18 Feb 2022: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. India-UAE Virtual Summit
2. PM Fasal Bima Yojana
3. RCS - UDAN
4. Extended Producers Responsibility(EPR) Guidelines

1. India-UAE Virtual Summit

Syllabus: GS II, International Relations, Bilateral agreements involving India

Prelims: CEPA

Mains: Impact of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership between India and UAE on India’s trade policy.

Context: In a historic move, India and UAE signed the futuristic Comprehensive Economic Partnership (CEPA) during a virtual summit.

What is CEPA?

• The CEPA is a bilateral trade agreement that includes trade in goods and services, investments, competitions and Intellectual Property Rights.

About Free Trade Agreement:

• A free trade agreement is a pact between two or more countries to reduce trade barriers facilitating imports and exports.
• The goods and services can be brought within the purview of free trade policy.
• It involves trade across international borders with little or no government tariffs, quotas, subsidies or any inhibition in the exchange of goods and services. 
• It is implemented by a formal and mutual agreement between the participating nations. 
• A government need not take specific action to promote free trade and is free from stringent regulations and interference which is often referred to as laissez-faire trade or trade liberalisation. However, in the US and European Union, free trade agreements do not come without regulations and oversight.
• In the modern-day practice of international trade, few trade agreements result in completely free trade. 
• The US has a number of free trade agreements such as NAFTA and the Central American Free Trade Agreement. 

The India- UAE trade agreement:

• The free trade agreement aims to boost the trade relations between the two countries to US$ 100 billion in the next five years. 
• This act has been iconic in strengthening the bond between the two friends of history. 
• The joint vision statement emphasised on enhanced maritime cooperation, collaborative efforts to fight terrorism and measures to boost trade and investments. 
• The signing of CEPA will result in several benefits like promoting businesses, enhancing market access and reduced tariffs. 
• Two MoUs have been signed including a MoU between APEDA and DP World and Al Dahra has been signed to set up a food security corridor and MoU between India’s Gift city and Abu Dhabi Global Market on cooperation in financial projects and services. This will be a welcoming move to enhance resilience and reliability of food supply chains.
• The two countries also agreed to work together on logistics and services, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, agriculture, agri-tech and steel and aluminium. 
• According to CEPA, an extension of zero duty will be given to several sectors comprising 90% of India’s exports within five to ten years. 
• The trade agreement will also facilitate the automatic registration and marketing authorisation of Indian generic medicines in 90 days. UAE plans to become a global regional distribution hub for pharmaceuticals by 2030 which will be of immense benefit to India.

2. PM Fasal Bima Yojana

Syllabus: GS II, Government policies and interventions

Prelims: About PM Fasal Bima Yojana

Mains: Important policy interventions of the government and their effectiveness to address the distress of the farmers.

Context: The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana completes 7 years of its implementation that insured over 36 crore farmers. 

About the Scheme:

• This flagship scheme was launched on 18th of February 2016 by the Government of India.
• The PM Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) aims to provide financial assistance to the farmers who suffer due to crop loss/damage as a result of natural calamities.
• It enabled the farmers to report crop losses within 72 hours of the occurrence of any event through a crop insurance app that facilitates electronic transfer of funds to the bank accounts of the eligible farmer.
• The National Crop Insurance Portal which is a part of the PMFBY is provided with the land records to offer technology driven facilities by easy enrollment process, remittance of farmer premium through the portal.
• It has been successful in extending financial support to the vulnerable farmers as 85% of the enrolled farmers belong to small and marginal categories.
• The scheme will be launching a doorstep distribution drive to deliver crop insurance policies to the farmers under the programme called ‘Meri Policy Mere Hath’ in all implementing states.

Read more about PM Fasal Bima Yojana in the linked article

3. RCS – UDAN

Syllabus: GS III, Infrastructure, Airports

Prelims: About RCS-UDAN

Mains: Significant steps taken to boost the tourism industry with better connectivity. 

Context: The first direct flight under the RCS-UDAN initiative was flagged-off connecting Delhi with the heritage city of Khajuraho.

Significance:

• Spicejet was awarded the Delhi-Khajuraho-Delhi route under UDAN 3.0. 
• This airline is the strongest supporter of the UDAN scheme and operates 65 daily flights under the scheme connecting 14 destinations of the scheme. The Delhi-Khajuraho route will be the 15th UDAN destination. 
• Connectivity to the heritage city of Khajuraho will boost the tourism sector upholding the cultural prowess of the city. 
• Therefore, this will provide an easy travel for the tourist to cherish the cultural richness of this country. 

Read more about UDAN scheme in the linked article

About Khajuraho:

• Khajuraho is an ancient city popular for its magnificent temples located in the Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh. 
• It was built in the medieval period by the Chandela dynasty known for its Nagara-style architecture and graceful sculptures of nayikas and deities.
• These sculptures attract a large number of tourists and make it a worthwhile visit. 
• The temples represent forms like meditation, spiritual teachings, and relationships through stimulating art. 
• It is one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India. 
• The Khajuraho dance festival can be witnessed in the month of February. 

Read more about the Temple architecture and sculpture in the linked article

4. Extended Producers Responsibility(EPR) Guidelines

Syllabus: GS III, Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation 

Prelims: Extended Producers Responsibility

Context: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has issued notification on Extended Producers Responsibility to regulate plastic packaging under Plastic Waste Management Rules 2016.

Objectives:

• The guidelines have been issued on Extended Producers Responsibility to strengthen the circular economy of plastic packaging waste.
• This will create a roadmap for businesses to move towards sustainable plastic packaging. 

The guidelines:

• The guidelines give a proper framework to improve the management of plastic waste and make it mandatory to reuse rigid plastic packaging material. 
• The recycling of plastic waste under EPR guidelines along with the use of recycled plastic content will reduce plastic consumption and promote the practice of recycling. 
• The guidelines set up a market mechanism for plastic waste management through the allowance of sale and purchase of surplus extended producer responsibility certificates.
• It will be implemented through a customised online platform that acts as the digital backbone of the system. This will enable online tracking and monitoring of EPR obligations and will decrease the compliance burden on the companies with the aid of online registration and filing of annual returns. 
• It will also impose environmental compensation based on the polluter pays principle if the guidelines are not obeyed by the producers, importers and brand owners. As a result the pollution levels will be kept under check
• In order to prevent the mixing of plastic packaging waste with solid waste, the producers, importer and brand owners may avail the provisions like deposit refund system or buy back or any other model. 

Read more about Plastic Waste in the linked article

Read previous PIB here.

February 18th, 2022, PIB:- Download PDF Here