08 Jun 2022: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. MSP for Kharif crops
2. Ayush Institute gets NABL accreditation
3. RBI hikes repo rate
4. CiSS Application
5. BIOTECH STARTUP EXPO 2022

1. MSP for Kharif crops

Syllabus: GS III, Economy, Issues related to Minimum Support Prices

Prelims: Rabi and Kharif crops

Mains: Detail account of major crops in India

Context: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs headed by the Prime Minister has approved the increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all mandated Kharif crops for the marketing season of 2022-23. 

Read more about Rabi and Kharif Crops in the shared link.

2. Ayush Institute gets NABL accreditation

Syllabus: GS II, Social Justice, Issues relating to health

Prelims: National Ayush Mission

Mains: Discussing the challenges and opportunities of Ayush as an alternative line of medicine. 

Context: The Department of Biochemistry and Pathology of the National Ayurveda Research Institute for Panchakarma (NARIP), Thrissur, Kerala has got NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accreditation for clinical laboratory services.

Overview:

• NARIP is one of the premier research institutes under the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), Ministry of Ayush.
• It was the first institute under CCRAS to get accreditation from NABL for its clinical laboratory services. 
• The accreditation of the Ayush Institute by an authoritative body will act as a testimony of formal recognition of the technical competence of Ayurvedic Sciences.
•  This will pave the way for new lines of treatment with the touch of ancient traditional medicine practised in the country. 
• The certificate issued to the institute falls under the category of NABL Medical Entry Level for the testing labs. 
• This certification determines quality health care services to the citizens, especially those inhabiting the rural areas or small towns. 

Read about National Ayush Mission in the link provided.

3. RBI hikes repo rate

Syllabus: GS III, Economy, planning, mobilisation of resources, growth, development

Prelims: Repo rate, reverse repo rate, CRR

Mains: Role of the Monetary Policy Committee in controlling inflation and supporting growth.

Context: The Monetary Policy Committee of the Reserve Bank of India decided to increase the repo rate by 50 basis points to 4.90%.

Points of the essence:

• The Monetary Policy Committee of the RBI asserted some key changes in the policy to revive the economy from the ongoing crises due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the pandemic.
• The GDP forecast remains at 7.2%  with inflation projected at 6.7% for the period of 2022-23.
• Credit cards, beginning with the RuPay card can be linked with UPI to increase the ease of digital payments. 
• e-Mandate transaction limit has increased to Rs 15,000. 
• The MPC, in its measure to benefit the cooperative banks, has taken into consideration the increase in housing prices and decided to increase the existing limits on individual housing loans by the Cooperative banks. 
• The Urban Cooperative banks can now extend their doorstep banking services to customers to enable banks to better meet their demands. 
• Rural Cooperative banks can now extend finance to commercial real estate (loans to residential housing projects) within the existing aggregate housing finance limit of 5% of total assets. 

Read about important terms like CRR, repo rate, and reverse repo rate in the linked article.

4. CiSS Application

Syllabus: GS II, Social Justice, Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population

Prelims: NCPCR, CiSS Application

Context: The National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has launched an application under the Bal Swaraj portal to help protect the children exposed to street situations. This application is named CiSS (Children in Street Situations). 

About the CiSS Application:

• This application will facilitate the rehabilitation process of children from the streets. 
• It will operate under the Bal Swaraj portal which was launched by NCPCR for online tracking and digital real-time monitoring of children in need of care and protection. 
• The portal has two functions such as COVID care and CiSS. 
• The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Care and Protection of Children in Street Situation 2.0 categorises any child under CiSS if:
  • The child is living on the streets alone
  • Living on the streets during the day
  • Living on the streets with family
• This is a unique application developed by NCPCR and an initiative that was taken under the direction of the Supreme Court of India. 
• This programme embodies Fundamental Duties enshrined in the Constitution by providing a platform for the public and organisations to work for the welfare of the children and protect their interests. 

Read comprehensively about NCPCR in the linked article.

5. BIOTECH STARTUP EXPO 2022

Syllabus: GS III, Science and Technology, Awareness in the field of biotechnology

Prelims: National Biopharma Mission

Mains: The scope of biotechnology in India

Context: The BIOTECH STARTUP EXPO 2022 has been organised at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi to celebrate 10 years of the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).

About the Event:

• This startup event will be a major boost to the biotech sector in India wherein 75 successful startups supported by BIRAC will be showcased. 
• This event will be open to the public to witness the progress nurtured by institutions like BIRAC.
• An e-Portal of 750 biotech products along with a coffee table book of 75 women biotech entrepreneurs will be launched.
• A platform will be endowed for engaging business representatives, start-ups, investors, manufacturers, vendors, industries, scientists, and scholars from universities, and research institutions of the Department of Biotechnology, CSIR, ICAR, DST, IIT, and so on. 

Highlighting India’s achievements so far: 

• India’s battle against the pandemic and its proactive measures to accelerate indigenous vaccine production that was shared with friendly countries have been praiseworthy. 
• Institutions like BIRAC have played a critical role in making India among the top 12 destinations for biotechnology in the world and 3rd in the Asia-Pacific.
• With the 46th rank in the Global Innovation Index, India’s bio-economy is proliferating at a faster pace. 
• It is anticipated that India’s biotech sector is stepping ahead to reach $150 billion by 2025. 

About BIRAC:

• It is a not-for-profit public sector enterprise set up by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India.
• It was established as an interface agency to strengthen and empower the emerging biotech enterprises to undertake strategic research and development, innovation, and addressing nationally relevant product development needs. 
• It acts as a bridge between industry and academia with a range of impact initiatives. 
• Its major functions include:
  • Provide access to risk capital through targeted funding
  • Technology transfer
  • Intellectual property management
  • Boosting hand holding schemes that promote innovation excellence in biotech firms
  • Initiate partnerships with several national and global partners to collaborate and deliver the salient features of its mandate. 
• Long term aim of BIRAC is to play a transformative and catalytic role in building a $100 billion bio-economy with a focus on enhancing the capabilities of biotech start-ups, biotech infrastructure and subject matter experts.

Read previous PIB here.

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