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December 27th, 2019 PIB:- Download PDF Here
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Expo 2020 mobile app 2. Year-End Review – 2019 Ministry of Defence 3. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) 4. Shehri Samridhi Utsav 2020 5. ‘Fit India’ movement 6. E-office implementation 7. Indian Railway Management Service 8. BS-VI level Emission Norms for Quadricycles 9. Year-End Review 2019 - Ministry of Textiles
Expo 2020 mobile app
Context:
Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched the mobile app of the forthcoming DefExpo 2020. The app has been developed by the Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence (MoD) with the aim to engage with the visitors as well as exhibitors.
DefExpo 2020:
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- The 11th biennial edition of DefExpo India-2020 is scheduled to be held in Uttar Pradesh’s capital Lucknow.
- The main theme of the DefExpo India-2020 will be ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’.
- Significance of DefExpo 2020:
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- The DefExpo will provide an opportunity to the major foreign Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to collaborate with the Indian defence industry and help promote ‘Make in India‘ initiative.
Year-End Review – 2019 Ministry of Defence
- BILATERAL DEFENCE COOPERATION
- SITMEX– Singapore-India-Thailand Maritime Exercise
- The SITMEX exercise underscores the shared responsibility of the three countries to work together in keeping sea lines of communications open and strengthens interoperability among them.
- Raksha Mantri and his Singaporean counterpart co-chaired the 4th Singapore-India Defence Ministers’ Dialogue in Singapore.
- Indian Army
- The 14th edition of bilateral annual military exercise SURYA KIRAN-XIV between Indian and Nepal Army was held at Nepal Army Battle School (NABS), Salijhandi, Rupendehi district of Nepal.
- Africa-India Field Training Exercise-2019 (AFINDEX-19)
- The inaugural edition of Africa-India Field Training Exercise-2019 culminated at Foreign Training Node, Aundh Military Station, Pune.
- Participating African countries include Benin, Botswana, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, amongst the others.
- Mitra Shakti VI
- Mitra Shakti VI is a fourteen-day military exercise between Indian and Sri Lankan Army.
- It was held at Diyatalawa Parade Ground in Diyatalawa, Badulla District, Sri Lanka.
- This was the sixth edition of the joint exercise between the two nations.
- Overseas Deployments (OSD)
- Indian Naval ship Tarkash undertook port calls at 13 countries. The ship participated in the Western Fleet OSD, Russian Navy Day celebrations, KONKAN-19 with the UK and participated in the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Nigeria.
- Ships Kolkata and Shakti participated in the Eastern Fleet, IN-VPN Bilateral Exercise at Cam Ranh Bay (Vietnam), PLA (N) IFR at Qingdao (China), ADMM Plus Exercise off Busan (South Korea) and Singapore, International Maritime Defence Exhibition (IMDEX), Maritime Information Sharing Exercise (MARISX) and SIMBEX 19 at Singapore.
- Ships Sahyadri and Kiltan participated in the Eastern Fleet, Ex Samudra Lakshmana with Malaysia and Malabar -19 with USN (US Navy) and JMSDF (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force).
- The Indian Navy, Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) and US Navy (USN) Trilateral exercise Malabar-19 was conducted off Yokosuka, Japan.
- Naval Operations/Activities
- Indian Navy (IN) has been undertaking Mission-Based Deployments in the Areas of Interest in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
- The objective is to safeguard national maritime interests and maintain continuous/near-continuous presence in areas of significant maritime importance in the IOR.
- These deployments were also in consonance with the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR).
- IN’s largest biennial war game, Theatre Level Operational Readiness Exercise (TROPEX-19) was conducted with the primary aim of honing the warfighting skills of the Navy whilst exercising in a large theatre of operations.
- Coastal Security and Anti-Piracy Operations- SEA VIGIL-19
- SEA VIGIL-19, a pan India Coastal Defence Exercise, was conducted along the entire coastline and Exclusive Economic Zone of India.
- Significance: The exercise was conducted with the aim of simultaneously activating all agencies involved in the coastal security construct, and to identify gaps and mitigating measures.
- Indian Air Force (IAF)
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- The Aircrafts utilized by the IAF are:
- Rafale Aircraft: Rafale is an Omni-role fighter aircraft which will provide the long-range capability to engage targets in-depth and will provide a strong weapons and systems capability edge over the adversaries.
- Su-30 MKI Aircraft: The Su-30 MKI currently is the largest and amongst the most potent fighter fleet in operation with the IAF.
