08 Jan 2022: PIB Summary & Analysis

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. The Indo US Trade and Commerce
2. Jan Shatabdi Express
3. 24th National Conference on e-Governance

1. The Indo US Trade and Commerce

Syllabus: GS 2, International Relations, bilateral groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests

Prelims: Generalized System of Preferences

Mains: India’s readiness to increase the agri market access for the farmers 

Context: The Department of Agriculture and farmer welfare (DAC&FW) and the US Department of Agriculture signed an agreement for implementing the “2 Vs 2” Agri market access issues.

About the framework agreement:

• The framework agreement on 2 Vs 2 Agri market access would emphasize issues related to inspection and transfer for Indian mangoes along with the market access for pomegranate arils from India and market access for US cherries and alfalfa hay.
• This will promote the export of Indian agri-products easing access to the US market. 
• It has been notified by the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying that it is ready to open up the market for US pork. 

Challenges faced in the past: 

• India’s beneficiary status under the US GSP was terminated by the Trump administration in 2019.
• This ended India’s access to $5.6 billion of annual exports in the midst of disputes over digital trade and other issues. 
• Besides, India has been resisting the demand of the US to lower tariffs as they were below the permissible limits under the rules of the WTO. 

Opportunities for India’s Trade with the US: 

• This framework agreement will offer a possibility to restore India’s trade benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) of the US. The same issue was raised in the US- India Trade Policy Forum. 
• The Trade Ministries of both countries agreed to continue to work towards resolving the issues through further engagements in the future.
• Extensive attention has been given to the areas such as the supply of ethanol to India and speeding up Phyto-sanitary work to allow more agricultural trade between the two countries including US pork and Indian table grapes. 
• Therefore, it is envisaged that the bilateral trade would expand over $100 billion in the post-pandemic period. 

2. Jan Shatabdi Express

Syllabus: GS 3, Economy, Infrastructure: Railways 

Prelims: About Janshatabdi Express 

Mains: Improvement of connectivity in the North-East region

Context: The first Jan Shatabdi express trains between Manipur and Tripura were inaugurated to provide a boost to connectivity, trade and tourism in the North Eastern Region. The inaugural ceremony took place virtually. 

Important Highlights:

• The long-standing demand of the people of Manipur, Tripura and South Assam was fulfilled by the launch of this special train.
• Enormous priority given to North-Eastern states by doubling the budgetary allocations in the last 7 years.
• The Jan Shatabdi trains will act as a crucial link to important towns resulting in passenger connectivity ensuring the development of the North-Eastern region.
• This initiative is in line with the HIRA (Highways, Internet, Railways and Airways) model of development. 

Read more about Developmental initiatives in the North-East Region in PIB, 4th Jan 2022

3. 24th National Conference on e-Governance

Syllabus: GS 2, Governance, e-Governance- applications, models, successes, limitations and potential

Prelims: e-Governance, UPI, Aadhaar, UMANG

Mains: Effectiveness of e-Governance 

Context: The 24th National Conference on e-Governance has been scheduled and organized by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances and the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology in association with the state government of Telangana in the first week of February to expand the purview of e-Governance.

About the Conference:

• In a session concluded, the ‘Hyderabad Declaration’ on e-governance was adopted after the discussion on the theme of the conference which will be “ India’s Tecchade: Digital Governance in a Post Pandemic World”. 
• The major objective is to make effective use of digital platforms to bridge the gap between government and citizens.
• Secretariat reforms, Swachhta campaign, redressal of public grievances and improving service delivery have been discussed and considered to be the core of good governance. 
• It also aims to transform the lives of the citizens through leveraging the technologies with the help of platforms such as UPI (Unified Payment Interface), DigiLocker, e- sign, UMANG. 

Read more about e-Governance in the linked article

Read previous PIB here.

January 8th, 2022, PIB:- Download PDF Here