06 Nov 2020: PIB Summary & Analysis

November 6th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. India-Italy Virtual Bilateral Summit
2. One Rank One Pension
3. Gov Tech-Thon 2020
4. Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP)
5. National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA)
6. National Cancer Awareness Day
7. National Water Awards

1. India-Italy Virtual Bilateral Summit

Context:

India-Italy Virtual Bilateral Summit held.

Details:

• The summit will see the signing of about a dozen agreements in areas ranging from trade and investment to infrastructure.
• The two sides explored the possibility of increasing Italian investments in India and enhancing defence cooperation and manufacturing under the Make in India

India – Italy Relations:

• India and Italy share a warm and multifaceted relationship based on strong historical ties, common democratic traditions, rule of law and a shared goal of international peace and stability.
• India views Italy as an important member of the European Union and values its positive contribution in furthering India-EU ties.
• ​India-Italy relations are marked by regular high-level exchanges which saw incoming visits by Italian Prime Ministers in 2017 and 2018.
• Bilateral trade stood at Euros 9.52 billion in 2019. Italy is India’s 5^th largest trading partner in the EU, after Germany, Belgium, UK and France.
• Around 600 large Italian companies are active in India, covering varied sectors such as fashion and garments, textiles and textile machinery, automotive components, infrastructure, chemicals, energy confectionery, insurance, etc. Several Indian companies are also active in Italy.
• Both countries are keen to firmly put behind the 2012 killing of two Indian crew members of a fishing boat off the coast of Kerala by Italian marines guarding an oil tanker ‘Enrica Lexie’, an incident that took bilateral ties to an all-time low.

2. One Rank One Pension

Context:

The One Rank One Pension scheme completes five years.

About One Rank One Pension (OROP):

• The decision to implement OROP was issued by an order in November 2015, with the benefit effective from July 2014 itself. This had been a long-standing demand of ex-servicemen in the country.
• Armed Forces Personnel retired up to 30.06.2014 were covered under this Order.
• OROP implies that uniform pension be paid to the Armed Forces Personnel retiring in the same rank with the same length of service regardless of their date of retirement. Thus, OROP implies bridging the gap between the rate of pension of current and past retirees at periodic intervals.
• Put simply, OROP means that every soldier who retires in the same rank gets the same pension, irrespective of his date of retirement.

3. Gov Tech-Thon 2020

Context:

The Gov Tech-Thon 2020 concluded on 1^st November 2020.

About the Gov Tech-Thon 2020:

• It is a 36 hours, pan-India virtual hackathon organized by IEEE, National Informatics Centre (NIC) and Oracle, under the aegis of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India.
• The virtual hackathon received registrations from over 1300 aspirants forming 390 teams.
• Shortlisted 447 enthusiasts from 100 teams participated in the Hackathon on the five problem statements provided by 3 central government ministries – Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Ministry of Road Transport and Highway and Ministry of Education.

National Informatics Centre (NIC):

• NIC, established in 1976, is an attached office of the MeitY.
• It provides ICT and e-Governance support to the Government.
• NIC spearheaded “Informatics-Led-Development” by implementing ICT applications in social and public administration and facilitates electronic delivery of services to the government (G2G), business (G2B), citizen (G2C) and government employee (G2E).
• NIC, through its ICT Network, “NICNET”, has institutional linkages with all the Ministries/Departments of the Central Government, 37 State Governments/Union Territories, and about 720+ District Administrations of India.

IEEE Computer Society:

• IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.
• IEEE has more than 419,000 members in over 160 countries.
• It engages in advancing the theory, practice, and application of computer and information-processing science and technology, as well as the professional standing of its members.

4. Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP)

Context:

The Ministry of MSME under the Govt. of India warns unscrupulous elements against cheating people in the name of Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) Scheme. The Ministry clarifies that the entire process of application and fund release under PMEGP is online and free of cost.

To know more about the PMEGP, click on the linked article.

5. National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA)

What’s in News?

The Dept. of Food & Public Distribution has said that 4.39 crore bogus ration cards have been weeded out since 2013 for the rightful targeting of beneficiaries under the NFSA.

Know all about the NFSA in the linked article.

Also, know the difference between PDS and TPDS in the linked article.

6. National Cancer Awareness Day

Context:

The National Cancer Awareness Day is observed in India on 7^th November.

About the National Cancer Awareness Day:

• The National Cancer Awareness Day is observed to generate awareness about cancer prevention and early detection.
• The day coincides with the birth anniversary of eminent scientist Madame Curie.
  • Marie Curie is remembered for her discovery of radium and polonium, and her huge contribution to the fight against cancer.
  • Her work led to the development of nuclear energy and radiotherapy for the treatment of cancer.
• The first National Cancer Awareness Day was observed in 2014 in India.

Cancer in India:

• According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), cancer is the second leading cause of death globally and in 2018, there were approximately 18 million cases globally, of which 1.5 million were in India alone.
• There were around 0.8 million cancer deaths in India in 2018 against 9.5 million globally.
• The numbers of new cases are estimated to double in India by 2040.
• In India, nearly 1.1 million new cases are being reported annually.
• Two-thirds of cancer cases are diagnosed at an advanced stage, reducing patients’ chances of survival.
• It is estimated that one woman dies of cervical cancer every 8 minutes in India.
• Tobacco (smoked and smokeless) use accounted for 3,17,928 deaths (approximately) in men and women in 2018.
• Cancers of oral cavity and lungs account for over 25% of cancer deaths in males and cancer of breast and oral cavity account for 25% cancers in females.
• The National Cancer Control Programme was initiated in 1975 with a view to provide cancer treatment facilities in the country. The programme was modified in 1984-85 to provide thrust to prevention and early detection of cancer.

7. National Water Awards

Context:

Second National Water Awards to be conferred in November.

About the National Water Awards:

• The Ground Water Augmentation Awards and National Water Award were first launched in the year 2007 with an objective to encourage all stakeholder including the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Gram Panchayats, Urban Local Bodies, Water User Associations, Institutions, Corporate Sector, Individuals, etc. for adopting innovative practices of ground water augmentation by rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge, promoting water use efficiency, recycling & re-use of water.
• The awards are also intended to create awareness through people’s participation in the targeted areas resulting into the sustainability of ground water resources development, adequate capacity building amongst the stakeholders, etc.
• Considering the fact that surface water & groundwater are integral parts of the water cycle, it was felt necessary to institute a unified National Water Awards with the objectives of encouraging the stakeholders to adopt a holistic approach towards water resources management in the country.
• Thus, the National Water Awards 2018 were organised for the first time. The awards were given in 2019.
• The awards are given by the Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, GOI.
• The awards are given in several categories such as ‘Best State’, ‘Best District’, ‘Best School’, ‘Best Newspaper’, ‘Best NGO’, ‘Best Industry’, etc. with sub-categories also.

Read previous PIB here.

November 6th, 2020, PIB:- Download PDF Here