28 Feb 2023: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Indo-Danish Green Strategic Partnership
2. Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC)
3. India & the Republic of Lithuania
4. Eight Core Industries Growth up by 7.8%
5. G20: B20 Event
6. 47th Civil Accounts Day
7. National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF)

1. Indo-Danish Green Strategic Partnership

Syllabus – GS2, International relations – Bilateral agreements involving India and/or affecting  India’s interests.

Prelims – Green Strategic Partnership between India and Denmark.

Context – India – Denmark: Partners for Green & Sustainable Progress Conference in New Delhi.

Details –

• The Green Strategic Partnership between India and Denmark was launched during the virtual Summit in September 2020 and focuses on promoting green and sustainable developments. In May 2022, India and Denmark further agreed to strengthen the Green Strategic Partnership with a focus on Green Hydrogen, Renewable Energy and Wastewater Management.
• The Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Bupendra Yadav addressed the India-Denmark: Partners for Green & Sustainable Progress Conference and said that Indo-Danish Green Strategic Partnership is an appropriate forum to exchange ideas, best practices, technology, knowledge, capacity building for promoting lifestyles including LiFE, not only in India and Denmark but for Europe and the whole world.
• Mission LiFE contributes directly or indirectly to almost all the SDGs (there is a global commitment to achieve all Sustainable Development Goals, SDGs by 2030), including responsible production and consumption (SDG 12), sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11), climate change (SDG 13), life on land (SDG 15) and life under water (SDG 14).
• India and Denmark’s shared commitment to address climate change is exemplified by strategic sector cooperation on offshore wind and renewable energy, as well as the India-Denmark Energy Partnership (INDEP) on capacity building and technology transfer in the areas of offshore wind, energy modelling, and integration of renewable energy.

Also read – India-Denmark Relations

2. Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC)

Syllabus – GS2, e-Governance

Prelims – Grievance Appellate Committee (GAC)

Context – The MeitY launched the GAC – a faceless dispute resolution mechanism.

Details –

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched the Grievance Appellate Committee, a faceless dispute resolution mechanism that makes digital platforms (small or big) accountable to digital nagriks.
• Technology is transforming the lives of citizens by ensuring ease of living through schemes like DBT, JAM and faceless taxation. Another step towards it is the introduction of GAC – an appellate body to enhance the accountability of platforms to digital nagriks.
• The aim is to make the internet Open, Safe, Trusted and the digital platforms accountable.
• The GAC was one of the provisions in the recently amended Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. Three such bodies have been constituted of professionals from various fields. The technology platform has been created to process user complaints and they will be automatically segregated and sent to one of the three government-appointed GACs. 

3. India & the Republic of Lithuania

Syllabus – GS2, Bilateral Relations.

Prelims – Bilateral Relationship between India and the Republic of Lithuania.

Context – India and the Republic of Lithuania to work in the areas of deep tech Start-Ups and manufacturing of semiconductor chips.

Details –

• A High-Level Lithuanian Delegation met the Science and Technology Minister, Dr Jitendra Singh in New Delhi and discussed ways and means to revive the 2010 Agreement in the area of Science & Technology.
• Both countries agreed to work in the areas of deep tech Start-Ups and forge lasting ties in the manufacture of semiconductor chips.
• Lithuania assured the Indian side that it has robust know-how and capacities in life sciences, biotechnology and other STEM areas and is keen to cooperate with India in high-tech Start-Ups. 

Also read – Startup India Scheme.

4. Eight Core Industries Growth up by 7.8%

Syllabus – GS3, Indian Economy, Growth and Development.

Prelims – Eight core industries grew by 7.8%

Context – The Combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) increased by 7.8% (Provisional) in January 2023 as compared to the previous year’s Index (January 2022).

Details –

• The production of coal, fertilisers, steel, electricity, natural gas, cement and refinery products increased in January 2023 over the corresponding month of the last year.
• The eight core industries comprise 40.27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
• ICI measures individual and combined performance production of eight coal industries – coal, fertilisers, crude oil, natural gas, electricity, refinery products, cement and steel.
• Coal Production (weight: 10.33%) – Its cumulative index increased by 16.1% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Natural Gas Production (weight: 6.88%) Its cumulative index increased by 1.4% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Crude Oil Production (weight: 8.98%) – Its cumulative index declined by 1.3% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Fertilisers Production (weight: 2.63%) – Its cumulative index increased by 10.5% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Petroleum Refinery Production (weight: 28.04%) -Its cumulative index increased by 5.4%during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Cement Production (weight: 5.37%) – Its cumulative index increased by 10.0% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Electricity Generation (weight: 19.85%) -Its cumulative index increased by 10.1% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
• Steel Production (weight: 17.92%)-Its cumulative index increased by 7.1% during April to January 2022-23 over the corresponding period of the previous year.

5. G20: B20 Event

Syllabus – GS2, International Relations; Global Groupings 

Prelims – G20, B20

Context – Aizawl is to host the second B20 event from 1-3 March 2023.

Details –

• Aizawl will host the second of the four B20 India events scheduled in the northeast.
• B20 is the official G20 Dialogue forum for the global business community. It mobilises the views of global business leaders on global economic and trade governance. During the B20 Summit, the B20 sends its final recommendations to the G20 Presidency.
• The event will highlight the opportunities for multilateral business partnerships that the state can offer to delegates in urban planning, bamboo, infrastructure, startups, skill development, nursing, and paramedics. 

6. 47th Civil Accounts Day

Syllabus – GS2, Governance

Prelims – 47th Civil Accounts Day

Context – The Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS) observes “Civil Accounts Day” every year on March 01 since its inception in 1976. 

Details –

• The year 2023 marks the 47th Civil Accounts Day celebrations. ICAS is one of the Civil Services of India, under the Department of Expenditure, Union Ministry of Finance.

Background –

• The Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS) was formed in 1976 as a result of a landmark reform in public financial administration when the maintenance of accounts of the Union Government was separated from auditing. As a result, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India was relieved of this responsibility.
•  Two Ordinances i.e., the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (Duties, Powers and Conditions of Service) Amendment Ordinance, 1976 and Departmentalisation of Union Accounts (Transfer of Personnel) Ordinance, 1976 were promulgated by the President of India on 1st March 1976 to initiate the process of separation of accounts from audit and paving the way for departmentalised accounts. Consequently, every year on the 1st of March, the organisation celebrates its foundation day.

7. National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF)

Syllabus – GS2, Government Policies and Interventions.

Prelims – National Youth Parliament Festival.

Context – Shri Om Birla, Speaker Lok Sabha to address the valedictory function of the 4th National Youth Parliament Festival on March 2, 2023.

About NYPF –

• The objective of the National Youth Parliament Festival is to hear the voice of the youth who will join various careers in the near future, including public services.
• The first edition of NYPF was held in 2019 with the theme, “Be the voice of New India and find solutions and contribute to policy”.
• The second edition was held in 2021  and the third edition in 2022.
• The fourth edition was launched with the theme, “Ideas for a better tomorrow: India for the World”. District Youth Parliaments (DYP) were conducted from 25-29 January 2023. More than 2.01 lakh youth from 748 districts of all the states and UTs participated at 150 venues across the country. The first and second position holders of DYP participated in the State Youth Parliament (SYP) Festival. The first three winners will get the opportunity to speak before the speaker of the  Lok Sabha on March 2, 2023.

Read the previous PIB articles here.

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