • The testing facility can be easily set up even in the laboratories of district hospitals with limited facilities and trained laboratory technicians.
  • The results can be read from the machine from the change in fluorescence.
  • The cost of testing with the new device for LAMP testing and the test kit for 2 regions of N gene (including RNA extraction) will be less than Rs 1000/test for the laboratory.

7. Heavy Metal Detection in Water

Context:

The Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences (CeNS) has developed a compact solid-state sensor to detect heavy metal ions in water.

Details:

• It is a portable device which can help onsite detection in remote areas.
• The CeNS’s research team has developed a compact solid-state sensor to detect the heavy metal ions, e.g., lead ions (Pb2+) down to 0.4 parts per billion (ppb) for efficient onsite detection.
• The sensor film was prepared by forming a composite between manganese doped zinc sulfide quantum dots and reduced graphene oxide on a glass substrate.
• These particular quantum dots are water-soluble and have high photoluminescence (~ 30 %) quantum yield, making them suitable for luminescence-based sensing.
• These quantum dots can be excited with a handheld UV light of 254 nm, thus making it a portable device even to remote areas.
• If a drop of water containing heavy metal ions such as mercury, lead, cadmium, etc. are added to the composite film, the emission of the film quenches within seconds.

Heavy metal ions in water:

• Heavy metal ions such as lead, mercury and cadmium pose severe potential threats to living beings as they can easily be accumulated in the body and cannot be detoxified by any chemical or biological processes.
• The health hazards associated with heavy metal ions in water demands the development of efficient and portable sensors for rapid onsite detection of these ions.

April 16th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

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