- Apache Helicopter: Apache is highly agile, survivable against battle damage and is easily maintainable even in field conditions.
- Some of the Missiles used by the Air Force are:
- ASTRA: ASTRA BVR missile being designed and developed by DRDO has been evaluated for its performance and missile firing with foreign seeker was successful.
- BrahMos missile: Successful integration of the BrahMos missile on the Su-30 MKI has been completed. It would enhance the strategic significance and combat potential of the aircraft.
- The Aircrafts utilized by the IAF are:
- Projects:
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- Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C): AEW&C is an indigenous system successfully developed by DRDO.
- Integrated Air Command and Control System (IACCS): The IACCS is a fully indigenous project which will integrate all sensors to give composite Air Situation Picture and aids in quick decision making.
- International Exercise
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- International Exercises:
- Ex Eastern Bridge
- Ex Garuda
- JMT
- Humanitarian Assistance And Disaster Relief (HADR)
- Aerial Fire Fighting Operation
- Flood Relief Ops 2019-(Operation Varsha)
- Casualty Evacuation for travellers trapped at Nanda Devi pass following an avalanche.
- Women Empowerment in IAF
- NCC Special Entry: NCC special entry has been extended to women Air Wing Cadets with ‘C’ Certificate for the first time.
- Diplomatic Assignment: WgCdr Anjali Singh is the first woman officer who has been nominated by IAF as Dy Air Attaché in Embassy of Russia.
- Defence Production
- Def Connect 2019: to achieve the goal of indigenisation and self-reliance in cutting edge technologies.
- Significance: It was organised to showcase the accomplishments of the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) initiative and construct a strong outreach towards the potential future entrepreneurs of the defence sector.
Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban)
Context: More than 1 Cr Houses Sanctioned Under PMAY(U) – Huge Job Opportunities In construction And Allied Sectors.
Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban):
- Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban), [PMAY-(U)], is one of the largest affordable housing programmes in the world. The mission has covered a wide range of social groups.
- PMAY (U) has achieved 10 times more in a span of 4.5 years than the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JnNURM).
- Empowerment of women is an inbuilt design of the scheme where the ownership of the house is in the name of the female head of household or in the joint name.
- The implementation of PMAY (U), has induced a remarkable investment in the housing sector, especially in the affordable housing segment.
Shehri Samridhi Utsav 2020
Context: MoH&UA to Organise consultative workshop with States & UTs on “Shehri Samridhi Utsav 2020”
Shehri Samridhi Utsav 2020:
- Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs will be organising a consultative workshop at New Delhi with all States and UTs to set out the framework for Shehri Samrddhi Utsav (SSU) 2020.
Significance of SSU 2020:
- The SSU 2020 would provide access to a wider customer base to locally made products of SHGs, through a collaboration with e-Commerce portals for onboarding of high-quality products made by Self Help Groups (SHGs).
- The initiative would also be useful in capacity building of the women entrepreneurs in the skills of branding, digital marketing and financial management.
- Shehri Samridhi Utsav would be utilized as a platform to make a more significant, out of the ordinary impact in the lives of beneficiaries under DAY-NULM.
‘Fit India’ movement
Context: Dr Harsh Vardhan and Sh Kiren Rijiju meet for convergent thrust to ‘Fit India’ movement.
Fit India movement:
- There shall be a convergence of activities of the Ministries of Health & Family Welfare, and Youth Affairs and Sports to give a thrust to the national ‘Fit India’ movement.
- The objective of the movement: The goal of this national movement is to encourage people towards positive, preventive and promotive health and wellness.
Need for the Movement:
- The burden of non-communicable diseases is growing due to the change in lifestyle.
Efforts being made by the Ministry:
- The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare shall be engaging with all institutions of the Health Ministry along with other medical institutions and organisations such as IMA to create a nationwide consciousness about fitness and wellness.
- The Ministry shall also actively engage with the state governments, the state Health Ministers and principals of various medical colleges.
- Additionally, this shall be taken forward with the frontline health functionaries that implement the National Health Mission (NHM) in close association with the communities.
- The ‘Eat Right India’ initiative of FSSAI has been launched by the Ministry. It has seen various promotional activities being rolled out, including the “Eat Right Mela” at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
E-office implementation
Context: 75 Central Ministries/Departments actively using the e-Office platform. Minister appeals to State Governments to expedite e-office implementation
E-office implementation:
- 75 Central Ministries/Departments are actively using the e-Office platform, with Ministry of AYUSH being the recent Ministry to go live on the e-Office platform.
- 57 Ministries/Departments have achieved the desired target of 80% on the E-Office platform.
