03 Jan 2022: PIB Summary & Analysis

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Rani Velu Nachiyar
2. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)
3. NEAT 3.0
4. Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C)
5. Climate Awareness Campaign
6. Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL)

1. Rani Velu Nachiyar

Syllabus: GS 1, Modern History (Freedom movement)

Prelims: Facts about and contribution of Rani Velu Nachiyar to the freedom movement.

Context:

PM remembers Rani Velu Nachiyar on her birth anniversary.

About Rani Velu Nachiyar:

• Rani Velu Nachiyar is remembered as the first queen from India to fight against the British East India Company.
• She was a princess of Ramanathapuram.
• Born in 1730, Velu Nachiyar was the only child of Raja Chellamuthu Vijayaragunatha Sethupathy and Rani Sakandhimuthal of the Ramnad kingdom.
• She was trained in martial arts and was also a scholar with proficiency in many languages.
• She was drawn into battle when her husband, the king of Sivaganga was killed by Company soldiers.
• Velu Nachiyar inherited the kingdom from her husband and ruled it for ten years more.
• She sought an alliance with Hyder Ali of Mysore in order to launch a campaign against the East India Company.
• The queen arranged a suicide attack on a place where the Company stored its ammunition and blew them up.
• Her daughter succeeded her in 1790.
• She passed away in 1796.
• She is remembered as ‘veeramangai’.

2. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

Syllabus: GS3, Security/Science and Technology

Prelims: Facts about DRDO and recent developments.

Context:

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) celebrated 64th DRDO Day on January 01, 2022.

About DRDO:

• Established in 1958, DRDO is the R&D wing of the Ministry of Defence, Govt of India.
• It engages in designing and developing ​​critical defence technologies and systems while equipping the armed forces with state-of-the-art weapon systems and equipment in accordance with requirements laid down by the three Services. 

Know more about the DRDO in the link.

3. NEAT 3.0

Syllabus: GS2, Education

Prelims: About NEAT, schemes under education.

Mains: Digital divide in India, problems/challenges in the education sector.

Context:

Union Education Minister launches NEAT 3.0.

About NEAT 3.0:

• NEAT 3.0 is a single platform to provide the best-developed ed-tech solutions and courses to students of the country. 
• National Educational Alliance for Technology (NEAT) is an initiative to provide the use of best-developed technological solutions in the education sector to enhance the employability of the youth on a single platform for learners’ convenience. 
• These solutions use Artificial Intelligence for a personalized and customized learning experience for better learning outcomes and skill development in the niche areas. 
• AICTE is the facilitator in the process.
• NEAT has 58 Education Technology Companies with 100 products that help to develop employable skills, capacity building, and bridge learning gaps.
• More than 12 lakh socially and economically disadvantaged students have received free ed-tech course coupons worth over ₹253 crores under NEAT 3.0.
• NEAT is expected to be a game-changer in bridging the digital divide in education.
• The minister also launched AICTE prescribed technical books in regional languages.

4. Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C)

Syllabus: GS3, Science and Technology

Prelims: Facts about I4C

Mains: Cybersecurity – challenges and measures to counter

Context:

Union Home Secretary released Manuals and a Newsletter of Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C).

Details:

• The manuals are part of a focussed awareness campaign for the prevention of cybercrimes and to inculcate cyber hygiene in rural areas, industrial bodies, and the general public.
• The I4C was set up under the CIS Division in 2018, as an agency for coordinating at the Central level and to support States/UTs by providing a common framework in their fight against cybercrimes.

Know more about I4C here.

5. Climate Awareness Campaign

Syllabus: GS3, Environment and Ecology

Mains: Measures to tackle climate change

Context:

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is organizing Climate Change Awareness Campaign.

About the Campaign:

Image source: PIB

• The competition will be open to all participants till 26th January 2022, as part of pre-event activities leading to the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav – Smart Cities: Smart Urbanization’ event in February 2022 at Surat, Gujarat. 
• The campaign aims to sensitize people about the challenges posed by climate change, enrich the participants with ideas for solutions, and promote climate action in cities.
• The campaign will include Municipal Commissioners and key heads of urban local bodies and Smart City CEOs creating awareness across educational institutions within their cities to align young minds to the challenges and solutions associated with Urban Climate Change and Sustainability. 
• Social media campaigns and photography competitions will be conducted as part of the campaign.

6. Khanij Bidesh India Ltd (KABIL)

Syllabus: GS3, Economy

Prelims: Facts about the company

Context:

Efforts to Attain self-reliance in Critical & Strategic Mineral requirements.

About KABIL:

• It is a joint venture (JV) company floated by National Aluminium Company (Nalco), Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd (MECL) and Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL).
• It was incorporated in 2019.
• KABIL is mandated to identify and acquire overseas mineral assets of critical and strategic nature such as Lithium, Cobalt, etc. 
  • This initiative aimed at giving further fillip to Atma Nirbhar Bharat will cater to the requirements of crucial sectors such as e-mobility, renewable energy, medicine, aerospace, aviation, etc.
  • The objective of setting up KABIL is to ensure a consistent supply of critical and strategic minerals to the Indian domestic market. 
  • While KABIL would ensure the mineral security of the nation, it would also help in realising the overall objective of import substitution.
  • KABIL would carry out identification, acquisition, exploration, development, mining, and processing of strategic minerals overseas for commercial use and meeting the country’s requirement of these minerals.
• Based on a commissioned study and selection criteria, select source countries have been shortlisted for exploring possibilities of mineral asset acquisition abroad.
• Australia, Argentina, Bolivia and Chile are likely to be the source countries.
• In December 2019, KABIL began the hunt for lithium in Argentina, Brazil and Chile — collectively called the ABC countries.

Read previous PIB here.

January 3rd, 2022, PIB:- Download PDF Here