04 September 2019: PIB Summary & Analysis

Read the daily PIB update and stay up-to-date on current affairs for the UPSC exam.

September 4th, 2019 PIB:-Download PDF Here

15th FC meet the Ministry of Food Processing Industry

Context

• The Chairman, Shri N.K. Singh, the Members and officials of the 15th Finance Commission held a detailed meeting with, Union Minister for Food Processing Industries and senior officials of her Ministry.

About the meeting

• The Minister presented an overview of the Food Processing sector to the Commission and its contribution to the economy.
• The Commission felt that it was of immediate value to complete the ‘Cold Chain Grid’ project of the Ministry and Value Added Infrastructure, which is now underway.
• The Commission was also appreciative of the Ministry’s project “Operation Greens” which is an Integrated Value Chain Development of Tomato, Onion and Potato (TOP) Crop and price stabilisation measures.

About ‘Cold Chain Grid’

• The National Cold Chain Grid in the country will connect food producing hubs to cold storage and processing industries. It will further aid to double farmers’ income and create huge job opportunities.
• India is one of the largest food producers in the world and the second-largest producer of fruits and vegetables yet only 2.2% of our fruits and vegetables are processed.
• As recommended by the Task Force on cold-chain a National Centre for Cold-chain Development (NCCD) has been established to promote and develop integrated cold-chain in India for perishable agriculture and horticulture produce including perishable from allied sectors.
• The main objectives of the centre are to recommend standards and protocols for cold-chain infrastructure, suggest guidelines for human resource development and to recommend appropriate policy frame-work for development of cold-chain.

Operation Greens

• The programme was announced in the Union Budget 2018-19 with an outlay of Rs 500 crore to stabilise the supply and prices of tomato, onion and potato (TOP) crops.
• Price volatility of TOP crops wreaks havoc in the households of this country. This is a revolutionary scheme which has evolved after sustained dialogue with all stakeholders and we have decided the strategy to stabilise prices of TOP crops.
• The ‘Operation Greens’ programme was announced to promote farmer producers organisations, agri-logistics, processing facilities and professional management.
• The major objectives of this programme include enhancing sales realisation of farmers growing these crops by strengthening production clusters and their FPOs and linking/connecting them with the market.
• It also seeks price stabilisation for producers and consumers by proper production planning in the TOP clusters and introduction of dual-use varieties.

COP Day 3

Context

The 14th Conference of Parties (COP14) to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is holding a multitude of significant discussions on land management.

Gender Action Plan

• The Convention recognizes the importance of women in the implementation of the Convention, and identifies critical areas for their engagement:

1. awareness-raising, and participation in the design and implementation of programmes;
2. decision-making processes that men and women adopt at the local level in the governance of development, implementation and review of regional and national action programmes (RAPs and NAPs);
3. capacity-building, education and public awareness, particularly at the local level through the support of local organizations.

About UNCCD:

• The UNCCD is an international agreement on good land stewardship. It helps people, communities and countries to create wealth, grow economies and secure enough food and water and energy, by ensuring land users have an enabling environment for sustainable land management.
• Through partnerships, the Convention’s 197 Parties set up robust systems to manage drought promptly and effectively.
• Good land stewardship based on sound policy and science helps integrate and accelerate the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, builds resilience to climate change and prevents biodiversity loss.
• The Convention entered into force in December 1996. It is one of the three Rio Conventions along with United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
• India became a signatory to UNCCD in October 1994 and ratified it in December 1996.

 CBDT enters into 26 APAs

Context

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has entered into 26 Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) in the first 5 months of the financial year (April to August 2019).
• Out of these 26 APAs, 1 is a BAPA entered into with the United Kingdom and the remaining 25 are Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (UAPAs).

What is APA

• An advance pricing agreement (APA) is an ahead-of-time agreement between a taxpayer and a tax authority on an appropriate transfer pricing methodology (TPM) for a set of transactions at issue over a fixed period of time.

Bilateral and multilateral APAs

• Bilateral APAs (BAPA) are those that also include agreements between the taxpayer and one or more foreign tax administrations under the authority of the mutual agreement procedure (MAP) specified in income tax treaties.
• The taxpayer benefits from such agreements since they are assured that income associated with covered transactions is not subject to double taxation

Significance

• The progress of the APA scheme strengthens the Government’s resolve of fostering a non-adversarial tax regime.
• The Indian APA programme has been appreciated nationally and internationally for being able to address complex transfer pricing issues in a fair and transparent manner.

Joint Statement on Cooperation between India and Russia

Context

• Joint statement on cooperation for 2019-24 with Russia, which was issued in Vladivostok, Russia after Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s annual bilateral summit with Russian President Mr Vladimir Putin.

NATURAL GAS SECTOR

• Both sides recognize the significance of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) supplied from Russia to India and agree to strengthen LNG imports to India to promote India’s bid to transform itself into a gas-based economy.
• Russia will encourage it’s public and private sector companies to participate in gas projects in India, particularly in the development of gas pipeline networks and city gas distribution infrastructure in India.
• India’s private and public companies will explore the possibility of collaborating in LNG projects, including in the Arctic.
• In regards to cooperation in the Arctic, Indian companies will examine the possibility of development of closer cooperation with Russian companies, including the LNG Arctic projects of JSC NOVATEK.
• Both Sides welcome the interest of JSC NOVATEK to enhance LNG supplies to India and joint development of the gas market in India including but not limited to LNG infrastructure projects in collaboration with Indian companies.

TRAINING, TECHNOLOGY, THIRD COUNTRY COOPERATION

• Both Sides will strengthen and diversify the existing training exchange program and create new ways of enhancing knowledge exchange, joint research in the energy sector, including those in emerging technologies.
• Both Sides agreed to explore the possibility of undertaking joint projects in third countries in the energy sector.

Launching Poshan Maah in the Different States

Context

Under POSHAN Abhiyaan, this September is being celebrated as the Poshan Maah across the country to address the malnutritional challenges.

Poshan Maah

• The month-long intensive event plans to bring about convergence amongst various ministries/departments to rally people’s opinion and participation to reduce and finally eliminate malnutrition from the country.
• Poshan Maah aims at making people aware of the importance of nutrition and giving the individual access to government services to support supplement nutrition for their children and pregnant women/lactating mothers.
• This year Poshan Maah focuses on five critical components – ‘First 1000 days of the Child, Anaemia, Diarrhoea, Hand Wash & Sanitation and Poshtik Aahar (wholesome meal with diet diversity)’, called ‘Paanch Sutras’.

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