- The expedition of the E-office implementation is a step towards Digital Secretariat.
- The Government has offered State Governments all guidance in the implementation of e-Office.
- Various issues discussed during the meeting:
- Vision Document of the Ministry
- 100-day agenda of the departments
- Vacancy position in the departments
- Grievance redressal status
- Training programmes under the National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG)
- Status of e-Office implementation by Central Ministries/Departments and many other topics of importance.
Indian Railway Management Service
Context: Indian Railway Management Service: Some Factual Information
Indian Railway Management Service:
- Unification of eight existing services of Indian Railways for Indian Railway Management Service (IRMS) will be done at all levels i.e. from Junior Scale to HAG+.
- The Ministry of Railways and DOPT will work out the necessary formula before it is taken up by Alternative Mechanism.
- 27 posts of GMs have been upgraded to apex grade.
- Future recruits to IRMS will be made through UPSC(Civil Services) in consultation with UPSC and DOPT.
BS-VI level Emission Norms for Quadricycles
Context: Public Comments invited for mandating BS-VI level Emission Norms for Quadricycles
BS-VI level Emission Norms for Quadricycles:
- Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has invited suggestions and comments for the proposed amendment of Rule 115 to mandate BS-VI level emission norms for Quadricycle.
- The amendment proposes to insert separate sub-rule 17B after the sub-rule 17A. Present emission norms for Quadricycle are Bharat Stage IV as per sub-rule 17A of rule 115.
- The proposed emission norms (Tailpipe emission, On-board diagnostics-OBD) are in line with European norms.
- The emission tests for ladling/acceleration, Crankcase gas emission, durability testing are as per BS-VI 4W in Europe Quadricycle category.
Year-End Review 2019 – Ministry of Textiles
- Importance of Cotton:
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- Cotton is a global commodity that is produced all over the world and a single tonne of cotton provides year-round employment for five people on average.
- Cotton is a drought-resistant crop ideal for arid climates, it occupies just 2.1 % of the world’s arable land, yet it meets 27% of the world’s textiles need.
- In addition to its fibre used in textiles and apparel, food products are also derived from cotton such as- edible oil and animal feed from the seed.
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- Efforts being made by India:
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- India implemented a Cotton Technical Assistance Programme (Cotton TAP-I) for seven African countries namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad and also Uganda, Malawi and Nigeria.
- The technical assistance focused on improving the competitiveness of the cotton and cotton-based textiles and apparel industry in these countries through a series of interventions and has had a significant outcome.
- India would be launching the second phase of the Cotton Technical Assistance Programme (TAP) for Africa.
National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP)- Pashmina Shawls
- The Government of India has been providing marketing facilities for all handloom products including Pashmina Shawls all across the country under Handloom Marketing Assistance (HMA), a component of the National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP).
- Handloom Marketing events/expos have been organized in different states to help weavers from all across the country to sell their products.
- Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has published an Indian Standard for identification, marking and labelling of Pashmina products to certify its purity.
- The certification will help curb the adulteration of Pashmina and also protect the interests of local artisans and nomads of Ladakh who are the producers of Pashmina raw material.
- The BIS certification of Pashmina would also, go a long way in discouraging counterfeit or substandard products presently mislabelled and sold as genuine Pashmina in the market.
- Technical Textiles Industry
- In addition to their commercial use, technical textiles have been identified for mandatory use across various important missions, programmes and schemes of the Government of India. The measures taken by the Government to boost the technical textile segment in the country are:
- 207 technical textiles items have been brought under a separate head in the Harmonised System of Nomenclature (HSN) code under the Foreign Trade Policy.
- Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has developed standards for 348 technical textiles products.
- The Ministry of Textiles has included 6 additional courses for technical textiles in its Skill Development Programme called Samarth.
- The Ministry has issued Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order prescribing minimum local purchase content for technical textiles items in 10 segments for government procurement.
- Integrated Textile Parks
- The Government is implementing the Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP) which provides support for the creation of world-class infrastructure facilities for setting up of textile units.
- The Scheme is demand-driven.
- A total of 59 textile parks have been sanctioned under SITP by the Ministry of Textiles out of which 22 textile parks have been completed and rest are under various stages of construction.
- CAPACITY BUILDING IN TEXTILE SECTOR- SAMARTH
- The Government has approved a skill development scheme titled SAMARTH, a scheme for Capacity Building in the Textile Sector, covering the entire value chain of the textile sector, excluding Spinning and Weaving in the organized sector.
