14 May 2022: PIB Summary for UPSC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Incredible India International Cruise Conference 2022
2. Deployment of INS Gharial to Seychelles - Mission Sagar IX
3. GatiShakti Sanchar Portal

1. Incredible India International Cruise Conference 2022

Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Economy – Infrastructure – Ports.

Prelims: Coastal destination circuits; Maritime Vision 2030

Mains: Potential of cruise tourism in India; Significance and government initiatives

Context:

• The first-ever Incredible India International Cruise Conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, in Mumbai.

Details:

• The Conference has been jointly organized by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Government of India and FICCI.
• Strategies for developing India as a cruise hub, policy initiatives and port infrastructure and the potential of river cruise tourism are some of the key issues being taken up for discussion at the conference.

Potential of the Indian cruise market:

• Speaking at the conference, the Union Minister asserted that the Indian cruise market had the potential to grow 10 folds over the next decade, attributable mainly to rising disposable income and demand.
• Post pandemic, cruise tourism in India has registered a 35% year-on-year growth.
• The vast coastline and the extensive systems provide ample potential for cruise tourism in India.
• The economic potential of cruise tourism is expected to go up from USD 110 million to USD 5.5 billion in the years to come.

Government initiatives:

• To boost the cruise tourism industry in the country, Government of India has taken several initiatives including infrastructure up-gradation at seven major ports, rationalisation of port fees, removing ousting charges, granting priority berthing to cruise ships, providing e-visa facilities, etc.
• The government is working towards creating state-of-art infrastructure for both ocean and river cruises. The development of ports is an important step in this direction. A New International Cruise terminal is coming up in Mumbai.
• The Government had previously set up a Task Force for the development of cruise tourism.  In a follow-up move, the Minister announced the setting up of a high-level Advisory Committee, comprising national and international experts, to guide the Task Force.
• Four theme-based coastal destination circuits – Gujarat Pilgrimage tours, West Coast – Cultural and scenic tours, South Coast – Ayurvedic wellness tours and East Coast – Heritage tourism have been developed. Lighthouse and Island development is also being undertaken.
• The Maritime Vision Document 2030 focuses on heritage tourism, Ayurveda tourism, coastal tourism, river cruise tourism, etc.

2. Deployment of INS Gharial to Seychelles – Mission Sagar IX

Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – International Relations – India and its Neighbourhood – Relations.

Prelims: Mission SAGAR

Mains: Initiatives being taken by India in the Indian Ocean region

Context:

• As part of the ongoing deployment of the Indian Naval Ship Gharial in the South-West Indian Ocean, under Mission SAGAR IX, the ship called at Port Victoria, Seychelles recently.

Details:

• During the stay, the Indian Navy facilitated the training of Seychelles Defence Forces personnel in domain-specific maritime disciplines. This demonstrates India’s vision of capacity building and capability enhancement of the Seychelles Defence Forces and is based on the concept of ‘Collective Responsibility’ for maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region.
• Notably, before the visit to Seychelles, INS Gharial had also visited Colombo, Sri Lanka and Male, Maldives to deliver essential medical supplies.
• The deployments of the Indian Navy under Mission SAGAR are aligned with the vision of Security And Growth for All in the Region.

3. GatiShakti Sanchar Portal

Syllabus: GS Paper 2- Governance- Important Aspects of Governance

Prelims: Gatishakti Sanchar Portal

Context:

• The Union Minister for Communications, Electronics & IT, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, recently launched the “GatiShakti Sanchar” portal.

Details:

• The “GatiShakti Sanchar” Portal aims to provide for Centralised Right of Way (RoW) approvals.
• The portal will enable applicants from various Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) as well as Infrastructure providers (IPs) to apply at a common single portal for Right of Way permissions to lay down Optical Fibre Cable and for erecting mobile towers to State/UT Governments and local bodies.

Significance:

• The portal shall act as an enabler to the objective of “Ease of doing business” for telecommunications infrastructure works.
• The centralized system will help streamline the process of Right of Way (RoW) applications and permissions across the Country. This will help facilitate smooth and efficient deployment of Digital Communications Infrastructure in the country, which in turn will help ensure universal and equitable access to Broadband services, especially in the rural areas. This portal will go a long way in envisioning the goals set forth in the National Broadband Mission (NBM).
• National Broadband Mission set up in 2019 aims to facilitate universal and equitable access to broadband services across the country, especially in rural and remote areas. It envisions the provision of broadband infrastructure as a core utility to every citizen, Governance and services on demand and digital empowerment of the citizens.

For more detailed information on National Broadband Mission refer to the following article:

PIB dated Dec 17, 2019: National Broadband Mission

Read previous PIB here.

May 14th, 2022, PIB:- Download PDF Here