- The salient features of the scheme are:
- Training programmes are aligned with the provisions of Common Norms and courses offered under the scheme are National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) compliant.
- Web-based MIS for ease of implementation and monitoring.
- Physical verification of Training Centres before allocation of training target.
- 70% mandatory placement within 3 months of completion of training for the organized sector.
- Training by Certified Trainers having cleared Training of Trainers (ToT) course.
- Post Placement tracking.
- Preference to be given to the marginalized social group and aspirational districts.
- Internal Complaints Committee under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibitions & Redressal) Act, 2013.
- Integrated Scheme for Development of the Silk Industry
- For the development of the Indian silk industry- patents have been obtained, research projects have been concluded and technology packages disseminated. People have been trained under various programmes organized by the Research & Training institutes of Central Silk Board (CSB).
- The Textiles Ministry has taken various steps through the Central Silk Board (CSB) to protect the interest of the silk producers:
- CSB through a restructured Central Sector Scheme Silk Samagra and 38 projects under North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) protects the interests of the farmers by supporting them through beneficiary oriented components.
- It has generated employment for the tribal communities and also created a sustainable livelihood for them.
- Strengthened Research & Development system to improve the levels of cocoon production and productivity to develop improved mulberry/host plant varieties, silkworm hybrids and technology packages to minimize drudgery.
- Central Silk Board and State Governments mobilize additional funds for sericulture development through convergence by availing the schemes such as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), and Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).
- CSB through a restructured Central Sector Scheme Silk Samagra and 38 projects under North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) protects the interests of the farmers by supporting them through beneficiary oriented components.
- The positive impact of this is reflected in significant increase in Disease-Free Layings (DFLs) consumption, cocoon production, raw silk production besides increase in income from sericulture and its share in the total annual family income.
- Jute Sector
- For the welfare of jute farmers the JUTE – ICARE (Improved Cultivation and Advanced Retting Exercise) has been launched to promote scientific practices related to Jute Cultivation for Quality & Quantity improvements.
- In order to facilitate registered jute exporters for participating in foreign fairs/BSMs and Trade delegations to enhance exports of jute products an Export Market Development Assistance Scheme (EMDA) has been launched.
- Retail Outlets of Jute Diversified Products and Bulk Supply Scheme has been put in place to support jute entrepreneurs to display and promote jute diversified products.
- Workers’ Welfare Scheme (Sulabh Sauchalaya) has been implemented to provide assistance to the jute mills by supporting construction cost for toilet blocks for the jute mill workers.
- The Jute Integrated Development Scheme (JIDS) has been launched, to create new/ skilled workforce for the production of value-added JDPs, to provide self-employment opportunity and facilitate backward and forward linkage to the existing and new entrepreneurs.
- COMPREHENSIVE HANDLOOM DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
- The Comprehensive Handloom Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) is targeted at the development of Mega Handloom Clusters in clearly identifiable geographical locations.
- Under the MUDRA scheme loans were sanctioned to the weavers.
- In order to enhance the weavers’ income, the direct interface of textile companies is being developed with handloom clusters. Producer companies of handloom weavers, societies and SHGs are being formed under the Companies Act.
- MODERNIZATION OF HANDLOOMS
- Ministry of Textiles has been implementing:
- The Yarn Supply Scheme throughout the country to make available all types of yarn at mill gate price to handloom weavers.
- The scheme is being implemented through the National Handloom Development Corporation.
- Under the Scheme, freight is reimbursed and depot operating charges at 2% is given to depot operating agencies.
- The Government of India, Ministry of Textiles has been implementing Block Level Cluster under National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handloom Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) for providing skill up-gradation training in Weaving, Dyeing, and Designing.
- The Yarn Supply Scheme throughout the country to make available all types of yarn at mill gate price to handloom weavers.
- For the welfare of the handloom weavers, life & accident insurance coverage is provided to handloom weavers/ workers enrolled under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and converged Mahatma Gandhi Bunkar Bima Yojana (MGBBY) across the country.
- UPLIFTMENT OF HANDICRAFTS
- The Ministry of Textiles implements various schemes for promotion and development of the handicrafts sector under the National Handicrafts Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS).
- The CHCDS has special projects under Integrated Development and Promotion of Handicrafts (IDPH):
- The Government has taken initiative to implement cluster development projects under Ambedkar Hastshilp Vikas Yojna (AHVY) for the overall development of artisans in Uttar Pradesh.
Artisans have been provided with Identity Cards under PEHCHAN Scheme.
December 27th, 2019 PIB:- Download PDF Here
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